In a hilarious video posted on Tuesday, an unfortunate marine loudly collides into a slide while jumping off a boat in Shuswaps, Canada. Reported by MailOnline 6 hours ago.

Marc Benioff joins other big names as he takes part in funding round for Windward Reported by FT.com 15 minutes ago.

K-UPS' Ultra High Power Lithium-ion NMC batteries deliver the performance and economics needed for high-power data center Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPS)

SEOUL, South Korea, July 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Kokam Co., Ltd, the world's premier provider of innovative battery solutions, today announced the launch of its K-UPS series of high power Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) battery racks. Featuring Kokam's Ultra High Power Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide (UHP NMC) battery technology, the new battery racks enable UPS system providers to meet growing data center demand for lithium-ion UPS systems that can deliver high power for a short period of time at a lower cost than UPS systems using lead-acid batteries.Kokam UPS Battery Rack

*Growing Data Center Market for High Power, Short Duration UPS Systems*

Developers and operators of data centers are increasingly installing backup generators to produce power during long power outages. These long-term backup generators decrease the need for UPS systems that can provide a high level of power for a long period of time, as these facilities now require high power for only a short period of time (less than 15 minutes), until the backup generators can come online. However, most UPS systems use lead-acid batteries, and lead-acid batteries' low power discharge rates force data center developers and operators to purchase high capacity, long duration UPS systems to address their facilities' short-term, high power needs. This is leading data center developers and operators to seek new, more affordable UPS systems that require fewer batteries than lead-acid UPS systems to deliver the same amount of power. In addition, lead-acid UPS systems have large footprints, are heavy, require high maintenance, need significant cooling and ventilation and have to be replaced every 3-5 years.

*Industry-Leading High Power Performance Reduces UPS Costs for Data Centers*

The K-UPS battery rack uses Kokam's industry-leading high performance lithium-ion UHP NMC batteries, which feature up to a 10 C-rate compared to a 2 C-rate for most lead-acid batteries or a 4 C-rate for most other lithium-ion batteries (C-rate measures the rate a battery charges or discharges relative to its maximum capacity). This high power output enables UPS system providers to use fewer batteries in a UHP NMC battery UPS system than lead-acid or other lithium-ion battery UPS systems, while delivering the same amount of power. For example, K-UPS battery racks can provide up to a 500 percent more power at the same level of battery capacity as most lead-acid UPS systems, or up to 250 percent more power at the same level of battery capacity as most other lithium-ion UPS systems. By using fewer batteries in their UPS systems, UPS system providers can lower the overall cost of these systems for data center developers and operators, while still providing them with the high power, short duration performance they need.

*K-UPS Battery Racks Deliver Size, Weight, Lifetime, Cooling and Ventilation Benefits*

UPS systems using Kokam's K-UPS battery racks have other advantages over UPS systems using lead-acid batteries, including:

· *Smaller System Footprints:* Thanks to its higher power density, a three square foot UHP NMC battery can deliver the same amount of power as a 10 square foot lead-acid battery, reducing the amount of space data centers need for their UPS systems by 70 percent or more. Data centers can use this space for additional revenue generating equipment, helping them increase their revenues.
· *Lower Weight: *With fewer batteries needed to deliver the same amount of power, UPS systems using K-UPS battery racks can be up to 5 times lighter than lead-acid UPS systems with similar power, reducing shipping costs. In addition, the lower weight of UPS systems using K-UPS battery racks provide data center developers and operators with additional flexibility -- allowing them to install their UPS system on any floor of the data center without needing to make major modifications to the data center's structure.
· *Longer Lives:* UHP NMC batteries can last up to 15 years, compared to 3-5 years for lead-acid batteries, significantly reducing UPS Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).
· *Reduced Cooling and Ventilation Costs:* Lead-acid batteries require a temperature range between 20 - 22.5 degrees Celsius to operate reliably, while UHP NMC batteries can operate in temperatures ranging between 18 - 28 degrees Celsius, allowing data centers with UPS systems using K-UPS battery racks to reducing their cooling costs. In addition, unlike many lead-acid batteries, the UHP NMC batteries in K-UPS battery racks do not emit hydrogen, reducing datacenter costs related to ventilation.

K-UPS battery racks come in both 2 pole and 3 pole configurations at a variety of different voltage levels, providing design flexibility to UPS system providers. In addition, drawing on its 20 years of high-power battery technology experience, Kokam can offer UPS system providers customized K-UPS battery racks. Kokam has already delivered 23 MW of K-UPS battery racks to customers and is scheduled to deliver 50 MW of K-UPS battery racks this year to customers in Australia, Asia and Europe.

"Though the UPS market is still dominated by lead-acid batteries, rising data center interest in more affordable, compact, long-lasting, lightweight UPS systems is growing the market for high power UPS systems using lithium-ion batteries," said Ike Hong, vice president of Kokam's Power Solutions Division. "Our new K-UPS battery racks use our UHP NMC batteries to deliver UPS system providers the industry-leading power discharge rate they need to build high-power UPS systems with the price, size, footprint, weight, lifetime and other characteristics that data center developers and operators increasingly demand."

*About Kokam Co., Ltd.*

With a globally acknowledged and proprietary manufacturing technology, Kokam Co., Ltd has provided a wide range of lithium ion/polymer battery solutions to customers in over 50 countries and many different industries, including the military, aerospace, marine, Electric Vehicle (EV), Energy Storage System (ESS) and industrial markets. With over 150 battery-related patents and a total of 680-megawatt hours of field performance, Kokam is a proven leader in providing innovative, high-tech battery solutions. For more information, please visit www.kokam.com.

*Press Contacts*

*Hotwire PR for Kokam
*Rahat Rashid
Account Manager
Tel: +1 718 310 7314
Rahat.Rashid@hotwireglobal.com

*Kokam
*Ike Hong, Business Development / Marketing  
Vice President of Kokam Co.,Ltd
Tel: +82 (0)31 3620 137
battery@kokam.com

Cecilia Park
Strategic Marketing Manager
Tel:+82 (0) 31 3620 192
cecilia@kokam.com

Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20180627/2173092-1 Reported by PR Newswire Asia 2 days ago.

n August 2016, the first large cruise ship traveled through the Northwest Passage, the northern waterway linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The following year, the first ship without an icebreaker plied the Northern Sea Route, a path along Russia’s Arctic coast that was, until recently, impassable by unescorted commercial vessels.

In recent decades parts of the Arctic seas have become increasingly ice-free in late summer and early fall. As sea ice is expected to continue to recede due to climate change, seasonal ship traffic from tourism and freight is projected to rise. A study from the University of Washington and the University of Alaska Fairbanks is the first to consider potential impacts on the marine mammals that use this region during fall and identify which will be most vulnerable.

The study is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

“We know from more temperate regions that vessels and whales don’t always mix well, and yet vessels are poised to expand into this sensitive region,” said lead author Donna Hauser, who did the research as a postdoctoral researcher at the UW and is now a research assistant professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. “Even going right over the North Pole may be passable within a matter of decades. It raises questions of how to allow economic development while also protecting Arctic marine species.”

The study looked at 80 subpopulations of the seven marine mammals that live in the Arctic and identified their risks on or near major shipping routes in September, a month when the Arctic Ocean has the most open water.

Forty-two of these subpopulations would be exposed to vessel traffic, and the degree of exposure plus the particular characteristics of each species determine which are most sensitive.

The most vulnerable marine mammals were found to be narwhals, or tusked whales. These animals migrate through parts of the Northwest Passage to and from their summertime habitats.

“Narwhals have all the traits that make them vulnerable to vessel disturbances — they stick to really specific areas, they’re pretty inflexible in where they spend the summer, they live in only about a quarter of the Arctic, and they’re smack dab in the middle of shipping routes,” said co-author Kristin Laidre, a polar scientist at UW Applied Physics Laboratory’s Polar Science Center. “They also rely on sound, and are notoriously skittish and sensitive to any kind of disturbance.”

Other mammals found to be vulnerable were beluga and bowhead whales. Walruses also were vulnerable because some populations are relatively small and known to live along shipping routes, compared to generally large and widely distributed populations of ringed and bearded seals, which were shown to be less vulnerable.

The study found the least vulnerable animals were polar bears, which are largely on land during September, and don’t rely on underwater sound for communication or navigation. Shipping in other seasons may have a greater impact.

The paper also identified two “pinch points,” narrow passageways where ships and animals are most likely to intersect. These are the Bering Strait that separates the U.S. and Russia, and Lancaster Sound in the northern Canadian territory of Nunavut. These regions had a risk of conflicts two to three times higher than on other parts of the shipping route.

“These obligatory pinch points are used by migratory species to get in and out of the Arctic, but they are also necessary passageways for vessels using these sea routes,” Hauser said. “Identifying the relative risks in Arctic regions and among marine mammals can be helpful when establishing strategies to deal with potential effects.”

Travel through the Arctic Ocean is already beginning, with the Russian route having the most potential for commercial ships. The Northern Sea Route had more than 200 ships from 2011 to 2016, all of which were large vessels. More than 100 vessels passed through the Northwest Passage during that time, with more than half being small, private vessels like personal yachts.

The International Maritime Organization in May established the first international guidelines for vessel traffic in the Arctic Ocean. The voluntary code was proposed by the U.S. and Russia to identify safe routes through the Bering Strait.

The new study could help to create future guidelines, prioritize different measures to protect marine mammals and identify areas needing further study, the authors said.

“I think we can learn a lot from areas that have already been thinking about these kinds of conflicts between ships and marine mammal populations — for example the North Atlantic right whale, or fin and blue whales around California,” Laidre said. “We could aim to develop some mitigation strategies in the Arctic that help ships avoid key habitats, adjust their timing taking into account the migration of animals, make efforts to minimize sound disturbance, or in general help ships detect and deviate from animals.” Reported by Eurasia Review 2 days ago.

SEATTLE (AP) — Looking for a plastic straw to sip your soda? It's no longer allowed in Seattle bars and restaurants. Neither are plastic utensils in the latest push to reduce waste and prevent marine plastic... Reported by WorldNews 2 days ago.

Residents of E, F and G Road complained of trees being cut entirely at Shreeniketan Garden on June 27. Reported by DNA 2 days ago.

Counter-narcotics cooperation between Spain and the US is of growing importance to both countries but remains limited in scope.

By Eric L. Olson and Nina Gordon*

Flows of illicit drugs transiting the Atlantic into Spain from the Americas are of growing concern to Spain and the US with law enforcement, judicial, military and intelligence agencies intensifying cooperation in an effort to disrupt the global distribution of illicit drugs. This cooperation is described by various Spanish and US officials as ‘excellent’, ‘fluid’ and ‘successful’. At present, the primary focus of cooperation involves interdiction efforts between the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and the Spanish National Police, Guardia Civil and Customs agency. Effective judicial cooperation leading to successful prosecutions of traffickers, while important, is hampered, at times, by differing judicial systems. Judicial cooperation should be intensified to more effectively prosecute traffickers and dismantle criminal networks. Defence cooperation and the role of the US military in counter-narcotics efforts is limited in scope and mostly takes place in the context of multilateral efforts.

*Analysis*

-Narcotics trafficking from the Americas to Spain-

Spain has for several years been one of the most important southern entry points for cocaine and other drugs entering Europe and cultivated and processed in Latin America. The flow of illicit drugs into Spain is not only destined to the broader European market^1 but also supplies a significant Spanish market for cocaine and other drugs such as methamphetamine. According to data from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Spain has one of the highest rates of cocaine use in the world, falling behind only the UK and Albania. According to the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) Drug Markets Report, seizures of illicit drugs in Spain are the highest among EU states.^2

The routes used by traffickers to enter Spain have varied over time. In 2006 and 2007 cocaine was entering via transatlantic routes through Western Africa. The drugs, principally cocaine, originated in the Andean region of South America and were smuggled into Venezuela and Brazil, then shipped across the Atlantic into the Western Sahel region of Africa. The Bight of Benin, between Ghana and Nigeria, as well as Senegal and Guinea Bissau, were the main transit points. From there the narcotics were smuggled northwards through the Maghreb region of North-West Africa, across the Mediterranean and into Spain.^3

While there is evidence of shifting trends and declining importance of the Africa trafficking routes, these should not be discounted entirely. The use of West Africa as a transit route could increase again if interdiction efforts in the Caribbean force traffickers to shift international drug smuggling patterns.^4

The persistence of weak governance capacity and high corruption levels continue to make West Africa an attractive option for trafficking. According to the 2017 United Nations World Drug Report, the decline in cocaine intercepted in Africa in recent years may be the result of ‘poor capacity of detection and reporting rather than a decrease in the flow of cocaine’. The 2018 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR) likewise states that Guinea-Bissau’s ‘weak law enforcement capabilities, corruption, porous borders and convenient location make it susceptible to drug trafficking’. While these countries are not a significant source of illicit drugs, they continue to be a significant transit zone for drug trafficking from South America to Europe.^5

Furthermore, the existence of state and non-state actors in West Africa that have developed well-established trafficking routes also suggest the region will continue to be an attractive alternative for traffickers. In some cases, terrorist groups such as Boko Haram and al-Shibab have specialised in smuggling illicit drugs into Europe via West and North Africa using both air couriers and vehicles. It is assumed that the involvement of violent extremist organizations (VEO) in the drug trafficking business is intended as a source of financing for other terrorist activities.

Nevertheless, despite the continued importance of African trafficking routes, several recent reports and data suggest the Caribbean has become the principal trafficking route for cocaine destined for Spain and Europe. Figure 1^6 below illustrates the variety of routes traffickers use to bring illegal narcotics into Spain and Europe.

The 2016 EMCDDA report further highlights the importance of Caribbean maritime routes. It notes the relatively porous border between Colombia and Venezuela and the ease with which cocaine can be transported on ‘go fast’ boats between Venezuela and Caribbean island nations, particularly Jamaica and the Dominican Republic.

A recent study by InSight Crime suggests there may be multiple reasons for the shift to Caribbean routes.^7 Venezuela’s economic collapse means that there are fewer commercial flights and less commercial shipping between Venezuela and Europe or Africa. As a result, the island nations of the Eastern Caribbean offer a convenient alternative because of their geographic proximity. Furthermore, the Dominican Republic, and to a lesser extent Jamaica, offer a convenient stopover for drugs because of the high volume of tourists, which contribute to local demand, and the well-developed tourist infrastructure that attracts travellers from the US and Europe, including Spain. Furthermore, both the Dominican Republic and Jamaica have well-established criminal networks with significant trafficking expertise built up over time. Figure 2 shows these newer routes.^8

It should be noted, however, that the bulk of cocaine (on average 90%) is destined for the US and is entering the US market via the Central American and Mexico corridor. Nevertheless, the dramatic increase in the cocaine supply in Colombia has resulted in the Caribbean becoming an important, albeit lesser, route. In this context, the Dominican Republic in particular has become an important hub for cocaine heading for Europe.

-Operational success based on law-enforcement cooperation-

Given the importance of Spain as a consumer market for illicit drugs, and its importance as a supply route feeding the broader European market, the urgency of counter-narcotics cooperation between Spain and the US has increased in recent years. Over the past five years the US government, as well as the Spanish and international press, have reported numerous cases of successful narcotics interdiction that have resulted from stepped-up US-Spain counter-narcotics cooperation.

This cooperation has led to numerous important seizures of illicit drugs –primarily cocaine– and is the by-product of ‘fluid communication and collaboration’ between both countries, according to one Spanish official. The US Department of State has characterised bilateral cooperation with Spain similarly stating that it maintains ‘excellent bilateral and multilateral law enforcement cooperation (with Spain)’^9 in the annual International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR).

Because of Spain’s importance as a consumer market and transit point into Europe for cocaine originating from South America, Spanish law enforcement agencies have played a critical role in interdiction efforts. According to the INCSR and numerous press accounts, the Cuerpo Nacional de Policía de España and the Guardia Civil have implemented several effective strategies to interdict drugs before they enter Spain and the rest of Europe. These strategies included ‘strong border control and coastal monitoring, sophisticated geospatial detection technology, domestic police action, anti-corruption and internal affairs investigations, and international cooperation’ in 2017.^10

The following table highlights some of the recent successes in U.S.-Spain law enforcement cooperation including arrests and seizures, combining data from INCSR reports as well as international news sources.

Figure 3. Recent reported successes for US-Spain counter-narcotics cooperation

Date Arrest/seizures Joint-cooperation description Source
November 2017 40 people arrested and nearly 4 tons of cocaine seized Long-term anti-drug cooperation between the Cuerpo Nacional de Policía de España, along with Moroccan domestic intelligence and intelligence cooperation with the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and German and Italian security services North Africa Post
October 2017 3.7 tons of cocaine seized from a vessel in the Atlantic Joint-cooperation between the Aduana Española and the Cuerpo Nacional de Policía de España in conjunction with the US DEA and UK National Crime Agency (NCA) under the overall coordination of the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre-Narcotics (MAOC-N) BBC
July 2017 Spanish citizen entering Spain arrested for carrying 600 grams of cocaine Cooperation between the Aduana Española and US Homeland Security INCSR
May 2017 Seven crew members in the Atlantic Ocean on board a ship under the Venezuelan flag arrested and more than 2 tons of cocaine (2400 kg) seized Operation of the Cuerpo Nacional de Policía de España along with intelligence cooperation with the US DEA, UK National Crime Agency (NCA) and the Portuguese Police Reuters, Business Insider
April-September 2017 950 kg of cocaine and over €10 million in bulk cash seized, destined for a cocaine supplier in South America Joint operation of the Spanish authorities with the US Drug Enforcement Administration and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement INCSR
February 2017 24 members of a Colombian drug trafficking organisation operating in Spain arrested and 2.45 tons of cocaine seized Cooperation with the Cuerpo Nacional de Policía de España and the US DEA INCSR
January 2016 Vehicle in Southern Spain intercepted, leading to the seizure of 3 tons of cocaine Joint-Cooperation between the Cuerpo Nacional de Policía de España along with the US DEA and the UK NCA United Press International

Source: US State Department 2017 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR) and various news sources such as North Africa Post, Reuters, United Press International and the BBC.

-The mechanics of law-enforcement cooperation-

As these examples suggest, cooperation has been primarily law-enforcement based –between the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and three Spanish law enforcement agencies: the Policía Nacional, the Guardia Civil and the Aduana Española. Many of the reported joint interdiction cases are based on intelligence information developed by US sources and brought to the attention of Spanish officials by DEA liaison officers stationed at the US Embassy in Madrid. Other cases are the result of intelligence gathered and analysed at fusion centres in Florida or Portugal.

It is noteworthy that there is no formal agreement and no formal Memorandum of Understanding to define or guide current counter-narcotics cooperation between the two countries. Instead, cooperation occurs in the context of existing accords such as extradition agreements and international conventions to combat illicit drugs and is often based on case-by-case requests that result from specific intelligence brought to the attention of law-enforcement authorities.

The kind of US counter-narcotics assistance overseen by the Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), and typical in US-Latin American cooperation, is inexistent in US-Spain counter-narcotics efforts. INL works in more than 90 countries to counter crime, illegal drugs and instability. Nevertheless, Spain is among a list of nations that are precluded from receiving INL assistance because they are deemed sufficiently developed and possess adequate institutional capacity, rendering unnecessary the kinds of institutional strengthening INL normally provides.

-Intelligence fusion centres-

An important element of US and Spanish counter-narcotics cooperation is the two fusion centres where intelligence is gathered, analysed and shared between the US military and representatives from multiple US government agencies, as well as foreign countries.

For the US, the most important of these is the Joint Inter-Agency Task Force-South (JIATF-South), an intelligence fusion centre and part of the US military’s Southern Command. Based at the Naval Air Station in Key West in the state of Florida, JIATF-South’s mission is to conduct ‘detection and monitoring (D&M) operations throughout their Joint Operating Area to facilitate the interdiction of illicit trafficking in support of national and partner nation security’.^11

As a fusion centre, its primary purpose is to gather, analyse and produce actionable intelligence for the US and partner nations. For instance, JIATF-South gathers real-time radar and intelligence information to track an average of 1,000 targets a day. It also provides a space for coordination (or fusion) between the US military and multiple civilian law enforcement and intelligence agencies such as the Justice Department (DOJ), DEA, FBI, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Additionally, it has a multilateral function in which Country Liaison Officers (CLOs) from 13 other countries, including Spain, are stationed there.^12

In addition to detecting and monitoring targets, JIATF-South will also ‘find and deploy assets’ to interdict the targets. One such operation, with the code-name Martillo, is a multinational effort employing military and law-enforcement units from 14 participating countries, including Spain, in an effort to ‘deny transnational criminal organisations the ability to exploit these trans-shipment routes for the movement of narcotics, precursor chemicals, bulk cash and weapons along Central American shipping routes’. As the description suggests, JIATF-South’s priority is to stop the flow of drugs into the US. Nevertheless, the increasing use of Caribbean routes and the importance of the Dominican Republic as a transfer point to Spain suggests that the fusion centre also tracks transatlantic trafficking. Since its inception in January 2012, Operación Martillo has resulted in the seizure of 693 metric tonnes of cocaine, US$25 million in bulk cash, 581 vessels and aircraft detained and the arrest of 1,863 suspects.^13

A second fusion centre is the Europe-based Maritime Analysis and Operation Centre-Narcotics, known by its acronym MAOC-N. With its headquarters in Lisbon, its operations are very similar to those of JIATF-South. MAOC-N member states include Spain, the UK, Ireland, France, the Netherlands, Italy and the host country, Portugal. The agency is co-funded by the EU’s Internal Security Fund and serves as a base for multi-lateral cooperation to combat illicit drug trafficking both by sea and air, with the aim of intercepting shipments before they arrive in West Africa and Europe. MAOC-N coordinates multi-lateral criminal intelligence and information exchanges between the partner countries to support police action with naval and law-enforcement agencies.

Like JIATF-South, MAOC-N is staffed by Country Liaison Officers (CLOs) including police, customs, military and maritime authorities from its member states. Though the US does not have a CLO at the MAOC-N, a permanent US observer from the DEA is stationed at the centre. There are also several additional observing parties at MAOC-N, including the European Commission, EUROPOL, UNODC, EMCDDA, the European External Action Service (EEAS), the European Defence Agency (EDA), EUROJUST and FRONTEX.

The centre has conducted several successful operations since its launch in 2007, having ‘supported the coordination and seizure of over 116 tons of cocaine and over 300 tons of cannabis’ between its inception and 2016.^14

-Judicial cooperation and prosecutorial challenges-

While Figure 3 above offers a partial catalogue of successful law-enforcement counter-narcotics cooperation between the US and Spain, the successes are primarily operational in nature and, at times, do not result in judicial prosecutions. As a result, bilateral counter-narcotics operations have led to the seizure and removal of illicit drugs from the supply chain, as well as many arrests, but have not always generated the successful prosecution of traffickers and criminal networks.

Both governments favour prosecutions and, in fact, some important successes have occurred. For example, in a sentence handed down by the Tribunal Supremo, Sala de lo Penal, in February 2016, the court recognised the role of the DEA and established a limited principle that foreign police forces cannot be held to Spanish legal standards. An excerpt from the Court’s decision follows:

‘En el ámbito de la cooperación penal internacional en el que se juega el enfrentamiento contra los graves riesgos generados por la criminalidad organizada trasnacional, y en el que nuestro país tiene asumidas notorias obligaciones adaptadas a un mundo en el que la criminalidad está globalizada (Convención de las Naciones Unidas de 1988 sobre estupefacientes, entre otras), no pueden imponerse las reglas propias determinadas por problemas legislativos internos a los servicios policiales internacionales, por lo que ha de respetarse el ordenamiento de cada país, siempre que a su vez respete las reglas mínimas establecidas por los Tratados de Roma o Nueva York. De la misma manera que no es posible ni exigible imponer a otros sistemas judiciales la autorización judicial de las escuchas, tampoco lo es imponer a otros servicios policiales las mismas normas que la doctrina jurisprudencial ha establecido para los servicios policiales españoles.’^15

Nevertheless, judicial cooperation in counter-narcotics efforts will require further deepening to ensure greater effectiveness.

Differences in judicial cultures, norms and practices has been a primary challenge in effective judicial cooperation. This is not surprising since judicial practices such as the rules of evidence and norms for establishing case facts vary from country to country based on the legal history and practices developed in a particular country over time. Furthermore, the commonly used practice of using confidential informants in the US is less well accepted in Spain, which can contribute to difficulties in effective prosecution. These experiences are not dissimilar to those of US-Mexico judicial cooperation, so it should be no surprise that Spanish and US law enforcement and legal systems experience similar challenges.

A recent decision handed down by the Tribunal Supremo de España provides some insight into the challenges both countries experience in effective judicial cooperation. According to the Tribunal’s finding from 12 March 2018, the US DEA conducted covert operations to track a small fishing vessel on the high seas it believed to contain between 300 to 500 kilos of cocaine hidden in its interior. Intelligence on the shipment suggested that its intended destination was Spain and that its organiser was Luis Alberto Moreno Ruiz, a Colombian citizen and legal resident of Spain. Moreno was known to act as an intermediary between Colombian cocaine suppliers and buyers in Spain and throughout Europe. Using phone records, the court record shows that the DEA tracked down Luis Henry Restrepo Morales, who would be coordinating the delivery arriving in Spain.

Based on court documents, it appears that the DEA seized the Boston Whaler, a smaller fishing boat inside the catamaran, with support from the US Coast Guard and subsequently transferred it to the US territory of Puerto Rico. The Boston Whaler, with cocaine allegedly hidden in its hull, remained in a warehouse in Puerto Rico for nearly a month between June and July 2014. At the end of that time, the boat, with cocaine still on board, was transported to Spain on a USAF plane, where it entered the custody of the Policía Nacional de España. At this point, the boat’s hull was broken open, revealing 240kg of cocaine.

In the original lower court ruling of 17 May 2017, the National court ruled that the defendants –Luis Henry Restrepo Morales, Julián del Prado Montero, Gloria Efigenia Echeverry Mesa, Yaneth Betancur Gómez and Juan Carlos Dámaso Halfhide– were not guilty (given a sentencia absolutoria) because there was no way of determining with full certainty that the boat sent by the US Coast Guard to Spain in July 2014 was the same as that seized on the high seas by the DEA the month before. A year after the National Court’s decision, the public prosecutor (ministerio fiscal) appealed the case in March 2018 to the Tribunal Supremo de España on the following grounds:

‘Esta sala ha visto el recurso de casación num. 1496/17 interpuesto por el Ministerio Fiscal, por infracción de ley e infracción de precepto constitucional, contra la sentencia absolutoria dictada por la Audiencia Nacional (Sección Tercera) en fecha 17 de mayo de 2017, en causa seguida por delito de tráfico de drogas’… ‘Sostiene el Fiscal que la conclusión recogida en este último párrafo del relato de hechos probados se sustenta en una motivación *arbitraria* e *irrazonable*, y como tal *vulneradora* del artículo 24.1 CE.’^16

Nevertheless, the defendants offered a statement from Sr Rebullido Lorenzo, a Spanish naval engineer, maintaining that the DEA would not have been able to intercept a boat on the high seas with that amount of cocaine loaded inside it without a significant number of people, docking it or using a crane to raise it. Sr Rebullido’s statements created doubt in the veracity of the sequence of events and chain of custody while the boat was held by the DEA. Based on the naval engineer’s statement and evidence from the original ruling, the Tribunal Supremo de España dismissed the public prosecutor’s appeal, siding with the National Court and upholding the original not guilty ruling. Though a significant amount of cocaine was seized, no one was convicted in this case.

Fortunately, the kinds of challenges in judicial procedures, such as those related to chain-of-custody issues, can be overcome when judicial cooperation is central to overall law-enforcement efforts from the outset. Integrating judicial and prosecutorial aspects into counter-narcotics operations can ensure that seizures and interdiction efforts have a longer-term impact through effective prosecutions of traffickers. This has certainly been the case between Mexico and the US, where effective judicial cooperation has deepened and law-enforcement agencies in both countries are increasingly aware of the judicial standards in the other country. There is no reason to doubt that Spain and the US can achieve this type of effective cooperation over time but it will require building greater trust to ensure that effective prosecutions and the dismantling of criminal networks are the result. This process can begin by making the most of specialised units within the Spanish Prosecutor’s Office, such as the Spanish Antidrug Prosecution unit and inter-regional stakeholders such as the Ibero-American Network of Antidrug Prosecutors.

Another step in building greater trust is in the presence of a judicial liaison officer (magistrado de enlace judicial) stationed at the Embassy of Spain in Washington DC. The scope of this position is much broader than counter-narcotics cooperation and includes issues related to common crime, extradition and terrorism. Given the variety and complexity of judicial issues between both nations, one simple recommendation might be to increase the number of liaison officers assigned to each capital and include a specialised judicial officer focused specifically on counter-narcotics cases.

-Broader US-EU cooperation-

Finally, it should be noted that US-Spain counter-narcotics cooperation also takes place in the broader multilateral setting, especially in the context of US-EU cooperation. UNODC implemented a project on law-enforcement and intelligence cooperation against cocaine trafficking from Latin America to West Africa and into Europe. The programme is supported by the European Commission and has facilitated the signing of several bilateral agreements to encourage joint investigations and the timely exchange of operational information between law-enforcement agencies to promote intelligence-led investigations for intercepting drugs in participating countries.

Another example of multilateral cooperation is the AIRCOP programme (also supported by the European Commission) and implemented jointly by INTERPOl and the World Customs Organisation (WCO). Its primary goal is to strengthen cooperation and intelligence exchange between airports in the three continents.

-Defence cooperation-

As suggested above, the US military play an important support and coordination role in Trans-Atlantic counter-narcotics efforts with European governments and Spain in particular. This is particularly the case with US Southern Command and in the context of JIATF-South, as we have seen. Additionally, the US Department of Defense (DOD) Intelligence Resource Program lists Spain as one of several Partner Nations (PN) that work closely with the US to disrupt the production, transport and distribution of illicit drugs, as well as money laundering operations associated with this activity.^17

In addition to the operational support and coordination with Spain, the US DOD has provided Spain with some limited funding from its ‘counter drug assistance’ programme known as Section 1004.^18 Figure 4 reflects the various security aid programmes and assistance from the US DoD to Spain over the past decade. Programmes during that time have included: the Combatting Terrorism Fellowship Program, which educates and trains mid- and senior-level partner defence and security officials;^19 Section 1004 Counter-Drug Assistance, which includes counter-drug activities and counter narcotics training; and Excess Defense Articles, which transfers excess defence equipment to partner nations to modernise their forces.^20

Figure 4. Security aid programmes and assistance from the US DoD to Spain, 2007-16

Year Programme Amount (US$) Item
2016 Combatting Terrorism Fellowship Program 18,000
2015 Excess Defense Articles 500,000 Aircraft spare and repair parts F/A-18, P-3
Section 1004 Counter-Drug Assistance 94,000
Combatting Terrorism Fellowship Program 6,749 Four students received counter-terrorism training in Greece and other locations at the Center for Civil-Military Relations and the US Special Operations Command
2012 Combatting Terrorism Fellowship Program 30,615 National Defense University (NDU) and Special Operations Command (SOCOM)
2011 Combatting Terrorism Fellowship Program 19,098 George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies (GCMC) and Defense Institute of lnternational Legal Studies (DIILS)
2009 Combatting Terrorism Fellowship Program 14,948 Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies (CHDS) and George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies (GCMC)
Section 1004 Counter-Drug Assistance 12,000 Training in intel analysis
2008 Combatting Terrorism Fellowship Program 2,575 George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies (MC)
Section 1004 Counter-Drug Assistance 10,000 Training in intel analysis
2007 Section 1004 Counter-Drug Assistance 116,000 EUCOM CN operational support
Section 1004 Counter-Drug Assistance 40,000 JIATF-South

Source: Spain Security Aid Data, Security Assistance Monitor.

As Figure 4 makes clear, the amount of resources expended by DOD for counter-narcotics activities with Spain are minimal. Nevertheless, coordination with at least three combatant commands (Southern, Europe and Africa) are at varying degrees related directly or indirectly to counter-narcotics cooperation with Spain. With SOUTHCOM cooperation is more direct through JIATF-South, but with EUCOM and AFCOM it is either in the context of broader multilateral efforts (EUCOM) or more indirect in the case of AFCOM.

In the case of AFCOM, three of its five ‘Lines of Effort’ (LOEs) have some connection to counter-narcotics activities that are relevant to Spain. In two instances the focus is on degrading violent extremist organisations (VOE) in the Sahel and Maghreb regions, and to contain and degrade Boko Haram and ISIS-West Africa. In both cases the VOE’s are known to engage in narcotics trafficking as it enters West Africa. In a third LOE the priority is to ‘Interdict Illicit Activity in Gulf of Guinea and Central Africa’.^21

According to testimony by AFCOM’s commander, US Marine Corps General Thomas Waldhouser, ‘In addition to the VEO threat throughout Africa, criminal and smuggling networks remain a persistent danger within the Gulf of Guinea and Central Africa. US Africa Command supports our African partners who work with international and interagency partners to interdict and to disrupt illicit trafficking and smuggling networks that finance trans-national criminal organizations’.

Furthermore, ‘US Africa Command (executes) the African Maritime Law Enforcement Partnership (AMLEP) and support the Yaoundé Code of Conduct, a strong regional framework for information sharing and operational coordination. In 2017, under the AMLEP, US Coast Guard and Cabo Verde security personnel embarked a Senegal Navy ship for joint patrol operations in Senegal and Cabo Verde waters’.

To the extent that narcotics trafficking to Spain includes routes in West Africa and Cabo Verde, then the work of AFCOM is relevant to Spanish counter-narcotics efforts and contributes indirectly to their success.

*Conclusion*

Spain’s geographically strategic location and its large consumer market make it one of the principal gateways for illicit drugs entering Europe and originating in South America, transiting via the Caribbean and West Africa. This puts Spain in a unique position of having to confront the transatlantic drug trade coming from multiple directions and using a variety of trafficking techniques. Spain’s success depends not only on its own capacities but the support and coordination it receives from many partner nations.

US counter-narcotics coordination with Spain is an important element of this strategy and, to date, has shown some important successes. Cooperation is both strong, fluid and growing, but remains limited in scope. This reflects, in part, the priority the US places on reducing the flow of drugs into the US, leaving transatlantic trafficking as an important but less vital aspect of the overall US strategy against illicit narcotics trafficking.

Nevertheless, US-Spanish counter-narcotics cooperation is occurring at many levels and in various contexts would appear to be growing and deepening. Law-enforcement cooperation, especially between the DEA and the Spanish Policía Nacional, Guardia Civil and Aduanas is the principle venue for addressing narcotics trafficking. Several successful and impressive seizures of cocaine have occurred as a result and led to a temporary market disruption. However, the growing volume of cocaine processed in Colombia suggests that the challenges of cocaine interdiction headed for Spain will only increase.

Judicial and prosecutorial cooperation are a second important element in bilateral counter-narcotics cooperation. Here there have been important successes, but also some setbacks in part because of differing judicial systems, norms and procedures that set varying standards for prosecution. These are not insurmountable challenges, but they do require continued close cooperation and effective learning by the judicial authorities from both countries. One helpful suggestion may be to fully integrate judicial authorities, such as prosecutors, in law-enforcement operations from the outset so as to avoid potential legal challenges in the prosecution phase and contribute to degrading criminal organisations through successful prosecution.

Ultimately, US-Spanish counter-narcotics cooperation is on a strong footing but has room to grow and expand further. The question remains whether new leadership in Spain and the US will prioritise this relationship.

*About the authors:
*Eric L. Olson*, Deputy Director of the Wilson Center’s Latin American Program and Senior Advisor to the Wilson Center’s Mexico Institute | @Eric_Latam

*
Nina Gordon*, Research Assistant at the Mexico Institute.

*Source:*
This article was published by Elcano Royal Institute.

*Notes:*

^1 In 2016 it was estimated that the cocaine market in Europe was valued at between €4.5 billion and €7 billion. See Europol (2016), EU Drug Markets Report: Strategic Overview, European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, p. 8.

^2 European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (2017), Spain Country Report 2017.

^3 See Ross Eventon & Dave Bewley-Taylor (2016), ‘An overview of recent changes in cocaine trafficking routes into Europe’, European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction; and United Nations (2016), International Narcotics Control Board Report 2016, p. 92.

^4 Congressional Research Service (2009), Illegal Drug Trade in Africa: Trends and US Policy.

^5 US Department of State Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (2018), International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR) Volume I: Drug and Chemical Control. March, p. 181.

^6 The map is reproduced by InSight Crime and originally appeared in EMCDDA (2016), ‘2016 EU Drug Markets Report’.

^7 Insight Crime (2018), ‘The Dominican Republic and Venezuela: cocaine across the Caribbean’, Venezuela Investigative Unit, 24/V/2018.

^8 Ibid.

^9 US Department of State Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (2018), op. cit.

^10 Ibid.

^11 JIATF-South’s Area of Responsibility is 42 million square miles, 12 times the size of the US.

^12 See Global Sentinel (2017), ‘8 notable security influencers in the Western Hemisphere, 1/II/2017; Department of Defense, Defense Department Intelligence and Security Doctrine, Directives and Instructions, FAS Intelligence Resource Program; and Forum of the Americas (2011), MAOC-N Nets Drugs on the High Seas, Diálogo Digital Military Magazine, 1/I/2011.

^13 Description provided by US Southern Command.

^14 Forum of the Americas (2011), op. cit.; and Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre (MAOC N).

^15 Tribunal Supremo, Sala de lo Penal (2018), ‘Sentencia número 673/2016. Fecha de sentencia: 25/02/2016’.

^16 Tribunal Supremo, Sala de lo Penal (2018), ‘Sentencia número 117/2018. Fecha de sentencia: 12/03/2018’.

^17 Department of Defense, Defense Department Intelligence and Security Doctrine, Directives and Instructions, FAS Intelligence Resource Program.

^18 Section 1004 refers to the section of law that authorises the US military’s involvement in counter-narcotics efforts.

^19 Department of Defense (2017), ‘Historical Facts Book FY 2016’, Washington, 30/IX/2017.

^20 Department of Defense (2017), ‘Defense Security Cooperation Agency, Excess Defense Articles online database’, accessed 20/XI/2017.

^21 For a full explanation of AFCOM’s LOE see ‘United States Africa Command 2018 Posture Statement March 6, 2018’. Reported by Eurasia Review 2 days ago.

Anson Resources Ltd’s (ASX:ASN) lithium strategy has seen New York-based Arrowhead Business and Investment Decisions LLC initiate coverage. Arrowhead has placed a Fair Market Value of 5 cents to 9 cents on the ASX-listed explorer which has the Paradox project in the Lithium Four Corners area of US state of Utah as its flagship. The range was established by Arrowhead utilising its blended valuation method. This is based on quantitative key variable analysis, such as key price analysis for revenue and cost drivers or analysis and discounts on revenue estimates for projects. READ: Anson Resources sees good flow rates upon re-opening sampled well Anson’s shares are trading up 7% to 6.1 cents today. The Arrowhead report states that Anson has focused its development efforts on the Paradox Brine Project, which has lithium concentrations in the region up to 1,700 ppm. An exploration target of lithium-rich brine within Clastic Zone 31 has been estimated at around 30 to 40 million barrels.   The following is an extract from Arrowhead’s report: Paradox Brine Project The Paradox Brine Project consists of total 892 placer claims in one contiguous group encompassing 8,122 hectares of land owned by the Bureau of Land Management located in Grand Country, Utah. The property is lies approximately 10 kilometres west of Moab and is within a 20-minute drive from the town centre. Originally, Moab was a uranium mining centre which has an experienced workforce and well-established infrastructure to support exploration activities. Apart from Anson, there are other companies such as Voltaic Minerals, MGX, American potash, Liberty One, US Cobalt, Power Metals and Standard Lithium. Brines covers an area of around 33,000 square miles throughout the Paradox Basin. Also, there are some historical wells in this region. Recent drilling and sampling Anson has completed two drilling programs on its Paradox Lithium Projects claims. The first campaign mainly consisted of a re-entry of a plugged and abandoned oil well whereas the second was a sampling program carried out on an already producing oil well which had been purchased by the company. During the first drilling program (Gold Bar Unit 2) completed in January 2018, the assays showed that the brine samples were rich in additional commodities such as bromine, iodine and magnesium whereas lithium and boron were on the lower side. These results confirmed the assay values obtained from the historical oil well samples throughout the area. The second sampling program was carried out on the oil producing Cane Creek 32-1 well and completed in March 2018. Samples from the five clastic zones resulted in increased lithium values compared to those obtained at Gold Bar. Key advantages Infrastructure facilities: The project is connected well through interstate highway and railway. Also, the availability of a gas line and a power line means that the project has closer proximity to key infrastructure. Geological features: The paradox basin includes a thick series of marine evaporite deposits that define the Paradox Formation. Also, the lithium-rich brines have previously been sampled in the area. Existing mining infrastructure: Existing tracks provide access for exploration and project development. Also, there is a power line passing through the project area. Lithium industry Lithium is gradually becoming an integral part of various commercial and industrial sectors, owing to its excellent electrochemical potential, catalytic characteristics and light weight. Lithium is found in continental brines, hard rock minerals and clay globally. Lithium carbonate is one of the key intermediate and most traded products in the lithium market as it can be easily converted into specific industrial salts and chemicals and can be processed into lithium metal. Therefore, production numbers are usually measured in terms of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE), despite there being several compounds which are formed from lithium. According to Albemarle, one of the leading lithium producers, lithium carbonate is often the first chemical in the production chain, with other compounds such as lithium hydroxide being produced after subsequent steps. For that reason, global lithium production numbers are generally broken down in terms of LCE. The global lithium exploration budget witnessed significant growth in the last two years and is expected to continue this trend primarily owing to the rising demand of lithium-ion batteries. In 2017, the mining industry's budget for lithium exploration more than doubled from US$ 72.9 million in 2016 and quadrupled from US$36.2 million in 2015 to US$156.5 million. The slump and downturn in budget allocation between 2011 and 2015 were due to low lithium prices and an appreciating US Dollar. The lithium supply market is relatively small and under-developed compared to most other industrial commodities. Global lithium output in 2015 was 171 kilotons LCE, a small percentage of the global lithium reserves (102 million tonnes LCE). Global lithium reserves are estimated to be 594 times the 2015 global output, which is relatively high when compared to other commodities. Therefore, lithium remains an underexploited commodity with a huge potential for increase in supply. According to Deutsche Bank, the lithium supply is expected to triple between 2015 and 2025 to reach 548 kilotons LCE. This will be primarily led by the increasing demand for lithium-ion batteries. Demand drivers The demand for lithium is increasing, given its growing importance in industrial sectors –EVs, consumer electronics and the energy sector. Lithium has numerous applications, from lubricating grease and glass fabrication to glazes for ceramics, and batteries. The metal is expected to continue to play an integral role in battery-powered vehicles and other devices. However, the lithium market is underdeveloped in comparison to other industrial commodities, with a few conglomerate giants controlling the market. The primary driver of demand for lithium carbonate is lithium-ion batteries, the demand for which is set to increase exponentially in the medium term. These batteries have several advantages such as the ability to be recharged many times over and slow loss of charge when not in use. Hence, these batteries are an integral component of EVs and other electric and electronic storage products. Moreover, the substantial decrease in lithium-ion costs from US$900/kWh in 2010 to US$225/kWh in 2017 has also made EVs and energy storage products more affordable and has opened new demand markets as well. Arrowhead Business and Investment Decisions received fees in 2018 and expects to receive further fees in 2018 from Anson Resources for researching and drafting this report and for a series of other services to Anson Resources including distribution of this report and networking services. Reported by Proactive Investors 1 day ago.

Financial advisor recruiter and industry observer Jon Henschen’s article in Intellectual Takeout, “Why People in Hong Kong Have Incomes 5x Higher Than People in China’s Richest Province,” explores what Hong Kong has that many lesser economies lack.

MINNEAPOLIS (PRWEB) July 03, 2018

Jon Henschen’s June 29 Intellectual Takeout article, “Why People in Hong Kong Have Incomes 5x Higher Than People in China’s Richest Province,” takes a look at the island of Hong Kong, where for two decades, prosperity has followed economic freedom for the most economically free territory in the world.

Henschen’s article opens with some history, noting that Hong Kong was added to the British Empire after the Opium Wars and eventually transformed into a hub of Britain’s China trade. When Britain’s 99-year lease on Hong Kong expired in 1997, Hong Kong became a Special Administration Region (SAR) and officially a part of China, though it operates as an independent country.

According to Henschen, even with the economic success China has experienced in recent years, Hong Kong residents enjoy income that is four to five times higher than residents of China’s most prosperous region, Shanghai. When the United Kingdom turned over Hong Kong to China in 1997, China recognized Hong Kong’s economic superiority. It left Hong Kong’s economic system alone as to not kill the “golden goose,” which grew 180 times between 1961 and 1997.

Today, Hong Kong has an economy larger than Israel and Ireland. Its 7.4 million inhabitants are wealthier, on a per capita purchasing power basis, than Americans. It also boasts the world’s most service-oriented economy, the world’s most competitive economy, Asia’s second largest recipient of foreign direct investment and the world’s largest IPO market.

Henschen offers a recipe for what does Hong Kong has that many lesser economies lack, describing key attributes to the tiny island’s success. These include business efficiency, small government, an open trading system, low taxes, sound money, few government regulations and the rule of law.

During colonial times, British officials kept the peace but otherwise mostly left people alone to work, innovate, and find ways to prosper. Because of this tradition, Hong Kong today lacks micromanaging overlords who implement obstructionist rules, policies, procedures and regulations. This is a key part of its economic success.

The data shows that for 18 consecutive years, Hong Kong has been ranked #1 in the Heritage Foundation’s Economic Freedom Index. The top five rankings have remained largely consistent, with the exception of Ireland falling from 5th place to 6th. But one can also see that the United States has dropped dramatically—from 8th in 2010 to 18th today. Henschen asserts that a glimmer of hope, however, is emerging with the Trump administration making some much-needed cutbacks in economic hobbling regulations.

According to progressive and socialist economic theory, Hong Kong should have higher unemployment, homeless, and more people begging on street corners than, say New York. From this perspective, Hong Kong’s government is too small to effectively provide social services and regulatory oversight. Reality, however, conflicts with this assumption: Hong Kong has full employment, a labor shortage, and relatively few vagrants (though homelessness is on the rise).

The people of Hong Kong understand that a free market left alone is a market that will flourish. When governments grow large and become parasites upon the private sector, prosperity wanes. Government intervention into the markets via regulations nearly always causes unintended problems, which act as sand in the gears of commerce.

Read the full article at: http://www.henschenassoc.com/why-people-in-hong-kong-have-incomes-5x-higher-than-people-in-chinas-richest-province/

Jon Henschen is President of Henschen & Associates, an independent broker-dealer recruiting firm located in Marine on St. Croix, Minnesota. With more than 20 years of industry experience, Jon is a staunch advocate for independent financial advisors, and is widely sought after by both reps and broker dealers for his expertise and advice on independent broker dealer topics. He is frequently published and quoted in a variety of industry publications, including ThinkAdvisor, Investment Advisor Magazine, Wealth Management Magazine, Financial Advisor IQ, Financial Advisor Magazine, Investment News and others. Reported by PRWeb 1 day ago.

Task Force Dagger Foundation is excited to announce our partnership with Johnson Outdoors Diving LLC - SCUBAPRO supporting the Task Force Dagger Foundation (TFD)

DALLAS (PRWEB) July 03, 2018

Task Force Dagger Foundation is excited to announce our partnership with Johnson Outdoors Diving LLC - SCUBAPRO supporting the Task Force Dagger Foundation (TFD) in their diving operations as part of the Joint Recovery Team (JRT). The Joint Recovery Team is made up of the Department of POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA), East Carolina University Marine Archeology Department and the Task Force Dagger Foundation. The Mission of JRT is to map; document; search; and, hopefully; recover and repatriate an American Service Member(s) Killed In Action (KIA) Body Not Recovered (BNR) from World War II.

The purpose of these expeditions is two-fold: (1) Keep the promise that we make to our service men and women defending our country and that is to bring them home should they make the ultimate sacrifice. (2) Identify the most severely wounded, ill, or injured Special Operations Forces (SOF) service members from the US Special Operations Command, who are having issues making the transition from the military to civilian life, and provide them with a real world MISSION. Why is this important? This provides the SOF service member a deeper PURPOSE for his or her life. This will enable them to FOCUS on something bigger than themselves.

Mark Stephens, Executive Board Member, said, “From my initial discussions with SCUBAPRO, I knew they recognized the importance and gravity of these missions.” Working with Task Force Dagger Foundation through this process include: Joe Stella, SCUBAPRO President; Edward Rasmussen, Global Government Manager; and Richelle Pizl, Customer Service Manager. They have been amazing. They are truly part of the team.

Joe Stella, SCUBAPRO President states: “We are honored to partner with such a noble organization that is not only providing vital support to service members and their families today – but to those that served long ago. Task Force Dagger’s critical missions are completely aligned with SCUBAPRO’s long-standing commitment to support those who serve, and we are proud to be a part of the team.”

Our first mission will take place in Saipan at the end of July thru mid-August 2018. The TFD portion of the team is made up of a joint group of Special Operations members (Army, Navy, and Air Force Special Operations). The TFD leadership is Keith David, TFD Managing Director; Greg Knauer, TFD Operations Manager; Terry Schappert, TFD Ambassador; and Mark Stephens, TFD Executive Board Member. The TFD team has a mix of visible and invisible injuries. With the support of SCUBAPRO, we will be able to fully equip the team with state of the art gear to address their individual needs while conducting the mission safely, efficiently, and effectively.

Without your donations, we cannot achieve our Mission supporting the US Special Operations Command’s service members and their families.

The Task Force Dagger Foundation’s three core programs: (1) Immediate Needs, (2) SOF Health Initiatives, and (3) Recreational Therapy Adaptive Events provide resources and healing for Special Operations Forces (SOF) members and families. Our SOF Health Initiatives provides program recipients care and treatment that is designed to treat the problem and not the symptom through functional medicine and other treatment modalities that are holistic in nature. Task Force Dagger Foundation supports Army Green Berets, Rangers, Civil Affairs, Military Information Support Operations, Army Special Mission Units, Navy SEALs, Air Force Special Tactics/Operations and Marine Special Operations and their families. These are some of the units that comprise the US Special Operations Command.

Since 2009, we have supported USSOCOM with over $3.5M dollars of support to 3,100 SOF service members and their families. The Task Force Dagger Foundation’s overhead rate is 10.91%.

For more information, please contact the Task Force Dagger Foundation Office at (214) 420-9290 or via email at info@taskforcedagger.org or visit us on the web at http://www.taskforcedagger.org. Reported by PRWeb 1 day ago.

Reported by SeekingAlpha 1 day ago.

Joe Finora talks about his underwater work. Reported by Seattle Times 1 day ago.

Rhode Island yesterday filed a lawsuit against 21 oil companies, including Exxon, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips, for contributing to climate change that is hurting the state’s coastline, marine ecosystem, and economy, according to Attorney General Peter Kilmartin. “Rhode Island is especially vulnerable to the effects of climate changes that is now on our doorstep with sea level rise and an increase in severe weather patterns, as seen by the extensive damage caused by storms in the past several years, including Super Storm Sandy and the… Reported by OilPrice.com 23 hours ago.

Marine research could soon be possible without the risk of polluting either the air or the ocean, thanks to a new ship design and feasibility study. Reported by Science Daily 18 hours ago.

The most critically acclaimed TV shows in history have earned their praise by repeatedly producing innovative and memorable seasons.

Shows like "The Wire,""Breaking Bad," and "The Larry Sanders Show" consistently won over critics, and their best seasons have set a standard for what great television should look like.

To find out which series have been the most influential, we turned to the review aggregator Metacritic for its list of the all-time best TV seasons, which ranks shows by their composite critical reception. We used audience scores to break any ties.

*Check out the 50 best TV-show seasons of all time, according to critics:*

*SEE ALSO: The 20 most-watched TV episodes ever, ranked*

-50. "The Handmaid's Tale" (Season 1)-

*Metacritic score: *92/100

*User score: *7.8/10

*Notable episodes: *""Nolite Te Bastardes Carborundorum,""Jezebels"-49. "Homeland" (Season 1)-

*Metacritic score: *92/100

*User score: *8.3/10

*Notable episodes: *"The Weekend,""Crossfire," "Marine One"-48. "Rectify" (Season 2)-

*Metacritic score: *92/100

*User score: *9.1/10

*Notable episodes: *"Mazel Tov,""The Great Destroyer," "Unhinged"
See the rest of the story at Business Insider Reported by Business Insider 22 hours ago.

A rumour is circulating in the British press to the effect that the UK is about to designate Hezbollah, lock, stock and barrel, as a terrorist organization. It would not be before time. The UK first proscribed Hezbollah’s terrorist wing in 2001, and added the military wing in 2008 after the organization targeted British soldiers in Iraq, but it has reserved judgment on the organization as a whole because of its political activities.

Any such distinction, which the EU has copied from the UK, is illusory. Hezbollah is a unified organization, and its jihadist purpose is basic to its existence. Even Hezbollah’s own leaders reject the distinction. Hezbollah’s Deputy Secretary-General Naim Qassem has declared unequivocally: “We have one leadership, with one administration.” Speaking in 2012, he added: “We don’t have a military wing and a political one…Every element of Hezbollah…is in the service of the resistance.”

A glance at Hezbollah’s organization confirms this. It has a unified command structure consisting of five sub-councils, or assemblies. Above them sits the Shura Council, which controls the leadership of Hezbollah and all its operations, and comprises nine members, seven of whom are Lebanese and the other two Iranian.

Iran’s involvement at the very top of today’s Hezbollah is no surprise. In the 1970s Lebanon, torn apart by civil conflict, was under the occupation of the Shia-aligned Syrian government. Around 1980 – the exact date is disputed – Iran’s first Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khomenei, still basking in the glory of his 1979 Islamic Revolution, decided to strengthen his grip on Shi’ite Islam by consolidating a number of Lebanon’s militant Shia Muslim groups. He formed and funded a body calling itself Hezbollah, or “the Party of God”. Its forces were trained and organized by a contingent of 1,500 Iranian Revolutionary Guards.

Hezbollah declared that its purpose, in line with Khomeini’s, was to oppose Western influences in general and Israel’s existence in particular. Very shortly Hezbollah was acting as Iran’s proxy in perpetrating a campaign of terror against their two perceived enemies. A wave of kidnappings, bombings, and assassinations were carried out across the world. These include the detonation in 1983 of an explosive-filled van in front of the US embassy in Beirut, killing 58 Americans and Lebanese, and the bombing of the US Marine and French Drakkar barracks in Beirut, which killed 241 American and 58 French peacekeepers.

In 1992 Hezbollah operatives boasted of their involvement in the bombing of the Israeli embassy in Argentina killing 29 people, and two years later claimed responsibility for the bombing of a Jewish community centre in Argentina and the subsequent death of 85 people. The atrocities continued: 21 people, including 12 Jews, killed in an airplane attack in Panama in 1994; the 1996 Khobar Towers bombing inside Saudi Arabia killing 19 US servicemen; the 2005 assassination of one-time Lebanese prime minister, Rafik Hariri; the 2012 Burgas bus bombing in Bulgaria killing 6. For the past seven years Iran has recruited thousands of Hezbollah fighters to help keep Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad in power and restore his lost territories to him.

It is no surprise, therefore, that Hezbollah in its entirety has been designated a terrorist body by the Arab League, as well as by a swathe of other nations including Canada, the Netherlands, the USA, Israel and all the Gulf states that form the Gulf Cooperation Council.

During its 38 bloodthirsty years of existence Hezbollah has managed to achieve a certain acceptability in Shia Muslim sections of Lebanese society. In the election that followed Israel’s withdrawal in May 2000 from the buffer zone it had established along the border, Hezbollah, in alliance with Amal, took all 23 South Lebanon seats out of a total 128 parliamentary seats. Since then Hezbollah has participated in Lebanon’s parliamentary process, and has been able to claim a proportion of cabinet posts in each government. As a result it has achieved substantial power within Lebanon’s body politic to a point where it has been dubbed “a state within a state”.

It is this political aspect of Hezbollah’s activities that has turned the heads of certain Western politicians, some of whom may not be entirely out of sympathy with Hezbollah’s aim of removing the state of Israel from the Middle East. Not so Sajid Javid, Britain’s newly appointed Home Secretary, the first Muslim to achieve one of the UK’s major offices of state. His rumoured decision to proscribe Hezbollah in its entirety has come about because of the outrage expressed by many at the sight of the Hezbollah flag being paraded through the streets of London in this year’s Al-Quds Day march.

Back in 1979 Iran’s first Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khomeni, designated the last Friday of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan to be International Al-Quds Day. Muslims were urged to use it to demonstrate their support for the Palestinians, and their opposition to Israel. For more than a decade London has witnessed an annual mass demonstration to mark the occasion. In the past few years, since it became clear that thousands of Hezbollah troops have been fighting alongside Iran to support Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad in his no-holds-barred efforts, including the use of chemical weapons, to cling to power, the sight of Hezbollah supporters waving its flag in the UK’s capital has become increasingly unacceptable.

Shortly after Javid’s predecessor as Home Secretary, Amber Rudd, was appointed in 2016 she said that if people reported seeing the Hezbollah flag displayed in London, action would be taken. In the event, this was found to be not legally possible, since only the military wing of the organization had been proscribed by the UK. She never got round to remedying the situation.

“Sajid is a very different beast to the Home Secretary he has just replaced,” a government source told the UK’s Jewish Chronicle. Deeds, not mere words, will prove the point. Reported by Eurasia Review 17 hours ago.

Wife of fake Marine drowned in Canyon Lake in 2005. Her parents say Texas authorities need to investigate her death.

 
 
 
 
 
 
  Reported by USATODAY.com 16 hours ago.

Chris Petrone, Marine Education Specialist with the University of Delaware and Sea Grant Delaware, measures the sand temperature and explains the high temps.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  Reported by Delawareonline 15 hours ago.

Seattle WA (SPX) Jul 03, 2018

In August 2016, the first large cruise ship traveled through the Northwest Passage, the northern waterway linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The following year, the first ship without an icebreaker plied the Northern Sea Route, a path along Russia's Arctic coast that was, until recently, impassable by unescorted commercial vessels. In recent decades parts of the Arctic seas have beco Reported by Terra Daily 13 hours ago.

The “Made in Britain” label has truly found its place in the global market.

International demand for UK goods has resulted in a steady rise in the volume of our exports to countries all over the world.

Where we’ve really seen a take-up, however, is the number of countries further afield that are buying our products. We know, too, that businesses here in the UK are keen to increase their exports to these countries.

*Read more*: The war’s in your head: Free trade is an economic no-brainer

Take China, for example. Nearly a quarter (24 per cent) of exporters we spoke to in our bi-annual Business in Britain report said that they expect their sales to the region to increase over the coming months. Elsewhere, one in five (20 per cent) stated that they expected an increase in demand from customers in India.

But these markets are nearly 5,000 miles away, and the common maxim states that the further away the market you export to, the more sharply the value of sales fall. Known as the “gravity model” of international trade, the economic theory argues that trade halves as distance doubles.

This might once have seemed like common sense – there are additional costs and delays to shipping physical goods over long distances, as well as increased risk when dealing with partners a long way from home. But social and technological change is rapidly making the world a smaller place.

For a start, nearly half – 45 per cent – of UK exports consists not of physical goods, but of services. The service sector has long been a feather in the UK’s cap, and is a significant driver of the British economy. March’s ONS Trade stats showed that services exports grew nine per cent (£23.5bn) in just three months.

While some expect the gravity model theory to continue to apply to services, others see this sector as uniquely suited to large volumes of long-distance trade.

It’s already happening. Our world-renowned universities are teaching students across the globe, while the Law Society expects the UK’s legal services to increase net exports by around nine per cent this year alone.

Meanwhile, even the importing and exporting of physical goods is changing rapidly, as globalisation connects faraway countries. Look at Amazon and Alibaba – their offering is based on making products easily accessible to buyers in any geographical location for lower prices. It is no coincidence that they have become two of the largest businesses in the world.

This is just the beginning. Cheaper flights and improved infrastructure are making long-distance transport of goods easier. Take the Belt and Road Initiative in China: a multi-billion-dollar infrastructure investment from the Chinese government to improve connectivity around the globe.

There are constant improvements being made to air and marine transport. In May, Singapore Air announced the first ever 19-hour flight, reducing downtime and layovers, while in March we saw the first direct flight between London and Australia.

Closer to home, the government will clearly hope that finally approving the plans for a third runway at Heathrow Airport will make it even easier for goods to be exported from the UK.

Looking further ahead, technologies such as 3D-printing and blockchain could massively change the face of international trade, with digital design and IP moving quickly and securely between countries, and finished goods being produced closer to home.

While the gravity model theory may have held true in the past, the pace at which technology and the global delivery of services is changing means that it is only a matter of time before the old model is consigned to history.

At a time when forging new relationships and securing trade deals with countries 5,000 miles away will be key for the prosperity of Britain, UK businesses can rest assured that exporting has never been so accessible.

The world is getting smaller, closer, and better connected by the day. Whatever Britain wants its future trade policy to look like, we shouldn’t let distance hold us back.

*Read more*: Supercharged free ports can spur free trade and rebalance Britain Reported by City A.M. 11 hours ago.