Washington Prepares to Host Meeting of African Leaders

Abstract: WASHINGTON — Federal officials have warned government employees here that the arrival next week of 50 African leaders — and their motorcades — will bring city traffic to a standstill during a two-day White House summit meeting about issues on the continent. In an email to top officials at federal offices, the nation’s personnel chief urged agencies to let their workers stay at home during the event, which takes place next Tuesday and Wednesday. Traffic is also expected to be snarled on Monday and Thursday as the leaders arrive and leave. “Agencies should consider encouraging employees who can be spared from their duties to request to adjust their work schedules,” Katherine Archuleta, the director of the Office of Personnel Management, wrote Friday in a memo. The two-day gathering was arranged after President Obama visited Africa last year. Officials have said the summit meeting will focus on increasing trade and investment in Africa, improving security and building on the continent’s progress toward democracy. The White House said that all African leaders who are “in good standing” with the United States and the African Union are included. The president did not invite President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and President Omar Hassan al-Bashir of Sudan, among several others. The leaders are invited to a reception on Capitol Hill on Monday evening, events at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel on Tuesday morning, a dinner at the White House on Tuesday evening and a series of sessions with Mr. Obama on Wednesday. The first lady, Michelle Obama, and Laura Bush, the former first lady, will be the hosts of the African leaders’ spouses at a daylong symposium at the Kennedy Center. Ms. Archuleta wrote that for now the federal government would remain open Monday through Thursday next week, but she advised federal employees to monitor local news outlets for announcements about potential street closings, disruptions to public transportation or a closing of the federal government. Some of the leaders will be arriving from countries that are experiencing an outbreak of the Ebola virus, but officials at the White House and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday that the government was not taking any specific precautions. “We believe air travel continues to be safe, and the C.D.C. has stated there is no significant risk in the United States from the current Ebola outbreak,” Edward Price, a spokesman for the White House National Security Council, said in an email. The World Health Organization has said that the more than 1,000 cases of confirmed Ebola infection in the West African countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone represent the worst-ever outbreak of the deadly disease, a hemorrhagic fever that has no known cure and a death rate that approaches 90 percent. A spokesman for the C.D.C. said procedures were already in place to stem the spread of Ebola, and flight crews and airline personnel will generally not allow a sick passenger to board a plane. The spokesman, Jason McDonald, said, “There are no plans or indications that we’re going to take any additional precautions with the leaders who are coming.”

Africa
Washington DC
US Foreign Policy
Roads and Traffic
African Union
Delays
Office of Personnel Management
US
Ebola


Interest in Social Mission Gains Ground Among Small Companies

Abstract: When shares of Etsy , the online marketplace for arts and crafts, began trading for the first time last week, the company became not only the latest hot technology start-up for investors but also the best known B Corp to go public. So-called B Corps commit to upholding high social and environmental standards, even at the expense of easy profits. Certified by a nonprofit organization called B Lab, the companies attain their designation by achieving a combination of workplace wellness, philanthropy and transparency. “B Corp is to business what Fair Trade certification is to coffee or U.S.D.A. Organic certification is to milk,” B Lab says on its website . For a company to qualify as a B Corp, it must score a certain number of points on a lengthy questionnaire. Questions on the assessment include what percentage above the minimum wage the lowest-paid workers receive, how diverse the board and executive ranks are, and whether there is a companywide recycling program. Some evidence suggests that the movement is gaining momentum. Etsy is just one of more than 1,000 B Corps spread across 33 countries. It is among the largest and also the third to trade its shares publicly. Another public B Corp is the Brazilian cosmetics maker Natura, with annual revenue of more than $2 billion. Last week, Natura’s shareholders voted to approve amended articles of incorporation, reaffirming the company’s commitment to social and ecological responsibility. Other well-known companies that are also B Corps are still private, like Patagonia, the big apparel manufacturer, and the eyeglasses manufacturer Warby Parker, which may yet go public. Some B Corps are subsidiaries of larger conglomerates. Plum Organics was acquired by the Campbell Soup Company in 2013 and Method, a soap maker, is owned by Ecover, a Belgian corporation. Ben & Jerry’s was acquired by Unilever, one of the largest makers of consumer goods in the world, which said it was considering becoming a B Corp itself . The momentum suggests that it is only a matter of time before more big companies join. But the truth is that most B Corps are small businesses, not complex multinationals or even subsidiaries of big conglomerates. A recently released list of top B Corps, titled Best for the World, featured companies that almost exclusively had fewer than 50 employees. B Lab acknowledges that, for now, it’s not so easy for a big company to become a B Corp. “It’s easier to make changes if you’re smaller,” said Katie Kerr, who runs communications for the organization. “Big companies are more risk-averse and are slower to adopt.” “We’re now working with large companies, which takes longer,” she added, “but has a great impact.” To become a B Corp, a company needs to be nimble enough to make changes quickly across human resources, supply-chain management and investor relations, and data collection can be challenging. Image Other well-known companies that are also B Corps are still private, like the eyeglasses manufacturer Warby Parker, which may yet go public. Credit Deidre Schoo for The New York Times B Lab requires exhaustive reporting from B Corps and those hoping to attain the certification. For a big multinational, that would mean hundreds if not thousands of hours of work, which could in turn mean additional employees. “With all the brands that are under Unilever, you’re going to have two or three extra people on each brand just to do the data analysis,” said Kyle Westaway, a lawyer who works with B Corps. There’s another catch. Being a B Corp is not a legal designation. It has no bearing on a company’s articles of incorporation or the rights of its shareholders. For that, a company must become a benefit corporation . Benefit corporations, which are legal structures in several states, including Delaware, the cradle of American corporate law, allow companies to consider factors beyond the bottom line when making critical decisions. In theory, this shields them from shareholder litigation over a decision that forgoes near-term profits in pursuit of higher ideals. (There is not yet any case law on the issue.) Like B Corps, benefit corporations are gaining traction. But so far, no public company has become one, further illustrating the limited reach of these initiatives. One big test is whether Etsy eventually registers as a benefit corporation. If it does not within two years, it will lose its status as a B Corp. What is more, companies don’t have to pass any stringent test or intensive analysis to become a benefit corporation. They can simply profess their intent to influence society positively and reincorporate with the blessing of shareholders. Faced with an overlapping morass of voluntary certifications and legal loopholes, it’s understandable that many big companies are reluctant to jump on the bandwagon. Yet for big companies that aren’t yet prepared to become B Corps or benefit corporations, there are other ways to use this nascent movement to make a difference. Some companies, like Ben & Jerry’s, are encouraging their suppliers to become B Corps. Those that can’t qualify immediately are encouraged to take the B Corp assessment annually and publicly report the results. In the event of an acquisition of a B Corp, the buyer can pledge to allow the purchased company to remain a B Corp, as Campbell’s did with Plum Organics. And big companies could also simply set internal benchmarks and strive to become better social and environmental actors without bothering with the B Lab paperwork. But until becoming a B Corp is easier for big companies to achieve, and until there is more coordination between B Corps and benefit corporations, most big companies are likely to remain on the sidelines. “It’s just a matter of time and commitment,” Ms. Kerr said. “Hopefully in 10, 20 or 50 years, this is the way everyone will do business.”

Companies
Small business
Philanthropy
Etsy
Corporate Social Responsibility


Divers Recover 83 More Bodies From Migrant Ship

Abstract: ROME — Divers searching the underwater wreckage of a migrant ship that capsized last week in the Mediterranean Sea recovered another 83 bodies on Sunday, raising the death toll to 194, a figure that is likely to keep growing. Rough seas near the Italian island of Lampedusa had delayed recovery efforts by two days; conditions were considered too dangerous for dive teams to search the wreckage on the ocean floor, about 165 feet down. But seas calmed on Sunday, and divers quickly went to work, with bodies eventually taken to a makeshift morgue on the island. Migrants Cast Their Lot on a Troubled Sea 11 Photos View Slide Show › Image Laura Leon for The International Herald Tribune “There are no words in front of the dead,” said Cécile Kyenge, Italy’s integration minister , during a news conference in Lampedusa, according to The Associated Press. Ms. Kyenge, who was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, said all of Europe needed to work together to prevent future tragedies. “We must give answers to those who flee, need protection and come here for our help,” she added. The shipwreck, which happened on Thursday less than a quarter-mile from Lampedusa, is the latest grim reminder of the extreme risks taken by migrants and asylum-seekers who try to slip into Europe every year by boat. Roughly 25,000 people have died in the Mediterranean during the past 20 years, according to the International Organization for Migration . With the trawler nearing Lampedusa, someone onboard set fire to a blanket, hoping to attract attention. Instead, the fire ignited gasoline from a broken engine. The estimated 500 migrants onboard panicked, rushing to one side of the boat, which flipped, sending people into the sea. Many were unable to swim. Others were trapped inside the hull of the 60-foot vessel. At least 150 survivors were rescued. Among the dead were infants, children, pregnant women and others. Weather permitting, divers will return to their recovery work on Monday.

Immigration
Lampedusa Italy
Mediterranean Sea
Boat Accidents
Europe
Africa


Humane Society Has Its Sights on Amazon.com

Abstract: Michael Vick , the Atlanta Falcons quarterback, is expected to plead guilty today to federal dog-fighting charges and face up to five years in prison, but the Humane Society of the United States has a bigger target: Amazon.com . The online bookstore sells subscriptions to two cockfighting magazines, The Feathered Warrior and The Gamecock, even though cockfighting has been declared illegal in all states (until Louisiana’s ban takes effect next summer, the activity remains legal in parts of the state). After trying in vain to persuade Amazon to stop selling the publications, the Humane Society filed a civil lawsuit in District of Columbia Superior Court asserting that the Web company violates animal cruelty laws and that the magazines, which run advertisements for blades that attach to birds’ legs, are effectively catalogs for illegal goods. But Amazon says the suit amounts to censorship. “These materials are legal to sell, and we do not believe we should act as a censor because their message is objectionable to some people,” said Patty Smith, a spokeswoman for Amazon, adding that her company sells subscriptions to more than 90,000 magazines. “With our incredible selection of titles, we’re bound to sell something that someone will find objectionable.” Wayne Pacelle, president of the Humane Society, said his organization would never hinder free speech. “We think that Amazon should have the right to sell magazines with pro-cockfighting editorial, but they cross the line when they advertise the sale of contraband.” But in a February op-ed in The San Francisco Chronicle, Mr. Pacelle wrote that Amazon “was selling 27 books, monographs and magazines about cockfighting,” and if “your passion in life is watching tormented birds tear each other to pieces, in a bloody pit,” then “Amazon is the place to go.” Mr. Pacelle said in a recent phone interview that he had been making “a rhetorical point, but our narrow claim in the suit is that Amazon should not sell magazines that advertise contraband.” Mark Pollot, a lawyer based in Boise, Idaho who represents Verna A. Dowd, publisher of The Feathered Warrior, said that while federal law prohibited promoting cockfighting or shipping birds or gear across state lines, the advertisements themselves were aboveboard. The Humane Society itself laments that because of loopholes, possessing cockfighting paraphernalia is legal in 39 states, while possessing fighting birds is legal in 17. “The bottom line is as long as its legal someplace, you’re not advertising an illegal activity,” Mr. Pollot said. ANDREW ADAM NEWMAN

Cruelty to Animals
Cockfighting
Computers and the Internet
Animals
Vick Michael
Amazon.com Inc


Washington National Cathedral to Hold Same-Sex Weddings

Abstract: The Washington National Cathedral , the nation’s traditional host of prayer services for presidents and memorial services for national tragedies, announced on Wednesday that it would now also hold weddings for same-sex couples. The cathedral, a neo-Gothic landmark in northwest Washington, is the seat of the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church and the Washington Diocese. Episcopalians voted at their convention last summer to authorize an official liturgy for blessing same-sex unions, bringing the church in line with other liberal Christian and Jewish denominations that sanction gay marriage. The cathedral’s decision is not surprising for a denomination that has paid a price for its stance. The Episcopal Church shed members and set off an uproar in the international Anglican Communion to which it belongs by consecrating its first openly gay bishop in 2003. But the cathedral’s step carries weight because of its historic role as the nation’s unofficial capitol of worship, where Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan were eulogized, where the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his last Sunday sermon and where the nation mourned the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Later this month, the cathedral will host the second inaugural prayer service for President Obama. Image The Very Rev. Gary Hall, the dean of the Washington National Cathedral, said marriage was a tool for living a faithful life. Credit Brendan Hoffman for The New York Times The cathedral’s dean, the Very Rev. Gary Hall , said: “We have a lot of gay and lesbian Christians. What the National Cathedral is saying by doing this is we want to give faithful lesbian, bisexual, gay and transgender people the same tools for living their lives faithfully that straight people have always had, and marriage is one of those tools. This comes out of even more of a theological understanding, for me, than it does out of a political agenda.” Nine states and the District of Columbia have legalized marriage for gay couples. Not all Episcopal bishops have allowed priests to bless same-sex unions, but the bishop of Washington, Mariann Edgar Budde , who oversees parishes in the district and parts of Maryland, recently allowed such unions after Maryland’s voters approved gay marriage in November. Bishops in five dioceses and priests in at least 100 parishes have broken from the Episcopal Church since it consecrated its first openly gay bishop, V. Gene Robinson, in New Hampshire. Bishop Robinson recently retired. According to the church’s headquarters in New York, membership has held steady at 2.2 million, though others say membership has declined. The Washington National Cathedral has about one thousand regular congregants and many more visitors who attend Sunday services. Dean Hall said that the cathedral marries only couples who are congregants, volunteers, donors or graduates of the cathedral’s schools, but that there are no gay couples yet “in the pipeline.” Three years ago, before there was an officially sanctioned rite, the cathedral held a private wedding ceremony for a gay couple on its staff that was presided over by John Chane, the previous Bishop of Washington, a cathedral spokesman said. Dean Hall said members of the selection committee that interviewed him last year made it clear that they wanted the cathedral to bless same-sex marriages.

Same-Sex Marriage,Gay Marriage
Episcopal Church
Washington National Cathedral


Civil Unions Approved in Illinois

Abstract: CHICAGO — Illinois lawmakers on Wednesday approved legislation allowing civil unions in this state, and the governor has indicated he will sign it, making Illinois one of only a handful of states to grant to same-sex couples a broad array of legal rights and responsibilities similar to those of marriage. Advocates of the legislation, who had pressed the matter for years, pointed to the outcome as a sign that acceptance of gay men and lesbians is growing and not only on the coasts. “Sober, clear-minded, cautious Midwesterners are taking this action,” said Rick Garcia of Equality Illinois, a gay-rights group. Opponents complained about the timing of the vote (during a fall session before newly elected legislators arrive) and said they feared civil union legislation might ultimately harm the institution of marriage. “This will be the entry to a slippery slope,” Ron Stephens, a Republican state representative, said. “The next thing we’ll see will be consideration of gay marriage.” Five states and the District of Columbia allow same-sex marriage , while New Jersey grants civil unions similar to the measure expected to take effect here in July. Four other states grant domestic partnerships with broad legal rights — bonds that some experts said carry many of the rights provided under Illinois’s new legislation if not the precise ceremonial recognition suggested by civil union. The Illinois provision will provide couples many legal protections now granted to married couples, including emergency medical decision-making powers and inheritance rights. The legislation allows heterosexual couples to seek civil unions, too. The result in Illinois comes at a shifting moment in the national battle over gay rights. With huge Republican gains in state capitols following the election last month, opponents of same-sex marriage predict a powerful push-back against recent efforts to legalize such unions. Maggie Gallagher, chairman of the National Organization for Marriage, which opposes same-sex marriage, said she had renewed hope for constitutional amendments defining marriage as between a man and a woman in places like Minnesota, Indiana and Pennsylvania. In Illinois, where Democrats dominate both state legislative chambers (and will next year, even after new lawmakers are seated) the votes were split: 32 to 24 in the State Senate on Wednesday, and 61 to 52 in the House a day earlier. Supporters of gay rights widely praised Illinois’s decision, but many said the eventual goal remained legalizing same-sex marriage, not a separate civil union system.

Same-Sex Marriage Civil Unions and Domestic Partnerships


Afghan Journalist Jailed for Blasphemy Is Freed

Abstract: KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — An Afghan journalism student who was jailed for asking questions in class about women’s rights under Islam has been freed after nearly two years, a media rights group said Monday. The student, Parwiz Kambakhsh, was convicted of blasphemy and originally sentenced to death. Rights groups have said he was a victim of an Afghan justice system that panders to religious conservatives at the expense of individual freedoms. He was released several weeks ago after President Hamid Karzai signed a pardon in secret, according to the rights group Reporters Without Borders, which talked to his lawyer. Mr. Kambakhsh has since fled Afghanistan out of fear that he will be the target of reprisal attacks, the group said. Afghan officials said they could not confirm his release. Mr. Kambakhsh was studying journalism at Balkh University in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif and writing for local newspapers when he was arrested in October 2007, at the age of 23. Prosecutors said he showed contempt for Islam by asking questions about women’s rights and by distributing an article he had taken off the Internet that asks why Islam does not give women equal rights. He also supposedly wrote his own comments on copies of the article. The original death sentence set off an international uproar, and in a second trial, judges lightened the sentence to 20 years . Rights groups sent thousands of petitions condemning the imprisonment and calling for Mr. Kambakhsh’s release. The case will be remembered as a “miscarriage of justice marked by religious intolerance, police mistreatment and incompetence on the part of certain judges,” Jean-François Julliard, secretary general of Paris-based Reporters Without Borders, said in a statement.


Supreme Court Upholds W. Virginia Voter Map

Abstract: WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that small population variations among a state’s Congressional districts do not run afoul of the principle of “one person, one vote,” even though advances in computer mapping technology have made it possible to achieve near-perfect equality in representation. The court also added six cases to its docket for the coming term, including one concerning whether the police need a warrant to draw blood from someone arrested on suspicion of drunken driving who refuses to consent. The ruling issued Tuesday , which was unanimous and unsigned, involved West Virginia’s three House districts. It reversed a divided decision from a three-judge panel of a federal court in Charleston, W.Va., that had rejected House districts with slightly varying populations. The Supreme Court blocked that decision in January, and it issued its ruling in time for the elections in November. Tuesday’s ruling, like another unanimous decision from the justices in January concerning electoral maps in Texas, called for deference to judgments made by state legislators. West Virginia lawmakers had considered nine plans and had settled on one where the gap between the most populous and least populous districts was about 4,900 people, or 0.79 percent. The Legislature rejected what it called the “Perfect Plan,” which contemplated a population difference of a single person. “That appears, however,” Tuesday’s decision said, “to have been the only perfect aspect of the Perfect Plan.” The plan split counties, put the homes of two incumbents in the same district and moved a third of the state’s population from one district to another. The plan the Legislature adopted did none of that, the decision said, and it “moved just one county, representing 1.5 percent of the state’s population, from one district to another.” The decision, Tennant v. Jefferson County Commission, No. 11-1184, noted that the leading Supreme Court decision in this area, Karcher v. Daggett in 1983, had seemed to endorse a variance of 0.78 percent, which was almost the same as the one under review. Technological advances, Tuesday’s ruling said, altered neither the applicable legal standards nor how much dilution of the “one person, one vote” principle is tolerable. The justices also agreed to decide a question that has divided the lower courts: When do the police need a warrant to obtain blood in a drunken-driving investigation? The case arose from the arrest of Tyler G. McNeely, who was pulled over for speeding on a Missouri highway and exhibited, the State Supreme Court said , “the telltale signs of intoxication — bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and the smell of alcohol on his breath.” He performed poorly on a field sobriety test and was arrested. Mr. McNeely refused to take a breath test or, after being taken to a hospital, to consent to a blood test. One was performed anyway, about 25 minutes after Mr. McNeely was pulled over, and it showed a blood alcohol level of 0.15 percent, almost twice the legal limit. The state court suppressed the evidence, saying there had been no “exigent circumstances” that excused the failure to obtain a warrant. “Warrantless intrusions of the body are not to be undertaken lightly,” the court said in an unsigned opinion. In 1966, in Schmerber v. California , the Supreme Court said no warrant was required to take blood without the driver’s consent after an accident where the driver and a passenger were injured. The fact that alcohol levels diminish over time figured in the court’s analysis, as did the time it took to investigate the scene of the accident and move the injured people to the hospital. The question in the new case, Missouri v. McNeely, No. 11-1425, is whether the natural dissipation of blood alcohol by itself justifies taking blood without warrant in a routine case where, as the state court put it, “there was no accident to investigate and no injuries to attend to.”

Decisions and Verdicts
Supreme Court
Redistricting and Reapportionment
West Virginia


Despite Settlement Freeze, Buildings Rise

Abstract: JERUSALEM — One of the most contentious issues facing the Middle East peace talks is whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will extend the 10-month-old building freeze in West Bank Jewish settlements, as the Palestinians and Americans want. The Israeli construction freeze, which did not extend to East Jerusalem, was politically difficult for Mr. Netanyahu, with his right-wing coalition partners. He has called the stoppage “exceptional” and “extraordinary.” But an examination of the freeze after more than seven months suggests that it amounts to something less significant, at least on the ground. In many West Bank settlements, building is proceeding apace. Dozens of construction sites with scores of Palestinian workers are active. There are two reasons for this. First, as the Defense Ministry has charged, some cheating has occurred. In February, the ministry said that 29 settlements were in violation of the freeze and that it would increase demolition orders and other forms of enforcement. Second, when the freeze was announced, it came with the assertion that some 3,000 units were grandfathered in and would proceed during the moratorium. David Ha’Ivri, spokesman for the Shomron Regional Council in the northern West Bank, said the leader of the council, Gershon Mesika, knew a freeze was coming and so approved more than 1,600 units in 2009, nearly 10 times the number that had been approved the previous year for his area. Moreover, data from the Central Bureau of Statistics for 2006 through 2008 show that on average about 3,000 West Bank settlement units were built in each of those years. So the 10-month freeze offered no fundamental change of pace. In addition, the statistics show, in the last quarter of 2009, more than 750 housing units were approved for West Bank settlements. That was double the number of each of the three previous quarters. So in the first half of 2010, when no more units were permitted, the pace of building remained largely unchanged. Data for the second quarter of 2010 will not be released until the end of August. Assuming that there are no new housing starts during that time as well, building in Jewish settlements will have shown only a mild drop-off if construction begins again in September, as settlers hope. If, however, the freeze is extended, that would lead to the first genuine decline in settlement building in years.

Israeli Settlements
West Bank
Netanyahu Benjamin
Palestinians


Venezuela Stops Efforts to Improve U.S. Relations

Abstract: CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuela announced late Friday that it was stopping the latest round of off-again-on-again efforts to improve relations with the United States in reaction to comments by the Obama administration’s nominee for United Nations ambassador. The nominee, Samantha Power, speaking before a Senate committee on Wednesday, said part of her role as ambassador would be to challenge a “crackdown on civil society” in several countries, including Venezuela. President Nicolás Maduro had already lashed out on Thursday at Ms. Power for her remarks, and late on Friday the Foreign Ministry said it was terminating efforts to improve relations with the United States. Those efforts had inched forward just last month after Secretary of State John Kerry publicly shook hands with the Venezuelan foreign minister, Elías Jaua, during an international meeting in Guatemala — one of the highest-level meetings between officials of the two countries in years. Venezuela “will never accept interference of any kind in its internal affairs,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement, adding that it “considered terminated the process begun in the conversations in Guatemala that had as their goal the regularization of our diplomatic relations.” Relations with Venezuela have long been troubled, although the country has remained a major supplier of oil to the United States. Under the previous president, Hugo Chávez, a longtime nemesis of the United States, relations were bumpy, especially after the Bush administration tacitly supported a coup that briefly ousted him. Image President Nicolás Maduro, Hugo Chávez’s handpicked successor, has given mixed messages about ties with Washington. Credit Marcelo Garcia/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Mr. Maduro, Mr. Chávez’s handpicked successor, has given mixed messages about relations with the United States. In March, when Mr. Maduro was vice president, he kicked out two American military attachés, accusing them of seeking to undermine the government. After he was elected in April, he ordered the arrest of an American documentary filmmaker whom officials accused of trying to start a civil war. The filmmaker, Tim Tracy, was later expelled from the country. And in recent days, in a sharp escalation of the war of words with Washington, Mr. Maduro has said he would give asylum to Edward J. Snowden, the former American intelligence contractor who leaked secrets about American intelligence programs and is staying at a Moscow airport. The United States and Venezuela have not had ambassadors in each other’s capitals since 2008, when Mr. Chávez expelled the American envoy, accusing the United States of backing a group of military officers he said were plotting against him. The United States responded at the time by expelling Venezuela’s ambassador. In the Guatemala meeting, Mr. Kerry said he hoped the two countries could rapidly move toward exchanging ambassadors again. But those talks never had time to gain traction. On July 12, Mr. Kerry telephoned Mr. Jaua to express concern over the asylum offer to Mr. Snowden. This is not the first time that Venezuela has backed off the idea of renewed relations with the United States. The two countries quietly began talks late last year aimed at improving relations, although those ground to a halt after the health of Mr. Chávez, who had cancer, deteriorated in December. After Mr. Chávez’s death in March, a State Department official said the United States hoped that the election to replace him would meet democratic standards — prompting Mr. Jaua to angrily announce that Venezuela was halting the talks between the two countries. Venezuelan officials have repeatedly said relations with the United States should be conducted on a basis of respect.

US Foreign Policy
Diplomats Embassies and Consulates
Venezuela
Samantha Power


In N.H.L., Disclosure of Concussions Is Lagging

Abstract: GREENBURGH, N.Y. — Concussions continued to cast a long shadow over the N.H.L. on Thursday. The Rangers said there was no update on the condition of defenseman Marc Staal, who has not played this season and is still recovering from a concussion sustained in February that the club did not disclose until September. Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby , who has been sidelined by a concussion since early January, was cleared for contact a month ago and has practiced all week, including Wednesday, when he took several hard hits. Despite speculation that he would return for Friday’s home game against the Dallas Stars, Coach Dan Bylsma said Crosby would not play in either of the team’s games this weekend. That leaves Tuesday’s game against the Colorado Avalanche as the earliest possible return date for Crosby. Toronto goalie James Reimer has not played since Oct. 22, when he sustained an injury that the Maple Leafs have characterized variously as whiplash , concussion-like symptoms and an upper-body injury. The N.H.L. has earned praise this season for taking measures to reduce concussions, including introducing stronger rules against boarding and checks to the head, and strictly enforcing those rules through fines and suspensions. But questions persist about a league policy that allows teams to be vague about disclosure of injuries, and a recent incident suggested that in-game concussion protocols might be inconsistently applied. Staal’s concussion is a topic of conversation once again because the player who caused the injury, his brother Eric of the Carolina Hurricanes, will face the Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Friday night. It is the first time the Hurricanes and the Rangers have played since the Rangers revealed that Marc had sustained a concussion when Eric caught him with his head down on a legal but thunderous body check Feb. 22 in Raleigh, N.C. In an article on NHL.com on Monday , Eric said Marc still experienced headaches when he exerted himself physically, though on Tuesday he said he did not want to characterize Eric’s current symptoms. After Thursday’s practice, Rangers Coach John Tortorella said there was no update on Marc Staal’s condition. He has not practiced with the Rangers since training camp. The Rangers adhered to N.H.L. policy last season when they did not disclose that Staal had developed concussion symptoms after the hit. Staal also injured a knee on a separate hit in that game, and that was the reason given when he missed the next three games. He missed two more games in mid-March, an absence that the Rangers revealed in September to have been caused by postconcussion symptoms. During that time, Staal also did not say he had concussion symptoms. Under the N.H.L.’s injury-disclosure policy, clubs may not lie about players’ injuries, but they are not obligated to volunteer specifics. “You guys didn’t ask, so I didn’t give you the information,” Tortorella said in September when asked why the Rangers did not disclose Staal’s concussion. The N.H.L., the players association and players say the policy is in place to preserve players’ privacy and to protect them from targeted hits that might aggravate injuries. But the policy did not seem to have preserved Staal’s health; he continued to play with concussion symptoms without facing questions about the effects of doing so. Dr. Paul S. Echlin, a concussion specialist and researcher from London, Ontario, who has conducted head-injury studies with junior teams, said he agreed with the impulse to preserve privacy. But he also said, “Leadership should come from all areas,” including professional clubs, when it comes to proper treatment of head injuries. “When you’re dealing with a serious, life-altering thing like a brain injury , you don’t minimize it,” Echlin said. “It’s a player’s individual right not to disclose. But this not giving the full answer is a difficulty I have with it. If you’re going to go forward with concussion prevention, you have to be honest and open about it.” Echlin pointed to apparent inconsistencies in the application of the in-game concussion protocol, which was announced with great fanfare last season. Under the protocol, players suspected of sustaining a concussion are to be taken to a quiet room for 10 to 15 minutes of evaluation before being allowed to return. But in a game Oct. 29, after Artem Anisimov lay flat on the ice for a minute after being checked into the boards, he was not taken to a quiet room. Instead, he stayed on the bench with an ice pack on his neck and took his next shift. Bill Daly, the N.H.L.’s deputy commissioner, said Thursday that the in-game protocol was being adhered to, and that the quiet room issue was “a team responsibility and decision.” In an article in The Toronto Star on Thursday, Reimer’s mother said her son “still has that nagging headache ” from the Oct. 22 collision with Montreal’s Brian Gionta. “That’s the frustrating part for us — not knowing what it is, and why they’re not calling it a concussion when they say ‘concussion-like symptoms,’ ” Marlene Reimer said. A week after the injury, Maple Leafs Coach Ron Wilson sounded a bit like Tortorella. “I’m not going to share that with you, whatever it happens to be,” Wilson told The Globe and Mail. “I’m not obligated to do that.”

Hockey Ice
Concussions
National Hockey League
Staal Marc
New York Rangers
Crosby Sidney
Sports Injuries


A Hotel Is Back, Much Changed, but Still a Hotel

Abstract: Is every building in Manhattan destined to be turned into a luxury condominium? No, not every one. The old Empire Hotel, opposite Lincoln Center, quietly reopened for business this month after more than three years — not as a luxury condominium as had once been planned, but as a transient hotel. Of all things. Curious passers-by on West 63rd Street have been welcomed inside by doormen to admire (or cluck about) the refurbishment of the two-story lobby with a deliberately ’50s kitsch sensibility, in a palette of gold and bronze, ocher and chocolate, zebra stripes and leopard spots. About half of the 413 rooms are available, at summer promotional rates beginning at $259. The restaurant is not yet open and 24-hour room service has yet to begin. But a four-foot-deep rooftop pool is already filled (though it is not quite ready to receive guests) and airy wooden cabanas are clustered incongruously nearby, at the base of the enormous red neon “Hotel Empire” sign. Perhaps the most important accommodation, however, was the one made by the owner, the Chetrit Group, to the handful of permanent residents who have remained there. Because of their accusations, Chetrit was unable to obtain a nonharassment certificate from the city that it needed to proceed with construction, said Councilwoman Gale A. Brewer, who represents the area and was involved in negotiations over the fate of the Empire. To get out of this regulatory bind, Chetrit moved the permanent residents into what Ms. Brewer said were “very nice” renovated rooms at the Empire that will be theirs until they die. Jeffrey Gdanski, vice president of the Chetrit Group, said the rooms were free for the six permanent single-room-occupancy tenants; they pay no rent. As part of the deal, he said, Chetrit also agreed to build 10 rooms at the Woodstock, at 127 West 43rd Street, a single-room-occupancy hotel operated by Project Find. Ms. Brewer said the outcome was positive, as was the return of the Empire to its original use. The loss of hotels to condominium conversions has dismayed many New Yorkers. The 12-story Empire Hotel opened in 1923, replacing an earlier hotel by the same name that was built in the 1890s. That makes it one of the oldest institutions on the Upper West Side still operating under the same name at the same place. “We felt the location was really great for a hotel,” Mr. Gdanski said.

Hotels and Motels
Manhattan (NYC)
Condominiums


Sub-Elite Runners Chase Improvement

Abstract: Greg Cass crossed the finish line in 2 hours 36 minutes 33 seconds, his lifetime earnings from distance running holding steady at $75. “I think he won a pie once,” his brother Matt said. “You’ve got to count that, too.” Cass did not break 2:30 as hoped in the New York City Marathon on Sunday. He will not soon be leaving his day job as an investment banker to train for the Olympics. Yet despite running into a headwind that gusted near 20 miles an hour and making three unintended stops because of a queasy stomach, he still recorded his second-fastest career time and finished 64th in the men’s race, in an overall field of about 50,000 runners. “It is the quest for eternal improvement,” he said as he walked in the chill toward his home, about 10 blocks from the finish line. “And when you run a race like today, it leaves a lot of room for improvement.” Cass, 29, is a member of a mostly invisible and underappreciated group known as the sub-elites. They have more than respectable times — the men finishing in the 2:20 to 2:35 range, the women in the 2:50 to 3:05 range — but have no chance to win the biggest marathons and receive little attention and even less financial reward. Still, they are superb athletes, and although they may lack the speed of the world’s best, they are not missing the drive, discipline or commitment. Many log 80, 90 or 100 miles a week in training while holding full-time jobs. Cass’s career is more notable because he did not run track in high school or college. “I always have a personal place in my heart when I see runners like Greg,” said Mary Wittenberg, the chief executive of New York Road Runners and the marathon’s race director. In 1987, Wittenberg graduated from law school, began working at a firm, studied for the bar exam and trained for the Marine Corps Marathon, which she won in 2:44:34, qualifying for the United States Olympic trials in 1988. “I’m the first to tell the elite runners, ‘Enjoy this; no one else gets to just sleep and train two times a day,’ ” Wittenberg said. For some, the sub-elites are a throwback to distance running in the United States in the amateur era of the late 1960s and into the ’70s. There was a seriousness of purpose. Running fast was the goal, not simply maintaining health and fitness. Nearly every runner seemed to be working or attending school and trying to train for 70 to 100 miles a week, following the lead of Frank Shorter and Bill Rodgers. Dr. George Sheehan, the author and running apostle, used to tell a story about a guy who asked a friend about his ex-wife in California. “What’s she doing?” “Oh, about six miles a day.” Changing Times This was an era unlike today, when marathon fields have swelled to tens of thousands of runners and participation has become more important than competition for all but a relative few. By 2011, the average finishing time at the New York City Marathon was a pedestrian 4:28:20 for men and 4:44:35 for women. “The first running boom was made up of people who would get up in the morning and run to the horizon,” said George Hirsch, the chairman of the board of New York Road Runners. “Careers were suffering; marriages were taking a beating. There was this incredible drive.” To shave precious minutes over a marathon’s 26.2 miles, to remove every superfluous ounce, nothing was too inconsequential to overlook. Rodgers once snipped the corporate sponsor’s name off his bib before a victory in New York, which drew an irate phone call. Even socks were considered an unnecessary load by some. Now runners carry cellphones. Some even knit scarves . “The shoes I wore were so lightweight, you could step on a dime and tell whether it was heads or tails,” Hirsch said. When, at age 44, Hirsch ran a personal-best 2:38 at the Boston Marathon in 1979, his friends were not exactly dismissive, but they were not effusive in their congratulations, either. “That’s fine,” they said. Plenty of people knew someone who had run faster than 2:40. “My 2:38 has become a lot faster over the years,” Hirsch, now 79, said. When Rodgers began his remarkable string of four victories at both Boston and New York, he was a special-education teacher. (He also had his car towed while he was winning the 1976 New York City Marathon, and Fred Lebow, then the race director, took care of the $90 fee to get it back.) When Shorter won the marathon at the 1972 Munich Olympics, he was a law school student at Florida. Shorter feels a kinship with runners such as Cass, he said. They remind him of himself and his desire for a balanced life, of his reluctance to become obsessed with one goal and risk extreme disappointment if he did not succeed. “In a way, I used law school as a relief from training,” said Shorter, 66, who also won a silver medal in the marathon at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. “It only takes two hours to run. If you have the right kind of personality, I think you can be just as successful as the people who do it full time. I never totally agreed with the idea that you had to make it your living to do it.” Old-School Approach From his apartment on the Upper West Side, Cass has easy access to Central Park. Twice a week, he works with a trainer. He gets a massage every couple of months to rejuvenate his legs. Mostly, he adheres to the belief that he can get far with hard work and determination, without the need for cryogenic chambers and anti-gravity treadmills to facilitate healing and recovery from fatigue. “In the back of your mind,” Cass said, “you always question: ‘Do I need all of the technology? Do I need all the time?’ ” Referring to Rodgers and Shorter, Cass said: “It really is inspiring to know they blazed that trail, people who worked on the side and had lives on the side. Not putting all your eggs in one basket makes it more interesting. “Of course, they were on a different level,” he said. “Their goal wasn’t to break 2:30. It was to win the New York Marathon.” A basketball and soccer player in high school, and a defender on and co-captain of Columbia’s soccer team, Cass was not a classic candidate to become a sub-elite marathon runner. He was tall for a runner, at 6 feet, and his collegiate playing weight was 185 to 190 pounds. He did not have the lightest or most elegant running form. His arms tended to sway across his chest. And his right ankle had been dislocated twice, once in high school and again in late 2007 during a corporate basketball game. Image An investment banker, Cass picked up his race packet at Jacob K. Javits Center. Credit Karsten Moran for The New York Times Any sport that required agility also required physical therapy to keep his ankle strong and flexible. So running in a straight line became his default mode. Marathons appealed to Cass’s analytical, competitive nature and desire for structure. He was valedictorian of his class at Methacton High School, outside Philadelphia, and graduated from Columbia’s engineering school in 2007 with the highest grade-point average among the university’s athletes. Last February, after flying to Atlanta and then driving all night to New Orleans for the Super Bowl — his uncle, Dick Cass, is president of the Baltimore Ravens — he immediately went for a 12-mile run. “Greg is the type of person who needs to be doing 20 different things, or he feels he’s not doing enough,” said his wife, Heather Francovitch, 30, a graphic designer who recently ran her first half-marathon. To prepare for his senior season of soccer at Columbia in 2006, Cass ran a half-marathon. He finished in 1:34 and spent the rest of the day in bed in the air conditioning. His body told him not to do it again, but his mind told him he could run faster. Eventually, Cass was drawn to the New York City Marathon, as much for the spectacle as the distance. He was a sports fan, and he lived in a city with one of the world’s great races. In 2006, Cass and Francovitch stood at Columbus Circle — in the marathon’s final mile — and watched runners stream past. Francovitch was moved to tears by one man, a grandfather who ran with the names of his grandchildren on his shirt. “Right at the end, every emotion you can imagine is written all over their faces,” Cass said. “Living in New York, I could appreciate just how huge the event was. It’s an event where you can run with the elites. Even if you finish one hour or two or three behind them, it’s a fun thing to do. Actually witnessing it in New York made me realize how inspiring it could be.” Taking the Plunge In 2008, Cass downloaded a training program from the Internet and began running 40 to 45 miles a week. By his account, he had no clue what he was doing. His idea of pacing was to run at a speed that felt comfortable and to hope he was still holding that pace 26 miles later. Still, he finished New York in an encouraging 2:52:56. Perhaps, he told himself, he could be decent at this. In 2009, Cass bought a book about marathoning and increased his mileage to 60 to 65 miles a week. His body could not quite keep up with his exuberance, though. In one 10-day stretch, he ran the Philadelphia Half Marathon, the Fifth Avenue Mile and an 18-mile New York City Marathon tuneup in Central Park. He aggravated the patellar tendon in his knee, and while he later ran New York in 2:48:36, the final 15 miles felt like the longest of his life. He felt he was on the verge of being able to run fast, but he still lacked a full understanding of the race. So Cass joined the Central Park Track Club. He ran the 2010 Boston Marathon in 2:39:20, a breakthrough of sorts, although in the final six miles, his quadriceps began to ache and “the wheels came off,” he said. Afterward, Cass decided to skip the 2010 New York City Marathon and devote the next 18 months to preparing for New York in 2011. Working with Tony Ruiz, who coaches the track club’s road-running team, Cass changed his biomechanics, becoming more efficient and upright. He began doing track workouts. He ran 5- and 10-kilometer races. A body that was 185 or 190 pounds for soccer was pared to a lean 170 pounds. “He’s an aerobic monster,” Ruiz said of Cass. “He had that toughness for the marathon. We just had to get him to focus on the idea that it takes more than toughness.” In 2011, Cass trained 85 or 90 miles a week and ran New York in a personal-best 2:30:44, finishing 42nd in the men’s race. Still, he had been a little impatient. There seemed to be room to trim a minute or two. The 2012 race was canceled because of Hurricane Sandy, which was just as well. Cass had injured his hip, running too many miles too early in his training. On what would have been race day, he ran the marathon distance in Central Park. “It wasn’t symbolic about the marathon,” said Cass, who got married a week later. “I wanted an excuse not to run for a month.” Ahead of this year’s New York City Marathon, Cass ran personal bests of 33 minutes at a 10K in Central Park, 20:48 for four miles and 1:11:25 for a half-marathon. He ran before work at 5:15 in the morning and added track workouts on Tuesdays; tempo runs in the park on Thursdays; and long runs of up to 22 miles on Saturdays. He avoided being too regimented in his training and limited his peak mileage weeks of 80 and 85 miles, placing them later in his buildup to keep from overtaxing his body. A sub-2:30 marathon seemed within reach. As Cass picked up his racing bib Thursday in a suit and tie, Alan Ruben, treasurer of the Central Park Track Club, shook his hand and said, “2:29.” To Ruiz, the track club coach, Cass said: “Getting your bib makes it real. I’m feeling good. I’m relaxed. I feel healthy — that’s the big one.” “The mental?” Ruiz asked. “Nothing feels that stressful,” Cass said. “I think we’re in the right spot.” One concern was the expected wind. Brace yourself coming off the bridges, Ruiz told Cass. Tuck in behind other runners. Realize you can make up time later. “The main thing,” Ruiz said, “is you’ve got to keep your wits.” On Sunday morning, Cass awoke at 4, had a peanut butter-and-jelly sandwich and took a taxi to Midtown Manhattan. The sub-elites were provided a bus to the race’s start, on Staten Island, and were permitted to warm up in the same area as the elite runners. Referring to the eventual men’s winner, Cass said: “Seeing Geoffrey Mutai in the line at the Porta Potty is your one brush with greatness. Some people would prefer a more glamorous place, but I’ll take what I can get.” Reaching the halfway point in 1:14:42, Cass remained on pace to break 2:30, but he found himself unable to consume any liquids or energy gels. He felt bloated. His stomach grew unsettled. “Because it’s cool and windy, it doesn’t feel like you need to drink,” Cass said. “You’re not sweating. It makes it hard to figure out if you are doing yourself harm. Ultimately, you need to drink.” Finally, at Mile 18, he took a pit stop. Two others followed. At the finish, a small look of disappointment crossed his face. But Cass could not think of anything he would have done differently in his preparation. He had finished among the top six-dozen runners in the world’s biggest marathon. And he was eager to run again. “That is both the gift and the curse of the marathon,” Cass said. “When you finally get it right, it’s the product of 30 variables that you have maybe 50 percent control of. When you get it wrong, you try to analyze all 30 of those variables. It’s nearly impossible to figure out exactly what went wrong and how to make it better next time. But that’s the goal. To take a look at what happened and go back to the drawing board. And, if it’s in the cards, to give it another go.”


Radio, With a Side of Bacon

Abstract: RIVERHEAD “1390-WRIV — your hometown radio,” Bruce Tria said, his voice coming through the car radio Tuesday morning, and you knew you were driving on the East End. WRIV is one of the oldest stations on Long Island, and its homespun blend of local news, community announcements and oldies has been a soundtrack for a generation of locals out here for a half-century. Mr. Tria’s morning show, “The Dawn Patrol,” delivers a style of local radio that is nearly extinct on Long Island: a neighbor’s lost dog, a birth or death in the community, and news from the schools, the police and Town Hall. It is a slow-drip blend of slow-paced life that seems meant to waft into kitchens and mingle with the smell of bacon. To creak up the carpeted stairs to the third floor of 40 West Main Street, an old building in downtown Riverhead that houses the station, is to step back into the golden age of radio. There, through a labyrinth of empty rooms, Mr. Tria can be found in the control room, leaning into a microphone bearing the station’s call letters. The show is filled with a steady stream of opinionated callers and Mr. Tria’s barbed wit and pragmatic commentary, the kind you might overhear at the local bar or barbershop. “Hello, you’re on the air,” Mr. Tria said, picking up the phone. It was an East Quogue caller, angry about her tax bill — those darn school district coffers. That got Mr. Tria started — few things don’t — and in his usual diplomatic style, he said the East Quogue school district has “a bureaucracy worthy of the Pentagon,” and delivered a tart treatise on school districts with big budgets and low ratings. For 27 years, Mr. Tria, 51, has been giving listeners the time, the weather and a piece of his mind. All interspersed with his favorite music: “nonrock hits” and the great vocalists doing standards, which he calls “the best music ever made.” The station, on the AM band, broadcasts at 1,000 watts from a 133-foot-high tower and can be picked up for a roughly 20-mile radius — less over land, farther over water — from Rocky Point to Peconic on the North Shore and from Bellport to Amagansett on the South Shore. The folks down at the Riverhead Sewer District keep it on. So do the people at Suffolk County National Bank. You can hear it in the caddy shacks at the big clubs in Southampton, and there is a core listener base among the thousands who live in the many mobile home parks in town. And there are diehard local sports fans who tune in to the broadcasts of Riverhead basketball and football games. “Most of our listeners are 40 and older, and many people keep the station on for company — you’re their companion, their friend,” said Mr. Tria, who bought the station with his father, Vincent Tria, in 1987. “We survive and thrive because we’re community-minded. I like being able to communicate, and I couldn’t really do that at a station where I’d have to play five lite-radio songs in a row.” A tall, handsome man entered the station, with very white teeth and hair and a quick, wholesome wit. “Galla’s in the house,” Mr. Tria said over the air, referring to John Galla, who takes over at 10 a.m. for his “Radio Factory,” featuring “quips and quotes from Galla’s notes.” Mr. Galla, 60, of Wading River, clutched his material for the show: his usual scraps of paper and printouts of trivia. Mr. Galla, who has been working in radio since age 15, carried a jar of homemade pickles given to him by a listener and opened a Christmas card sent from a local bank and signed by the employees, all regular listeners. He called them perfect examples of the small-town charm of the station and its cozy relationship with listeners. “If you’ve ever seen ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ with Jimmy Stewart, this is Bedford Falls,” he said. “Some people call it corny, but that’s what people want.” “Look, our latest news off the wires,” he said, holding up a printout of the men’s bowling league scores, just faxed over from Polish Hall. Mr. Tria was finishing up his show and put on “A Holly, Jolly Christmas” by Burl Ives. With the song ending, Mr. Tria took the mike and said, “I think we all could use a little Burl Ives, don’t you?” He mentioned the two-for-one drink specials at Gators Restaurant in Hampton Bays and told listeners that after confession at St. Rosalie’s, they could “amble on over” to Gators. Then he cued up commercials for Mastic Seafood and for the Robert James Salon in Miller Place. The station survives through local advertising dollars. There are no national advertisers, but plenty of local restaurants and businesses buy on-air spots produced by the staff. Mr. Tria said there was a core of 250 steady advertisers over the course of a year. He said there had been estimates that the station gets perhaps 5,000 listeners at a time and maybe 25,000 tuning in at some point during the week. Some people who have moved away listen over the Internet to stay connected to the East End, Mr. Tria said, after talking with a caller who lives in New York City but has a summer house here. He called to grouse about the mammoth indoor ski development proposed for Calverton. Mr. Galla took over and took a call from a listener who had an opinion about what to put in the water in the stand to keep a Christmas tree fresh. “Look at him,” Mr. Tria said. “He’s doing what we do best. He’s relating to the people out here.”


Near the U.N., Assembling for Drinks

Abstract: Despite its name, the World Bar is about the last place you would expect to find United Nations staff members after work. The two-story lounge is too fancy for civil servants: its marble bar glows from within; the small tables perch on Giacometti-style bases; sheer fabric drapes the floor-to-ceiling windows. Tucked into the Trump World Tower, the place evokes an air of internationalism too aloof and detached from the gritty goings-on at the compound just across the street. But its location on First Avenue couldn’t be more convenient for those seeking a reprieve from the numbing whirl of geopolitics. And on Wednesday nights, the World Bar offers anyone with a blue United Nations pass — generally worn around the neck on a long metal chain — discounts on wine, beer and cocktails. The World Bar gave off a healthy pulse on a late-summer evening, the sky outside streaked with purple and pink along the East River. Inside, a predominantly male crowd of starry-eyed, overdressed expats mixed with seasoned do-gooders whose conversations carried over from their office cubicles. The place hummed with United Nations-related jargon: “S.R.S.G.,” “perpetrators,” “framework” and “child protection people.” The talk might dwell on instances of horrid human behavior, but a lighthearted mood prevails at the World Bar, which the owner, Mark Grossich, calls an “off-site U.N. hangout.” Everyone needs a place to unwind. Image Credit Piotr Redlinski for The New York Times The strapping young bartender this night, Abraham Marin, hailed from Venezuela, a member of the Non-Aligned Movement — that is, outside the Western clique. He set an easygoing tone even as a television with CNN on beamed photographs of children’s swathed bodies, killed by sarin gas in Syria. Mr. Marin noted that his home country used to produce beer but now, he said, it was made in Colombia and sold back to Venezuelans. He raised his fist, saying in a wry tone, “Thank you, Chávez.” He attended to a man dressed in a suit and tie, attached to an iPhone, who looked as if he wanted to be a spy but might in fact do something more mundane. Cheese cubes, popcorn and chicken skewers arrived as part of the happy hour. Along the perimeter, by the windows and their street views, comfortable seating attracted those who wanted to speak intimately, or at least with the illusion they would not be overheard. A language other than English helps for that purpose: Arabic here, French there — with plenty of representatives from Europe, West Africa and MENA, as policy wonks call the Middle East North Africa region. Two men, approaching middle age, conversed in Dutch. With sharp suits and open dress shirts, they were part of the United Nations cabal but not necessarily of it: retired military officers advising the D.P.K.O., as the peacekeeping agency is known. They, too, savored talking shop, leaning forward as they ran through the laundry list: jihadists in Mali, the “robust” force in Congo, the latest “weak state.” The annual General Assembly debate begins on Tuesday, flooding Midtown with at least 130 heads of state, 60 foreign ministers and their retinues. The World Bar and its competitor inside the United Nations, the North Delegates’ Lounge, will be swelling with crowds of bureaucrats, diplomats and journalists hungry for facts and gossip. Just as quickly, most of them will depart, leaving Turtle Bay to the lifers. Shadrack Venson, a United Nations librarian from Botswana, doesn’t usually go out for drinks after work. But, he said recently, he was thinking of moving to another job in the institution — a “field mission,” as he put it — and so he was thinking of dropping by the World Bar soon. “I need to network,” he said.

bars,nightclubs
UN
Turtle Bay Manhattan
World Bar Manhattan NY


Amid ISIS Battles, American Surrenders in Iraq

Abstract: SULAIMANIYA, Iraq — Before dawn on Monday, Kurdish soldiers noticed a man approaching them near the ancient city of Sinjar, the site of violent clashes with Islamic State fighters. The soldiers sounded an alarm, warning of a possible suicide bomber. But the man soon called out in a mixture of broken Arabic and perfect English that he wanted to surrender. He was unarmed and was carrying three cellphones, said Sarbaz Hama Ameen, a Kurdish pesh merga officer who was present. He also had a few thousand dollars in mixed currency and, most surprising, a Virginia driver’s license. Within hours, the American authorities were investigating how a young man from the Washington suburbs ended up in northern Iraq, near the border with Syria, in the midst of the bloody war with the Islamic State. The F.B.I was trying to piece together his travels and figure out what drew him there. Image A photograph on social media shows a man the Kurdish military says is an American who turned himself in on Monday. Credit via Associated Press Little was certain, including the man’s identity. Kurdish officials originally released one name, then circulated the driver’s license bearing a different one: Mohamad Jamal Khweis, 26. In Alexandria, Va., at the address on the license, a man identified as Mr. Khweis’s father alternated between defending his son to reporters, denying he was his father and making threats. “Listen to me what I’m saying: He’s old enough. I cannot ask him where he’s going, where he’s coming from,” said the man, Jamal Khweis. He said he had spoken to the F.B.I. but did not know where his son was. “You say he’s in Iraq. He’s not. I know he will never go there.” At one point, he turned a hose on the reporters gathered on the front yard of his townhouse. “I have nothing to say,” he said. “I don’t know anything about my son.” Scores of Americans have traveled to Iraq and Syria to join the violent mishmash of terrorist groups and rebels, and the F.B.I. has arrested many others who have tried. Sometimes, the United States becomes aware of Americans fighters in the region. But by late Monday, there was no indication that authorities had known that Mr. Khweis was in Iraq. “We’re aware of the reports, aware that the U.S. citizen allegedly fighting for ISIL has been captured by pesh merga forces in northern Iraq,” Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement, using the administration’s acronym for the Islamic State. “We’re in touch with Iraqi and Kurdish authorities to determine the veracity of these reports.” ISIS in America 82 people have been accused by American officials of trying to help the Islamic State. How serious is the threat? Law enforcement officials said they were still trying to confirm whether Mr. Khweis had fought alongside the Islamic State. Kurdish forces recaptured Sinjar, near where Mr. Khweis surrendered, from the Islamic State in November. If he did fight with the terrorist group, he would be the first American known to have surrendered in the field, according to Seamus Hughes , an expert on Islamist extremism at the Center for Cyber and Homeland Security at George Washington University. Although domestic plots from the Islamic State may cause alarm, fighting abroad has been the driving force among those in the United States inspired by the group, said Karen J. Greenberg, executive director of the Center on National Security at the Fordham University School of Law. All told, almost all of those charged were American citizens or permanent residents. About 40 percent had converted to Islam. Nearly three-quarters were under 30, and all but 12 were male. Mr. Khweis is believed to have graduated from Thomas A. Edison High School in Alexandria, Va. His father is a limousine driver; his mother is a licensed cosmetologist. His brother, Tamer, spoke briefly to reporters. “We’re thankful,” he said. “That’s it, we’re thankful.”

Mohamad Jamal Khweis
ISIS,ISIL,Islamic State
Iraq
Sinjar Iraq


How Fox News’s Influence Grew Under Roger Ailes

Abstract: Fox News has been the highest-rated cable news network for 15 years, making it a source of immense profit for its parent company, 21st Century Fox . It is a significant voice in national politics and, with its extensive use of graphics and its comfort with editorializing, a major influence on its competitors. The network’s pugnacious style and its position as a platform for conservative politics and ideas have made it a hit with an audience that felt ill-served by other news outlets. It has also made the network a target of derision by those who feel it is more a mouthpiece for the Republican Party than a legitimate news network. Through it all, Fox News has been led by Roger Ailes, its chairman. That ended on Thursday when Mr. Ailes was officially ousted after accusations of sexual harassment made by a former anchor. Below, a look at the two-decade shared history of Fox News and Mr. Ailes. Fox News Begins The network was started on Oct. 7, 1996, by Rupert Murdoch, who hired Roger Ailes as its founding chief executive. Among its first shows were “The O’Reilly Report” (later renamed “The O’Reilly Factor”) and “Hannity & Colmes.” Executives asserted that the network would take a “fair and balanced” approach, and Mr. Ailes said other news outlets were often unfair when covering topics like religion. Ted Turner, who started CNN as a 24-hour news channel in 1980, said he looked “forward to crushing Rupert Murdoch like a bug.” By January 2002, Fox News surpassed CNN in the ratings and became the No. 1 cable news channel. It has remained on top since. Coverage of Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan Image The Fox News journalist Greg Kelly reported from Iraq. Credit Fox News After the Sept. 11, attacks, Fox News began promoting military issues. Many programs and correspondents covered the fighting in Afghanistan with a sense of patriotism . Fox News Channel’s political talk shows were dominated by conservative commentators, including many of the “neoconservatives” who had pushed for the war in Iraq. During the early years of the Iraq war, media critics took note of what seemed to be an explicitly pro-war stance, even when issues like torture and waterboarding came to light. Mr. Ailes never ceded any biases in the news coverage. “If we look conservative, it’s because the other guys are so far to the left,” Mr. Ailes said in an interview in The New York Times Magazine . Hiring Prominent Journalists Brit Hume, once of ABC News, was one of the most prominent hires that Mr. Ailes made when the network began in 1996. Over the years, he hired Greta Van Susteren away from CNN, and he hired Chris Wallace, a longtime network correspondent, in 2003 . Image The Fox News anchor Bill O’Reilly, left, sat down with President George W. Bush in 2004. Credit FOX News Channel/The O'Reilly Factor, via Reuters Anchors like Bill O’Reilly, Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity became bona fide stars, with influence that spread beyond the network and made them best-selling authors and highly rated radio hosts. Megyn Kelly has become one of the more recognizable faces on the network, especially during this year’s election cycle. Fodder for Comedy Fox News’s perceived biases and style have long been fodder for various comedians. Fox News hasn’t always taken kindly to the criticism. In August 2003, Fox News sued Al Franken (then a comedian, now a senator), saying he had violated its trademark on the slogan “Fair and Balanced” in the title for a book he had written. ( Fox News lost the suit ). The topics of discussion on various Fox shows were a favorite target for Jon Stewart when he was the host of “The Daily Show.” Mr. Stewart said that he talked about the network a lot because it was “truly a terrible, cynical, disingenuous news organization.” Conservative-leaning pundits, in particular Bill O’Reilly, were also the basis of the character played by Stephen Colbert on Comedy Central’s “The Colbert Report.” Tea Party and the ‘Birther’ Issue In 2009, as the Tea Party movement gained strength, Fox hosts actively covered and promoted Tea Party rallies. Issues ranging from big government to questioning President Obama’s birthplace were long-running topics of discussion on various shows. Donald J. Trump even entered the “birther” debate by notably proclaiming his doubts on Fox News. “A birther is a person that wants — these are great Americans in many cases, in most cases — they want to see the president was born in this country,” Mr. Trump told Fox News’s Greta Van Susteren in March 2011. “They want to see the president actually has a birth certificate.” Tensions between Fox News and the Obama administration escalated in the first term. “I’ve got one television station that is entirely devoted to attacking my administration,” Mr. Obama said in 2009 . Over his time in office, however, Mr. Obama has done one-on-one interviews with Fox News hosts like Bill O’Reilly and Chris Wallace. 2016 Presidential Race and Gretchen Carlson’s Lawsuit Image The set for a Republican presidential debate, which Fox Business News sponsored, in November 2015. Credit Scott Olson/Getty Images Fox News’s reach is evident in the latest election race. Its ratings during primary debates soared, netting viewership generally reserved for popular sports events. The Republican nominee, Donald J. Trump, had a strained relationship with Fox News during the primaries, with the Fox journalist Megyn Kelly becoming one of his biggest objects of ridicule. But after months of hostility and public antics, Ms. Kelly and Mr. Trump reached a détente of sorts in May. Mr. Trump also regularly called in to other shows on the network. Just weeks before the national conventions, however, Fox News and Mr. Ailes were again in the spotlight when the former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson filed a sexual harassment suit against him . The lawsuit prompted 21st Century Fox, the network’s parent company, to start an internal investigation, which eventually led to the departure of Mr. Ailes.

Fox News Channel
Roger E Ailes
21st Century Fox
Republicans
Tea Party movement
Cable television
News media,journalism
Gretchen Carlson


Ori Hadomi of Mazor Robotics, on Choosing Devil’s Advocates

Abstract: This interview with Ori Hadomi , C.E.O. of Mazor Robotics , a medical technology company based in Israel, was conducted and condensed by Adam Bryant .   Q. Tell me about your approach to management and fostering the culture you want. A. A few things are particularly important to me. It’s important that people are happy in what they do. I believe my role is not to make people work but to give them the right working conditions so that they will enjoy what they do. Also, doors are never closed. And I believe that it is much more dangerous not to report mistakes than it is to make mistakes in the first place. It’s natural that we make mistakes. The question is, what do we do with these mistakes as an organization? Do we repeat the mistakes? Do we learn from them? Do we investigate them and implement a solution? Q. What else? A. I feel that openness and trust in the good will of people is the basis for a good working environment. I told one of our salespeople recently that he didn’t have to sell our product to people who were not nice to him. Q. Why not? A. I really believe that being a young company, especially in the medical technology area, you can’t afford working with people who are not good people. It’s similar to how selective you have to be when you’re bringing people on board as employees. You need to look at your vendors and your customers the same way. We want people who are critical but work with us in a constructive way. We want people who have the same style of communication, which is direct and not afraid of either receiving or giving criticism. So when I talk about the organizational culture, I think it’s beyond the environment of our building. During the growth stage of the company, you can’t afford not managing the organization as part of a wider ecosystem. Q. But it can be hard to turn away customers when you need to grow. A. I have been there more than once. But you end up selling the product to the wrong person, you don’t get what you had hoped, you feel that you sacrificed a lot and you’re disappointed. When you set expectations, it’s not just between me and the employees, it’s also between us and our customers. We need partners in the clinical field who will help us develop our products. Q. Other thoughts on management? A. One thing that I learned is that you really need to ask yourself what you can get and what you can’t get from your employees, and then focus on what you can get from them. If you focus on what you can get, you can maximize their contribution. You can also encourage them to improve, but you need to know the limits and abilities of everyone. Q. So how do you have that conversation with people? A. We have a very structured process of how we communicate and set expectations and define objectives. In general, I believe people perform best when they know where they are heading. I don’t like a culture where people are surprised. I feel that most people want to have some certainty about where they’re heading and where the organization is heading. So we have a process that begins with the management team defining the objectives for next year. But before we set the objectives we have a tradition where we define the five biggest mistakes we made last year — and we’ll focus on the big ones, not the small ones. And every year we look to see if there is something common among these mistakes. Then we set the objectives for next year. Q. What are some of the patterns you’ve seen in the mistakes? A. One of the most obvious mistakes we found is that too often we choose to believe in an optimistic scenario — we think too positively. Positive thinking is important to a certain extent when you want to motivate people, when you want to show them possibilities for the future. But it’s very dangerous when you plan based on that. So one of our takeaways from that was to appoint one of the executive members as a devil’s advocate. Q. Really? A. He’s actually very challenging and he knows how to ask the right questions. He really makes sure to say to me, “Let’s be more humble with our assumptions.” And the most surprising thing that he’s the V.P. of sales for international markets. You would expect the V.P. of sales to be pie-in-the-sky all the time. But he has a very strong, critical way of thinking, and it is so constructive. I feel that in a way, one of the risks of leadership is thinking too positively when you plan and set expectations. Q. What are some other things that you do at your company in terms of culture? A. There are a few different things that we’ve developed over the years. One is about communication between different groups in the company , and especially between the American, Asian, European and Israeli teams. One of the things I’ve found is that e-mail is a very dangerous way of communicating. It has a lot of benefits and a lot of advantages, but I find it dangerous because in cases of conflict, of disagreement, when people begin to argue over e-mail, they escalate their commitment to their opinion. So we made a rule in the company. And the rule is that I can write you something, and you may disagree, and so you might write back, “I strongly disagree for these reasons.” Then I might write you back, and say, “I also disagree with you for these reasons.” After that second response, there is no more e-mail correspondence. Then you pick up the phone. And we also try to use Skype videoconferences for that. It takes 90 percent less time to resolve conflicts when we talk, compared with when we write. Disagreeing in e-mail is just not constructive. It’s not the right way to communicate if you want to come to an agreement. So that’s one rule that I insist on: Just let’s talk, or let’s pick up the phone. And I try as much as we can to use video. I want to look at the eyes of the other person, especially when we disagree. So that’s one rule. Another ritual that we have is that once a week we have a meeting for all the employees. We go around the table, and we have people on the phone from our offices in other countries, and everyone reports about something — what happened last week or what will happen next week that will affect others, or something like that. It takes about a little bit less than an hour, and the reason I’m doing it is that I feel that one of the threats to organizations when they grow is having too many meetings and too many e-mails. I think that the most constructive and the most productive way to communicate is informal communication. So in one hour, everyone is synchronized. And when I talk with many of the employees I hear that it’s a very important meeting for them because it gives them the opportunity to hear about the business. I believe that devoting one hour a week to listening to what happened in the organization can solve so many other problems. Q. Let’s talk about hiring. What are you looking for? What questions do you ask? A. By the time I meet with someone, I assume that they have already been vetted for professional skills. I want to assess whether they will fit the culture and style of our organization. And I want to learn more about their personality. I often begin the conversation by describing the organization. Then I’ll say to them: “You know, I believe that this interview is mutual. I believe that just as much as I want to know about you, you want to know about me and about the organization. So I invite you to ask me questions, whatever concerns you.” I pay a lot of attention to what kind of questions I’m asked. Not so much the initial questions but what are their follow-up questions, and how much they listen to me. There is another very important stage in the interview process when it comes time to negotiate over a job offer. I pay a lot of attention to how they prioritize what they want to negotiate about. I feel that when I negotiate with someone, I will learn so much about what will happen in the future. Q. If you could ask somebody only two or three questions to get a sense of whether they’d fit into your organization culturally, what would you ask? A. The first one is: If you had just one page to write about yourself, what would you say? How would you describe yourself? And I want to hear self-reflection and self-criticism, not just positive things. Please describe yourself in the most open way you can, and don’t try to market yourself. The second question would be: What concerns you about our organization? What makes you feel a little bit afraid? What is it that you’re not sure about — whether you can meet certain expectations or maybe something you’re not sure you’d like to be a part of?" And that gives me another dimension of the person.

Hiring and Promotion
Executives and Management (Theory)
Hadomi Ori
Mazor Robotics


Greece Says It’ll Present E.U. With Planned Overhauls by Monday

Abstract: BERLIN — Greece will present a detailed list of proposed overhauls to its eurozone partners by Monday, a government spokesman said, as Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras met supporters and leading government ministers on his first official visit to Europe’s economic powerhouse, Germany. At 40, the always tieless Mr. Tsipras has cut an unusual figure among European leaders since being elected less than two months ago. After stopping his convoy en route to Angela Merkel’s chancellery on Monday to greet friendly demonstrators, on Tuesday he visited the stark memorial in central Berlin to the six million Jews killed in the Holocaust. It is rare for visiting leaders to stop at the 2,711 blocks of stone that make up the memorial to Europe’s murdered Jews. The visit to the memorial next to the Brandenburg Gate followed more than five hours of talks and dinner with Ms. Merkel on Monday. It also came after more meetings on Tuesday with the two leading Social Democrats in Ms. Merkel’s coalition as well as with opposition leftists sympathetic to Mr. Tsipras and his pleas for a new approach to Greece’s debt crisis. A Greek government spokesman, Gavriil Sakellaridis, told Mega TV that a list of overhauls would “be done by Monday at the latest.” There was no indication whether the list had been discussed in any detail with Ms. Merkel. Her spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said Monday’s talks had taken place “in a good and constructive atmosphere,” covering Greece’s situation, how the European Union works and bilateral cooperation. At an evening news conference barely an hour into the talks, both leaders urged their compatriots to abandon stereotypes about each other’s countries. While guarded, they were clearly at pains to reduce the acrimony that has clouded the new Greek government’s dealings with Germany and its other eurozone partners in recent weeks. One issue that has flared up is that of German reparations for the Nazi crimes committed during the occupation of Greece in World War II. Tens of thousands of Greeks were killed, and an estimated 80,000 Greek Jews were deported to concentration camps. The Nazis also exacted a forced loan from Greece that was not repaid in full. Mr. Tsipras raised the loan as a matter of what he called ethical and moral concern. But he emphasized that “today’s Germany has nothing to do with the Germany of the Third Reich, which cost so much bloodshed.” The visit to the memorial was sandwiched between talks with Germany’s foreign and economy ministers, both Social Democratic leaders in Ms. Merkel’s coalition government of center-right and center-left parties. Mr. Tsipras also met with two leaders of the Left Party, which has voiced strong support for the new Greek prime minister. Portrayed in popular German news media and by many conservative politicians as irresponsible or at best naïve, Mr. Tsipras was hailed by the Left Party leader, Katja Kipping, as “highly responsible.” He deserves support for efforts to alleviate the suffering of hungry and homeless Greeks, she said on German television Tuesday morning.

Euro Crisis
International relations
Germany
Greece
Alexis Tsipras
Angela Merkel
Berlin
Eurozone


Trial in China Signals New Limits on Dissent

Abstract: BEIJING — Liu Xiaobo, one of China ’s most prominent advocates of democratic change, was tried Wednesday on charges of subversion, a sign that Chinese leaders are reducing their already limited tolerance for peaceful political dissent. Mr. Liu, an essayist and social critic who has spent more than a year in detention, faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted of charges legally defined as “incitement to subvert state power.” His lawyer said a verdict in the closed trial was likely to be announced on Friday. Charging one of the best-known dissidents with subversion is a disheartening milestone in the eyes of some Chinese legal experts and human rights advocates. China has rarely brought political charges against people advocating peaceful dissent in recent years, though it often accuses those who offend the authorities of other crimes, like tax evasion, leaking state secrets or violating business regulations. Now, flush with record foreign exchange reserves and buoyed by the world’s most resilient major economy, Chinese officials seem less hesitant to call a crackdown by its own name: the charge of subversion has now been brought against not only Mr. Liu but also Hu Jia, an AIDS activist and environmentalist, who was convicted of that crime last year and sentenced to three and a half years in prison. “Many people see this trial as a tipping point,” said John Kamm, the founder of the Dui Hua Foundation, a group that advocates for human rights and works behind the scenes to free Chinese political prisoners. “The government seems to be getting tougher and more unyielding.” During the past year, the government has tightened restrictions on access to the Internet, suppressed the country’s small band of public advocacy lawyers and jailed activists who blamed poor school construction for the deaths of thousands of children during the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. Legal scholars say they worry that top party leaders seem less amenable to building an impartial legal system and allowing people to exercise the political rights in China’s Constitution, which could mean that intellectuals and civic groups have less room to operate. Although Mr. Liu is charged with writing six articles recently published on overseas Web sites, the main accusation seems to be a role in creating Charter 08 , a political reformer’s wish list that attracted 10,000 signatures this year during its brief life on China’s heavily censored Internet. The petition called for rule of law, expanded human rights and an end to the Communist Party’s monopoly on power. Most poignantly, it sought to guarantee the right to unfettered speech and the abolition of the very law under which Mr. Liu is now being tried. “We should end the practice of viewing words as crimes,” the document said. A literature professor and prolific writer, Mr. Liu, 53, was a visiting scholar at Columbia University when student protesters occupied Tiananmen Square in the spring of 1989. He quickly returned home, joined hunger strikers and, as the military closed in, encouraged students to leave the square peacefully. After soldiers regained control of the capital, Mr. Liu was detained and held for 21 months without trial. In 1996, after publicly demanding the release of those still imprisoned for their roles in the protests, he was sent to a labor camp for three years. But although he was fired from his teaching job, Mr. Liu became a symbol of the small but real space for expressing opinions in a changing China. He continued to write provocative essays with titles like “ The Chinese Communist Party’s Dictatorial Patriotism ” and meet with like-minded intellectuals who urge China to embrace democracy without violent upheaval. “We couldn’t have a repeat of June 4, where all sides lose, so we came up with a constructive way forward,” said Zhang Zuhua, a lead author of Charter 08, referring to the date of the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown. In an interview earlier this year, Mr. Zhang described how he and about 100 other people laid out their aspirations and batted the document back and forth for a few months. Posted online last December, the manifesto, whose name is a reference to Charter 77, a Soviet-era petition by Czech dissidents, quickly gained thousands of signatures from workers, teachers and retired party members. Party leaders and security officials saw the charter as a step too far. The police questioned most of the original signers, about 300 people, and detained two of them: Mr. Liu, who has been held in a secret location, and Mr. Zhang, who was later released but is now subjected to round-the-clock surveillance. In his defense, Mr. Liu’s lawyers argued that he had written more than 490 articles since 2005 but that the authorities chose only six as evidence that he sought to subvert the state, according to his younger brother, Liu Xiaoxuan, who attended the trial. “He rejected their argument that Charter 08 brought about a ‘malevolent social impact’ and told the court that his remarks are within the realm of free speech, which is protected by the Constitution,” the brother said. Mr. Liu’s lawyers have expressed frustration with the judicial process, saying for months that they had no access to their client and that they received the indictment less than two weeks ago, leaving little time to prepare a defense. Officials in the West have also taken up Mr. Liu’s case, although it is unclear whether the diplomatic pressure would have any impact. On Wednesday, a contingent of two dozen consular officials from European nations, Canada and the United States lingered outside the courthouse, having been barred from entry at the last minute despite applying for permits a week earlier. “We were simply told there were no more seats,” said Nicholas Weeks, the first secretary of the Swedish Embassy. The defendant’s wife, Liu Xia, was also kept from the trial by security officials who watch her apartment building day and night. “I’m already prepared for the worst,” she said by telephone. Despite the heavy security, about two dozen supporters of Mr. Liu gathered at the courthouse on Wednesday morning stamping their feet against the cold. Lei Ji, 48, an unemployed meat plant worker and self-described social critic, made an 18-hour train ride to show his solidarity outside the courthouse. He said that he had never met Mr. Liu but that they had exchanged e-mail messages in years past. And yes, he said proudly, he had signed Charter 08. Then he reached into his fraying leather satchel to reveal a bundle of photocopied manifestoes. “I’m not afraid,” he said after handing one to a court official who had stepped outside to look at the scene. “I love China. I just want my country to have freedom and human rights.”

China
Liu Xiaobo
Freedom and Human Rights
Political Prisoners


Ready for Racing's Truth and Consequences

Abstract: Summer is ending in Melbourne. But for the 12 Formula One teams and their 24 drivers, spring has just begun in Europe, which means the end of annual winter testing and the arrival of the new racing season, which starts at the Australian Grand Prix this weekend. During that short period of testing, from Feb. 1 to March 12, the teams fine-tuned their new-model racing cars, driving a total of 60,944 kilometers, or 37,785 miles, in 17 days to prepare them for the real test, which starts at 5 p.m. local time on Sunday in Melbourne. Although it is always difficult to determine from winter testing which teams and drivers are the most likely to finish the season on top in November after 19 races, the broad brushstrokes have been outlined. “The fight will be between Red Bull, McLaren, Mercedes and Ferrari,” the Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso told the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag this week. “We have new rules and tires, but I do not think we will have new winners, or a mix of teams that win or do big surprises on the grid.” Still, the testing showed a potential for several surprises, and the competition at the top will be tight. Although Red Bull, the team that won both the drivers’ and the constructors’ titles last year, looked like the leader again, there were enough anomalies during testing to raise questions that the race this weekend will perhaps only begin to answer. During testing, the teams were not bound by the same strategies and rules as on a race weekend. Some cars therefore hide their true strength as they run laps on heavier fuel loads, while others tried to look faster by running lighter. One of the surprises was that in the last series of tests, in Barcelona, the Mercedes team, which had been lagging, suddenly set the fastest time after making improvements to its car. For the first time since his return to the series last year after three years in retirement, Michael Schumacher, the seven-time world champion, spoke optimistically. Driving for Mercedes, Schumacher had his worst season ever last year. He not only failed to win a race for the first time since his debut year, in 1991, but also was outraced by his teammate, Nico Rosberg, and did not score a single podium finish. “We will be able to fight for the top places,” Schumacher told the German news agency SID last week. “We are talking about a highly complex, highly competitive and ever-changing sport — so you cannot expect that things will always run as desired. It is important to stay strong and keep concentrated on the work. We did that and I am convinced that Mercedes will become a championship contender.” But Schumacher, like most other observers, concluded from winter testing that Red Bull will again be the top contender, with the Ferrari also at the top of the list. And although the McLaren Mercedes did not always look as strong during testing, and the car has been criticized by the drivers, Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, the second-most-successful team in the series’ history can never be excluded. Its director, Martin Whitmarsh, remained optimistic. “Do I think our testing pace is representative of the pace we’ll show in Australia?” he said. “No. Do I think we head into the weekend as race favorites? Unfortunately, no. But do I feel that we have the capacity to surprise a few people and be competitive? Very much so.” In addition to the Mercedes wild card, one of the best performers of the winter testing was the Lotus Renault GP car. Had it not lost Robert Kubica, its top driver, to injuries in a rally accident last month, the team might seriously have been considered a contender. Still, with the experienced Nick Heidfeld replacing Kubica, the team cannot be written off. Ferrari and Red Bull together ran the largest number of kilometers in winter testing, about 7,000 and 6,000 respectively. But in a surprising third place in the number of kilometers run was the Sauber team, which could also prove to be an upstart, rising toward the higher end of the grid. Sauber is still recovering from the loss of its BMW owner last year. But as it reconstructs itself as an independent team and builds a new stable of sponsors, it tested hard and its rookie driver, Sergio Pérez of Mexico, even set the fastest time one day. But Pérez has no experience on many of the tracks, and none at all racing in Formula One cars. “It will be a weekend during which I have to adapt quickly to many things — to the circuit, which is new to me, and to all the aspects of a Grand Prix weekend, from free practice to qualifying and the race,” Pérez said. Another potential surprise could come from the Toro Rosso team, which is the sister team of Red Bull, owned by the same Austrian energy-drink company. Toro Rosso was frequently near the top of the time sheets during winter testing. The team is beginning to see the benefits of its new car, entirely homemade at its expanded factory facilities in Faenza, Italy. And this is still the same team that won a race and scored several podium finishes in 2008, with Sebastian Vettel driving. But these two teams are also under threat from the ambitious Williams team, which after losing several sponsors went public on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange over the winter and has high ambitions for its new car. Rubens Barrichello, the team’s experienced driver, said that the car was much better than last year’s model. “We are in much better shape than we were this time last year,” said Barrichello, a multiple-race winner. “I think we are better on performance than last year. The car is a different animal, though, so there is a different way of treating it, but I quite like it. How much faster it is, is very difficult to know, but the car feels better than last year’s to drive.” As far as the last three finishers in the 2010 championship go — the three new teams last year — they will once again compete mainly to prove that they are the best of the newcomers. Of the three teams — Marussia Virgin, Hispania and Team Lotus — the last again seems to be the most likely to win in that area. “We are no longer a new team,” said Tony Fernandes, the team director. “We achieved what we set out to in 2010, but now it’s effectively a clean sheet: an entirely new car, a fully fledged race team and factory, and much higher aspirations.” “Now comes the next phase of the hard work,” he added. “Time to prove that our preseason promise can help us take the next step forward.”

Automobile Racing
Formula One
Melbourne (Australia)