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Published by AFP Andre Leon Talley, the first Black creative director of Vogue, has died in New York at the age of 73 New York (AFP) – Influential fashion journalist Andre Leon Talley, the first Black creative director of Vogue, died Tuesday in New York at the age of 73, with figures from fashion and entertainment paying tribute. “It is with great sadness we announce the passing of Andre Leon Talley,” a statement posted on his official Instagram account said, without specifying the cause of death. “Mr Talley was the larger-than-life, longtime creative director at Vogue during its rise to dominance as the world’s fashion bible. “Over the past five decades as an international icon (he) was a close confidant of Yves Saint Laurent, Karl Lagerfeld, Paloma Picasso, Diane von Furstenberg and he had a penchant for discovering, nurturing and celebrating young designers.” Born in Washington in 1948, Talley was largely raised by his grandmother in Durham, North Carolina and was interested in fashion from an early age. “Every Sunday I would walk across the railroad tracks into the affluent part of Durham and buy Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar, and go back to my grandmother’s house, read my magazines. “I was allowed to retreat from the bullying and the sexual abuse into a beautiful world,” he told The Guardian in a May 2020 interview. Talley studied French at university, going on to earn a master’s at prestigious Brown University and then entered the world of fashion journalism. After stints with Andy Warhol’s Interview magazine, Women’s Wear Daily, W, and a brief spell at The New York Times, Talley joined Vogue as fashion news director in 1983, the same year as its now editor-in-chief Anna Wintour. It was the start of a three-decade association with the fashion bible, serving as creative director, contributing editor and later editor-at-large until his departure in 2013. “I scorched the Earth with my talent and I let my light shine,” he told The Guardian in his 2020 interview. ‘A beacon of grace’ A flamboyant and towering figure in fashion, Talley nurtured Black designers and lobbied for more diversity on the runway. Besides his fashion journalism, Talley served as a judge on “America’s Next Top Model” and also appeared in episodes of “Sex and The City” and “Empire.” He wrote three books, including his 2020 best-selling memoir “The Chiffon Trenches” in which he detailed his famous falling out with powerful Vogue chief Wintour. “Like many decades-long relationships, there were complicated moments,” Wintour said in a statement. “But all I want to remember today, all I care about, is the brilliant and compassionate man who was a generous and loving friend.” Other top figures from the worlds of fashion and entertainment also paid tribute. “Goodbye darling Andre… no one saw the world in a more elegant and glamorous way than you did,” veteran designer von Furstenberg said on Instagram. “No one was more soulful and grander than you were. The world will be less joyful. I have loved you and laughed with you for 45 years. I miss your loud screams… I love you soooo much,” she said. Oscar-winner Viola Davis posted a photograph of herself and Talley on Twitter, saying: “RIP Andre Leon Talley. Rest well King.” “Slave Play” playwright Jeremy O. Harris was also among those paying tribute. “For a little black gay boy who reached for the stars from the south there were few people I could look up to up there amongst the stars who looked like me just more fab except for you Andre,” Harris tweeted. “For a generation of boys Andre Leon Talley was a beacon of grace and aspiration. RIP.” View the full article

Published by Reuters By Anthony Deutsch and Stephanie van den Berg AMSTERDAM (Reuters) -A six-year cold case investigation into the betrayal of Anne Frank has identified a surprising suspect in the mystery of how the Nazis found the hiding place of the famous diarist in 1944. Anne and seven other Jews were discovered by the Nazis on Aug. 4 of that year, after they had hid for nearly two years in a secret annex above a canal-side warehouse in Amsterdam. All were deported and Anne died in the Bergen Belsen camp at age 15. A team that included retired U.S. FBI agent Vincent Pankoke and around 20 historians, criminologists and data specialists identified a relatively unknown figure, Jewish notary Arnold van den Bergh, as a leading suspect in revealing the hideout. Some other experts emphasised that the evidence against him was not conclusive. Investigating team member Pieter van Twisk said the crucial piece of new evidence was an unsigned note to Anne’s father Otto found in an old post-war investigation dossier, specifically naming Van den Bergh and alleging he passed on the information. The note said Van den Bergh had access to addresses where Jews were hiding as a member of Amsterdam’s wartime Jewish Council and had passed lists of such addresses to the Nazis to save his own family. Twisk said only four out of initial 32 names remained following the research, with Van den Bergh the lead suspect. Investigators confirmed that Otto, the only member of the family to survive the war, was aware of the note but chose never to speak of it publicly. Van Twisk speculated that Frank’s reasons to remain silent about the allegation were likely that he could not be sure it was true, that he would not want information to become public that could feed further anti-Semitism, and that he would not want Van den Bergh’s three daughters to be blamed for something their father might have done. Otto “had been in Auschwitz,” Van Twisk said. “He knew that people in difficult situations sometimes do things that cannot be morally justified.” While other members of the Jewish Council were deported in 1943, Van den Bergh was able to remain in the Netherlands. He died in 1950. Historian Erik Somers of the Dutch NIOD institute for war, holocaust and genocide studies praised the extensive investigation, but was sceptical of its conclusion. He questioned the centrality of the anonymous note in the arguments for Van den Bergh’s responsibility and said the team made assumptions about wartime Amsterdam Jewish institutions that are not supported by other historical research. According to Somers there are many possible reasons Van den Bergh was never deported as “he was a very influential man”. Miep Gies, one of the family’s helpers, kept Anne’s diary safe until Otto returned and first published it in 1947. It has since been translated into 60 languages and captured the imagination of millions of readers worldwide. The Anne Frank House Foundation was not involved in the cold case investigation but shared information from its archives to assist. Director Ronald Leopold said the research had “generated important new information and a fascinating hypothesis that merits further research”. Using modern research techniques, a master database was compiled with lists of Dutch collaborators, informants, historic documents, police records and prior research to uncover new leads. Dozens of scenarios and locations of suspects were visualised on a map to identify a betrayer, based on knowledge of the hiding place, motive and opportunity. The findings of the new research will be published in a book by Canadian author Rosemary Sullivan, “The Betrayal of Anne Frank”, which will be released on Tuesday. The director of Dutch Jewish organisation CIDI which combats anti-Semitism told Reuters she hoped the book would provide insight into the war-time circumstances of Amsterdam’s Jewish population. “If this turns into ‘the Jews did it’ that would be unfortunate. The Nazis were ultimately responsible,” Hanna Luden of CIDI said. (Reporting by Anthony Deutsch, Stephanie van den Berg, Toby Sterling; editing by Tomasz Janowski and Philippa Fletcher) View the full article

Published by Radar Online mega By the sounds of a forthcoming documentary titled Secrets of Playboy, Hugh Hefner was a vile human being. Scores of ex-girlfriends and former employees of the late Playboy founder were interviewed for the 10-part series, many citing feeling comfortable enough to speak their truth now that he’s unable to allegedly threaten or silence them. According to The Daily Mail, the docuseries paints the picture of a sick, twisted, controlling, demanding, drug-fueled, sex-addicted “vampire” who manipulated hundreds of young women by allegedly grooming them, drugging them, and forcing them to partake in degrading sex acts – all while keeping an overwhelming amount of blackmail on them. The show is set to lift the lid on the “dark underbelly” of Playboy and its culture, which was allegedly marked by sexual abuse that sometimes even crossed the line into bestiality. Hefner’s ex-girlfriend, Sondra Theodore, as well as former “Bunny Mother” PJ Masten were among those who detailed their alleged experiences with the Playboy founder. mega The claims they make are shocking and disturbing, but one particular anecdote involving a porn star and a dog is downright unspeakable. Linda Lovelace –who shot to fame in the 1970s with the hardcore film, Deep Throat – was once allegedly forced to perform oral sex on a German Shepherd while Hefner and his friends watched. She had apparently been driven to the Mansion for an orgy, but things took a turn. “All the guys were laughing when she got out of the limousine. She was drunk and drugged,” said Masten of the alleged horrifying incident. “All of a sudden, out of nowhere, a German Shepherd shows up. They got her so messed up, they made her give the German Shepherd oral sex. You want to talk about depravity? This is despicable!” Theodore recalled an alleged similar situation, saying she once walked in on Hefner arousing one of his male dogs with his hand. “I walked in once, and he was [gestures with hand] to our dog,” she said. “I said, ‘What are you doing?’ He said, ‘Dogs have needs.’ I said, ‘Stop that!’ I never let him be alone with our dog again.” Radar recently spoke with two of Hefner’s ex-girlfriends, twin sisters Kristina Shannon and Karissa Shannon, who also interviewed for the project. Known as “The Shannon Twins,” they told us about the post-traumatic stress disorder and “manic depression” they continue to suffer as a result of their time at the Mansion. “Over the years, we have ended up in the hospital from drinking and taking pills to numb the pain,” they explained, adding that they even once contemplated “committing suicide together, holding hands and taking pills to overdose.” Secrets of Playboy debuts Jan. 24 on A&E. mega View the full article

Jim ObergefellObergefell Announces Candidacy Jim Obergefell, the man who became the face of the fight for same-sex marriage legalization nationwide in 2015, announced Tuesday that he will make a bid for an Ohio House of Representatives seat. “We should all be able to participate fully in society and the economy, living in strong communities with great public schools, access to quality healthcare and with well-paying jobs that allow us to stay in the community we love, with the family we care about,” Obergefell said in a statement announcing his candidacy. In a call with reporters Tuesday, Obergefell shared that he didn’t envision himself running for political office until late summer or early fall of 2021. “Did I want to put myself in this type of public arena? I knew I wanted to do something to make things better.” He also made a note to highlight his focus on protecting the district’s Great Lakes. “We need to invest in our Great Lake, protect our Great Lake and make the nation envious that Ohio has smartly invested in one of the greatest freshwater assets in the world,” he said. “Not only do we need freshwater to live, but Lake Erie is vital to the economies of Ottawa and Erie counties. We must wisely and respectfully put this great resource to work to drive our economic engine and recovery along the Lake Erie shore.” Jim Obergefell: Previously on Towleroad Jim Obergefell, Plaintiff In The Supreme Court Case That Won National Marriage Equality, is Running For Ohio State House Brian Bell January 19, 2022 Read More BYU Bans Protests In Response to Rainbow School Logo; Clay Aiken Running For Congress Again; France Ends Gay Blood Ban: NEWS ROUNDUP Brian Bell January 15, 2022 Read More Andrea Jenkins Wins Unanimous Support To Lead Minneapolis City Council As President; At Divided Tense Time, Becomes First Trans Woman To Lead Council Brian Bell January 14, 2022 Read More Canada Conversion Therapy Ban Goes Into Effect; European Court Declines Gay Marriage Cake Case; New Study on Blood Donations By Gay Men Underway: NEWS Brian Bell January 10, 2022 Read More Man Still Has To Register As A Sex Offender For Consensual Gay Sex in 2001. ACLU Sues South Carolina. Brian Bell January 5, 2022 Read More Monica Lewinsky Now Relates To Britney; Says Only 1 Of Us ‘Made a Mistake’; Overall ‘Happy People Are Making Amends For Their Treatment Of Women’ Towleroad September 3, 2021 Read More Photo courtesy of Obergefell For Ohio View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Prince Andrew’s Twitter account has been deleted. It was announced last week that Queen Elizabeth’s second son would no longer use ‘His Royal Highness’ in an official capacity and his patronages and military titles would be given to other members of the royal family ahead of his civil case in the US, and now the @DukeofYork page on the micro-blogging site has been removed. Visitors to Andrew’s page are now greeted with the message: “This account doesn’t exist.” In addition, the 61-year-old prince’s Instagram account, which has the handle @HRHDukeofYork, has been set to private. On the royal family’s official website, Andrew’s profile page has been updated with last week’s statement about the returning of his patronages and titles and further content detailing his past work has been removed. The news Andrew will be facing his legal battle as a “private citizen” was announced last week. Buckingham Palace said in a statement: “With the Queen’s approval and agreement, the Duke of York’s military affiliations and Royal patronages have been returned to the Queen. “The Duke of York will continue not to undertake any public duties and is defending this case as a private citizen.” The move came after it was confirmed Andrew will face a civil case in the US over allegations he sexually assaulted Virginia Giuffre when she was 17. Giuffre has accused convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein – who died by suicide in August 2019 – and his one-time girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell of arranging and forcing her into having sex with the prince in 2001. In December, Maxwell was convicted by a jury in US federal court on five sex trafficking-related counts, which carry a potential custodial sentence of up to 65 years’ imprisonment. Andrew has repeatedly denied Giuffre’s allegations and his legal team recently argued to get her lawsuit dismissed, citing a 2009 deal and $500,000 settlement she agreed with Epstein. However, a federal judge in New York recently ruled that the case could continue. View the full article

Superman: Son of Kal-El #5Superman Writer Knows How To Deal With Hate The reveal of a bisexual Superman brought both praise and ridicule, including death threats, from comic book audiences since the November release of “Superman: Son of Kal-El #5”. But the story’s writer, Tom Taylor, found the perfect way to respond to readers expressing hate toward the Man of Steel’s sexuality. According to PinkNews, Taylor has made a habit of making donations to Australian LGBTQ Youth advocacy group Minus18 in the name of those that have sent him death threats over the new Superman book. The Melbourne-based writer shared one such instance on Twitter last week, including the donation receipt in the name of “Miroslav from Facebook.” “Women do not exist to be nice on the eyes for you. Morgan Webb, Olivia Munn, did not exist to be nice on the eyes for you,” Black continued. The former League of Legends broadcaster joined the network when it relaunched in Nov. 2021, and stated that she won’t stand for the harassment that plagued women during G4’s previous iteration to continue in the network’s new form. Her fellow G4 hosts praised her comments and the official G4 Twitter account posted the video saying “we stand with Froskurinn and the women in the space.” Bisexual Superman: Previously on Towleroad Wonder Woman’s 1st Trans Amazon; ‘Battlefield’s 1st Non-Binary Specialist; ‘Superman’ Colorist Quits Offended By New Motto. Brian Bell October 26, 2021 Read More Is It A Bird? Is It A Plane? No, It’s The First Bisexual Superman Towleroad October 11, 2021 Read More World of Batman Now Even More Queer; Longtime Robin Comes Out as Questioning in DC Comics Anthology Series Brian Bell August 11, 2021 Read More Pride Month Gay Comics Roundup: DC Comics, Marvel Comics, Many Others Celebrate Their LGBTQ Characters, Creators Brian Bell June 16, 2021 Read More Brazil’s Largest Newspaper Publishes Massive ‘Avengers’ Gay Kiss in Defiance of Rio Mayor Andy Towle September 9, 2019 Read More Rio De Janeiro Authorities Ban ‘Avengers’ Comic Book Series Over Gay Kiss Andy Towle September 7, 2019 Read More Image courtesy of DC Comics View the full article

Published by Radar Online mega Kevin Spacey is set to fly out to New York for a medical procedure that he desperately needs to make — according to court documents obtained by Radar. Last week, Spacey’s lawyers were fighting the actor’s sexual harassment accuser Anthony Rapp over his deposition. The House of Cards star was set to be deposed on Friday, January 14. Two days before the depo, Rapp’s lawyer asked the court to postpone the depo claiming he was experiencing health issues. “Unfortunately, over the last weekend, I developed a cough and cold symptoms. I was seen by an otolaryngologist on Monday, who suspected a Covid diagnosis and performed a PCR test. I received a negative result today, but my cough has continued to worsen,” he explained. Kevin Spacey Sexual Assault Lawsuit: Man Testifies Actor Made Advance On Him When He Was Only 16 However, Spacey’s lawyers rushed to court objecting to the postponement. The actor’s team claimed Rapp had already canceled two previous depositions. They argued any delay would be cause their client harm. mega In their objection, Spacey claimed he traveled to Los Angeles for the second depo only to have it postponed. He recently flew home early from a project in Croatia to appear for the third depo. His team said Spacey was unable to be deposed in the near future due to a medical procedure. “Unfortunately, Mr. [Spacey] will return to the East Coast next week for a medical procedure and will be unavailable for a deposition for an uncertain period thereafter,” his attorney wrote in a letter to the judge last week. Kevin Spacey Refusing To Spill About His Past Romantic Partners In Sexual Assault Battle With Anthony Rapp Spacey also argued Rapp had other lawyers who could handle the depo. The judge ended up ordering the deposition to take place yesterday. mega As Radar previously reported, Rapp is suing Spacey of making a sexual advance on him in 1986 when he was 14 years old. Spacey denies all allegations of wrongdoing. He hired an expert who claims Rapp created the allegations because he wanted to be a part of the #MeToo movement. mega View the full article

Published by Reuters By Jan Wolfe WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The congressional committee probing the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol issued subpoenas on Tuesday to three lawyers who joined former President Donald Trump’s unsuccessful attempt to overturn his election defeat: Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell and Jenna Ellis. The House of Representatives committee demanded the pro-Trump lawyers hand over documents and sit for depositions on Feb. 8. Representative Bennie Thompson, the committee’s chairman, said in a statement that the panel expects the lawyers to join the nearly 400 witnesses who have spoken with the Select Committee as part of its investigation into the causes of the deadly attack by Trump supporters. The committee also subpoenaed Boris Epshteyn, a Trump political adviser. Robert Costello, a lawyer for Giuliani, said in an interview that the subpoena was “political theater” and that his client was constrained by the legal doctrines of attorney-client privilege and executive privilege. “I don’t think there’s anything here he can testify about,” Costello said. Powell, Epshteyn, and Ellis did not immediately respond to requests for comment. “The four individuals we’ve subpoenaed today advanced unsupported theories about election fraud, pushed efforts to overturn the election results, or were in direct contact with the former president about attempts to stop the counting of electoral votes,” Thompson said in the statement. Powell, Giuliani, and Ellis jointly spoke at a Trump campaign news conference on Nov. 19, 2020, where they vowed to overturn President Joe Biden’s election victory. Powell promised to “release the Kraken,” likening their effort to a mythological sea monster. The Trump campaign distanced itself from Powell after she claimed without evidence at the news conference that electronic voting systems had switched millions of ballots from Trump to Biden. Giuliani’s New York law license was suspended in June, after a state appeals court found he made “demonstrably false and misleading” statements that widespread voter fraud undermined the election, won by Democrat Joe Biden. The committee is aiming to release an interim report in the summer and a final report in the fall, a source familiar with the investigation said last month. CNN reported on Tuesday that the committee has subpoenaed and obtained records of phone numbers associated with one of Trump’s children, Eric Trump, as well as Kimberly Guilfoyle, who is engaged to Donald Trump Jr. The Select Committee’s members have said they will consider passing along evidence of criminal conduct by Trump to the U.S. Justice Department. Such a move, known as a criminal referral, would be largely symbolic but would increase the political pressure on Attorney General Merrick Garland to charge the former president. (Reporting by Jan Wolfe; Additional reporting by Karen Freifeld; Editing by Scott Malone, Bill Berkrot and Bernard Orr) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Alistair Smout LONDON (Reuters) – People with mild COVID-19 who do not suffer any other traditional “long COVID” symptoms can still exhibit deteriorated attention and memory six to nine months after infection, a study by Britain’s Oxford University has found. Cognitive issues impacting concentration levels, along with forgetfulness and fatigue, are features of long COVID – a condition that afflicts some after an initial bout of infection – but it has not been established how widespread issues with attention span might be following COVID-19 infection. In the study, participants who had tested positive for COVID-19 previously but did not report other traditional long COVID symptoms were asked to complete exercises to test their memory and cognitive ability. The researchers found that participants were significantly worse at recalling personal experiences, known as episodic memory, up to six months after infection. They also had a bigger decline in their ability to sustain attention over time than uninfected individuals up to nine months after infection. “What is surprising is that although our COVID-19 survivors did not feel any more symptomatic at the time of testing, they showed degraded attention and memory,” said Dr Sijia Zhao of the Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford. “Our findings reveal that people can experience some chronic cognitive consequences for months.” The researchers said that individuals over time demonstrated episodic memory and attention span largely returned to normal after six and nine months, respectively. Participants also performed well in tests of other cognitive abilities, including working memory and planning, in the analysis of 136 participants. Stephen Burgess of the MRC Biostatistics Unit at the University of Cambridge highlighted the small number of people involved in the study, adding that it was not randomised. “However, despite this, differences between the COVID and non-COVID groups in terms of several specific measures of cognitive ability looked at in this study were striking,” he said. “Despite the limitations of non-randomised research, it seems unlikely that these results can be explained by systematic differences between the groups unrelated to COVID infection.” (Reporting by Alistair Smout; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise) View the full article

Published by Radar Online mega Ivanka Trump was recently spotted in Florida with her husband, children, and in-laws seemingly unbothered despite her recent subpoena in connection to an investigation focusing on her father Donald Trump’s business practices. In the photos obtained by Radar, the 40-year-old businesswoman and daughter of the former president was seen soaking up the sun in Miami on Sunday just before leaving the Sunshine State. She was photographed with her controversial husband Jared Kushner, 41, and his parents, as well as their three kids – Arabella, 10, Joseph, 8, and Theodore, 5. mega If Ivanka was upset over her January 3 subpoena in connection to New York Attorney General Letitia James’ investigation into the Trump Organization, it was not visibly clear because she and her family seemed happier than ever on vacation. As Radar previously reported, both Ivanka and Donald Trump Jr. were subpoenaed nearly two weeks ago as part of the attorney general’s civil investigation into their father for allegedly manipulating the values of his properties. “These delay tactics will not stop us from following the facts or the law, which is why we will be asking the court to compel Donald Trump, Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump to testify with our office under oath,” Attorney General James said in a statement following news of the issued subpoenas. “Our investigation will continue undeterred.” mega But while the investigation is still very much ongoing, Donald, Don Jr. and Ivanka have reportedly not been cooperating fully with the probe, according to The New York Times. “She cannot wear two hats and do a civil investigation and a criminal investigation with the D.A. at the same time,” Ronald P. Fischetti, the Trump attorney, said regarding Letitia James before adding that the AG’s actions are “unprecedented” and the “subpoenas circumvent the rights to grand jury protections we all have.” The latest sighting of Ivanka comes a little more than a month since she was spotted mingling with A-listers like Kim Kardashian, Kanye West, Pharrell, and Kid Cudi at Louis Vuitton‘s tribute show to Virgil Abloh on December 1. mega View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Adele is expected to make more than “£500,000 per gig” during her Las Vegas residency. The 33-year-old singer will soon perform at the Colosseum theatre at Caesars Palace, and she’s poised to become one of the highest-paid female artists in the history of Las Vegas residencies. A source shared: “Adele is the hottest ticket in Las Vegas right now and she’s raking in a pretty penny from it. “She is expected to make over £500,000 per gig thanks to ticket sales alone, even before the merchandising.” Adele will earn a cut from ticket sales, as well as a share of all merchandise sold at the venue. The London-born star will also be given access to a £30,000-a-night private suite throughout her residency. The insider told The Sun newspaper: “Caesars has rolled out the red carpet to ensure she’s treated like the superstar she is.” The ‘Easy on Me’ hitmaker – who announced her Las Vegas residency in November – will also have a chauffeur and security throughout her live shows, which run from January 21 until April 16. Adele released her long-awaited fourth album, ’30’, last year, and she admitted that she’s recently rediscovered her love of music, after her passion waned for a period of time. She explained: “I definitely feel like I lost sight of and lost the appreciation of what a gift it is to be into music and be able to make it. “I think I got a bit frightened of it for a while and it really, really took care of me big time. Not just making this record, my own record, but diving back into old records of other people’s that I loved, discovering new artists on SoundCloud or whatever.” View the full article

Published by Reuters By David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The chief executives of major U.S. passenger and cargo carriers on Monday warned of an impending “catastrophic” aviation crisis in less than 36 hours, when AT&T and Verizon are set to deploy new 5G service. The airlines warned the new C-Band 5G service set to begin on Wednesday could render a significant number of widebody aircraft unusable, “could potentially strand tens of thousands of Americans overseas” and cause “chaos” for U.S. flights. “Unless our major hubs are cleared to fly, the vast majority of the traveling and shipping public will essentially be grounded,” wrote the chief executives of American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, Southwest Airlines and others in a letter first reported by Reuters. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has warned that potential interference could affect sensitive airplane instruments such as altimeters and significantly hamper low-visibility operations. “This means that on a day like yesterday, more than 1,100 flights and 100,000 passengers would be subjected to cancellations, diversions or delays,” the letter https://twitter.com/davidshepardson/status/1483148794690740224?s=20 cautioned. Airlines late on Monday were considering whether to begin canceling some international flights that are scheduled to arrive in the United States on Wednesday. “With the proposed restrictions at selected airports, the transportation industry is preparing for some service disruption. We are optimistic that we can work across industries and with government to finalize solutions that safely mitigate as many schedule impacts as possible,” plane maker Boeing said on Monday. Action is urgent, the airlines added in the letter also signed by UPS Airlines, Alaska Air, Atlas Air, JetBlue Airways and FedEx Express. “To be blunt, the nation’s commerce will grind to a halt.” The letter went to White House National Economic Council director Brian Deese, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, FAA Administrator Steve Dickson and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. Airlines for America, the group that organized the letter, declined to comment. The FAA said it “will continue to ensure that the traveling public is safe as wireless companies deploy 5G. The FAA continues to work with the aviation industry and wireless companies to try to limit 5G-related flight delays and cancellations.” The other government agencies did not comment. ‘INTERVENTION IS NEEDED’ AT&T and Verizon, which won nearly all of the C-Band spectrum in an $80 billion auction last year, on Jan. 3 agreed to buffer zones around 50 airports to reduce interference risks and take other steps to cut potential interference for six months. They also agreed to delay deployment for two weeks until Wednesday, temporarily averting an aviation safety standoff, after previously delaying service by 30 days. Verizon and AT&T declined comment on Monday. They argue C-Band 5G has been successfully deployed in about 40 other countries without aviation interference issues. The CEOs of major airlines and Boeing Chief Executive Dave Calhoun held a lengthy call with Buttigieg and Dickson on Sunday to warn of the looming crisis, officials told Reuters. United Airlines late Monday separately warned the issue could affect more than 15,000 of its flights, 1.25 million passengers and snarl tons of cargo annually. United said it faces “significant restrictions on 787s, 777s, 737s and regional aircraft in major cities like Houston, Newark, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago.” The airlines ask “that 5G be implemented everywhere in the country except within the approximate 2 miles (3.2 km) of airport runways” at some key airports. “Immediate intervention is needed to avoid significant operational disruption to air passengers, shippers, supply chain and delivery of needed medical supplies,” they said. The airlines added that flight restrictions will not be limited to poor weather operations. “Multiple modern safety systems on aircraft will be deemed unusable causing a much larger problem than what we knew… Airplane manufacturers have informed us that there are huge swaths of the operating fleet that may need to be indefinitely grounded.” One area of concern is whether some or all Boeing 777s will be unable to land at some key U.S. airports after 5G service starts, as well as some Boeing cargo planes, airline officials told Reuters. The airlines urged action to ensure “5G is deployed except when towers are too close to airport runways until the FAA can determine how that can be safely accomplished without catastrophic disruption.” The FAA said on Sunday it had cleared an estimated 45% of the U.S. commercial airplane fleet to perform low-visibility landings at many airports where 5G C-band will be deployed and they expect to issue more approvals before Wednesday. The airlines noted on Monday that the list did not include many large airports. (Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Bill Berkrot and Gerry Doyle) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Andy Sullivan WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Joe Biden’s Democrats will bring their push to protect U.S. voting rights to the floor of the Senate this week, where it is roundly expected to fail in the face of united Republican opposition. The vote, which could come in days or weeks, may be the last chance for Biden to secure a new federal law to counter an onslaught of state limits to poll access before Republicans possibly capture one or both houses of Congress in elections in November. As other elements of his domestic agenda stall on Capitol Hill, the Democratic president has called the vote a significant moment for a U.S. democracy facing crisis. If the vote fails, the Senate could agree a narrower compromise over vote counting procedures, as some Republicans say they would like to avoid a repeat of the chaos that followed the 2020 U.S. presidential election. First, the Senate will take up as soon as Tuesday the legislation to expand access to mail-in voting, tighten campaign finance rules, and strengthen federal oversight of elections in states that have a history of racial discrimination. Debate before any vote could be lengthy. Democratic Senator Tim Kaine on Friday noted that the Senate spent several weeks debating the landmark voting rights laws of the 1960s, which were last updated by Congress in 2006. “We may be on this debate for some time,” he told constituents on a Zoom call. Barring an unexpected development, Democrats are headed for defeat. Republicans oppose the package as a partisan effort that would undermine local control of elections, and Democrats lack the support within their own party for a rule change that would allow them to bypass Republican opposition. Democrats argue the legislation, backed by civil rights groups https://www.reuters.com/world/us/family-martin-luther-king-jr-lead-washington-march-voting-rights-2022-01-17, is needed to counter a Republican-led push to make it more difficult to vote at the state level, particularly for Blacks and other minority voters. Those efforts have been underway for more than a decade, but they gained new momentum last year after former President Donald Trump falsely claimed that his 2020 election loss was due to fraud. Lawmakers in 19 states have passed dozens of laws since Trump’s defeat limiting voting times and mail-in ballots and raising voter-ID requirements. In the Senate, Republicans blocked similar legislation three times last year, and are expected to do so again. Democrats control 50 seats in the 100-seat chamber, short of the 60 votes needed to advance most legislation. Biden pressed Democrats last week to waive that supermajority requirement https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/us-senate-democrats-mull-ending-filibuster-pass-voting-rights-reform-2022-01-11, known as the “filibuster,” for voting-related legislation. But two centrist Democratic senators, Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin, said they would not do so. The two met with Biden Thursday evening to discuss the topic, but have since given no indication that their opinion has shifted. (Reporting by Andy Sullivan; additional reporting by David Morgan; Editing by Heather Timmons and Paul Simao) View the full article

Published by OK Magazine MEGA Prince Andrew‘s ex-girlfriend has shared her thoughts on Ghislaine Maxwell‘s conviction. As previously reported by OK!, the socialite was found guilty on five out of six sex trafficking-related changes last month. The Duke of York’s ex-girlfriend Lady Victoria Hervey spoke about her relationship with Ghislaine on Lorraine on Tuesday, January 18, the Daily Mailreported. MEGA TOP 5 SECRETS & SCANDALS FROM THE GHISLAINE MAXWELL TRIAL: PHOTOS During the appearance, Victoria said that she thinks the socialite is a “victim” of the late Jeffrey Epstein. “She is a scapegoat right now, so unfortunately for her, she is being taken down for what he has done as well. Some might argue is not quite as fair as it could be,” Victoria said, per the outlet. According to Victoria, the 60-year-old became an “accomplice as her role changed in that relationship when they were no longer together.” “She kind of switched sides. I do see her as a victim as well,” Victoria maintained. Victoria said that Jeffrey and Ghislaine were “definitely a double act,” and imagined that “it wouldn’t have worked with him on his own. It was a lot easier for her to approach other women being a female.” PRINCE & THE PAEDOPHILE NEXT DOOR: EXAMINING THE EVIDENCE AGAINST ANDREW… QUESTIONING WHY HAS IT BEEN IGNORED? Victoria explained that she was the “It girl of London” when she was associating with Ghislaine. She added that she was invited to “every dinner event.” Victoria said that while she “had fun at the time,” she felt “used” by Ghislaine and Jeffrey. “I was so naive. People in my situation that were really young, of course we were going to get taken advantage of,” she recalled. She said she was “just a pretty face” to entertain people, but she is aware that she is “one of the lucky ones.” She shared that she did not know anything was wrong when she attended the parties. She said she enjoyed herself at the time, but felt there were video cameras in the apartment where the gatherings took place. “This is in the early 2000s when no one had any idea of what people found out later on but the early 2000s, people wanted Ghislaine and Jeffrey at all their events. They were invited there everywhere,” she said. VIRGINIA GIUFFRE SPEAKS OUT ABOUT ‘JUSTICE’ OF GHISLAINE MAXWELL GUILTY VERDICT, INSISTS ‘OTHERS MUST BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE’ MEGA As for Ghislaine’s trail, Victoria said she followed some of it, but she was disappointed. She said she felt detached from it because it hadn’t been televised. Victoria revealed that Ghislaine never mentioned her friendship with Andrew because she was “quite private about a lot,” but she knew they were friends. Meanwhile, Andrew’s attempt to have Virginia Giuffre‘s sexual assault lawsuit tossed out was rejected. The accused royal will face a civil trial in the U.S. He denied the allegations against him. Queen Elizabeth II stripped her son of his military titles and royal patronages. View the full article