NewzIntel.com

Category: Business

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Vital Sewerage Infrastructure Projects for Ganga River Rejuvenation approved in the 60th Executive Committee Meeting of NMCG

    Source: Government of India

    Vital Sewerage Infrastructure Projects for Ganga River Rejuvenation approved in the 60th Executive Committee Meeting of NMCG

    Ganga Mobile Parikrama, Chaupal Ganga Kinare, Ganga Awareness Week, and the Ganga Ambassador Program to inspire behavioural change and encourage deeper community involvement in conservation efforts

    A drone-based monitoring project in West Bengal to track the plantation of saplings under Namami Gange Mission-II

    Posted On: 12 FEB 2025 7:30PM by PIB Delhi

    The 60th Executive Committee Meeting of the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), chaired by Director General, NMCG, approved several significant projects aimed at the conservation and rejuvenation of the Ganga River. These initiatives are aimed to enhance cleanliness, promote sustainable development, and preserve the environmental and cultural heritage of the river.

    In a major step towards tackling pollution, the committee approved the interception and diversion of the Durga Drain and the construction of a 60 MLD capacity sewage treatment plant (STP) in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, at a cost of ₹274.31 crore. This project, based on the hybrid annuity model, includes a 75 MLD capacity main pumping station and other essential structures, ensuring long-term wastewater management and pollution control.

    Additionally, a significant project was approved to prevent the flow of untreated sewage into Varuna, a major tributary of the Ganga, in Bhadohi. With an investment of ₹127.26 crore, this initiative will establish three STPs with capacities of 17 MLD, 5 MLD, and 3 MLD, along with an extensive sewer network to tap four major drains and prevent pollution. This project follows the Design-Build-Operate-Transfer (DBOT) model, ensuring sustainable operation and maintenance over the next 15 years.

    The Executive Committee (EC) of NMCG has undertaken a breakthrough initiative with the approval of “Ganga Through the Ages – A Literary Bioscope,” an innovative project designed to foster public participation in Ganga conservation through literature, education, and community engagement. Implemented in collaboration with the National Book Trust, this initiative, will highlight the historical, spiritual, and ecological significance of the river. Programs such as Ganga Mobile Parikrama, Chaupal Ganga Kinare, Ganga Awareness Week, and the Ganga Ambassador Program will be introduced, featuring mobile libraries, digital storytelling, school workshops, and literary sessions along the riverbanks. These efforts aim to inspire behavioural change and encourage deeper community involvement in conservation efforts.

    Furthering scientific advancements, the committee also approved a drone-based monitoring project in West Bengal to track the plantation of saplings under Namami Gange Mission-II. This initiative will assess tree health, develop a digital database, and ensure effective afforestation efforts along the riverbanks.

    The projects approved during the 60th NMCG Executive Committee Meeting reaffirm the mission’s commitment to Ganga conservation through infrastructural advancements, pollution control, and public engagement. Key initiatives include sewage treatment plants and afforestation, alongside the innovative “Ganga Through the Ages – A Literary Bioscope” project to foster awareness and participation in river rejuvenation efforts.

    The meeting was attended by senior officials, including Smt. Richa Mishra, Joint Secretary and Financial Adviser, Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Shri Nalin Kumar Srivastava, Deputy Director General, NMCG, Shri Brijendra Swaroop, Executive Director (Projects), Shri Anup Kumar Srivastava, Executive Director (Technical), Shri SP Vashishth, Executive Director (Administration), Shri Bhaskar Dasgupta, Executive Director (Finance) and Smt. Nandini Ghosh, Project Director, West Bengal SPMG, Shri Yogesh Kumar Sagar, Managing Director, Bihar BUIDCO and Shri Prabhash Kumar, Additional Project Director, Uttar Pradesh SMCG. 

    ***

    Dhanya Sanal K

    (Release ID: 2102458) Visitor Counter : 41

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: BHARAT NOT ONLY PROVIDES BUSINESS & INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES TO THE WORLD, IT ALSO PROVIDES LEADERSHIP IN ALL SECTORS: LOK SABHA SPEAKER

    Source: Government of India (2)

    BHARAT NOT ONLY PROVIDES BUSINESS & INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES TO THE WORLD, IT ALSO PROVIDES LEADERSHIP IN ALL SECTORS: LOK SABHA SPEAKER

    IT SHOULD BE OUR ENDEAVOR TO MAKE CITIZENS A STAKEHOLDER IN GOVERNANCE: LOK SABHA SPEAKER

    MORE THAN HUNDRED CEOs, OWNERS & FOUNDERS FROM 16 COUNTRIES CALL ON LOK SABHA SPEAKER

    MEMBERS OF DELEGATION SHOWED KEEN INTEREST IN BHARAT’S ECONOMIC PROGRESS AND ITS LEADERSHIP IN GLOBAL AFFAIRS

    CONSTITUTION OF BHARAT AND PARLIAMENTARY DEMOCRACY FORM BEDROCK OF PEACE, GROWTH, AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE WORLD’S LARGEST DEMOCRACY: LOK SABHA SPEAKER

    DELEGATION OF HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL ALUMNI CALLS ON LOK SABHA SPEAKER

    Posted On: 12 FEB 2025 7:10PM by PIB Delhi

     Lok Sabha Speaker Shri Om Birla has asserted that Bharat not only provides business and investment opportunities to the world but it also provides leadership and solutions to the world in various sectors of economy and in global affairs. Addressing a delegation of more than 100 CEOs, Owners and Founders of renowned companies from 16 countries in parliament House complex today, Shri Birla said that Bharat has taken the centre stage in global leadership due to political stability and good governance with a vision of Vasudhaiv Kutumbkam. In an engaging and enriching interaction with the delegation of Harvard Business School Alumni Group, Shri Birla said that Constitutionof Bharat and parliamentary democracy form the bedrock of peace, growth, and development in the world’s largest democracy. He emphasized the significance of Bharat’s foundational democratic principles in shaping the nation’s trajectory and fostering an environment conducive to prosperity.

    The delegation demonstrated a keen interest in understanding India’s economic progress and its rising stature on the global stage. During the interaction, the members of the delegation sought to learn more about the policies that have propelled India’s growth and its evolving role in the international community. Shri Birla welcomed their questions and provided thoughtful responses, particularly regarding economic investments and the functioning of parliamentary democracy. He informed the delegation that under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, country is moving ahead on the path of holistic development with the larger goal of Viksit Bharat. Shri Birla welcomed the delegation members to invest in Bharat and assured them of support from all stakeholders in this process. In response to a question, Shri Birla observed that parliamentary democracy is the best form of governance and it provides effective solutions to various issues.

    He added that it should be our endeavor to make our citizens stakeholders in democratic form of governance, which will lead to ‘Good Governance’. The delegation which comprised business leaders in their respective countries, thanked Lok Sabha Speaker for providing deeper understanding of Bharat’s political and economic landscape, addressing the growing global curiosity about the nation’s development.

    *****

    AM

    (Release ID: 2102449) Visitor Counter : 37

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: India moving towards becoming a global leader in defence innovation & aerospace technology: Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh at Valedictory event of Aero India 2025

    Source: Government of India (2)

    India moving towards becoming a global leader in defence innovation & aerospace technology: Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh at Valedictory event of Aero India 2025

    “Nothing less than the best can be allowed when it comes to national security; Providing our soldiers with the best of everything is our national responsibility”

    “The time has come for the private industry to take a lead in defence manufacturing sector in India”

    India’s indigenous ingenuity in defence manufacturing displayed through 33 state-of-the-art items at ‘Samarthya’ indigenisation event, first-of-its-kind at Aero India

    Posted On: 12 FEB 2025 6:59PM by PIB Delhi

    “India is going through a revolutionary phase of transformation and is moving towards becoming a global leader in defence innovation & aerospace technology,” said Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh while addressing the Valedictory event of 15th Aero India in Bengaluru, Karnataka on February 12, 2025. Raksha Mantri stated that, at the beginning, holistic national empowerment was the underlying philosophy of the mantra of self-reliance given by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. “This philosophy gradually turned into our national spirit and now it is rapidly moving ahead to becoming a national resolution and national revolution,” he said. 

    Shri Rajnath Singh acknowledged the energy and enthusiasm being witnessed at Aero India 2025, stating that the growing participation of domestic & global exhibitors at the event and the breath-taking aerobatic performances by the Indian Air Force have made the 15th edition of Asia’s biggest aerospace and defence exhibition an unparalleled & historic event. He expressed optimism towards deeper and meaningful engagements amongst participating defence and aerospace companies.  

    Elaborating on the drastic change being witnessed in the field of defence manufacturing in the country, Raksha Mantri expressed appreciation over the fact that while 65-70% of defence equipment was imported a decade ago, today almost the same percentage of weapons/platforms are being manufactured on the Indian soil. “Today, we are at a juncture where many defence products, including fighter jets, missile systems & naval vessels, are not only protecting our borders, but also catching the attention of the world. From small artillery to large platforms like Brahmos and Akash missile system, we are exporting a variety of products to many countries. We have forged new partnerships at the global level, which has resulted in increased defence exports,” he added. 

    Shri Rajnath Singh asserted that India possesses a strong defence industrial complex, comprising 16 Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs), 430 licensed companies & about 16,000 MSMEs. He underlined that, with its current share of 21% in total defence production, the private sector is playing an active role in achieving the goal of self-reliance. He listed out the policies being constantly rolled out by the Government for the progress of both public and private sectors, including the revision of Defence Acquisition Procedure and the launch of initiatives/schemes such as Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX), Acing Development of Innovative Technologies with iDEX (ADITI) and Technology Development Fund (TDF). The time has come for the private industry to take a lead in the defence manufacturing sector in India, he said. 

    Raksha Mantri stressed on the fact that, in addition to the public & private sectors, the Armed Forces play the biggest role in the country’s pursuit of self-reliance. “National security is of utmost importance and there is no scope for any compromise. Nothing less than the best can be allowed when it comes to national security. Be it the equipment for our soldiers or provision of proper amenities for them & their families, providing them the best in everything is our national responsibility. I am happy to say that today our forces are not only being equipped with the ‘best’ weapons/technologies, they possess the platforms manufactured in India,” he said.

    Shri Rajnath Singh appreciated the Armed Forces for their full trust in indigenously-manufactured defence products. “The military has wholeheartedly adopted weapons and equipment manufactured in the country. Only with the complete satisfaction of our Armed Forces can we move ahead to achieve self-reliance at a faster pace. The huge Defence Industrial Complex being built in India is based on the trust and faith of all our forces,” he said. 

    Raksha Mantri reiterated the Government’s commitment to constantly increase defence preparedness, keeping in mind the dimensions of warfare emerging today. He said Aero India 2025 has shown the potential that the future of Indian defence and aerospace sector is not just limited to the skies, but beyond it. He expressed gratitude to everyone for participating in the 15th Aero India, and hoped that it sows seeds of many collaborative, mutually beneficial and successful ventures & alliances amongst the participants. 

    Earlier, Shri Rajnath Singh graced ‘Samarthya’ indigenisation event, which was first-of-its-kind at Aero India. It showcased India’s indigenous ingenuity in defence manufacturing through 33 major items including 24 of DPSUs, DRDO & Indian Navy and nine successful innovation projects of Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX). 

    The items included ELECTRO BLOCK of Anti-Aircraft Machine Gun, Electric Mobile Part for submarine, Torsion Bar Suspension of HMV 6×6, Extruded Al alloy for components of LCA MK-I/II, LCH, Indian High temperature alloy (IHTA) Forged, Solution Annealed & Machined Billet, VPX-135 Single Board Computer, Muzzle Bore Sight of Tank T-90, RudraM II MISSILE, Naval Anti-Ship Missile–Short Range, C4ISR System, DIFM R118 Electronic Warfare Systems, Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast Receiver, Next-Generation Electric Ferry, Computerised Pilot Selection System, Counter measures for illegal drones (RF Jammer Guns), 4G/LTE TAC-LAN, Generation of Quantum Secure Keys between two nodes connected directly over 200 Kms) QKD – Armos, Abhed1 Secure Hardware based offline Encryption, Advanced autonomous systems for the armed forces, Attack surface monitoring tool, AI/ Ml Based Analytical and Decision Support Platforms (DeepDarshak), Smart Compressed Breathing Apparatus, Fire Wire for IFDSS, Portable RCS measuring device, Penetrator Assy for 125mm FSAPDS, Pilot Parachute PSU-36 for SU-30MKI, Knock out Engine (KOE) Charge for Konkurs-M missile, Diffusion Technology based Drivers Night Sight for BMP II and 30mm Six Barrel AO-18 Gun for AK630M Naval Gun. 

    During the event, three booklets – Coffee Table Booklet ‘Samarthya’ on Indigenisation; Compendium of Problem Definition Statement (CPDS) i.e. 2025 and Booklet of HQ IDS – were released by Raksha Mantri. The Coffee Table Booklet provides an overview of the indigenisation journey led by the Department of Defence Production. The Booklet of HQ IDS offers insights into conducting multi-domain operations in a data-centric environment, in the backdrop of emergence of new & transformative technology. 

    The CPDS aims to bridge the gap between the operational challenges of the Indian Army and the innovative solutions offered by academia, industry start-ups and research institutions. It contains 82 Problem Statements across 11 functional domains of warfare, including AI, communications, electronic warfare, situational awareness, survivability, mobility, armament, unmanned systems, cyber, logistical challenges etc.  It also includes problem statements for Indigenisation/ import substitution to reduce our import dependency for certain components or assemblies of legacy equipment. 

    The CPDS is a structured approach where the Army identifies and documents critical operational challenges and provides a platform for the Indian defence ecosystem to engage directly while accelerating the research and deployment of cutting-edge technologies tailored to the Army’s needs. The detailed guidelines elaborating on the procedure for submitting responses and evaluation criteria have been included in the Compendium available for download in the Army Design Bureau webpage of Indian Army website.   

    During the event, employees and associated industry partners of the DPSUs, DRDO, Services, who have contributed immensely in the indigenisation of the displayed items were felicitated during the event. Raksha Rajya Mantri Shri Sanjay Seth; Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan; Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi; Chief of the Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi; Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal AP Singh; Defence Secretary Shri Rajesh Kumar Singh; Secretary (Defence Production) Shri Sanjeev Kumar were among those who attended the event.

     ****

    VK/Savvy

    (Release ID: 2102439) Visitor Counter : 52

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Why federal courts are unlikely to save democracy from Trump’s and Musk’s attacks

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Maya Sen, Professor of Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School

    Many people may look to federal courts as a bulwark of the U.S. Constitution. Jose Luis Pelaez/Stone via Getty Images

    State governments, community groups, advocacy nonprofits and regular Americans have filed a large and growing number of federal lawsuits opposing President Donald Trump’s barrage of executive orders and policy statements. Some of his actions have been put on hold by the federal courts, at least temporarily.

    As a scholar of the federal courts, however, I expect the courts will be of limited help in navigating through this complicated new political landscape.

    One problem is that the U.S. Supreme Court in recent years has moved sharply to the right and has approved of past efforts to expand the powers of the presidency. But the problem with relying on the courts for help goes beyond ideology and right-leaning justices going along with a right-leaning president, as happened in Trump’s first term.

    One challenge is speed: The Trump administration is moving much faster than courts do, or even can. The other is authority: The courts’ ability to compel government action is limited, and also slow.

    And that doesn’t even factor in statements by Trump, Vice President JD Vance and “special government employee” multibillionaire Elon Musk. All three have indicated that they are open to ignoring court rulings and have even threatened to seek the impeachment of judges who rule in ways they don’t like.

    President Donald Trump and multibillionaire Elon Musk are working together to restructure the U.S. government.
    Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

    Speed

    Musk has been put in charge of White House efforts to cut government services, both in spending amount and reach.

    Constitutional law is clear: The executive branch cannot, on its own, close or shut down a federal agency that has been established by Congress. That is Congress’ job. But Trump and Musk are trying to do so anyway, including declaring that the congressionally established U.S. Agency for International Development will be shut down and turning employees away from the agency’s offices in Washington, D.C.

    The administration’s strategy, it seems, is the longstanding tech-company mantra: “move fast and break things.” The U.S. courts do not – and by design cannot – move equally quickly.

    It can take years for a case to wind its way through the lower courts to reach the U.S. Supreme Court. This is by design.

    Courts are deliberative in nature. They take into account multiple factors and can engage in multiple rounds of deliberation and fact-finding before reaching a final ruling. At every stage, lawyers on both sides are given time to make their cases. Even when a case does get to the Supreme Court – as many of these lawsuits likely will – it can take months to be fully resolved.

    By contrast, Trump’s and Musk’s actions are happening in a matter of days. By the time a court finally resolves an issue that happened in late January or early February 2025, the situation may have changed substantially.

    Volunteers hand out USAID flour at the Zanzalima Camp in Ethiopia in 2021.
    J. Countess/Getty Images

    For an example, consider the effort to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development. In the space of a week, the Trump administration put most of USAID’s workers on administrative leave and halted USAID’s overseas medical trials, which included pausing potentially lifesaving treatments.

    As of this writing, a district judge has temporarily blocked the order putting USAID workers on leave. But even if the courts ultimately conclude several months from now that the Trump administration’s actions regarding USAID were unlawful, it might be impossible to reconstitute the agency the way it used to be.

    For instance, many workers may have been demoralized and sought other employment. New personnel would have to be recruited and trained to replace them. Contracts that were terminated or invalidated or expired would have to be renegotiated. And the countries and communities that had received help from USAID might be less committed to the renewed programs, because of concerns services could be cut off again.

    Breadth

    When Republicans disagreed with any of Joe Biden’s executive actions – for example, his student debt forgiveness plan – they went to federal court to obtain nationwide injunctions stopping the implementation of the plan.

    But injunctions will not be as helpful given Trump’s recent playbook. A court blocking one order isn’t enough to stop the administration from trying different tactics. In 2017, courts blocked the first two versions of Trump’s ban on travel to the U.S. from majority-Muslim countries – but ultimately allowed a third version to take effect. And if an attack on one agency is blocked, the administration can try similar – or different – tactics against other agencies.

    The strategy of moving fast and breaking things is successful if the other side – or even the process of repair – can’t keep up with all the different strategies. Courts can be part of the strategy to preserve the Constitution, but they cannot be its only defenders.

    Authority

    John Marshall served as the nation’s fourth chief justice, from 1801 to 1835.
    Painted by Henry Inman, via Wikimedia Commons

    Researchers have argued that court-issued injunctions mostly work to stop the government from doing something, not to compel the government into doing something. Judges are already expressing concern that the Trump administration may fail to comply with orders to stop funding freezes.

    For instance, a federal district judge in Massachusetts has ordered the government not only to refrain from implementing changes to federal research grant funding but to provide evidence to the court that it was complying with the court’s order, immediately and every two weeks until the case is decided.

    Another federal judge has already found the administration failed to abide by a court order – but so far has not imposed any consequences on Trump, the administration or other officials.

    It’s unclear whether Trump would obey Supreme Court rulings against him, either. On the campaign trail, Trump’s running mate JD Vance said, “When the courts stop you, stand before the country like Andrew Jackson did and say, ‘The chief justice has made his ruling, now let him enforce it.’” He also recently remarked that “Judges aren’t allowed to control the executive’s legitimate power,” hinting at strong opposition to rulings the administration disagrees with.

    All this doesn’t mean the courts are useless, nor that people shouldn’t sue to challenge actions they deem illegal or unconstitutional. The courts – and the Supreme Court in particular – exist in part to arbitrate power disputes between Congress and the presidency. As Chief Justice John Marshall said in his landmark 1803 Marbury v. Madison ruling, “It is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is.”

    But the courts alone will not be sufficient. The courts are like an antibiotic on a cut, helping healing and staving off further infection. They cannot keep a grievously wounded patient alive. For this, a robust political strategy is necessary. It is in all Americans’ hands collectively to make sure that the constitutional structure is not just enforced, but also sustained.

    Maya Sen does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Why federal courts are unlikely to save democracy from Trump’s and Musk’s attacks – https://theconversation.com/why-federal-courts-are-unlikely-to-save-democracy-from-trumps-and-musks-attacks-249533

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cantwell Introduces Coast Guard Reauthorization Bill, Secures Wins for WA Environment & Tribes

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Washington Maria Cantwell
    02.12.25
    Cantwell Introduces Coast Guard Reauthorization Bill, Secures Wins for WA Environment & Tribes
    Bill would authorize USCG “Whale Desk” for additional 2 years to help ships steer clear of Puget Sound Orcas and other whales
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, introduced the bipartisan Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2025 that would reauthorize $30.45 billion for the U.S. Coast Guard for Fiscal Years 2025 and 2026.
    “This legislation prioritizes the Coast Guard’s most important asset—the men and women of the Coast Guard, and their families,” said Sen. Cantwell. “The bill drives much needed reforms that will help prevent sexual assault and sexual harassment throughout the Coast Guard, including establishing confidential reporting, strengthening protective orders, expanding access to care for victims, and stronger accountability for leadership. Admiral Fagan made great progress during her term, and the next Commandant will need to continue to be a steady force that stands up for service members.
    “The bill also establishes a new Vice Admiral dedicated to improving recruitment, health care and child care for members. The bill also increases funding for core Coast Guard missions such as shipbuilding and cracking down on illegal fishing and drug smuggling.”
    Among many important provisions, the legislation includes historic protections for sexual assault and harassment, boosts workforce development programs and availability of affordable housing, increases funding to help U.S. Coast Guard deliver on critical priorities such as icebreakers and 52-foot heavy-weather lifeboats, raises penalties for abandoned and derelict vessels, and encourages more collaboration with Tribes.
    The legislation authorizes $14.93 billion for FY25 and $15.51 billion for FY26. The full bill text of the bipartisan U.S. Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2025 is available HERE. 
    Sen. Cantwell secured language for programs critical to Washington state in the legislation. Among those provisions, her bipartisan legislation:
    Expands Affordable Housing Opportunities: Allows the Coast Guard to acquire housing that is available both on the market and in new housing construction programs. This is particularly important in coastal areas — like Cape Disappointment, Grays Harbor, and Port Angeles — where Coast Guard families face a difficult time accessing affordable, quality housing due to competition with seasonal rentals and other challenges associated with remote units. This bill also expands the Coast Guard’s ability to enter into long-term leases for medical facilities, child development centers, and training facilities to expand access to services for Coast Guard families while reducing administrative overhead expenses and allowing for additional improvements to these facilities.
    Increases Federal Funding to Deliver on Icebreakers and Heavy Weather Lifeboats: The legislation increases authorized funding by 30% compared to 2024 appropriated funding levels, which will help the Coast Guard deliver on critical priorities such as polar icebreakers, 52-foot heavy-weather lifeboats, and other priority acquisition programs.
    Seattle will be home for the Coast Guard’s fleet of 3 polar icebreakers.
    Sen. Cantwell recently toured U.S. Coast Guard Station Disappointment, where the future fleet of heavy-weather lifeboats will be homeported to support search and rescue missions, which is critical to safety of people working in the fishing and maritime sector in Pacific and Grays Harbor counties. In 2023, Sen. Cantwell secured a downpayment of $12 million to replace the heavy-weather boats in the 2023 Appropriations Act.
    Creates the First-Ever Tribal Advisor: Creates a new senior position within the Coast Guard to advise the Commandant and other Coast Guard leaders on how the Coast Guard can work more closely with Tribes. The new Special Advisor would also be charged with ensuring the Coast Guard upholds trust responsibilities to tribal governments, improving tribal engagement and consultation activities, and ensuring that Tribes have a voice on Coast Guard programs that impact tribes including oil spill preparedness and response, fisheries oversight, and the protection of natural resources.
    Boosts Local Tribal Partnerships to Improve Conservation: Provides the Coast Guard with new authorities to support habitat conservation and other resilience projects with state, local, and tribal governments. This important new authority would ensure tribes and other organizations can partner with the Coast Guard to protect treaty fishing rights and maintain access to cultural and natural resources.
    Reauthorizes the Whale Desk: Extends the Whale Desk at Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound by two years, through FY2028. Authored by Senator Cantwell in the Coast Guard Reauthorization Act of 2022, the “Whale Desk” at Sector Puget Sound gives vessel operators and mariners near real-time data about the location of whales to reduce encounters that disturb whales, including noise pollution and ship strikes. The pilot program also includes a “hotline” where callers can report whale sightings in real time. The data collected will be valuable for researchers who track whale migration patterns.
    According to the Coast Guard, 75 whale sightings have been reported to the Sector Puget Sound Whale Desk since its opening in December 2023.
    Sen. Cantwell helped celebrate the launch of the Whale Desk in February 2024. Photos and videos are available HERE and HERE.
    Supports the Commercial Fishing and Maritime Industries: Continues to authorize the use of a satellite tracking system to mark fishing gear locations, which ensures gear is not lost and avoids potential damage by derelict gear. It also supports fishing vessels engaging in temporary towing operations as part of salmon hatchery development in Alaska.  The bill also creates new training and credentialing opportunities for qualified mariners, veterans, and the general public seeking to become mariners. It also expedites processing times for merchant mariner licensing documents to help close this critical workforce gap.
    Maps Arctic Maritime Routes: The Bering Sea is expected to see increased fishing, commercial, and other vessel traffic over the coming decades. As a key international trade and maritime route, this bill requires an analysis of projected traffic in the Bering Strait, and the emergency response capabilities and infrastructure needed to support this increased vessel traffic and prevent oil spills in the Bering Sea and the Arctic.
    Boosts International Pacific Cooperation: Requires the Coast Guard to develop a plan to increase international training opportunities in the Pacific, including with the Taiwan Coast Guard. This coordination will strengthen American relations, combat illegal fishing, and boost international security in the Pacific.
    Cracks Down on Abandoned Vessels: Improves oversight of derelict and abandoned vessels by requiring the Coast Guard to develop and maintain an inventory list of these vessels to improve tracking, management, and coordination between federal, state, tribal, and other relevant entities. It authorizes a new federal penalty of $500 a day for abandoning vessels.
    Abandoned and derelict vessels pose unique and costly threats to coastal communities and ecosystems by leaking pollutants and imperiling marine traffic. According to the WA Department of Natural Resources, DNR removed 319 derelict and abandoned boats from Washington state waterways 2021-2023.
    Protects Personnel from Illicit Drug/Fentanyl Exposure: As the Coast Guard carries out important drug interdiction missions to stop the flow of illegal drugs, this bill requires all installations to maintain a supply of naloxone or similar medication to treat opioid or fentanyl overdoses or exposure by Coast Guard members and the public in search and rescue or response calls.
    Require Stronger Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment (SASH) Prevention and Response: The bill would establish or update numerous Coast Guard and Academy authorities and programs to improve reporting, oversight, prevention, and accountability related to sexual misconduct. These provisions were drafted in response to Operation Fouled Anchor, which revealed gross mishandling of sexual assault and sexual harassment cases of U.S. Coast Guard personnel.
    A full breakdown of these protections is available HERE.
    Supporting Coast Guard Families Stationed in Washington:
    Creates the First Vice Admiral of Personnel: To support the more than 40,000 active service members, the bill establishes a new Vice Admiral leadership position solely focused on supporting the needs of personnel and their families, from housing to health care, investments in childcare, and improving recruitment and training programs.
    Jump Starts Hiring of Health and Family Service Providers Across Entire Service: Provides direct hiring authority to swiftly fill more than a hundred vacancies, including behavioral and mental health professionals, medical specialists, childcare service providers, housing supervisors, criminal investigators, and other positions to protect the health and wellbeing of Coast Guard members and their families. It also adds two new telemedicine rooms at the Coast Guard Academy.
    Improves College-to-Service Career Pathways: Updates the College Student Pre-Commissioning Program to allow more colleges and universities to participate and to increase recruitment of students interested in commissioning into a Coast Guard career. 
    Prepares Tsunami Evacuation Plans: Requires the development of tsunami evacuation and preparedness plans for Coast Guard units in tsunami zones, including across the West Coast and Pacific Northwest. It also requires the Coast Guard to consider vertical evacuation as a lifesaving option for Coast Guard members.
    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
    Supports NOAA Corps Officers: To support the hundreds of NOAA’s commissioned officers, the bill makes improvements to personnel management, education assistance programs, pilot recruitment programs, and more. NOAA Corps members help manage maritime research, support disaster response, and monitor weather forecasting including hurricanes and atmospheric rivers, as well as performing other cutting-edge weather forecast and research needs.
    Modernizes NOAA Vessel Fleet: Authorizes replacement and modernization of the NOAA research vessel fleet and improves oversight of the fleet, which helps maintain our nation’s weather and scientific buoy network, conducts fisheries research, maps the ocean floor including in the Arctic, and supports other important oceanographic and conservation priorities.
    Removes Aging NOAA Vessels: Allows NOAA to use the proceeds of obsolete vessel sales to support the acquisition or repair of other NOAA vessels to help make the fleet more resilient in the future.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Highlights – SEDE exchanges with EIB Vice-President de Groot & with NATO PA President Perestrello – Committee on Security and Defence

    Source: European Parliament

    SEDE_soldier_EU_defence.png © Adobe Stock

    On 18 February, the Committee on Security and Defence (SEDE) will hold an exchange of views with Robert DE GROOT, Vice-President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), on the Bank’s role in strengthening European defence. This discussion is particularly timely after the recent informal European Council retreat discussions on the need to enhance the financing of European Defence. …

    SEDE Members will also have an exchange of views with Marcos PERESTRELLO, President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (NATO PA). This item will be held jointly with the Delegation for relations with the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (DNAT).

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Loans of repatriated ethnic Greeks from former USSR countries – E-000486/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-000486/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Lefteris Nikolaou-Alavanos (NI)

    The Pan-Pontian Federation of Greece expresses the anguish of thousands of families repatriated from former USSR countries, who are facing the threat of their homes being auctioned or seized for loans they had taken out using a rehabilitation programme under the Law of 2000. After the onset the economic crisis in 2009, many families found themselves unable to make their loan repayments.

    The large increases in repayment instalments and interest are due to the fact that the loans were linked to Greek State bonds, the prices of which sky-rocketed during the period of the memoranda signed by the Greek governments of ND, SYRIZA and PASOK with the EU, the European Central Bank and the IMF. The funding for the repatriation programme was provided by the Public Investment Programme, which also included funds from the Third and Fourth Community Support Frameworks.

    Given the EU’s shared responsibility for leading thousands of families of repatriated people down a dead end,

    • 1.What is the Commission’s position on the urgent request to write off the amounts that have amassed from increases, recapitalisations and compound interest?
    • 2.What is the Commission’s position on the urgent request for the annual service cost, after the above write-offs, not to exceed 10% of the annual taxable amount, in order for such people to be able to save their only home, which for them was a lifelong dream?
    • 3.What is the Commission’s position on the urgent request to cease any enforcement actions or other coercive measure on the part of credit institutions and the State, so that they do not lose their homes?

    Submitted: 4.2.2025

    Last updated: 12 February 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Governor Phil Scott Announces Departure of Tax Commissioner Craig Bolio, Appoints Bill Shouldice as Tax Commissioner

    Source: US State of Vermont

    Montpelier, Vt – Governor Phil Scott today announced Commissioner Craig Bolio will be leaving his role leading the Department of Taxes at the end of the week and has named Bill Shouldice as the new commissioner of the Department of Taxes.

    Bolio joined the Tax Department in 2011 and was appointed commissioner in 2019. During his time at the Department of Taxes, Bolio prioritized improving accessibility and outcomes for Vermonters when interfacing with the Department.

    “Craig has been an effective leader at the Department of Taxes and a valuable member of my team,” said Governor Phil Scott. “As commissioner, he has helped us navigate through many challenges we’ve faced as a state. I’m appreciative of his service to the Tax Department and wish him well.”

    “My 14 years with the Vermont Department of Taxes has been an immensely rewarding and fulfilling experience. I’ve had the luxury of being able to serve in a number of different roles at Tax, and it has been the honor of a lifetime to serve the last five as Commissioner,” said Commissioner Bolio. “I thank Governor Scott for his trust in me and our Department to help Vermonters navigate the frequently complicated, sometimes scary, but ultimately necessary world of taxes. I know the team at Tax will continue to thrive as they move forward.”

    Bill Shouldice IV, a lifelong Vermonter, will serve as the next commissioner of the Department of Taxes. Shouldice most recently served as President and CEO of The Vermont Teddy Bear Company. Prior to that, Shouldice served as the president and CEO of The Vermont Country Store. He also served as secretary of the Agency of Commerce and Community Development under Governor Howard Dean. Shouldice’s first job was working at his mother’s business, The Country Store, which was located for many years on Main Street in Montpelier before closing its doors in the early 2000s.

    “Bill has a strong background in leadership both in the private sector and in government as well,” said Governor Phil Scott. “I believe his experience will be an asset to the Tax Department as we continue our efforts to make Vermont more affordable.”

    “It is an honor to serve the great state of Vermont. I am fortunate to take over a department that has been well run by dedicated employees.  That allows me, my team and the rest of Governor Scott’s cabinet to focus on what matters most to Vermonters: a stable and predictable state that is affordable for this and future generations,” said Shouldice.

    Shouldice earned his Bachelor of Science in political science from Merrimack College. He also attended the John F. Kennedy School of Government for Senior Executives in State and Local Government at Harvard University. His appointment is effective February 18, 2025.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: Clearcover Launches Reciprocal Insurance Exchange to Expand Non-Standard Auto Business

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CHICAGO, Feb. 12, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Clearcover, a next-generation insurance company, announces the launch of Clearcover Inter-Insurance Exchange (CIX), a reciprocal exchange designed to extend the company’s reach into the non-standard auto market.

    CIX represents a groundbreaking step in Clearcover’s strategy to enhance profitability, drive growth, and redefine the auto insurance experience. Initially launching in Illinois, the exchange is set to scale its operations to additional markets in the near future.

    “Launching CIX marks a turning point as we continue to redefine auto insurance,” said Clearcover CEO and Co-founder Kyle Nakatsuji. “By broadening our market focus and harnessing our tech-driven platform, we’re empowering more customers and agents while delivering unmatched efficiency and competitive pricing.”

    The company recently began expanding its appetite to provide insurance solutions to a broader range of customers in Texas through Clearcover General Agency (CGA). Together, these initiatives highlight Clearcover’s drive to create flexible, customer-centric offerings that align with evolving market needs.

    Key Benefits Include:

    1. Expanded Reach

    • Agents can serve a broader range of customers, including those with inconsistent insurance histories, foreign licenses, or fewer than three years of driving experience.

    2. Maximized Earnings

    • Competitive commission structures enable agents to grow their sales pipelines by connecting more drivers to affordable and personalized insurance solutions.

    3. Advanced Technology

    • AI-powered tools are designed to empower customers with seamless self-service capabilities and streamline agent workflows.

    Delivering Value Through Subscriber Participation

    CIX is structured as a reciprocal exchange, providing enhanced value to its policyholders, known as ‘subscribers.’ As a reciprocal exchange, subscribers participate in forming and owning part of CIX, which in turn may keep premiums lower as member contributions accrue and offset operating expenses.

    A Strategic Path to Sustainable Growth

    With the launch of CIX and the Texas-based MGA, Clearcover unlocks new revenue streams while strengthening its commitment to innovation in a competitive and evolving industry.

    For more information about Clearcover, visit Clearcover.com.

    About Clearcover
    Clearcover is a next-generation insurance company that provides customers with market-leading technology solutions needed to confidently make smart decisions at every step. Clearcover challenges the status quo with hassle-free products and services that redefine what it means to put the customer first, delivering affordable car insurance with one of the industry’s fastest claims experiences. Founded in 2016 by Kyle Nakatsuji and Derek Brigham, Clearcover includes: Clearcover Insurance Company, Clearcover Insurance Agency and Clearcover General Agency. In 2025, Clearcover began operating a reciprocal exchange, Clearcover Inter-Insurance Exchange (“CIX”). Ranked on the Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Privately Held Companies list and the Deloitte Technology Fast 500™ list, Clearcover has raised more than $560 million in funding to date. The company was featured on Insurance Business America’s 2024 Top Insurance Employers list, CNBC’s 2024 World’s Top Insurtech Companies and Forbes’ 2025 America’s Best Insurance Companies. For more information, visit Clearcover.com.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-Evening Report: ‘Multiple red flags’: ASIC’s court case against Star executives shows the risks of complacency

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elizabeth Sheedy, Professor – Risk governance, culture, remuneration, Macquarie University

    This week the corporate regulator is taking on executives and directors of Star Entertainment in the Federal Court, in a landmark case for Australian corporate governance.

    ASIC will allege that despite multiple red flags that should have prompted internal investigation, directors at Star sat on their hands while accepting the considerable perks of the office.

    Historically, ASIC has not been willing to go after apparently lax directors and executives and there are questions about its effectiveness as a regulator. Will this time be different?

    What is Star accused of?

    The case against Star Entertainment, like so many others, boils down to “acting with reasonable care and diligence” in respect of risk management. Did Star’s board and executives sufficiently focus on the well-known risks of money-laundering and criminal association in the operation of its casinos in Sydney and Queensland?

    ASIC will seek to show that they did not. It is suing several former directors and executives, including the former chief executive, in a case expected to last six weeks. The defendants deny they breached their duties.

    Warnings were ‘ignored’

    In the first days of hearings, ASIC told the court the board had been given evidence of money-laundering risks from high-rollers with ties to criminal organisations, but that those warnings were ignored.

    The court was told the board and executives were “incurious and complacent” about alleged criminal activity and money-laundering, with wads of cash delivered in a blue Esky and in paper bags to a private gambling room.

    If the allegations are proven, it won’t be just the shareholders who have suffered. Anti-money-laundering laws exist because criminals need to clean their ill-gotten gains, or make them appear legitimate. While not alleged in this instance, in general, money-laundering enables crimes such as scams, fraud, child exploitation and drug/sex trafficking. There are many victims throughout society.

    The issues at Star were uncovered by journalists in 2021. This was the catalyst for the NSW Independent Casino Commission to set up a review by Adam Bell SC. On August 31 2022, Bell handed down his findings into The Star casino’s suitability to hold a casino licence in NSW in a 946-page report.

    Two months later, the NSW commission announced it had suspended Star’s licence indefinitely, fined the casino $100 million, and appointed an independent manager.

    Share price tanked

    Since 2021, the share price for Star Entertainment Group has collapsed from $3.76 to 13 cents today, wiping billions in market value.

    It is true that Star Entertainment has been hurt by factors other than the financial allegations identified by Bell. But the collapse in revenue suggests the casino operator’s business model was inherently reliant on money-laundering. Strip that out, and what remains is a business that will likely not survive without a white knight.

    To what extent can the directors be blamed for these failures? Based on the defences used during the Bell inquiry, they may claim they were not involved in the complex, day-to-day management of operations. Executives failed to inform them of risk-management issues. But are these adequate excuses?

    According to the Australian Institute of Company Directors, of which the Star Entertainment directors were all alumni, directors must “apply an enquiring mind […] test information put before them by management and proactively consider what other information they require”. Bear in mind the handsome remuneration received by the directors to perform their oversight duties. The former chairman, John O’Neill, received a total of $484,500 in financial year 2021.

    For this sort of money, shareholders might reasonably expect some tough questions would be asked, especially given the red flags that came to light. The internal audit team or external independent advisers could have been charged with further investigating issues of concern.

    Putting directors on notice

    Unfortunately, the scandal at Star Entertainment is not an isolated case of risk-governance failure. A royal commission found the directors of Crown Casino also failed properly to manage the risks of money-laundering.

    The financial crime regulator, Austrac, has identified similar failures at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Westpac and Adelaide’s Sky City casino. Turning to cyber risk, it is clear that firms such as Medibank and Latitude Financial have failed to protect sensitive customer data.

    While most of the above listed companies have been fined by regulators, the consequences for individual directors have been limited or non-existent. And herein lies the problem – lack of accountability breeds inattention, indolence and recklessness.

    Where is the incentive for directors to ask those tough questions of the executive, to rock the boat on a nice cosy board? The reputation of ASIC as an ineffective corporate regulator has not served either shareholders or the Australian public well.

    That is why the outcome of this case is so important. A win would put directors on notice that risk governance is a serious matter and they need to do more to earn their substantial fees.

    Elizabeth Sheedy is on the advisory board of the Financial Integrity Hub and was previously on the board of the Australian Compliance Institute. In the past she has received research funding from financial institutions that have been accused of money-laundering, and from the Australian Compliance Institute.

    – ref. ‘Multiple red flags’: ASIC’s court case against Star executives shows the risks of complacency – https://theconversation.com/multiple-red-flags-asics-court-case-against-star-executives-shows-the-risks-of-complacency-249599

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – No ‘blood minerals’ in the EU: reliable supply chains in the EU-Rwanda raw materials agreement – E-002684/2024(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    To address illicit trafficking of raw materials the EU is stepping up efforts to promote the sustainable and responsible sourcing, production, and processing.

    The Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) are a tool in this regard, in line with the objectives of the EU’s renewed Great Lakes Strategy[1].

    The MoU signed with Rwanda[2] is a further step and echoes the one the EU signed with the Democratic Republic of Congo[3] in October 2023.

    The MoU with Rwanda places particular emphasis on increased traceability and transparency, to fight against illegal trafficking of minerals. Rwanda’s adhesion to the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI)[4] shall be an essential element for the implementation of other MoU components. In the framework of the MoU, the Commission is ready to support Rwanda’s accession to the EITI.

    The EU also complements the bilateral engagement with Rwanda on critical raw materials with its ongoing support to the Regional Certification Mechanism of the International Conference of the Great Lakes Region.

    The EU is taking measures to ensure full application of the Due Diligence Directive[5] and to support compliance with the obligations under the Conflict Minerals Regulation[6].

    As an example, the EU is financing since 2018 the European Partnership for Responsible Minerals[7], a multi-stakeholder partnership and accompanying measure to the Conflict Minerals Regulation.

    Responsible sourcing and alignment on environmental, social and governance standards constitute one of the five pillars along which all MoUs are structured.

    • [1] https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-6631-2023-INIT/en/pdf
    • [2] https://ec.europa.eu/docsroom/documents/58035
    • [3] https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/publications/memorandum-understanding-eu-democratic-republic-congo-sustainable-raw-materials_en
    • [4] https://eiti.org/
    • [5] Directive (EU) 2024/1760 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2024 on corporate sustainability due diligence and amending Directive (EU) 2019/1937 and Regulation (EU) 2023/2859, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2024/1760/oj/eng
    • [6] Regulation (EU) 2017/821 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2017 laying down supply chain due diligence obligations for Union importers of tin, tantalum and tungsten, their ores, and gold originating from conflict-affected and high-risk areas, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2017/821/oj/eng
    • [7] https://europeanpartnership-responsibleminerals.eu/
    Last updated: 12 February 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Evaluation of EU aid to Algeria against the backdrop of the persecution of Christians there – E-002610/2024(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    Respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms is inscribed in the Algerian Constitution and constitutes a key element of EU-Algeria relations, as enshrined in the Association Agreement[1] and reinforced in the Partnership Priorities[2].

    Human rights and fundamental freedoms, including freedom of religion or belief, are addressed during the regular EU-Algeria political, security and human rights dialogue.

    The EU financial assistance to Algeria does not entail direct transfer of funds to Algerian public authorities. The EU finances projects implemented in the country by international organisations, European public bodies and development agencies, private companies and civil society organisations.

    The EU financial assistance is framed by programming documents[3] and all projects are subject to monitoring missions during their implementation and to audits ensuring that funds are used to the agreed purpose and according to the agreed procedures.

    • [1] https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX%3A22005A1010%2801%29
    • [2] https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2017/03/13/eu-algeria/
    • [3] Multiannual Indicative Programme (MIP) 2021-2027: https://neighbourhood-enlargement.ec.europa.eu/document/download/18c0dcae-9074-40e0-a8ca-765abb44b281_en
    Last updated: 12 February 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Andalusian government blocking construction of provincial centres for victims of sexual violence. – E-001877/2024(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    The availability of appropriately equipped and easily accessible rape crisis or sexual violence referral centres is a key element of the specialist support that victims of sexual violence will be entitled to under the recently adopted Directive (EU) 2024/1385[1].

    In line with the standards of the Istanbul Convention[2], the directive requires that these centres exist in sufficient number and be adequately spread over the territory of each Member State.

    The Commission will closely monitor compliance with these requirements in the context of the transposition of the Istanbul Convention and of the directive, for which implementation workshops will start in 2025.

    Spain has allocated Next Generation EU funds for the construction of these centres. In particular, the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP) for Spain[3], under Component 22, Investment 4, includes a target with number 327 related to the creation of 52 24-hour comprehensive care services for victims of sexual violence. The satisfactory fulfilment of this target of the plan will be assessed in the context of the 7th payment claim of the RRP.

    The Commission remains committed to monitoring the effective use of EU funds allocated under the RRP and to ensuring full compliance with the newly adopted EU legislation on combating violence against women and domestic violence.

    • [1] https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2024/1385/oj/eng
    • [2] Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence Istanbul, 11.V.2011.
    • [3] https://commission.europa.eu/business-economy-euro/economic-recovery/recovery-and-resilience-facility/country-pages/spains-recovery-and-resilience-plan_en
    Last updated: 12 February 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: NEWS: Sanders Statement on New Study Highlighting Corporate Greed in the Health Care Industry

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Vermont – Bernie Sanders

    It is absolutely unacceptable that since 2001, the top health care companies in America spent 95% of their profits, $2.6 trillion, not to make Americans healthy, but to make their CEOs and stockholders obscenely rich.

    In America today, 85 million Americans are uninsured or under-insured. One out of four Americans cannot afford the medicine their doctors prescribe. Over half a million Americans go bankrupt each and every year due to medically related debt. 68,000 people in our country die each year because they cannot afford to go to a doctor when they get sick. How many of those Americans would be alive today if the top health care companies in our country spent $2.6 trillion on disease prevention and primary care, instead of stock buybacks and dividends?

    The function of a rational health care system is to guarantee quality health care to all, not huge payouts for stockholders and executives in the drug and insurance industries. None of this money was used to search for new treatments and cures, to lower prices, or to improve patient care. That has got to change.

    This study confirms that the greatest waste, fraud and abuse in this country is corporate greed. Unfortunately, instead of working with Congress on this real issue, Trump and Musk have launched an immoral and unconstitutional attack on the Department of Health and Human Services.

    Instead of taking on the greed of the pharmaceutical industry, Trump and Musk are taking away AIDS treatment from poor people.

    Instead of taking on the for-profit insurance industry, Trump and Musk are making it harder for working-class Americans to get the health care they need through Medicaid and community health centers.

    This absurdity must end. As the Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, I will do everything I can to take on the unprecedented level of corporate greed in our health care system.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Stan’s Invisible Boys carries the tradition of real, gritty Aussie teen drama, while smashing it into something new

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Damien O’Meara, Lecturer, School of Media and Communication, RMIT University

    Stan

    Stan’s new series Invisible Boys follows four young gay men as they understand and explore their identities while living in Geraldton, a regional town in Western Australia.

    Charlie Roth (Joseph Zada), Zeke Calogero (Aydan Clafiore), Kade “Hammer” Hammersmith (Zach Blampied) and Matt Jones (Joe Klocek) represent four very different young men. Yet they share the experience of feeling invisible because of their sexuality.

    An adaptation of Holden Sheppard’s novel of the same name, the story challenges linear narratives of progress and typical ideals of queer life. It also shows how such mentalities can lead gay and bisexual men growing up in regional Australia to feel invisible, as they often don’t fit the neat narratives associated with “progress”.

    Invisible Boys is an example of what my colleague Whitney Monaghan and I have termed a queer storyworld, which centres LGBTQIA+ stories, communities and issues in complex and nuanced ways.



    Read more:
    We studied two decades of queer representation on Australian TV, and found some interesting trends

    Aussie teen drama is gritty and real

    Australian teen drama found international success in the 1990s. Series such as Heartbreak High (1994–99) and Sweat (1996) included underrepresented stories of cultural diversity and diverse sexuality, and were promoted with reference to their “gritty” themes.

    The terms “gritty” and “real” have become key markers of the Aussie teen drama. Journalist Grace Back notes how Heartbreak High’s appeal lay in its characters having to “grapple with gritty issues”.

    Similarly, Janine Kelly from the Australian Children’s Television Foundation describes More Than This (2022) as a “real, gritty and powerful series [that] reflects the diversity of the suburban Australian public-school environment.”

    The trailer for Invisible Boys features a review describing the show as “powerful, topical and all too real”, placing it alongside the bold teen dramas that have come before.

    But I’d argue no previous teen drama has been quite as truthful in its representation of some young gay and bisexual men’s experiences.

    Sexual desire in the gay teen narrative

    Invisible Boys is set in 2017, against the backdrop of the highly visible and divisive same-sex marriage survey.

    The show examines how gay teen sex manifests in environments that often aren’t very visible. In the first five minutes, we see 17-year-old Charlie attempting to have sex at a beat – a public space where gay men seek anonymous sexual intimacy.

    Later, an inciting incident occurs when Charlie uses an app to arrange a sexual encounter with an older married man in his home, before being caught by his wife.

    Joseph Zada plays Charlie, a young gay man living in Geraldton.
    Stan

    Invisible Boys examines how the sexual desires of gay and bisexual men do not hibernate in the face of oppression.

    Research shows some older gay adolescents (under 18) seek out and have positive experiences of sex with older men. That these experiences exist means they should have a place in teen dramas, to examine and drive important conversations.

    Queer as Folk (1999–2000) faced criticism for its underage sex storyline from the broader public and the LGBTQIA+ community alike, wherein the series opens with 15-year-old Nathan (Charlie Hunnam) seeking and finding a sexual partner on the gay scene in Manchester.

    However, this story was based in something real: the oppressive Section 28 laws in England that made it illegal for gay and bisexual men under 18 to explore their sexuality. This drove them to spaces where they could remain anonymous.

    Invisible Boys tackles the reality of gay and bisexual life in a regional town. Other teen series in other markets, such as Heartstopper (2022–), present a somewhat normative view of queer teen life under banners of “love is love”. And while this story is true for some, it has been told.

    Invisible Boys gives audiences something that will challenge their worldview.
    Stan

    Challenging gay respectability politics

    Respectability politics is the view that “marginalised groups must demonstrate that they adhere to normative values before they will be accepted or granted rights by dominant groups”. We see this in the dominance of homonormative representation in Australian TV, which sees heterosexual norms being applied to LGBTQIA+ people – as well as in its exclusion of gay sex.

    Invisible Boys challenges the dominance of gay respectability politics in the teen drama genre.

    While older Australian series such as Dance Academy (2010–13) (admittedly aimed at younger teen audiences) explored queer sexuality through chaste kisses and teen angst, primetime series such as Please Like Me (2013–16) and In Our Blood (2022) made headway by telling complex, intimate stories of gay men.

    Similarly, the horny gay teen isn’t hidden away in Invisible Boys – nor are his choices always comfortable.

    A sign for streamers and Australian TV

    Streaming services have often struggled to nail Australia’s television sensibility. Netflix’s Tidelands (2018) was criticised for not quite capturing what made Australian series appealing, while Stan’s Eden (2021) was met with similar critiques.

    More recently, Prime Video’s Deadloch (2023–) and the Netflix reboot of Heartbreak High (2022–24) have signalled a shift to something more suited to local viewers.

    Yet the creators of Heartbreak High made certain decisions that stood out to local viewers, such as not including school uniforms (likely to appeal to a global audience). Invisible Boys does not dilute the specificity of regional Aussie experiences.

    The series challenges the way gay adolescence is often understood by broader communities.
    Stan

    In the tradition of iconic teen dramas from 1970s and 1990s, such as Class of ‘74 (1974–75), the original Heartbreak High (1994–99), and Sweat (1996), the series is willing to go there by tackling the inconvenient truths of teenage life.

    As someone who grew up gay in regional Australia, it feels like an authentic representation of my own experience. There’s something universal about Charlie, Zeke, Kade and Matt’s stories of not fitting in, and of being invisible to be safe.

    Most striking is the way the series captures the complicated mix of joy and fear – the clash of opportunity and consequence – that accompanies becoming visibly gay in these environments.

    Invisible Boys is streaming on Stan.

    Damien O’Meara does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Stan’s Invisible Boys carries the tradition of real, gritty Aussie teen drama, while smashing it into something new – https://theconversation.com/stans-invisible-boys-carries-the-tradition-of-real-gritty-aussie-teen-drama-while-smashing-it-into-something-new-248126

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Global: How Valentine’s Day was transformed by the Industrial Revolution and ‘manufactured intimacy’

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Christopher Ferguson, Associate Professor of History, Auburn University

    A popular Victorian-era Valentine Day’s card. Valentine Card by Jonathan King,1860-1880, London Museum., CC BY

    When we think of Valentine’s Day, chubby Cupids, hearts and roses generally come to mind, not industrial processes like mass production and the division of labor. Yet the latter were essential to the holiday’s history.

    As a historian researching material culture and emotions, I’m aware of the important role the exchange of manufactured greeting cards played in the 19th-century version of Valentine’s Day.

    At the beginning of that century, Britons produced most of their valentines by hand. By the 1850s, however, manufactured cards had replaced those previously made by individuals at home. By the 1860s, more than 1 million cards were in circulation in London alone.

    The British journalist and playwright Andrew Halliday was fascinated by these cards, especially one popular card that featured a lady and gentleman walking arm-in-arm up a pathway toward a church.

    Halliday recalled watching in fascination as “the windows of small booksellers and stationers” filled with “highly-coloured” valentines, and contemplating “how and where” they “originated.” “Who draws the pictures?” he wondered. “Who writes the poetry?”

    In 1864 he decided to find out.

    Manufactured intimacy

    Today Halliday is most often remembered for his writing on London beggars in a groundbreaking 1864 social survey, “London Labour and the London Poor.” However, throughout the 1860s he was a regular contributor to Charles Dickens’ popular journal “All the Year Round,” in which he entertained readers with essays addressing various facets of ordinary British daily existence, including family relations, travel, public services and popular entertainments.

    In one essay for that journal – “Cupid’s Manufactory,” which was later reprinted in 1866 in the collection “Everyday Papers” – Halliday led his readers on a guided tour of one of London’s foremost card manufacturers.

    Inside the premises of “Cupid and Co.,” they followed a “valentine step by step” from a “plain sheet of paper” to “that neat white box in which it is packed, with others of its kind, to be sent out to the trade.”

    Touring ‘Cupid’s Manufactory’

    “Cupid and Co.” was most likely the firm of Joseph Mansell, a lace-paper and stationary company that manufactured large numbers of valentines between the 1840s and 1860s – and also just happened to occupy the same address as “Mr. Cupid’s” in London’s Red Lion Square.

    The processes Halliday described, however, were common to many British card manufacturers in the 1860s, and exemplified many industrial practices first introduced during the late 18th century, including the subdivision of tasks and the employment of women and child laborers.

    Halliday moved through the rooms of “Cupid’s Manufactory,” describing the variety of processes by which various styles of cards were made for a range of different people and price points.

    He noted how the card with the lady and gentleman on the path to the church began as a simple stamped card, in black and white – identical to one preserved today in the collections of the London Museum – priced at one penny.

    A portion of these cards, however, then went on to a room where a group of young women were arranged along a bench, each with a different color of “liquid water-colour at her elbow.” Using stencils, one painted the “pale brown” pathway, then handed it to the woman next to her, who painted the “gentleman’s blue coat,” who then handed it to the next, who painted the “salmon-coloured church,” and so forth. It was much like a similar group of female workers depicted making valentines in the “Illustrated London News” in the 1870s.

    These colored cards, Halliday noted, would be sold for “sixpence to half-a-crown.” A portion of these, however, were then sent on to another room, where another group of young women glued on feathers, lace-paper, bits of silk or velvet, or even gold leaf, creating even more ornate cards sometimes sold for 5 shillings and above.

    All told, Halliday witnessed “about sixty hands” – mostly young women, but also “men and boys,” who worked 10 hours a day in every season of the year, making cards for Valentine’s Day.

    Yet, it was on the top floor of the business that Halliday encountered the people who arguably fascinated him the most: the six artists who designed all the cards, and the poets who provided their text – most of whom actually worked offsite.

    Here were the men responsible for manufacturing the actual sentiments the cards conveyed – and in the mid-19th century these encompassed a far wider range of emotions than the cards produced by Hallmark and others in the 21st century.

    A spectrum of ‘manufactured emotions’

    Many Victorians mailed cards not only to those with whom they were in love, but also to those they disliked or wished to mock or abuse. A whole subgenre of cards existed to belittle the members of certain trades, like tailors or draper’s assistants, or people who dressed out of fashion.

    A Valentine’s Day card produced sometime between 1860 and 1880.
    © The Trustees of the British Museum, CC BY-NC-SA

    Cards were specifically designed for discouraging suitors and for poking fun of the old or the unattractive. While some of these cards likely were exchanged as jokes between friends, the consensus among scholars is that many were absolutely intended to be sent as cruel insults.

    Furthermore, unlike in the present day, in the 19th century those who received a Valentine were expected to send one in return, which meant there were also cards to discourage future attentions, recommend patience, express thanks, proclaim mutual admiration, or affirm love’s effusions.

    Halliday noted the poet employed by “Cupid’s” had recently finished the text for a mean-spirited comic valentine featuring a gentleman admiring himself in a mirror:

    Looking at thyself within the glass,
    You appear lost in admiration;
    You deceive yourself, and think, alas!
    You are a wonder of creation.

    This same author, however, had earlier completed the opposite kind of text for the card Halliday had previously highlighted, featuring the “lady and gentleman churchward-bound”:

    “The path before me gladly would I trace,
    With one who’s dearest to my constant heart,
    To yonder church, the holy sacred place,
    Where I my vows of Love would fain impart;
    And in sweet wedlock’s bonds unite with thee,
    Oh, then, how blest my life would ever be!”

    These were very different texts by the very same man. And Halliday assured his readers “Cupid’s laureate” had authored many others in every imaginable style and sentiment, all year long, for “twopence a line.”

    Halliday showed how a stranger was manufacturing expressions of emotions for the use of other strangers who paid money for them. In fact, he assured his readers that in the lead up to Valentine’s Day “Cupid’s” was “turning out two hundred and fifty pounds’ worth of valentines a week,” and that his business was “yearly on the increase.”

    Halliday found this dynamic – the process of mass producing cards for profit to help people express their authentic emotions – both fascinating and bizarre. It was a practice he thought seemed like it ought to be “beneath the dignity of the age.”

    And yet it thrived among the earnest Victorians, and it thrives still. Indeed, it remains a core feature of the modern holiday of Valentine’s Day.

    This year, like in so many others, I will stand at a display of greeting cards, with many other strangers, as we all try to find that one card designed by someone else, mass-produced for profit, that will convey our sincere personal feelings for our friends and loved ones.

    Christopher Ferguson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. How Valentine’s Day was transformed by the Industrial Revolution and ‘manufactured intimacy’ – https://theconversation.com/how-valentines-day-was-transformed-by-the-industrial-revolution-and-manufactured-intimacy-247441

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: 13 children killed in the West Bank since year began: UNICEF

    Source: United Nations 2

    Humanitarian Aid

    The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has voiced deep alarm at the growing number of children killed, injured and displaced in the occupied West Bank, as violence continues to escalate. 

    In a statement issued by Edouard Beigbeder, UNICEF’s Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, the agency called for “the immediate cessation of armed activity across the occupied West Bank”.

    A 10-year-old Palestinian boy died from gunshot wounds last Friday and two days later, a woman who was eight months pregnant was reportedly shot and killed in Nur Shams camp, resulting in the loss of her unborn baby.

    The violence, which has intensified in recent weeks, has left families in mourning and communities in distress.

    Sharp increase in child fatalities

    According to UNICEF, 13 Palestinian children have been killed in the West Bank since the beginning of 2025.

    Seven of these deaths occurred after 19 January, following a large-scale military operation in the north of the territory. Among the casualties was a two-year-old whose pregnant mother was also injured in the shooting.

    The numbers reflect a worrying trend. Since 7 October 2023, 195 Palestinian children and three Israeli children have been killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

    “There has been a 200 per cent increase in the number of Palestinian children killed in the territory over the past 16 months as compared to the 16 months prior,” Mr. Beigbeder explained.

    Devastation in refugee camps

    The humanitarian situation has worsened in areas such as Jenin, Tulkarem and Tubas Governorates, where airstrikes, demolitions and the use of explosive weapons have severely damaged essential infrastructure.

    Many communities, particularly in refugee camps, have been cut off from basic services, with water and electricity supplies disrupted.

    Thousands of families have been displaced due to military operations, including in Jenin, Nur Shams, Tulkarem and al-Faraa Camps.

    The deteriorating security situation has made daily life increasingly difficult, particularly for children.

    Education under threat

    The education of children has been severely disrupted, with nearly 100 schools affected.

    Teachers and students in conflict-hit areas face significant risks in attending classes, heightening concerns over long-term psychological and social impacts.

    Many children require urgent mental health and psychosocial support due to their exposure to violence, displacement and the loss of loved ones.

    UNICEF has called for greater resources to address these growing needs.

    Call for protection

    “UNICEF condemns all acts of violence against children,” said Mr. Beigbeder. “All civilians, including every child without exception, must be protected.”

    “Humanitarian organizations must have safe and unfettered access to deliver life-saving assistance and protection services to children and their families,” he continued.

    UNICEF emphasised the urgent need for a lasting political solution, backed by the international community, to secure a peaceful and stable future for all children in the region.

    The agency “stands ready to work with partners to address both the immediate and long-term needs of affected children and families in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem,” Mr. Beigbeder concluded.

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Minister Itoua: Congo’s Energy Ambitions Set for Full Display at Congo Energy & Investment Forum (CEIF) 2025

    Source: Africa Press Organisation – English (2) – Report:

    BRAZZAVILLE, Congo (Republic of the), February 12, 2025/APO Group/ —

    Minister of Hydrocarbons of the Republic of Congo Bruno Jean-Richard Itoua has announced that the Ministry will leverage the upcoming inaugural Congo Energy & Investment Forum (CEIF) to support the country’s long-term view to becoming a major player in regional energy development.

    Taking place from March 24-26, 2025, in Brazzaville, CEIF 2025 will connect project developers with Congolese regulators and policymakers while enabling candid dialogue and facilitating new investments and deals in the country’s energy sector. Set to headline CEIF 2025, Minister Itoua’s leadership in Congo has been instrumental in driving forward ambitious reforms and initiatives aimed at maximizing the country’s energy potential.

    The inaugural Congo Energy & Investment Forum, set for March 24-26, 2025, in Brazzaville, under the patronage of President Denis Sassou Nguesso and supported by the Ministry of Hydrocarbons and Société Nationales des Pétroles du Congo, will bring together international investors and local stakeholders to explore national and regional energy and infrastructure opportunities. The event will explore the latest gas-to-power projects and provide updates on ongoing expansions across the industry.

    During CEIF 2025, the Ministry of Hydrocarbons will launch its 2025 licensing round, offering onshore, offshore and marginal acreage to potential investors and developers. This year’s licensing round aligns with the country’s strategy to increase oil production from the current 274,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 500,000 bpd by the end of this year.

    “We hope that through the conference, we will be able to launch a tender,” Minister Itoua stated. “We have many licenses available, and we will make them available for tender. We have very large areas in which we have information proving that we have high potential.”

    Meanwhile, the Ministry is also set to launch a new Gas Master Plan for the country at CEIF 2025. Originally announced by Minister Itoua at last year’s African Energy Week: Invest in African Energies 2024 in Cape Town, the Gas Master Plan aims to consolidate the position of existing exploration and production companies while attracting new investments to the country’s natural gas sector.

    “We hope to be a key player, especially in gas. We want to become a key player in terms of finding opportunities. Congo could be the biggest place for refining, not only for Africa, but also on an international level,” Minister Itoua added.

    CEIF 2025 will provide a platform for investors and industry leaders to explore the nation’s recent developments, which have been driven by the strategic leadership of Minister Itoua. Among these initiatives is the Marine XII LNG development, which exported its first cargo in early-2024 from the Tango FLNG facility and is projected to reach 3 million tons of LNG per year this year.

    Meanwhile, key players such as Trident Energy and Perenco have expanded their presence in Congo, acquiring major assets and driving upstream development in alignment with the Ministry’s efforts to foster an investment-friendly environment.

    The forum is expected to bring together policymakers, international oil companies, independent explorers and financiers to discuss strategies for maximizing the country’s hydrocarbon potential, expanding LNG production and advancing green energy solutions. As such, Minister Itoua’s participation will set the tone for discussions while highlighting the country’s vision for the energy sector and its plans to secure long-term partnerships.

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Nigeria to Host 32nd Afreximbank Annual Meetings from 23 to 28 June 2025

    Source: Africa Press Organisation – English (2) – Report:

    ABUJA, Nigeria, February 12, 2025/APO Group/ —

    The Federal Government of Nigeria and Afreximbank (www.Afreximbank.com) have signed the Host Country Agreement for the 32nd Afreximbank Annual Meetings (AAM) in Abuja, Nigeria, from 23-28 June 2025.

    Afreximbank Annual Meetings is one of the most anticipated gatherings on the African continent, featuring high-level policy discussions, presentations, and side events on issues pertinent to the socio-economic development of Africa as well as business networking sessions that drive integration through trade and investments.

    The 32nd Afreximbank Annual Meetings in June 2025 is expected to be the largest gathering of Global Africa in the Bank’s Annual Meetings history, bringing together over 6,000 delegates including Heads of State, government officials, captains of industry, businesspeople, decision-makers, academics, respected experts and advisors from Africa, the CARICOM region and globally.

    Commenting on the significance of the agreement, H.E. Wale Edun, the Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy for Nigeria, emphasised Nigeria’s strong partnership with Afreximbank and its commitment to fostering trade and economic growth for Africa and beyond.

    He said: “Nigeria is honoured to host the 2025 Afreximbank Annual Meetings, which will serve as a critical platform to drive discussions on trade financing, economic growth, and investment opportunities across Africa.” He added: “This event is a testament to our commitment to strengthening Africa’s financial sector and positioning Nigeria as a hub for economic transformation.”

    Professor Benedict Oramah, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors, Afreximbank, said: “We greatly appreciate the Federal Government of Nigeria’s acceptance to host the 2025 Afreximbank Annual Meetings, which demonstrates our united determination to accelerating Africa’s economic growth and development.

    “The Government of Nigeria has been a steadfast partner and a strong backbone of the Bank. It has consistently responded positively to capital calls, injecting significant equity into the Bank even when the economic environment seemed challenging; removing regulatory hurdles that would otherwise inhibit the Bank’s business in Nigeria, and being at the forefront of rallying continental support for the Bank.”

     “This year’s theme, ‘Building the Future on Decades of Resilience,’ reflects the progress that we have made over the past three decades and the bold steps that are imperative to navigate the increasingly complex global landscape. The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA) has given our continent an unrivalled opportunity to deliver sustainable economic transformation that will propel Africa’s economic growth and raise living standards and prosperity for all Africans.

    “Afreximbank Annual Meetings will provide a platform to reflect on our journey, celebrate contributions, and chart a path forward that reinforces our continent’s economic independence and global influence. We look forward to welcoming and meeting stakeholders from across Africa and other parts of the world to Abuja for this prestigious event.”

    Prof. Oramah noted that Nigeria’s unwavering support to Afreximbank has been the primary driver of the Bank’s strong continental impact. “The impact on the Nigerian economy is equally palpable. Being the largest recipient of the Bank’s trade and development finance, Nigeria has attracted cumulative disbursements of about US$52 billion in addition to being the first beneficiary of several flagship transformative projects being executed by the Bank such as the African Medical Centre of Excellence (AMCE), African Quality Assurance Centre (AQAC), Afreximbank African Trade Centre (AATC), among others.

    This year’s event comes on the backdrop of the highly successful 2024 AAM, held in Nassau, The Bahamas and attended by over 4,000 delegates, including over 20 Heads of State, government ministers, high-level dignitaries, global experts, and world-renowned celebrities and artists.

    Afreximbank was established when the shareholders held their first General Meeting in Abuja, Nigeria in October 1993. Today, Nigeria is Afreximbank’s second-largest shareholder.

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Supporting Businesses and Working Parents to Solve the Childcare Shortage: Lt. Gov. Austin Davis and Second Lady Blayre Holmes Davis Call for New Investments in Childcare Workforce

    Source: US State of Pennsylvania

    February 12, 2025 – Claysburg, PA

    Supporting Businesses and Working Parents to Solve the Childcare Shortage: Lt. Gov. Austin Davis and Second Lady Blayre Holmes Davis Call for New Investments in Childcare Workforce

    Lt. Gov. Austin Davis and Second Lady Blayre Holmes Davis joined local business leaders, parents and providers for a roundtable conversation at Sheetz’s corporate support center in Claysburg to highlight the Shapiro-Davis Administration’s 2025-26 proposed budget, which continues vital investments in childcare and early learning and includes a new proposal to address shortages in the childcare workforce.

    “The childcare workforce shortage hurts working families, and it hurts our economy, likely in the range of billions of dollars in lost earnings, productivity and revenue,” said Lt. Gov. Davis, who is co-chair of the Early Learning Investment Commission (ELIC), a public-private partnership that brings together leaders to make recommendations and policy for early learning. “That’s why our new proposed budget would fund $1,000 bonuses to recruit and retain childcare workers across the Commonwealth. These workers are caring for our most valuable resource – our children. Many of them are mothers, who are also trying to make ends meet for their own families. They work hard, and they deserve it.”

    “The Lieutenant Governor and I know about this issue firsthand – our daughter, Harper, attends a wonderful childcare facility that we were incredibly fortunate to find,” said Second Lady Holmes Davis. “We want working parents all across this Commonwealth to have the same access to affordable, high-quality care that we have, and we want every Pennsylvania child to have the same opportunities our daughter has – opportunities to learn, play and grow in a safe and loving environment.”

    Roundtable Participants Include:
    Lieutenant Governor Austin A. Davis
    Second Lady Blayre Holmes Davis
    Sheetz EVP of People and Culture Stephanie Doliveira
    Bright Horizons Divisional VP Julie Beam
    Litte Sproutz Teacher Chelsey Morse
    Sheetz Employee Relations Lauren Harris
    Blair County Commissioner Laura O. Burke, Esq.
    Altoona Blair County Development Corporation – VP of Business Retention & Expansion Matt Fox
    Blair Companies President & CEO Phil Devorris

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: Solodev Unveils Keycloak Serverless and Managed Keycloak: Simplifying Secure Identity in the Cloud

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., Feb. 12, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Solodev, the cloud platform for developers, is redefining identity management with the launch of Keycloak Serverless and Managed Keycloak—two powerful cloud-based solutions designed to help businesses scale authentication and access security with greater ease and flexibility. Keycloak Serverless is powered by an advanced cloud architecture and deployed on AWS, the world’s most trusted cloud provider. Both services are managed by Solodev and are available now in the AWS Marketplace.

    Moving to a Passwordless World
    Identity and access management (IAM) is one of the top cybersecurity concerns today. Research shows that up to 30% of data breaches at organizations are caused by individual users sharing and reusing passwords—and data breaches are estimated to cost an average of $4 million per incident.

    As organizations navigate the growing complexities of securing digital identities across cloud environments, traditional authentication models can be resource-intensive, and enterprise platforms like Okta are simply too expensive for most organizations to adopt. Solodev is tackling this challenge head-on by introducing serverless and fully managed options for Keycloak—the leading open-source single sign-on (SSO) and IAM solution for modern applications and services.

    Keycloak simplifies SSO. Rather than handling authentication separately for each app, users log in once through Keycloak, reducing the need for custom authentication mechanisms in individual apps. Keycloak also supports user federation like LDAP and Active Directory, allowing you to sync from external sources and eliminate the burden of user management. Keycloak also supports widely used authentication protocols like OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect, and SAML 2.0 to enable secure access and authorization flows, including multi-factor authentication (MFA) and Passkeys for passwordless strategies.

    Introducing Keycloak Serverless: Fast, Scalable, and Cost-Efficient IAM
    With Keycloak Serverless, businesses can now deploy Keycloak on-demand without managing infrastructure. Solodev’s unique serverless approach eliminates the need for manual setup, allowing teams to scale authentication dynamically while reducing costs. Supported by Solodev and its U.S.-based resources, Keycloak Serverless is a frictionless launchpad for connecting your customer portals or internal applications via SSO on the AWS global infrastructure at any scale.

    Managed Keycloak: Enterprise-Grade SSO Without the Overhead
    For organizations that require a hands-free identity solution, Managed Keycloak offers a fully supported, enterprise-ready deployment. This allows businesses to focus on growth while Solodev handles the heavy lifting of IAM management. With Managed Keycloak, experienced engineers provide the setup and configuration of your Keycloak Serverless instance, including 24/7 monitoring, automated updates, and compliance-driven security configurations. You also get a uniquely branded SSO interface that aligns with your visual presentation and provides a seamless gateway to all your websites and applications.

    Simplifying Identity Across Industries
    Businesses rely on a growing ecosystem of cloud applications, from digital marketing to payment processing. Solodev’s Keycloak solutions deliver trusted, high-availability performance for any identity or authorization utility, across any industry. With Solodev’s Keycloak Serverless and Managed Keycloak, brands can ensure seamless authentication across their martech stacks, ad tech platforms, and commerce systems—streamlining access while reinforcing security.

    “Identity security is at the heart of digital transformation,” said Shawn Moore, CTO at Solodev. “With Keycloak Serverless and Managed Keycloak, we’re making it easier than ever for organizations to implement robust authentication, whether they want full control or a completely managed experience.”

    Solodev Keycloak Solutions are Available in the AWS Marketplace

    For additional questions, contact Solodev.

    About Solodev
    Solodev helps developers around the globe build amazing customer experiences and collaborate on digital transformation, from code to cloud. The Solodev Platform provides the most complete ecosystem for developing apps and launching brands powered by cutting-edge technologies—including AI, Cloud, Metaverse, Digital, Blockchain, and more. Solodev also provides world-class consulting, training, managed services, and 24/7 human support. An Amazon Web Services Advanced Tier Partner, Solodev has achieved AWS competencies in Government, Education, Advertising & Marketing Technology, and Public Safety. Solodev products and services can be purchased at www.solodev.com or in the AWS Marketplace.

    For media inquiries:
    Matt Garrepy
    press@solodev.com

    A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c616de85-26f5-4f65-90b3-76ce45923660

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Hate speech on X surged for at least 8 months after Elon Musk takeover – new research

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Jensen, Associate professor, Institute for Governance and Policy Analysis, University of Canberra, University of Canberra

    Kemarrravv13/Shutterstock

    Hate speech on X was consistently 50% higher for at least eight months after tech billionaire Elon Musk bought the social media platform, new research has found.

    The research looked at the prevalence of overt hate speech including a wide range of racist, homophobic and transphobic slurs.

    The study, published today in PLOS ONE, was conducted by a team of researchers led by Daniel Hickney from the University of California, Berkeley.

    It clearly demonstrates how a platform initially invented to help friends and family stay in touch has now metamorphosed into a place where hate speech is prolific. This is especially concerning given hate speech online has been linked to violent hate crimes offline.

    A long list of promises

    On October 27 2022, Musk officially purchased X (then known as Twitter) for US$44 billion and became its CEO. His takeover was accompanied by promises to reduce hate speech on the platform and tackle bots and other inauthentic accounts.

    But after he bought X, Musk made several changes to the platform to reduce content moderation. For example, in November 2022 he fired much of the company’s full time workforce. He also fired outsourced content moderators who tracked abuse on X, despite research showing social medial platforms with high levels of content moderation contain less hate speech.

    The following month, Musk also disbanded the platform’s Trust and Safety Council – a volunteer advisory group of independent human rights leaders and academics formed in 2016 to fight hate speech and other problems on the platform.

    Previous research has shown hate speech increased on X immediately after Musk took over. So too did the prevalence of most types of bots.

    This new study is the first to show that this wasn’t an anomaly.

    Hate speech including homophobic, racist and transphobic slurs was significantly higher on X after Elon Musk bought the platform. The black lines represent standard errors.
    Hickey et al., 2025 / PLOS One

    More than 4 million posts

    The study examined 4.7 million English language posts on X from the beginning of 2022 through to June 9 2023. This period includes the ten months before Musk bought X and the eight months afterwards.

    The study measured overt hate speech, the meaning of which was clear to anyone who saw it – speech attacking identity groups or using toxic language. It did not measure covert types of hate speech, such as coded language used by some extremist groups to spread hate but plausibly deny doing so.

    As well as measuring the amount of hate speech on X, the study also measured how much other users engaged with this material by liking it.

    The researchers’ access to X data was cut off during the study due to a policy change by the platform, replacing free access to approved academic researchers with payment options which are generally unaffordable. This significantly hampered their ability to collect sample posts. But they don’t mention whether it affected their results.

    A clear increase in hate

    The study found “a clear increase” in the average number of posts containing hate speech following Musk’s purchase of X. Specifically, the volume of posts containing hate speech was “consistently” 50% higher after Musk took over X compared to beforehand – a jump from an estimated average of 2,179 to 3,246 posts containing hate speech per week.

    Transphobic slurs saw the highest increase, rising from an average of roughly 115 posts per week before Musk’s acquisition to an average of 418 afterwards.

    The level of user engagement with posts containing hate speech also increased under Musk’s watch. For example, the weekly rate at which hate speech content was liked by users jumped by 70%.

    The researchers say these results suggest either hate speech wasn’t taken down, hateful users became more active, the platform’s algorithm unintentionally promoted hate speech to users who like such content – or a combination of these possibilities.

    The study also detected no decrease in the activity of inauthentic accounts on X. In fact, it found a “potential increase” in the number of bot accounts partly based on a large upswing in posts promoting cryptocurrency, which are typically associated with bots.

    An important data-driving deep dive

    There were a number of limitations to the study. For example, it only measured hate speech posts in English, which accounts for only 31% of posts on the platform.

    Even so, the study is an important, data-driven deep dive into the state of X. It shows it is a platform where hate speech is prolific. It also shows Musk has failed to fulfil his earlier promises to address problems on X such as hate speech and bot activity.

    As Musk himself said at the White House earlier this week: “Some of the things I say will be incorrect and should be corrected”.

    Michael Jensen receives funding from the Australian Research Council, Bayer, and the Australian Department of Defence Science and Technology Group.

    – ref. Hate speech on X surged for at least 8 months after Elon Musk takeover – new research – https://theconversation.com/hate-speech-on-x-surged-for-at-least-8-months-after-elon-musk-takeover-new-research-249603

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: 3.5 kilometres underwater, scientists found a staggeringly energetic particle from outer space

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Luke Barnes, Lecturer in Physics, Western Sydney University

    An artist’s impression of a high-energy particle travelling through the KM3NeT neutrino telescope. KM3NeT

    Three and a half kilometres beneath the Mediterranean Sea, around 80km off the coast of Sicily, lies half of a very unusual telescope called KM3NeT.

    The enormous device is still under construction, but today the telescope’s scientific team announced they have already detected a particle from outer space with a staggering amount of energy.

    In fact, as the team report in Nature, they found the most energetic neutrino anyone has ever seen – and it represents a tremendous leap forward in exploring the uncharted waters of the extreme universe.

    To explain why it’s such a remarkable discovery, we need to understand what KM3NeT is, what it’s looking for, and what it saw.

    What is KM3NeT?

    KM3NeT is a gigantic deep sea telescope being built by an international collaboration of more than 300 scientists and engineers from 21 countries.

    At the site off Sicily, and another off the coast of Provence in France, KM3NeT will be made up of more than 6,000 light detectors hanging in the pitch-black depths. When the telescope is complete, it will cover about a cubic kilometre of sea.

    The KM3NeT telescope will eventually have more than 6,000 detectors like this one floating in the depths of the Mediterranean watching for tell-tale flashed of blue light.
    N Busser / CNRS

    Down deep, KM3NeT is shielded from ordinary sources of light, such as the Sun. It is also shielded from other particles like electrons and protons, which are absorbed by the water long before they reach the detectors. So what does it see?

    What is KM3NeT looking for?

    Of all the particles that physicists have discovered, only the elusive neutrino can reach all the way down to KM3NeT.

    The neutrino is an elementary particle with no electric charge and only a very tiny mass. It interacts with matter so weakly that it can pass through kilometres of ocean – and even thousands of kilometres of Earth itself – to reach the detector. That’s why KM3NeT is at the bottom of the sea: to see neutrinos, and only neutrinos.

    But won’t the neutrinos pass through the detector, too? Yes, almost all of them.

    When a high-energy particle passes through KM3NeT, the detectors register the tell-tale blue flashes and allow scientists to figure out how fast the particle was going and where it came from.
    KM3NeT

    But very rarely, a neutrino will crash right into a water molecule. When it does, it can pack an enormous punch.

    The energy of the neutrino can create many more particles. As these particles blast through the water, they create a bluish glow. That’s what KM3NeT detectors see.

    By analysing this bluish light, and by timing each flash, scientists can reconstruct the original energy of the neutrino, and the direction from which it came. (Either that, or they’ve just clocked one of those deep-sea glowing fish travelling at nearly the speed of light.)

    The most energetic neutrino ever detected

    On February 13 2023, KM3NeT detected a neutrino travelling so fast it had 30 times more energy than any previously detected.

    The amount of energy is 220 petaelectronvolts, but that doesn’t mean much to a non-particle physicist. It’s hard to imagine, but let’s try.

    The neutrino had 100 trillion times more energy than a typical particle at the centre of the Sun. It’s a trillion times more energy than medical X-rays, and ten billion times more than the most dangerous radioactive particles. Earth’s biggest particle accelerators can’t produce a particle with even one ten thousandth of this energy.

    Short story: it’s a lot of energy for one particle.

    Making neutrinos in space

    Neutrinos interact with matter very weakly, so how could a single neutrino have been given so much energy? What sort of cosmic event could create such a particle?

    That’s the exciting part: we don’t know.

    We know there are colossal explosions in the universe, such as supernovas: when a star exhausts its fuel and collapses. And there are gamma ray bursts, which are even more energetic explosions of supermassive stars, or collisions of neutron stars. These create extremely energetic neutrinos.

    But there are other candidates. Supermassive black holes at the centre of galaxies have millions to billions of times as much mass as the Sun.

    As matter is swallowed by these black holes, it is accelerated to extreme speeds, and becomes wrapped around intense magnetic fields. The particles that aren’t swallowed can be shot out at extreme speeds. These “active galactic nuclei” are another way that the universe could create extreme neutrinos.

    Third, the neutrinos could be created more locally (cosmically speaking). Explosions and active galactic nuclei also create cosmic rays: extremely energetic protons and electrons.

    These could stream across the universe towards us, before colliding with a particle of light along the way. That collision can create an energetic neutrino.

    How can we find the source?

    Here’s where the Australian connection comes in. KM3NeT tells us this neutrino came from a particular spot in the southern sky.

    If it came from an extreme explosion or an active galactic nucleus, we might hope to spot the source with other telescopes. In particular, both supernova remnants and active galactic nuclei can be spotted using radio waves.

    Australia has the biggest radio telescopes in the southern hemisphere. The Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) has mapped a lot of the southern sky, and found many supernova remnants and active galactic nuclei.

    My colleagues and I at Western Sydney University are using ASKAP to follow up on KM3NeT detections like this one. For this particular neutrino, there are no obvious candidates in the radio sky that it came from.

    However, KM3NeT doesn’t provide a very accurate position, so we can’t be completely sure. We’ll keep looking.

    KM3NeT is still under construction, and ASKAP continues to survey the sky. Our window on the extreme universe is just opening up.

    Luke Barnes does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. 3.5 kilometres underwater, scientists found a staggeringly energetic particle from outer space – https://theconversation.com/3-5-kilometres-underwater-scientists-found-a-staggeringly-energetic-particle-from-outer-space-249590

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI: Richtech Robotics Launches the Richtech Accelerator Program to Bolster AI and Robotics Research at U.S. Universities

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Columbia University announced as first institution to join the program

    LAS VEGAS, Feb. 12, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Richtech Robotics Inc. (Nasdaq: RR) (“Richtech Robotics”), a Nevada-based provider of AI-driven service robots, proudly announces the launch of the Richtech Accelerator Program. This initiative aims to bolster AI and robotics research at U.S. universities by integrating localized AI models with robotics hardware, marking a significant step forward in the advancement of localized AI systems for robots.

    The goal of this program is to provide AI and robotics research institutions with more technologically advanced development frameworks, granting them access to Richtech Robotics’ commercially-validated robotic systems. These include autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) and robotic arm platforms, which are equipped with machine vision and voice interaction modules and powered by NVIDIA Jetson Orin Nano. The program features notable robots, such as ADAM and Scorpion, which have gained significant media attention at CES multiple times.

    Through the Richtech Accelerator Program, research labs will be established in collaboration with participating universities to enhance machine vision, AI interaction, and robotic arm path planning – all deployed on a localized AI model. The ultimate goal is to help industries including manufacturing, healthcare, and the service sector, benefit from AI-powered robotic solutions by improving efficiency and addressing labor shortages.

    Columbia University is the first institution to join the program under the leadership of Associate Professor Zhou Yu from the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science. Their research will focus on Natural Language Processing (NLP), aiming to localize NLP models within Richtech Robotics’ robotic systems. These integrations will enable seamless human-robot interaction with minimal setup, aligning with Richtech Robotics’ broader vision: enabling robots to understand and execute tasks through natural language rather than requiring specialized engineers to code each function.

    “We are thrilled to launch the Richtech Accelerator Program and proud to announce Columbia University as our first partner,” said Matt Casella, President of Richtech Robotics. “Our mission is to leverage AI robotics technology to reduce strenuous labor for humans, ultimately creating more freedom through technology. This program allows leading research institutions to directly develop localized AI models on Richtech Robotics’ commercially-validated robotic platforms, eliminating the need to build robotic structures from scratch and thus improving research efficiency and, potentially, success rates.”

    Participants in the Richtech Accelerator Program will also gain exclusive access to Richtech’s Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), enabling researchers to customize and enhance AI integration in unique ways and further advance groundbreaking research.

    With over 300 robots successfully deployed worldwide, Richtech Robotics seeks to collaborate with talented and innovative developers through this program, building an AI-driven robotics ecosystem and assisting institutions in successfully commercializing their research results.

    The Richtech Accelerator Program offers two types of funding: fully funded and partially funded. The fully funded option is limited to ten recipients, while the number of partially funded spots is unlimited.

    For universities and researchers interested in joining the Richtech Accelerator Program, please visit www.RichtechRobotics.com or contact Timothy Tanksley at press@richtechrobotics.com.

    About Richtech Robotics
    Richtech Robotics is a provider of collaborative robotic solutions specializing in the service industry, including the hospitality and healthcare sectors. Our mission is to transform the service industry through collaborative robotic solutions that enhance the customer experience and empower businesses to achieve more. By seamlessly integrating cutting-edge automation, we aspire to create a landscape of enhanced interactions, efficiency, and innovation, propelling organizations toward unparalleled levels of excellence and satisfaction. Learn more at www.RichtechRobotics.com and connect with us on X (Twitter), LinkedIn, and YouTube.

    Forward Looking Statements

    Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements may be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “forecast,” “estimate,” “expect,” and “intend,” among others. Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections and other statements about future events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the performance of Richtech Robotics’ products and the success of the Richtech Accelerator Program, including the likelihood of improving research efficiency and success rates.

    These forward-looking statements are based on Richtech Robotics’ current expectations and actual results could differ materially. There are a number of factors that could cause actual events to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements include, among others, risks and uncertainties related to the results of the Richtech Accelerator Program and the ability of AI-powered robotic solutions to improve efficiency. Investors should read the risk factors set forth in Richtech Robotics’ Annual Report on Form 10-K/A, filed with the SEC on February 7, 2025, the IPO registration statement and periodic reports filed with the SEC on or after the date thereof. All of Richtech Robotics’ forward-looking statements are expressly qualified by all such risk factors and other cautionary statements. The information set forth herein speaks only as of the date thereof. New risks and uncertainties arise over time, and it is not possible for Richtech Robotics to predict those events or how they may affect Richtech Robotics. If a change to the events and circumstances reflected in Richtech Robotics’ forward-looking statements occurs, Richtech Robotics’ business, financial condition and operating results may vary materially from those expressed in Richtech Robotics’ forward-looking statements.

    Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and Richtech Robotics assumes no obligation and does not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

    Contact:

    Investors:
    CORE IR
    Matt Blazei
    ir@richtechrobotics.com

    Media: 
    Timothy Tanksley
    Director of Marketing
    Richtech Robotics, Inc
    press@richtechrobotics.com
    702-534-0050

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Announcement of Dorado Marketing Agreement

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Dubai, Feb. 12, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Dubai, 12 February 2025: Vantage Drilling International Ltd. (the “Company”) announces it has entered into a marketing agreement with Eldorado Drilling AS to market the 7th Generation Dorado Drillship for drilling opportunities in various locations in Africa, the Mediterranean, Asia and Australasia.

    Ihab Toma, CEO of Vantage Drilling, commented: ´We are delighted to have entered into this agreement with Eldorado Drilling and we look forward to successfully placing the rig in operation.  The Dorado is one of the last delivered 7th generation drillships – an advanced-capability drillship designed to operate in water depths of up to 12,000 feet. This new agreement further demonstrates the rig owners’ confidence in Vantage as a most reliable and trusted partner to market and operate their assets.´

    About the Company
    Vantage Drilling International Ltd., a Bermuda exempted company, is an offshore drilling contractor. Vantage Drilling’s primary business is to contract drilling units, related equipment and work crews primarily on a dayrate basis to drill oil and natural gas wells globally for major, national and independent oil and gas companies. Vantage Drilling also markets, operates and provides management services in respect of drilling units owned by others. For more information about the Company, please refer to the Company’s website, www.vantagedrilling.com  

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Construction and Property Management Companies and Company Owners Plead Guilty to Asbestos Violations

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    PORTLAND, Ore.–A construction company operating in Hood River, Oregon, and a property management company operating in The Dalles, Oregon, together with the owners, pleaded guilty Friday to violating asbestos work standards and negligent endangerment by discharging a hazardous pollutant in violation of the Clean Air Act.

    The property management company Horseshoe Grove, LLC pleaded guilty to violating asbestos work practice standards, and its owner and operator, Ryan Richter, 44, of The Dalles, pleaded guilty to negligent endangerment by discharging a hazardous pollutant.

    The construction and demolition company Chamness Dirt Works Inc. pleaded guilty to violating asbestos work practice standards, and its owner and president, Ronald Chamness, 58, of Hood River, pleaded guilty to negligent endangerment by discharging a hazardous pollutant.

    According to court documents, in November 2022, Horseshoe Grove purchased a property operating as a mobile home rental site with approximately thirty tenant spaces. The property also contained two dilapidated structures located near the actively rented tenant spaces. At the time of sale, Richter received an asbestos survey completed in 2021 which reported over 5,000 square feet of asbestos within the dilapidated structures. Richter also received a demolition estimate from Chamness Dirt Works to sample, test and remove asbestos containing materials but excluded the costs for asbestos abatement.

    In February 2023, Richter and Horseshoe Grove hired Chamness Dirt Works to demolish the two asbestos-laden structures. On February 20, 2023, Chamness received a quote from an asbestos abatement contractor for the proper removal and disposal of asbestos containing materials. Despite knowing the structures contained asbestos, Chamness and Richter, through and with their companies, knowingly violated the Clean Air Act by demolishing the structures without hiring a certified asbestos abatement contractor or implementing the precautionary measures mandated by federal regulations for handling such materials.

    On November 19, 2024, Richter, Chamness, Horseshoe Grove, and Chamness Dirt Works were charged by criminal information with negligent endangerment and violating the Clean Air Act’s asbestos work practice standards.

    Richter and Chamness each face a maximum sentence of one year in prison, a $100,000 fine, and five years of supervised release. Horseshoe Grove and Chamness Dirt Works each face a maximum sentence of five years’ probation and $500,000 fine. As part of the plea agreement, Richter and Chamness have agreed to conduct asbestos remediation on the property. They will be sentenced on April 3, 2025, before U.S. District Court Judge Marco A. Hernández.

    This case was investigated by the Environmental Protection Agency and is being prosecuted by Bryan Chinwuba, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Welch Statement Opposing Jamieson Greer for U.S. Trade Representative

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont)

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) today voted against advancing the nomination of Jamieson Greer in the Senate Finance Committee, President Trump’s nominee to be the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and expressed his opposition: 
    “Nobody will win this trade war. President Trump’s tariffs, threatened and announced, have already caused chaos and pain in Vermont. The Trump Trade War will only hurt businesses, farmers, and raise prices for working families—from the food on their table to their energy costs.  
    “The U.S. Trade Representative must be ready to push back against President Trump’s draconian impulses to unilaterally impose tariffs, which will lead to international political dysfunction and tax Vermont families. We can work together, in a good faith effort, to hold bad actors accountable with our trade allies, but we cannot do it alone. I do not have confidence that Mr. Greer will prioritize the ‘Do No Harm’ trade policy approach Americans need now—we can’t afford a rubber stamp for President Trump’s chaotic economic priorities.” 
    During Greer’s nomination hearing last week, Senator Welch demanded answers on the impact of the Trump Trade War on American businesses and consumers and outlined the cost of Trump’s new proposed tariffs for Vermont industries. Senator Welch took to the Senate floor to blast the proposed tariffs and shared stories from Vermonters about how President Trump’s economic policies will impact their family, farm, and community.  

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Thirty-Eight Defendants Sentenced in Massive Prison-Based Drug Trafficking Ring

    Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)

    ATLANTA, Ga. – Thirty-eight members of a drug trafficking organization, including several State of Georgia prison inmates, have been sentenced for their roles in coordinating and distributing deadly heroin, methamphetamine, and fentanyl throughout the metro-Atlanta area, as well as laundering drug proceeds to Mexico.

    “The successful dismantling of this large organization is a result of a tenacious multi-year effort from federal, state, and local authorities to root out narcotics trafficking originating from state prisons,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Richard S. Moultrie, Jr.  “Our office will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to leverage all resources to identify, apprehend, and prosecute entire networks of offenders responsible for distributing deadly drugs into our communities.” 

    “These sentences mirror the destructive impact on the community caused by this violent drug trafficking organization,” said Jae W. Chung, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Division. “Wherever you operate, if you distribute dangerous drugs, DEA will find you and hold you accountable.”

    “Thanks to the hard work and collaboration of our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners, thirty-eight members of this extensive drug distribution network will spend significant time behind bars where they will no longer be able to plague our community with poison,” said Sean Burke, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. 

    According to Acting U.S. Attorney Moultrie, the charges and other information presented in court: During the investigation, federal special agents learned that a network of prison inmates was using contraband cell phones to broker drug transactions throughout the metro-Atlanta area, including importing drug shipments from Mexico and other states. These prison brokers relied on conspirators on the outside to store, package and distribute multiple types of illegal drugs. Other members of the organization were responsible for laundering the proceeds from the drug sales to Mexico using local money remitters.  The organization also repeatedly threatened violence to uncooperative members.  In one case, agents learned of a plot to abduct and murder a narcotics dealer.  In response, law enforcement quickly mobilized to disrupt the plan.

    After the first phase of the investigation concluded, a Grand Jury sitting in the Northern District of Georgia returned an indictment against 19 of the conspirators for drug trafficking and money laundering offenses.  During the second phase of the investigation, agents identified additional conspirators including two of the high-level prison brokers, Jesus Sanchez-Morales and Juan Ramirez, who were later indicted by the Grand Jury for drug trafficking offenses.  After Ramirez was brought into federal custody, he used another contraband cell phone to broker drug deals, including the attempted distribution of fentanyl.  The Grand Jury later charged him with this new conduct.  

    Through this multi-year investigation, agents seized over 250 kilograms of methamphetamine, 25 gallons of liquid methamphetamine, more than 12,000 fentanyl pills, kilogram-quantities of fentanyl powder, heroin, and marijuana, and over $450,000 in drug proceeds. 

    The defendants were convicted and sentenced by U.S. District Judge Leigh Martin May:

    • Juan Ramirez was sentenced earlier today to 27 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release .  Ramirez was convicted of ten drug trafficking counts including Conspiracy and Possession with the Intent to Distribute  Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl, after a jury found him guilty of these charges on July 25, 2024.
    • Jesus Sanchez-Morales was sentenced to 27 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Sanchez-Morales was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on June 22, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Martin Maldonado was sentenced to 19 years, seven months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Maldonado was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on April 26, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Benjamin Villareal Perez was sentenced to 19 years, seven months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Perez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on September 17, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Jaime Chavez was sentenced to 17 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Chavez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime on April 30, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Aszavious Anderson was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Anderson was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime on May 28, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Kristofer Ty Armistead was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Armistead was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on June 7, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Mario Castillo was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Castillo was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime on September 25, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Aricus Cantrell Holloway was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Holloway was convicted of Conspiracy and Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on April 24, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Cristian Hernandez-Lovo was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Hernandez-Lovo was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime on September 24, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Jesus Antonio Molina-Ortiz was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Molina-Ortiz was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime on August 10, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Jamar Tyrone Zanders was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Zanders was convicted of Conspiracy and Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on September 24, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Brandon Richard Duncan was sentenced to 14 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Duncan was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on July 9, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Joseph Dominic Edwards was sentenced to 14 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Edwards was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on August 4, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Rafael Alvarez was sentenced to 13 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Alvarez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on August 13, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Jason Garcia-Lara was sentenced to 13 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Garcia-Lara was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on June 23, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Jordan Duane Bowers was sentenced to 12 years, six months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Bowers was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Fentanyl, and Heroin on May 10, 2022, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Emmanuel De Santos Nieto was sentenced to 12 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. De Santos Nieto was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on September 9, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Salvador Valencia-Zavala was sentenced to 11 years, three months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Valencia-Zavala was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on January 27, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Marvin Gaye Banks was sentenced to 11 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Banks was convicted of Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on July 15, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Samantha Fagundes was sentenced to 11 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Fagundes was convicted of Conspiracy and Possession with the Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl, on January 15, 2020, after she pleaded guilty.
    • Alejandro Vasquez-Lopez was sentenced to 10 years, nine months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Vasquez-Lopez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on May 24, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Shelly Denise Class was sentenced to 10 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Class was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on October 10, 2019, after she pleaded guilty.
    • Edgar Ochoa Martinez was sentenced to 10 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Martinez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on July 22, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Allison Nichole Daniel was sentenced to 10 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Daniel was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on May 27, 2020, after she pleaded guilty.
    • Enrique Rodriguez-Govea was sentenced to 10 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Rodriguez-Govea was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on May 30, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Taurus Basil Stephens was sentenced to 10 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Stephens was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on December 16, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Raheem Jamal Morris was sentenced to nine years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Morris was convicted of Conspiracy and Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on June 26, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Lilia Martinez Rodriguez was sentenced to eight years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Martinez Rodriguez was convicted of Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering on September 21, 2020, after she pleaded guilty.
    • Roberto Rojas was sentenced to eight years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Rojas was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on January 13, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Nicholas Charles Johnson was sentenced to seven years, eight months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Johnson was convicted of Conspiracy and Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on July 10, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Leonardo Rosas was sentenced to six years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Rosas was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on October 3, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Daniel Gonzalez was sentenced to five years, four months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Gonzalez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on July 11, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Juan Torres Chavez was sentenced to a time-served sentence of approximately four years, nine months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Chavez was convicted of Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on December 14, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
    • David Chavez-Ortiz was sentenced to four years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Chavez-Ortiz was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on October 21, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Antwonette Jarnez Thomas was sentenced to four years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Thomas was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on January 7, 2021, after she pleaded guilty.
    • Erin Cortez was sentenced to three years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Cortez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on January 22, 2020, after she pleaded guilty.
    • Joaquin Flores, Jr. was sentenced to three years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Flores was convicted of Conspiracy and Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on January 19, 2024, after he pleaded guilty. 

    Eusebio Paniagua-Paz remains a fugitive.  If you have any information about his whereabouts, please contact your local law enforcement agency. 

    This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with valuable assistance provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Marshals Service, Atlanta Police Department, Cobb County Sheriff’s Office, Coweta County Sheriff’s Office, DeKalb County Police Department, Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, Georgia Department of Corrections, Georgia State Patrol, and the South Fulton Police Department.

    Assistant United States Attorneys Alison B. Prout, Amy M. Palumbo, Elizabeth M. Hathaway, Sarah Klapman, and Nicholas Evert, together with former Assistant United States Attorneys Tyler Mann, Scott McAfee, and Erin H. Harris, prosecuted the case.

    This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

    For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6280.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI: Pinnacle Bankshares Corporation Announces Quarterly Cash Dividend of 25 Cents per Share

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    ALTAVISTA, Va., Feb. 12, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Pinnacle Bankshares Corporation (“Pinnacle” or the “Company”) (OTCQX: PPBN), the one-bank holding company for First National Bank (the “Bank”), announced today that its Board of Directors declared a cash dividend of $0.25 per share on February 11, 2025, payable March 7, 2025, to shareholders of record as of February 21, 2025.

    The $0.25 per share cash dividend is equal to the $0.25 dividend paid last quarter and marks the fiftieth consecutive quarter that a dividend has been declared.

    “Pinnacle is pleased to provide a cash dividend of $0.25 per share to our shareholders this quarter,” stated Aubrey H. Hall, III, President and Chief Executive Officer for both the Company and the Bank. Mr. Hall further commented, “This return on investment is consistent with the cash dividend paid in the fourth quarter of 2024 and is based on our continued solid performance.”

    Pinnacle Bankshares Corporation is a locally managed community banking organization serving Central and Southern Virginia. The one-bank holding company of First National Bank serves market areas consisting primarily of all or portions of the Counties of Amherst, Bedford, Campbell, Halifax, and Pittsylvania, and the Cities of Charlottesville, Danville, and Lynchburg. The Company has a total of nineteen branches with one branch in Amherst County within the Town of Amherst, two branches in Bedford County; five branches in Campbell County, including two within the Town of Altavista, where the Bank was founded; one branch in the City of Charlottesville, three branches in the City of Danville; three branches in the City of Lynchburg; and three branches in Pittsylvania County, including one within the Town of Chatham. A Loan Production Office and a full-service branch have recently been opened in the South Boston area of Halifax County. First National Bank is in its 117th year of operation.

    This press release may contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of federal securities laws that involve significant risks and uncertainties. Any statements contained herein that are not historical facts are forward-looking and are based on current assumptions and analysis by the Company. These forward-looking statements, including statements made in Mr. Hall’s quotes may include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the credit quality of our asset portfolio in future periods, the expected losses of nonperforming loans in future periods, returns and capital accretion during future periods, our cost of funds, the maintenance of our net interest margin, future operating results and business performance and our growth initiatives. Although we believe our plans and expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, our ability to predict results or the actual effect of future plans or strategies is inherently uncertain, and we can give no assurance that these plans or expectations will be achieved. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from management’s expectations include, but are not limited to: changes in consumer spending and saving habits that may occur, including increased inflation; changes in general business, economic and market conditions; attracting, hiring, training, motivating and retaining qualified employees; changes in fiscal and monetary policies, and laws and regulations; changes in interest rates, inflation rates, deposit flows, loan demand and real estate values; changes in the quality or composition of the Company’s loan portfolio and the value of the collateral securing loans; changes in macroeconomic trends and uncertainty, including liquidity concerns at other financial institutions, and the potential for local and/or global economic recession; changes in demand for financial services in Pinnacle’s market areas; increased competition from both banks and non-banks in Pinnacle’s market areas; a deterioration in credit quality and/or a reduced demand for, or supply of, credit; increased information security risk, including cyber security risk, which may lead to potential business disruptions or financial losses; volatility in the securities markets generally, including in the value of securities in the Company’s securities portfolio or in the market price of Pinnacle common stock specifically; and other factors, which could cause actual results to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties should be considered in evaluating the forward-looking statements contained herein, and you should not place undue reliance on such statements, which reflect our views as of the date of this release.

    CONTACT: Pinnacle Bankshares Corporation, Bryan M. Lemley, 434-477-5882 or bryanlemley@1stnatbk.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Red Cat Raises Up to $20 Million in Debt Financing

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, Feb. 12, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Red Cat Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: RCAT) (“Red Cat”), a drone technology company integrating robotic hardware and software for military, government, and commercial operations, today announced it has entered into an agreement for up to $20 million and closed on the initial tranche of $16.5 Million in debt financing with The Lind Partners, a New York based institutional fund manager (“Lind”). Details of the agreement include:

    • Debt Financing convertible at $16.15 share price
    • Initial Tranche proceeds of $15 million
    • 1 million warrants exercisable at $15.00 per share non cashless

    Additionally, Red Cat has applied for $58 million in debt financing from the Department of Defense Office of Strategic Capital (OSC). OSC implements strategies and partnerships to accelerate and scale private investment in critical supply chain technologies needed for national security. They have identified 14 critical technology areas vital to maintaining the United States’ national security. These have been grouped into three categories as found in the 2023 National Defense Science and Technology Strategy.

    • Seed Areas of Emerging Opportunity
    • Effective Adoption Areas
    • Defense-Specific Areas

    The investment is expected to provide Red Cat with the working capital needed to scale up production and the ongoing development of its Arachnid Family of Systems, which includes Black Widow™, Edge 130, and a new line of FANG™ First-Person View (FPV) drones. The goal of the Family of Systems is to meet the needs of the U.S. Department of Defense and NATO Allies for drone systems that are low-cost, portable, field repairable, and recoverable.

    “The recent financing will allow us to expedite and expand the Edge 130 factory and build-out and ramp up mass production of the Black Widow,” said Jeff Thompson. Red Cat CEO. “As a company focused on technology that advances the Department of Defense capabilities, we are a strong candidate for the Office of Strategic Capital’s low-cost debt program. The potential total financing of $93 million is the least dilutive option for our shareholders.”

    About Red Cat, Inc.  
    Red Cat (Nasdaq: RCAT) is a drone technology company integrating robotic hardware and software for military, government, and commercial operations. Through two wholly owned subsidiaries, Teal Drones and FlightWave Aerospace, Red Cat has developed a Family of Systems. This includes the Black Widow™, a small unmanned ISR system that was awarded the U.S. Army’s Short Range Reconnaissance (SRR) Program of Record contract. The Family of Systems also includes TRICHON™, a fixed wing VTOL for extended endurance and range, and FANG™, the industry’s first line of NDAA compliant FPV drones optimized for military operations with precision strike capabilities. Learn more at www.redcat.red.

    About The Lind Partners
    The Lind Partners manages institutional funds that are leaders in providing growth capital to small- and mid-cap companies publicly traded in the US, Canada, Australia and the UK. Lind’s funds make direct investments ranging from US$1 to US$30 million, invest in syndicated equity offerings and selectively buy on market. Having completed more than 150 direct investments totaling over US$1.5 Billion in transaction value, Lind’s funds have been flexible and supportive capital partners to investee companies since 2011.

    Forward-Looking Statements 
    This press release contains “forward-looking statements” that are subject to substantial risks and uncertainties. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, contained in this press release are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release may be identified by the use of words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “contemplate,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “seek,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “target,” “aim,” “should,” “will,” “would,” or the negative of these words or other similar expressions, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. Forward-looking statements are based on Red Cat Holdings, Inc.’s current expectations and are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Further, certain forward-looking statements are based on assumptions as to future events that may not prove to be accurate. These and other risks and uncertainties are described more fully in the section titled “Risk Factors” in the final prospectus related to the public offering filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements contained in this announcement are made as of this date, and Red Cat Holdings, Inc. undertakes no duty to update such information except as required under applicable law. 

    Contacts:

    INVESTORS:
    E-mail: Investors@redcat.red

    NEWS MEDIA:
    Indicate Media
    Phone: (347) 880-2895
    Email: peter@indicatemedia.com 

    The MIL Network –