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Drama, farce, a radio ham and the Baker Street bank heist Drama, farce, a radio ham and the Baker Street bank heist Getty Images The tunnel into Lloyds Bank was described in court as “a remarkable piece of engineering” In the autumn of 1971, a group of men came together who would carry out one of the most astonishing bank raids in history. Skill, audacity and patience, ********* connections, a fair amount of luck, and inspiration from a Sherlock Holmes story culminated in a weekend of high drama and barely believable farce. A weekend in which a gang tunnelled into a secure vault and made off with the contents of hundreds of secure ******** boxes, while all the time being listened to by an ******** radio operator who was trying to tune in to pirate radio. A weekend in which police officers were on one side of the vault’s door while the gang were on the other, and nobody thought to check inside. As Lloyds Bank announces the upcoming closure of its Baker Street branch in central London, this is the story of how one of the most secure locations in the country was plundered – and even now, ******** partly unsolved. An archive news report from 1971, featuring a youthful John Humphries On a Friday night in September 1971, a group of men, clutching sandwiches and flasks of tea, made their way into SAC, a leather goods shop on Baker Street. The previous May, the lease for the shop came up for ***** and was duly bought by Benjamin Wolfe, a man in his 60s. He had been especially keen on the premises because it was two doors down from Lloyds Bank and it had a basement the same depth as the bank’s vault. Before even that, in December 1970, an apparently well-to-do man opened an account at the Baker Street branch of Lloyds and put £500 (about £6,000 today) into it. Later, he rented a safety ******** box at the branch. Like many wealthy clients, he made frequent visits to his box in the vault. Unlike many wealthy clients, he used the time to measure the room with his umbrella. Other circumstances played into the hands of the group. The summer had seen a number of roadworks in the area. The vibrations caused by the work led to businesses’ trembler alarms repeatedly going off. So the businesses disabled their trembler alarms. Getty Images Detectives and uniformed officers went to inspect the interior of the bank after staff found the vault in a “state of some disorder” Originally thought to have been organised by a Brian Reader, who was later involved in both the Brinks-Mat heist and the Hatton Garden raid, the personnel of the gang has never been fully established. Reader, who ***** aged 84 last year with an estimated fortune of £22m garnered from his string of high-risk burglaries, denied he took part. Four people, including Wolfe and Anthony Gavin, a protégé of Reader’s, were jailed in 1973. It’s thought at least another four, including a woman, slipped away. Getty Images The lease of the leather goods shop SAC was bought by one of the gang Other unanswered questions include how much was taken. It was reported that it could be anything between £500,000 and £3m (today’s equivalent of £6m and £40m). Only a fraction was recovered, and the rest went untracked. There were rumours involving government suppression of the story, for reasons unknown. And records about it officially sealed at the national archives until 2071. And is there any truth to the claim that one box contained photographs of Princess Margaret in an intimate clinch? Getty Images If police had looked into the leather goods shop on the night they were called out, they would have found a tunnel into the bank’s vault Gavin allegedly came up with the scheme after reading a Sherlock Holmes story, The Red-Headed League. In it, Arthur Conan-Doyle’s hero waits in a vault for burglars planning to tunnel in. Alongside Wolfe, Gavin recruited Reginald Tucker (who was the umbrella-wielder) and Thomas Stephen. Two others, Bobby Mills and Mickey Gervaise, were thought to be on board – although afterwards they disappeared into “thin air”, the police investigation found. Getty Images Police removed more than 800 items of evidence, a trial heard Tea flasks and sandwiches were not the only items carted inside the leather shop. Stephen, recruited for his ability to provide the necessary tools, had produced a 100-tonne jack, explosives, and a thermal lance, which heats and melts steel with pressurized oxygen to create very high temperatures. Months of weekends were spent digging the 40ft tunnel, with debris being taken away in plastic boxes under cover of darkness. When it was time for the raid, Mills, furnished with a walkie-talkie, mounted a nearby roof to keep an eye out as the others went through the tunnel and worked on breaking into the vault. The jack didn’t work, and nor did the thermal lance. It would have to be the gelignite. Timing the ********** to coincide with traffic to conceal the noise, they managed to break through. They were in. Getty Images Police check the alarm that didn’t sound as the burglars burrowed into the bank Meanwhile, in his attempt to tune into Radio Luxembourg, Robert Rowlands was picking up the gang’s walkie-talkie conversations on his ham radio. The 35-year-old was listening to them in real time as they co-ordinated their movements and the rooftop lookout beefed about how cold he was. Mr Rowlands heard the group discuss whether to take a break as their exploits had left the vault full of fumes, smoke and dust. One tunneller requested a cup of tea and a sandwich. They also mentioned how many “thousands” they had and what they would go back for. Mr Rowlands assumed they were burgling a tobacco shop and the numbers referred to cigarettes. Local police were not interested. A few hours later Mr Rowlands called Scotland Yard, where detectives were indeed interested. They called in a detection van from the Post Office in an attempt to trace the walkie-talkie signal. But they didn’t do this until Sunday afternoon, when it was all over. Getty Images The bank manager, who was “roused from his bed” the previous night, explained to customers the branch was shut The Times reported the following day: “Bank managers and caretakers were roused from their beds and brought from weekend holiday retreats to open their premises. “Police, accompanied by security men, went into the bank, but after being assured that the strong room was intact, they left. “As they closed the front door of the Lloyds premises, the thieves, some of them crouching behind the strong room doors, breathed a sigh of relief. “The slightest gasp might have given away their position. “Soon afterwards the thieves crawled back along the 40ft tunnel. They escaped through a back window leaving eight tons of rubble from the tunnel behind.” Or, as bank staff said, with remarkable understatement when they opened the branch on Monday morning: “We found the vault in some disorder.” Getty Images Police and news reporters gathered outside the branch on Baker Street Cdr Robert Huntley, of Scotland Yard, said: “Inevitably, we have come in for some criticism, from people who say we were slow to move off the mark. “When we were able to visit the bank with Lloyds security staff we were assured that the strong room was still intact. No one suspected that the gang had come up through the floor on the other side.” It was the biggest robbery ever carried out in the Metropolitan Police district, with 120 detectives working on the case. “We are getting information about who are the real brains behind this gang”, Cdr Hunt said. “We think that the ‘Mr Big’ is probably a faceless commuter. I do not know him.” Getty Images Robert Rowlands, left, raised the alarm after picking up the gang’s walkie-talkie conversations on his ham radio Gavin – whose tunnel-digging was described at the Old Bailey as “a magnificent piece of engineering” – Tucker and Stephen all pleaded guilty to entering the bank as a trespasser, stealing cash and jewellery and possessing explosives. Wolfe was found guilty of the same charges. Passing sentence, Judge Sutcliffe QC, said: “Each one of you must have known that the reward for success would be very high and the penalty for ******** would be high as well.” Wolfe was given eight years in jail, while the others received 12. Judge Sutcliffe told Wolfe he was passing a lesser sentence on him only because of his great age. “I am not going to have on my conscience the sentencing of a man for so long that he has little chance of leaving prison alive.” (Wolfe was 64). Getty Images The bank will close on 6 January, Lloyds said The aftermath of the case saw an undignified bout of finger-pointing. Scotland Yard said it was let down by the security staff of Lloyds Bank, who in turn said they had been assured their alarms were “foolproof”. The Post Office complained it could have caught the gang if it had been called in earlier. There were also questions as to why police did not check the leather shop, which would not only have revealed the tunnel leading straight into the vault, but the men inside, busily opening 286 safety ******** boxes. Getty Images The tunnel started inside the SAC shop and ran underground to the bank The heist was the inspiration for a 2008 film, The Bank Job. It includes a plotline in which the British Security Services want to retrieve some compromising photographs of Princess Margaret, allegedly held in a security box by Trinidadian militant gangster Michael X. The obvious solution was to get a gang to tunnel into the vault. The storyline boosted a rumour that appeared in newspapers, in which an anonymous “friend” said Reader was definitely involved in the heist and had told him he found photos showing a leading politician abusing children. Reader apparently left the images “scattered on the floor of the vault” for the police to find. There has been no evidence this was true. Another rumour was that the government imposed a “D-notice” – now called a DSMA-notice – on the story. This hinges on a lack of coverage of the story, with many claiming it disappeared from the news agenda. A DSMA-notice is issued to prevent inadvertent public disclosure of information that would compromise *** military and intelligence operations. It is not usually used to silence news stories about bank jobs that have already happened. The lack of published stories, though, isn’t quite true. Naturally, interest ***** down, but the raid was still being reported in national and regional papers throughout the decade. The rumour may gave started with radio ham Mr Rowlands, who said police had snatched a phone out of his grasp while he spoke to a newspaper about his part in the case. He said the officer had told the editor he wasn’t allowed to publish anything. Years later, Mr Rowlands suggested the police were trying to cover up what appeared to be their own incompetence. The only mystery that ******** is what is in the 800 pages of sealed documents at the National Archives. They are due to be released in 47 years time. So what did Lloyds Bank say about the whole event? It advised customers to insure valuables kept in their safety boxes and denied any liability. After all, it said: “It is a little unusual for raiders to come up through the floor.” Source link #Drama #farce #radio #ham #Baker #Street #bank #heist Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Brothers, third male **** in light plane ****** at Tinamba West in Gippsland Brothers, third male **** in light plane ****** at Tinamba West in Gippsland Two teenagers and a man in his 20s have been ******* in a light plane ****** in eastern Victoria. The ****** happened near the Gippsland town of Heyfield on Saturday, about 5.45pm. The three people on board – brothers aged 20 and 16, and another 15-year-old male – ***** in the incident. The 20-year-old was a licensed pilot, the Herald Sun reported. The *********** Transport Safety Bureau said the plane was “********-built”. Flight data shows the aircraft was in the air for 17 minutes. The plane crashed into a paddock and was destroyed by *****, bureau chief commissioner Angus Mitchell said. “The ATSB is deploying to the accident site a team of transport safety investigators from its Canberra office, specialising in aircraft operations and maintenance,” he said. The bureau will now investigate and parts of the aircraft will be examined in Canberra, Mr Mitchell said. “The ATSB anticipates publishing a preliminary report, detailing the information collected in the investigation’s early evidence gathering phase, in about six to eight weeks.” Residents in the area of the ****** told media the plane was circling before the incident. Flight data shows the aircraft departed West ***** Airport at 5.30pm on Saturday. It took off, flew north, before doing five asymmetrical loops above the town of Maffra. The plane was then flown west and flew about four loops before crashing. Camera IconThe plane crashed in a paddock near the Tinamba-Glenmaggie Road in Tinamba, Victoria. Google Credit: Supplied The previous owner of the plane, from Queensland, told the Herald Sun he had sold the plane two weeks ago. As well as the transport safety bureau investigation, a report will be prepared for the coroner. A Victorian aviation industry consultant – whose business designs planes and issues airworthiness certificates – arrived at the scene on Sunday, and said the ****** was a “another tragic accident”. “We’re in a state in the industry at the moment where we are looking at training, we’re looking at maintenance, we’re looking at particularly loss-of-control flight accidents,” consultant Lorraine MacGillvray said. “It’s up to the *********** Transport Safety Bureau to conduct the investigation, so I cannot pre-empt any cause for this accident.” “I have some ideas – they could possibly be ********** – we’ve got a situation where in Australia at the moment the ATSB can be selective on the accidents they investigate – I’m very happy they are investigating this accident.” Flight data shows the plane had been flown frequently in the past week. Including numerous short and hour-long flights around Echuca in the state’s north, the plane was flown from Echuca to Moorabbin in Melbourne on Friday, and then to ***** later that day. Source link #Brothers #male #**** #light #plane #****** #Tinamba #West #Gippsland Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Sheriff’s Office on scene of ********* near north Salisbury Walmart Sheriff’s Office on scene of ********* near north Salisbury Walmart Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office deputies and detectives from the ********* Investigation Division are on the scene of a ********* Saturday night in the 500 block of N. Curlew Road, near the north Salisbury Walmart. In a second Facebook post Saturday night, the Sheriff’s Office said deputies are in the area of the north Salisbury Walmart, investigating the whereabouts of a person of interest who may have been in that area. This is a developing story. This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Sheriff’s Office on scene of ********* near north Salisbury Walmart Source link #Sheriffs #Office #scene #********* #north #Salisbury #Walmart Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Why Sunday is still sacred on Lewis and Harris Why Sunday is still sacred on Lewis and Harris Getty Images Sunday has a special significance to islanders of Lewis and Harris Islanders on Lewis spend their Sundays in a way the rest of Scotland – and the *** – have not seen in decades. Swimming pools and sports centres are closed and most businesses are shut. Like the rest of the Western Isles there is no public transport on Sundays. There is a strong tradition of ********** *******-going on Lewis – and neighbouring Harris – with the ******* of Scotland and Free ******* predominant. According to the latest Census figures, ******* of Scotland (35.3%) was the most common religious group in the Western Isles. But a row over the seven-day opening of a Tesco in Stornoway, Lewis, has brought this traditional way of life into focus. And today’s first Sunday opening marks a historical change. Faithful observance of the Sabbath, or Lord’s Day, is embedded in the culture of Lewis and Harris. According the ******’s Ten Commandments, the Sabbath is a spiritual time for worship and rest from work and play. In the past, islanders didn’t hang washing outside as a mark of respect for the Sabbath – and on occasions some *******-goers even chained up children’s swings to help ensure peace and quiet. Dr James Englinton is a a senior lecturer in Reformed Theology at Edinburgh University and has family from Lewis. He said chaining swings had become a trope used by people who don’t understand island culture. Dr Englinton added: “It’s very much projected on to that culture and that kind of stuff makes the Sabbath sound very dour, killjoy and weird. “What you have on Lewis is a living example of a local culture that practices a day of rest as a community. “On mainland Scotland people think that’s quite odd, but it’s a normal thing across continental Europe.” A small protest was held when the first Sunday cinema screenings were held The Rev Hector Morrison, who is from Lewis and is principal of Highland Theological College UHI, said one reason for the longevity of Lewis and Harris’ Sunday traditions were evangelical revivals. These were events when communities felt committed to a very pious way of Christianity. The Rev Morrison says parts of Lewis and Harris experienced revivals every 10-15 years up until at least the 1970s. He has fond memories of growing up in Lewis and says the Sabbath never seemed dour. The former minister adds: “I believe that Sunday will remain special for Lewis and Harris people not primarily because it is so deeply embedded in the island’s culture, but as long as the gospel itself ******** significant and powerfully at work in these islands. “Each new generation which comes to love the Lord, will want to keep the Lord’s commandments.” Other religions across the Western isles include *********, particularly in the southern isles including Barra, and there is a mosque in Stornoway. For Lewis and Harris the last 20 years have seen significant changes to Sundays. Hotels’ restaurants have opened and there is a petrol station with a shop trading on Sundays. The island’s first commercial flights started in October 2002. About 60 campaigners gathered to meet the plane when it landed at Stornoway. They stood in quiet protest and handed out leaflets saying travelling on the Sabbath was a sin and damaging to a person’s soul and island life. A young oil industry worker was among the passengers on that first flight. He told the BBC at the time a Sunday air service offered him a chance to balance working away from home and getting back to spend quality time with his family. Getty Images Women walk to ******* in the Hebrides in the 1950s Seven years later the first ferry – a lifeline form of transport in the Western Isles – sailed from Stornoway to mainland Scotland on a Sunday. A small group prayed and sang a psalm as cars boarded the boat, but several hundred other people stood and clapped as a show of support for the sailing. The late Rev Angus Smith led protests against Sunday ferries Among the protestors was Govan-born Free ******* minister Rev Angus Smith. He led a demonstration against Skye Sunday ferries in 1965 and was removed by police after sitting in front of cars waiting to board. Then in 2018, a screening of Star Wars: The Last Jedi marked the first time a cinema was open on a Sunday in Lewis. There was a small protest outside. Lizzie Aucott-Hall supports the move to open Tesco in Stornoway on Sundays When it comes to Tesco islanders have mixed views. Lizzie Aucott-Hall said: “The town has lots of other things open on a Sunday anyway so why not Tesco? “If the place was shut I would understand but it’s not. “If I can go and buy a pint of ***** I should be able to buy a pint of milk.” But Ruth Pickard is not in favour of the move. She told BBC News: “I’m totally against it. We moved up here from Yorkshire 34 years ago and one of the attraction was the peace and quiet and the way of life. “What you can’t buy six days a week, I don’t know what you need on a Sunday.” Lewis-based BBC journalist Donald Lamont said the debate is not a simple one. He told BBC Radio’s Good Morning Scotland: “It’s not as straight forward as those of a religious persuasion versus those who are not. It’s more nuanced than that. “There are a lot of people expressing sadness, a lot of people are ambivalent and there are those who are pleased with the news.” Source link #Sunday #sacred #Lewis #Harris Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Home lost, people told to flee Great Ocean Road towns Home lost, people told to flee Great Ocean Road towns At least one home has been destroyed by ***** and holiday makers evacuated from popular tourist spots along the Great Ocean Road, as out-of-control bushfires rage in western Victoria. Some 80 bushfires and grassfires ignited in hot conditions on Saturday and hundreds of firefighters are racing to contain two that are burning out of control. One is at Kadnook near the border with South Australia and the other is threatening communities along the Great Ocean Road, a major tourist drawcard in the state’s southwest. Authorities evacuated campers and hikers from Otway National Park as they closed walking tracks close to the attraction, which shut for about six hours overnight over concerns about smoke and *****. The blaze at Chapple Vale has ripped through about 700 hectares, with anyone still nearby told to leave immediately including those in Crowes, Gellibrand Lower, Johanna, Johanna Heights, Lavers Hill, Stalker, Wangerrip, Wattle Hill and Yuulong. “Don’t wait, leaving now is the safest option – conditions may change and get worse very quickly,” an alert from the Vic Emergency website states. “Emergency services may not be able to help you if you decide to stay. “By choosing to stay, you and your family may be at risk of serious injury or ******.” The ***** at Kadnook claimed one home and authorities believe two others may have been burnt down, on top of stock and agricultural losses. The ***** is ripping through rough terrain so water ******** aircraft were used to ******* the flames, which CFA Chief Officer Jason Heffernan said had destroyed 1000 hectares at a private bluegum plantation. “(It is) quite undulating country, which will be challenging for firefighters to be able to get in there and get containment around it,” he told reporters at the State Control Centre on Sunday. The cool change has kicked in but there is now a concern lighting and strong winds could flare ***** conditions. The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a severe weather warning for damaging, locally destructive winds and heavy rainfall for parts of Victoria’a southwest coast and northeast. “It’s definitely concerning that we have seen lightning through that part of the state where we have obviously seen ***** conditions already, and with the elevated westerly winds this afternoon it is going to pose an impact,” Senior Meteorologist Keris Arndt said. There were more than 200 requests for assistance to the SES in the 24 hours to 10am on Sunday, including about 70 in Shepparton in central Victoria related to trees and powerlines down in storms. Source link #Home #lost #people #told #flee #Great #Ocean #Road #towns Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Orange County restaurant employee ***** after falling off ladder Orange County restaurant employee ***** after falling off ladder An employee of a restaurant in Orange County ***** on Saturday after he fell off a ladder, according to authorities. The incident was reported at about 7:52 a.m. on the 3300 block of Bristol Street in Costa Mesa, according to Costa Mesa Police and ***** Rescue. Authorities said the employee, identified only as a 32-year-old man, fell from a roof while climbing down a ladder. Worker ******* in construction accident at Orange County high school He suffered severe head trauma and was pronounced ***** at the scene. Authorities didn’t say which restaurant he worked for. His identity has not yet been released. According to police, officers do not believe this is a suspicious ******, and it’s being investigated as an accident. No additional details were immediately made available. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA. Source link #Orange #County #restaurant #employee #***** #falling #ladder Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Why police didn’t prosecute abuser linked to CofE Why police didn’t prosecute abuser linked to CofE BBC The Makin report found John Smyth was a prolific abuser of children and young men John Smyth’s ****** in 2018 meant an “appalling abuser” associated with the ******* of England escaped justice for ******* stretching back decades. Smyth used his role in a ********** charity to ******** over 100 children and young men – and the Archbishop of Canterbury resigned after being criticised in a scathing report earlier this month. Now, an advocate for the victims of John Smyth tells the BBC the police were not “sufficiently curious” when told about him. When a full investigation was finally launched it was nearly four years after officers had first known about Smyth, and only after reporting by Channel 4 News. Keith Makin, the author of the Smyth review, has suggested police may have been “overwhelmed” by historical allegations of ****** in other cases, following the Jimmy Savile affair. A spokesperson for the National Police Chiefs Council acknowledged officers faced “resourcing challenges” from an unprecedented number of cases. So why did “the most prolific serial abuser to be associated with the ******* of England”, as the report described Smyth, avoid prosecution? For over 30 years police were not told about Smyth’s ******* because of an “active cover up” inside the ******* of England, according to the Makin review published earlier this month. It found that Smyth was an “appalling abuser of children and young men. His ****** was prolific, brutal and horrific”. It also highlighted how evidence of ******* had been gathered in the 1980s but was suppressed, including details of children being physically and ********* abused. “The scale and severity of the practice was horrific,” noted the so-called Ruston report, named after the Rev Mark Ruston, who compiled it in 1982. It listed victims being beaten hundreds of times with canes until they bled. People inside the ******* of England kept this secret, meaning Smyth was able to move to southern ******* and continue his ******, the report found. He was put on trial there for culpable ********* after the suspicious ****** of a 16-year-old boy in Zimbabwe but the case collapsed. When were *** police informed? It was only in the summer of 2013 when British police were first alerted. One of his victims had asked the Bishop of Ely’s safeguarding adviser for counselling. Some details were passed to Cambridgeshire police relating to the case and that of another alleged victim. According to the Makin review, the safeguarding adviser was told officers could do nothing: Smyth’s actions were “an ****** of trust” but they would be “unlikely to reach the threshold for a ********* investigation”. A spokesperson for Cambridgeshire Police told the BBC: “With the limited information available at the time, and the victims’ not wishing to make a complaint, it was not possible for us to pursue an investigation.” Ely diocese was advised to contact police in Hampshire, where most of the alleged offences took place, and was told an intelligence report had been sent by Cambridgeshire Police to colleagues in Hampshire, although the Makin review found no record. Hampshire Police told the BBC they first received a report of ****** in October 2014. They were given a summary of ****** allegations by a representative of the Titus Trust – the successor charity to the one running the summer camps where ****** had taken place. But police did not know the identity of the alleged victims. A spokesperson from Hampshire Police told the BBC they asked for details but “the third party declined to provide these, stating that the victims would contact police.” They didn’t, and it isn’t clear why not. This was “a critical and important missed opportunity”, according to victims who spoke to the Makin review. “The matter was filed pending any new information coming to light,” a spokesperson from Hampshire police told the BBC. PA Media Justin Welby resigned as the Archbishop of Canterbury following criticism in the Makin report When new information did come to light it was in a different police force area. In late 2016 Thames Valley police were contacted by the Oxford diocese, who disclosed a full copy of the Ruston report, which was compiled more than 30 years earlier and which spelt out in graphic detail the beatings administered by Smyth. Finally officers had it. And yet still very little happened. The report contained no evidence of ****** in the Thames Valley area, so the force passed the information to national policing colleagues working on Operation Hydrant. This was set up in 2014 to coordinate the policing by forces around the country of historical child ******* ****** allegations, prompted by the Jimmy Savile case. There’d been a “surge in adults reporting being ********* abused as a child”, a spokesperson for the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) told the BBC. “It quickly became apparent that there was a real potential for duplication for forces as victims were reporting multiple offenders across different geographical areas.” The NPCC confirmed Operation Hydrant had received Smyth referrals and said information was shared appropriately with relevant police forces. The Makin Review raised questions about the police’s overall handling of the reports it had received in this ******* and the ******** to follow up on them. “An explanation offered by those in touch with police at the time suggests they may have been overwhelmed in this ******* by historic allegations of ******.” The NPCC acknowledge “police forces up and down the country saw a massive increase in non-recent reports of child ******* ****** during this ******* which did present resourcing challenges for many”. When did police start investigating? In 2017 police finally launched an investigation – Operation Cubic – but only after press reporting. Channel 4 News had been tipped off about the Ruston report by Smyth survivor advocate and writer Andrew Graystone. He hoped the press would push the police into action. “They were too busy with Jimmy Savile and other victims,” says Mr Graystone. “They should have been more assiduous in following up whether victims they did know about had been contacted and therefore had had the opportunity to respond. “They were not sufficiently curious as to whether there was more they weren’t being told or whether the offences were more widespread and serious.” He says the consequence was further delay in dealing with Smyth. When the full scale of his ******* was finally made public it was too late. In 2018 the Crown Prosecution Service agreed there was a case for him to answer and arrangements were begun to bring him back to the *** from South ******* for questioning but in August he *****. “While the victims will not see the suspect charged and the allegations put before a court,” said a spokesperson for Hampshire police, “we hope that the updates provided to them during the course of the investigation provided some reassurance that their allegations were taken seriously.” The NPCC said: “In the past many victims have been *******. This is not good enough and policing has worked hard to learn from its mistakes. “The approach today to tackling child ******* ****** and exploitation has evolved and is much improved in many aspects. However, there is still much to do, and making these improvements is a significant priority for national policing.” Newsnight – Fall of an Archbishop With Justin Welby stepping down as Archbishop of Canterbury, following criticism of his handling of a report into a prolific child abuser with ties to the ******* of England, Victoria Derbyshire asks a senior bishop if he should have gone sooner. Source link #police #didnt #prosecute #abuser #linked #CofE Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

********* troops to join US marines in NT ********* troops to join US marines in NT ********* troops will join US marines deployed to the Northern Territory, in a major defence move amid simmering regional tensions. Richard Marles was in Darwin on Sunday to meet his ********* and ********* defence counterparts as part of trilateral talks on boosting interoperability between forces. Ahead of the meeting, the Defence Minister said the Reciprocal Access Agreement, which allows Japan and Australia to use each other’s military bases, presented an opportunity for ********* forces to train up alongside *********** and US troops. “So we have spoken to Japan about having their Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade doing training with our own defence force … and with the US marines,” Mr Marles told Sky News. Camera IconDefence Minister Richard Marles says ********* forces will deploy alongside *********** and US troops in the Northern Territory. NewsWire / Martin Ollman Credit: News Corp Australia He said the move was “about building *********** capability”. “It is really important that we are building the best relationships possible with like minded countries, with our friends and with our allies,” Mr Marles said. “Japan is obviously a country with whom we share values of democracy. We have a huge strategic alignment with Japan.” Mr Marles said he would give more details of the arrangements later on Sunday. The deepening of three-way defence ties with Tokyo and Washington comes amid increased ******** military assertiveness. Last month, the ******** military simulated an invasion of Taiwan as part of major war games that were condemned by the democratically self-governed island’s Western allies, including Australia. Camera IconMore foreign troops will be deployed to the Northern Territory in a major defence move amid simmering tensions in the region. Glenn Campbell Credit: News Corp Australia Beijing claims Taiwan and swathes of the strait that separates it from the ******** mainland, with President Xi Jinping having pledged to unite the two in his lifetime. In September, the ******** military also confirmed it fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) into the Pacific Ocean in a “routine” test. The launch was the first such test in more than 40 years. The ******** defence ministry said the ICBM was carrying a “****** warhead” and the launch was “not directed at any country”. But ICBMs are primarily used as a nuclear weapons delivery system, which is why the test has sparked regional apprehension. Source link #********* #troops #join #marines Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Doctors Are Begging You to Pay Attention to This Early Lung ******* Sign Doctors Are Begging You to Pay Attention to This Early Lung ******* Sign November is Lung ******* Awareness Month, an effort to educate everyone about the second most common ******* in the U.S. Maybe you think you already know all the facts. If you don’t smoke and steer clear of second-hand smoke, you’re in the clear, right? Not necessarily. While smoking is the number one risk factor for lung *******, as oncologists explain here, there are other ways people unknowingly increase their risk. They also share what the earliest signs of lung ******* are so those who are experiencing them can see their doctor ASAP for treatment. This is key because, as with other cancers, early treatment for lung ******* increases the chances of recovery. SIGN UP for tips to stay healthy & fit with the top moves, clean eats, health trends & more delivered right to your inbox twice a week The #1 Early Sign of Lung *******, According to Oncologists Dr. Yelena Patsiornik, MD, a hematologist and medical oncologist at White Plains Hospital’s Center for ******* Care, explains that what’s tricky about lung ******* is that it often doesn’t cause symptoms until it’s advanced. However, she says some people do experience early symptoms. The most common one, she says, is persistent coughing that doesn’t go away or gets worse over time. Dr. Amy Cummings, MD, PhD., a thoracic oncologist and physician-scientist at the UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive ******* Center, concurred that a new cough that doesn’t go away or gets increasingly worse is an early sign of lung *******. Both oncologists say that other signs of lung ******* include coughing up blood or rust-******** sputum (mucus), hoarseness in your voice, feeling weak or tired, recurrent lung infections like bronchitis or pneumonia that don’t go away or keep coming back, unexplained weight loss, shortness of breath, wheezing and chest pain that gets worse when you breathe deeply or laugh. “Many of these symptoms can happen for reasons other than lung *******, but if they’re lasting or getting worse over six weeks, make sure to schedule an appointment and bring it up with their doctor so they can be appropriately evaluated,” Dr. Cummings says. Related: Here’s What You Should Never, Ever Do If You Want to Lower Your Risk of Lung ******* The reason why it’s important to know the early signs of lung ******* is because the earlier lung ******* is caught, the higher the chances are of recovery. “Early-stage lung ******* is highly curable with early intervention,” Dr. Patsiornik says. She explains that the main factor that affects treatment is the stage of the ******* at diagnosis, but other factors include where in the lungs the ******* is located, the type of cells the ******* formed in and if there are any other underlying health conditions co-occurring. Remember: Often lung ******* doesn’t have any signs at all until it’s advanced. For this reason, Dr. Patsiornik says it’s important to get screened for lung ******* annually if you are between the ages of 50 and 80 if you smoke or have quit smoking within the last 15 years. Related: An Oncologist’s Advice for Finding a Path Forward When Living With Lung ******* How to Lower Your Risk for Lung ******* As you might expect, smoking is the number one risk factor for lung *******. An estimated 90% of lung cancers are caused by smoking. But even if you don’t smoke, there are other risk factors to be aware of. “There are more non-exposure lung cancers these days, and as many as one in four lung cancers are in people who don’t have an exposure history,” Dr. Cummings says. She says that there are a lot of guesses as to why this is, with the most likely answer being that it doesn’t just come down to one reason. She says some of these reasons include prolonged exposure to indoor cooking, second-hand smoke, a family history of lung ******* and having a pre-existing lung ********. Dr. Patsiornik adds that exposure to asbestos, radon and smoke from wood burning are also risk factors for lung *******. Besides avoiding these risk factors, Dr. Patsiornik says that one way to lower your risk for lung ******* is to test for radon. “Radon is a radioactive gas that can build up in homes and cause lung *******. If you live in an area with high radon levels, test your home for radon and take steps to reduce the level if it’s high,” she says. Dr. Patsiornik says that it’s also important for workplaces to follow health and safety guidelines to avoid exposure to carcinogens. “If your workplace contains chemicals that can cause *******, wear protective gear and limit your exposure,” she says. Exercising regularly and maintaining a healthy diet also help lower the risk for lung *******, according to Dr. Patsiornik. There is a lot you can do to lower your risk for lung *******. If you have any questions about your individual risk or need help quitting smoking, talk to your doctor. The conversation just might save your life. Next Up: Related: Living with Lung *******: A Year in the Clear Sources Dr. Yelena Patsiornik, MD, hematologist and medical oncologist at White Plains Hospital’s Center for ******* Care Dr. Amy Cummings, MD, PhD, thoracic oncologist and physician-scientist at the UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive ******* Center Source link #Doctors #Begging #Pay #Attention #Early #Lung #******* #Sign Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Why it is so difficult to walk in Indian cities Why it is so difficult to walk in Indian cities Getty Images Many cities have roads with narrow footpaths that are not conducive to walking In India, if you ask a pedestrian how many obstacles they’ve encountered on a footpath, they may not be able to count them – but they’ll certainly tell you that most footpaths are in poor condition. This is what Arun Pai says he learnt when he started asking people about their experience walking on the streets of his city, Bengaluru (formerly Bangalore), in southern India. This month he set up a “fun challenge” – called the ‘world’s longest footpath run’ – which invited people to walk or jog on an 11km (8 miles) stretch of footpath and make a note of all the obstacles they encountered, like hawkers, garbage or broken slabs of concrete. Next, they were asked to rate the footpath on a scale of one to five. “When you have specifics, it gets easier to ask the authorities to take action. Instead of telling your local politician “the footpaths are bad”, you can ask him or her “to fix specific spots on a street,” Mr Pai says. Mr Pai, who is the founder of Bangalore Walks, a non-profit that promotes walking, is among several citizen activists who are pushing to make the country’s roads more pedestrian-friendly. In India’s capital, a tour company called Delhi by Cycle has been advocating for making the city more cycle-friendly and walkable. These walking-enthusiasts are holding awareness walks, building walking apps and lobbying with politicians to make a change. Even in India’s biggest cities, proper footpaths are few and far between and they are often overrun by hawkers and shops, parked vehicles and even cattle. In some places, they double up as homes for the poor. Even footpaths that exist are often not built to standard or properly maintained. Navigating roads on foot through crowds and traffic can be a nightmare. Getty Images Footpaths are often encroached by shops and hawkers Last month, Walking Project, a citizen’s group in India’s financial capital, Mumbai, released a ‘pedestrian manifesto’ ahead of Maharashtra state elections to highlight the poor condition of the city’s roads and encourage local politicians to take action. The manifesto included demands for better parking, designated hawking zones, pedestrian-friendly corridors on arterial roads and to make footpaths more accessible to those with mobility challenges. “Government statistics show that almost 50% of the city’s population relies on walking, which is far greater than the 11% that uses private transport and the combined 15% that uses tuk-tuks and buses,” says Vendant Mhatre, convener of Walking Project. “And yet, pedestrians are the most ignored group of users when it comes to framing policies around transport or road safety,” he adds. According to the latest government estimates on road accidents, pedestrian fatalities were the second-highest after those of two-wheeler riders. In 2022, over 10,000 pedestrians lost their lives on national highways across the country, with around 21,000 more sustaining injuries in accidents. “Authorities often resort to band-aid solutions like adding speed bumps or a signal to curb road accidents. But what is really needed is inter-connected footpaths that can accommodate high footfall,” Mr Mhatre says. Studies have found that addressing the problems of this forgotten group of road users can reap benefits for multiple stakeholders. In 2019, researchers in the southern city of Chennai studied the impact the construction of new footpaths on 100km (62 miles) of the city’s streets had on the environment, economy and the health and safety of citizens. They found that the new footpaths encouraged 9% to 27% of the surveyed respondents to walk instead of using motorized transport, which led to a reduction in greenhouse gases and particulate matter. They also learned that the footpaths provided new opportunities for women and lower-income groups, helping them save money as well. The survey highlighted how people with disabilities and women might have nuanced requirements from footpaths and that tailoring improvements to meet their needs could enhance accessibility and equity. Getty Images Pedestrians try to cross a road in Mumbai city “Very often, people don’t have a benchmark for footpath quality, especially if they haven’t travelled abroad or been exposed to places that have good facilities for pedestrians,” Mr Mhatre says. He reasons that that’s why there isn’t enough outrage about the quality or absence of footpaths in the country. He also points out that most people see walking as an activity performed for leisure or exercise. And so, the infrastructure they associate with walking stops at gardens or walking tracks. In reality, however, people walk to various destinations daily, so the scope of walking infrastructure is far broader. “Walking is the most economical and environment-friendly way to navigate one’s city and it’s high time our leaders paid as much attention to walking infrastructure as they do to public transport,” Mr Mhatre says. Geetam Tiwari, a professor of civil engineering, says that the main problem is that too much focus is given to solving the problem of car congestion on roads. “To improve the flow of traffic, authorities often narrow down footpaths or eliminate them entirely,” she says. Ms Tiwari says that this approach is problematic because doing so makes it difficult for pedestrians to access public transport systems, like buses and metros, which can take the pressure off the roads. “It might seem counter-intuitive, but allowing the congestion to persist and focussing on improving infrastructure for pedestrians will help solve the traffic problem in the long run,” she says. Ms Tiwari also says that the federal government should make it mandatory for states to implement the guidelines issued by the Indian Road Congress – a national organisation that lays down designing standards for roads and highways. She says that cities can also implement their own Non-Motorised Transport Policy (NMTP) to create better infrastructure for cyclists and pedestrians. “At the moment, only a handful of cities in India have experimented with a NMTP but its time more cities step up to the plate,” she adds. Follow BBC News India on Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and Facebook. Source link #difficult #walk #Indian #cities Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Does ******* need to embrace AI to keep its music centre stage? Does ******* need to embrace AI to keep its music centre stage? Getty Images Described as a virtual singer powered by artificial intelligence (AI), Mya Blue says: “I am not the ******, I am just a music lover exploring the different sounds of the world.” Her Instagram account, where she makes this statement, has the tag line: “I may not be human but I sing from my soul” – and is the creation of ********* musician and producer Eclipse Nkasi. She features in his recently released remix of Joromi, a classic tune by the late ********* highlife artist Sir Victor Uwaifo. She and her creator want to calm the fears that many musicians the world over have about the impact of AI on the music industry. Earlier this year, for example, high-profile artists such as Billie Eilish and Nicki Minaj called for a halt to the “predatory” use of AI tools which they say steal artists’ voices. And given a lack of understanding about AI throughout *******, and the fact that AI tends to rely on data sources collated in the West, there are concerns about how ******** music and cultural heritage will be affected. Eclipse Nkasi A remix of Sir Victor Uwaifo’****** Joromi features Mya Blue But there are many ******** artists and industry professionals who are excited about the possibilities this emerging technology offers. Indeed Nkasi says the fact that AI is in its infancy in ******* may be a boon for the continent. “There is a huge threat, but just saying: ‘Let’s abolish AI’ is not going to work – there are too many countries and people invested,” he told the BBC. “The best thing we can do is figure out better ways to use it.” The 33-year-old is determined to be that pioneer and last year also produced the continent’s first AI-powered music album Infinite Echoes. Nkasi says he has intentionally taken a manual and creative approach to using AI in his music, primarily using it to generate samples. “My biggest drive with AI is its application, finding healthy ways to apply it. With each project it was important to find something that it did that moved the needle forward,” he says. But while Nkasi is happy to experiment with the new technology, some see it as a threat to ******** culture. For Kenyan musician and producer Tabu Osusa, it heralds the risk of cultural appropriation – with AI passing off ******** sounds without acknowledging their source. This is because AI is able to quickly create new compositions by learning from existing music. “My problem with AI is the ownership. Once you have taken some music from Ghana or Nigeria, who owns that music? How would you find out where the original creators are and ensure they are credited? It’s theft for me through the backroom,” Osusa told the BBC. “Due to unregulated sampling methods by musicians, AI will enable recording company moguls in the West to make colossal sums of money while leaving some creatives in ******** villages to languish in abject ********.” This ***** is reflected in a report released last year by Creatives Garage, a Kenya-based arts platform which worked in collaboration with the Mozilla Foundation to study the impact of AI on the East ******** nation’s creative communities. It revealed that most Kenyan musicians were anxious that AI could lead to others benefitting from their creativity, says Bukonola Ngobi, research consultant at Creatives Garage. The study also warned that AI’s power to store data might sound the ****** knell for the culture around traditional music. One musician even questioned whether recording and storing traditional sounds for AI to replicate might be a disincentive for local artists to continue to learn traditional instruments, Ngobi says. Osusa goes even further: “In ******* we mostly don’t study music, we are born with it. We live it. It’s very spiritual. Music in ******* is always alive. It’s so dynamic. That shouldn’t be taken away from us.” Yet the report did show that for those with access to tech devices, AI not only provided creative music development but also the chance to develop cheaper marketing and design services. Although this would be no help for emerging artists from *******’s poorer communities – and might raise the barrier to pursuing a music career, warned Ngobi. “If you don’t have a laptop to start off with or you’re a musician in an environment where there is no internet connectivity then how will you participate?” she told the BBC. Eclipse Nkasi Eclipse Nkasi is the face behind Mya Blue For those wanting to innovate, one of the problems ******* faces is the lack of data from the continent to dictate algorithms. Searches are often shaped by Western biases which decrease the accuracy and quality of work produced by AI for ******** musicians. For example, when Nkasi created Mya Blue using AI, he faced issues with her imagery – the artist presents as a Gen Z ********* girl with blue hair. “AI is very limited in how it understands and perceives my space,” he says. But the ********* musician views this as an opportunity for human contribution: “The limits we Africans experience with AI can be a good thing. “One can argue that right now, while AI can’t give the very detailed ******** sound, there’s still room for the guy who can play it. So I’m not sure what we’re really fighting for when we consider that a problem.” Fellow ********* Emmanuel Ogala, the boss of AI-powered company Josplay, definitely sees the opportunities for *******. His company uses AI models to collate detailed metadata and intelligence to create archives of the continent’s diverse music heritage. “******** music is really complex and it’s one of the most understudied types of music,” he told the BBC. This was reflected at the MTV Video Music Awards in September, when South ******** musician Tyla won the award for the Best Afrobeats song for her hit Water. During her acceptance speech she hit out against the tendency of Western award bodies to group all ******** artists under the umbrella of “Afrobeats” – a genre of music more associated with Nigeria and West *******. “******** music is so diverse,” she said. “It’s more than just Afrobeats. I come from South *******. I represent amapiano. I represent my culture.” Ogala feels AI would address such homogenisation and benefit ******** musicians by revealing to the world more of the continent’s cultural diversity. “A lot of the academics we speak to have knowledge that is very specific about a very small area of ******** music. You have to build for an ******** audience taking note of how fragmented our listening culture is. You just cannot humanly do that,” he says. As AI continues to develop, there is consensus among ******** music artists, producers and researchers that there needs to be better financing. “We need investment in the data infrastructure for the opportunities it presents to really be leveraged by people,” says Ngobi. Ogala agrees and says that raising funds to develop his digital archive AI tool is difficult. “We, the founders, have been funding the project out of our pockets because of our belief in the industry. If we put in place the fundamental building blocks, the industry will be a lot more viable than it is now.” Added to this are the uncertainties around copyright legislation written for a pre-AI era which will need to be renegotiated. Copyright is already a huge issue for ******** artists whose music is often pirated, sold and played on the continent without them earning anything. These challenges aside, there is a growing realisation that unless the ******** music industry embraces the new technology, it is in danger of losing control of its talent and heritage. And Nkasi’s Mya Blue certainly has big ambitions. During a Q&A on her Instagram, replying to a question about whether she could win a Grammy, she said: “Who knows. As an AI [artist], I don’t dream of trophies, but of resonating with hearts through music. But wouldn’t it be fun to see a virtual artist on that stage?” You may also be interested in:Getty Images/BBC Source link #******* #embrace #music #centre #stage Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

UFC 309 Jones vs Miocic: Jon Jones made this about him – I just want the title, says Tom Aspinall UFC 309 Jones vs Miocic: Jon Jones made this about him – I just want the title, says Tom Aspinall Ask my dad how many times we’ve heard Jon Jones’ name this week and he can tell you exactly how many. He’s got a clicker for every time Jones gets mentioned to me. How many are we on now? Seventy-seven, I think. And that’s just one click per person, you only get one go. The T-shirt I wore with my face on it that says ‘Hello Jon, I have nothing against you personally, I just think I’m better than ya’ – I’m just joking. I didn’t want to annoy him, I don’t want to annoy anybody. Charlie, my social media guy, came up with the idea. We thought it was a cool design and it was taking the mickey out of myself more than anything. Americans can get offended very easily sometimes, where it’s just standard British humour, isn’t it? You take the mickey out of yourself and other people. But Jon’s got very touchy about it. I’m not hoping to bump into Jon this week. He honestly doesn’t interest me at all. I don’t want to create a beef that isn’t there, I just want the title and that’s all. Source link #UFC #Jones #Miocic #Jon #Jones #title #Tom #Aspinall Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Economists look to RBA minutes for clue on future rates Economists look to RBA minutes for clue on future rates Attention will turn to the Reserve Bank of Australia with the minutes from its last board meeting due as well as speeches by senior officials. The central bank’s opinion of Thursday’s job figures will be of particular interest, with the October numbers a mixed bag. While job creation underwhelmed, it was the first weaker figure after a long run of surprisingly strong employment growth. That lower number was accompanied by a step down in the participation rate – the percentage of people either employed or on the job hunt – which kept the unemployment rate steady at 4.1 per cent, for the third month in a row. The undercurrent of labour market resilience was enough to prompt National Australia Bank to push back its prediction for interest rate cuts from February to May. The bank’s economists said there was little urgency for the RBA to pull the trigger on easing while the unemployment rate was so low and progress on inflation so gradual. The first RBA communications will come on Monday from assistant governor Christopher Kent, who is due to deliver the Sir Leslie Melville Lecture in Canberra. On Tuesday, the minutes from the last meeting will be released. On Thursday, RBA governor Michele Bullock will deliver a speech to the Women in Payments Conference in Sydney. The monthly employee earnings indicator and ****** state product numbers are the main releases of interest from the *********** Bureau of Statistics, both due on Wednesday. Local investors will digest losses on Wall Street as the US markets reacted to cabinet picks by president-elect Donald Trump. The Dow Jones Industrial Average on Friday fell 305.87 points, or 0.70 per cent, to 43,444.99, the S&P 500 lost 78.55 points, or 1.32 per cent, to 5,870.62 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 427.53 points, or 2.24 per cent, to 18,680.12. *********** futures fell 26 points, or 0.31 per cent, to 8296. The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index finished Friday at the highs of the day, rising 61.2 points, or 0.74 per cent, to 8,285.2, while the broader All Ordinaries gained 59.1 points, or 0.7 per cent, to 8,539.0. Source link #Economists #RBA #minutes #clue #future #rates Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Maryland teacher indicted on federal ***** charges Maryland teacher indicted on federal ***** charges SILVER SPRING – A Montgomery County first-grade teacher is facing federal ***** charges after being accused of selling fentanyl that caused a fatal overdose earlier this year. Sarah Katherine Magid, 34, who taught at Charles Drew Elementary School, was indicted on charges of distributing fentanyl and other controlled substances. According to a 15-page federal indictment, Magid allegedly sold drugs during school hours and on school property. Magid, currently on leave from her teaching position, was initially arrested in August after investigators linked her to the March overdose ****** of a man at a D.C. ***** rehabilitation center. Text messages obtained by federal agents revealed that Magid sold the victim pills disguised as oxycodone, which were later determined to contain fentanyl. In the weeks following the man’s ******, Magid is accused of purchasing over 400 pressed fentanyl pills, according to the indictment. Authorities also stated that she had been dealing drugs, including opioids and fentanyl, since 2019. The indictment further alleges that police received an anonymous tip in July, claiming Magid was seen leaving her classroom to sell drugs to individuals. Montgomery County student activist Valarie Davis, with the Montgomery County ****** Coalition for Excellence in Education, expressed outrage over the allegations and the lack of preventative measures in schools. “Why aren’t we ***** testing the people who have these little lives in their hands?” Davis said. “That’s a stunner, and we are taking action on that. That is a concrete action coming out of this town hall.” Davis noted that school district officials, including the chief of schools and the chief of safety and security, as well as Councilmember Kristin Mink, attended a town hall last month where the issue of ***** testing school employees was raised. Montgomery County Public Schools confirmed Magid’s employment but declined to comment further, citing the ongoing investigation. If convicted, Magid faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in federal prison and a maximum of life behind bars. Source link #Maryland #teacher #indicted #federal #***** #charges Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

On patrol at Mar-a-Lago, robotic dogs have their moment On patrol at Mar-a-Lago, robotic dogs have their moment Reuters A Secret Service ****** dog patrols US President-elect Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence A robotic dog named “Spot” made by Boston Dynamics is the latest tool in the arsenal of the US Secret Service. The device has lately been spotted patrolling the perimeter of President-elect Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. They do not have weapons – and each can be controlled remotely or automatically – as long as its route is pre-programmed. Passers-by are warned by a sign on each of Spot’s legs: “DO NOT ****.” “I don’t know that anyone is tempted to **** these ****** dogs. They do not look cuddly,” said Melissa Michelson, a political scientist at Menlo College. Video of Spot strutting around the property has gone viral on TikTok – where reactions range from calling them cool and cute, to creepy – and become fodder for jokes on ********* late night television. But its mission is no laughing matter. “Safeguarding the president-elect is a top priority,” said Anthony Guglielmi, US Secret Service chief of communications, in a statement to the BBC. In the months leading up to the US presidential election, Trump was the target of two apparent ************** attempts. The first took place at a July rally in Butler, Pennsylvania and the other occurred at the Mar-a-Lago golf course in September. Citing “concern for operational security,” the Secret Service declined to answer the BBC’s specific questions about the use of robotic dogs in Trump’s security detail, including when the agency began deploying the device at his primary residence. Boston Dynamics also declined to answer specific questions, although it confirmed the Secret Service was deploying its Spot ******. So why might the Secret Service be using them now? Ron Williams, a former Secret Service agent who is now CEO of the security and risk management firm Talon Companies, suspects the ************** attempts against Trump added urgency to the agency’s push “to upgrade the technology that can enhance the ability to detect and deter,” Williams said. At Mar-a-Lago, where so much of the property is exposed, Williams said robotic dogs are long overdue. “They can cover a lot more area” than humans alone, Williams said of the dogs, which he expects will become more of a common sight over time. And it’s not just the Secret Service. Williams said robotic dogs have increasingly become a tool used by militaries and law enforcement agencies around the world. A ***** squad in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania that purchased Spot in the spring deploys the device to inspect potential explosives, according to Boston Dynamics promotional materials. Last year, the New York Police Department moved forward with adding the robotic canines to its force despite complaints of “a dystopian overreach of police power,” according to Wired. On the other side of the globe, Ukraine has used them to conduct reconnaissance in the ongoing conflict sparked by Russia’s invasion in 2022, the Kyiv Post reports. See Spot run Spot is known for its agility. It can walk up and down stairs and navigate tight spaces. It can even open doors. But its ability to reveal potential threats ranks high among the reasons that so many agencies appear willing to pay up to $75,000 (£59,000) for the device. Secret Service communications chief Guglielmi said the robotic dogs were “equipped with surveillance technology, and an array of advanced sensors that support our protective operations”. The device comes outfitted with multiple cameras that generate a 3D map of its surroundings, according to Boston Dynamics marketing materials, and can also have extras such as thermal sensing. But none of this happens without a human master. “They basically have a joystick controlling the ****** dog as it walks around,” said Missy Cummings, an engineering professor at George Mason University who runs the university’s Autonomy and Robotics Center. Spot can also move automatically along predefined routes. Unlike their human and real canine counterparts, robotic dogs aren’t distracted by visuals, sounds or smells they encounter. But despite their many impressive features, the devices can be taken down. “You just have to spray it with Aqua Net hairspray in its ‘face’,” Cummings said. “And that would be enough to stop the cameras from working correctly.” While the robotic dog seen at Mar-a-Lago is not armed, she says competitors appear to be experimenting with models that are. “People are trying to weaponise these dogs,” Cummings adds, citing a ******** model with an attached rifle which she learned about at a robotics meeting this week. They aren’t about to replace humans, says Melissa Michelson, who likens the devices to assisted-driving technology in some vehicles. “We don’t have a lot of ****** in the ability of cars to drive by themselves,” Michelson said. Secret Service agents at Mar-a-Lago have been seen patrolling alongside Spot. “We still do need those humans behind the scenes to use human judgment and be able to jump in if there’s a technology breakdown,” she says. Source link #patrol #MaraLago #robotic #dogs #moment Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Watch given to captain who saved 700 Titanic survivors sells for £1.56m Watch given to captain who saved 700 Titanic survivors sells for £1.56m A gold pocket watch given to the British boat captain who rescued more than 700 passengers from the Titanic has sold at auction for a record-breaking £1.56m ($1.97m). The 18-carat Tiffany & Co timepiece was given to Sir Arthur Rostron, then captain of passenger ship RMS Carpathia, by survivors he rescued. Auctioneer Henry Aldridge and Son said it was the highest amount ever paid for Titanic memorabilia, and that it was bought by a private collector in the US. The ***** demonstrates the “enduring fascination” with ill-fated the ocean liner, it added. Sir Arthur changed course of the Carpathia, which was on its way from New York for Europe, after the ship’s wireless operator picked up the distress call “we’ve struck ice, come at once”. It set off at full speed and reached the Titanic two hours after it had sank in the North Atlantic on 15 April 1912. The watch was given to Sir Arthur by the widow of the richest man on the Titanic, John Jacob Astor, and two other widows of wealthy businessmen lost when the vessel struck an an iceberg and broke apart – taking the lives of more than 1,500 passengers and crew. It carries the inscription “presented to Captain Rostron with the heartfelt gratitude and appreciation of three survivors of the Titanic April 15th 1912 Mrs John B Thayer, Mrs John Jacob Astor and Mrs George D Widener”. Sir Arthur received the gift from Mr Astor’s wife at a lunch at the family’s mansion on Fifth Avenue in New York City, according to the auction house. “It was presented principally in gratitude for Rostron’s bravery in saving those lives, because without Mr Rostron, those 700 people wouldn’t have made it,” auctioneer Andrew Aldridge said. The previous Titanic memorabilia record was set in April when a gold pocket watch, recovered from the body of Mr Astor, sold for £1.175m at the same Wiltshire-based house. Prior to that, the violin that was played as the ship sank held the record for the highest amount paid for a Titanic artefact for 11 years after being sold for £1.1m in 2013. Mr Aldridge said the fact the record had been broken twice this year demonstrated the “ever-decreasing supply and an ever-increasing demand” for memorabilia related to the ship. Source link #Watch #captain #saved #Titanic #survivors #sells #1.56m Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Wallabies trust in their 50-cap duo Valetini and Kerevi Wallabies trust in their 50-cap duo Valetini and Kerevi After the delightful infusion of new talent provided by Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, it’s the experience of some rugged old hands that the Wallabies will put their trust in against Wales as they welcome Rob Valetini and Samu Kerevi into Australia’s elite 50-cap club. “Special blokes, those two,” declared captain Allan Alaalatoa on the eve of Sunday’s (Monday AEDT) Test in Cardiff, as he reflected on a team which will feature five players who’ve reached the half-century landmark – including himself – in the 23. And just as key to the Wallabies’ hopes of getting half-way to a ‘grand slam’ on their British Isles tour among a side beset by injuries is the recall of another 30-something, Will Skelton, who doubtless would have been in the half-a-century gang too if he hadn’t been ineligible for so long while playing in Europe. “It’s very nice to have him at your back – he’s a big lad,” smiled 77-times capped prop Alaalatoa, as he pondered just how desperate giant 32-year-old La Rochelle lock Skelton was to get back in the side for the first time since leading the Wallabies during their ill-fated 2023 World Cup adventure. “Listening to his conversations with (coach) Joe (Schmidt) and how keen Will’s been to join back up as soon as he could, it just shows how much the jersey means to him – and we’re going to see that,” predicted Alaalatoa. “He always wears his heart on his sleeve, and he’s had a really good week. He was a bit down about not playing last week (when Jeremy Williams got the nod in the second row), so he’s going to give everything tomorrow.” The rugby world is still swooning over cross-code superstar Suaalii’s man-of-the-match debut against England last week. Yet Alaalatoa, standing in as captain in place of Harry Wilson, is quick to remind everyone of Kerevi’s quality too as he moves back into a midfield starting role at 12, leaving young ex-Rooster Suaalii to be a potentially potent ******* off the bench. “Samu is a high impact player, he’s a handful to defend, and defensively, he’s slotted in really well,” said Schmidt. “We just want a really solid game from Samu and the ability to challenge the line really, and at the same time to be really accurate in what he does do. Alaalatoa expects Australia’s two latest 50-cappers – the outstanding Valetini has got there at 26 in just five years – to prove influential in the Principality Stadium cauldron, one of the skipper’s favourite venues. “Both Rob and Samu are so good on the ball, both dynamic ball carriers and they give us that front-foot ball. Just their physical presence is immense for us as a team, and who they are as blokes off the field is also so good for our culture and for our group,” said Alaalatoa. “The boys love having them back in the team, especially Samu, it’s awesome. The boys will be thinking of them when we run out tomorrow for their milestone game – they’ve given a lot to the jersey throughout the years.” The 50-CAP CLUB AMONG THE WALLABIES’ MATCHDAY 23 TO PLAY WALES James Slipper – replacement prop – 142nd cap Allan Alaalatoa – prop – 78th cap Nic White – halfback – 71st cap Rob Valetini – No.8 – 50th cap Samu Kerevi – inside centre – 50th cap Source link #Wallabies #trust #50cap #duo #Valetini #Kerevi Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

SpaceX stacks Flight 6 Starship megarocket ahead of Nov. 19 launch (photos) SpaceX stacks Flight 6 Starship megarocket ahead of Nov. 19 launch (photos) When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. SpaceX stacks its sixth Starship megarocket at its Starbase site in South Texas ahead of a planned Nov. 19, 2024 liftoff. | Credit: SpaceX via X SpaceX’s Starship megarocket has come together ahead of its sixth-ever test flight next week. SpaceX has stacked Starship‘s two elements — the Super Heavy booster and Ship upper-stage spacecraft — on the orbital launch mount at its Starbase site in South Texas. The company confirmed the milestone in a Friday night X post, which featured four photos of the stacking process and its aftermath. a giant silver rocket stands next to its launch tower at night That post also announced a date change for the flight: It has slipped from Monday (Nov. 18) to Tuesday (Nov. 19). Liftoff will occur during a 30-minute window that opens at 5 p.m. EST (2100 GMT; 4 p.m. local Texas time). Super Heavy and Ship made the trip to the launch pad separately earlier this week. Stacking them created a vehicle nearly 400 feet (122 meters) tall — the biggest and most powerful rocket ever built. Related: Starship and Super Heavy explained a giant silver rocket stands vertically at its seaside pad near dawn SpaceX is developing Starship, which is designed to be fully and rapidly reusable, to help humanity settle the moon and Mars. NASA is already a customer; the space agency selected Starship to be the first crewed lander for its Artemis program of lunar exploration. If all goes according to plan, Starship will deliver the Artemis 3 astronauts to the lunar surface in September 2026, in the first crewed moon landing since Apollo 17 in 1972. SpaceX stacks its sixth Starship megarocket at its Starbase site in South Texas ahead of a planned Nov. 19, 2024 liftoff. RELATED STORIES: — SpaceX rolls Starship Flight 6 spacecraft to pad ahead of Nov. 19 launch — and it’s wearing a banana (photos) — SpaceX catches giant Starship booster with ‘Chopsticks’ on historic Flight 5 rocket launch and landing (video) — SpaceX’s Starship booster was ‘1 second away’ from aborting epic launch-tower catch Starship’s previous five flights occurred in April and November of 2023 and March, June and October of this year. Flight 5 provided lots of excitement, as Super Heavy came back to Earth for a touchdown next to Starbase’s launch tower, which caught the giant booster using its “chopstick” arms. SpaceX will try to duplicate this epic maneuver on Flight 6. Ship, meanwhile, will splash down in the Indian Ocean, as it did on Flight 5. Source link #SpaceX #stacks #Flight #Starship #megarocket #ahead #Nov #launch #photos Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Final phase for mass ***** trial that has horrified France Final phase for mass ***** trial that has horrified France Getty Images Gisèle Pelicot, 71, has become a symbol of feminism to many in France After 10 weeks, the mass ***** trial that has shocked France is moving on to the final phase of closing statements. The case focuses on a formerly married couple, Dominique and Gisèle Pelicot, pensioners who are now in their early 70s. Ms Pelicot’s legal team will give their final statements on Tuesday, and the defence will then follow, ahead of a verdict from a panel of five judges expected on 20 December. Dominique Pelicot went on trial with 50 other men in the southern city of Avignon in September. Every chapter of this case has played out in the full glare of publicity because Ms Pelicot has waived her anonymity, making the whole trial open to the media and the public. In France, it has become known as the Affaire Mazan, after the village near Avignon where the Pelicots lived. In November 2020, Dominique Pelicot admitted drugging his then-wife for almost a decade and recruiting dozens of men online to ***** her in their home when she was unconscious. Police tracked down his co-accused from thousands of videos they found on Mr Pelicot’s laptop, although they were unable to identify an additional 21 men. Investigators said they have evidence of around 200 rapes carried out between 2011 and 2020. The majority of the defendants deny the charges of *****, arguing that they cannot be guilty because they did not realise Ms Pelicot was unconscious and therefore did not “know” they were ******* her. That line of defence has sparked a nationwide discussion on whether consent should be added to France’s legal definition of *****, currently defined as “any act of ******* ************ committed against another person by *********, constraint, threat or surprise”. The trial has also shone a light on the issue of chemical submission – *****-induced ******* ********. Blackouts and memory loss after years of marriage Dominique and Gisèle Pelicot, who were both born in 1952, married in 1973 and had three children. She worked as a manager in a large French company, while he – a trained electrician – started several ultimately unsuccessful businesses. The Pelicots lived in the Paris region until 2013, when they retired to the picturesque southern village of Mazan. They had a big house with a swimming pool and often used to entertain their extended family during the summer holidays. By all accounts, they were a happy, close-knit couple. “We shared holidays, anniversaries, Christmases… All of that, for me, was happiness,” Ms Pelicot has said. Between 2011 and 2020, Ms Pelicot experienced unsettling symptoms she took to be signs of Alzheimer’s or a brain tumour, and underwent extensive medical exams. The blackouts and memory loss were, in fact, side-effects of the drugs her husband was giving her without her knowledge. Ms Pelicot divorced her husband soon after his ******* came to light. She is only using her married name for the purposes of the trial. Dominique Pelicot has been in jail since November 2020. He will be sentenced next month, alongside the other 50 defendants. Getty Images The majority of the 50 defendants deny the charges of ***** How the case came to light In September 2020, Dominique Pelicot was spotted filming under women’s skirts by a security guard in a supermarket in southern France. Police detained him and confiscated his electronic devices. They noticed suspicious chats on his Skype account, then found thousands of videos of men having **** with a seemingly unconscious woman – Mr Pelicot’s wife, Gisèle. Investigators worked for weeks to gather enough evidence to take Mr Pelicot into custody and eventually arrested him in November 2020. He immediately admitted all the charges. When Ms Pelicot was questioned by police and shown photos and videos in which she appeared unconscious, it became clear she had no knowledge of what had happened to her. She denied ever giving her consent to having **** with other men and realised her husband had drugged her for almost a decade. Fifty-one men in the dock Fifty men – aged between 26 and 72 years old – are on trial alongside Mr Pelicot. They hail from all walks of life: among them are a fireman, a carpenter, a nurse and a journalist. Many are married with children. Most lived within a 60km (37 miles) distance of the Pelicots’ residence. A handful have admitted to ******* Ms Pelicot. The majority, however, ******* the charges. Their defence hinges on the fact they did not believe what they were doing was *****, because they were not aware that she was unconscious and therefore could not give her consent. Mr Pelicot has repeatedly denied this was the case, insisting that when he recruited men on the internet he made it abundantly clear that his wife would be asleep. “They all knew, they cannot say the contrary,” he has said. What Gisèle Pelicot has told the court so far It was Gisèle Pelicot who decided to waive her anonymity – highly unusual in cases of *****. Her legal team also insisted for the videos of the alleged rapes to be shown in court. Ms Pelicot has said that she hopes her decision will empower other survivors of ******* ********* to speak out: “I want all women who have been ****** to say: Madame Pelicot did it, I can too. I don’t want them to be ashamed any longer.” She has forcefully hit back at “humiliating” suggestions by the defence that she may have been ****** or pretending to be asleep during the alleged rapes, stating that she was never interested in partner-swapping or threesomes. Ms Pelicot has also, however, spoken candidly about the devastation that her husband’s ****** and ***** have wreaked on her life. “People may see me and think: that woman is strong,” she said. “The facade may be solid, but behind it ***** a field of ruins.” Getty Images A mural in support of Gisèle Pelicot near Paris How France has responded to the trial The horror of Dominique Pelicot’s actions, the sheer number of men implicated in the case and Gisèle Pelicot’s decision to push for an open trial has meant that the proceedings have garnered significant attention. Dozens of members of the public attend court in Avignon each day to back Ms Pelicot, meeting her with applause and handing her flowers. Murals have appeared across the country depicting her distinctive look of a short bob and round sunglasses, and demonstrations have taken place all over France in her support. Above all, she is credited by many with sparking a conversation on ***** culture, misogyny and chemical submission. Several feminist groups are now pushing for the government to amend its definition of ***** to include consent, as is already the case in many ********* countries. “Society has already accepted the fact that the difference between **** and ***** is consent,” said Greens senator Mélanie Vogel, who proposed a consent-based ***** law last year. “********* law, however, has not.” Source link #Final #phase #mass #***** #trial #horrified #France Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Lord Blunkett injured after falling through gap on Tube Lord Blunkett injured after falling through gap on Tube Lord Blunkett has called for an urgent review into what he described as “****** trap” Tube platforms after he was injured falling into a gap as he boarded a train at Westminster station. It happened as the Labour Peer, who is ******, slipped while getting on to a District line train with his guide dog, last month. He wants Transport for London (TfL) to do more to ensure visually impaired people are kept safe. “I didn’t fully know what had happened. I felt enormous pain in both my legs; they were bruised and grazed,” the 77-year-old former home secretary and health secretary wrote in the Sun on Sunday. London Underground said it was “extremely sorry” that Lord Blunkett was injured and will be meeting with him to ensure that lessons are learned from the incident. Lord Blunkett, who served as the MP for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough between 1987 and 2015, said: “As I took a step to get on to the Tube train I suddenly felt both my feet disappearing down the gap. “In an instant my body had been propelled forward into the carriage and I was face down on the floor,” “My legs had somehow been scraped out of the gap and into the carriage.” The fall comes after Lord Blunkett had a recent heart ******* which means he must take blood thinners – making any bruising or bleeding more dangerous. He explained that an X-ray confirmed “extraordinary bruising”, but no broken leg, and he was “******” about what had happened. Lord Blunkett said: “Whenever you step into a Tube station in London you hear the tannoy warn people to ‘mind the gap’. But too often there are no staff members to actually help you if, like me, you cannot see.” He is calling for TfL to fill the widest gaps on platforms and make sure there is always someone there to help, especially during rush hour. He added “some of our platforms are ****** traps. The gap between the walkway and train is huge and they are unsafe for everyone, but particularly for ****** people.” Lord Blunkett is expected to request TfL launch an urgent review into the safety of the busiest tube stations. Nick Dent, London Underground’s director of customer operations, said: “We were extremely sorry that Lord Blunkett was injured on our network. “We have written to, and will be meeting with, him to discuss how we could have managed the incident better and to ensure that lessons are learned. “The safety of our customers and staff is at the forefront of everything we do, and while injuries like the one experienced by Lord Blunkett are rare, we are undertaking a huge range of work aimed at eradicating such incidents and making travelling even safer for everyone.” Source link #Lord #Blunkett #injured #falling #gap #Tube Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

West Indies chase down 219 to beat England in 4th T20 West Indies chase down 219 to beat England in 4th T20 Shai Hope and Evin Lewis have made half centuries in a rapid 136-run opening stand as the West Indies recorded their highest successful T20 chase in the Caribbean to beat England by five wickets. Hope made 54 from 24 ****** and Lewis made 68 from 31 ******, with seven sixes and four fours, in a partnership which lasted only 9.1 overs but enabled the West Indies to reach a winning target of 219 in the fourth T20I in St Lucia on Saturday. The West Indies’ confident start was shaken when Lewis, Hope and Nicholas Pooran fell to consecutive ****** in the 10th over. But captain Roston Chase put the innings back on track with 38 from 23 ****** and Sherfane Rutherford competed the chase with successive sixes and an over to spare. There were 32 sixes in the match, 16 from each team. England had already won the five-match series after winning the first three matches by eight wickets, seven wickets and three wickets respectively. Every match in the series and in the previous three-match one-day series has been won by the team winning the toss. After being sent in, Phil Salt and Jacob Bethell who both have deep roots in the Caribbean made swift half centuries as England made 5-218 to equal the highest first innings total at the Darren Sammy Stadium. Bethell who was born and raised in Barbados made an unbeaten 62 from 32 ****** while Salt who was born in Wales but raised in Barbados made 55 from 35 ****** at the top of the order. Will Jacks (25), Jos Buttler (38) and Sam Curran (24) also contributed to England’s score. The West Indies made a speedy start in pursuit. Hope reached his half century from 23 ******, the West Indies were 0-69 after the power play and their hundred came up in only 7.3 overs. Lewis was more watchful than Hope at first but when he began to hit out it was with enormous power. He reached his half century from 26 ****** and the longest of his sixes traveled 105 metres. The century partnership between Hope and Lewis came from only 45 ****** and they had looked impregnable until Lewis played an awkward shot to a ball from Rehan Ahmed which he skewed to Dan Mousley. Hope was run out next ball and Pooran was bowled first ball as the West Indies slumped to 3-136. Powell restored some of the early momentum with his 38 before falling lbw to John Turner in his T20 debut. The West Indies needed 21 from the the last three overs with five wickets in hand, then 15 from two. After edging towards the target in singles, Rutherford finally found the middle and blasted consecutive sixes from Mousely to clinch the win. Source link #West #Indies #chase #beat #England #4th #T20 Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Woman arrested for over two thousand fentanyl pills after Sheffield traffic stop Woman arrested for over two thousand fentanyl pills after Sheffield traffic stop SHEFFIELD, Ala. (WHNT) — The Colbert County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) says a Killen woman was arrested after being found with over two thousand fentanyl pills Thursday. CCSO said Rylee Jeane Burkett, 22, of Killen, was arrested and charged with ***** trafficking after a traffic stop led to police finding fentanyl pills. The sheriff’s office said on Nov. 14, the Colbert County ***** Task Force stopped a vehicle on East 31st Street in Sheffield. CCSO said during a search of the vehicle, agents found a brown box with a sealed plastic bag containing 2,692 fentanyl pills. (Colbert County Sheriff’s Office) Burkett was taken into custody and taken to the Colbert County Jail with a bond of $350,000. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WHNT.com. Source link #Woman #arrested #thousand #fentanyl #pills #Sheffield #traffic #stop Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Gilberto Ramirez v Chris Billam-Smith: ******** unifies titles with points win Gilberto Ramirez v Chris Billam-Smith: ******** unifies titles with points win WBO champion Billam-Smith was the first to make his way to the ring at the Venue arena, a stern look on his face as he completed a lap of the canvas with his arm raised. It was far from the raucous crowd Billam-Smith is used to back home, but at ringside there was some familiar faces with Newcastle ******* boss Eddie Howe – also a legendary former player and manager of Billam-Smith’s beloved AFC Bournemouth – and some of his players in attendance. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund owns a majority stake in Newcastle, as the country continues to invest millions into sport. The kingdom has been accused of using sport and famous sportspeople as vehicles for ‘sportwashing’ as Saudi Arabia continues to be criticised for its human rights record. Just before the first bell, chants for both fighters could be heard and as it got under way, it was first Billam-Smith who landed clean. He connected with some decent shots that snapped back the head of Ramirez. However, Ramirez got to work in the rounds that followed, landing some powerful shots and in the fourth round, connecting with a huge right ***** that ended up cutting Billam-Smith over his left eye. In the fifth, the ******** stunned the Briton with a huge left hand just before the bell rang. The referee paused the action at the start of the seventh round, such was the damage done to Billam-Smith’s left eye. The ringside doctor inspected the cut, and confirmed the ****** could continue. “It was a few rounds there where I couldn’t see out of that eye,” Billam-Smith admitted. Ramirez continued on his destructive path in the final rounds, landing the more significant and eye-catching shots. The ******** appeared to tire towards the end of the bout, Billam-Smith having moments of joy but it was all too little too late, with the Briton’s coach Shane McGuigan vocally frustrated at how the ****** was playing out. Billam-Smith emptied his gas tank in the final minute, but it was not to be as Ramirez became the first ******** to unify world titles at cruiserweight. Ramirez has now set himself up to further unify the cruiserweight division, with both IBF champion Jai Opetaia and WBC champion Noel Mikaelian sharing their desires to ****** the winner of this contest. Source link #Gilberto #Ramirez #Chris #BillamSmith #******** #unifies #titles #points #win Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Norseman ******: Woman ***** after being hit by road train putting WA’s road toll at 160 Norseman ******: Woman ***** after being hit by road train putting WA’s road toll at 160 WA’s horror annual road toll has hit 160 — its highest point in almost a decade — after a 40-year-old woman was hit by a road train in Norseman on Saturday. Source link #Norseman #****** #Woman #***** #hit #road #train #putting #road #toll Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Meet the Newest Addition to the S&P 500. The Stock Has Soared 845% Since Early Last Year, and It’s Still a Buy Right Now, According to 1 Wall Street Analyst. Meet the Newest Addition to the S&P 500. The Stock Has Soared 845% Since Early Last Year, and It’s Still a Buy Right Now, According to 1 Wall Street Analyst. The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) is regarded by many as the best overall gauge of the U.S. stock market, as it includes the 500 largest publicly traded companies in the country. Given the breadth of businesses that make up the index, it is considered to be the most reliable benchmark of overall stock market performance. To be considered for admission to the S&P 500, a company must meet the following criteria: Be a U.S.-based company Have a market cap of at least $18 billion Be highly liquid At least 50% of its outstanding shares must be available for trading Must be profitable based on generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) in the most recent quarter Must be profitable during the preceding four quarters combined Palantir Technologies (NYSE: PLTR) is one of the most recent additions to the S&P 500, joining the benchmark on Sept. 23. That makes it one of only 11 companies to make the cut so far this year. Since the dawn of generative AI early last year, Palantir stock has surged 845%, as its expertise in the field drove robust revenue and earnings growth. Start Your Mornings Smarter! Wake up with Breakfast news in your inbox every market day. Sign Up For Free » Given the stock’s parabolic move higher, some investors are leery of Palantir’s lofty valuation. However, one Wall Street analyst believes this is just the beginning. Let’s take a look at what has fueled Palantir’s epic run, and if there’s additional runway ahead for growth. Image source: Getty Images. Palantir has been developing cutting-edge AI solutions for more than two decades. The company earned its pedigree devising sophisticated algorithms to serve the U.S. intelligence, military, and law enforcement communities. Its systems developed the uncanny ability to connect seemingly unrelated data to foil ********** plots and bring wrongdoers to justice. The company has expanded beyond its humble roots, bringing the same data mining know-how to enterprise. Palantir’s AI and analytics systems dig through data and provide companies with solutions to real-world problems. When businesses began clamoring for useable AI last year, Palantir was quick to develop its Artificial Intelligence Platform (AIP), a generative AI system that provided data-driven answers. The system leverages company-specific data to develop made-to-order solutions. One of the primary stumbling blocks to adopting AI is that most companies lack the expertise to get started. Palantir developed a go-to-market strategy that takes that issue off the table. The company set up boot camp sessions that pair customer representatives with Palantir engineers to ensure they develop the AI solutions they need. This strategy has proven successful beyond the company’s wildest dreams. Story Continues Palantir’s quarterly report is teeming with customer testimonials detailing their success stories with AIP, and the evidence is clear. In the third quarter, Palantir closed 104 deals worth at least $1 million. Of those, 36 were worth $5 million or more, while 16 were worth at least $10 million. The company said that many of these agreements were consummated within just weeks of the customer attending a boot camp session. Palantir’s overall results paint a compelling picture. Revenue grew 30% year over year to $726 million, while also climbing 7% quarter over quarter. This also marked the company’s eighth consecutive quarter of profitability, a streak that contributed to its acceptance into the S&P 500. Perhaps more telling was Palantir’s U.S. commercial revenue, including AIP, which grew 54% year over year, while its customer count grew by 77%. This helped the segment’s remaining deal value (RDV) soar 73%. When RDV is growing faster than revenue, it provides insight into the company’s future prospects — which are rapidly improving. It also shows that Palantir is quickly moving beyond its reliance on government contracts. While there’s no consensus regarding the total addressable market for generative AI, the magnitude of the estimates can be instructional. In Ark Invest’s Big Ideas 2024, Cathie Wood concludes that the AI software market could surge to $13 trillion by 2030. The bull case is even more mind-boggling, at $37 trillion. Given Palantir’s expertise in the field and its success in helping customers implement AI solutions, it’s clear that the company has a long runway ahead. There’s no denying Palantir’s lofty valuation, which has Wall Street split. Of the 19 analysts that covered the stock in October, six rate it a buy or strong buy, seven label it a hold, and the remaining six rate it underperform or sell. What’s almost universal among the bears is concerns about its valuation — but looks can be deceiving. The stock is currently selling for 160 times forward earnings and 40 times next year’s sales. However, its forward price/earnings-to-growth (PEG) ratio — which factors in Palantir’s accelerating growth rate — comes in at 0.5, when any number less than 1 is the standard for an undervalued stock. I’m not the only one who believes the stock is still a buy. In the wake of its admission to the S&P 500, Greentech Research analyst Hilary Kramer opined that Palantir “easily can be” a $100 stock.” That represents potential gains for investors of 65% compared to Wednesday’s closing price. The analyst cites Palantir’s robust and accelerating revenue and profit growth and growing backlog as catalysts for a revaluation of the stock. For investors still convinced Palantir is too expensive, dollar-cost averaging provides a mechanism to build a position over time, adding more shares when the multiple is more attractive. To be clear, Palantir Technologies won’t be a fit for every portfolio. However, for those with an appropriate investing time horizon — and a cast-iron constitution — Palantir is tapping a vast opportunity within the AI ecosystem, which could be extremely profitable for investors. Ever feel like you missed the boat in buying the most successful stocks? Then you’ll want to hear this. On rare occasions, our expert team of analysts issues a “Double Down” stock recommendation for companies that they think are about to pop. If you’re worried you’ve already missed your chance to invest, now is the best time to buy before it’s too late. And the numbers speak for themselves: Amazon: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2010, you’d have $22,819!* Apple: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2008, you’d have $42,611!* Netflix: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2004, you’d have $444,355!* Right now, we’re issuing “Double Down” alerts for three incredible companies, and there may not be another chance like this anytime soon. See 3 “Double Down” stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of November 11, 2024 Danny Vena has positions in Palantir Technologies. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Palantir Technologies. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Meet the Newest Addition to the S&P 500. The Stock Has Soared 845% Since Early Last Year, and It’s Still a Buy Right Now, According to 1 Wall Street Analyst. was originally published by The Motley Fool Source link #Meet #Newest #Addition #Stock #Soared #Early #Year #Buy #Wall #Street #Analyst Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]