President Donald Trump said the latest round of tariffs was in response to China’s “unfair trade practices”.
He said: “We have been very clear about the type of changes that need to be made, and we have given China every opportunity to treat us more fairly. But, so far, China has been unwilling to change its practices.”
President Trump also warned that if China retaliated then the US would “immediately pursue phase three” and impose further tariffs on another $267 billion worth of Chinese products.
Such a move would mean almost all of China’s exports to the US would be subject to new duties.
After opening lower, the Shanghai stock market ended the day 1.8% higher, while Tokyo was up 1.4% and Hong Kong gained 0.6%.
In July, the White House increased charges on $34 billion worth of Chinese products. Then last month, the escalating trade war moved up a gear when the US brought in a 25% tax on a second wave of goods worth $16 billion.
The city of Wilmington in North Carolina has been cut off from the rest of the state because of heavy floods following Hurricane Florence.
According to officials, all roads in and out are now impassable and have warned evacuated residents to stay away.
About 400 people have been rescued from flood waters in Wilmington, described as an island within the state.
Two of the first known fatalities – a mother and her seven-month son – were reported in Wilmington on September 14.
At least 15 other people are reported to have died in storm-related incidents across North and South Carolina since storm Florence made landfall on September 13.
In Wilmington, with its population of about 120,000, some 400 people have had to be rescued from flood waters, and most of the city remains without power.
The National Weather Service has warned of at least two further days of possible flash flooding in the area before conditions are forecast to improve.
The area is usually best known as a filming location for One Tree Hill and Dawson’s Creek.
Michael Jordan – who is fundraising to help residents affected by the storm – also grew up in the city.
Many roads inside Wilmington are still passable for residents who defied evacuation orders to ride the storm out.
However, a city-wide curfew has been extended after five people were arrested on suspicion of looting from a store in the city on September 15.
According to the National Hurricane Centre, Florence has now weakened into a tropical depression with winds of 35mph.
Some parts of the Carolinas have seen up to 40in of rain since September 13 – and officials have warned river levels are yet to peak in places.
The US coast guard and volunteer boats have been helping people left stricken by rising flood waters across the states.
Officials in North Carolina have said about 900 people have been rescued from floodwaters there, and about 15,000 people are still in emergency shelters.
President Donald Trump has declared a disaster in several North Carolina counties – a move that frees up federal funding for recovery efforts.
He has praised federal and local law enforcement response to the storm on Twitter several times and the White House has indicated he may visit the affected area in coming days.
Power companies are working to restore power to the almost 650,000 homes and businesses that are still without electricity.
The center of the storm is still over North Carolina but is expected to accelerate north before turning to head toward New England on September 18.
Eleven deaths were reported in North Carolina, and at least six have been reported in South Carolina.
Typhoon Mangkhut hit the Philippines’ main island on September 15 killing at least 25 people.
Extensive crop damage is feared in the agricultural province of Cagayan.
Mangkhut, which packs a 550 mile rain band and strong winds, is heading towards southern China.
The storm poses a “severe threat” to Hong Kong, the territory’s observatory said, urging residents to stay on high alert.
In the Philippines, Mangkhut made landfall at Baggao, in the north-east of the main island of Luzon, at about 01:40 local time on September 15 and left some 20 hours later.
Originally a super typhoon billed as the strongest storm of 2018, Mangkhut lost some of its strength on landfall.
Five million people were in its path and more than 100,000 sheltered in temporary centers.
A presidential spokesman and disaster response coordinator said almost all the deaths had been caused by landslides in the Cordillera and Nueva Vizcaya regions, adding that reports from other areas were still coming in.
One person was killed by a falling tree in the province of Ilocos Sur, he said.
Almost all buildings in the city of Tuguegarao, Cagayan’s provincial capital, sustained damage, a government official said.
The Philippines is routinely hit during the typhoon season but the strength of Manghukt evoked memories of the deadliest storm on national record – Super Typhoon Haiyan – which killed more than 7,000 five years ago.
However, preparation and evacuation procedures have been improved since then – warnings were issued, travel was restricted, schools shut and the army was put on standby in advance.
Mangkhut is still strong as it heads west toward southern China with current sustained wind speeds of 90mph but fears it will re-strengthen into a super typhoon have receded.
Storm Florence is hitting North and South Carolina, and Virginia and weather forecasters warn of the risk of life-threatening flash flooding in parts of the states.
Florence has been downgraded from a hurricane to a tropical storm but continues to soak the East Coast area with rain, downing trees and damaging homes.
It is slowly grinding over the eastern states, with winds of 65mph.
Five deaths have been linked to the storm and thousands of people have been staying in emergency shelters.
Evacuation warnings were issued for 1.7 million people in the region.
All five deaths linked to the storm are in North Carolina.
Florence originally made landfall at Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, on Friday morning as a category one hurricane.
The National Hurricane Center said on September 14 that “catastrophic fresh water flooding” is expected in parts of both the Carolinas.
Some parts of North Carolina have already seen surges as high as 10ft in places.
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper said the hurricane was likely to “continue its violent grind for days” and described the severity of the downfalls as a “1,000 year event”.
Florence is expected to dump 18 trillion gallons of rainwater on US soil, meteorologist Ryan Maue tweeted.
Almost 800,000 people are reported to be without power already in North Carolina, and officials have warned restoring electricity could take days or even weeks.
More than 20,000 residents have packed into North Carolina emergency shelters, and officials have told those still in the storm’s path to stay in place.
In Jacksonville, North Carolina, officials had rescued more than 60 people overnight on September 13 from a hotel that was collapsing in the storm.
Parts of New Bern, North Carolina, which is home to 30,000 people, were 10ft underwater on September 14 after local rivers flooded their banks.
Scores of residents in the riverfront city were plucked to safety, local reports say.
The Turkish government is banning the use of foreign currencies in the country’s property market as it looks to stem the dramatic fall of its own currency, the lira.
On September 13, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued a decree announcing that contracts for sales, rent and leasing must in future be made in lira.
The president has previously urged people to sell their dollars and euros.
The move came as Turkey’s central bank increased interest rates sharply in an attempt to curb the tumbling lira.
The lira has lost almost a third of its value against the dollar since January.
Today’s decree, which was published in the government’s official gazette, said all current agreements in the property sector made in foreign currencies must be changed within 30 days.
Rental and sale agreements in Turkey are often offered in euros and dollars to foreigners living in the country.
However, the property and construction market has become a concern for investors worried that Turkish companies that borrowed heavily to profit from a boom may struggle to repay loans in foreign currencies, as the weakened lira means there is now more to pay back.
In a speech to a traders’ confederation in the capital, Ankara, President Erdogan said on September 13 that nobody should carry out business in foreign currency apart from exporters and importers.
The president also criticized Turkey’s central bank, accusing it of failing to control inflation and urging it to cut interest rates just hours ahead of its announcement that it was raising rates to 24%.
He said: “As of today I have not seen the central bank fix inflation rates as they promised.”
“Interest rates are the cause, inflation is the result. If you say ‘inflation is cause, the rate is the result’, you do not know this business, friend,” the president added.
Turkey’s lira jumped sharply following news of the rate increase.
Last month, Turkey’s weak currency received a small boost after President Erdogan raised tariffs on US imports including cars, alcohol and tobacco.
The US earlier hit Turkey with tariffs on items such as steel and aluminum in an effort to increase pressure on the country to free the detained American pastor Andrew Brunson.
Andrew Brunson has been held for almost two years because of his alleged links to political groups that are outlawed in Turkey, which accuses the US of trying to bring it “to its knees” over the administration’s demands.
The fall in the value of the lira in recent months has pushed up the price of everyday items in Turkey and raised fears the country is sliding into an economic crisis.
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump have marked the 17th commemoration of the 9/11 attacks by visiting a memorial in Pennsylvania.
Donald Trump delivered a speech commemorating the airplane passengers who are thought to have charged the cockpit to stop the attackers.
Ceremonies are also being held at NYC’s 9/11 Memorial plaza on the World Trade Center site.
2,996 people were killed in the deadliest foreign attack ever on US soil.
President Trump said in Shanksville on September 11: “America’s future is not written by our enemies. America’s future is written by our heroes.
“As long as this monument stands, as long as this memorial endures, brave patriots will rise up in America’s hours of need and they, too, will fight back.”
He spoke at the newly inaugurated Tower of Voices memorial, a 93ft tall structure with 40 wind chimes.
On September 11, 2001, hijackers flew planes into the World Trade Center in New York City, and the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia.
Another plane, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
It is believed hijackers were planning to aim that aircraft at the Congress or White House in Washington DC before it went down, killing all 40 people aboard.
Cockpit voice recordings of the hijackers and mobile phone calls from those aboard to loved ones indicate passengers tried to fight their way into the cockpit to regain control before the plotters nosedived the plane.
President Trump praised the passengers’ “incredible valor” and said their revolt was “the moment America fought back”.
He said: “A band of brave patriots turned the tide on our nation’s enemies and joined the immortal rank of American heroes.”
Donald Trump is the third sitting president to attend the crash site, 70 miles south-east of Pittsburgh.
Senator John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, was among those who noted this is the first year that Americans born after the attacks will be old enough to enlist in the US military.
During remarks at the Pentagon, VP Mike Pence told audience members they “must learn the lessons of 9/11 and remain ever vigilant”.
The ceremony in New York was attended by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, US ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley and Mayor Bill de Blasio, as well as former mayors Michael Bloomberg and Rudy Giuliani.
Relatives of victims read out the names of the dead, and moments of silence were observed at 08:46 and 09:03 to mark the times when passenger jets struck the two skyscrapers.
In the years since the attacks, cancer cases in lower Manhattan – especially among first responders who dug through the toxic rubble – have increased.
The 9/11 Victims’ Compensation Fund has paid out $4 billion to fund medical expenses for survivors of the terror attacks.
According to the World Trade Center Health Program, nearly 10,000 of them have had some form of cancer.
Tens of thousands of people inhaled fumes in the days after the attack, and the number of patients coming forward with tumors has increased in recent years, according to the fund.
In this article, we are going to mention 15 old school movies about real men and their decisive deeds in the name of good. To say shortly, we are going to speak about action movies. Here are 15 best action movies ranking based on opinions of our entertainment specialists.
Rambo: First Blood (1982)
Unlike its simple patriotic sequels, the first “Rambo” movie is a tragic story of a warrior fighting against his own country. And it still has the anti-war idea as the main plot (like its source-book). If it wonders you, then you should definitely watch this movie.
Seven Samurai (1954)
Akira Kurosawa shows his humanistic philosophy through sword slashes and rivers of blood. He turned an old story about Ronin squad protecting the village from bandits into the ode to a disappearing valor: unlike their enemies, samurai do not use firearms.
El Mariachi (1992)
This debut movie by Robert Rodriguez was filmed with a group of amateur actors and the 7 thousand-dollar budget. The director earned them in a Texas clinic, taking part in laboratory experiments on an anti-cholesterol medicine. His later pictures were more popular, bigger, and more epic, but none of them has the original charm of this independent movie.
Commando (1985)
A retired policeman with a heart of gold and muscles of steel stands against a crazy dictator dreaming to hurt the USA and a retired policeman in person. As a result, this rivalry will become the basis of many cult action movies. But this tradition started with Commando, and you never had a childhood if didn’t watch this movie 400 times!
Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991)
This movie by James Cameron became even a bigger breakthrough than the first part of a franchise thanks to unbelievable computer effects, a soundtrack recorded by Guns’n’Roses, epic dynamics, and black humor. It is one of the most famous roles by Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Bloodsport (1988)
A story of the American deserter who gains a victory over the Korean Muay Thai master on the tournament in Hong Kong literally flew around cinemas on all the continents. One of the most famous roles by Jean-Claude van Damme.
The Wild Bunch (1969)
A traditional bank robbery story of the American western movies turned into something bigger. Thanks to next gen tricks of Sam Peckinpah, it became a dark story about the violence being absurd and the anti-war pamphlet at the same time.
Police Story (1985)
Jackie Chan connected the warrior mastery of Bruce Lee and the comic talents of Buster Keaton. And a hapless policeman from Hong Kong he showed on cinema screens became liked by millions of people!
Dobermann (1997)
A pretending post-modern gangster action movie “Le Dobermann” was a French answer for Rodriguez and Tarantino. Evil-elegant bandits and crazy cops compete with each other is a senseless violence. Vincent Cassell and Monica Bellucci were able to play dramatic and truthful roles even in this comix movie.
Showdown in Little Tokyo (1991)
Two policemen run around Los Angeles to catch the Yakuza leader while breaking bones and catching bandits with the help of Eastern martial arts. A wonderful duet of Brandon Lee and Dolph Lundgren.
Road House (1989)
Even a regular bar bouncer can challenge a criminal boss if the truth is on his side. The hero by Patrick Swayze proves this thesis to be right. The classic battle between good and evil presented in an original manner.
3000 Miles to Graceland (2001)
The movie about gangsters who rob casinos in Elvis’s suits. Kevin Costner is especially good as the overwhelmingly bad gut and the final gunfire scene should be enlisted in a gunfire encyclopedia, if that book ever appears.
48 Hrs. (1982)
A tough cop and a lower hierarchy bandit join efforts to catch a fugitive in two days. To do that, they’ll need some brains, many bullets, and a Cadillac Sky Blue Convertible. The ideal police action movie from the director of “Red Heat” and the screenwriter of “Commando.”
Lethal Weapon (1987)
Probably, this movie was the beginning of a new subgenre: buddy cop action movies. A hero by Danny Glover goes through the midlife crisis, and a character of Mel Gibson struggles against suicidal thoughts and aggression attacks. The fate decided them to become partners, and their task is to deal with a huge narcotic syndicate.
Adrenaline (2006)
A crazy concentration of action, aggression, and madness pushed into 90 minutes of screen time. The most part of this time is devoted to the Jason Statham’s hero dealing with his enemies or overcoming difficulties. His main problem is a strange Chinese poison circulating in his veins and making him support the high level of adrenaline in blood.
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The US East Coast is bracing for Hurricane Florence.
Evacuations have been ordered in what may be the strongest storm to hit the region in decades.
North Carolina and Virginia have declared states of emergency while South Carolina’s governor ordered the evacuation of its entire coastline.
According to officials, Florence is now a Category 5 storm with 130mph winds, and gaining strength.
Florence is expected to strike the Carolinas by September 13.
The storm – which was 1,200 miles southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina, on September 10 – started the day as a Category 2 storm.
The weather system could reach Category 5 as its draws strength from the warm Atlantic waters, say forecasters.
Florence would be the first Category 4 storm to hit the region since Hugo ravaged North Carolina in 1989, wreaking $7 billion in damage and claiming 49 lives.
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) says the hurricane has the makings of an “extremely dangerous” meteorological event.
It may bring catastrophic levels of rain and flooding to coastal and inland regions.
The NHC said: “There is an increasing risk of life-threatening impacts from Florence: storm surge at the coast, freshwater flooding from a prolonged and exceptionally heavy rainfall event inland, and damaging hurricane-force winds.”
President Donald Trump has cancelled plans for a rally on September 14 in Mississippi because of the hurricane.
In North Carolina, there have been long queues in supermarkets around communities near waterways and coastlines as residents clear shelves of water, batteries and plywood.
Governor Roy Cooper waived agricultural transportation restrictions in order to allow farmers to move goods more quickly.
Red flag warnings are keeping swimmers off beaches, as residents sandbag their homes in the communities of Myrtle Beach in South Carolina, and the Outer Banks in North Carolina.
Naval Station Norfolk, the largest naval installation in the world, is preparing to send ships away from bases to weather the storm out at sea.
Two other hurricanes are currently churning in the Atlantic Ocean.
Hurricanes Isaac and Helene are expected to accelerate, but at this point, are not expected to threaten the US mainland.
German auto maker Volkswagen has gone on trial in what is the first court case against the company over the diesel scandal.
Investors are pursuing VW for about €9.2 billion in damages, claiming the company should have come clean sooner about falsifying emissions data.
Volkswagen shares crashed after disclosure in 2015 that its diesel technology emitted illegal levels of pollution.
Andreas Tilp, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, told the court: “VW should have told the market that they cheated.”
“We believe that VW should have told the market no later than June 2008 that they could not make the technology that they needed in the United States,” he told the Braunschweig higher regional court.
Shareholders representing 1,670 claims are seeking compensation for the near 40% slide in VW’s share price triggered by the scandal, which broke in September 2015 and has cost the company €27.4 billion in penalties and fines so far.
The legal action has been brought by the Deka investment fund, which is being used a template for a further 1,600 lawsuits.
The case involves about 50 lawyers, and interest in the hearing is so great that it had to be moved from the court house to a nearby conference centre.
The court case is expected to take at least until 2019 to be fully decided.
Former executives from VW, Porsche and their sister company Audi are under criminal investigation in Germany.
VW has already been fined €1 billion by German prosecutors over its diesel emissions scandal. It has also paid a fine of $4.3billion in the US to resolve criminal and civil penalties.
The auto maker has admitted its responsibility for the diesel crisis.
Former Trump aide George Papadopoulos, whose remarks in a London pub sparked the inquiry into possible collusion with Russia, has been sentenced to 14 days in jail.
The 31-year-old told the court in Washington DC he was a “patriotic American” who made a mistake by lying.
Last year, George Papadopoulos pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about the timing of meetings with alleged go-betweens for Moscow.
He was the first former Trump aide arrested in the probe into an alleged Russia plot to sway the 2016 US vote.
President Donald Trump reacted by taking an apparent swipe at the cost of the investigation into George Papadopoulos.
In September 7 sentencing, George Papadopoulos was also handed 12 months of supervised release, 200 hours of community service, and a fine of $9,500.
Donald Trump’s former aide said in court that his “entire life has been turned upside down” and he hoped “for a second chance to redeem myself”.
George Papadopoulos concluded by saying “this investigation has global implications, and the truth matters”.
He was a London-based petroleum analyst before he joined the Trump campaign in March 2016 as a volunteer foreign policy adviser.
George Papadopoulos soon made contact with a mysterious Maltese academic, Joseph Mifsud.
Professor Mifsud told George Papadopoulos the Russians had “dirt” on Donald Trump’s Democratic presidential rival Hillary Clinton in the form of “thousands of emails”.
In the following months, thousands of emails linked to the Clinton campaign were published by WikiLeaks.
George Papadopoulos told Donald Trump, then a Republican presidential candidate, and other members of the campaign’s national security team that he could set up a meeting with President Vladimir Putin ahead of the 2016 election.
A pre-sentencing statement last week read: “While some in the room rebuffed George’s offer, Mr. Trump nodded with approval and deferred to Mr. Sessions, who appeared to like the idea and stated that the campaign should look into it.”
George Papadopoulos told CNN in an interview aired on September 7 that Donald Trump “gave me a sort of a nod” and “wasn’t committed either way” about the idea of a meeting with the Russian leader.
However, he said then-senator and now-Attorney General Jeff Sessions “was actually enthusiastic”. Last November, Jeff Sessions testified to Congress that he had “pushed back” against George Papadopoulos’ offer.
American authorities were alerted in mid-2016 after George Papadopoulos told an Australian diplomat during a drinking session in a London pub about his meetings with Professor Mifsud.
The envoy told US investigators, shortly after the emails hacked from the Democratic Party were leaked.
When the FBI interviewed George Papadopoulos in January 2017, he falsely claimed he had met two individuals with Russian ties before he joined the president’s team in March 2016.
He had actually met them after joining Donald Trump’s campaign.
One individual was a Russian woman who George Papadopoulos believed had connections to the Russian government.
In July 2018, the DoJ charged 12 Russian intelligence officers with hacking Democratic officials.
Prosecutors said George Papadopoulos’s lack of cooperation with investigators meant they were unable to effectively question or detain Joseph Mifsud. The professor has since left the United States.
No connection between Joseph Misfud and the hacked emails has been proven.
The DNC, which is suing Russia, the Trump campaign and WikiLeaks over the alleged election interference in the 2016, filed a court document on September 7, saying Joseph Mifsud “was missing and may be deceased”, without any further explanation, according to Bloomberg News.
It referred to him as a key figure to have evaded the Mueller inquiry.
George Papadopoulos said: “I made a dreadful mistake, but I am a good man who is eager for redemption.”
He said he lied not to impede investigation but “to preserve a perhaps misguided loyalty to his master”.
Judge Randolph Moss said he took the “genuine remorse” into consideration for the sentencing.
The only other person to be sentenced in the investigation – lawyer Alex Van Der Zwaan – received 30 days in prison. His judge referred to his regret as “muted”.
Outside court on September, George Papadopoulos’ lawyer, Thomas Breen, said his client was a “fool” and had acted “stupidly” in lying to the FBI.
However, the attorney said “the president of the United States hindered this investigation more than Papadopoulos ever could”.
The lawyer said President Trump had hampered the inquiry by calling it a “witch hunt” and “fake news”.
Rapper Mac Miller has been found dead at his California home after an apparent overdose, a Los Angeles coroner has confirmed.
The 26-year-old was open about his substance abuse.
“The music artist known as Mac Miller died today in his Studio City home,” the LA County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner said in a statement.
“In the late morning of September 7, Malcolm McCormick was found unresponsive…. authorities were called and Miller was pronounced dead at the scene at 11:51.
“At this time, an autopsy is pending and a cause of death has not been determined.”
Mac Miller, whose real name was Malcolm James McCormick, rose to fame after topping US charts with his debut album in 2011.
The rapper released his latest record, Swimming, earlier this year and was due to go on tour.
He went through a well-publicized break-up with singer and girlfriend Ariana Grande earlier this year.
Ariana Grande and Mac Miller, who met in 2012, collaborated on a number of songs and performed together at the One Love Manchester concert in 2017.
Charges were filed against the rapper last month after he was arrested in May for DUI and hit and run.
Ariana Grande spoke out publicly about ending their “toxic relationship” after fans blamed her for his arrest.
She said in a typed message posted on social media:“I am not a babysitter or a mother and no woman should feel that they need to be.”
Ariana Grande said she had “tried to support his sobriety” for years, and was praying that he “figures it all out”.
Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Mac Miller began to focus on his music while still at school and released his first mixtape under the name EZ Mac at just 15.
Maturing in the public eye, he starred in a MTV reality series in 2013 which followed him and a group of friends after he moved to Los Angeles to pursue his career.
Mac Miller released a series of albums and EPs across the last decade, collaborating with high-profile artists like Kendrick Lamar and Pharrell Williams.
In his final tweets posted on September 6, the rapper promoted the North American tour he was set to embark on next month.
In a statement confirming his death, Mac Miller’s family said that he was “a bright light in this world for his family, friends and fans”.
Iconic movie star Burt Reynolds has died at the age of 82.
According to Us Weekly, the wisecracking 1970s movie heartthrob and Oscar nominee passed away in a Florida hospital of a heart attack, attended by his family.
Burt Reynolds had undergone heart bypass surgery in 2010. Reynolds is survived by his son, Quinton.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, he died at the Jupiter Medical Center in Florida.
Burt Reynolds shot to fame in 1972’s Deliverance, and also starred in Smokey and the Bandit, Boogie Nights and The Cannonball Run.
His career went into freefall in the 1980s and his finances were ravaged by failed investments in restaurants and a Florida football team.
Burt Reynolds made a 1997 comeback with his role as a film director in Boogie Nights, which won him an Oscar nomination.
The veteran actor was married twice, firstly to British actress Judy Carne in 1963, but they divorced two years later amid accusations of her over-spending and his infidelity.
Burt Reynolds went on to marry actress Loni Anderson in 1988, but that also ended bitterly in 1993.
After the divorce from Judy Carne, Burt Reynolds filed for bankruptcy with $11 million in debts. In 2014, he was forced to sell many prized memorabilia, including his Golden Globe award.
However, when Vanity Fair journalist Ned Zeman asked him what he would have done differently, Burt Reynolds said: “I would have spent more money and had a lot more fun.”
As a young man, Burt Reynolds was a skilled football player, and it won him a scholarship to Florida State University.
PC Natalie Smart, who attended the scene, told the inquest: “I saw Mrs. O’Riordan submerged in the bath with her nose and mouth fully under the water.”
The inquest heard that there were empty bottles in the room – five miniature bottles and a bottle of champagne – as well as containers of prescription drugs with a quantity of tablets in each container.
Toxicology tests showed only “therapeutic” amounts of medication in Dolores O’Riordan’s blood, but showed up 330mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood – meaning she was more than four times over the 80mg legal limit for driving.
The inquest was attended by Dolores O’Riordan’s mother, brother and sister-in-law. She split from her husband of 20 years, Don Burton, in 2014.
Dolores O’Riordan and Don Burton, who is the former tour manager of Duran Duran, have three children together.
The inquest heard that Dolores O’Riordan checked into the hotel on January 14 and was in touch with room service at around midnight and phoned her mother at around 3AM.
The singer was later found unresponsive in the bathroom and confirmed dead at 9.16AM.
The inquest heard that Dolores O’Riordan had bipolar disorder but responded well to treatment.
The hearing was also told that Dolores O’Riordan went through periods of abstention and periods of excessive drinking.
At the lowest resolution time and attendance software is a system that requires employees to manually clock in and out of shifts.
Businesses use it, so they can optimize the hours their employees work and pay them more accurately.
Is it micromanaging?
It is reasonable to assume requiring workers to manually clock in and out of shifts and breaks can send the message their manager doesn’t trust them enough to report the hours they work accurately.
Some managers are hesitant to use time and attendance software because they fear their employees will resent them.
In industries like hospitality and retail where turnover is especially high managers don’t want to give their employees another reason to leave.
Ironically, it’s in these industries where workers are paid hourly where time and attendance software would prove most useful.
The fact is time and attendance software is so much more than just a system for employees to clock in and out of shifts and the successful implementation of it lies in managers making this clear to employees.
Benefits to managers
Time and attendance software ensures staff only get paid for the time they actually work, by recording when they clock in and out of shifts, thereby eliminating the guesswork and grey areas associated with using manual time sheets.
Additionally managers get real time alerts when staff are late or have not taken required breaks.
The reporting capabilities of time and attendance allow managers to see which of their employees work the most overtime and which of them are routinely late to start their shifts.
Managers also have visibility of early clock-ins and late clock-outs, instances of over & under scheduling, and which employees have taken more than their allocated breaks.
Time and attendance software provides managers with insight they can use to iron out inefficiencies in their business.
Compliance
Given managers know when their staff clock in and out, time and attendance software like OpenSimSim allows employers to set up compliance rulesets to protect their businesses and themselves from workplace legislation.
Compliance rulesets can be set up to ensure staff don’t work too much overtime, take their legally required breaks and get paid accordingly for working overtime, weekends, and public holidays.
Managers have visibility over their compliance warnings so they can stop them before they happen and stay out of legal trouble.
How employees can get in on the action
The benefits of time and attendance software are certainly not lost on employees.
As the reporting aspect of time and attendance software gives managers full visibility of their labor force in real time, employees that are punctual are more likely to be recognized and rewarded for it.
In this same way time and attendance software also guards against employees being over and under scheduled as employers will be able to see if this is the case and work to fix it.
Another foreseeable benefit to employees is the potential for data collected by time and attendance software to be used to create a resume, especially useful for people moving between jobs which require similar skills.
Time and attendance software offers detailed reports of employee punctuality and experience in a given role down to the minute.
These reports can be used by job seekers to prove their and experience and value to future employers in a concrete, verifiable way instead of relying on the vagueness and inherent unreliability of a resume like others.
Final words
There are a lot of time and attendance solutions out there and picking the right one can be tough but the benefits for employers and employees are clear.
It is however important that employees see it as welcome addition, and this can be achieved by managers taking a little time to explain to them what it is and how it will benefit the business before introducing it.
Does buying an anniversary gift for your loved one get a little harder each year? To succeed, you want to find a gift that is heartfelt and encompasses how much you love her. Consider going down memory lane with your present, getting a stylish item, or planning the perfect vacation to show her how much you appreciate everything she does.
Memory Lane
An anniversary is a great time to tap into your sentimental side. No matter what year you are celebrating, you can plan an anniversary gift for your wife or girlfriend that invites you both to reminisce on your time together as a couple. What better way to reflect on the years than by looking at photographs? This can often be done digitally in these social media days. This option can be easy and fast, but for an added touch of sentiment, try using a website that will help you put together a book. Find one that conveniently helps you narrow down your pictures and adds your own answers to heartfelt relationship questions for a lovely copy of your experiences together. This unique and personalized gift idea will bind memories in a stunning way that you both can look back on for years to come.
Fashion Fun
A beautiful piece of clothing is a terrific gift idea for anyone. Everyone needs a few especially nice items in the closet for those random special occasions. A fancy birthday dinner or other celebration will call for a nice outfit. Provide that outfit for your loved one in the style that they will love. Visit different stores to narrow down what kind of clothing you want to purchase. Use online shopping as an easy tool that provides even more options if you don’t have a lot of time to spare between work and other activities. Try specialty boutiques with online stores for the trendiest – from casual to elegant – looks. You can never go wrong with a clean color and style, such as a white maxi dress. A cute jumpsuit can also be dressed up to go from a daytime to a night-out look. Create an event for the perfect outfit by planning a dancing date night for her. She will love the chance to glam up and go out for an evening of fun.
Dream Vacation
Often, the inclination in planning an anniversary gift is to buy something material. Material items have the benefit of immediate use and satisfaction. You might feel like your loved one will appreciate it more in the moment. But experiences that turn into memories can be just as special. Maybe your loved one has a favorite band or artist she has always wanted to see. Invest in a floor tickets for a show. Or take her away on her dream vacation. Planning is sometimes the most stressful part of any trip, so eliminating this part for her is an added bonus. This gift is a big one that will require a lot of advanced thought for buying plane tickets, booking a hotel room, and organizing sightseeing and other vacation adventures. Plan special experiences or allow them to happen organically for memories that you will both cherish forever.
It’s the thought that counts. So show how much thought you are willing to spend on for your wife or girlfriend. She will see your attention to detail in your gift and appreciate it that much more.
Whether it is simply a happy look at memories or as involved as a dream vacation, something that you can both enjoy is never a bad idea.
This December 2018, TechCrunch will host TechCrunch Startup Battlefield Africa 2018. TechCrunch, like many other publishers and businesses, is starting to take notice of Africa’s thriving startup scene. There are several benefits to entering the competition as an African startup. Aside from potentially winning a cash grand prize and trip San Francisco, all participating startups will receive extensive media exposure, and may even meet influential people in the startup world. Some of the most successful—and recent—African startups include:
M-Kopa Solar, an off-grid solar power company which raised $10 million
Jamii, a micro-health insurance company that offers health insurance policies for as low as $1, raised $750,000 (half of which came from grants)
Across the continent, there are over 300 tech hubs that are helping startups through mentorships, investment deals, and professional advisement. In the last six months alone, 11 startup incubators and accelerators have been launched to help these startups grow and secure funding. Furthermore, during the first half of this year, African startups managed to raise $160 million, which surpasses all investments made during the entire 2017 year.
TechCrunch welcomes eligible African-based early-stage startups to apply for participation in Startup Battlefield Africa 2018. As TechCrunch sorts through its volume of applications, it will base their decisions largely on which startups have the highest potential for an exit or IPO.
A team of highly skilled editors, who have years of experience analyzing potential high-value startups, will ultimately select 15 startups to compete. According to TechCrunch, eligibility requirements include:
Be early-stage companies in “launch” stage
Be headquartered in an eligible countries (which you can find on the TechCrunch website)
Have a fully working product/beta that’s reasonably close to, or in, production
Have received limited press or publicity to date
Have no known intellectual property conflicts
Like many startup competitions and programs, it’s important that you have all the little details lined up. Before you apply, you should have a branded website with reliable hosting. You should understand the difference between shared and VPS hosting, as it can mean the difference between a smoothly running site and one that crashes. For example, if you plan to receive an influx of leads after you’ve been accepted into the competition, your website could lag with shared hosting.
Furthermore, it’s important to understand how this particular competition works. These 15 chosen startups will receive free pitch coaching from a team of editors chosen by TechCrunch to help them prepare for their Battlefield presentations. Each team of startups will participate in three preliminary rounds in batches of five. Each team will have just six minutes to pitch their products or service. After each demo, a panel of judges have another six minutes to engage in a Q&A session, where they’ll be able to learn more about what each startup has to offer and what their current or potential future financial trajectory looks at.
Five of the 15 startups will move on to the semi-finals, and one of those five will be chosen as the winner. Winners will receive a $25,000 prize to help grow their startup and will not lose equity in the process (which is what usually happens when startups participate in accelerator or incubator programs). If the winning startup team qualifies, they’ll also receive a free trip to compete at TechCrunch Disrupt 2019 in San Francisco.
You’ll also want to take your time with your application. Have other people read over it to ensure that it makes the most sense, and that aren’t you aren’t missing any integral parts that could be important to the judges.
Another tip for ensuring success with your application and in the competition is to watch other people pitch their startups, and there are plenty of videos online to aid you. Look at pitch decks for other startups, too. By looking at other startup pitch decks, you’ll gain insight into how successful companies are securing investments and spots in competitions and programs. A few necessary components of a pitch deck include:
Problem & opportunity
Value proposition
Business model
Marketing plan
Competitive analysis
Financial projections
This isn’t the first time TechCrunch has turned to Africa to offer local startups a chance. Last year, the publisher held Startup Battlefield Africa in Nairobi and focused on technology that optimized supply chains, strengthened farmer’s revenue, and increased access to education. You can check out the entire event on this YouTube video covering the competition.
Startup Battlefield alumni include Yammer, Dropbox, Mint, LearnVest, Zenefits, Trello, Fitbit, and many others, and they’ve cumulatively raised over $8 billion.
For women, that dreaded time of the month can be uncomfortable and painful anyway, without being given the wrong information. Even so, there are so many myths about periods that get passed down from generation to generation or are perpetuated online. Here are some of the most popular ones:
1. You are more likely to get attacked by a shark if you are on your period
This one is one of the more common old wives tales circulating periods. If you live near a beach it may be a concern, but unless you are going on holiday somewhere there are likely to be sharks it will probably not come up. There is literally no data to support the idea that sharks are more likely to attack when someone has their period.
Photo source: Medical Daily
2. Women who are on their period are “unclean” and will contaminate food
This is widely believed in countries like India, but yet again there is no evidence to support this. As long as standard hand hygiene is practised there is no reason women who are menstruating cannot prepare food.
3. Showering while you are on your period can cause infertility
This may sound a bit crazy, but it is widely believed in Afghanistan that if you shower while you are menstruating this will make you infertile. Unfortunately for Afghanistan women not showering during menstruation is a pretty bad idea. It can lead to all sorts of infections and the time of the month is actually one of the times you should shower MORE, not less.
4. Periods are absolutely debilitating for women
Many women remember first learning about periods and thinking they sound pretty bad, and even if they are, normal life can resume if you prepare adequately. Many Asian countries let women have sick leave when they are on their period, but this is more because of it being taboo rather than an actual physical issue. Strong painkillers and a hot water bottle will usually see women through the worst.
5. You cannot participate in sports/classes
Many people often think that women are unable to take part in sports, especially things like swimming if they are having their period. As long as proper sanitary products are used, women should have no problem taking part in their favourite sports or classes, even if they are in the water.
6. You shouldn’t wash your hair when you are on your period
7. You can’t get pregnant if you have sex during your period
Possibly one of the most dangerous myths about periods. You can absolutely get pregnant if you are on your period and you have sex, so you should still use proper protection. Sperm can survive in the body for up to 7 days, and if you ovulate a little early, you could become pregnant.
8. You have to see a doctor after your first period
A lot of people believe you should see your doctor after your first period. If you experience a very bad period you might do this, but it really isn’t necessary. You only need to see a doctor if you are concerned about your period or if it starts having an impact on your life i.e. bad period pains etc.
9. Periods should last exactly one week
Everyone is different. Although the menstruation period is usually around one week, this may not be the case for everyone. Some (lucky) women experience periods for just 3 days and some have slightly longer periods. It is only a concern if it is not your regular cycle. If you are using period delay medicationor the contraceptive pill you may also experience different timings during your menstrual period.
10. Virgins shouldn’t wear tampons
It is a common myth that tampons will hurt virgins, but this usually doesn’t tend to be the case. A tampon can break the hymen, which is sometimes used as a cultural indicator of virginity. But the hymen can also break at other times too. Everyone is different, but tampons are designed with all women in mind, not just those who have had sex. It is all about finding what works for you.
If you run an industrial-based business, you know all too well how important maintaining your machinery is. Fail to do so and it’s only a matter of time before it breaks down.
Did you realize that cost of amachine breakdown is usually 4 to 15 times higher than routine maintenance costs? Rather than waiting until a machine falls into a state of disrepair, you need to work with professionals to keep them in good shape.
In some instances, the maintenance that your machines require will be cosmetic. If your machinery is looking a bit worn, having professionals use abrasive blasting to remove the paint is a must. Once the paint has been removed, you can then get the machinery repainted.
Read below to find out more about the benefits of usingabrasive blasting.
What is Abrasive Blasting?
Before delving into the benefits of abrasive blasting, you probably want to find out more about what this process entails. In short, abrasive blasting using high air pressure and abrasive materials like sand or beads to remove rust, dirt and surface coatings without causing damage to the underlying material. For the most part, abrasive blasting is used in applications like:
Prepping a surface prior to bonding or painting
Removing rust or scale from existing coatings
Getting rid of edge profiling or burrs on various machined components
During the finishing of precision parts
A number of different abrasive mediums are us during this process like:
Sand
Grit or steel shot
Crushed glass
Aluminum oxide
Walnut shell
Plastic
Copper Slag
The only way to get the premium results you are after with abrasive blasting is by working with seasoned professionals who use the right equipment and materials
Avoid Chemical Reactions
One of the biggest benefits of using abrasive blasting is that you do not have to worry about chemical reactions occurring. Since the materials used during this process are basically inert, they will not damage the surface they are being used on with harmful reactions.
The chemical cleaners on the market that are designed to remove surface rust and other imperfections have a tendency to create problems due to the reactive properties they contain. Rather than ruining the surface of an expensive machine with this type of reaction, you’re much better off using abrasive blasting.
Keep Your Cleaning Eco-Friendly
Are you passionate about doing your part to keep the Earth healthy and pollution-free? If so, utilizing the power of abrasive blasting is ideal. The materials using during the blasting process are eco-friendly and do not emit any greenhouse gases. Rather than using hazardous chemical cleaners, abrasive blasting allows you to get better results without releasing harmful pollutants into the atmosphere.
Abrasive Blasting is Extremely Efficient
Another benefit ofusing abrasive blasting is that it is very efficient. By using this method you’re able to get into every nook and cranny of the surface. This makes the cleaning process go much faster and will produce better results. Chemical cleaning will often require a lot of labour intensive scraping and metal brushing. Instead of working twice as hard for less than stellar results, you can hire professionals to use an abrasive cleaning to get your surfaces spotless in a fraction of the time.
Before hiring a company to do this type of work, be sure to do your homework. Ideally, you want to hire a someone that has a lot of previous experience and a proven track record of achieving outstanding results with the abrasive blasting process.
Former Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush have paid tribute to Senator John McCain at a memorial service at Washington’s National Cathedral.
Vietnam War hero John McCain, who became one of America’s most high-profile politicians, died a week ago from brain cancer at the age of 81.
John McCain’s daughter Meghan was the first to speak, paying an emotional tribute to her father while also criticizing President Donald Trump’s agenda.
President Donald Trump did not attend the service.
The two Republicans had major differences, both personal and political, and John McCain’s family made it clear that President Trump was not welcome.
Members of the Trump administration who were present included Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner.
Following memorial services in the state of Arizona – which John McCain represented as a senator, and where he died on August 25 – and in Washington, a private burial service will be held at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, on September 2.
On August 31, John McCain’s body was taken back to the Congress buildings where he worked for decades and lay in state in the Capitol rotunda overnight.
On the way from the Capitol to the cathedral, the cortege stopped at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, where John McCain’s widow Cindy laid a wreath.
Meghan McCain told mourners at the cathedral: “We gather here to mourn the passing of American greatness.
“The real thing, not cheap rhetoric from men who will never come near the sacrifice he gave so willingly, nor the opportunistic appropriation of those who live lives of comfort and privilege while he suffered and served.
“The America of John McCain is generous and welcoming and bold, she is resourceful and confident and secure, she meets her responsibilities, she speaks quietly because she is strong.
“America does not boast, because she does not need to. The America of John McCain has no need to be made great again, because America was always great.”
Former President Barack Obama paid tribute to the man he defeated in the 2008 US presidential election.
He described John McCain as an “extraordinary man – a warrior, a statesman, a patriot” who embodied much of what made America great.
Barack Obama said that, despite their many differences, “we never doubted we were on the same team”.
The former president added: “John understood that our security and our influence was won not just by our military might, not just by our wealth, not just by our ability to bend others to our will, but from our capacity to inspire others with our adherence to a set of universal values – like rule of law and human rights – and an insistence on the God-given dignity of every human being.”
George W. Bush – who defeated John McCain for the Republican presidential nomination in 2000 – paid tribute to the senator’s courage, honesty and sense of honor.
“At various points during his long career, John confronted polices and practices that he believed were unworthy of his country. To the face of those in authority, John McCain would insist: <<We are better than this, America is better than this.>>
“John would be the first to tell you he was not a perfect man, but he dedicated his life to national ideals that are as perfect as men and women have as yet conceived.”
Other speakers included former Senator Joe Lieberman and former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, 95.
Before he went into politics, John McCain was a US Navy pilot who was shot down over Hanoi while on a bombing mission in 1967.
He was held as a prisoner until 1973, enduring torture that – along with the injuries he sustained bailing out of his jet – left him with life-long injuries.
While deeply conservative on some issues, the Arizona senator had a maverick streak that endeared him to political friends and opponents.
John McCain championed reform of US immigration, campaign finance and environmental laws, and was outspoken in criticizing those who advocated what he considered torture against captured enemies of the US.
The pallbearers he chose reflected his desire to reach across political divides.
They included actor and liberal political activist Warren Beatty; former independent New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg; liberal former Senator Russ Feingold, who drew up campaign finance reform legislation with McCain; and Russian opposition politician Vladimir Kara Murza.
On August 23rd, 2018 Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan and eight other residents of the Motor City appeared in federal court alleging that the current Michigan no-fault auto insurance laws requiring drivers to pay for this type of coverage is a violation of due process. At the same time, they claim this law is unconstitutional.
In the Eastern District Court for the State of Michigan
According to the lawsuit filed by Duggan et al., the group states it is their firm belief that a law requiring all drivers in the state to carry no-fault insurance coverage is in direct conflict with a Michigan Supreme Court Finding. This finding is the result of Shavers vs. Kelly in 1978, stating, ” a driver’s license, once issued, is a significant interest subject to constitutional due process protections.”
In the claim filed by Duggan et al. the complaint is that the high cost of no-fault insurance impedes due process for anyone with a Michigan driver’s license. Because the state requires all motorists to carry this type of coverage and pay its incredibly high cost, it stops many drivers from seeking employment or educational opportunities, going shopping for food and necessities, even taking their kids to school.
The Law was Supposed to Drive Insurance Rates Down
When the law first passed in 1973, the impetus behind it was to drive insurance rates down and ensure victims of auto accidents would receive compensation that was adequate and in a timelier manner. With this the new law, victims could no longer take the responsible party in an automobile accident to court. Instead, victims would be able to go to their own insurance companies for compensation. The impetus was to drive auto insurance premiums down and reduce the level of litigation, the exact opposite happened, and insurance premiums skyrocketed. In fact, the average cost of insurance nationwide is $1512.00 per year. In Michigan, the average price for auto insurance is $3,509.00. More specifically, motorists in the City of Detroit pay the highest auto insurance rates of any city in the country.
It Gets Worse (If That’s Possible)
If having outrageous insurance rates isn’t bad enough, the 1973 law has made criminals out of otherwise perfectly “honest ” citizens. In Michigan, approximately 20 percent of the cars on the road are running around uninsured. One of the highest rates in the country. In turn, the high number of uninsured motorists causes insurance rates to go up even further.
When the law passed, the Michigan Supreme Court stated that the No-Fault law is constitutional providing insurance rates were not unfairly discriminatory or excessive. This left a loophole that made the claim by Duggan et al. possible as rates have reached the point at which many have to choose between paying for insurance or buying food and paying the rest of their family bills.
Along with stating the law is unconstitutional, Duggan et al. ask that the state be given no more than six months to correct the law and take steps to reduce the high cost of insurance. If at the end of the six-month period a solution has not been found, the state should be required to return to the traditional tort system. While the outcome of this case may have a significant impact on future insurance rates, it does not help to find cheap car insurance right now under the current laws. What you need is an agency that will work with you to find the right insurance coverage based on your needs and budget.
President Donald Trump has threatened to pull the US out of the World Trade Organization (WTO), claiming the body treats the US unfairly.
In an interview with Bloomberg News, President Trump said: “If they don’t shape up, I would withdraw from the WTO.”
The WTO was established to provide rules for global trade and resolve disputes between countries.
Donald Trump says the organization too often rules against the US, although he concedes it has won some recent judgments.
The president claimed on Fox News earlier this year that the WTO was set up “to benefit everybody but us”, adding: “We lose the lawsuits, almost all of the lawsuits in the WTO.”
However, some analysis shows the US wins about 90% when it is the complainant and loses about the same percentage when it is complained against.
President Trump’s warning about a possible US pull-out from the WTO highlights the conflict between his protectionist trade policies and the open trade system that the WTO oversees.
Washington has recently blocked the appointment of new judges to the WTO’s Geneva-based dispute settlement body, which could potentially paralyze its ability to issue judgments.
US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer has also accused the WTO of interfering with US sovereignty.
It comes as President Trump set an August 31 deadline for Canada to sign a new agreement with the US and Mexico. He has threatened to tax Canada’s automotive sector or cut it out entirely.
Donald Trump has been sounding off about unfair trade since even before he became president.
On August 30, he said that the 1994 agreement to establish the WTO “was the single worst trade deal ever made”.
The US has been embroiled in a tit-for-tat trade battle on several fronts in recent months.
The one creating the most interest is with China, as the world’s two largest economies wrangle for global influence.
President Trump has introduced tariffs on a number of goods imported into the US.
A third round of tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods could come as soon as a public-comment period concludes next week, according to a Bloomberg report citing various sources.
Asked to confirm this during the Bloomberg interview, President Trump said that it was “not totally wrong”.
China has responded to US tariffs by imposing retaliatory taxes on the same value of US products and has filed complaints against the tariffs at the WTO.
A car accident occurs every minute of every day. And brain injuries are one of the most common aftermaths of these accidents. If you’ve been involved in a car accident, you need immediate medical checkup to rule out any injuries to your brain.
More importantly, it’s critical that you determine the type and severity of the damage, if brain injury is detected. This will help your doctor swiftly prescribe the right course of treatment as well as help your attorneys in demanding a fair compensation for damages. The brain injuries are broadly classified into five categories;
Concussions
A concussion is damage to the brain resulting from a direct blow to the head. It’s especially common in whiplash accidents. It can occur in open or closed head injuries. The most important thing to note is that patients rarely show symptoms and even if symptoms are present, they may not be severe. This makes it very important to hire a brain injury lawyer so detailed scans can be done to establish severity of damage. If scans aren’t done, it may appear like you didn’t suffer a brain injury.
Contusion
A contusion is also an injury to the brain caused by a direct blow to the head. In car accidents, it can occur if the driver hits his or her head on the steering wheel or against the window. The main difference between contusions and concussions is that in concussions, internal bleeding is very rare while with contusions, blooding is always present and can be severe. While it’s not usually the first option on the list, surgery is sometimes required to treat a contusion.
Coup-contrecoup
Coup-contrecoups are essentially contusions, the only difference being that here, the impact causes damage at both ends of the brain. For instance, if the original impact was situated at the front of the head, a similar impact would be detected at the exact opposite location at the back of the head. This normally occurs when the impact is large enough to cause damage at the site of impact as well as to move the brain at the opposite end of the head.
Diffuse axonal
Diffuse axonal injuries are mostly caused by shaking or a strong rotation of the head. Injury occurs because a sudden movement of the head often leaves the brain lagging behind. When the brain lags behind, the muscles attaching the brain to the skull can be torn. Often, extensive tearing of nerve tissue will be detected throughout the brain, potentially resulting in small masses of brain tissue being released which can cause additional injury.
Penetration injuries
Finally, a penetration injury is where a foreign object forces its way into the brain. Of brain injuries, this is the deadiest. Fatality rates are as high as 90%. The good news is that penetration injuries aren’t as common in car accidents as they are in violent acts of crime such as shootings and stabbings.
If you’re injured in a car accident, make sure that you get immediate medical attention and necessary scans to rule out brain injury. Even if there are no visible symptoms, it’s in your best interest to get the scans anyway for peace of mind.
On the morning of August 28th, 2018 Odell Beckham Jr. signed a record-breaking deal worth $95 million with the New York Giants. You don’t have to be a sports fan to see this is an astronomical sum of money. But in the wake of the contract signing, Giants General Manager, Dave Gettleman, was not signing Odell Beckham Jr’s praises on the field, but those of Zeke Sandhu, Beckham’s agent. “It was great negotiating”, was about all Gettleman could muster.
You don’t have to be a professional sports agent to walk away from negotiations with the best deal possible. Part art form, part science, negotiating is an underrated skill to have. Everything is negotiable; it is just a matter of how taxing and difficult the negotiation is.
But few people excel in contract negotiation settings. Many people fall into the same pitfalls and mistakes. These five contract negotiation tips will ensure, like Zeke Sandhu, you walk away from every negotiation confident you got the best deal available.
Take Your Time
The vast majority of people would rather settle for a bad deal than spend time at the negotiating table. Whether a contract is legally binding for a lifetime, or even just a year or two, it is worth taking the time to hash out the best deal possible. Take your time and come to an agreement that you are happy with.
Get an Attorney
For high-stakes negotiations, sometimes it is best to call in the cavalry. An experienced attorney can be a valuable addition at your negotiating table. Choose an attorney that specialises in business law and has experience in negotiating substantial contracts, like Hampton & Royce, LC.
Use Current Market Prices to Help Your Argument
If you can draw on the industry standard practices and rates, or the current market prices to support your side of the negotiations, it puts the onus on the other party to demonstrate why the deal they are offering should not be considered the market standard. This gives you the edge and tips the balance in your favour. It demonstrates you are clearly asking for a “fair price” while the other party is trying to negotiate the upper hand.
Break it Into Sections
If you have a complex contract to negotiate, break it into sections. Start with the terms that will be easiest to negotiate. Once you have some momentum and have found common ground in the early stage of negotiations, the later stages become much easier. By the time the most challenging terms of the deal come to the table, both parties will have become invested in the deal and will be hoping to come to an acceptable arrangement.
Be Willing to Walk Away
It has been said that in any negotiation, your source of power derives from your ability to walk away from negotiations. If you can’t walk away and the other party senses that, they will use it as leverage to gain the upper hand.
Have a backup plan so you don’t feel the pressure in the negotiating room, and don’t be scared to walk away from negotiations if the terms are unacceptable.
Finally, bear in mind the wise words of John F. Kennedy. “Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate”. Keep your end goal in sight at all times to secure a better deal on each and every negotiation.
Donald Trump has warned that his policies will be “violently” overturned if the Democrats win November’s mid-term elections.
The president told Evangelical leaders that the vote was a “referendum” on freedom of speech and religion, and that these were threatened by “violent people”.
President Trump appealed to conservative Christian groups for help, saying they were one vote away from “losing everything”.
Mid-term elections are widely seen as a test of President Trump’s popularity.
The president has been battling negative publicity after his ex-lawyer Michael Cohen and former campaign chief Paul Manafort were convicted earlier this month.
An audio recording of Donald Trump’s closed-door meeting with Evangelical leaders at the White House was leaked to US media.
During the meeting, President Trump said the mid-term elections were not just a referendum on him but also “on your religion, it’s a referendum on free speech and the First Amendment [guaranteeing basic freedoms]”.
He said: “It’s not a question of like or dislike, it’s a question that they will overturn everything that we’ve done and they will do it quickly and violently. And violently. There is violence. When you look at Antifa – these are violent people.”
Antifa – short for anti-fascist – is a conglomeration of left wing autonomous, self-styled anti-fascist militant groups in the United States. The far-left groups fight against far-right ideology and regularly clash with far-right demonstrators.
President Trump has previously criticized left-wing groups, infamously saying that there had been violence on “many sides” after a white nationalist killed a left-wing demonstrator at a white nationalist protest in Charlottesville last year.
Urging the Evangelical leaders to use their influence to swing voters, President Trump told them they had “tremendous power”.
He said: “In this room, you have people who preach to almost 200 million people. Depending on which Sunday we’re talking about.”
“Little thing: Merry Christmas, right? You couldn’t say <<Merry Christmas>>,” he added, according to media reports.
President Trump himself is not up for re-election, but his ability to govern in the final two years of his term will hinge upon the November 6 outcome.
All 435 members of the House of Representatives, 35 seats in the 100-member Senate and 36 out of 50 state governors, along with many state and local offices, are up for election.
