Wednesday, April 23, 2014


News Clips For The Day


Ukraine Orders New Military Operation in the East – NBC
—The Associated Press
First published April 22 2014

Ukraine's acting president ordered security forces to resume operations in the country's east on Tuesday after the bodies of two people allegedly abducted by pro-Russia insurgents were found and a military aircraft was reportedly hit by gunfire.

The developments — just hours after U.S. Vice President Joe Biden left the Ukrainian capital — raised fears that last week's international agreement on easing Ukraine's crisis was unraveling.

The accord calls for all sides to refrain from violence and for demonstrators to vacate public buildings. It does not specifically prohibit security operations, but Ukraine suspended its so-called "anti-terrorist operation" after it was reached.
Pro-Russia insurgents who have seized police stations and other public buildings in eastern Ukraine are defying the call to vacate, saying they were not party to the agreement by Ukraine, Russia, the United States and the European Union.

In a statement, acting President Oleksandr Turchynov said the two bodies found Tuesday in Slovyansk bore signs of torture. One of the victims was a member of the city council and a member of Turchynov's party, he said.

Terrorists "are beginning to torture and kill Ukrainian patriots. They are impudently rejecting the calls of not only our country but of all the world's society when they demonstratively mock the decisions taken in Geneva," he said. "These crimes are being done with the full support and connivance of Russia," Turchynov added.

The acting government, which took over after President Viktor Yanukovych fled to Russia in February, says Russia is behind the unrest in eastern Ukraine which it fears Moscow could use as a pretext for an invasion. Last month, Russia annexed Crimea weeks after seizing control of the peninsula.

The Defense Ministry said gunfire hit an observation plane over Slovyansk but the aircraft landed safely without injuries. Standing alongside Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Biden called on Moscow to encourage pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine to vacate government buildings and checkpoints, accept amnesty and "address their grievances politically."

Biden said Russia needs to act "without delay," adding, "We will not allow this to become an open-ended process."

Yatsenyuk was harsher in his characterization of Russia.
"No country should be able to behave like an armed bandit," he said. "Russia should stick to its international commitments and obligations. They should not behave as gangsters in the modern century."

Also on Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in a phone call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also cited mounting evidence that separatists are continuing to increase the number of buildings under occupation and take captive journalists and other civilians.

The State Department said Kerry urged Russia to tone down its rhetoric and engage diplomatically in the east with the Ukrainian government and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
Meanwhile, hundreds of mourners gathe
red for the Orthodox funeral services of three pro-Russian militiamen killed in a shootout on Easter Sunday near the eastern city of Slovyansk, which is now under the control of pro-Russian insurgents.

Many used the services to vent their anger at the interim government in Kiev, which they blamed for the deaths. Pro-Russian forces contend that the three men were killed by members of the Ukrainian ultranationalist group Right Sector, which helped to overthrow the government in February.

The U.S. has warned that it will quickly order new economic sanctions on Russian officials and entities if Moscow doesn't follow through on the provisions in last week's accord.

Moscow has rejected charges that it was behind the troubles in eastern Ukraine and that it has failed to live up to the Geneva agreement.

"Before putting forth ultimatums to us, demanding fulfillment of something within two-three days or otherwise be threatened with sanctions, we would urgently call on our American partners to fully recognize responsibility for those whom they brought to power and whom they are trying to shield, closing their eyes to the outrages created by this regime and by the fighters on whom this regime leans," Lavrov said.

Biden also announced the United States will provide an additional $50 million to help Ukraine's beleaguered government with political and economic reforms.

The money includes $11 million to help conduct the May 25 presidential election, including voter education, administration and oversight. It also will help fund expert teams from U.S. government agencies to help Ukraine reduce its reliance on energy supplies from Russia. Other technical advisers will help fight corruption.
The White House also announced $8 million in nonlethal military assistance for the Ukrainian armed forces, including bomb-disposal equipment, communications gear and vehicles.

In the most high-level visit of a U.S. official to Ukraine since the crisis erupted, Biden met privately with Yatsenyuk and Turchynov, as well as with democracy activists.
"I know the men and women who hide behind masks and unmarked uniforms, they do not speak for you," Biden said. "All are welcome as equals in shaping a new Ukraine. We count on you to be the voice for rights and freedoms."

Biden paid tribute to the protest movement by visiting St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery, perched on a hill a few blocks from Kiev's Independence Square that was the site of massive demonstrations against Yanukovych.

The monks provided refuge to protesters fleeing riot police and served as a field hospital to treat demonstrators who were shot in the square. Some died from their wounds beneath the monastery's high, blue bell tower.

"These heroes remind us of the true cost of a better future and the nobility of those who reach for it," Biden said. Earlier, he told leaders from various political parties that he brings a message of support from President Barack Obama as they face a historic opportunity to usher in reforms.

"The opportunity to generate a united Ukraine, getting it right, is within your grasp," Biden said. "And we want to be your partner, your friend in the project. And we're ready to assist."

Biden spoke to nine Ukrainians in a room with gilded moldings at the parliament, or Rada, as the media looked on. The group included three candidates running for president in the May 25 election — most notably billionaire chocolate magnate and front-runner Petro Poroshenko.




Security operations in Eastern Ukraine resumed after the bodies of two abducted Ukrainians were found and shots were fired. The separatists are refusing to obey the agreement of last week on the grounds that they were not party to the accord.

Acting President Oleksandr Turchynov of Slovyansk stated that the two abductees had been tortured. "'These crimes are being done with the full support and connivance of Russia,' Turchynov added.” “ U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in a phone call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also cited mounting evidence that separatists are continuing to increase the number of buildings under occupation and take captive journalists and other civilians.”

Understandably, the Ukrainian government is not backing down either, but the result is that the accord from last week is “unraveling.” The US is moving in response to the continued Russian activities. See the NBC article below. The following information comes from that article.

Rear Admiral John Kirby has stated that the US is sending 600 troops to Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania for exercises on a rotating one month basis, emphasizing that this is not a NATO operation.“Kirby described this as a "persistent rotational presence" that could go beyond the end of this year. He added that this model could extend beyond these four countries.” Sweden has announced that it is significantly expanding its military capability in response to the events in Ukraine, which it had decreased at the time of the collapse of the Soviet Union. “Now, however, both the left-leaning opposition and the government agree that the country's military readiness is inadequate.”


U.S. Troops Bound to Bolster Baltics – NBC
By Jim Miklaszewski
First published April 22 2014

In response to Russia's recent actions in Ukraine, the U.S. military will send about 600 soldiers to several nations on the Baltic Sea for training and exercises over the next week.

The first company of soldiers (members of the 173rd Airborne Brigade) will arrive in Poland on Wednesday, officials said.

Three additional company-size units will deploy to Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania for similar infantry training and exercises. They will be in place in all four countries over the next week.

Pentagon spokesperson Rear Admiral John Kirby said the bilateral exercises were a result of Russia's actions in Ukraine.

Kirby added that "since Russia's aggression in Ukraine" began, the U.S. has constantly been looking at ways to reassure U.S. allies and partners.

"These particular exercises were conceived" as result of what's going on in Ukraine, he said. He emphasized that these are bilateral, not NATO exercises.
These soldiers will be in country for about one month, and then replacements will rotate in. Kirby described this as a "persistent rotational presence" that could go beyond the end of this year. He added that this model could extend beyond these four countries.

Meanwhile, Sweden's government on Tuesday proposed increasing the Nordic country's military spending by $830 million a year in response to the Ukraine crisis.
The four-party center-right coalition said it is deeply concerned by the recent events in Ukraine and wants to raise the military outlays gradually in coming years to reach the proposed figure by 2024.

Among other things, it wants to buy 10 more fighter jets and two more submarines to improve the defense of the Baltic Sea and the island Gotland.

After the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Sweden's defense budget was slashed and its military emphasis shifted toward international peacekeeping operations. Now, however, both the left-leaning opposition and the government agree that the country's military readiness is inadequate.




If It Quacks Like a Duck, It Might Be a Whale – NBC
— Tanya Lewis, Live Science
First published April 22 2014

A mysterious duck-like sound recorded in the ocean around Antarctica has baffled scientists for decades, but the source of the sound has finally been found, researchers say.

For more than 50 years, researchers have recorded the so-called "bio-duck" sound in the Southern Ocean. Submarine crews first heard the oceanic quack, which consists of a series of repetitive, low-pitched pulsing sounds, in the 1960s.

"In the beginning, no one really knew what it was," said Denise Risch, a marine biologist at NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center in Woods Hole, Mass. Because the sound was so repetitive, scientists first thought it might be human-made, possibly coming from submarines. As time went on, people suggested a fish may be making the sound, but it seemed too loud, Risch told Live Science. [Listen to Mysterious Bio-Duck Sound]

It turns out, Antarctic minke whales actually produce the duck-like sound, Risch and her colleagues have found. Years' worth of audio recordings will now provide a wealth of information on the abundance, distribution and behavior of these elusive cetaceans, the researchers said in their study, detailed today (April 22) in the journal Biology Letters.

The bio-duck sounds come in sets spaced about 3.1 seconds apart. The noises also occur seasonally, and have been heard simultaneously in the Eastern Weddell Sea off Antarctica and Western Australia.

In February 2013, during the Southern Hemisphere's summer, Risch's colleagues tagged two Antarctic minke whales (Balaenoptera bonaerensis) off of Western Antarctica with suction-cup tags. The researchers meant to study the whale's feeding behavior and track their movements.

The tags also contained underwater microphones, and Risch analyzed the acoustic recordings. She found they contained the duck sounds, as well as downward-sweeping sounds previously linked to the whales. The sounds "can now be attributed unequivocally to the Antarctic minke whale," Risch and her team wrote in the study. The researchers don't know for sure whether the tagged whales or other nearby minke whales made the sounds.

What the sounds mean in whale-speak remains a mystery to scientists. The whales may use the sounds for breeding or navigation, Risch speculated. The researchers don't know, either, whether only males make the sounds or females also partake. For example, male humpback whales, unlike females, perform complex songs during their mating season.




The so-called "bio-duck" sound has finally been pinpointed to a whale. Denise Risch of NOAA announces that audio recordings going back to the 1960s will provide a long term record of the vocalizations of the Minke Whale of Antarctica. The duck-like sounds were not at that time identified as coming from the Minke whale, but in February of 2013 two Minke whales were tagged with suction-cup devices which contained microphones and the sound was established as coming from that species. The sounds “may be used for breeding or navigation,” Risch said. It's one more piece of information about the majestic and mysterious oceans.





Anti-U.S. protest violence ahead of Obama visit highlights concern over military pact in Philippines – CBS
AP April 23, 2014

MANILA, Philippines -- Philippine police armed with truncheon, shields and water hose clashed Wednesday with more than 100 left-wing activists who rallied at the U.S. Embassy in Manila to oppose a visit by President Obama and a looming pact that will increase the American military presence in the Philippines.

Riot policemen blocked the flag-waving activists near the heavily fortified embassy compound but the protesters slipped past them, sparking a brief scuffle in view of motorists stuck in traffic.

The police sprayed the protesters with water from a fire truck to push them away. A police officer was punched in the face in the melee but no arrests were made. Some of the protesters carried paper U.S. flags with the message: "Obama, not welcome."

Obama arrives in Manila on Monday for an overnight stop after visiting Japan, South Korea and Malaysia on an Asian trip where he is expected to reassure allied nations enmeshed in long-running territorial disputes with an increasingly assertive China.
The United States and the Philippines, which are treaty allies, have been scrambling to overcome differences to finalize a new security accord in time for Obama's visit.
The accord will allow more U.S. troops, aircraft and ships to be temporarily stationed in selected Philippine military camps as a counterweight to China and as a standby disaster-response force. About 500 American soldiers have been based in the southern Philippines since 2002 to provide anti-terrorism training and intelligence to Filipino troops battling al Qaeda-linked militants.




Since 2002 there have been around 500 US soldiers based in the Philippines to train Filipino troops who are confronting al-Qaeda militants. Obama is planning to meet with the authorities to increase the number of troops in opposition to an “increasingly assertive” China and as a security backup. This report says that the activists who are demonstrating against Obama are “left-wing” so the Philippines has both pro-alQaeda and socialist parties. Hopefully Obama's mission won't be disturbed by the leftists.





U.S. confirms American journalist detained in Ukraine
By Margaret Brennan CBS News April 22, 2014


The international organization overseeing the disarmament of armed groups in Ukraine called for the release of American journalist Simon Ostrovsky.

Dunja Mijatovic, the OSCE's Representative on Freedom of the Media, called for the immediate release of Ostrovsky, a reporter for the website Vice, and asked for "all responsible to stop attacking journalists." She said that the "witch-hunt against journalists has to stop now." The OSCE - the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe - is the international organization monitoring last week's Ukraine-Russia agreement.

A U.S. official confirmed that an American journalist has been detained in Ukraine but declined to disclose the name of the journalist. Under U.S. law, officials are prohibited from sharing information on U.S. citizens without express written permission via a privacy waiver. Around five journalists have recently been detained with three recently released. Only one of them has been American.

A State Department official said, "We have no further information to share out of concern for his safety and to prevent complicating his safe return."

Earlier today State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki declined to comment on public statements made by Vice that one of its journalists named Simon Ostrovsky had been detained in Ukraine. She said she had seen "a range of reports" about a "range of journalists" that had been detained or held hostage in the last couple of days. She claimed to have no further information on this "reported individual."

The U.S. Ambassador to the OSCE Daniel Baer posted the following on Twitter: "Thinking about American journalist @SimonOstrovsky--like others has been doing awesome reporting fr Ukraine & has reportedly been kidnapped."

Vice News posted this statement on its Twitter account: "We are aware of @SimonOstrovsky's situation and are working to ensure the safety and security of our friend and colleague."




American journalist Simon Ostrovsky has been abducted by separatists in Ukraine, one of five reporters, three of whom have been released. “The U.S. Ambassador to the OSCE Daniel Baer posted the following on Twitter: "Thinking about American journalist @SimonOstrovsky--like others has been doing awesome reporting fr Ukraine & has reportedly been kidnapped." See the following from the DailyKos. This is a very good news site, I think.


BREAKING: Vice News' Simon Ostrovsky Abducted in Eastern Ukraine – DailyKos
Tue Apr 22, 2014

Many have been following Russian Roulette, Simon Ostrovsky's excellent video series from Ukraine.  It seems that the Russian/Pro-Russian armed men that have occupied Slavyansk, eastern Ukraine don't like his reporting much:
Vice News Journalist Simon Ostrovsky Captured In Slavyansk
16:16 (GMT)

Simon Ostrovsky, whose dispatches from Crimea and eastern Ukraine have been invaluable, has reportedly been captured by pro-Russian gunmen in Slavyansk. We have translated the announcement published on Gazeta.RU:
The "People's mayor" of Slavyansk, Vyacheslav Ponomarev, said that the militia has taken the American journalist, Simon Ostrovsky, hostage, reports a correspondent for Gazeta.ru,

Ponomarev announced this during a press conference at the House of Culture in Slavyansk.
http://www.interpretermag.com/...

He isn't the first journalist that has been abducted there.  Some have been released, but two Ukrainian journalists are still held captive.  And there is definitely reason to worry about Simon, since a recent tweet of his exposed the homophobic side of the self-proclaimed mayor who now has him being held in custody:

Simon Ostrovsky ‏@SimonOstrovsky  Apr 20
If [Avakov] comes here I'll personally put a bullet in his head... I won't shake hands with a faggot. Sloviansk's new Pro-Russia mayor
https://twitter.com/...
Please hold Simon in your thoughts and/or prayers.

12:06 PM PT:
UPDATE:  The OSCE has called for Simon Ostrovsky's immediate release:
VIENNA, 22 April 2014 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today expressed deep concern about new cases of detention and attacks on journalists in eastern Ukraine.

“I remain deeply concerned about the ongoing negative pattern in relation to journalists’ safety in Ukraine” Mijatović said. “I call on all those responsible to stop harassing and attacking journalists and let them do their job. Simon Ostrovsky should be released immediately.”

According to reports on 22 April Simon Ostrovsky, journalist with Vice News, was captured by unidentified people in uniform in Sloviansk. The detention has been announced by Vyacheslav Ponomarev, self-proclaimed "People's Mayor" of Sloviansk.
On 21 April Maxim Danilchenko, journalist with Tochka Opori magazine, was attacked by unidentified individuals and sustained several injuries while covering a protest in Luhansk. On the same day Dmitriy Galko, journalist with Belarusian Noviy Chas newspaper, and Italian and French journalists Paul Gogo and Kossimo Attanasio were reportedly detained by unidentified individuals in uniform in Sloviansk. They were released shortly after being detained.

Kobzar/musician Vasyl Liutyi arrested and tortured in Luhansk
Posted on April 23, 2014 by chornajuravka
The Ukrainian Kobzar community (musicians who play the kobza or the bandura) has issued the following statement:

“The Kobzar community of Ukraine is deeply worried about the fate of one of their brothers, the Kobzar and community activist Vasy Liutyi.  He was the emcee/leader of the meeting “For a united Ukraine” in the town of Rubizhne in the Luhansk oblast, in eastern Ukraine.

“We have learned that that on April 21, during a meeting in support of a united Ukraine in the town of Rubizhne, Liutyi was severely beaten and then arrested.  During his arrest, he was tortured.  We condemn the excesses of Russian chauvinists and protest against the inaction of the law enforcement authorities.  We demand the immediate release of the composer and Kobzar Vasyl Liutyi.





Washington School Bus Driver Accused of Bullying – ABC
OLYMPIA, Wash. April 23, 2014 (AP)

A school bus driver has been placed on leave while the Olympia School District investigates accusations that he bullied a developmentally disabled 14-year-old girl.
The Washington Middle School student has been complaining about verbal abuse for more than a year but the district didn't act until it saw video from a surveillance camera, her mother told The Olympian ( http://bit.ly/1mDAMEN ).

The district showed the mother video taken April 17 that shows the driver encouraging other special-needs students on the bus to call the girl names.

"You can clearly hear the driver calling my daughter names, encouraging other children to bully her," the mother said. "All of the children on the bus are special needs with a variety of disabilities, which makes it even worse."

The girl was recently frightened by a bee on the bus, and on the video the driver says he will bring a beehive on the bus, according to the mother.

The girl has an assigned seat at the back of the bus, where the heaters are located. When she has asked the driver to turn the heat down, he instead turns the heat up, the mother said.

The school district is treating the complaint very seriously, a spokeswoman said.
"We learned about the inappropriate verbal exchanges last week and immediately put the driver on leave. The district is now conducting an investigation. In the meantime, staff is committed to working with this family to ensure the student feels safe and supported on her way to school, at school and on the way home from school," spokeswoman Rebecca Japhet said in an email Monday.

The school district has refused to release a copy of the videotape. The mother has been in contact with a lawyer.




“The Washington Middle School student has been complaining about verbal abuse for more than a year but the district didn't act until it saw video from a surveillance camera,” said her mother. This reminds me of abuse that has occurred at nursing homes when caretakers are unsupervised. The employees who are hired by the school system and school bus companies need to be as closely referenced and monitored as bank employees. Every now and then a school employee such as a maintenance man is arrested for molesting students. Their background check apparently doesn't include police reports unless they are teachers. Even teachers have been “allowed to resign” rather than being fired outright in order to avoid a scandal. Hopefully, this young girl won't be permanently scarred by her experience.





iPods Awaken Memories Through Music for Those With Alzheimer’s
By ABC News
Mar 5, 2014
ABC News’ Byron Pitts reports:

Jean Paese says an iPod playlist of barber shop music helps her see glimpses of the Bill Paese she married 53 years ago.

Bill Paese, 82 and suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, sang in a quartet most of his life – so his customized playlist is a bridge to good memories for both of them.

“He’s in there and sometimes we get to see him,” said Jean Paese, who visits her husband daily at the Rocky Knoll Health Care Center in Plymouth, Wis.

Alzheimer’s Disease: Music Brings Patients ‘Back to Life’
Dan Cohen, a social worker in New York, came up with the idea in 2006 to take unused iPods and make them available to those suffering from Alzheimer’s and dementia. He started by creating playlists for residents at a local nursing home.

In 2010, Music & Memory was created and iPod donations by the thousands poured into Cohen’s organization.

More than 5 million Americans live with Alzheimer’s, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.
The customized playlists somehow link senior citizens with their pasts. Researchers think the music touches so many areas of the brain, making connections, that it may have the power to awaken memories and feelings that would otherwise be lost.

Cohen said his goal is to collect 1 million music players. So far, about 10,000 have been donated.

“It’s not a cure. Nobody is going to live longer,” Cohen said. “But their function is very often is better. … The impact of music grows over time.”




Dan Cohen, a social worker in New York, has created an organization called Music and Memory which takes donations of old or unused ipods for nursing home patients. See this website for more information: https://musicandmemory.org/. The music seems to help with memory in Alzheimer's patients. “It’s not a cure. Nobody is going to live longer,” Cohen said. “But their function is very often is better. … The impact of music grows over time.”