Society's Child

American Airlines extends flight cancellations of Boeing MAX 737 planes until August

Jay Blackman and Kalhan Rosenblatt
NBC News
Sun, 14 Apr 2019 10:20 UTC

An American Airlines Boeing 737 Max 8 lands at LaGuardia Airport on March 11, 2019, in Queens, New York.

American Airlines is extending a cancellation of flights aboard any Boeing 737 Max aircrafts in its fleet until August, the company said in a letter to its employees.

In the letter, American Airlines CEO Doug Parker and President Robert Isom said that they believed the aircraft would be re-certified before August, but added that removing the planes until then would allow them to better plan for the busy summer travel season.

"Once the MAX is re-certified, we anticipate bringing our MAX aircraft back on line as spares to supplement our operation as needed during the summer," the letter states.

American Airlines estimates that the cancellations will affect approximately 115 flights per day - or 1.5 percent of the company's total flying each day through August 19.

Comment: Wise decision: Officials find additional software problem in Boeing 737 Max flight control system

See also:

Roger Scruton: An Apology For Thinking

Roger Scruton
spectator.co.uk
Sun, 14 Apr 2019 12:14 UTC

I recently gave an interview to the New Statesman, on the assumption that, as the magazine's former wine critic I would be treated with respect, and that the journalist, George Eaton, was sincere in wanting to talk to me about my intellectual life. Not for the first time I am forced to acknowledge what a mistake it is to address young leftists as though they were responsible human beings. Here is my brief response to an unscrupulous collection of out of context remarks, some of them merely words designed to accuse me of thought-crimes, and to persuade the government that I am not fit to be chairman of the commission recently entrusted to me.

George Eaton posted this picture of himself drinking champagne to celebrate the sacking of the “right-wing racist and homophobe Roger Scruton.” He has since apologised for the picture but says he stands by the interview.

Large, flightless bird attacks and kills its fallen owner near Gainesville, Florida

Associated Press
Sun, 14 Apr 2019 09:32 UTC

A cassowary

A large, flightless bird native to Australia and New Guinea attacked and killed its owner when the man fell on his farm in Florida, authorities said Saturday.

The Alachua County Fire Rescue Department told the Gainesville Sun that a cassowary killed the man Friday on the property near Gainesville, likely using its long claws. The victim was apparently breeding the birds, state wildlife officials said.

"My understanding is that the gentleman was in the vicinity of the bird and at some point fell. When he fell, he was attacked," Deputy Chief Jeff Taylor told the newspaper. He said first responders got a call at 10 a.m. Friday and rushed the man to a hospital for trauma care but he died.

Snowden's lawyer says no evidence to justify Assange eviction, John Pilger's warning and Twitter schools the Foreign Affairs Committee on free speech

RT
Sat, 13 Apr 2019 21:34 UTC

Robert Tibbo, a lawyer for NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, told RT that he believes Ecuador's decision to strip away Julian Assange's asylum is based on a very weak legal case and may amount to a breach of the constitution.

"Number one, there is a very high threshold to strip someone of an asylum. For what's available in [the] public domain, I don't see any evidence that would justify President [Lenin] Moreno or his administration stripping [Julian Assange] of that asylum status," Tibbo told RT.

The lawyer said that by giving Assange only a "30-minute notice" before revoking his asylum and citizenship, Ecuador appears to have violated his rights under its own laws.

Popular YouTuber and Brexiteer Sargon of Akkad selected as Ukip election candidate

Tom Barnes
Independent
Sat, 13 Apr 2019 19:24 UTC

Ukip has selected an anti-feminist Eurosceptic YouTube commentator as a candidate should the UK take part in European Parliament elections next month.

Carl Benjamin, who posts online using the moniker Sargon of Akkad, is one of two candidates the Eurosceptic party named on Thursday to stand in the southwest region.

"We went through an exhaustive process to sift over 190 potential candidates down to those the national executive committee representatives and I felt were most suitable," Ukip leader, Gerard Batten said.

"This list is based on a number of factors that we felt would select candidates to fight for a real Brexit after the European elections. Ukip's priority is to have MEPs who will fight to make Brexit happen."

Comment: For more on some of those mentioned in the article, see:

Facebook spent over $20 million dollars on security for Mark Zuckerberg last year

The Guardian
Sat, 13 Apr 2019 17:14 UTC

© Paul Zinken/EPA
Mark Zuckerberg out running with bodyguards in Berlin in 2016. Personal security topped his 2018 security costs.

Facebook more than doubled the money it spent on top executive Mark Zuckerberg's security in 2018 to $22.6m, a regulatory filing has showed.

Zuckerberg drew a base salary of $1 for the past three years, and his "other" compensation was listed at $22.6m, most of which was for his personal security.

Nearly $20m went toward security for Zuckerberg and his family, up from about $9 million the year prior. Zuckerberg also received $2.6m for personal use of private jets, which the company said was part of his overall security program.

Facebook in the past few years has faced public outcry over its role in the spread of disinformation and political propaganda online, data breaches and privacy concerns.

It includes Russia's alleged influence on the 2016 US presidential election and revelations that Cambridge Analytica, a political consultancy hired by Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, obtained personal data from millions of Facebook profiles without consent.

Gender pay gap: The myths that won't die

Niamh McIntyre
The Guardian
Sat, 13 Apr 2019 16:20 UTC

Thousands of companies have filed their gender pay gap figures, revealing men are paid, on average, more than women in the majority of British businesses.

Despite the results, myths and misconceptions about the gender pay gap persist. We've pulled together some of the most common myths to help you navigate the pay gap deniers.

There is no gender pay gap

The most extreme myth is that gender pay gap is a lie perpetuated by feminists who use statistics dishonestly to further their cause.

This is a view shared by a small but vocal coalition of rightwing think tanks, Jordan Peterson, and men's rights activists.

Writing in the Spectator, Kate Andrews, the associate director of the Institute of Economic Affairs, said women are "bombarded with inflated statistics, cherry-picked and designed to make them feel helpless".

Investigation launched into handling of Jussie Smollett case

Meghan Keneally
ABC News
Fri, 12 Apr 2019 05:03 UTC

Kim Foxx, the embattled Chicago state's attorney whose office has come under fire for its handling of the Jussie Smollett case, has asked the local inspector general to conduct an "independent review" of their investigation, she confirmed in a statement.

The news comes the day after the city's law department announced that they are suing Smollett to recoup the amount that they had to spend in order to cover the overtime of police officers during the investigation.

Smollet's case has sparked a firestorm ever since news broke of the Jan. 29 alleged attack. Controversy was further stoked when police alleged the incident was a hoax and ultimately when prosecutors dropped the charges against the actor.

Foxx said that she "invited" the inspector general, Patrick Blanchard, to look into her office's handling of the case, which involved the "Empire" actor's claims of being a victim of a hate crime that police alleged was a hoax.

Bob Jones University cop arrested for repeated sexual assaults on mentally disabled woman

Carla Field
WYFF 4
Wed, 10 Apr 2019 16:55 UTC

A Bob Jones University Police Department officer has been dismissed after being accused of repeatedly sexually assaulting a mentally impaired woman over a period of three years.

Greenville County Sheriff's Office investigators arrested Darren Thomas Wesley. 51, Tuesday on multiple criminal sexual conduct charges.

Investigators began an investigation March 14 after receiving a report that a vulnerable adult had been sexually victimized by Wesley, a former officer with the BJU police.

Deputies said that during the investigation, they determined Wesley had committed multiple criminal sexual offenses against the woman.

An arrest warrant said Wesley told the woman that if she resisted the sexual assaults or told anyone about them, she would destroy her family, which "caused serious psychological harm to the victim."

Former Venezuelan military chief nabbed on drug charges in Spain

RT
Sat, 13 Apr 2019 16:49 UTC

The former chief of Venezuela's military intelligence - and the highest-ranking military officer to defect to the US-backed opposition - has been nabbed in Spain on a US warrant for allegedly trafficking tons of cocaine.

Hugo Carvajal was arrested by Spanish police in Madrid on Friday and faces extradition to the US, where he was indicted in 2014 for allegedly having "coordinated the transportation of approximately 5,600 kilograms of cocaine from Venezuela to Mexico." He will testify in a Saturday court appearance as to whether he wishes to fight the extradition, an official with Spain's National Court told the AP.

The Venezuelan ex-major general, whose nickname "el Pollo" means "the Chicken," is accused of protecting a Colombian drug kingpin from arrest, allowing him to move about 5,600kg of cocaine in and out of Venezuela, and tipping him off to law enforcement activities. Carvajal allegedly was not only paid off by the kingpin and other members of his organization, but also invested in some of the drug shipments. He is also accused of providing weapons to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

I once wore a kilt to elementary school but that was because it was part of my homemade Braveheart costume. I had shorts on underneath but pranked...

Animanarchy

She hopefully also knocked out a complete chronology of her situation and made it available to the press. God speed lady! Fight that good fight -...

Rowan Cocoan

.. .. Never go to Happy Hour when it's nurses night.. or, Let's go phizzer [Link]

Jibrish

But we're going into a mini 'ice age'! HAARP has nothing to do with this...

tekdude

Ehret an idiot beyond belief

smertzasmert

Society's Child

American Airlines extends flight cancellations of Boeing MAX 737 planes until August

Roger Scruton: An Apology For Thinking

Large, flightless bird attacks and kills its fallen owner near Gainesville, Florida

Snowden's lawyer says no evidence to justify Assange eviction, John Pilger's warning and Twitter schools the Foreign Affairs Committee on free speech

Popular YouTuber and Brexiteer Sargon of Akkad selected as Ukip election candidate

Facebook spent over $20 million dollars on security for Mark Zuckerberg last year

Gender pay gap: The myths that won't die

Investigation launched into handling of Jussie Smollett case

Bob Jones University cop arrested for repeated sexual assaults on mentally disabled woman

Former Venezuelan military chief nabbed on drug charges in Spain

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