lwsimmons.org

May 29, 2005

Saturday evening, at approximately 7:00 p.m. PST on Mt. Washington in Los Angeles, California, a brush fire broke out on the southwestern side of the hill.

Firefighters were on the scene by 8:30 p.m. with fire trucks, paramedic units, surveillance helicopters, and water-equipped helicopters. Two fire trucks blasted water at the blaze from higher up on the mountain, while every minute or so, a water-equipped helicopter would swoop down over the flames and release its payload. At the top of the hill, there were five fire trucks and one paramedic unit; the three main entrances to the mountain were barricaded off by fire trucks.

By approximately 9:15 p.m., the flame was entirely extinguished, thanks mainly to the water-equipped helicopters. Firefighters were offering bystanders bottles of water and Gatorade to help combat the effects of standing near an open flame.

Monday, January 22, 2007

Pfizer CEO Jeffery Kindler has announced that 2,410 jobs will be cut in Michigan, taking out three plants in the state. Pfizer has also announced that they will cut a total of 10 000 jobs by next year. The Ann Arbor, Kalamazoo, and Plymouth sites are representatives of the world’s largest drug manufacturing company.

A portion of these jobs will be reassigned in Pfizer plants in cities such as La Jolla, CA, Groton, CT, and Sandwich in the United Kingdom. These cuts come after Pfizer’s newest drug in development, torcetrapib, was scrapped late last year due to unexpected side effects.

The money spent researching the drug Torcetrapib ended with the loss of millions of dollars. This comes as a bigger blow to the region when coupled with ongoing losses to major car manufacturers in the Detroit area, and Gov. Jennifer Granholm said today, “We’re going to have a whole ‘Stick Around Ann Arbor’ campaign for these employees, because we want them to stay here.”

Among the other groups affected are Ann Arbor schools, to whom Pfizer pays millions of dollars, and local businesses. Most employees declined comment, as they are being asked by Pfizer not to talk with the media.

Thursday, March 13, 2008

Family First Senator Steve Fielding arrived at Parliament today, dressed as a beer bottle to raise awareness of a bill he intends to move in the Senate today. Senator Fielding will introduce a bill to establish a nationwide refund scheme for bottles and cans.

A similar scheme has operated in South Australia since 1977.

Family First wants a rebate of 10 cents per container, while the Australian Greens want 20 cents.

Speaking to reporters outside parliament dressed as a beer bottle, the Senator said the legislation would reduce litter by 25 per cent. “There’s a message in this bottle.”

“I am no longer trash, I’m cash.”

“We should get the litter off the streets and off the creeks and into recycling – that’s good for the environment and good for the community”

“It’s a win-win and I can’t understand why nationally we don’t have a scheme,” said Senator Fielding.

Senator Fielding said that recycling not only reduced litter, but also consumes less energy than making new containers from scratch. “Recycling a plastic bottle saves more than 80 per cent of the energy used to make a bottle from scratch and recycling aluminium cans uses just five per cent of the energy used making a can from scratch,” said the Senator.

Senator Bob Brown, leader of the Greens said while there were environmental benefits from recycling, it would also create thousands of new jobs.

“This is a very good way of recycling and reducing energy because a lot of energy goes into making cans and bottles,” Senator Brown told reporters.

“It will employ tens of thousands of people across Australia.”

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

English actress Rachel Weisz thinks that Botox injections should be banned for all actors.

The 39-year-old actress, best known for her roles in the Mummy movie franchise and for her Academy Award-winning portrayal in The Constant Gardener, feels facial Botox injections leave actors less able to convey emotion and that it harms the acting industry as much as steroids harm athletes.

In an interview with UK’s Harper’s Bazaar, coming out next month, Weisz says, “It should be banned for actors, as steroids are for sportsmen,” she claims. “Acting is all about expression; why would you want to iron out a frown?”

Currently living in New York, she also mentions that English women are much less worried about their physical appearance than in the United States. “I love the way girls in London dress,” she claimed. “It’s so different to the American ‘blow-dry and immaculate grooming’ thing.”

Friday, September 14, 2007

The Kennedy Center announced that its 30th presentation of the Kennedy Center Honors would go to pianist Leon Fleisher, comedian Steve Martin, singer Diana Ross, director Martin Scorsese and musician Brian Wilson. The Center was opened to the public in 1971 and was envisioned as part of the National Cultural Center Act, which mandated that the independent, privately-funded institution would present a wide variety of both classical and contemporary performances, commission the creation of new artistic works, and undertake a variety of educational missions to increase awareness of the arts.

In a statement, Kennedy Center Chairman Stephen A. Schwarzman said that “with their extraordinary talent, creativity and perseverance, the five 2007 honorees have transformed the way we, as Americans, see, hear and feel the performing arts.”

Fleisher, 79, a member of the Peabody Institute‘s music faculty, is a pianist who lost use of his right hand in 1965 due to a neurological condition. He became an accomplished musician and conductor through the use of his left hand. At 67, he regained the use of his right hand. With the advent of Botox therapy, he was once more able to undertake two-hand performances in 2004, his first in four decades. “I’m very gratified by the fact that it’s an apolitical honor,” Fleisher said. “It is given by colleagues and professional people who are aware of what [an artist] has done, so it really is apolitical — and that much more of an honor.”

Martin, 62, a comedian who has written books and essays in addition to his acting and stand-up comedy career, rose to fame during his work on the American television program Saturday Night Live in the 1970’s. Schwarzman praised his work as that of a “renaissance comic whose talents wipe out the boundaries between artistic disciplines.” Martin responded to the honor saying, “I am grateful to the Kennedy Center for finally alleviating in me years of covetousness and trophy envy.”

Ross, 63, was a product of Detroit‘s Brewster-Douglass Projects when as a teeager she and friends Mary Wilson and Florence Ballardis formed The Supremes, a ground-breaking Motown act. She portrayed singer Billie Holiday in the 1972 film Lady Sings the Blues, which earned her an Oscar nomination and a Golden Globe award. “Diana Ross’ singular, instantly recognizable voice has spread romance and joy throughout the world,” said Schwarzman. Ross said she was “taken aback. It is a huge, huge honor and I am excited to be in this class of people.”

Scorsese, 64, is one of the most accomplished directors the United States ever produced, whose work includes Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, GoodFellas, Cape Fear, The Last Temptation of Christ and The Departed, for which he won a 2006 Academy Award for Best Director after being nominated eight times. Scorsese said, “I’m very honored to be receiving this recognition from the Kennedy Center and proud to be joining the company of the very distinguished individuals who have received this honor in years past.”

Wilson, 65, along with his brothers Dennis and Carl, formed the Beach Boys in 1961. They had a series of hits that included “Surfin’ U.S.A.” and “Wouldn’t It Be Nice.” Their 1966 album Pet Sounds is considered one of the most influential recordings in American music. “This is something so unexpected and I feel extremely fortunate to be in the company of such great artists,” said Wilson, who is currently on tour.

The Kennedy Center’s board of trustees is responsible for selecting honorees for “lifetime contributions to American culture through the performing arts.” Previous honorees, including Elton John and Steven Spielberg, also submitted recommendations. A wide variety of people were under consideration, including Emanuel Ax, Evgeny Kissin, Renee Fleming, Laurence Fishburne, Francis Ford Coppola, Melissa Etheridge and Kenny Chesney.

President Bush and first lady Laura Bush will attend the center’s presentation at its opera house on December 2, 2007, which will broadcast on December 26 on CBS.

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania — Local caterers get ready for big business, as almost three thousand fans converge on the David L. Lawrence Convention Center over the Independence Day weekend for the world’s largest ever furry convention, Anthrocon 2007.

Many hope to renew acquaintances, or meet new friends. Others look to buy from dealers and artists, or show off new artwork or costumes. Some attend to make money, or even learn a thing or two. But one thing unites them: They’re all there to have fun.

Monday, May 15, 2006

Senator Helen Coonan, Australian minister for communication, information technology and the arts, has announced the federal government will be extending its subsidy on satellite telephone handsets.

The scheme allows those living or working in parts of remote Australia without conventional mobile telephone services to claim a subsidy of up to AU$1,200 on the purchase of a satellite telephone.

The program was supposed to run for five years from 2002 until 2007. The program will continue until 2009.

In addition to the extension, the scheme’s eligibility criteria will be changed from July 1, 2006 to ensure that the scheme “continues to be well targeted,” according to Senator Coonan.

The changes will allow aboriginal corporations and educational institutions to claim the subsidy, which were previously ineligible. “These changes include increasing the level of support available to Indigenous corporations who may now be able to receive more than two subsidies in some circumstances, and introducing educational institutions as an eligible category,” Senator Coonan said.

The government will also change the way the subsidy is calculated. In the past, it had been calculated based upon the call plan chosen by the customer. The government will now calculate the subsidy based on the amount of time the customer spends in remote areas. Those operating a business in areas without ground-based mobile telephone services will be eligible for the full AU$1,200 subsidy, while those who spend some time in such areas will be eligible for AU$900.

Saturday, September 8, 2012

The human rights group Human Rights Watch has published a 154-page document accusing the United States of cooperating with Libya under the rule of Muammar Gaddafi, in the interrogation and torture of members of the armed group, Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG), according to a report in the Huffington Post.

The report alleges that the United States and Libya, together with governments from Africa, Asia, and Europe such as the United Kingdom, collaborated in detaining former members of LIFG living outside Libya then deporting them back to Libya where they were allegedly tortured. According to the report, some of those detained where abused even before the were returned to Libya such as those held in United States military bases in Afghanistan. News reports have revealed that the abuse may have occurred between April 2003 and April 2005.

Upon the release of the document, Human Rights Watch has stated that their key source of information came from a pile of abandoned documents found on September 3, 2011 from the offices of former Libyan intelligence chief Musa Kusa. They also said that they have interviewed 14 former detainees who allege that they were subjected to abuses ranging from waterboarding, sexual assault, stress positions, beatings, and sleep deprivation.