German Court Rules Several Facebook Settings Violate Laws

The Berlin state court ruled in a suit brought by the Federation of German Consumer Organizations that Facebook's "real name" clause violated the country's regulation that providers of online services must allow users to remain anonymous ... and that several settings that are activated by default shouldn't be. Those include a Facebook smartphone app feature, which reveals the location a person is chatting from unless it's turned off.

Facebook, which is appealing the ruling, says many of its terms have changed since the suit was brought in 2015.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

The Isle of Man: Where women have voted for 137 years but are still fighting for abortion

Dr. Alex Allinson MHK, a former GP and member of Tynwald, the island's parliament, is behind the Abortion Reform Bill 2017, which had its second reading last week.
[...]
She notes the island's inconsistent liberalism. "It's an odd thing, we are really progressive in some ways and then in others it's almost like we don't want to talk about it."

Homosexuality on the island was only decriminalised in 1992. When same sex marriage legislation came into effect, however, it also included civil partnerships for heterosexual couples, which is still not permitted in the UK.

"Often when we jump ahead, we do it properly," says Milly. "If we put our legislation through at the moment as it is, it will be more progressive than the UK."

The Abortion Reform Bill 2017, if passed, would only require the sign off from one doctor rather than two as it is in the UK.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Campaign 2018 Spot Check
Is Italy's Five Star Movement still an 'anti-establishment' party?

Current polling ahead of the March 4th election suggests the traditional centre-left and centre-right will both fall short of the majority needed to govern, while the M5S will likely emerge as the largest single party. But is it still an alternative to the country's political establishment, or just another form of the same?
[...]
Luigi Di Maio's election as the party's new leader in September 2017 gave a clear sign of the movement's new direction.
[...]
Grillo has quickly and openly distanced himself from the movement he founded, even formally separating his blog from the party blog.
[...]
In Rome, Virginia Raggi has been embroiled in corruption scandals which resulted in the party leadership stripping her of the power to make "important decisions" ... Turin mayor Chiara Appendino got off to a more promising start, but in recent months the honeymoon period seems to have ended, with residents saying she is failing to adequately manage the city.
[...]
Di Maio travelled to London in January 2018 where he met with City investors, and told the Ansa newswire his message was "we're not populists".
[...]
 only a small proportion of the total party membership are signed up to the voting platform, and even fewer actually vote. Even when they do, the party elite always get the last say - the M5S withdrew support for gay civil unions in parliament in 2016, despite 80 percent of voting members favouring the bill.

A cautious yes to party alliances

This is the biggest clue that the M5S is no longer the anti-establishment alternative.

Italy's new electoral law, which will be tested for the first time in March, favours coalitions, and M5S politicians protested against it on the grounds that their party was discriminated against.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Dublin Port to build customs checks ahead of expected `hard Brexit'
Response from Arlene, UK-PM-in-exile, developing ...

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

EU's Schulz steps down, fuelling German, EU reshuffles
"aising the prospect he may challenge Angela Merkel as chancellor": again?

Parliament and member states on collision course over ECB nomination
De Guindos was ridiculous throughout '12. He spent more time in London flogging bonds than whatever an economy minister is supposed to be doing in ES. o. wait.


Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

'France will strike' if proven chemical bombs used in Syria: Macron

"On chemical weapons, I set a red line and I reaffirm that red line," Macron told reporters. "If we have proven evidence that chemical weapons proscribed in treaties are used, we will strike the place where they are made."
[...]
Last week was one of the bloodiest in the Syrian conflict as Syrian government forces, who are backed by Russia and Iran, bombarded two of the last major rebel areas of Syria - Eastern Ghouta near Damascus and the northwestern province of Idlib.
[...]
On Tuesday, the vice-president of the Syria Civil Defence, or "White Helmets", volunteer force said France should stop talking and take real action.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

How the £1.3 [€1.5 billion] billion EIB loan uses public money to muddy democracy, the environment and climate change targets.

The TAP will be one part of the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC); a series of inter-connected gas pipelines that seeks to pump 120 billion cubic meters of Caspian gas from Azerbaijan, across six countries to Europe.
[...]
The EIB has succeeded in simultaneously undermining science, the Paris Accord, and democracy, by granting a loan irrespective of last week's report that the SGC could be as emissions-intensive as coal power. The decision was taken in spite of widespread public resistance and and the contribution to catastrophic climate change.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Noble effort, weak indicators, right ballpark. Won't quibble much. Industrial spies are expensive.
Unfulfilled promises, 1 Feb

Two years after an Amazon fulfillment center opens in a county, warehousing employment in the county is approximately 30 percent greater. This effect is robust to numerous statistical controls.

um, no. The largest fulfillment centers' (FC) total pop max ~ 3.2K. e.g. BWI II is one (1.2M sf). It ramped up 724% in Y1, from 2Q2015, and has been rolling over 800-1,500/yr hires ever since. "Peak" seasons get real tight even with 80-300 quits/wk.

• Bal'more city. UI claims and tax base. Bal'more county is the wrong reference. c'mon. AMZN just announced a plan for Bal'more county's first plant (1,500 FTEs) Nov 2017.
  
• AMZN does not build fulfillment centers. It leases and retrofits existing CRE ("warehouse" NAIC 493-000).
  
• Seasonality, NAIC (temp or "indirect") Services masks, double-shift FTEs (2 jobs = 2 employers, yo), and x-cnty and interstate commuter hires (~ 5%). It is notorious for semi-voluntary re-locations and recruiting out-of-state college grads into "agile" management projects with short shelf life. And that's what will happen to "50K" NEW! "management" jobs at HQ2, too, wherever that lands.

So familiarity with local labor markets and sector-specific "business needs" would spruce up the story.

AMZN rebuts EPI
EPI responds to Amazon's claims that their fulfillment centers raise local employment, 5 Feb

The bottom line: EPI analysis shows that Amazon fulfillment centers don't raise employment in the counties where they open.

It did in Bal'more city, not Bal'more county, and not by 30% after Y1. heh. The Bal'more city QCEWs numbers scream cyclical employment, statistically insignificant YoY "growth".

Besides, AMZN promised Bal'more only 1,000 (sort center, 4-shifts) and up to 2,600 FC. The end.

Until the next tax pkg.

archived
Development by the numbers

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

The Waymo v. Uber trial has shaken my confidence in self-driving cars - The Verge

"We need to think through the strategy to take all the shortcuts we can," Levandowski told Kalanick. "I just see this as a race and we need to win, second place is the first looser [sic]."

This callous attitude toward a potentially game-changing, life-saving, and paradigm-shifting technology like autonomous vehicles is extremely troubling. A pirate mentality has infected companies in the autonomous vehicle space.

"has infected"?

"Move fast and break things" may have worked as an ethos for Uber when it was trying to overcome entrenched interests like the taxi industry, but it's exactly the opposite philosophy you want to hear from a company that wants you to ride in its driverless cars.

Rule-breaking is nothing new in the auto industry. From the Firestone tire scandal to Dieselgate to the massive Takata airbag recall, car companies have always skirted the law in their relentless drive to gain a competitive edge. But autonomous driving is being held up as a panacea by many of these same companies, the ultimate solution to all of our automotive woes. That makes it much more fragile in terms of public perception.

The idea that one of the companies that has already deployed autonomous cars was actively seeking "shortcuts" and "cheat codes," or are only "playing to win," should scare the shit out of everyone. These odious sentiments would never have come to light if not for the trial's discovery process that brought so many of Uber's underhanded tactics out into the open.

Happy Black History Y3 D46 L1.4e+12

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Schneiderman is throwing the library at the Aunties' BFFs.

People of the State of NY v. Harvey Weinstein (HW), Robert Weinstein (RW), The Weinstein Company LLC (TWC), The Weinstein Company Holdings LLC, NY Supreme Court

alleging violations of New York City Human Rights Law ("NYCHRL") § 296(1), § 296(6), § 8-107, NY Civil Rights Law § 40-c, NY Executive Law § 63(12) upon findings of fact, knowledge, and belief, to wit:

108. HW's contract extension also contained an unusual provision that effectively monetized, rather than prohibited, ongoing acts of sexual harassment and misconduct. In particular, it stated that if TWC had to "make a payment to satisfy a claim that you [i.e., HW] have treated someone improperly in violation of the Company's Code of Conduct," he would face escalating financial penalties: $250,000 for the first such instance, "$500,000, for the second such instance, $750,000 for the third such instance, and $1,000,000 for each such additional instance." This contract contained no provision for any penalties if HW personally covered the costs of any payments necessary to satisfy claims of improper treatment, and it provided for no adverse employment consequences in the event that one, two, three, or even four or more such payments had to be made by TWC and/or HW as a result of HW's sexual harassment or misconduct. Thus, pursuant to HW's employment contract, HW could continue engaging in sexual harassment and misconduct with impunity, provided that he paid the costs of any settlements and that he avoided disclosure of misconduct that might risk causing "serious harm to the company."

The people propose civil penalty to the State of New York in the sum of $100,000 for each violation of NYSHRL § 296(1) and of NYSHRL § 296(6), $250,000 for each violation of NYCHRL § 8-107(1)(a), and $500 for each violation of CRL § 40(c)

dude is sooooo owned.

this.empowerment():
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK, UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA


Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

"as if" a scene in The Pope of Greenwich Village,
another letter
delivered.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Unexpected Bal'more Victory

Detectives Daniel Hersl and Marcus Taylor, members of the once-lauded Gun Trace Task Force, were convicted of racketeering conspiracy, racketeering and Hobbs Act robbery.

Six other former Task Forcec officers have already pleaded guilty. Four of them testified against Hersl and Taylor, as did several drug dealers who Hersl and Taylor robbed.
[...]
Delegate Bilal Ali (D., 41st) is calling for the Baltimore Police Department to be disbanded, as happened to the Camden, N.J., police in 2013.
[...]
Following the verdict, Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby made this statement: "As my office continues to comb through the cases that were potentially impacted by the illegal acts of these former officers, I look forward to working with our federal, state and local partners in strengthening our system and bettering Baltimore."

Thanks for nothing, Mr Sessions

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Republican Party scion aligns with Democratic Party paranoia

Intel Officials Tell Senate Russia Is Targeting Midterms (and a non sequitor)

CIA Director Mike Pompeo, National Intelligence Director Dan Coats and Adm. Mike Rogers, the head of the National Security Agency, all said they've seen evidence that suggests Russia wants to play a role  in the next election cycle, but declined to get into details.

They told the Senate Intelligence Committee that they would provide more details in a classified session later in the day.

The intelligence officials said the information will be shared with state and local governments and state election officials.

A crafty cover story for extra-ordinary measures to "protect" voters' registrations, identifications, and ballot processing? This presents an interesting quandry for Schiff and Schumer "leadership" on infiltration and immigration justice.

archived:
Russians Successfully Hacked U.S. Voter Systems Before 2016 Election, Top Official Says


Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

re: "intelligence community", "qualified immunity", rule of law

Adam Johnson v. CIA, order,
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK

CIA Defends Practice of Giving Classified Docs to Some Reporters, Not Others

The CIA properly exercised its broad discretion to provide certain limited information to the three reporters." the agency argued in a February 14 memo to the court

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Mueller indictment of Internet Research Agency to be announced today by Rosenstein. Charges?

18 counts of "aggravated identity theft".

Motive? The Hill has selected, "From in or around 2014 to the present, Defendants knowingly and intentionally conspired with each other (and with persons known and unknown to the Grand Jury) to defraud the United States by impairing, obstructing, and defeating the lawful functions of the government through fraud and deceit for the purpose of interfering with the U.S. political and electoral processes, including the presidential election of 2016."

I like Paragraph 6. of the intro. It sets forth the alleged scheme to disparage Who? and promote TRUMP for election by posing as US ORGANIZATION(s) or persons in order to purchase advertisements. Foreign nationals are prohibited by US law spend any monies on US electioneering. I like it because it faithfully parrots discourse of Democratic Party representatives at the US Senate  Judiciary Committee, Crime and Terrorism Subcommittee.

I will read the whole thing in order to ascertain what argument Mueller et al presented to Grand Jury showing defendants' interference with election "processes", specifically which processes.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

EPA Head Says He Needs to Fly First Class Because People Are Mean to Him in Coach - Time

(WASHINGTON) -- The head of the Environmental Protection Agency has broken months of silence about his frequent premium-class flights at taxpayer expense, saying he needs to fly first class because of unpleasant interactions with other travelers.

EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt spoke about his flight costs on Tuesday in a pair of interviews in New Hampshire, following a first-class flight to meet with the state's Republican governor and tour a toxic waste site.

Pruitt told the New Hampshire Union Leader he had some "incidents" on flights shortly after his appointment by President Donald Trump last year.

Pruitt is the first EPA administrator to have a 24-hour security detail that accompanies him at all times, even at the agency's headquarters in Washington. He has also taken other security precautions, including the addition of a $25,000 soundproof "privacy booth" to prevent eavesdropping on his phone calls and spending $3,000 to have his office swept for hidden listening devices.

ADL, Duped by White Supremacists, Plays Key Role in Spreading Parkland Shooter Hoax

.@ADL_National makes yet another major error: duped by white supremacists, it spread hoax that Nikolas Cruz was a member: https://t.co/lroNlEH47X

— Tikun Olam (@richards1052) February 17, 2018

Politico has published a blockbuster story about a white nationalist conspiracy to dupe the media into reporting that Parkland shooter, Nikolas Cruz, was a member of the Florida neo-Nazi group.  But what is most shocking about the story (at least to me) is the key role played by Jonathan Greenblatt's ADL in spreading the disinformation.  The ADL employs staff who monitor alt-right and neo-Nazi social media platforms.  But using private forums that weren't monitored by its staff, a large group of white nationalists had concocted a conspiracy to fool the ADL and media into believing that Cruz was one of them.

Posted earlier in fp story @BooMan ...

○ The Florida Shooter's White Nationalist Connections

'Sapere aude'

Conservative hysteria erupts over North Korean cheerleading squad's masks

A controversy erupted on Feb. 10 during the unified Korean women's hockey game against Switzerland when members of the North Korean cheerleading squad donned masks ... as they sang the song, "Whistle," which is about a man's unrequited love for his neighbor.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Let's recap

While president of Georgia from 2004-2013, Mr Saakashvili was praised [!] for implementing economic reforms but criticised for oppressing opponents. In 2008, the Georgian military fought a seven-day war with Russia over two breakaway enclaves.
[...]
After Russia annexed Crimea and fomented a separatist war in eastern Ukraine, he was invited by Mr Poroshenko  ... to serve as governor of the Odessa region. He took on Ukrainian citizenship, prompting the authorities in Tbilisi to remove his Georgian passport.
[...]
In late 2016, Mr Saakashvili resigned as governor accusing Mr Poroshenko of corruption and stalling reforms.

Persona non grata
Saakashvili expelled to Poland, border guards had to used force

"[D]uring the procedure, law enforcers were attacked by unknown persons from Mikheil Saakashvili's entourage and the border guards were forced to defend themselves," [Ukraine State Border Guard Servicespokesman Oleh Slobodian] wrote on Facebook on Monday evening.
[...]
On February 6, the Kyiv's District Administrative Court dismissed Saakashvili's appeal against the Federal Migration Service's decision to refuse issuing documents to recognize him as a refugee or a person in need of additional protection," he said.
[...]
As reported, in July, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signed a decree revoking Saakashvili's Ukrainian citizenship, while the former Georgian president was in the United States.
[...]
Ukrainian Prosecutor General Yuriy Lutsenko earlier voiced the options of possible measures against Saakashvili in an interview the TSN television channel, they were [1] extradition at the request of the Georgian Prosecutor General's Office, [2] voluntarily return to any country of his choice, for instance, the Netherlands, where his country lives [?!], as well as [3] "voluntarily or forcible deportation to a country of his choice or the country, from which he had illegally crossed the Ukrainian border, namely Poland."

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Guardian

A "high-level" group of Commonwealth leaders are meeting to review the governance of the Commonwealth nations - amid a report that the group will also discuss the succession to Queen Elizabeth when she dies.

Any suggestions?

Israel: Shot-down Iranian drone was copy of US craft - New York Post

The Iranian drone that an Israeli chopper shot down was a copy of an American unmanned aerial vehicle that Iran intercepted six years ago, according to the Israel Defense Forces.

IDF spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus and Yuval Steinitz, a minister in Israel's security cabinet, said the drone was based on a Lockheed Martin RQ-170 Sentinel, the Washington Post reported.

Experts who examined footage of the downed drone released by the IDF agreed that the shape closely resembled that of Iran's Saeqeh, or "Thunderbolt," drone, which was based on a CIA-operated Sentinel captured by Iran in 2011.

Conricus said he could not specifically confirm that the drone was a Saeqeh and that the wreckage was still being examined. Iran has produced several other drones based on the RQ-170, according to reports.

I read elsewhere that the RQ-170 Sentinel was kept so secret, no pictures have ever been released by the US government, but apparently this was a picture of the drowned drone in 2012 in Iran:

word on the street is, Zuma has 48 hours to resign.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Police recommends indicting Netanyahu for bribery | Ynet News |

The Israel Police announced Tuesday there is sufficient evidence to indict Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for bribery, fraud and breach of trust in two cases against him, Case 1000 and Case 2000.

Case 1000 concerns illicit gifts Netanyahu allegedly received from business moguls Arnon Milchan and James Packer, whereas Case 2000 concerns talks the premier had with Yedioth Ahronoth owner and publisher Arnon Mozes regarding the Israel Hayom daily.

The police also recommended the indictment of Milchan for giving bribes and Mozes for offering bribes.

○ Adelson's Yisrael HaYom Doing for Gingrich What It Does for Bibi | Tikun Olam |
○ Confidential, The Life of Secret Agent Turned Hollywood Tycoon Arnon Milchan

Posted as a diary @BooMan - here.

'Sapere aude'

ANALYSIS: AMID A REVOLUTIONARY STUPOR, ETHIOPIA'S RULING PARTY DUMPS ITS LEADER

His resignation wasn't totally unexpected. Still, it led to some wild and impromptu jubilations on the streets and a collective sigh of relief. His end is partly his own making, the new circumstances, and the oldest rule of politics--that a leader without a solid base of support from which to govern is no leader at all.

Prime Minister Hailemariam had literally no political base--hailing from a small ethnic group in the south--in a country where political loyalty is defined along ethnic lines.   When he assumed the reigns in 2012, many presumed that he would gradually grow out of the shadow of his predecessor, the late Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, and become his own man.  He stayed in Meles's cocoon till the bitter end.  To make matters worse, while holding onto the formal trappings of the office, he relinquished actual power to the head of the country's powerful security chief, Getachew Asseffa, and the equally powerful Chief of Staff, General Samora Yunus. And he watched helplessly, at times as a clueless clown, as the two deployed the full might of the state and all instruments of oppression to suppress unprecedented protests by the Oromo and the Amhara, the country's largest and second largest ethnic groups, as well as different groups from his own home turf, the southern region. However, no amount of repression would restore control of the streets to the ruling party.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

syrian-forces-set-enter-besieged-afrin

Forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad are to enter the northwestern district of Afrin, under siege by Turkish forces, in the coming hours after reaching an agreement with Kurdish forces that control the area, Syrian state media said.

Should Syrian government forces enter Afrin, it would re-establish a Syrian government presence along border with Turkey, which has actively supported a range of armed groups intent on overthrowing Assad's government.

A street cleaner works in heavy smog in Delhi, India, Nov. 10, 2017.

Warsaw is shrouded in a thick layer of smog on January 9, 2017 as coal and waste-fired home furnaces drive up levels of air pollution.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Court finds that South Korean government encouraged prostitution near US military bases

"In regarding the right to sexual self-determination of the women in the camp town and the very character of the plaintiffs as represented through their sexuality as means of achieving state goals, the state violated its obligation to respect human rights," the court concluded, ordering the payment of compensation to all 117 plaintiffs.

Hon. Judge Lee Beom-gyun of Seoul High Court's 22nd civil affairs division ruled on Feb. 8 in the case filed by 117 former military camp town prostitutes to demand damages from the state, which was ordered to pay compensation of 7 million won (US$6,370) to 74 of the plaintiffs and 3 million won (US$2,730) to the remaining 43.
[...]
The court's ruling was the first ever to recognize state responsibility for prostitution at the US military camp towns. Women at the towns - commercial zones set up around US Forces Korea bases from the 1950s onward - faced the twofold agony of prostitution and forced segregation in the name of "STD management." Their first request for damages from the state did not come until June 2014. But in the first trial ruling in Jan. 2017, Hon. Judge Jeon Ji-won of Seoul Central District Court's 22nd civil affairs division ordered compensation of just 5 million won (US$4,550) to 57 of 120 plaintiffs on the grounds that forced segregation of camp town prostitutes prior to the adoption of enforcement regulations for the Prevention of Contagious Diseases Act on Aug. 19, 1977, had been unlawful.

And, o, yes, Tory gov has censured Oxfam for kind of pimping in Haiti amidst the rubble, famine, and cholera in 2010.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Abe urges Moon to respect 2015 accord / PM reaffirms position on comfort women deal
"Some members of Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party opposed his visit to South Korea, due to the Moon administration's stance on the comfort women issue."
The Japan-South Korea `Comfort Women' Agreement Survives (Barely)  

In the press conference on January 9, South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said her government will not seek the renegotiation of the December 2015 agreement it reached with Japan regarding the comfort women issue. ...The speculation has particularly intensified since December 27, 2017 when the Special Task Force, an independent investigative group appointed by Moon Jae-in to look into the 2015 deal, announced its findings. The Task Force concluded that the 2015 agreement was flawed, criticizing the South Korean government for (among other things) not conducting direct hearings with the "comfort women" survivors.
[...]
The December 2015 agreement was intended to end what seemed as an endless negative spiral, in which the South Korean government continues to demand the Japanese government demonstrate its atonement, while Tokyo questions whether Seoul would ever be satisfied.  Under this agreement, the Japanese government made a one-time lump sum contribution to a foundation established by the South Korean government that would carry out projects to tend to the needs of the "comfort women" survivors. More importantly, Tokyo and Seoul also confirmed that the steady implementation of this agreement would represent the "final and irreversible" resolution to this issue. Despite criticism both in Japan and South Korea, this agreement was deemed to be the best compromise that would allow Tokyo and Seoul to finally lay the issue to rest and move on to discuss the more urgent challenges that the two countries share -- such as how the two countries can effectively work with the United States to deter North Korea from further provocation.

Japan wary of Pyongyang's move to divide allied nations
"If Moon accepts the invitation without North Korea promising to abandon its nuclear development, it would constitute a break in international efforts to contain North Korea and cause a serious rift in the solidarity of the three countries."

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

He Predicted The 2016 Fake News Crisis. Now He's Worried About An Information Apocalypse. - Buzzfeed

And we're closer than one might think to a potential "Infocalypse." Already available tools for audio and video manipulation have begun to look like a potential fake news Manhattan Project. In the murky corners of the internet, people have begun using machine learning algorithms and open-source software to easily create pornographic videos that realistically superimpose the faces of celebrities -- or anyone for that matter -- on the adult actors' bodies. At institutions like Stanford, technologists have built programs that that combine and mix recorded video footage with real-time face tracking to manipulate video. Similarly, at the University of Washington computer scientists successfully built a program capable of "turning audio clips into a realistic, lip-synced video of the person speaking those words." As proof of concept, both the teams manipulated broadcast video to make world leaders appear to say things they never actually said.

Counted your Von Economo neurons lately? You should!

○ Scientists unravel secrets of 'superagers'

Scientists unravel secrets of `superagers' https://t.co/ePE0lulh92

— The Guardian (@guardian) February 19, 2018

'Sapere aude'

Call me crazy (and I know you will) but right about now,

I'm thinking this condition isn't country-specific.
Today -100: Due process

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Senior counter-terrorism officer faces dismissal for losing top-secret documents

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

The Legend of Hans Brinker On Skates

The winter of 1956-57 was pretty solid and as a boy we did a lot of ice skating. We had tours on the canals and lakes in the green heart of Holland with distances starting at 20 km up to 90 km. Even de winter of 1963 was worse with quite extreme weather and the "Elfstedentocht" became one of survival. Some impressions of Dutch painters of the Middle Ages linger on on the minds of many ... so also with Katie Curic ...

Olympic Games - Katie Curic on the talent of Dutch people on ice skates ... the response on twitter:

Hi @nbc, here's a picture of koopzondag in the Kalverstraat. pic.twitter.com/dqXzizNvWo

— Tim Calis (@TimCalis) February 11, 2018

Hi @katiecouric, please come visit the Netherlands. We'd love to show you all the innovative ways the Dutch get around 🚴🚘⚡🚊🚄🛥️, & are building the future of transportation. Of course, we can also visit our famous skating rinks. Let's break the ice! https:/t.co/6COFp0jlxh

— Netherlands Embassy 🇺🇸 (@NLintheUSA) February 12, 2018

Congrats #Netherlands on your 🥇count so far! My apologies for being on thin ice for my comments re: skating on canals. I was trying to salute your historical passion for the sport but it didn't come out that way! I'd ❤️ to visit again & celebrate your success! 🇳🇱 https:/t.co/NvYi7LwB2V

— Katie Couric (@katiecouric) February 12, 2018

'Sapere aude'