#division 81 records

[burlveneer-music]

Isaiah Collier & The Chosen Few - The Almighty - spiritual jazz with FIRE

Isaiah Collier & The Chosen Few return with a new musical journey, "The Almighty". The first quartet offering since 2021's Cosmic Transition. Isaiah Collier Sax, Vocals, Auxiliary Percussion Michael Shekwoaga Ode Drums Julian Davis Reid Piano Jeremiah Hunt Bass The Celestials (track 5): Strings Zara Zaharieva-Violin Edith Yokey-Violin Michelle Manson-Viola Horns Mayshell Morris-Flute Fred Jackson-Alto Saxophone Corey Wilkes-Trumpet Ryan Nyther-Trumpet Matthew Davis-Trombone Justin Dillard- Piano Micah Collier- Bass Vincent Davis- Drums

[tiredfinch]

also here's marauders music taste hcs (period accurate), but some characters aren't included bc I'm not super deep in fandom so I don't . know/think anything abt them.

-

james- I think he'd be a big fan of all the music of the now and maybe 10 ish years earlier. lots of sixties duwopy pop-rock like the beatles, the zombies and the turtles but also more contemporary stuff; Fleetwood Mac, Wings, the Pretty Things, Frank Zappa, the Eagles, Queen and Bowie (not glam, disco. so like thin white Duke era- not that he'd mind glam bowie I just think he'd prefer disco bowie)! also I think like Ambrosia and other 70s pop he'd dig.. but I think he would be totally in love with Fleetwood Mac, especially their album Mystery to Me- because it would remind him of lily. I think he, along with alice, would get lily more into fleetwood mac.

lily - I think she'd really prefer 50s rock and jazz .. blues and soul too, though I don't think she'd mind later rock. she just seems very buddy holly/chet baker/frank sinatra/ray charles/ella fitzgerald/nina simone, I also think she'd really like otis redding but he's 60s lol, oh and I think she would've LOVED the monkees when she wad younger and would think theyre brilliant.

sirius - glam glam glam and then also punk from the late 70s-81.. also goth+post punk music (ie. the cure, echo and the bunnymen, the smiths, siouxsie and the banshees, depeche mode, joy division ect ect) but I always think of goth as sort of a mid-late 80s thing so I don't think he'd have really been exposed to alot of goth bands because he was. in jail... but I think David Bowie, T. Rex, Lou Reed, the Velvet Underground, and then like Television, Patti Smith, the Clash, Iggy Pop, the Stooges. yk.. but also a lot of what James listens to as well!:3 bc they r bff! also I think remus and sirius share great love for queen :)

remus! - folk! and art rock! I think he'd like a lot of the glam sirius listens to and I think he'd be a very big velvet underground fan. as for folk, I think Bob Dylan, Vashti Bunyan, Donovan, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Janis Ian, Simon and Garfunkle, GEORGE HARRISON!! - that sort of vibe.. also also think he'd share folky stuff with lily and she would rather enjoy it !

peter - I don't think he really listens to music tbh, not in the way where he'd have favourites. just whatever is on the radio/the records his friends play!

alice - I think she lovessssss female artists and makes a point to listen to them. Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Janis Ian, Janis Joplin, Tina Turner, Kate Bush, Aretha Franklin, very varied but very girl, because I think Alice is a big fan of women doing things idk. bisexual moment 4 her. I think her and lily would also both share a really great love of Stevie Nicks and be like fanatics of hers.

frank - I think bro LOVES reggae idk. Bob Marley fan. culture/jimmy cliff/the gladiators. I also think he'd like a lot of "dad rock" bands, led zeppelin/steely dan/the eagles/the who/the kinks.. yar naur. he's a man❤️🙂‍↕️

severus - classical music snob, probably inherited from his mom. loathes rock n roll idk. seems like THAT SORT OF GUY..

regulus - lots of classical and jazz, but not in the way severus is like pretentious, I mean coming from a muscianship standpoint. I think he'd especially love miles davis jazz wise and beethoven+liszt classical music wise (ie. I think he'd have a great love for romantic music, even though beethoven isn't usually considered romantic- just LISTEN to moonlight sonata, it is DRIPPING with the emotion of romantic music).

-

I also have a list of music artists I think would be witches/wizards in the wizardings world, so I might post that soon:)

[dougdimmadodo]

May’s Fossil of the Month - Thrinaxodon (Thrinaxodon liorhinus)

Family: Thrinaxodon Family (Thrinaxodontidae)

Time Period: Early Triassic (251-247 Million Years Ago) 

At the end of the Permian period around 251 million years ago, the earth experienced the most extreme extinction event in its history (known as the Permian-Triassic Extinction Event or “The Great Dying”,) in which some 70% of terrestrial species and 81% of marine species were driven to extinction. As such, the period immediately following the Permian, the early Triassic, was a period of slow recovery as the descendants of the few survivors of the Great Dying began to adapt and diversify to fill the ecological niches left empty by the extinction of their previous occupants. Thrinaxodon liorhinus was one such survivor; a small (roughly 50cm/1.6 feet in length) species of cynodont synapsid (making it a close relative of mammals, but not a mammal itself), it inhabited what is now southern Africa and northern Antarctica (which were fused as part of a single landmass at the time) in the period immediately following the great dying, and was seemingly among the largest and most common carnivores of its time. Thrinaxodon’s survival was likely enabled at least in part due to its lifestyle; the discovery of individuals fossilized in the remains of burrows show that Thrinaxodon, like many similarly-sized mammals today, was a burrower, and the presence of distinct divisions on its spine to aid in flexibility suggests that, like many burrowing mammals and reptiles today, it may have possessed the ability to travel deeper underground and undergo hibernation or aestivation in order to endure prolonged periods of harsh weather conditions and resource scarcity. In life Thrinaxodon would have likely appeared somewhere between a large lizard and a small dog, with its leg bones and joints suggesting that it stood in a “semi-sprawling” posture mid-way between the belly-to-the-ground sprawling of most lizards and the elevated posture of most mammals, while its dog-like skull and sharp-tipped teeth (including prominent canines on both the upper and lower jaw) suggest that it was likely carnivorous, feeding on insects and/or smaller vertebrates. The discovery of the remains of several Thrinaxodon individuals, sometimes including juveniles, preserved in close proximity to one another suggests that members of this species likely provided parental care and may have also been social, and one unusual but extremely famous fossil burrow containing both an adult Thrinaxodon and an injured Broomistega putterilli (a small species of superficially salamander-like amphibian) showing puncture wounds from teeth too large to belong to the burrow’s owner suggests that, like the Gopher Tortoise and Giant Armadillo today, Thrinaxodon may have been a habitat engineer, with its burrows providing shelter for other species of animal (although it is also possible that the Broomistega had been washed into the burrow during a flood that killed both animals, or that the Thrinaxodon had stolen the injured Broomistega from the larger carnivore that wounded it.)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------  

Image Sources:  https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Thrinaxodon_liorhinus_BP_1_7199.jpg

and

https://www.pbs.org/video/the-oddest-couple-in-the-fossil-record-rcehau/

[tare-anime]

SxF Mission 81

(Beware spoilers)

Ohohohoooooo....

A chapter start out immediately with action.

So, Wheeler.....

Finally we get to see an agent who is (I think) the same calliber as Twilight.

And Twilight himself had once cooperate with him in the past

What is this double agent speciality??? He is quite good in blending in, if WISE HQ doesn't recognize him right away.

And it is interesting that SSS operates without the authority of higher ups.

So it is either this new goverment never approved of SSS but has yet to have enough power to disband this division, a.k.a SSS is still under authority of previous govt a.k.a Donovan Desmond.

Or, as per usual practice, the Govt never want to be involved in "dirty" operation. They always want to be look as clean and good. So if this operation failed, there will be no trace to them. But if this operation succeeded, they want the result for them too. Usual politician practice everywhere, tbh. 🤷‍♀️

Anyway, moving on.... it is interesting to see Nightfall still want Operation Strix to end.

Is she Desmond's agent or what? (I'm joking... I'm joking....)

Actually this is Nightfall being professional here. Should everything go south, agents are to abandon any mission and went hiding.

But Twilight downright said "No."

Purely for the mishun??? Or is there something else? 😏😏

He is starting to sound unprofessional here.

On the other hand, should the files contains any photograph of Anya or Yor, will Twilight take this mission as something more personal?

Will he finally showing that protectiveness side of him??

How will this arc relate to previous drunk Yor with gripes and all marriage problems??

How can Endo tie up serious arc with TwiYor silliness??

Or will we finally saw some development between Twilight and Yuri relationship???

And last but not least...

Where is Twilight? Who is he posing as??

Is he Wheeler ?

Is he the SSS agent on the right?

Is he the top left one, top right one, the kid, or even Fiona???

Let's find out in the next chapter!!

Btw, if the files really contains Anya and Yor pic, I think it will be very interesting details should her pics are always blurry. I mean, Yor can also sense if she's being followed. And it is a common thing that Garden operatives may not have their photograph being recorded anywhere, I guess.

On a joking side, if this is Twilight in disguise.... then I hope Yuri isn't jolted in surprise for being caught reading adult magazine here 🤣🤣🤣 (that's obviously not an adult magazine. And even if it is, he's 20 y.o.) 🤣🤣

[diceriadelluntore]

Storia Di Musica #294 - Simple Minds, New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84)

Se in un ipotetico cruciverba la definizione chiedesse: Famoso gruppo rock scozzese degli anni '80 (10 lettere) la risposta è una sola. Simple Minds. Tutto comincia a Glasgow quando tre ragazzi, Jim Kerr, Charlie Burchill e Brian McGee fondano nel febbraio del 1977 un gruppo a tre, Johnny & The Self Abusers, nome in pieno stile punk. Pubblicano anche un singolo, Saints & Sinners / Dead Van Dals, ma l'insuccesso li porta a sciogliere il gruppo. Un anno più tardi ci riprovano, ma scelgono come nome Simple Minds, partendo da un verso di The Jean Genie di David Bowie, He's so simple-minded, he can't drive his module. Si uniscono le tastiere di Michael McNeil e il basso di Derek Forber, e firmano con la Zoom Records, una etichetta in orbita Arista. Suonano come gruppo di apertura a diverse band, come Siouxsie & The Banshees, gli Ultravox di Midge Ure, e pubblicano il primo disco, nel 1979, Life In A Day, dalla stupenda copertina. Vivono in maniera turbinosa il passaggio dalla scarna dimensione del punk all'arrivo imperioso dell'elettronica e della new wave. Nello stesso anno, desiderosi di fare grandi cose, pubblicano Real To Real Cacophony, un disco che vira con violenza verso l'elettronica, con atmosfere quasi spettrali e in vena di sperimentazione. Le vendite scarseggiano, e l'Arista concede un ultimo tentativo: Empires And Dance nel 1980 è un interessante incrocio tra Krafwerk e Joy Division, con canzoni che hanno un potere magnetico come Celebrate, ma nemmeno stavolta arrivano vendite, nonostante la critica apprezzi tantissimo il disco. Si dividono dalla Arista e firmano con la Virgin, ed iniziano con il botto: originariamente infatti pubblicano un doppio album, composto da due album separati, che la casa discografica prontamente vende separatamente, Sons & Fascination e Sister Feelings Call (1981), con Steve Hillage dei Gong in produzione, sono il primo tentativo organico di dare forma alle ritmica mai banali, alla chitarra ieratica di Burchill e a indirizzare meglio la appassionata e versatile voce di Kerr. Finalmente le vendite arrivano e gli album sfiorano la Top Ten degli album più venduti. Ma c'è il primo abbandono: McGee se ne va, e per un certo periodo c'è una rotazione di batteristi finchè, dopo un lungo tour, viene ingaggiato il batterista Mel Gaynor, formidabile, che subito viene mandato in studio per registrare del nuovo materiale.

Ciò che ne viene fuori, abbassata la tensione personale e ritrovato un approccio più spirituale alla composizione, parole di Jim Kerr, è il tanto atteso capolavoro. In regia c'è un giovanissimo Peter Walsh, che a 21 anni aveva lavorato con gli Heaven 17 e a 22 aiuta la band scozzese a produrre un disco che nelle atmosfere generali è sofisticato, etereo ma ricco di vibrazioni intense, suonato benissimo e che ha canzoni meravigliose al suo interno. Il titolo viene in mente alla Band durante un tour in Australia, nel 1981, in cui il promoter oceanico chiedeva se volevano già preparare un tour nel 1983 e 1984: New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84). Il primo singolo è Promised You a Miracle, con il meraviglioso lavoro del basso di McNeil e il riff accattivante di Burchill, con un inaspettato ritmo funk, e con questa canzone debuttano persino in Tv nella storica trasmissione della BBC Top Of The Pops. Il disco ha canzoni che sono diventate famosissime: Someone Somewhere In Summertime, dall'atmosfera sognante e la ritmica innovativa, Glittering Prize che divenne una hit anche per il fantasioso video girato in uan camera tutta dipinta d'oro, canzone che come poche tra l'altro racconta la new wave degli anni '80 nelle sue tastiere a tappeto e nel beat elettronico. Del tocco elettronico dei primi dischi rimane solo Big Sleep, in una mutazione che trova però un perfetto equilibrio in musicalità e diventerà una sorta di pietra di paragone per qualche anno. C'è persino uno strumentale, Somebody Up There Likes You, nella meravigliosa Hunter And The Hunted c'è persino la leggenda del jazz Herbie Hancock a suonare un assolo al sintetizzatore, e New Gold Dreams (81-82-83-84) con il suo andare a salire diventerà una hit e un inno da stadio, anticipando il suono elettronico dei Depeche Mode. Il successo di critica e vendite è altissimo, tanto che la band sfrutta l'onda e pubblica nello stesso anno Sparkle In The Rain. Chiama a produrre uno dei nomi del momento, Steve Lillywhite, che aveva prodotto gli XTC e i primi tre dischi degli U2, per un suono più leggero ma che ha un alone di ruvidezza.

Nel 1985, Once Upon A Time diviene uno dei pochi dischi di grande successo più criticato dai fan. Il tutto perchè la band decide di fare una cover di Keith Forsey, Don't You (Forget About Me), che diviene una hit mondiale come colonna sonora del film Breakfast Club (canzone in primo momento rifiutata da Brian Ferry) e ritenuta troppo "pop commerciale". In tutta risposta, la Band è una delle colonne del Live Aid, con piena sorpresa di chi li aveva conosciuti come avanguardia nel 1980. Rimane tuttavia uno zoccolo duro di appassionati, tanto che hanno un record invidiabile di ben 21 singoli in classifica fino al 1998, anno in cui dedicheranno un disco a Napoli, Neapolis. I Simple Minds hanno avuto un percorso musicale del tutto particolare, e il loro ricordo è minore rispetto ad altri gruppi del periodo anche per scelte personali che li allontanarono dal pubblico (dopo Once Upon A Time, si presero una pausa di 4 anni per far uscire Street Fighting Years, che contiene due grandi inni della loro antologia, The Belfast Child e Mandela Day). Ancora oggi suonano, pubblicano canzoni e fanno concerti, probabilmente con poche nuove cosa da proporre, ma con una sfilza di canzoni inni che molti ancora ricordano, declamati tra l'altro con il meraviglioso accento di Glasgow di Kerr, che chiama propriamente la sua band Simple Mains.

[uneasylisteningradio]

The Kids Just Don't Understand July 6, 2024

Filling in for a metal show, playing 1 metal only (Total Hell). No recording, sorry, I linked to the songs where I could

Erik Nervous - R'G'M FREAK GENES - The Feeling in a Dream Sally Skull - You Better Go Street Eaters - Expensive Dog (Total Control) Uzu - Mada Hadeth ماذا حدث؟ Sister Irene O'Connor - Mass - 'Emmanuel'

Dissekerad - Explosion Inombords Eleven Pond - Watching Trees The Flatmates - I Could Be In Heaven

Joy Division - Shadowplay (Live) Pagans - Dead End America Łysol - Padded Cell Indikator B - Godi Nama Peace De Résistance - Coddle the Rich Excess Blood - Appeal

Crash Course In Science - It Cost's To Be Austere Added Dimensions - Interruption The Cake - Extroverted Introvert Quasi - Nowheresville Mope Grooves - Forever Is a Long Time Dark Thoughts - Do You Dream (version) Rat Cage - No One Head Cheese - Jungle Jam

Idris Muhammad - Could Heaven Ever Be Like This Three - Swann Street Hot Tubs Time Machine - No Thanks Google Maps

The Police - So Lonely Börn - Þú Skuldar Mér Að Vera Sexý Total Hell - Satanic Fist Plastics - Delicious Felt - My Face Is On Fire

Assistert Sjølmord - Toxicity Que Bono - Making Noise Eggs - A Pit with Spikes Lame Drivers - Runnin Scared Ground Zero - Televoid The Mall - Peeling

Chandra - Subways 27 Beaches - Somebody Got It Wrong The Louvin Brothers - Satan's Jeweled Crown Billiam - Maid Dress The Blood - Parasite in Paradise

Syndrome 81 - Recouvrance HEAVEN - S.C.U.M. TRAUMATIZER - Traumatizer Pack Rat - Sleepless The Cowboys - Raining Sour Grapes

Shellac - Rambler Song

[thegenderdruid]

run differential is crazy this season, here's some fun divisional run differential anomalies for each division:

-the NL east has a combined record of 237-207 and a combined run differential of +72 but if you removed Atlanta that run differential becomes -81

-every team in the AL east is at least 4 games over 500 and has a positive run differential for a combined run differential of +260

-every team in the NL central has a negative run differential except the Cubs who are +23 but are in 3rd, 8 games out of 1st place

-every team in the AL central has a negative run differential except the Twins who are in 2nd, they have a combined run differential of -273

-NL west combined run differential: +17, NL west combined run differential if you ignore Colorado: +163

-AL west combined run differential: +5, AL west combined run differential if you ignore Oakland: +252

[randomstupidchaos]

I decided my goal for this year is to knock down some of my fabric stash and I’m gonna do it in the least responsible way possible: 

A king-size postage stamp quilt. 

I’ve done the math on this. 2 inch squares to start. 1.5inch squares finished, with 1/4 inch seams. Goal is to not buy any additional fabric for it (aside from the backing fabric and potentially the binding).

It’s going to be square, so the overall dimensions are not traditional king-size but well within the dimensions of a traditional king. 

I originally chose 70x70, which comes to a grand total of 4,900 pieces of fabric, and 105in by 105in. My thought was I could break the quilt up into smaller pieces and work on a few blocks per weekend. I settled on individual blocks of 25, 5x5, and 4 per weekend. This would let me finish the quilt top by the end of the year (assuming I can knock out 16 in the next 10 days). 

But then I did some more thinking about it. I want to do a checkerboard pattern with my low volume fabrics and brights, and I discovered the easiest way to divide up the checkerboard and not have to alternate blocks was to do an even number division.

So then.

70x70 doesn’t divide up as nicely into small, manageable blocks. Could I have done 10x10 blocks? Sure. But that sounds fiddly and lame. 

So then.

I thought ‘72x72 is even more quilt to love and also divisible by 8′. By using 8x8 blocks, so 64 pieces of fabric, which can be pieced as 16-patch blocks and connected (very manageable; a 16-patch was one of my first quilts), I only need 81 blocks. If I do 2 blocks per weekend, starting this weekend, I can definitely finish the quilt top by the end of the year, with time to finish the whole quilt. 

For the record, 72x72 is 5,184. 108″x108″.

Soooo. In order to simplify the process, I made more work for myself. And... I’m not mad about it. My stash can handle it. 

[terracottahearted]

Rate my record collection!

1. Everyday Robots - Damon Albarn

2. Nearer The Fountain [..] - Damon Albarn

3. Hospice - The Antlers (White)

4. AM - Arctic Monkeys

5. Burning From The Inside - Bauhaus

6. Depression Cherry - Beach House

7. License to Ill - Beastie Boys

8. Sgt Pepper [..] - The Beatles

9. Abbey Road - The Beatles *

10. Leisure - Blur

11. Modern Life Is Rubbish - Blur

12. Parklife - Blur (Green) !

13. Girls & Boys - Blur (Translucent Orange)

14. The Great Escape - Blur

15. Blur - Blur

16. Beetlebum - Blur (Translucent Red)

17. 13 - Blur

18. Think Tank - Blur

19. The Magic Whip - Blur

20. Blur Present (RSD) - Blur (Translucent Blue)

21. The Ballad of Darren - Blur (Marble)

22. Heaven or Las Vegas - Cocteau Twins

23. A Rush of Blood To The Head - Coldplay

24. Disintegration - The Cure

25. Dead Man’s Bones - Dead Man’s Bones

26. Born to Die - Lana Del Rey

27. Paradise - Lana Del Rey

28. Ultraviolence - Lana Del Rey

29. Violator - Depech Mode

30. Observatory Mansions - Nicole Dollanganger (Light Pink)

31. Ode to Dawn Weiner [..] - Nicole Dollanganger (Neapolitan)

32. Songs to Learn & Sing - Echo and The Bunnymen

33. Don’t Smile At Me - Billie Eilish (Red)

34. When We All Fall Asleep [..] - Billie Eilish (Glow)

35. Happier Than Ever - Billie Eilish (Baby Blue)

36. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road - Elton John *

37. Mystery to Me - Fleetwood Mac *

38. Lungs - Florence + The Machine (Dark Pink)

39. Desired Effect - Brandon Flowers (Yellow)

40. Why Me? Why Not? - Liam Gallagher (Mint Green)

41. The Good the Bad and The Queen

42. Merrie Land - The Good The Bad and The Queen (Green)

43. Gorillaz - Gorillaz

44. G-Sides - Gorillaz

45. Demon Days - Gorillaz (Purple)

46. D-Sides - Gorillaz

47. Plastic Beach - Gorillaz

48. The Fall - Gorillaz

49. Humanz - Gorillaz

50. The Now Now - Gorillaz (Light Blue)

51. Song Machine - Gorillaz

52. Cracker Island - Gorillaz (Neon Pink)

53. Halfaxa - Grimes

54. Live Through This - Hole

55. Сказка - IC3PEAK

56. До Свидания - IC3PEAK

57. Unknown Pleasures - Joy Division

58. Good Kid [..] - Kendrick Lamar *

59. Ciao - Lush (Red)

60. Hot Fuss - The Killers

61. Sam’s Town - The Killers (Picture Disc)

62. Sawdust - The Killers (Translucent)

63. Day & Age - The Killers (Silver)

64. Wonderful Wonderful - The Killers

65. Imploding The Mirage - The Killers

66. Pressure Machine - The Killers

67. Silent Shout - The Knife

68. Strange Trails - Lord Huron

69. Long Lost - Lord Huron

70. Holy Wood - Marilyn Manson !

71. Mezzanine - Massive Attack

72. So Tonight I Might See - Mazzy Star

73. Hurry Up We’re Dreaming - M83

74. Be The Cowboy - Mitski

75. Loveless - My Blood Valentine (Wine) !

76. Power, Corruption, and Lies - New Order

77. Pretty Hate Machine - Nine Inch Nails

78. Broken - Nine Inch Nails

79. The Downward Spiral - Nine Inch Nails

80. Nevermind - Nirvana *

81. Definitely Maybe - Oasis

82. What’s the Story Morning Glory - Oasis

83. Pony - Orville Peck

84. Bronco - Orville Peck

85. Placebo - Placebo

86. Different Class - Pulp

87. This Is Hardcore - Pulp

88. Melanchole - Salvia Palth

89. The Graduate - Simon and Garfunkel *

90. Floodland - Sisters of Mercy

91. Just For A Day - Slowdive

92. Souvlaki - Slowdive

93. Meat Is Murder - The Smiths

94. Hateful of Hollow - The Smiths

95. The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses

96. Suede - Suede

97. War - U2

98. Joshua Tree - U2

99. Isolation - Kali Uchis *

100. Trainspotting - Various Artists

101. A Storm In Heaven - The Verve

102. Urban Hymns - The Verve

103. The Waeve - The Waeve (Green)

Gift: *

Bootleg: !

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

"Four Are Held Here In High-Grade Gold Smuggling Case," Windsor Star. February 22, 1943. Page 3 & 6. ---- Canadian and U.S. Police Co-Operate ---- SPRING TRAP AFTER TWO MONTHS OF WORK THOUSANDS IN PRECIOUS METAL IS RECOVERED --- By ANGUS MUNRO Bail of $5,000 cash or $10,000 property was fixed here this morning for each of four men charged with being members of a powerful gang of alleged high-grade gold smugglers.

The gang was rounded up and taken into custody after weeks of skilfully planned. perfectly executed police work on the part of federal authorities in Windsor, Toronto, Hamilton and Detroit.

Hunt Fifth Man Another member of the gang Windsor woman, wife of one of the men, is not being held now her identity rinsed by police. A fifth man is being sought in Detroit. Those held are:

Marke Lakich, 35, 1111 Albert

Michael Bich, 41, 775 81. Lake

George Birash. 47. 1366 Hickory

Sam Matijevich. 47, allas Sam Matheson, Hamilton.

All were arraigned before Magistrate J. Arthur Hanrahan in city police court this morning charged with at- tempting to export, or aiding and abetting the export of property from Canada to the United States without A licence from the Foreign Exchange

Bail Is Fixed

Only Malijevich was represented by counsel. Major J. Ernest Zeron, his lawyer, asked the court if bail could be allowed and after consultation with police, it was fixed at $5,000 cash or $10,000 property. The four were remanded a week. Purpose of the remand is to complete further investigations that are being made by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Foreign Exchange and A. W. Anderson, RCMP whe appeared in court this morning along with Inspector W. Morphet of the Windsor office of the Foreign Exchange Ctrl Board, intimated that more serious charges are likey to be laid involving alleged conspiracy.

The four were locked up pending bail arrangements.

Industrial Workers The three Windsor men are on the payroll of industrial plants here while Matijevich has no known occupation. Matijevich was arrested by Hamilton authorities and brought to Windsor while the remaining three were taken into custody a week ago in an Ouelette avenue rooming-house where the police trap was sprung without a hitch. All are being detained in a downtown hotel under guard.

Not since the old rum-running days on the border have international enforcement officers worked more lovely nor more dramatically. For two months, night and day. movements of the gang have been carefully watched and records made of their every move and word. This was possible through one of the oldest yet most audacious forms of sleuthing known in police.

In constant touch with the gang and successfully passing himself off as one of them wan an unidentified special agent of the United States Treasury Department. Customs Division, who was known to the rest of the gang as Bill Brown. He it was who flashed thick rolls of bills in the faces of the gang and who met with them in hotel rooms and other points of rendezvous without once arousing their suspicions.

Perfect Come-on He was a perfect come-on. He cultivated the friendship of the gold handlers. He won their trust and led them, sheep-like, into the trap which ended their activities and may send them to prison.

Authorities here believe Windsor was about to become one of the main new channels for the export of high-grade,, about $3,000.800 worth of which is estimated to be taken illegally from the country annually after being stolen by miners of Ontario's gold mining north country. All the men taken here are known to have formerly lived in the north or have been employed by mining companies. The dramatic story of the grand round-up in Windsor was given to The Star by Inspector W. M. Morphet of the Windsor inspectorate of the Foreign Exchange Control board. It was confirmed by Staff-Sergeant A. W Anderson of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The entire staff of both these offices have been devoted to the single purpose of gathering evidence, shadowing, trailing and checking movements of the men, watching trains hotel rooms, prate residences rooming houses, tunnel buses to Detroit, private cars and SW and A. buses. The gang and the Mounties in plain clothes moved in and with the city shopping crowds unnoticed.

Separate Rooms So careful were the authorities in avoiding publicity that separate rooms were engaged at the hotel where the men were kept under observation. No telephone calls were permitted to get through and only enforcement officers were permitted to visit the rooms.

The grand finale in the combined activities of United States and Canadian authorities came last Monday, February 13 when the actual gold was to be turned over in the Ouellette avenue rooming house in the men who were to smuggle it across to Detroit.

Gold sells for $38.50 an ounce in Canadian money in Detroit. On that basis the haul made last Monday amounted to nearly $3.000. A previous captured of gold was made in Detroit after it had left Canada. Ia value was $1.36732

While other gold seizures have been made in Canada's wartime history, they have been made only after the gold was out of the country and authorities had to work backwards from the U.S. side after the evidence had been seized by authorities there. Last Monday's climactic seizure was made before the gold left Canada. Here's how it happened.

Story of Seizure While the owners of the rooming-house and members of the family locked themselves in in upstairs room lest there be any shooting or roughhouse tactics, authorities engaged adjacent rooms on the ground floor of the house . In one of these the deal was to take place and the money passed over. In the other room were to be Inspector Morphet, Corporal R. L. Woodhouse and Constable J. M. Gallinger of the R.C.M.P. Allowing sufficient time for the money to produced and handed ever, the offices were at a given signal to enter and make the arrest. The plan worked perfectly.

The gang moved with caution. One of their number came on ahead to the house to scout the layout, Bill Brown, who was to buy the gold, posing as a member of the gang, said everything was okay.

Shortly after, the officers say, along came Lekich, Billich and Birush, one of them carrying the gold. (Matijevich was not in on this deal, but had been picked up in Hamilton on evidence arising from an earlier transaction.)

The gang talked for a while and finnally a deal was agreed on. Lekich and Birush were to take the gold w and Brown was to await a telephone call from Detroit stating that the gold had arrived before he would pay over the money. In "Button" Form The gold was in the form of a "button" or thick heavy slab the shape of the bottom of a small crucible. There were two of the one large one weighing 76 ounces and one small weighing eight ounces. They fitted tote a suit pocket without difficulty. Assays since given the seized gold proclaim it to be the equal of the finest produced in this country.

It was planned that the smuggling should be done in a car but the car wouldn't start and Birush returned to the rooming house while Lekich and the look-out man who had scouted the rooming-house made the trip in the tunnel en route to Detroit.

At the tunnel, both Leklch and the unidentified man were search ed. The gold was dienvered in Lekich's pin but as nothing was found on the other man, he was permitted to continue on through

Constable John T. Townsend and, Constable Walton Routledge. who picked Lekich up at the tunnel explained that they waited until he had passed the customs inspection and had declared himself not to have in his possession any property which should be declared. He was arrested just as he about to step in the Detroit bound bus.

Awaited Call Back at the rooming house, Brown and the others were awaiting the call from Detroit. This name but not from Detroit. This came but not from Detroit. Constable Townsend telephoned Brown from the F.E.C.B. office, stating that Lekich was in custody. This was according to plan. When Brown heard Townsend's voice he knew everything had gone as sched- suled, so he turned to the others and said that the gold had arrived in Detroit and that he was now about to pay them. He began to count out the bills. This was the signal for the others in the adjacent room. A minute or two elapsed until Bijlich and Birush had picked up handfuls of the bills. Then Inspector Morphet and the two officers stepped in through a communicating door and swiftly and efficiently Corporal Woodhouse snapped on the cuffs.

The gang had demanded to see the color of Brown's money before they would deal, so it was necessary to get $3,000 in Canadian funds to be used as come-on money. Authority was given to borrow it from a Windsor bank for this purpose, but it was an anxious time for Inspector Morphet and Staff-Sergeant Anderson while the money was in the hands of the gang. They were considerably relieved when it was taken back from Bijlich and Birush.

Throughout the entire period the assistance rendered by Brown was invaluable to authorities here. It was Brown who figured in an earlier deal 6 in which $1,000 of U. S. money was used to purchase gold in Windsor. The bills were marked and their numbers watched for in Windsor banks.

Wanted Bigger Game It was this deal which Lekich first figured in also. Because it involved a small amount, it was permitted to pass without interference, although under supervision because the authorities wanted bigger game.

Brown at that time flashed a roll of bills and said that he was not interested in "peanuts," he wanted "big stuff." At the sight of the money, he was promised a shipment of 300 ounces. The haul last week was far from that, but it was the largest so far attempted by the gang. It is belleved now that their scheme is nipped in the bud, although investigations are continuing and others may be shortly involved.

R. C. M. P. offices and Foreign Exchange authorities in half a dozen Ontario centres must be given a share of the credit for rounding up the gang. These offices are still hot on the trail. Two men are at present being held in Northern Ontario and others under suspicion. Their parts in the widespread, newly-organized ring, may be revealed within days if present investigations are successful.

More Important Even more important than these developments is the possibility that arising out of the present investigations may come evidence which will be strong enough to show conspiracy to commit an indictable offence. Under the charge now pending there are penalties provided rising to as much as $5,000 fine or five years in prison or both, upon conviction.

Breaking the gang and scattering its members before they even got going has been possible only through the most tenacious type of police work. The Windsor detachment, R.C.M.P., the largest in Canada, by the way, has employed all its members. A small army of officialdom and staff members of other federal agencies from top men down to stenographers have played their parts.

Particularly active have been Inspector Morphet, whose days and nights for the past eight weeks have been full of the details of the investigation, often incurring the duty of remaining up an entire night or working far into the small hours of the morning. Supervising the widely spread police net, Staff-Sergeant Anderson has had his finger on all the multiple duties of his men besides carefully watching the procedure of the case investigations in other centres. A tremendous share of the R. C. M. P. work has devolved upon Constable John T. Townsend and his chief paid tribute to him and his fellow officers in announcing the part the force has played in the case.

Praises Constable "They have devoted themselves unstintingly to their jobs," he said. "I cannot commend them too highly. I believe that Constable Townsend has done an especially good job."

Both department heads-Inspector Morphet and Staff Sergeant Anderson -were lavish in their tribute to the United States authorities.

"It was the most encouraging example we have ever had of international co-operation," Mr. Morphet sald in speaking of the parts played by U. S. officers. He mentioned United States customs supervising agent Charles Wyatt, U. S. Secret Service chief George Boos, Captain Joseph O'Rourke of the U. S. customs border patrol and their staffs. In the work on the Canadian side he spoke of the co-operation given by collector of customs Thomas Clark in Windsor and Inspector William McKee, special investigator of the F.EC.B. in Toronto.

Names Officers To the entire staff of R.C.M.P. officers here, he paid sincere tribute,naming: Constables C. A. Lazelle, Walton Routledge, J. M. Gallinger, D. C. McCannell, Corporal R. L. Woodhouse, his own enforcement inspector George McGonigal and Corporal W. E. L. McElhone, attached to the F. E. C. B. in Toronto, He also had a word for the girls who have worked nights and Sundays preparing the necessary documents in connection with the case. Two of those he especially mentioned are Mrs. Margaret Campbell and Miss Winifred Hubbard.

The men rounded up, with two exceptions, have no known criminal records, but all have formerly been connected in some way with mining and are familiar with the process of high-grading. Matijevich faced a charge of unlawfully wounding another man in February 1940, but the case was dismissed for lack of evidence. Bijlich, according to police, has served two years for high-grading.

The crime is as old as mining itself.Ever since man has dug in the ground for precious minerals, the temptation to get some of the easy wealth for himself has been present. The episode on the Windsor border is the end of a long trail that leads back to the mines of the north country.

Big Profit in Racket The immense profit in the racket is what causes an ever-increasing number of men who labor in the mines to take the chance of sneaking out a spare piece of ore. It must be an especially rare bit or it isn't worth the risk, but many such pieces are found in Ontario's rich gold country.

While following his ordinary job, a miner will suddenly come upon a chunk of ore that has the unmistakable signs of gold in large quantities. Despite all the precautions taken for years by mining companies, high grade ore continues to get out. This is difficult to understand when it is explain-ed that men working in shafts where the vein is believed to be rich, must undress before entering the mine and put on other clothes from the skin out. When they come off duty, these are removed and the street clothes donned again. Yet the $3,000,000 annually lost is a conservative estimate, according to mining men.

Once smuggled out of the mine, the gold is passed to a crude smelter. This agent pays probably $5 to $8 an ounce for what he believes there is of pure gold in the ore. He then takes it to a secret crucible somewhere - an ordinary Quebec heater has been known to serve - and with a few crude bits of equipment, renders it down to a molten state. Tossing in a handful of flux he is able to separate the gold from the unwanted ore and the whole is allowed to cool off. Then it is chipped from the crucible.

After this, it must be further refined in another crucible and chipped out. This is what is known as a button, one of which was found here weighing 76 ounces. This is sold to a runner who takes the responsibility of getting it to a buyer in the United States where the price is $35 an ounce, U.S. funds or $38.50 in Canadian funds. It is generally handled in lots up to 300 ounces. It is difficult to dispose of it in Canada because of the stricter supervision exercised over refiners. --- Image Caption

Officers Responsible for Arrests and Those Accused in Gold Case An international police trap, that clicked as smoothly as a well-rehearsed movie, has broken up what is believed to have been the beginning of a powerful gang of high-grade gold smugglers. More than $4.000 worth of the precious metal has been recovered and is being held as evidence. Four members of the gang are shown in the pictures on the upper right and in the group below. On the upper left, Foreign Exchange Control Board and RCMP officers are shown with the seized gold, part of one of the shipments. Left to right in the group on the upper left are: Inspector W. M. Morphet, of the Windsor office of the FEC.B: Constable J. T. Townsend, of the Windsor Detachment of the RCMP: Inspector George McGonigal, of the FECB; and Constable W. W. Routledge, of the RCMP. On the upper right is Marko Lekich of Windsor. who was arrested at the Windsor side of the tunnel with $3,000 worth of the gold in his possession. Below, left to right. are: George Birush of Windsor. Sam Matijevich of Hamilton, and Michael "Big Mike" Bijlich of Windsor, all members of the gang and former residents of Northern Ontario, from where the gold is believed to have come.

[mywifeleftme]

65: Young Marble Giants // Colossal Youth

Colossal Youth Young Marble Giants 1980, Rough Trade

When I went to the record shop today, it was with the intention of picking up some interesting-looking, relatively obscure record to review later this year, but ended up going home with a physical copy of Colossal Youth, an album I’ve heard a billion times. For my purposes, this was kind of dumb: lots of people have written about Young Marble Giants, and I agree with the consensus. (Consensus: Minimal, quiet, mysteriously perfect post-punk with mousy female vocals and no drums.) Not least among these writers is Simon Reynolds, whose detailed liner notes from this 2007 Domino reissue also appeared in his essential book on post-punk, Rip It Up and Start Again, that introduced me to YMG in the first place. He does a superb job of evoking the post-punk (and adjacent) scene of the day—let’s revel in the list of artists who earn mention in Reynolds’ write-up:

Public Image Ltd., Talking Heads, Gang of Four, Cabaret Voltaire, the Pop Group, Scritti Politti, Throbbing Gristle, The Slits, Pere Ubu, Brian Eno, A Certain Ratio, The Residents, Kraftwerk, Ultravox, Can, Reptile Ranch, Desperate Bicycles, Swell Maps, The Fall, The Raincoats, Essential Logic, This Heat, Red Crayola, Kleenex, Joy Division, New Order, Cocteau Twins, Everything But the Girl, Stiff Little Fingers, Carmel, The Style Council.

Probably you know all of those bands (excepting perhaps Reptile Ranch and Desperate Bicycles? Both worth your time!), but it goes a long way towards establishing what a unique black diamond of a record Colossal Youth was to have stood out among that crowd. And Young Marble Giants did stand out—as Reynolds points out, on the strength of that debut LP and a pair of scant EPs Young Marble Giants immediately became Rough Trade’s second highest-selling act of 1980–81, behind only Stiff Little Fingers. The reaction to the 2007 reissue was similarly rapturous.

Let’s revel too in Reynolds’ use of language to describe them, the kind of ecstatic ekphrasis that has always excited me in rock writing:

“The individual songs have something of the ‘rightness’ of things found in nature—leaves, snowflakes, pebbles, sea-shells—that are at once miraculous and yet commonplace, marvelous and unassuming.” “…like an old fashioned pocket watch with its casing open to reveal the moving parts, the Young Marble Giants sound would be pared and bare, its meshwork of cogs and spindles exposed in all its intricate distinctness.” “…a feel that was dynamic and propulsive yet curiously suppressed, subdued, even furtive.” “The brothers’ instruments wound tight around each other like fibres twinning into yarn.” “[Allison] Statton sang with a plaintive simplicity and cool pallor of tone that bypassed all the mannered drama of the singerly arts.” “…the sheer emaciation of the sound…”

That’s the kind of writing I can read for ages, analysis that is gestural, pushing at the connotative possibilities of language to compass a pleasure as physical as it is intellectual—really, it’s generous they threw a pretty good record in with the liners. As to why I came home with this and not any of the dozens of other albums I held up for a squint and a sniff, it comes down to a certain satisfaction in finally sliding a record onto the shelf that I always knew I would eventually own. Young Marble Giants have a historical compactness to match their miniaturist sound. I suppose the real pleasure is in owning such a perfectly small and self-completed thing.

65/365

[dustedmagazine]

Andrew Forell’s 2022 Favorite Five plus 22

Anteloper photo by Tim Saccenti

Here, in no particular order, are the five albums I’ve spent the most time with this year and another 22 for 22 that I am still enjoying or just catching up with.

Anteloper — Pink Dolphins (International Anthem)

In July I concluded my review by saying “The thrill of Pink Dolphins is the sense that branch and Nazary have a form of echolocation which guides them, that no matter how deep or murky the waters, they know exactly where the other is and what they are doing”. The loss of jaimie branch in August adds a poignancy to Pink Dolphins and the musical understanding she and Jason Nazary had developed and were deepening with every recording will be sorely missed.

Blackhaine — Armour II (Fixed Abode)

Dancer and choreographer Tom Heyes is best known in the US for his work with the artist formerly known as Kanye West. As Blackhaine he brings the ritualistic intensity of his dance style to the words and music of Armour II. He raps and sings about guilt, paranoia and the violence at the heart of contemporary Britain in the thick accent of his native Lancashire over a mix of drill and cinematic soundscapes. His collaboration with Iceboy Violet and Blood Orange on “Prayer” is one of the songs of year.

 Kevin Richard Martin —  Downtown & Nightcrawler (Self-released)

Kevin Richard Martin AKA The Bug delves into the obsidian depths on these two releases. Slabs of dank, dub inflected post-industrial ambience conjure the pearl clutching dread associated with the housing estates & so-called slums for which the tracks on Downtown are named but also a sense of the communities surviving there in the face of poverty and the threats of gentrification. Nightcrawler is a sort of companion piece, a cinematic post jazz soundtrack to the dangerous glamor of pre-dawn streets which sounds, if possible, like Bohren & Der Club of Gore’s narcoleptic cousins. Highly recommended for underground commutes.

  The Photocopies — greatest hits volume 1 & volume 2 (Self-released)

Sean Turner is a Londoner in Michigan with a deep love of 1980s & 1990s indie guitar music and an output whose prolificacy is only surpassed by its quality. greatest hits volume 1 & volume 2 collect 30 tracks from singles and EPs released between June 2021 and September 2022. Although Turner isn’t reinventing any wheels, his knack for supple melodies and lyrics both heartful and witty elevates these songs. “Control Freak,” “Pop Quiz” and “(Wishing I Had) Tickets for Saint Etienne” are all giddy propulsion and self-aware pop culture references. Even at his most lovelorn the hooks are razor sharp, “I Can’t Imagine What You See In Him” combines yearning and snark over Wedding Present guitars and a glam stomp that The Sweet would have killed for. It’s great fun and heaven knows we’ve been miserable enough.

22 more

700 Bliss — Nothing to Declare (Hyperdub)

Anja Lauvdal — From a Story Now Lost (Smalltown Supersound)

Artsick — Fingers Crossed (Slumberland)

billy woods — Aethiopes (Backwoodz Studioz)

billy woods x Messiah Musik — Church (Backwoodz Studioz)

The Boys with the Perpetual Nervousness — The Third Wave Of … (Bobo Integral)

The Bug — Absent Riddim (Pressure)

Burial — Streetlands (Hyperdub)

Caterina Barbieri — Spirit Exit (light-year

Dot Dash — Madman in the Rain (The Beautiful Music)

Dry Cleaning — Stumpwork (4AD)

Holy Tongue — III (Amidah Records)

I Am — Beyond (Division 81)

Kids on a Crime Spree — Fall in Love Not in Line (Slumberland)

M. Geddes Gengras — Expressed, I Noticed Silence (Hausu Mountain)

Martha — Please Don’t Take Me Back (Specialist Subject Records)

Moor Mother — Jazz Codes (Anti)

Morgana — Contemporaneità (Low Ambition Records)

The Mutual Torture — Don’t (Non-Standard Productions)

Quelle Chris — DEATHFAME (Mello Music Group)

Raw Poetic — Space Beyond the Solar System (22nd Century Sound)

Tom Skinner — Voices of Bishara (International Anthem)

Andrew Forell

[wausaupilot]

Adames goes deep on 29th birthday, 13th 3-run homer leads Brewers over Cardinals 9-3

Rookie Jackson Chourio hit a grand slam and Rhys Hoskins also homered for the Brewers (81-57), who began Labor Day with a nine-game division lead.

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Willy Adames tied the major league record with his 13th three-run homer of the season, going deep on his 29th birthday to lift the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers over the St. Louis Cardinals 9-3 Monday for their sixth win in seven games. Adames homered for the fifth consecutive game, matching the Brewers record shared by Jeromy Burnitz (1997) and Eric Thames (2017). “For…

[newstfionline]

Thursday, June 27, 2024

Even among world leaders, Biden and Trump are old (Washington Post) When President Biden, 81, and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, 78, take the debate stage Thursday, they’ll be making history as the two oldest major-party candidates in American history to vie for the Oval Office. They are also both at least 16 years older than the median age of world leaders. It’s no surprise that world leaders are often older than the people they govern. In democracies, age requirements to run, costly campaigns and incentives to gain experience and clout in political spheres mean it can take a long time for candidates to reach the top job. The median age difference between a country’s leader and its population is 32 years. Europe appears to be bucking this trend. Countries there have some of the smallest gaps between their leaders and their populations. Its heads of state, including French President Emmanuel Macron, 46, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, 46, and Irish Taoiseach Simon Harris, 37, skew so young that even a candidate in their early 60s can cause a stir.

Iowa floodwaters breach levees as even more rain dumps onto parts of the Midwest (AP) Tornado warnings, flash flooding and large hail added insult to injury for people in the Midwest already contending with heat, humidity and intense flooding after days of rain. The National Weather Service on Tuesday afternoon and evening issued multiple tornado warnings in parts of Iowa and Nebraska as local TV news meteorologists showed photos of large hail and spoke of very heavy rain. Earlier on Tuesday, floodwaters breached levees in Iowa, creating dangerous conditions that prompted evacuations. A vast swath of lands from eastern Nebraska and South Dakota to Iowa and Minnesota has been under siege from flooding from torrential rains since last week, while also being hit with a scorching heat wave. Up to 18 inches (46 centimeters) of rain have fallen in some areas, and some rivers rose to record levels. Hundreds of people were rescued, homes were damaged and at least two people died after driving in flooded areas.

Israeli documents show expansive government effort to shape US discourse around Gaza war (Guardian) It’s no secret that the discussion surrounding America’s Israel policy has become increasingly toxic and divisive. What has been kept under wraps—until recently—was just how much effort Israel has put into manipulating that discussion, especially on college campuses. Since October, Israel has launched a government program known now as “Voices of Israel.” “Voices” is the result of Israeli attempts to create a “PR commando unit” using Israeli government funds to “provide a rapid and coordinated response against the attempts to tarnish the image of Israel around the world.” The program works by sending millions of dollars to non-government organizations like the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy (ISGAP) and Hillel International to target campus debates over American-Israeli affairs. ISGAP research has been cited by Republicans as they try to remove college presidents from office, while Hillel has pushed back against pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses. Groups have also pushed U.S. legislators to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) definition of antisemitism, which equivocates harsh criticism of the state of Israel with antisemitism.

Foreign Police Officers Land on the Ground in Haiti (NYT) Foreign law enforcement officers began arriving in Haiti on Tuesday, more than a year and a half after the prime minister there issued a plea to other countries for help to stop the rampant gang violence that has upended the Caribbean nation. Dozens of armed men in military fatigues filed out of a Kenya Airways plane at Haiti’s Toussaint Louverture International Airport in the capital, Port-au-Prince. The officers are part of a deployment of officers from eight nations who will fan out across the capital to try to wrest control of the city from dozens of armed groups that have attacked police stations, freed prisoners and killed with impunity. Some security experts say the Kenyan officers face a significant challenge supporting Haiti’s police and facing off with well-armed and highly organized Haitian gangs that have seized control of much of Port-au-Prince and had vowed to fight the Kenyans.

Bolivian general arrested after apparent failed coup attempt (AP) Led by a top general vowing to “restore democracy,” armored vehicles rammed the doors of Bolivia’s government palace Wednesday in what the president called a coup attempt, then quickly retreated—the latest crisis in the South American country facing a political battle and an economic crisis. Within hours, the nation of 12 million people saw a rapidly moving scenario in which the troops seemed to take control of the government of President Luis Arce. He vowed to stand firm and named a new army commander, who immediately ordered the troops to stand down. Soon the soldiers pulled back, along with a line of military vehicles, ending the rebellion after just three hours. Hundreds of Arce’s supporters then rushed the square outside the palace, waving Bolivian flags, singing the national anthem and cheering. Late Wednesday, Defense Minister Edmundo Novillo said “everything is now under control.”

Russia starts closed-door espionage trial for U.S. reporter Gershkovich (Reuters) A shaven-headed Evan Gershkovich went on trial behind closed doors on Wednesday in a Russian court where the U.S. journalist is accused of spying. Prosecutors say the Wall Street Journal reporter gathered secret information on the orders of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency about a company that manufactures tanks for Russia’s war in Ukraine. If convicted, he faces a sentence of up to 20 years. Gershkovich, his newspaper and the U.S. government all reject the allegations and say that he was just doing his job as a reporter accredited by Russia’s Foreign Ministry to work there. Closed trials are standard procedure in Russia for cases of alleged treason or espionage involving classified state material, which typically can last several months.

Ukraine and Moldova launch EU membership talks, but joining is likely to take years (AP) The European Union on Tuesday launched membership talks with Ukraine, a decade after Russian troops seized the Crimean Peninsula to deter the country from moving closer to the West, part of a chain of events that set the two neighbors on the path to war. Moldova also launched its membership talks. While the events are a major milestone on their European paths, the talks could take years to conclude. Turkey’s accession talks have lasted almost two decades without result.

Saipan, placid island setting for Assange’s last battle, is briefly mobbed (AP) It was a peculiar setting to the final act in a legal drama that has now spanned the globe: a rural Western Pacific island, where visitors are usually tourists—attracted by laid-back resorts, snorkeling, diving and golf—and the furthermost reach of the United States. When Julian Assange stepped from a car Wednesday to enter the Saipan courthouse, from which he would emerge hours later a free man, it was against a backdrop that could have adorned a travel brochure. Palm trees waved gently and verdant hills stood against a bright blue sky. If the location felt bizarre to Assange, his sudden arrival—along with dozens of reporters from news outlets across the world—was equally startling to the 43,000 residents of the largest island and capital of the Northern Marianas, a territory of the United States.

UN tells Israel it will suspend aid operations across Gaza without improved safety (AP) Senior U.N. officials have warned Israel that they will suspend the world body’s aid operations across Gaza unless Israel acts urgently to better protect humanitarian workers, two U.N. officials said Tuesday. The ultimatum is the latest in a series of U.N. steps demanding Israel do more to safeguard aid operations from strikes by its forces and to curb growing lawlessness hindering humanitarian workers. Israel has previously acknowledged some military strikes on humanitarian workers, including an April attack that killed seven workers with the World Central Kitchen, and has denied allegations of others. The U.N. and other humanitarian organizations also complain of increasing crime in Gaza and have urged Israel to do more to improve overall security from attack and theft.

One in five households in Gaza go whole days without food, draft UN report says (Guardian) More than half of households in Gaza have had to sell or swap their clothes to be able to buy food, the UN is to report, as a high risk of famine remains across the whole of the territory after a new round of violence in recent weeks. The latest “Special Snapshot” of Gaza from the UN’s hunger monitoring system, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), that will be published on Tuesday also says that one in five of the population—more than 495,000 people—are now “facing catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity” involving “an extreme lack of food, starvation, and exhaustion. ... More than half [of households] also reported that, often, they do not have any food to eat in the house, and over 20% go entire days and nights without eating.”

Kenyan President Vows to Prevent Violence ‘At Whatever Cost’ (NYT) Kenya’s president, William Ruto, deployed the military on Tuesday to crack down on what he called “treasonous” protesters, after demonstrators furious over the passage of a package of tax increases stormed the Parliament building in the capital, Nairobi, climbed in windows and set fire to the entrance. The contentious bill was introduced by the Ruto government in May to raise revenue and limit borrowing in an economy facing a heavy debt burden. But Kenyans have widely criticized the legislation, saying it adds punitive new taxes and raises others on a wide range of goods and services that would escalate living costs. The detractors also pointed to corruption and mismanagement of funds. Kenyans “feel increasingly squeezed by disappearing subsidies and increasing taxes, and misled by a government that campaigned on a message about economic empowerment but has governed with a message about austerity,” said Michelle Gavin, a senior fellow for Africa policy at the Council on Foreign Relations. “All of this is happening in the midst of inadequate employment opportunities and the spectacle of ongoing corruption among political elites,” she added. “The Finance Bill has a ‘last straw’ quality about it.”

Traffic (Bloomberg) A new report from INRIX estimates that gridlock cost the United States more than $70.4 billion in lost productivity in 2023, up 15 percent compared to 2022, with the average American driver losing 42 hours to congestion alone. New York is the epicenter of this, the world’s most congested city, costing $9.1 billion in lost time alone and forcing 101 hours of lost productivity for the average driver.

A ton of job postings might actually be fake (Quartz) If you aren’t hearing back from a job you applied to, it might be because it’s not real. A new survey from Resume Builder revealed that 39% of hiring managers said their company posted a fake job listing in the past year. The fake jobs ranged from entry-level roles to executive positions, said Resume Builder, which surveyed 649 hiring managers. Companies said they are posting fake jobs for a laundry list of reasons. More than 60% of those surveyed said they posted fake jobs “to make employees believe their workload would be alleviated by new workers.” Sixty-two percent of companies said another reason for the shady practice is to “have employees feel replaceable.” Two-thirds of companies cited a desire to “appear the company is open to external talent” and 59% said it was an effort to “collect resumes and keep them on file for a later date.” What’s even more concerning about the results: 85% of companies engaging in the practice said they even interviewed candidates for the fake jobs.

[afrotumble]

March 3, 1962 - Jacqueline Joyner-Kersee is a Black American retired track and field athlete, ranked among the all-time greatest athletes in the heptathlon as well as long jump was born in East St. Louis, IL, on this date in 1962.

She won three gold, one silver, and two bronze Olympic medals in those two events at four different Olympic Games. Sports Illustrated for Women magazine voted Joyner-Kersee the Greatest Female Athlete of All-Time.

She is on the Board of Directors for USA Track & Field (U.S.A.T.F.), the national governing body of the sport. Joyner-Kersee is an active philanthropist in children's education, racial equality and women's rights. She is a founder of the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Foundation, which encourages young people in East St. Louis to pursue athletics and academics.

She partnered with Comcast to create the Internet Essentials program in 2011, which costs $9.95/month for low-income Americans and offers low-cost laptops and 40 hours/month of high-speed internet service. Since its inception, it has provided internet access to 4 million Americans.

Joyner-Kersee is one of the most famous athletes to have overcome severe asthma. Joyner-Kersee attended college at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she starred in both track & field and in women's basketball from 1980–1985.

She was a starter in her forward position for each of her first three seasons (1980–81, 81–82, and 82–83) as well as in her senior (fifth) year, 1984–1985. She had red-shirted during the 1983–1984 academic year to concentrate on the heptathlon for the 1984 Summer Olympics.

She won the Broderick Award as the nation's best female collegiate track and field competitor in 1983 and in 1985, and was awarded the Honda-Broderick Cup, given to the nation's best female collegiate athlete in 1985. She scored 1,167 points during her collegiate career, which places her 19th all time for the Bruins games.

The Bruins advanced to the West Regional semi-finals of the 1985 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament before losing to eventual runner-up Georgia. She was honored on February 21, 1998 as one of the 15 greatest players in UCLA women's basketball. In April 2001, Joyner-Kersee was voted the "Top Woman Collegiate Athlete of the Past 25 Years."

The vote was conducted among the 976 NCAA member schools. Since 1981, the Jesse Owens Award is given by USATF the United States' track and field "athlete of the year." In 1996, the award was split to be given to the top athlete of each gender.

In 2013, the Female award was renamed the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Award. As of October 2019, Joyner-Kersee holds the world record in heptathlon along with the top six all-time best results whilst her long jump record of 7.49 m is second on the long jump all-time list.

In addition to heptathlon and long jump, she was a world class athlete in 100 m hurdles and 200 meters being as of June 2006 in top 60 all time in those events. Sports Illustrated voted her the greatest female athlete of the 20th century.