atxhomeguide.com

Tuesday, September 26, 2017

On Sunday, US television station CBS aired “The Vulcan Hello”, the premiere episode of Star Trek: Discovery. The episode is slated to be the only one of the series broadcast on conventional television, with future installments exclusive to streaming platform CBS All Access. Discovery continues the long-running Star Trek franchise with the first series in the franchise to feature a black female lead.

The airing follows several months of development and delays, as the series was retooled by veteran television producers including Bryan Fuller and Akiva Goldsman. Initially announced in 2015 to celebrate Star Trek’s 50th anniversary the following year, the series has been plagued by setbacks, including departure of Bryan Fuller as showrunner in late 2016, collectively pushing its release date to move from January to September of this year.

Only Canadian station Space is to air the series on traditional television. In all other non-US countries, Netflix has the rights.

The series is the newest installment of the Star Trek media franchise. Discovery is a prequel program set before the 1960s original series, set to explore the relationship between the Earth-based Federation made up of several benign alien species who explore the universe to find new life, and the war-like Klingons who have been villains of the various films and television installments. Veteran US television actress Sonequa Martin-Green stars as Michael Burnham, first officer of starship USS Shenzou.

The series has earned praise and controversy for its decision to cast the lead as a black woman. Creators say this inclusivity is consistent with the franchise’s history, which has featured black male and white female leads. All casts have been multi-racial, starting with the original series, which included the black female character Uhura portrayed by Nichelle Nichols.

Discovery also marks a key part of CBS’s strategy for streaming its streaming video service All Access. Launched in 2014, the platform has a library of several thousand episodes from the network’s past programming as well as debuting two spin-off series: Big Brother: Over the Top, from the reality television franchise Big Brother, and the legal procedural The Good Fight, from The Good Wife. The CBS Corporation is using this drama as an incentive for signing up to their service, which competes with industry giants Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Hulu. Hulu is a joint venture including many of the broadcast networks in the United States but CBS only began sharing selected programming on this platform earlier this year. CBS claimed the debut resulted in their biggest surge in membership, without offering hard numbers.

Thursday, May 26, 2016

On Monday, German football club FC Bayern Munich completed the signing of Mats Hummels, who captained Bayern’s rivals Borussia Dortmund this past season. 27-year-old defender Hummels, who was an academy player at Bayern before moving to play for Borussia Dortmund, agreed to a five-year deal.

Hummels underwent medical tests on Monday before signing the contract. Bayern’s chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said “We’re delighted to welcome Mats back to FC Bayern, […] Not only are we strengthening our squad with a world-class centre-back, but also with a player who accepts responsibility and who is our own youth product. First of all we wish him a successful Euro 2016.”^{((de))German language: Wir freuen uns, Mats zurück beim FC Bayern begrüßen zu dürfen […] Mit ihm bereichern wir unsere Mannschaft nicht nur um einen Innenverteidiger von Weltklasse-Format, sondern auch um einen Spieler, der Verantwortung nicht scheut und noch dazu aus unserer Jugend stammt. Jetzt wünschen wir ihm erst einmal eine erfolgreiche Europameisterschaft.}

Hummels joined the Bavarians in 1995 when he was six years old. He played only one Bundesliga match for the Reds before he was loaned to Dortmund and later signed for them. He played his last game for Borussia Dortmund on Saturday in the DFB-Pokal Cup final, which Bayern won 4–3 on penalties.

After the signing was completed, he said “Saying goodbye to Dortmund was difficult for me of course. It was similar to 2008, when it was the other way around […] Now I’m looking forward to everything that awaits me at FC Bayern. I’m very excited.”^{((de))German language: Der Abschied aus Dortmund ist mir natürlich schwergefallen. 2008 ging es mir ähnlich, als ich den Weg in die andere Richtung gemacht habe […] jetzt freue ich mich einfach auf alles, was mich beim FC Bayern erwartet. Ich bin sehr gespannt.}

Monday, June 7, 2010

A suspect in a hit-and-run located in San Francisco, California, was arrested after hitting four cyclists and, two days later, lying to the police. Over the course of six minutes, the 39-year-old man hit four people with his car and then ran off when his car crashed into another vehicle and hit a pole. The investigators tracked down the man’s address with the evidence found in the car; however, as he had moved, they were unable to find him.

The suspect later told the police at Albany Police Station that his car was stolen, and after the police identified that as a lie, he was arrested. The police believes that the victims were deliberately targeted, although the motive remains a mystery. The suspect is currently in hospital for medical and psychological testing.

“I was only a block from my house and I saw something coming at me, from the corner of my eye. I managed to swing out of the way and avoid the full brunt of an impact,” said one of the victims, Rory Madden. “It doesn’t make any sense that anybody would do that, so whatever he has to say is not going to make sense.” The other three men were hospitalized, two in serious condition and one in fair condition.

The attack left bicycles crumpled and some cars damaged, one severely, according to San Francisco police spokeswoman, Lyn Tomkioka. “We’re just really glad that he’s been arrested,” she said. Mayor Gavin Newsom and the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition condemned the attack, stating that there are currently efforts to make San Francisco “one of the most bike-friendly cities in the country”.

Friday, November 25, 2011

U.S. Democratic Party presidential candidate Darcy Richardson of Florida took some time to answer a few questions from Wikinews reporter William S. Saturn.

Richardson, 55, is a political activist that helped form the New Democrats in 1989 and founded the progressive Battleground Blog earlier this year. He is also a political historian, and has authored six books covering third parties and presidential elections, including A Nation Divided: The 1968 Presidential Campaign (2002). His current work, The Spirit of ’76: Eugene McCarthy’s Struggle for Open Politics, chronicles the late Democratic Senator Eugene McCarthy’s 1976 presidential campaign for which he volunteered. Richardson admires McCarthy, and served as manager for his 1988 presidential run. Recently, Richardson advised Brian Moore’s Socialist Party USA presidential campaign in 2008.

In addition, Richardson himself has sought political office, albeit unsuccessfully. In 1980, he ran for Pennsylvania Auditor General, and in 1988, vied for one of Pennsylvania’s U.S. Senate seats as a member of the Consumer Party. Last year, he ran for Lieutenant Governor of Florida as the running mate of gubernatorial candidate Farid Khavari.

Richardson has criticized President Barack Obama’s policies for being too similar to those of former President George W. Bush. He hoped to convince several prominent progressives to challenge Obama in the Democratic primaries, but none were available to do so. Last month, Richardson decided to begin a campaign himself and announced through his Battleground Blog that he would challenge Obama in the Democratic Party primaries as a progressive candidate. So far, he has qualified for the New Hampshire primary in January and the Missouri primary in February. In an interview with the Independent Political Report, Richardson proclaimed his campaign slogan as “no fourth term for George W. Bush.”

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Chelsea, a football club based in London, United Kingdom, have confirmed that Joe Cole and {{w:|Michael Ballack}} will be leaving on free transfers during the summer transfer window.

Chelsea, the current Premier League champions, reportedly stated they did not wish to offer Cole, an English international currently with the country’s national team at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, another contract for next season. They declined to offer Germany captain 33-year-old Ballack a new deal; the player had been missing out on the World Cup with injury.

Cole has been at the club since joining from fellow London side West Ham United in 2003, while Ballack’s previous club was Bayern Munich of Germany, arriving under José Mourinho.

Ballack was claimed to be “extremely surprised” by the news, having been on holiday in Miami, United States at the time of being informed, according to agent Michael Becker. Ballack had previously rejected a reduced-wage, one-year contract, and was once the highest-earner at Chelsea, with a weekly wage of £121,000 (US$175,123).

Several sources believe that many top finishers in the Premier League, including runners-up Manchester United, are keen to speak to 28-year-old Cole, as he has been free to initiate negotiations since January. However, no deal has yet been confirmed to have started.

Monday, November 12, 2007

A fierce storm on Sunday resulted in massive 18-foot waves, which split a Russian oil tanker in two and sank two Russian freighters nearby. The tanker spilled at least 560,000 gallons of fuel into a strait which leads to the Black Sea, and officials say it may take years to clean up. The tankers sank in the Strait of Kerch, which links the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov in the northeast. The two ships were carrying a total of around 7,150 tons of sulfur, according to Sergei Petrov, Russia’s Ministry of Emergency Situations regional spokesperson.

The tanker was carrying nearly 1.3 million gallons of fuel oil, and was stranded several miles from shore. Emergency workers were prevented from collecting the spilled oil immediately due to stormy weather; the head of the state environmental safety watchdog Rosprorodnadzor, Oleg Mitvol, said “there is serious concern that the spill will continue”. Workers eventually managed to begin work on cleaning up the spill, an effort which may be long-term. Tar-like sands laden with oil and seaweed were piled on the shore, while oil-covered birds in slick-covered water tried to flap their wings. Regional coast guard officer Anatoly Yanhuck said once weather improves they will begin pumping oil from the tanker, then tow the ship to port.

Two fuel-loaded barges and Turkish freighter Ziya Kos also ran aground in the area, but there was no further environmental damage, said Petrov. Ten ships altogether were sunk or run aground in the area of the Black Sea near the Straight of Kerch and the Straight itself; a Russian freighter carrying metal was also reported as having sunk near the port of Sevastopol on Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula.

One of the sulfur-carrying freighters reported three crew members as drowned, and five more as missing, while two members of the sunk freighter carrying metal were reported as drowned and another remains missing. The oil tanker’s 13 crew members were all rescued safely, and all members of the second freighter were also reported as safe.

Captains had been warned Saturday morning of the stormy conditions, regional prosecutor Maxim Stepanenko told Russia’s Vesti 24. The oil tanker was not built to withstand fierce storms, having been designed to transport oil on rivers during Soviet times, he said.

Chemist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Ocean Service office of response and restoration, Jim Farr said the sulfur spill from the two freighters wouldn’t create a “hazardous situation”, a statement backed up by Alexei Zhukovin, expert with the Emergency Situations Ministry’s branch in Southern Russia. Although on land sulfur is used as a fungicide, in a marine setting it wouldn’t act as one, said Farr; instead a sulfur spill can be compared to dumping sand on a reef and smothering it, or placing a blanket on a bed of grass. Long-term effects are more difficult to speculate on, however, without better knowledge of the area and its currents. Oleg Mitvol said that although the sulfur spill doesn’t present an environmental danger, the two freighters might also leak fuel oil from their tanks, adding to the pollution.

Russia, Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Georgia, and Ukraine all border on the Black Sea.

Saturday, December 8, 2007File:Robert Mugabe.jpg

The summit of more than 70 African and European Union nations has opened in Portugal with an acknowledgement that conflicts, human rights violations and poverty continue to pose challenges. Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates opened the summit on today, calling it a meeting of equals in a community of nations that shares a historic duty.

The Portuguese leader promised a frank and open discussion with no taboos. This was seen as a reference to issues such as conflicts and human rights violations in Africa as well as historical injustices in Euro-African relations.

The chairman of the African Union, Ghana’s President John Kuofor, said the relationship between Africa and Europe during the past 500 years has been unhappy, characterized by the slave trade, colonialism and apartheid. He said a new relationship is needed to correct what he called a historic inhumanity.

“The real significance of the Africa-EU summit must therefore be to lay the foundations of a new partnership based on mutual respect and a genuine commitment to pursue the mutual interests of our two continents,” he said.

The leaders are to establish a new strategic partnership with eight priority areas. These include peace and security, governance and human rights, economic development, environmental degradation, migration and trade.

The President of the African Union Commission, Alpha Oumar Konare, said the relationship must avoid charity, paternalism and false promises.

He says no one will solve Africa’s ills for it. Africa must play the game of globalization but not unilateral globalization based solely on market forces. Konare said the new partnership must develop ways to address this issue.

Efforts to hold the Africa-EU summit have been thwarted for the past five years by a dispute over Zimbabwe‘s human rights record. President Robert Mugabe‘s invitation this year prompted a boycott by Prime Minister Gordon Brown of Britain, Zimbabwe’s former colonial ruler.

Human rights activists have protested that summit leaders are ignoring suffering and oppression on the continent. And opponents of globalization said the summit’s approach to boosting trade would aggravate poverty.

European leaders have been intent on holding the meeting because of competition for Africa’s markets coming from China, India and other emerging nations.

Friday, October 30, 2009

Mike Ashley, the owner of English football club Newcastle United F.C., has taken the club off the market for a second time, after failing to concluded several negotiations, including a cash offer of £80 million, according to the club.

A club statement said of the move:

“Mike Ashley is totally committed to the future success of Newcastle United and will be focused on gaining promotion back to the Premier League. Mike will put a further £20m into the club this week.”

This is the second time Ashley has taken the club off the market after putting it up for sale. This season, Newcastle are competing in the Football League Championship, the second tier of English football, after relegation from the top flight Premier League at the end of last season. Ashley had bought the Premier League club in May 2007 for £134.4m, but after a difficult period of ownership, which saw the return and departure of manager Kevin Keegan after a few months, and after fan protests, Ashley eventually put the club up for sale for the first time in September 2008. In a statement at the time he said:

I am not stupid and have listened to the fans. I have really loved taking my kids to the games, being next to them and all the fans. But I am now a dad who can’t take his kids to a football game on a Saturday because I am advised that we would be assaulted. Therefore, I am no longer prepared to subsidise Newcastle United. I am putting the club up for sale. I hope that the fans get what they want and that the next owner is someone who can lavish the amount of money on the club that the fans want.

After failing to find a suitable buyer, Ashley took the club off the market in December 2008, stating he is “committing to the club as its owner”. After a poor season, culminating in relegation from the Premier League to the Football Championship for the first time in 16 years, Ashley put the club up for sale a second time after relegation in May 2009. Ashley stated of the situation “It’s been catastrophic for everybody. I’ve lost my money and made terrible decisions”.

The announcement came on the same day as it announced Chris Hughton as the club’s permanent manager, and that the club would be putting the naming rights of the club stadium St James’ Park up for offers next season.