OTTAWA — The RCMP will create a new aerial intelligence task force to provide round-the-clock surveillance of Canada’s border using helicopters, drones and surveillance towers. The move is part of the federal government’s $1.3-billion upgrade to border security and monitoring to appease concerns of U.S. president-elect Donald Trump about the flow of migrants and illegal drugs. Trump has threatened to impose a 25 per cent tariff on all Canadian and Mexican exports to the U.S. as soon as he is inaugurated next month unless both countries move to improve border security. Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc says he has discussed parts of the plan with American officials and that he is optimistic about its reception. Canada will also propose to the United States to create a North American “joint strike force” to target organized crime groups that work across borders. The government also intends to provide new technology, tools and resources to the Canada Border Services Agency to seek out fentanyl using chemical detection, artificial intelligence and canine teams. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 17, 2024. Jim Bronskill, The Canadian PressCalifornia bill would mandate armed school officers following Oroville shooting
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( MENAFN - media OutReach Newswire) HO CHI MINH, VIETNAM - Media OutReach Newswire - 18 December 2024 - LiveIn, Southeast Asia's leading long-stay provider dedicated to converting surplus properties into modern homes for young people, has formed a strategic alliance with JinJoo Home, Vietnam's pioneer in co-living for young professionals. Together, they aim to unify and strengthen Vietnam's co-living market by offering solutions for local operators that blend international standards and local relevance. Keek Wen Khai, CEO & Co-founder of LiveIn (left), and Jason Wong, CEO & Founder of JinJoo Home (right), at the alliance signing ceremony. Vietnam's urbanization rate is expected to surpass 50% by 2025, and with over 50% of the population being millennials and Gen Z, the demand for co-living spaces in major cities like Ho Chi Minh City is set to rise. However, the market remains fragmented, and local operators face challenges, such as high vacancies, maintenance costs, and inconsistent service. Keek Wen Khai, CEO & Co-founder of LiveIn, said: "Vietnam's long-stay market remains highly fragmented, but we see great potential in driving sustainable growth through collaboration. By forming a strategic alliance with JinJoo Home, we aim to bring operators together, address their challenges, and elevate standards to deliver a better living experience for the next generation." Jason Wong, CEO & Founder of JinJoo Home, said: "We're excited to join forces with LiveIn, a leading player in Southeast Asia. Our shared passion for improving young people's living experience makes this alliance a natural fit. Together, we can combine our strengths and create a more dynamic and high-quality co-living market in Vietnam." The strategic alliance comes at a time when Vietnam's residential real estate market is projected to reach USD 45.62 billion by 2029, with co-living playing a pivotal role. As many fragmented operators struggle to scale due to limited resources, LiveIn and JinJoo Home are focused on helping them seize this growth opportunity by combining LiveIn's international standards with JinJoo Home's extensive local expertise. LiveIn continually refines its product standards to address changing consumer preferences and ensure compliance with local regulatory requirements. With 10,500 rooms across 200 buildings in 4 Southeast Asian countries, LiveIn brings its proven regional expertise in technology, operational management, and demand generation. Meanwhile, JinJoo Home's deep local knowledge and strong presence in Ho Chi Minh City will help consolidate and support operators in adopting these best practices, tailored to meet the unique needs of the Vietnamese market. The strategic alliance with JinJoo Home builds on LiveIn's earlier strategic alliance with Hive, a regional leader in co-living renovations, to establish the LiveIn Global Renovation Division. Through this new division, LiveIn delivers thoughtfully designed homes that inspire growth and new experiences across all the markets it serves, including Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia. Both synergies further cement LiveIn's position as a leading flexible housing provider in Southeast Asia. MENAFN17122024003551001712ID1109005181 Legal Disclaimer: MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.
A global citizen rooted in Indian ethos, Ustad Zakir Hussain blazed a trail when he carved evocative stories out of the percussive sound of the humble drum set creating music to bind a fractious world in harmony. His conversational style buzzed with a spark of spontaneity. Natural flow defined his music and personality. Mr. Hussain would impress the purists, enthral the seekers of world music, and handhold the fans of cinematic music into his creative ecstasy with equal felicity. Like his carefully designed free-flowing hairstyle, the versatile artist would execute complex rhythms, intricate patterns, and nuanced dynamics and move on to items like the sound of traffic signals and deer’s walk without a pause. In tune with technology, he experimented with frequencies to highlight the subtle shades of the instrument to establish that tabla is not just a rhythmic instrument but also has a distinct melodic quality. Ustad Alla Rakha, credited with taking Indian classical to foreign shores along with Pandit Ravi Shankar believed that every instrument has a distinct spirit. Mr. Hussain befriended the tabla at the age of three and by the time he hit teenage, the instrument had become his muse for life and perhaps an extension of his personality. It came through in his stage performances when his demeanour switched between a devotional artist and a rock musician. After watching him play, one couldn’t see playing tabla as a chore in classical music. Mr. Hussain took his father’s legacy to the next level by adding a touch of showmanship and expanding the riches he inherited from the Punjab gharana. A keen learner and listener, Mr. Hussain was like a responsive satellite in orbit as an accompanist, shone like a blazing star in his solos, and reserved the adventurous streak of a meteor for creating fusion music. A child prodigy, Mr. Hussain was not regimented by his teacher-father. He was allowed to develop wings and explore new shores. By 19, Mr. Hussain was teaching at the University of Washington before joining Ustad Ali Akbar Khan’s music college in San Francisco where he met his soulmate Antonia Minnecola. Another fortuitous meeting in New York led to a lifelong bond with the iconic English guitarist John McLaughlin. Their friendship led to the formation of the groundbreaking Shakti band in 1973 which included violinist L. Shankar and percussionist T.H. Vinayakram. They blended Hindustani and Carnatic classical music with Western jazz influences. Mr. Hussain’s desire to experiment led to rewarding collaborations with George Harrison, Irish singer Van Morrison, American percussionist Mickey Hart, Latin Jazz percussionist Giovanni Hidalgo, and Jerry Garcia, the lead vocalist, and guitarist of the Grateful Dread. He accompanied his father contemporaries Pandit Ravi Shankar and Ali Akbar Khan and shared a special bond with santoor maestro Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, flautist Hari Prasad Chaurasia, and sarangi stalwart Ustad Sultan Khan. Their jugalbandis would start as melodic banter and then turn meditative. Fusion was never exotic for Mr. Hussain as he had grown up listening to stories of how Amir Khusrau blended the Indian traditions of Dhrupad and Haveli sangeet with Sufi Qaul to create Khayal . As a young musician, he saw his father and colleagues contributing to Hindi film music that liberally drew from diverse musical streams. Mr. Hussain had his brush with film music when he played tabla for Laxmikant Pyarelal’s maiden venture Parasmani . Later he composed music for Ismail Merchant’s films like Muhafiz , Aparna Sen’s Mr. And Mrs. Iyer , Rahul Dholakia’s Parzania, and Nandita Das’s Manto . The meaningful sound of his tabla lent layers to storytelling in international productions like Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now and recently Dev Patel’s Monkey Man . He also acted in Merchant-Ivory productions like Heat and Dust and Sai Paranjpye’s Saaz . However, it was a television commercial that made him a household figure in the late 1980s when he brought classical music to the mainstream by promoting a tea brand by playing tabla at the Taj Mahal. The combination of “ Wah Taj !” and young Mr. Hussain’s curly locks and charming smile accompanied by the resonance of his playing ensured brand immortality. Fame didn’t diminish his humility and age didn’t wilt his curiosity. Music was an endless journey for Mr. Hussain. Every time someone would toss the word perfection, he would riposte, “I haven’t played good enough to quit.” Published - December 17, 2024 03:23 am IST Copy link Email Facebook Twitter Telegram LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit music / classical musicThe animated sitcom The Simpsons has a knack for drumming up headlines now and then for its uncanny ways of cheekily predicting the future. The recent 2024 US elections also dug up some familiar parallels that had the potential to eerily match with the present reality. Yeardley Smith, who has now voiced Lisa Simpson , Homer and Marge Simpson’s daughter, for 36 seasons, couldn’t stop gushing about a particular prediction that came true, not once but twice. What prediction was this, you may ask? It was an outcome that recently again flipped the table on the political side of things – “Trump as President.” Also read | Church fears Liam Payne's army of fans will turn grave robbers ‘to take items’ left in his honour During an exclusive chat with The New York Post at Vulture Fest, Smith didn’t hold back when it came to outing her unfiltered thoughts on the issue. “I do know the story was that they were — as ‘The Simpsons’ do — like, who would be the most ridiculous President ever? Whether or not you voted for him, that was the thinking,” she said of Donald Trump . The Simpsons voice star affirmed that their long-running show predicted the mind-boggling development at a time when the Republican leader possibly wasn’t even thinking about politics. Per Smith’s confession, Trump was still very much associated with his reality TV roots through The Apprentice . Also read | Elon Musk impersonator arrested for scamming elderly woman: Florida man promised her a $55m return “President Trump” era became a reality twice A quick brushing up of the Fox sitcom will remind fans that the “Bart to the Future” episode in 2000 jumped forward into the future to a time when Lisa Simpson is portrayed as the POTUS. “As you know, we’ve inherited quite a budget crunch from President Trump,” she’s heard telling her staff. Secretary of State Milhouse Van Houten eventually reveals that despite its original superpower status, the country has run its financially rich identity into the ground. While it remains unclear what exactly the future would look like when Trump takes his seat at the White House after his inauguration, the MAGA boss was also elected in 2016. Although Van Houte’s vision of America going broke didn’t translate into the real world, a subsequent stock market crisis and the foreboding COVID-19 pandemic came much closer to that end.
Biden Touts Economic Legacy, Says Trump Inherits ‘Strongest Economy’ in World
Firmable Hits 1500 Users, Gaining Momentum in the Australian MarketOTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is taking some time to reflect after Chrystia Freeland's bombshell resignation, the natural resources minister said on Tuesday. "The prime minister, as I understand it, a number of caucus colleagues have said that the prime minister has said that he will reflect on both the decision that minister Freeland made, but also what he's heard from members of his own caucus," Jonathan Wilkinson said. "I think we all need to give him a little time to reflect, and I respect that fact that he's going to take some time to reflect." Freeland quit as finance minister on Monday morning just hours before she was set to present the government's fall economic statement. That kicked off a day of turmoil on Parliament Hill that began with a morning cabinet meeting and wrapped with an evening meeting of the Liberal caucus, where some members called for Trudeau to step aside as party leader. That includes New Brunswick MP Wayne Long, one of 23 caucus members who signed a letter back in October calling for Trudeau to quit. "We certainly have more MPs than last time. So, if I had to guess how many more right now, I'd say we're probably at 40 to 50 right now," Long said. "But there's a lot more than that. I mean, this is so different than times before." The attempt to oust Trudeau earlier in the fall took up a great deal of oxygen on Parliament Hill, but ultimately failed to garner support from inside the cabinet. This time, Long said, at least five cabinet ministers believe it's time for a change at the top. "I certainly am one to say to my colleagues, to ministers in particular: 'Let's come out of the shadows,'" Long said. "Let's openly, once and for all, state how we feel and let's move forward with what we know has to happen." After the failed coup in October, Liberal MPs told reporters they believed Trudeau was taking time to reflect. But the very next day, he publicly stated his intention to stay on as leader at a press conference. The Liberals have faced three non-confidence votes in the House of Commons this fall and have struggled to advance legislation because of a filibuster on a Conservative privilege motion related to misspending at a now-defunct green technology fund. On Tuesday, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre once again called on NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh to topple the government, criticizing him for voting against the latest non-confidence motion last week. Poilievre said Canada needs a new prime minister because U.S. president-elect Donald Trump can smell weakness from a mile away and the Trudeau government is weak. Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet also said a new Parliament is needed "as soon as possible," and he wants to see an election called in January. Blanchet said Trudeau has lost the political, moral and ethical authority to govern. He said the election should happen as soon as possible in the new year because Canadians do not want a campaign over the holiday season. On Monday, Singh called for Trudeau to step down but did not make a firm comment on whether the NDP would declare non-confidence in the Liberal government. Instead, Singh said "all options are on the table." The NDP, which ended a formal supply-and-confidence agreement to support the Liberals in September, has since voted with the government on all three non-confidence motions. Singh has repeatedly said a Poilievre-led Conservative government would cut things New Democrats have fought for like dental care, pharmacare and other social programs. The Tories are also calling on the House of Commons trade committee to study the tariff threat between the week of Jan. 6 and Jan. 20, the date of Trump's inauguration. The House of Commons is expected to rise for the holiday break on Tuesday and return on January 27. In her resignation letter, Freeland said she's been at odds with Trudeau in the last few weeks over the government's fiscal priorities. She said the government should do away with costly "political gimmicks" and instead set money aside to deal with a potential tariff war with the U.S. Dominic LeBlanc was sworn in as the new finance minister Monday, minutes after the government's fall economic statement was released. The economic update shows the deficit has grown to nearly $62 billion, far beyond the $40-billion target Freeland set earlier this year. It includes $1.3 billion in new spending on measures to beef up the border in response to Trump's threat to impose 25 per cent tariff threats on Canadian goods. LeBlanc, who is also in charge of intergovernmental affairs and democratic institutions, says his main priority as finance minister will be to address affordability issues. He will also continue to oversee the public safety file, implementing new border measures, until Trudeau holds a broader cabinet shuffle. That's expected to happen soon in order to replace ministers who have announced they won't seek re-election. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 17, 2024. — With files from Nick Murray and Michel Saba David Baxter, The Canadian Press
PM Modi to inaugurate and launch projects worth over Rs 46,300 crore in Rajasthan todayNone
Core Molding Technologies CEO sells $228,766 in stockWASHINGTON – President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday named Andrew Ferguson as the next chair of the Federal Trade Commission . He will replace Lina Khan, who became a lightning rod for Wall Street and Silicon Valley by blocking billions of dollars' worth of corporate acquisitions and suing Amazon and Meta while alleging anticompetitive behavior . Recommended Videos It was one of several evening announcements Trump made via his social media platform, including that he was naming Kimberly Guilfoyle as Ambassador to Greece, a longtime supporter who was engaged to his son Don Jr., and ally and former inaugural chairman Tom Barrack as Ambassador to Turkey. Ferguson is already one of the FTC's five commissioners, which is currently made up of three Democrats and two Republicans. “Andrew has a proven record of standing up to Big Tech censorship, and protecting Freedom of Speech in our Great Country,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding, “Andrew will be the most America First, and pro-innovation FTC Chair in our Country’s History.” The replacement of Khan likely means that the FTC will operate with a lighter touch when it comes to antitrust enforcement. The new chair is expected to appoint new directors of the FTC's antitrust and consumer protection divisions. “These changes likely will make the FTC more favorable to business than it has been in recent years, though the extent to which is to be determined,” wrote Anthony DiResta, a consumer protection attorney at Holland & Knight, in a recent analysis . Deals that were blocked by the Biden administration could find new life with Trump in command. For example, the new leadership could be more open to a proposed merger between the country’s two biggest supermarket chains, Kroger and Albertsons, which forged a $24.6 billion deal to combine in 2022. Two judges halted the merger Tuesday night. The FTC had filed a lawsuit in federal court earlier this year to block the merger, claiming the deal would eliminate competition, leading to higher prices and lower wages for workers. The two companies say a merger would help them lower prices and compete against bigger rivals like Walmart. One of the judges said the FTC had shown it was likely to prevail in the administrative hearing. Yet given the widespread public concern over high grocery prices, the Trump administration may not fully abandon the FTC's efforts to block the deal, some experts have said. And the FTC may continue to scrutinize Big Tech firms for any anticompetitive behavior. Many Republican politicians have accused firms such as Meta of censoring conservative views, and some officials in Trump's orbit, most notably Vice President-elect JD Vance, have previously expressed support for Khan's scrutiny of Big Tech firms. Barrack, a wealthy financier, met Trump in the 1980s while helping negotiate Trump’s purchase of the renowned Plaza Hotel. He was charged with using his personal access to the former president to secretly promote the interests of the United Arab Emirates, but was acquitted of all counts at a federal trial in 2022. Trump called him a “well-respected and experienced voice of reason.” Guilfoyle is a former California prosecutor and television news personality who led the fundraising for Trump's 2020 campaign. Trump called her “a close friend and ally,” and praised her “sharp intellect make her supremely qualified.” She had been engaged to Don Jr. since 2020, they arrived together at the convention center on election night and she was on stage with the family. “I am so proud of Kimberly. She loves America and she always has wanted to serve the country as an Ambassador. She will be an amazing leader for America First,” Don Jr. posted. Trump also announced Tuesday that he had selected Jacob Helberg as the next undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment, and Dan Bishop as deputy director for budget at the Office of Budget and Management. ___
IPS Newcastle promises a New Era in Electro-Mechanical Engineering
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