December 1, 2017


News and Views


SO SAD.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/senate-gop-hustles-meet-tax-085039276.html?soc_trk=gcm&soc_src=ecd5e8af-dc90-3332-9efb-d522bf6b8dfa&.tsrc=notification-brknews
Senate OKs tax bill as Trump, GOP near big legislative win
Alan Fram, Marcy Gordon and Stephen Ohlemacher, Associated Press
Associated Press • December 2, 2017

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Republicans pushed a nearly $1.5 trillion tax bill through the Senate early Saturday after a burst of eleventh-hour horse trading, as a party starved all year for a major legislative triumph took a giant step toward giving President Donald Trump one of his top priorities by Christmas.

"Big bills are rarely popular. You remember how unpopular 'Obamacare' was when it passed?" Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said in an interview, shrugging off polls showing scant public enthusiasm for the measure. He said the legislation would prove to be "just what the country needs to get growing again."

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Presiding over the Senate, Vice President Mike Pence announced the 51-49 vote to applause from Republicans. Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., was the only lawmaker to cross party lines, joining the Democrats in opposition. The measure focuses its tax reductions on businesses and higher-earning individuals, gives more modest breaks to others and offers the boldest rewrite of the nation's tax system since 1986.

Republicans touted the package as one that would benefit people of all incomes and ignite the economy. Even an official projection of a $1 trillion, 10-year flood of deeper budget deficits couldn't dissuade GOP senators from rallying behind the bill.

"Obviously I'm kind of a dinosaur on the fiscal issues," said Corker, who battled to keep the bill from worsening the government's accumulated $20 trillion in IOUs.

The Republican-led House approved a similar bill last month in what has been a stunningly swift trip through Congress for complex legislation that impacts the breadth of American society. The two chambers will now try crafting a final compromise to send Trump.

After spending the year's first nine months futilely trying to repeal President Barack Obama's health care law, GOP leaders were determined to move the measure rapidly before opposition Democrats and lobbying groups could blow it up. The party views passage as crucial to retaining its House and Senate majorities in next year's elections.

Democrats derided the bill as a GOP gift to its wealthy and business backers at the expense of lower-earning people. They contrasted the bill's permanent reduction in corporate income tax rates from 35 percent to 20 percent to smaller individual tax breaks that would end in 2026.

Congress' nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation has said the bill's reductions for many families would be modest and said by 2027, families earning under $75,000 would on average face higher, not lower, taxes.

The bill is "removed from the reality of what the American people need," said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. He criticized Republicans for releasing a revised, 479-page bill that no one can absorb shortly before the final vote, saying, "The Senate is descending to a new low of chicanery."

"You really don't read this kind of legislation," Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., told home-state reporters, asked why the Senate was approving a bill some senators hadn't read. He said lawmakers needed to study it and get feedback from affected groups.

Democrats took to the Senate floor and social media to mock one page that included changes scrawled in barely legible handwriting. Later, they won enough GOP support to kill a provision by Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., that would have bestowed a tax break on conservative Hillsdale College in Michigan.

The bill hit rough waters after the Joint Taxation panel concluded it would worsen federal shortfalls by $1 trillion over a decade, even when factoring in economic growth that lower taxes would stimulate. Trump administration officials and many Republicans have insisted the bill would pay for itself by stimulating the economy. But the sour projections stiffened resistance from some deficit-averse Republicans.

But after bargaining that stretched into Friday, GOP leaders nailed down the support they needed in a chamber they control 52-48. Facing unyielding Democratic opposition, Republicans could lose no more than two GOP senators and prevail with a tie-breaking vote from Vice President Mike Pence, but ended up not needing it.

Leaders' changes included helping millions of companies whose owners pay individual, not corporate, taxes on their profits by allowing deductions of 23 percent, up from 17.4 percent. That helped win over Wisconsin's Johnson and Steve Daines of Montana.

People would be allowed to deduct up to $10,000 in property taxes, a demand of Sen. Susan Collins of Maine. That matched a House provision that chamber's leaders included to keep some GOP votes from high-tax states like New York, New Jersey and California.

The changes added nearly $300 billion to the tax bill's costs. To pay for that, leaders reduced the number of high-earners who must pay the alternative minimum tax, rather than completely erasing it. They also increased a one-time tax on profits U.S.-based corporations are holding overseas and would require firms to keep paying the business version of the alternative minimum tax.

Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz. — who like Corker had been a holdout and has sharply attacked Trump's capabilities as president — voted for the bill. He said he'd received commitments from party leaders and the administration "to work with me" to restore protections, dismantled by Trump, for young immigrants who arrived in the U.S. illegally as children. That seemed short of a pledge to actually revive the safeguards.

The Senate bill would drop the highest personal income tax rate from 39.6 percent to 38.5 percent. The estate tax levied on a few thousand of the nation's largest inheritances would be narrowed to affect even fewer.

Deductions for state and local income taxes, moving expenses and other items would vanish, the standard deduction — used by most Americans — would nearly double to $12,000 for individuals and $24,000 for couples, and the per-child tax credit would grow.

The bill would abolish the "Obamacare" requirement that most people buy health coverage or face tax penalties. Industry experts say that would weaken the law by easing pressure on healthier people to buy coverage, and the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has said the move would push premiums higher and leave 13 million additional people uninsured.

Drilling would be allowed in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Another provision, knocked out because it violated Senate budget rules, would have explicitly let parents buy TAX-ADVANTAGED 529* college savings accounts for fetuses, a step they can already take but which anti-abortion forces wanted to inscribe into law. There were also breaks for the wine, beer and spirits industries, Alaska Natives and aircraft management firms.

Associated Press writers Andrew Taylor in Washington and Scott Bauer Milwaukee contributed to this report.


INDEPENDENT REPORT ON CHARLOTTESVILLE – SEE TODAY’S SPECIAL REPORT ON THIS SUBJECT AND ON RADICAL GROUPS INVOLVED.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/charlottesville-protest-report-police-failed-violent-rally/
CBS/AP December 1, 2017, 10:55 AM
Charlottesville protest report finds police failed at violent rally

55 photos -- Demonstrations
Photograph -- A vehicle drives into a group of protesters demonstrating against a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va., Saturday, on Sat., Aug. 12, 2017. RYAN M. KELLY/THE DAILY PROGRESS VIA AP

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- Law enforcement's response to a violent white nationalist rally in Virginia last summer failed on multiple fronts, an independent review released Friday found.

Former U.S. Attorney Tim Heaphy's monthslong investigation of the Charlottesville rally found that the city failed by not adequately communicating or coordinating in advance and by removing an officer from an area where a car plowed into counterprotesters and killed a woman.

Heaphy's team interviewed 150 people and pored over half a million documents for the report, which found a lack of preparation and coordination between state and city police and a passive response by officers to the chaos.

The report said the city of Charlottesville had failed to protect public safety or the protesters' right to express themselves.

"This represents a failure of one of government's core functions - the protection of fundamental rights," the report says. "Law enforcement also failed to maintain order and protect citizens from harm, injury, and death. Charlottesville preserved neither of those principles on August 12, which has led to deep distrust of government within this community."

Neo-Nazis, white nationalists and Ku Klux Klan members who descended on Charlottesville in part to protest plans to remove a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee began fighting in the streets with counterdemonstrators before the event even officially began. The brawling went on for nearly an hour in plain view of officers until the event eventually disbanded. Later, as counterdemonstrators were peacefully marching through a downtown street, a car drove into the crowd, killing 32-year-old Heather Heyer and injuring many more.

Charlottesville Mayor Mike Signer called incident that resulted in Heyer's death a "terrorist attack."

The report says "planning and coordination breakdowns" before Aug. 12 led to "disastrous results."

"Because of their misalignment and lack of accessible protective gear, officers failed to intervene in physical altercations that took place in areas adjacent to Emancipation Park," the report said.

State police directed their officers "to remain behind barricades rather than risk injury responding to conflicts between protesters and counter-protesters," it said. And Charlottesville commanders "similarly instructed their officers not to intervene in all but the most serious physical confrontations."

State police and Charlottesville police were unable to communicate by radio the day of the rally because they were on different channels, the report said.

The review also found that an officer was initially supposed to be stationed near the intersection where the car plowed into counterprotesters. But the officer asked for relief out of safety concerns and was not replaced, he said.

Only a sawhorse was in place when the car drove into the crowd, killing Heyer and injuring at least 19 others. The day's death toll rose to three when two state troopers sent to monitor the scene and support the governor's motorcade died in a helicopter crash.

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, Police Chief Al Thomas and other top officials have previously defended the law enforcement response, saying police had to show restraint because some people in the crowd were heavily armed.

Rally organizers and counterprotesters, as well as some law enforcement experts, have questioned why authorities didn't do more to separate opposing forces or step in once the violence began breaking out.

City officials had tried to move the rally to a larger park about a mile from downtown Charlottesville, but their request was blocked by a federal judge after the American Civil Liberties Union sued on free-speech grounds.

Heaphy served as the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Virginia from 2009-2015, after being appointed by President Obama.

The Republican Party of Virginia criticized the city's decision to hire Heaphy, arguing he should be disqualified from leading the review because of past political donations he made to Democratic candidates, including $200 to Signer's campaign fund in 2015.

Heaphy has said his contributions would have no bearing on the review.

© 2017 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.


I’M GLAD TO SEE THAT THE FBI HAS BEEN CALLED IN BECAUSE IN A CASE LIKE THIS, SOME OFFICERS COULD BE FAVORED BY THOSE IN AUTHORITY WHEN THEY ARE ACTUALLY GUILTY OF CRIMES. THE VERY “UNUSUAL” CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD BE LOOKED INTO, BECAUSE THIS POLICE COMMISSIONER IS RELUCTANT TO REALLY DID INTO IT, I THINK. I DO WANT TO HEAR THE RESULTS ON THIS ONE. “BAD COPS” ARE VERY DANGEROUS INDIVIDUALS.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/officials-indicted-ex-baltimore-cop-set-up-slain-officer-to-find-drugs-in-2010/
By CRIMESIDER STAFF CBS/AP December 1, 2017, 11:25 AM
Officials: Indicted ex-Baltimore cop set up slain officer to find drugs in 2010

Photographs -- Wayne Earl Jenkins, left, was an indicted member of a disbanded Baltimore police unit. Sean Suiter, right, was allegedly set up by Jenkins to find drugs in a 2010 police encounter. Suiter was killed in the line of duty in 2017. BALTIMORE POLICE

BALTIMORE — An indicted member of a disbanded Baltimore police unit allegedly duped a fellow officer into discovering a cache of heroin he planted in a car during a 2010 arrest, authorities alleged in a new indictment announced Thursday.

Police Commissioner Kevin Davis later identified the betrayed officer — dubbed "Officer No. 1" in the indictment — as Detective Sean Suiter, who was fatally shot in the head with his own gun just over two weeks ago while probing a triple homicide in a particularly rough West Baltimore neighborhood. He was killed the day before he was set to testify in an ongoing probe of the specialized gun recovery unit.

During a Thursday press conference, Davis told reporters that, back in 2010, Suiter was "set up" by indicted former officer Wayne Earl Jenkins to discover planted narcotics. He said Suiter was "not involved in any way, shape or form" in the deception.

Speaking of Jenkins, Davis said: "This guy was able to operate with impunity on this police department for far too long."

On Friday, Davis announced that he was asking the FBI to take over the investigation into the death of Det. Suiter.

"I am growing increasingly uncomfortable that my homicide detectives and I do not know all the facts," said the commissioner. He called the situation of a police officer homicide overlapping with a federal corruption probe "unusual."

"The community needs to know that I am willing to invite any sets of eyes or resources to look at this incident," said Davis.

Jenkins, 37, a former Baltimore police sergeant who is one of the indicted members of Baltimore's disbanded Gun Trace Task Force and a onetime supervisor of the squad, is one of eight Baltimore law enforcers being investigated by a federal grand jury.

The elite unit was tasked with getting illegal guns off the streets of Baltimore, but federal prosecutors say they used their position to detain people on false pretenses, steal their money, fake police reports, lie to investigators, and defraud their department.

If Thursday's indictment is proven, Jenkins also tricked a fellow officer into finding narcotics he planted himself and wrongly put two people behind bars for heroin possession charges.

A new five-count indictment announced Thursday by the acting U.S. attorney and Baltimore's FBI special-agent-in-charge alleges that on April 28, 2010, Jenkins was driving an unmarked police car with another officer dubbed "Officer No. 1," who Davis confirmed was Suiter. He allegedly told a third officer he was going to send Officer No. 1 to search a suspect's car because he was "clueless" that drugs had already been planted.

Umar Burley was convicted and sentenced to 15 years as a result of the 2010 arrest where 28 grams of heroin were found in 32 individual packets. Brent Matthews was sentenced to nearly four years. They both pleaded guilty despite knowing they were innocent, according to a statement from the Department of Justice.

"Both men concluded that in a trial involving Sergeant Jenkins' word against theirs, they would lose," the statement said.

Two lawyers for Burley, who was released from prison in August after the government moved to reduce his sentence to time served, did not immediately respond to phone calls or an email seeking comment. Matthews was released from prison after 2 ½ years in 2013.

The 2010 arrest also followed a chaotic high-speed chase that resulted in the death of an elderly man when Burley's car crashed.

Jenkins is currently detained awaiting a January trial on criminal racketeering and fraud charges. If convicted, he now faces an additional sentence of 20 years for the additional charges announced Thursday.

As he has done repeatedly in recent days, Baltimore's police commissioner stressed Thursday that Suiter was "never the target of an FBI investigation."

Rumors about Suiter's unsolved Nov. 15 shooting in a vacant lot went into overdrive last week when Davis confirmed that the acting U.S. attorney and FBI informed him that the detective was gunned down the day before he was expected to testify. According to CBS Baltimore, Davis said authorities have no reason to believe that his death was connected to that fact.

Police say he and his partner were in the rough Harlem Park neighborhood canvassing for information when Suiter approached a "suspicious" man in a vacant lot, leading to a violent confrontation in which he was shot with his own gun. His partner can be seen on private surveillance video taking cover across the street, according to Davis.

Suiter was found clutching his radio. A brief radio transmission indicated he was in distress and his clothes had signs of a "violent struggle," according to Davis. Suiter died at a hospital a day later.

The detective's murder is unsolved. There is a $215,000 reward for information leading to the shooter's arrest.

Suiter's funeral Wednesday drew thousands of mourners, shutting down major roads and bringing law enforcement officials from as far away as Chicago.

Maryland U.S. Representative Elijah Cummings, who represents the West Baltimore neighborhood where Detective Suiter was killed, met Wednesday with FBI Director Christopher Wray in Washington, D.C. and asked him "to use every resource available" to assist Baltimore City Police in finding Detective Suiter's killer, reports CBS Baltimore.

"There are all types of rumors going on in the streets, and I think that we need a very thorough investigation," Cummings said. "I told the director that we must follow the evidence wherever it may lead, and I want him to put a microscope on this investigation."

"The idea that Officer Suiter was murdered the night before he was supposed to provide federal grand jury testimony, a lot of people are concerned about that, and I got the impression listening to the head of the FBI that they are concerned about it, too," Cummings told the station.

© 2017 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.



THERE PROBABLY WAS AN ACTUAL LACK OF EVIDENCE OF ZARATE’S GUILT, I SUSPECT. JURIES DON’T USUALLY OPERATE AGAINST THE LOGICAL CONCLUSION, AND IN THE CASE OF A “RUNAWAY JURY,” THEY DO IT FOR SOME REASON THAT MAKES SENSE TO THEM. I REALLY WOULD LIKE TO SEE SOME DETAILED DESCRIPTIONS OF THIS TRIAL, HOWEVER.

WHATEVER THE CASE, TRUMP HAD NO RIGHT AS PRESIDENT TO CALL IT “DISGRACEFUL,” BECAUSE THAT IS CONSIDERED “UNDUE INFLUENCE.” AS AT LEAST TWO NEWS COMMENTATORS HAVE POINTED OUT SINCE HIS MOST RECENT “TWEETS,” THAT FOR HIM TO WEIGH IN THAT HEAVILY ON A MATTER OF THE COURT’S ACTION, THOSE WORDS MAY WORK AGAINST HIM, CAUSING MANY PEOPLE TO DISLIKE HIM EVEN MORE; AND IT CAN BE GROUNDS FOR IMPEACHMENT TWO COMMENTATORS SAID. HE IS SUPPOSED TO STAY STRICTLY OUT OF JUDICIAL ISSUES, THOUGH HE IS EMPOWERED TO NOMINATE THE FEDERAL CANDIDATES. WHO GETS THE POSITION IS UP TO THE SENATE TO MAKE THE FINAL DECISION. HIS FIRING OF COMEY IS ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF HIS STEPPING OUTSIDE THE BOUNDS.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-calls-kate-steinle-verdict-disgraceful/
CBS/AP November 30, 2017, 11:56 PM
Trump calls Kate Steinle verdict "disgraceful"

President Trump tweeted there was a "disgraceful verdict" after a Mexican man was found not guilty of murder in a high-profile killing that touched off a fierce immigration debate.

Mr. Trump's tweet comes three hours after Jose Ines Garcia Zarate was found not guilty in the killing of Kate Steinle. Jurors did convict him of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Mr. Trump says it is "no wonder the people of our Country are so angry with Illegal Immigration."

Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
A disgraceful verdict in the Kate Steinle case! No wonder the people of our Country are so angry with Illegal Immigration.
10:30 PM - Nov 30, 2017
15,579 15,579 Replies 21,224 21,224 Retweets 63,747 63,747 likes
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Jose Ines Garcia Zarate had been deported five times and was wanted for a sixth deportation when the shooting happened. He said it was an accident. The jury found him not guilty on murder and manslaughter charges but he was convicted on a gun charge.

During the presidential race, then-candidate Donald Trump cited the killing as a reason to toughen U.S. immigration policies, CBS San Francisco reports. Mr. Trump later signed an executive order to cut funding from cities that limit cooperation with U.S. immigration authorities, a policy that a federal judge in San Francisco permanently blocked Monday.

murder trial cali
Kate Steinle, left, and Jose Ines Garcia Zarate CBS SAN FRANCISCO

Under a sanctuary city law, the San Francisco sheriff's department had released Garcia Zarate from jail despite a federal immigration request to detain him for deportation.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issued a statement calling Steinle's death "unconscionable that politicians across this country continue to endanger the lives of Americans with sanctuary policies while ignoring the harm inflicted on their constituents."

After Steinle's death, Fox News has advocated for a law called "Kate's Law" that would enhance penalties for convicted and deported criminals who reenter the United States illegally. But Steinle's father, Jim Steinle, told the San Francisco Chronicle in a piece titled "Leave Kate Steinle's name out of the immigration debate," said "it certainly wasn't us" who coined the phrase "Kate's Law."

Steinle's family told the San Francisco Chronicle that they still supported santacutary [sic] cities, but they believed San Francisco when the former sheriff effectively ordered his department to cut off communication with federal immigration authorities.

Steinle's brother, Brad Steinle, told the Chronicle in an interview published Thursday he was "just flabbergasted" by the "culmination of errors" that led to his sister's death, with "failure number one" was federal authorities' decision to Garcia Zarate back to San Francisco on a 20-year-old drug charge.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a statement Thursday night that mentioned Garcia Zarate wouldn't have been on San Francisco streets had the city honored an ICE detainer.

The statement ended with Sessions saying: "I urge the leaders of the nation's communities to reflect on the outcome of this case and consider carefully the harm they are doing to their citizens by refusing to cooperate with federal law enforcement officers."

Republican Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) tweeted that he is "disappointed and angry" with the verdict.

Ted Cruz
✔
@tedcruz
I am disappointed and angry at the not guilty verdict for Jose Ines Garcia Zarate, an illegal alien who had several felony convictions & was deported from the US five times. Justice must be served for Kate Steinle. http://fxn.ws/2kh0t4U
8:34 PM - Nov 30, 2017

Kate Steinle’s accused killer found not guilty of murder

Jurors reached the decision Thursday in the sixth day of deliberations after first receiving the case last Tuesday.
foxnews.com
1,807 1,807 Replies 4,944 4,944 Retweets 11,709 11,709 likes
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© 2017 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.


ALEXANDER THE GREAT LOST CITY FOUND BY SATELLITE. YEARS AGO I HEARD A PROFESSOR SAY THAT ARCHAEOLOGISTS ARE ABLE TO DETECT NEOLITHIG PLOW MARKS AND ROWS IN FIELDS BY FLYING OVER IT AND PHOTOGRAPHING THE LAND BELOW. THEN THEY ANALYZE IT WITH A COMPUTER. ARCHAEOLOGY REALLY IS ONE OF THE MOST EXCITING FIELDS OF SCIENCE AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED. SINCE I'M NOT KEEN ON NUMERICAL SCIENCE, I DON'T FEEL THE SAME WAY ABOUT THE SOLAR SYSTEM IN TERMS OF DISTANCES LIKE "LIGHT YEARS," BECAUSE IT'S UNIMAGINABLE FOR ME, BUT DATES INTO THE DEEP PAST CAN BE HANDLED BY A TIMELINE. AFTER AWHILE YOU RELATE ONE TO ANOTHER AND TO A SET OF FACTS, THEN THE WAY, WAY BACK DATES BEGIN TO MAKE SENSE.

https://curiosity.com/topics/lost-city-of-alexander-the-great-discovered-on-declassified-satellite-photos-curiosity/
Archaeology
Lost City of Alexander the Great Discovered on Declassified Satellite Photos
WRITTEN BY
Reuben Westmaas
NOVEMBER 5, 2017

Photograph -- Do you lose things a lot? Sometimes we have to leave the house five or six times before we have everything we need to go about our day. But when you're Alexander the Great, you don't just lose car keys and phone chargers. You lose entire cities. And they stay lost.

Looking Back in Time

What's really wild about this story is the long and winding road the city took from "lost" to "found". It all started sometime around 331 B.C.E., when Alexander was well into the first leg of his army-crushing world tour. King Darius III of the Persians was on the ropes and retreating, and Alexander was on the hunt. He followed his quarry into Mesopotamia and, as was his wont, he built cities along the way. And that's how Qalatga Darband ended up on Lake Dokan, on the eastern side of Iraq.

And then it disappeared.

We're not sure exactly why Qalatga Darband didn't make it into the history books, but we know for a fact how it elbowed its way back in. In the 1960s, the biggest geopolitical powers were wrapped up in the Cold War, and a big part of that little kerfuffle was an obsession with up-to-the-minute surveillance. So, sometime in that decade, an American spy satellite happened to pass directly overhead Qalatga Darband and snapped a photo showing exactly what was lying beneath those fields of wheat and barley. But although that was first image of Qalatga Darband, it wouldn't actually be noticed until 1996, when those photos were all declassified.

Even then, it took awhile before modern experts could confirm that the city was really there. First, the problem was Saddam Hussein, who wasn't too excited about anyone coming to dig anything up in the country. Finally, archaeologists from the British Museum were able to send in a flock of drones to take some pictures, and eventually, a full-fledged dig began pulling up all kinds of fascinating information about life 2,350 years ago.

Photograph -- The lost city was found near the rocky Darband-i Rania pass in the Zagros Mountains of Iraq.
Courtesy: The British Museum

The Napa of Ancient Iraq

Once the archaeologists were able to start pulling up artifacts from the ground, they began to put together an accurate picture of what Qalatga Darband was actually like. For one thing, it was party central. The bustling little city would have been a natural stopping point for soldiers traveling from Iran to Iraq or vice versa, and it would have been equipped to entertain them as well. The researchers have been able to find ample evidence of once-thriving vineyards, and found the remains of stone presses that would have been used for making wine.

They also found a pair of statues that seem to represent Persephone and Adonis, further cementing the claim that this was a city of Greeks far from home. The only way to be more sure would be if we found the giant wooden horse that ancient Greeks all traveled around in.

Want to read more about Alexander's history-making conquest from the Mediterranean to the Indian subcontinent? Check out Robin Lane Fox's biography of the world's most successful military leader.

Alexander the Great

Video -- Alexander the Great Biography
– CloudBiography



THESE TWO YOUNG PEOPLE ARE A HANDSOME COUPLE, AND BOTH ARE HUMANITARIAN AND LIBERAL IN THEIR POLITICAL AND SOCIAL VIEWS. A DEMOCRACY IS NOT THE ONLY WAY TO HAVE A GOVERNMENT THAT IS RESPONSIBLE AND HELPFUL TO THE PUBLIC. HISTORY IS IN THEIR BLOOD, AND BRITAIN’S HISTORY INCLUDES THE SETTING UP OF PARLIAMENT AND A RESPONSIVE SYSTEM TO THE NEEDS OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC.

I DO LIKE “THE BRITS,” AND THOUGH SOME OF THEM ARE ON THE ALT-RIGHT SIDE OF THINGS RIGHT NOW, THEY HAVE A STRONG LABOR PARTY AND A MOVEMENT TOWARD THEIR OWN DEMOCRACY. THEY ARE ALSO OUR LOYAL SIDEKICKS AND HELPERS IN WAR, INTELLIGENCE, HUMANITARIAN EFFORTS, AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS. THEY’RE “GOOD GUYS.” THEY DON’T LIKE DONALD TRUMP, BUT THAT’S BECAUSE THEY’RE GOOD GUYS, AND THEY WON’T, I FEEL SURE, ABANDON US IN THE TIME OF NEED. SOMEBODY NEEDS TO TEACH TRUMP SOME MANNERS, AND THEY AREN’T TOO TIMID TO DO IT.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/prince-harry-and-meghan-markle-attend-1st-public-event-since-engagement/
CBS NEWS December 1, 2017, 7:44 AM
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attend 1st public event since revealing engagement

The new royal couple is already on the job, just days after revealing their engagement. Prince Harry and his American fiancée Meghan Markle arrived in the English city of Nottingham Friday morning to visit a charity fair marking World AIDS Day.

Just as Lady Diana did in 1981 and Kate Middleton in 2011, Meghan Markle made her first official engagement with Prince Harry by her side. Markle may have left her fans in the U.S. but she clearly has a new following in the U.K. where hundreds of people lined up to welcome her.

An eager public watched on, some waiting hours to catch a glimpse of Prince Harry and his American fiancée, reports CBS News correspondent Jonathan Vigliotti.

Prince Harry, Meghan Markle to wed at Windsor Castle in May

A timeline of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's romance

"Well, it's just brilliant news, to give our support to Meghan and Harry," said one woman who arrived at the crack of dawn.

Markle's visit to the World AIDS Day charity fair in Nottingham marks a quick role change from television actress to House of Windsor – one she appeared to handle with studied comfort.

BRITAIN-ROYALS-HARRY
Britain's Prince Harry and his fiancee Meghan Markle greet well-wishers in Nottingham, England, on December 1, 2017 as they arrive for a World AIDS Day charity fair, their first public event together since announcing their engagement. OLI SCARFF / AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Royal photographer Chris Jackson has spent more than 10 years covering Prince Harry and now his wife-to-be.

"They are going to be a formidable team and I think probably a lot to look forward to," Jackson said.

Markle discussed her own royal ambitions earlier this week.

"I think in these beginning few months and now being boots on the ground in the U.K., I'm excited to just really get to know more about the different communities here, smaller organizations who are working on the same causes that I've always been passionate about," Markle said.

Friday's carefully chosen public debut was a symbolic nod to Harry's mother, Princess Diana, who championed HIV/AIDS awareness up until her death 20 years ago.

Images of her shaking hands of patients without wearing gloves helped change the way the world understood the epidemic.

"Oh, they would have been thick as thieves, without question," Harry said of how he thinks his mother would have thought of Meghan.

Prince Harry alongside his brother Prince William and sister-in-law Kate Middleton have devoted much of their lives to carrying on Princess Diana's humanitarian legacy.

With Markle by his side, Harry says he is now more committed than ever.

Crash course on Meghan Markle
28 Photos
Crash course on Meghan Markle

© 2017 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.



THIS LADY IS AN EXEMPLIFICATION OF WHY PEOPLE, WHEN THEY GET SOME AGE ON THEM, SHOULD DO SOMETHING PRODUCT, CREATIVE AND USEFUL AFTER THEY RETIRE. THE URGE TO BE ACTIVE IS STILL THERE, AND IT WILL HELP FORESTALL ILLNESSES LIKE DEMENTIA. BETTE NASH IS DYNAMIC AND HELPFUL TO THOSE WHO ARE COMING BEHIND HER. WHEN I RETIRED I WAS DEFINITELY RESTLESS, SO IT OCCURRED TO ME TO START TO WRITE SERIOUSLY. IT HAS NOT BEEN DIFFICULT, AND IT IS ENTERTAINING AND STIMULATING. I HAVE A PURPOSE – AND BY MY READERSHIP STATISTICS, SOME SUCCESS. WATCH THE NEWS VIDEO FEATURING AN INTERVIEW WITH NASH. SHE’S CHARMING, CLEARLY HAPPY, AND VIBRANT.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bette-nash-flight-attendant-60-years/
By KRIS VAN CLEAVE CBS NEWS November 30, 2017, 7:33 PM
"People are exactly the same," flight attendant says after 60 years in the air

WASHINGTON -- If it seems like everyone knows flight attendant Bette Nash on an early-morning American Shuttle flight from Washington, D.C., to Boston, it's because they do.

Flight crews call the route the "Nash dash." And this month, Nash is celebrating her 60th anniversary in the air.

"She is magnificent," said frequent flier Florence Tate. "She's my mentor -- the cup is always half-filled."

van-cleave-bette-nash-4-2017-11-30.jpg
Flight attendant Bette Nash. CBS NEWS
Nash said the people she meets is why she has been doing her job for so long.

"I thrive on the people," Nash said. "You say something to them and they say something to you and they're happy -- and of course I like being paid, too."

Nash started in November 1957.

van-cleave-bette-nash-2-2017-11-30.jpg
Flight attendant Bette Nash in her early days in the air. CBS NEWS
The names on the planes changed -- Eastern, Trump Shuttle, U.S. Air shuttle and now American. So has the industry. In the 1950s, flight attendants were typically required to be single and couldn't work past their early 30s.

Nash planned to do this for a couple years. Instead she turns 82 next month with no plans to retire.

van-cleave-bette-nash-3-2017-11-30.jpg
Bette Nash. CBS NEWS
She said the technology is the biggest thing that has changed.

"There's nothing like technology that has changed," Nash said. "The people are exactly the same. Everybody needs a little love" -- especially at 30,000 feet in the air at 6:30 in the morning.

© 2017 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.



BERNIE SANDERS NEWS

https://chicago.suntimes.com/news/bernie-sanders-endorses-chuy-garcia-for-congress-why-its-a-big-deal/
Bernie Sanders endorses Chuy Garcia for Congress. Why it’s a big deal
CHICAGO NEWS 11/30/2017, 09:16pm
Lynn Sweet

Troy LaRaviere, Bernie Sanders, Jesus "Chuy" Garcia at Chicago press conference March 12, 2016. (photo by Lynn Sweet)

WASHINGTON — Sen. Bernie Sanders endorsed Cook County Commissioner Jesús “Chuy” Garcia for Congress on Thursday — giving a big boost to an important surrogate for his 2016 Democratic presidential bid and sending a message to potential primary rivals for the seat now held by Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill.

Sanders’ backing comes after Gutierrez anointed Garcia as his successor to represent the 4th Congressional District, which includes the most Hispanic parts of Chicago on the North and South sides.

Yes, Gutierrez has engineered things to make it highly likely that Garcia will emerge as the Democratic candidate after the March primary. That will be tantamount to election in this heavily Democratic district.

But it was not done to do a favor for Mayor Rahm Emanuel. More on that below.

Garcia’s wing of the Democratic Party helped Sanders, the Vermont Independent, come close to beating Hillary Clinton in the March 2016 Illinois presidential primary — in part by attacking Emanuel.

Garcia went on to become a key Sanders’ surrogate targeting Hispanic voters, traveling to key states during the campaign.

Sanders has kept his political movement alive with the creation of his “Our Revolution” nonprofit. The leaders of Our Revolution Illinois in Chicago include Garcia and Cook County Clerk David Orr. The chair is Clem Balanoff, who led Sanders’ Illinois presidential drive.

The seat has a history.

This incredibly gerrymandered “C” or earmuff shaped 4th District was created in 1992 to comply with the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The idea was to consolidate Hispanic voting strength by linking the North Side largely Puerto Rican neighborhoods with the Mexican-American communities on the South Side.

Gutierrez became the first Hispanic House member from Illinois, holding that seat since its inception.

Why Sanders endorsement is a big deal for Garcia in a Democratic primary:

• Sanders resonates with the non-Hispanic parts of the district — the hipsters* and millennials and traditional liberals and progressive in the city.

• The district also takes in Cicero and some other suburban territory as it snakes it [sic] way west all the way to the 294 Interstate. And in the suburbs, Sanders has influence among the newest generation of activist Democrats who are loosely banded together in the “Indivisible” movement* born after the election of President Donald Trump.

• This gives Garcia a fundraising edge if Sanders asks his backers to donate to Garcia. It’s highly likely Sanders would, if needed, fly to Chicago to stump for Garcia.

• Garcia now has a ready-made Sanders national organization to bolster his House bid.

• Sanders’ backing of Garcia gives him standing outside Chicago political fishbowl.

“Chuy Garcia is the right person at the right time for the work we have ahead of us,” Sanders said in a statement.

“He is ready and willing to stand up and fight for the working families of Chicago and our nation and take on the powerful special interests who have far too much power over the economic and political life of our country. He is also an experienced legislator who has risen up the ladder of Chicago’s brawling politics. That makes him well groomed for jumping into the House’s rough and tumble political battles.” Sanders said.

ON THIS CRAZY STUFF ABOUT RAHM AND LUIS

Garcia forced Emanuel to a runoff in the 2015 mayoral race.

But this story line I’ve been hearing — that somehow Gutierrez decided to quit the House after 25 years to make it easier for Emanuel to win re-election in 2019 by getting Garcia out the way — is riduclous. [sic]

If Garcia does end up in Congress, and it helps Emanuel, well, that is an unintentional and unavoidable byproduct. Neither Garcia nor Gutierrez care enough about Emanuel to make this switcheroo just for him.


hipsters*

hip·ster1
ˈhipstər/Submit
nouninformal
plural noun: hipsters
a person who follows the latest trends and fashions, especially those regarded as being outside the cultural mainstream.


INDIVISIBLE*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indivisible_movement
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Indivisible is a progressive movement in United States politics, initiated in 2016 as a reaction to the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States. The movement began with the online publication of a handbook written by Congressional staffers with suggestions for peacefully but effectively resisting the move to the right in the executive branch of the United States government under the Trump administration that was widely anticipated and feared by progressives.[1] The goal of Indivisible, according to Peter Dreier, is to "save American democracy" and "resume the project of creating a humane America that is more like social democracy than corporate plutocracy."[2]

Origin[edit]

The movement started with the online publication of a 23-page handbook, Indivisible: A Practical Guide for Resisting the Trump Agenda.[3] The authors of the document, most notably Ezra Levin, Jeremy Haile, Leah Greenberg, and Angel Padilla,[3] [4] were former Congressional staffers. Levin worked as an aide to Lloyd Doggett, a Democratic Party member of the United States House of Representatives from Texas, and Greenberg, his wife, worked as an aide to Democratic Representative Tom Perriello of Virginia.[5] After the 2016 presidential election, in mid-December 2016, Levin and Greenberg began working on an online guide in the form of a Google Document on how to make contact with congressional aides as a way of grieving over Trump's victory. Angel Padilla, and Jeremy Haile, and dozens of other staffers for Democratic members of the United States Congress joined in the creation of the online publication.[5][6]

The authors modeled their document after the Tea Party movement, which focused on local activism and obstructing the Democratic Party's agenda following the election of President Barack Obama in 2008.[7] They thought that similar action taken by the left could be effective against what they perceived as Trump's "bigoted and anti-democratic agenda."[8] The purpose of the guide was to encourage resistance to Trump's presidency, most notably by targeting Republican elected members of Congress by attending town halls, calling congressional officials, visiting their offices, and showing up at public events.[9]

It was first published online on Google Docs on December 14, 2016, with Levin posting a link to it on his personal Twitter account. It soon went viral,[7] with, among others, Robert Reich, Jonathan Chait, George Takei and Miranda July circulating it online.[10]

History[edit]

Since its original publication, the authors of the guide have created a website with further resources on using the guide and organizing local movements. The guide is continuously updated and is available in English and Spanish.[3]

By February 4, 2017, less than two months from the publication of the Indivisible Guide, and barely two weeks after Trump's inauguration, more than 3,800 local groups identifying as "Indivisibles" had formed and declared their support for the movement.[11] In February, they organized as a 501(c) organization.[5]

Many groups attended town halls,[12] demonstrated against nominees for Trump's Cabinet, and worked with organizers of the Women's March. Republican representatives accused Indivisible members of being "paid protesters" working for George Soros.[5] John Kasich and Mo Brooks acknowledged that the protests would impact efforts to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.[13][14] The movement was cited as a cause for the initial failure of Republicans to pass the American Health Care Act of 2017.[15]


http://fortune.com/2017/11/29/bernie-sanders-grammy-award-nomination/
Bernie Sanders Is Nominated for a Grammy Award
By Emily Price November 29, 2017

When it comes to the Grammys, artists like Jay-Z and Bruno Mars were anticipated to earn nominations. However, one nominee might have come as a bit of surprise this year: Bernie Sanders.

Sanders was nominated for a Grammy in the spoken word category for his reading of the audiobook version of “Our Revolution: A Future to Believe In,” along with actor Mark Ruffalo.

Competition in the category this year is pretty fierce. Other contenders include Bruce Springsteen for “Born to Run,” Neil Degrasse Tyson for “Astrophysics for People in a Hurry,” Carrie Fisher for “The Princess Diarist,” and Shelly Peiken for “Confessions of a Serial Songwriter.”

While Sanders’ nomination might be seen as a bit out of the ordinary for a political candidate, it’s anything but. A number of political figures have been nominated in the category before, and some have even won.

Barack Obama, for instance, won the Grammy in 2006 for his reading of “Dreams From My Father” and in 2008 for his reading of “The Audacity of Hope.” Bill Clinton won a Grammy in 2005, and Jimmy Carter won Grammys in 2007 and 2016.

Sanders’ opponent in the 2016 Presidential Democratic primary, Hillary Clinton, was also nominated for a Grammy in 2004 for her memoir “Living History” and won the award in 1997 for “It Takes a Village,” an audiobook she recorded while she was the First Lady.


http://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/wray-foreign-influence-task-force-election-meddling
FBI Sets Up ‘Foreign Influence’ Task Force To Protect Election System
By TIERNEY SNEED Published NOVEMBER 30, 2017 12:31 PM

Photograph or Wray taking oath, Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP

“I take any effort to interfere with out election system by Russia or any other nation state or non-nation state seriously, because it strikes right at the heart of who we are as a country,” Wray said, in a response to a question about the FBI’s response to Russia’s election meddling by Rep. Kathleen Rice (D-NY). Wray was appearing at a hearing in front of the House Homeland Security Committee.

“We have a foreign influence task force inside the FBI that brings together difference disciplines of the FBI, because it’s a multidisciplinary problem,” Wray said. “You’ve got a counterintelligence dimension, a cyber dimension, a criminal dimension. We coordinate closely with the [Department of Homeland Security], which has a responsibility for the criminal infrastructure portion.”

He added that the FBI is coordinating with foreign partners as well.

“We can learn from what Russians and others are trying to do with other elections, in terms of trade craft, etc.” Wray said. “We’re trying to get in front of it and be on the lookout for efforts to interfere.”

The FBI’s press office did not respond to TPM’s inquiry as to exactly when the task force was launched and for more details on its operations.

Wray’s comments come after Attorney General Jeff Sessions, on multiple occasions, struggled to tell Congress what the Justice Department was doing to prevent future foreign influence in elections. President Trump has continued to play down Russia’s attempts to meddle in the 2016 campaign, an assessment made by the intelligence community.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tierney Sneed
Tierney Sneed is a reporter for Talking Points Memo. She previously worked for U.S. News and World Report. She grew up in Florida and attended Georgetown University.



http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 11/30/17
Wray surprises with mention of 'foreign influence' task force
Rachel Maddow reports on the latest developments in the investigation into Russia's attack on the 2016 U.S. election, including FBI Director Wray announcing a previously unheard of task force to counter foreign influence in elections. Duration: 6:41


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBBxeczdXbY
Huge anti-Trump-roar on all sides in the Commons
Klaus Kocher
Published on Jan 30, 2017
Boris Johnson was inundated with biting and repeated questions from all sides. If it would have been possible, President Trump would have been deported.... The first question came from Emily Thornberry (Lab.). And very many and excellent Statements followed.(Excerpt only)
Category
People & Blogs
License
Standard YouTube License


A VIDEO REPORT TODAY SAID THAT HE STATED NOT THE TRUMP HIMSELF INSTRUCTED HIM TO SO THIS, BUT "A HIGH OFFICIAL IN THE TRANSITION." PROBABLY "THE SAME DIFFERENCE," THOUGH.


https://www.yahoo.com/news/flynn-charged-lying-fbi-plea-hearing-set-u-142319424.html?soc_trk=gcm&soc_src=220f7794-33fb-30cf-9151-1be59f43c485&.tsrc=notification-brknews
Flynn prepared to testify Trump directed him to contact Russians: ABC
By Sarah N. Lynch
Reuters • December 1, 2017
By Sarah N. Lynch

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - ABC News reported on Friday that former U.S. national security adviser Michael Flynn is prepared to testify that President Donald Trump directed him to make contact with Russians when he was a presidential candidate.

Related Searches

Special CounselLegal Counsel

Reuters could not immediately verify the report, which cited a Flynn confidant. The news sent U.S. stocks sharply lower. [nL3N1O14E8]
Flynn, a former top Trump campaign aide and a central figure in a federal investigation into Moscow's alleged interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, pleaded guilty on Friday to lying to the FBI.

His plea agreement, and his decision to cooperate with the investigation led by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, marked a major escalation in a probe that has dogged Trump's administration since the Republican president took office in January.

Flynn acknowledged making false statements about contacts he had with Russia's ambassador to the United States, Sergei Kislyak, last year. The charges carry sentence of up to five years in prison.

Flynn was fired from his White House post in February for misleading Vice President Mike Pence about his conversations with the ambassador.
Moscow has denied a conclusion by U.S. intelligence agencies that it meddled in the election campaign to try to sway the vote in Trump's favor. Trump has denied any collusion by his campaign.

(Reporting by Susan Heavey and Tim Ahmann; Additional reporting by John Walcott and Nathan Layne; Writing by Alistair Bell; Editing by Frances Kerry)


VIDEO ONLY:

A NEW FACE ON NIGHTLY NEWS

https://www.cbsnews.com/videos/meet-jeff-glor-the-new-anchor-of-cbs-evening-news/
Meet Jeff Glor, the new anchor of "CBS Evening News"
NOVEMBER 29, 2017, 7:58 PM| On Monday, Dec. 4, CBS News' Jeff Glor will take over as the new anchor of the "CBS Evening News." Glor grew up watching Walter Cronkite near Buffalo, New York, and has been a longtime CBS News correspondent. Watch Glor talk about his life, his career and what he brings to the anchor chair.