May 1 and 2, 2017


News and Views


PERHAPS IF THE PENTAGON GET’S BEHIND CARBON DIOXIDE REDUCTION, THE REPUBLICANS WILL TOO ….

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/research-severe-turbulence-could-get-worse-aeroflot-plane/
CBS NEWS May 2, 2017, 6:24 AM
Researchers predict major spike in transatlantic turbulence

An Aeroflot plane bound for Bangkok encountered severe turbulence Monday that left 27 of its passengers injured, some with broken bones.The airline confirmed the incident was the result of clear-air turbulence, the most difficult type to detect. New research suggests transatlantic turbulence could become up to three times worse in the coming decades.

For nervous fliers, nothing about this research is reassuring. Clear-air turbulence strikes without warning and, because of climate change, is only going to get worse, reports CBS News correspondent Mark Strassmann.

The sudden drop on the Aeroflot plane came without warning and anyone not strapped down was shot toward the ceiling, then slammed against the aircraft floor. Video of the aftermath shows the plane scattered with debris.

Unlike conventional turbulence that occurs when planes fly near weather systems, clear-air turbulence happens without the presence of clouds. Making it nearly impossible for pilots to detect, until it's too late.

Dr. Paul Williams is an atmospheric scientist at the University of Reading in England.

"We've calculated that the amount of severe turbulence which is strong enough to hospitalize people could double or even as much as triple by the end of this century on transatlantic flight routes because of climate change," Williams said.

According to researchers, rising carbon dioxide levels could destabilize the fast moving air currents of the transatlantic jet stream, an area that currently sees up to 3,000 flights each day.

They predict a 149 percent spike in severe air turbulence, along with longer travel times, increased delays and, inevitably, higher ticket prices.

"It's very distressing for pilots precisely because they have no indication or very little indication that the turbulence is sitting out there and that the plane is just about to hit it," Williams said.

Aerospace engineer Pat Anderson took Strassmann inside a flight simulator to demonstrate different levels of turbulence from the pilot's perspective.

When asked to describe "extreme" turbulence, Anderson said, "When I think you get to a point where you say extreme, you're worried about being in a situation where the air plane is in jeopardy."

Modern airliners are designed to withstand all kinds of turbulence, but experts warn that even airplanes have a breaking point.

"Well the integrity of the plane is something that's going to have to be checked," Anderson said. "Airplanes don't have infinite lives, they have some limit and if we see more turbulence that's going to be drawn in closer."

Turbulence already presents the greatest safety risk for the traveling public. In 2016, the FAA investigated 44 turbulence-related injuries, more than double the amount from the year before.


# # # #


FOX’S “BAND OF PIRATES MENTALITY” ON ITS’ WAY OUT, AND CIVILIZATION TAKING OVER?

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/22/business/media/murdoch-family-21st-century-fox.html?_r=0
In House of Murdoch, Sons Set About an Elaborate Overhaul Since taking over two years ago, James and Lachlan Murdoch seem determined to rid the company of the old-guard culture on which their father built his empire.
By BROOKS BARNES and SYDNEY EMBER APRIL 22, 2017

Photograph -- From left, James, Lachlan and Rupert Murdoch. Credit Illustration by Robert Carter for The New York Times
Photograph -- James Murdoch, 44, chief executive of 21st Century Fox, during a presentation on Wednesday in Manhattan for National Geographic. Credit Kevin Hagen for The New York Times
Photograph -- Outside Fox News Corporation’s headquarters in Manhattan. Analysts estimate that the news division generated 25 percent of 21st Century Fox’s $6.6 billion in operating income last year. Credit Sam Hodgson for The New York Times
Read -- the Times Investigation That Led to Bill O’Reilly’s Dismissal


The sun was setting in New York as James Murdoch, looking confident in cream pants and a dark blazer, stepped before 350 guests in a glass-walled concert hall and waxed poetic about his pet TV channel and its dedication to “scientific literacy.”

The event on Wednesday night was an advertising showcase for National Geographic, which Mr. Murdoch, 44, has doted on since becoming chief executive of its parent company, 21st Century Fox. As a person who cares deeply about “issues related to the environment, conservation, exploration and education,” he told the crowd, “I’m personally grateful for the important work National Geographic does.”

Across town at that same moment, his 86-year-old father, Rupert — who once called climate change “alarmist nonsense” — was still dealing with fallout at his most cherished channel, Fox News. Bill O’Reilly, the pugnacious and top-rated talk show host, had been ousted that day after allegations of sexual harassment involving multiple women.

It was James Murdoch — the one looking so unperturbed at the NatGeo presentation, posing for photos as waiters milled about in yellow suspenders and guests ate skirt steak and shrimp cocktail — who had most aggressively moved against Mr. O’Reilly. The same had happened in July, when Roger Ailes, who founded Fox News with Rupert Murdoch, was forced to resign amid his own sexual harassment scandal.

This is what generational change at one of the globe’s most powerful media conglomerates looks like.

With James and his elder brother, Lachlan, 45, who is the executive chairman of 21st Century Fox, firmly entrenched as their father’s successors, they are now forcibly exerting themselves. Their father remains very involved, but his sons seem determined to rid the company of its roguish, old-guard internal culture and tilt operations toward the digital future. They are working to make the family empire their own, not the one the elder Murdoch created to suit his sensibilities.

“They are both young enough to see and understand that the company has to change,” said Doug Creutz, a media analyst at Cowen and Company. “At some media companies, there is a feeling that people are being dragged kicking and screaming into the digital future. I don’t get that sense with the brothers at all.”

Fox executives either did not return calls or declined to comment for this article. But a picture of a new Murdoch era emerged in interviews with more than a dozen people who work at the company or are friendly with James and Lachlan, most of whom spoke anonymously for fear of reprisals.

Over his storied career, Rupert Murdoch repeatedly showed that he was willing to trade workplace culture for profits — ride people hard, overlook putrid behavior as long as the results are there, reward infighting. When his sons took over two years ago, however, they immediately set about creating a warmer and fuzzier workplace, at least in parts of the company, and moving away from an anti-politically correct environment that, at least in the case of Fox News, seemed to enable the kind of behavior of which Mr. Ailes and Mr. O’Reilly have been accused. Both men deny the allegations.

Employees at the Fox broadcast network said they were pleasantly surprised, for instance, to be summoned to a town-hall meeting — something that had rarely if ever been done under the archly conservative Rupert Murdoch — where the brothers espoused transparency, workplace diversity and greater cooperation between divisions. In the fall, James and Lachlan introduced additional benefits, including more paid vacation, vastly enhanced reproductive coverage for women and “expanded coverage for our transgender colleagues.”

The brothers concluded the memo on a jaunty note: “Enjoy!”

James and Lachlan overhauled their international networks business, a collection of some 350 channels; changed leadership at their film studio, home to the “X-Men” movies; and poured money into National Geographic. They culled the company’s entertainment ranks of roughly 400 employees, something James described at the time as a “ventilation.” (While some people in Hollywood saw the move as ageist, grumbling was minimal; Fox offered relatively lavish buyout packages.)

21st Century Fox initially stood by Mr. O’Reilly as he faced a series of allegations of sexual harassment or other inappropriate behavior.

The brothers have even shaken up 21st Century Fox’s profile in Washington, replacing their father’s Republican lobbying chief with a Democratic one. One Hollywood friend equated their mind-set to moving into an outdated house and looking for wood rot.

Still, some of the most dramatic changes at 21st Century Fox over the last two years, including the ouster of Mr. O’Reilly, have been forced on them.

When they first took over, they stepped gingerly around Fox News. James and his progressive-minded wife, Kathryn, have long been embarrassed by certain elements of Fox News, associates said, while Lachlan’s views of the network have been more in line with his father’s. Both sons were willing to tolerate the freewheeling Fox News culture because of the enormous profit the channel generates. Analysts estimate that the division generated 25 percent of 21st Century Fox’s operating income last year, which was $6.6 billion.

Only last summer, when the former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson filed a sexual harassment suit against Mr. Ailes, did James and Lachlan, and eventually Rupert, force change. And even then the overhaul at Fox News was limited; control was given to longtime Ailes lieutenants, and the company continued to support Mr. O’Reilly in the face of repeated allegations of sexual harassment, even giving him a contract extension.

It was not until The New York Times disclosed financial settlements, which involved multiple women who alleged that Mr. O’Reilly had behaved inappropriately, and advertisers began leaving his show in droves, that the company forced him out. Maintaining a culture based on “trust and respect,” as 21st Century Fox promised when Mr. Ailes left, was easier said than done.


Rupert Murdoch spent decades As James and Lachlan move to modernize their company, several questions have emerged. The biggest: Can you truly change the culture without losing what made it so successful? It was Rupert’s band-of-pirates mentality that willed the Fox broadcast network into existence, and turned Fox News into a source of astounding profit and political muscle.

plotting and re-plotting which of his children would take over his empire. In 1997, Lachlan became the crown prince. When Lachlan quit in 2005 after sparring with Mr. Ailes, James ascended. But James was seen as badly mishandling the phone-hacking scandal at family-owned tabloids in Britain. For a time there was speculation that Rupert’s daughter Elisabeth, who founded the Shine reality TV juggernaut, had a shot.

The brothers eventually rose back to the top. Yet they have not entirely convinced Wall Street analysts that their pairing is workable in the long term. Some people do not see James and Lachlan as equals.

“James has a lot of experience in senior management, and he is capable of running a business,” said Mr. Creutz, the analyst. “Lachlan? I don’t know. People don’t know him as well. He is looked at a bit more skeptically by investors.”

Anthony DiClemente, an analyst at Nomura Instinet, challenged that notion. “As a manager, Lachlan has grown and developed quite a bit,” he said. “I think the brothers get along well, and that Lachlan’s views are falling into line with James’s.”

The brothers are radically different in style. James is a speed-talking, tightly wound technophile — cool and calculating, to the degree that he can come across as slick, several associates said. Fashion forward, James socializes with young technology kingpins like Elon Musk, a founder of Tesla Motors and SpaceX.

Lachlan, with his tattooed forearm, avoids the spotlight, rarely popping up in Hollywood watering holes like Tower Bar, where James has a signature table. Lachlan comes across as a more grounded guy’s guy. On his first day as executive chairman, he rolled onto the Fox lot in Los Angeles in a pickup truck.




http://www.refinery29.com/2017/05/152556/fox-news-sexual-harassment-allegations-timeline
A Timeline Of All The Horrible Allegations Against Fox News
LAUREN HOLTER
MAY 2, 2017, 1:00 PM

Since news broke of sexual harassment allegations against former CEO Roger Ailes last summer, Fox News has faced a constant PR nightmare. Three top employees, including Ailes, have left the network, and the allegations against the company's culture now include racial discrimination as well as sexual misconduct. This extended scandal gets more complicated each day, so we created a timeline of the Fox News allegations to help keep it all straight.

Since it's confusing just trying to remember which old white man is which, let's first walk through who each name is. Ailes, founder and former chairman and CEO of Fox, was one of the most powerful men in media before his downfall. He worked as a media consultant for Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush, as well as advised Donald Trump during debate season. Bill O'Reilly hosted The O'Reilly Factor, which was the network's most popular show until it shuttered, bringing in about $200 million in ad revenue each year.

The second Bill to fall, Bill Shine, was a co-president at Fox and an ally of Ailes. Shine remaining at Fox after Ailes was ousted was seen by some as a signal that not much was changing at the network, and after Shine left, another executive close to Ailes was promoted.

Now, here's a full timeline of the allegations against Fox News.

2004: The First Known Claim Against O'Reilly

A producer on O'Reilly's show, Andrea Mackris, accused him of sexual harassment in a lawsuit after he sued her for allegedly trying to extort $60 million from him and Fox. Among her various claims, Mackris alleged O'Reilly sounded like he was masturbating when he called her, The Times reported. A public relations firm was brought in to portray Mackris in a bad light, but O’Reilly eventually paid her about $9 million after weeks of bad press.

2014: Allegations Against Ailes Begin

Gabriel Sherman's biography of Ailes, The Loudest Voice in the Room, mentioned stories of women claiming the media exec had sexually harassed them. However, not much came of the stories until later.

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Carlos Lozada ✔ @CarlosLozadaWP
THE LOUDEST VOICE IN THE ROOM by @gabrielsherman is out in paperback, w/ a new afterword on the fall of Roger Ailes:
10:07 AM - 7 Feb 2017
4 4 Retweets 15 15 likes

July 6, 2016: Gretchen Carlson's Lawsuit

The former Fox News anchor filed a lawsuit accusing Ailes of sexual harassment and claiming her former co-host, Steve Doocy, treated her in a "sexist and condescending" way after her contract with the network wasn't renewed. "Ailes has unlawfully retaliated against Carlson and sabotaged her career because she refused his sexual advances and complained about severe and pervasive sexual harassment," her official complaint read.
July 9, 2016: Six More Women Accuse Ailes

Gabriel Sherman reported for New York magazine that six more women described sexual harassment claims against Ailes, and more than a dozen women reportedly contacted Carlson's lawyer with similar allegations. The stories dated back to the 196os, but Ailes denied any wrongdoing.

July 21, 2016: Ailes Resigns

21st Century Fox confirmed Ailes had resigned. Rupert Murdoch, executive chairman of 21st Century Fox, took over as chairman and acting CEO of the network, and Ailes received $40 million to step down.

November 15, 2016: Megyn Kelly's Memoir Details Harassment

Kelly's memoir, Settle for More, came out, describing for the first time the sexual harassment she allegedly experienced from Ailes while at Fox News. She described one alleged encounter, writing, "Roger called me up to New York and we had a shocking exchange. I was nervous about going into his office, concerned he might start in again. Sure enough he did. And then he crossed a new line — trying to grab me repeatedly and kiss me on the lips."

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The Spectator Index @spectatorindex
Fox News departures, past 12 months:

- Roger Ailes
- Megyn Kelly
- Greta Van Susteren
- Gretchen Carlson
- Bill O'Reilly
4:30 PM - 26 Apr 2017
51 51 Retweets 71 71 likes

January 10, 2017: Another O'Reilly Settlement Surfaces

The New York Times reported that Fox News reached a settlement with on-air personality Juliet Huddy, who claimed O'Reilly sexually harassed her back in 2011 and then tried to damage her career when she refused his advances.

March 28, 2017: Racial Discrimination Claims

Two Black women who worked in the payroll department alleged in a lawsuit that they experienced “top-down racial harassment” stemming from comptroller Judith Slater (who Fox said was fired the month before, when executives learned of allegations against her).

April 1, 2017: A Damning O'Reilly Investigation

A New York Times report revealed that at least five women, including Huddy and Mackris, received money from O'Reilly or 21st Century Fox to not go public with their allegations of sexual harassment (or pursue legal recourse). The private settlements dated from 2002 to 2016, and according to The Times, the five women collectively received $13 million (at least $9 million of which came from O'Reilly himself). O'Reilly denied all allegations against him.

April 3, 2017: Another Lawsuit Against Ailes & Fox

Fox News contributor Julie Roginsky filed a lawsuit accusing Ailes of sexual harassment and subsequently retaliating against her when she refused a sexual relationship with him. Her lawsuit named Shine, as well, claiming he "aided and abetted the discrimination" by "failing to take reasonable measures to protect Roginsky from, and condoning, the unlawful conduct."

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Oliver Darcy ✔ @oliverdarcy
Internal memo that the Murdochs just sent out to all staff at Fox News
2:31 PM - 19 Apr 2017
620 620 Retweets 471 471 likes

April 19, 2017: O'Reilly Steps Down

The company announced O'Reilly wouldn't return to work, writing that he and Fox "agreed" on his departure — and praising his extensive career.

April 21, 2017: Sean Hannity Is Accused Of Similar Behavior

Former Fox guest Debbie Schlussel claimed in an interview that the host of Hannity previously invited her back to his hotel room after an event they both attended in Detroit. She claimed he never invited her back to his show after she turned him down. "This kind of stuff is all over the place at Fox News and anything that has to do with Sean Hannity,” Schlussel told radio host Pat Campbell.

Hannity denied the allegations, but The Daily Beast reported he might leave Fox, too.

April 25, 2017: Racial Discrimination Claims

Stemming from the initial racial discrimination lawsuit filed in March, a total of eleven current and former employees filed a class-action lawsuit alleging years of discrimination. The same day, another person filed a separate lawsuit alleging racial discrimination, and another filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Every claim named Slater, according to The Washington Post, and alleged top executives knew of the misconduct.

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Michael Calderone ✔ @mlcalderone
Statement from attorney representing current/former Fox News staff alleging racial discrimination http://huff.to/2p1PMjR
3:50 PM - 1 May 2017
7 7 Retweets 3 3 likes

May 1, 2017: Shine Resigns

Fox News announced Shine had resigned and would leave within a few weeks. Along with Roginsky, other women also alleged he knew about sexual harassment and misconduct at the company and did nothing about it.

The same day, Diana Falzone claimed in a new lawsuit that she wasn't allowed to appear on Fox News after writing an op-ed about having endometriosis and being infertile.

Needless to say, it's been a tumultuous ride. As all the current lawsuits play out, there's sure to be more news involving allegations against Fox, as well as criticism that not enough is being done to change the company's culture.



http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/fox-news-bill-shine-out_us_5903c3bfe4b02655f83d965d?ncid=inblnkushpmg00000009
MEDIA 05/01/2017 03:08 pm ET | Updated 21 hours ago
Bill Shine Is Out As Fox News Co-President
The network shake-up continues amid growing sexual harassment and racial discrimination claims.
By Michael Calderone , Michael McLaughlin

Embattled Fox News Co-President Bill Shine resigned Monday following intense scrutiny about his stewardship of the network in the wake of the Bill O’Reilly scandal and amid growing sexual harassment and racial discrimination allegations.

A veteran network executive, Shine was promoted to co-president just weeks after Fox News Chairman Roger Ailes’ downfall over widespread sexual harassment claims, and his departure comes two weeks after top-rated host O’Reilly left the network due to a similar scandal.

The New York Times revealed last month that 21st Century Fox paid settlements to O’Reilly’s accusers even after the Ailes mess, which undermined the contention from the network’s parent company that it was cleaning up a toxic workplace environment. Meanwhile, the legal threats against Fox News keep coming, with Shine accused in several lawsuits of covering up or downplaying allegations of sexual harassment and racial discrimination.


PHOTOGRAPH -- LUCAS JACKSON/REUTERS

Bill Shine was promoted last summer to Fox News co-president with Jack Abernethy, after Roger Ailes’ downfall amid sexual harassment allegations. Shine is accused in several lawsuits of covering up or downplaying allegations of harassment at Fox.

21st Century Fox Executive Chairman Rupert Murdoch praised Shine in a statement that unsurprisingly didn’t mention the recent turmoil.

“This is a significant day for all at Fox News,” Murdoch said. “Bill has played a huge role in building Fox News to its present position as the nation’s biggest and most important cable channel in the history of the industry. His contribution to our channel and our country will resonate for many years.”

In the shake-up, Murdoch announced that executive Suzanne Scott will be promoted to president for programming while Jay Wallace becomes president for news. Jack Abernethy, who was appointed co-president in August, will remain in that role overseeing business functions at Fox News and as CEO of Fox Television Stations.

The departure of Shine, an Ailes lieutenant who spent over two decades at the network, may be seen by critics as part of a long-overdue housecleaning. But Shine’s exit may not sit well well [sic] with some of Fox News’ top talent.

Fox New host Sean Hannity rallied around the executive on Thursday, following reports that his friend and former producer’s tenure appeared imperiled. On Twitter, he said that Shine is an “innocent man”and that “this is the total end of [Fox News] as we know it” if he were to be replaced.

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Sean Hannity ✔ @seanhannity
Somebody HIGH UP AND INSIDE FNC is trying to get an innocent person fired. And Gabe I KNOW WHO it is. Best Sean https://twitter.com/gabrielsherman/status/857604245197119488 …
4:50 PM - 27 Apr 2017
3,297 3,297 Retweets 5,630 5,630 likes

Hannity’s posts were in direct response to reporting by New York magazine’s Gabriel Sherman that Murdoch’s sons James and Lachlan, executives with the channel’s parent company 21st Century Fox, had turned down Shine’s request for their public show of support. (Sherman first reported Shine’s departure Monday).

21st Century Fox is under pressure on multiple fronts: The Fox News scandals could hurt its takeover of British satellite TV company Sky, and there’s a federal probe into whether the company properly disclosed paying settlements to Ailes accusers.

Fox News had been in a state of upheaval since Ailes, the longtime head of the network, was pushed out amid accusations that he had sexually harassed multiple women at the channel, including popular former host Megyn Kelly.

Last month, advertisers in droves stopped airing commercials during “The O’Reilly Factor” after the Times reported that the company and its star had paid $13 million to settle complaints against him from five female co-workers. Fox News parted ways with O’Reilly on April 19.

Both Ailes and O’Reilly have denied the allegations against them.

Photograph -- SUSAN BIDDLE/THE WASHINGTON POST VIA GETTY IMAGES
Host Bill O’Reilly and Chairman Roger Ailes both left Fox News in disgrace following sexual harassment scandals.

Following O’Reilly’s exit, the company faced additional accusations that it had created a toxic culture for people of color. On April 25, a group of 11 former and current Fox News employees, including anchor Kelly Wright, filed a class action lawsuit alleging that they’d been victims of racial discrimination in the newsroom. On Monday, Diana Falzone, a reporter for Fox News’ website, filed a lawsuit alleging gender and disability discrimination.

At least four lawsuits list Shine as a co-defendant, according to The New York Times. The various suits accuse him of mishandling complaints about Ailes’ sexual misconduct, concealing evidence of Ailes’ behavior and allowing racial discrimination to fester.

Shine has denied any wrongdoing.

Douglas Wigdor, the attorney representing 13 current and former Fox News staffers making discrimination claims, said that “while long overdue” the company had “taken a step in the right direction by permitting Bill Shine to resign and that our recent court filings apparently influenced that decision.”

“Much more needs to be done, however, including holding [Fox News general counsel] Dianne Brandi accountable for permitting a known racist to prey upon our clients and acknowledging and accepting responsibility for the harm our clients have and continue to suffer,” Wigdor said. (Fox News and Brandi have “vehemently” denied the allegations from Wigdor’s clients).

Nancy Erika Smith, the attorney for former “Fox & Friends” co-host Gretchen Carlson, whose July lawsuit against Ailes prompted other women to come forward, said in a statement that Shine’s departure, “although overdue, is a positive step.” Smith is also representing Falzone and contributor Julie Roginsky.

“To begin to change the future at Fox, there are others who have enabled and encouraged the sexism who should be next, starting with” Brandi, Scott and public relations chief Irena Briganti.

Angelo Carusone, president of progressive watchdog and Fox News antagonist Media Matters, said Shine’s departure proves that “the epidemic of sexual harassment at Fox News was not limited to the actions of a few well-known figures ― and that instead it was indicative of a deeper culture of harassment.”

“That culture was cultivated by Roger Ailes ― and perpetuated and maintained by Fox News executives, like Bill Shine,” Carusone said. “What took so long?”

This article has been updated with reactions to Shine’s departure.


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DOES THE RICO LAW APPLY HERE? DEPORTING THEM DOESN’T STOP THEM FROM COMING BACK INTO THE COUNTRY. CAN YOUNG PEOPLE OF THIS VIOLENT TYPE BE TRIED AS ADULTS AND GIVEN THE DEATH PENALTY?

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ms-13-gang-violence-mounting-alarm-as-feds-respond/
By CRIMESIDER STAFF CBS/AP May 1, 2017, 11:14 AM
MS-13 gang violence: Mounting alarm as feds respond

BRENTWOOD, New York -- On Sept. 13, the day before her 16th birthday, Nisa Mickens' brutally beaten body was found on a tree-lined street in Brentwood, on New York's Long Island. The next day, the beaten body of her lifelong friend, 16-year-old Kayla Cuevas, was discovered in the wooded backyard of a nearby home.

1ateens.jpg
Nisa Mickens and Kayla Cuevas, students from Brentwood High School on Long Island murdered in possible gang-related attack CBS NEW YORK

The Brentwood High School students were walking on a street near their homes when men with baseball bats and a machete jumped out and attacked them, prosecutors said. Suffolk County police Commissioner Tim Sini said the level of brutality demonstrated in the slayings were "close to unmatched." Each was slashed and beaten, and suffered significant injuries to the head and face.

"To cause injuries of this nature, you have to have no regard for human life," Sini said.

The notoriously violent street gang MS-13 was to blame, prosecutors later said as they charged gang members with the crime. Prosecutors said that Cuevas was "marked for death" because she had apparently feuded with some MS-13 gang members over social media, and that Mickens was simply "in the wrong place at the wrong time."

MS-13 has been blamed for a trail of 11 corpses of mostly young people discovered in woods and vacant lots in Brentwood and neighboring Central Islip since the start of the school year. Among them were four young males whose bodies were found in a park this month, beaten and slashed.

Across the country, brutal crimes linked to MS-13 are capturing headlines, and the U.S. Department of Justice has announced a crackdown. Speaking in Central Islip Friday, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said President Trump is "very aware personally of the violence and murders here" and vowed to dismantle MS-13.

"I have a message for any gang that targets our young people: we are targeting you, and we are coming after you," Sessions said.

For MS-13, said FBI supervisory special agent Julian Igualada, violence is "a way of life – a way to maintain order and discipline within their ranks." The gang's motto is "kill, rape and control." Gang members or recruits use weapons like machetes or knives to carry out killings, and victims are often found with repeated slashes that leave them nearly unrecognizable.

"They want to make a statement about just how violent they are -- how bloody they can be," Luis Salinas, a University of Houston sociology professor, told Crimesider.

MS-13, also called Mara Salvatrucha or "gang of Salvadoran guys," is headquartered in El Salvador, according to the FBI. In 2012, MS-13 was designated a transnational criminal organization by the Treasury Department, which said the gang is involved in "serious transnational criminal activities, including drug trafficking, kidnapping, human smuggling, sex trafficking, murder, assassinations, racketeering, blackmail, extortion, and immigration offenses."

MS-13 gang appears to be surging again
Play VIDEO
MS-13 gang appears to be surging again

Transnational criminal organizations represent "one of the gravest threats to American public safety today," Sessions said on Friday.

"These groups enrich themselves by pedaling poison in our communities, trafficking children for sexual exploitation and inflicting horrific violence in the neighborhoods where they operate and slipping their ill-gotten wealth back to their home countries," Sessions said.

According to the FBI, MS-13 in the U.S. is comprised mostly of Salvadoran nationals or first-generation Salvadoran-Americans, but also Hondurans, Guatemalans, Mexicans, and other Central and South American immigrants. MS-13 hubs in the U.S. tend to center around pockets of immigrants from Central America. The gang has plagued immigrant communities in and around Washington D.C., on New York's Long Island, Newark, N.J., in Boston, Charlotte, Houston and other areas.

MS-13 has about 10,000 members in the U.S. and 30,000 abroad, Sessions said.

While MS-13 maintains close ties to Central America, according to the FBI, local "cliques" operating in the U.S. are largely self-governed. Neighborhood violence is often spurred by petty disputes or ire over perceived slights or disrespect, Salinas said.

For MS-13, loyalty to the gang is expected to replace family -- and any breach of that loyalty is punishable by death, Igualada said. Gang members believed to have shown disloyalty, members of rival gangs or anyone who is perceived to have slighted the gang are potential targets for killings.

The murders are a way to control people in their own ranks, Igualada said -- but they also want to intimidate the community by demonstrating their brutality.

"This is sending a message to their own ranks, that this is what happens to you if you don't follow the rules," said Igualada, who is part of an FBI team that works with authorities in El Salvador to combat the transnational gang threat. "It's also sending a message to the outside, that this is the biggest gang and the most violent gang you're dealing with."

ms13.jpg
In this Sept. 27, 2016 file photo, a memorial to best friends Nisa Mickens and Kayla Cuevas is seen near the spot where their bodies were found in Brentwood, N.Y. AP

MS-13 has migrated east from Los Angeles where it was founded in the mid-1980s by immigrants fleeing El Salvador's civil war. The gang's true rise began after members were deported from the U.S. back to El Salvador in the 1990s. There, the gang thrived and spread to Honduras. The Associated Press reports that MS-13 and rival groups there now control entire towns, rape girls and young women, massacre students, bus drivers and merchants who refuse to pay extortion, and kill competitors or youths who simply refuse to join.

That violence has prompted a mass migration of people trying to escape, especially children, who have streamed north because of a U.S. policy allowing people under 18 who arrive without parents to stay in the country temporarily with relatives or friends.

Since the fall of 2013, the U.S. has placed 165,000 unaccompanied minors. Long Island has been a frequent landing spot. Suffolk County, which includes Brentwood and Central Islip, has gotten 4,500. Neighboring Nassau County has received 3,800.

All told, nearly 200 suspected MS-13 members have been rounded up there since September. In a recent roundup of 13 suspected MS-13 gang members accused of murder and other charges, seven had entered as unaccompanied minors.

"There's no question that MS-13 is recruiting these unaccompanied children," said Sini, the Suffolk County police commissioner. The youngsters "don't have an established social network, at least many of them don't, and MS-13 is providing that network."

"They're also using coercion," Sini said. "They say, 'If you don't join the gang, we will kill you.'"

Mr. Trump has promised to eradicate the gang in the U.S. through strict enforcement of immigration law. But some residents say it's not about immigration politics but about making a community safer and providing support systems for vulnerable kids. In Long Island, parents say the 4,200-student Brentwood High School lacks the means to help young people who are often left alone after school because their parents work long hours. There are few social workers and guidance counselors, they say, and not enough security guards or cameras.

Children with unstable home lives or who live in poverty are particularly at risk, according to Salinas.

"They're offering these young kids an alternative lifestyle that might look really good to them, given their circumstances," Salinas said.

Investigators say the threat from MS-13 is increasing, and younger and younger children are being targeted for gang recruitment. Sessions said in remarks made this month that MS-13 has more than 10,000 members in at least 40 states in this country -- "up significantly from just a few years ago."

Trump rails against MS-13 and promises more immigration control
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Trump rails against MS-13 and promises more immigration control

Sessions didn't point to specific numbers to account for the increase he cited, and in 2008 the FBI estimated about 6,000 to 10,000 members nationwide. Experts caution gang membership can be a difficult number to track. However Igualada says the FBI has noted an increase in MS-13 recruitment in the last five or six years based on intelligence they've collected in the country and on reports from state and local law enforcement.

The FBI says MS-13 is increasingly recruiting young children beginning as early as middle school and even elementary school.

The recruitment process can take up to two years, and in order to become a full-fledged gang member, the mostly teenage recruits are expected to commit a murder, Igualada said. These murders are usually ordered by a gang member to be carried out against a rival gang member or a member of the gang thought to have shown disloyalty or disrespect, Igualada said.

Boys are often favored over girls as recruits because the gang perceives girls to be more likely to cooperate with law enforcement, according to Igualada. But even girls with no ties to MS-13 are still at risk for getting caught in the crossfire, Igualada said, especially if they live in a gang-controlled area -- for example, by declining an offer to go out with a gang member.

In Long Island, some teens tell their parents they are afraid to go to school, reports the Associated Press.

"They can't walk the halls without fear," Evelyn Rodriguez, the mother of slain teen Kayla Cuevas, told the AP.

Rodriguez said her daughter had been bullied for two years before her slaying. She said Kayla stood her ground in disputes with MS-13, and wound up dead.

"It could happen to anybody's child, anywhere," Rodriguez said. "We all need to be aware of this, and we need stand together. Because I don't want it to be your child."


THE QUAKERS, MENTIONED IN HERE, ARE TO ME THE BEST OF THE LOT. THEY DO, OR USED TO, PRACTICE "SHUNNING" AS A PUNISHMENT FOR CERTAIN THINGS, HOWEVER, AND THAT'S NOT LIBERAL ENOUGH FOR ME. THAT'S WHY I'M A UNITARIAN. I DID LIKE SEEING THIS ARTICLE, THOUGH, BECAUSE THERE ARE A GOOD MANY PEOPLE NOWADAYS WHO HAVE RELIGIOUS FEELINGS AND BELIEFS, BUT WHO DON'T FIT ANY ONE GROUP, OR WHO DON'T WANT TO BE MORE OR LESS FORCED TO SAY THEY BELIEVE SOMETHING THAT THEY DON'T IN ORDER TO STAY IN THE GROUP.

http://www.refinery29.uk/liberal-christianity-problems
The Problem With Being A Liberal Christian...
STELLA HERVEY BIRRELL
11 APRIL 2017, 01:00

"Of course, the reason we have all these terror attacks is because there are more foreign people than English people in London now."

Where was I subjected to this lovely piece of hate speech? At a BNP march perhaps? Nope, it was after a Sunday service, in the most liberal church I can find. I’m reluctant to define myself as a Christian. Seriously, have you seen the kind of headlines we generate? So I add "liberal", despite there being several conflicting definitions of what a liberal Christian actually is. The definition here is a Christian who doesn’t use the Bible as an excuse; who doesn't use it as camouflage for particular attitudes about women, LGBTQ+ people, sex workers, people of other faiths, and atheists.

A liberal Christian takes the story of Jesus talking to a woman of Samaria seriously. Jews at that time didn’t talk to Samarians, but Jesus did. He even offered this woman living water. It’s an openness to difference, instead of insisting that every single word of the Bible is God’s law.

With a trans-niece and a gender non-conforming child, where is it safe for me to worship? How can I find people I align with politically and socially, as well as spiritually? Answer: hardly anywhere.

One place I have found is with The Quakers. The Quakers win hands down on ‘most willing to accept those of other faiths or no faith’, and ‘support for marginalised groups.’ But, on a purely selfish level, their services don’t contain enough familiar music, ritual or liturgy: the stuff that can spiritually fulfil those who were brought up in more formal church settings.

I was brought up Episcopalian, and when the first women were ordained in the Scottish Episcopal Church in 1994, my mother was one of them. As an adult, I attend the Church of Scotland most Sundays, with my children. But I couldn’t possibly become an elder (like a parish council member). For a start, The Church of Scotland doesn’t officially subscribe to "different paths, same god(s)", a central part of my belief system. During the Equal Marriage debate which raged in a small corner of Scotland, I took on my local minister, and lost. He toed the church’s line; I left the local village church where I had been married, and where both of my children were baptised. FYI, a rainbow appeared over the Scottish Parliament just before they passed the Equal Marriage Law. I’m just saying.

One of my favourite things is making a friend and later realising that they have a faith, or a Christian faith, but increasingly, I find I’m never fully relaxed in new friends’ company until I find out what kind of beliefs they hold.

Do they hate the sin, love the sinner? We’re talking the classic “homosexuals are all going to hell, but some of my good friends are gay.”

Do they blame the entire religion of Islam for acts of terror carried out by a tiny minority of religious fanatics?

Do they – and this will sound like I’m nit-picking – but do they believe in non-inclusive language?

For as long as I can remember, I have omitted the ‘men’ from the following line, whenever I’ve said it: "For us men and for our salvation" – because I’m not a man, and if you tell me that "men" is a generic term, I am likely to explode, in a non-liberal kind of way.

When I talked to some fellow liberals about their experiences, they all began by hesitating to accept the terminology of “liberal” Christian. Then, they all admitted that finding like-minded people and places to worship could be difficult.

One told me an excellent story about a Sunday school teacher, who was asked by a tweenager: "Why is it so embarrassing for me to tell my friends that I go to church?"

“Leadership is key,” says Josie, a liberal Christian living in Yorkshire. Theoretically, if the vicar/minister/priest is liberal enough, then one is at least spared from listening to what she calls “horrible offensive crap from the pulpit.” Also important though, is finding a like-minded congregation. “It can feel like physical training: it all works better when you have a training buddy,” said Nicola, an academic from Nottingham.

However, when I approached my mother about this article, her line was that, “Worship should bring together people who have different insights and different experiences.” And my own minister, Jennifer Macrae, agreed. “We don’t know the mind of God, nor are we entitled to limit God’s grace to like-minded folk.” And I was reminded that church is one of the few remaining places that I’m dragged out of my comfy bubble/echo chamber.

So why go to church at all? Why associate myself with what one of my interviewees called “an institutional dinosaur”? There are two reasons, one which I can explain, and one which words don’t really serve.

The first is, that for all my liberal credentials, I’m not a nice enough person to wander around this earth without having a weekly recap of them on a Sunday. As a Christian, I’m supposed to behave in particular ways. I’m supposed to have a moral, religious code. I’m meant to forgive people, and pray for them. And I’m certainly not meant to yell at the children all day.

The second is the spiritual nourishment from joining with a group of people, liberal or not, and raising our hearts, minds and voices in song and prayer. Sharing a ritualistic meal, listening to passages from an ancient text.

Hitting reset on my soul.