Category: housing

MIL-OSI Video: Deputy Secretary Campbell remarks at the Secretary of State’s ACE ceremony

Source: United States of America – Department of State (video statements)

Deputy Secretary of State Kurt M. Campbell remarks at the Secretary of State’s Award for Corporate Excellence ceremony at the Department of State, on October 22, 2024.

Transcript: https://www.state.gov/deputy-secretary-kurt-m-campbell-at-the-secretary-of-states-award-for-corporate-excellence-ceremony/

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Under the leadership of the President and Secretary of State, the U.S. Department of State leads America’s foreign policy through diplomacy, advocacy, and assistance by advancing the interests of the American people, their safety and economic prosperity. On behalf of the American people we promote and demonstrate democratic values and advance a free, peaceful, and prosperous world.

The Secretary of State, appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate, is the President’s chief foreign affairs adviser. The Secretary carries out the President’s foreign policies through the State Department, which includes the Foreign Service, Civil Service and U.S. Agency for International Development.

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#StateDepartment #DepartmentofState #Diplomacy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQErtRiMsIw

MIL OSI Video –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III On-Camera, On-the-Record Remarks to Traveling Press in Rome, Italy

Source: United States Department of Defense

DEPUTY PRESS SECRETARY SABRINA SINGH:. Thanks, everyone, for joining us for this gaggle. I’m going to let the secretary give some opening remarks and then we’ll start with Rob for questions.

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE LLOYD AUSTIN: Yeah. Again, thanks for joining us on a pretty long trip, but I think we accomplished a lot. It was the last NATO defense ministerial for the Biden administration. And again, I think that was a really good engagement with a number of our allies. And following that, we had a G7 ministerial and the first-ever G7 ministerial — defense ministerial, and I think that was very, very productive as well.

You went with us as we went into Kyiv following that. We were able to engage President Zelenskyy and his leadership on a number of important issues. We announced yet another presidential drawdown package. And then finally, today finished up with a visit to the Vatican. So, again, I think it was a good trip overall.

And I’ll stop there and take your questions.

MS. SINGH: Rob?

Q: Mr. Secretary, you just met with the Pope, had an audience with him. Can you share more about what you discussed? And did he talk to you about any of the conflicts in Ukraine or the Middle East?

SECRETARY AUSTIN: Well, it won’t surprise you that the Pope is very much focused on what’s going on in Ukraine and also in the Middle East as well. He’s concerned about humanitarian issues in both areas. And of course, we share a common desire to see these conflicts, you know, scale back in terms of the level of activity and a ceasefire in both cases.

Again, I think he’ll continue to exercise his influence to do the right things, and I’ll continue to do what we’re doing on our end to make sure that, number one, Ukraine can defend itself and its sovereignty. And number two, as we’ve said a number of times, we’re going to continue to support Israel and its efforts to defend itself.

We need to dial down the tension in the Middle East region, and we need to also find a way to transition in Ukraine. Now, as we’ve said all along, we’re going to continue to support Ukraine, and they will determine when the time is to go to the negotiating table. But you’ve heard me say before this conflict will end in some kind of negotiation at some point. Thanks.

MS. SINGH: Phil?

Q: Mr. Secretary, in his nightly video address last night, Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy called on allies not to hide and to respond to evidence of North Korean involvement in Russia’s war in Ukraine. So, I’ll ask you, have you seen any evidence that North Korean troops are in Russia? And if so, what is the intent of this deployment?

SECRETARY AUSTIN: Well, our analysts are — they continue to look at this, and we are seeing evidence that there are North Korean troops that have gone to Africa. And I wouldn’t — excuse me, not Africa but Russia. What exactly they’re doing will have to be seen. These are things that we need to sort out. We’ll have more for you on that later. But, yeah, as we continue to look at this, there is evidence that there are DPRK troops in Russia.

MS. SINGH: Eric?

Q: Just to follow up on that, sir, can you talk a little bit about what you understand the intent of those troops to be? And what does it say about perhaps the desperation of Putin himself to rely on these countries? What role is that? And what is the — what is North Korea getting in return for that? What’s the quid pro quo for that?

SECRETARY AUSTIN: All of the things that we’re trying to trying to gain better fidelity on, Eric, number one, why are the troops there. We’ll continue to pull this thread and see what happens here. If they’re co-belligerents, if their intention is to participate in this war on Russia’s behalf, that is a very, very serious issue.

And it will have impacts not only in Europe. It will also impact things in the Indo-Pacific as well. We’ve seen the Republic of Korea be very focused on this issue as well. So, still a lot of things to be answered, Eric. And our analysts will continue to work this, and we’ll have more for you as we get more fidelity.

Q: And where are the North Koreans’ motivations? Why are they doing this?

SECRETARY AUSTIN: Yeah, unknown. Certainly, there is a strengthened relationship, for lack of a better term, between Russia and DPRK. You’ve seen the DPRK provide arms and munitions Russia, and this is a next step.

But what it means in terms of where Putin is, you know, I’ve — heard me talk about the significant casualties in — that he had experienced over the last two and a half years. This is an indication that he may be even in more trouble than most people realize. But, again, he went tin cupping early on to get additional weapons and materials from the DPRK and then from Iran. And now he’s making a move to get more people, if that is the case, if these troops are designed to be a part of the fight in Ukraine. But we’ll see. These are questions that have yet to be answered.

MS. SINGH: Natasha?

Q: Thank you, Mr. Secretary. Two quick questions. As you’re likely aware, there is a DOD official being named and accused on social media of leaking highly classified intelligence about Israel. Is that disinformation? Can you rule out that that individual is being investigated, and has the probe homed in on a suspect?

SECRETARY AUSTIN: There’s no OSD official being named as a part of this investigation. So, that is not true at this point, and I’ve seen no evidence of that or any indication that any OSD official will be implicated as a part of this.

Q: Ok. And secondly, Israel has claimed that Hezbollah has a major bunker underneath Al-Sahel Hospital in southern Beirut. Doctors who work there have denied the allegation. Has the US seen its own evidence of this bunker underneath that hospital?

SECRETARY AUSTIN: We’ve not seen evidence of that at this point. But, you know, we’ll continue to collaborate with our Israeli counterparts to gain better fidelity on exactly what they’re looking at.

Q: Thank you.

MS. SINGH: Lara?

Q: Mr. Secretary, I understand you shared with the Ukrainians your DOD spend plan for the next five months for the Ukraine conflict. As you know, five months is after the inauguration of what will be a new administration. So, if Trump gets elected, will you speed up that plan to ensure Ukraine gets all the money that Congress has allocated? And how will you ensure that all of the equipment actually gets delivered, since you know that takes longer?

SECRETARY AUSTIN: Well, as we commit the funds, Laura, I mean, everything won’t be delivered immediately. So, things that we’re purchasing now, for example, may wind up showing up a couple of months later. And as we laid out the plan on what we’re investing in with both our USAI funds and the drawdown materials that we’re providing, when we can get some of those materials refurbished and into Ukraine, and again, it’s not instantaneous, it may take weeks or in some cases a couple of months. But we laid that plan out for them, and we’re confident that, based upon, you know, what we’ve done and what we are doing that, you know, those things will be delivered on the timeline that we’ve outlined.

Q: But a new administration could change that and could stop those deliveries.

SECRETARY AUSTIN: They would have to de-obligate, you know, the things that we’ve already obligated. So, I think we’re pretty sure that these materials will continue to flow.

Q: Thank you.

MS. SINGH: Chris?

Q: Thank you, Mr. Secretary. While you were in Ukraine, President Zelenskyy’s focused on $800 million the US has pledged towards drone production. What is the purpose and goal of that? And is that just for drones, or could Ukraine use that towards ballistic or cruise missiles?

SECRETARY AUSTIN: Well, we’re going to continue to invest in their long range strike capability. Now, what we’ve seen is that they’ve developed the capability to mass produce drones that are very, very effective and that can go impressive distances. We’ve seen them strike targets that are 400 kilometers beyond the border, and even deeper, with precision. And they can do that at a fraction of a cost of a ballistic missile.

So, it makes sense to invest in that capability, in their ability to continue to scale. And I think that answers, addresses, the needs that they’ll have not only now but long into the future.

Q: Would you say that addresses the long range strike question that we keep bugging you about?

SECRETARY AUSTIN: Well, as we’ve told you so many times, the range of an ATACMS is 300 kilometers. They’re striking targets that are beyond 400 kilometers with precision. So, you know, and they can do that at a fraction of the cost. So, this balances out the the balance sheet here.

And, you know, if they’re going to be able to sustain their efforts, gotta to be able to afford it. And so, it makes sense for them to expand the capacity. It makes sense for us to invest in what they’re doing. It works. It’s effective and it’s precise.

Q: Thank you.

MS. SINGH: And the last one. Missy?

Q: Yep. Thanks so much. In Lebanon, the targets that Israel is striking in the Beirut area have widened beyond military sites. It’s hitting municipal buildings and health clinics. Last night there were intense strikes on apartment buildings. And now Israel’s issuing the warning, as Natasha mentioned, about this hospital, suggesting that could be a target.

And then, on the other hand in northern Gaza, you know, the UN is describing the situation there as beyond catastrophic. The UN says the IDF is, you know, continuing its offensive there, denied permission to rescue people from the rubble. Only a handful of trucks are reaching the north each day. And meanwhile, the Netanyahu government, some of the ministers today were having conversations about resettling Gaza and extending the occupation there.

All of that to say I know you are a strong supporter of Israel’s self-defense, but you’ve also said that how they do it matters. In your view, as someone who has commanded counterinsurgency campaigns extensively, do you think that they’ve gone beyond self-defense on both of these fronts to something that’s more punitive or indiscriminate? And are you worried that Israel’s actions are weakening, not strengthening, its security in the long term?

SECRETARY AUSTIN: Well, Missy, you’ve heard me say on a number of times that — a couple things. Number one, the ability to accomplish your goals militarily in terms of achieving objectives and protecting humans, protecting civilians in the battle space, those two things are— you can do both of those things. They’re not mutually exclusive.

And the other thing that I’ve emphasized throughout, Missy, is the need to protect civilians and provide that humanitarian assistance. And this is something I talk to my counterpart about every time I talk to him, those two things. We’ve got to be more precise in our operations, and we have to make sure that we’re doing what’s necessary to get assistance and aid into the civilians.

Failure to do that will, you know, will create a generation of Palestinians that really will continue to resist cooperating with Israel in the future. So, you’re actually increasing the numbers of insurgents in the space if you fail to do that. It’s a strategic imperative, in my view.

Q: Ok. But just to clarify, in your view, are — the actions that they’re taking on both strips — fronts, have they gone beyond self-defense actions?

SECRETARY AUSTIN: Well, you know, it’s one of the things in both cases that makes it more difficult is that both Hamas and LH use civilians as human shields. They put their stores of weapons in apartment buildings, beneath mosques and churches and in schools and hospitals in order to make it more difficult to strike them.

Because of that complication, you know, that has increased the occurrence of civilian casualties. I think — you know, let’s not kid ourselves. This is a complicated, a very, very difficult battle space. And, you know, so we’re — we need to do everything we can — the Israelis need to do everything they can to be as careful as possible to protect civilians in that battle space. But Hamas and LH make it more complicated.

MS. SINGH: Thank you all. Appreciate your time. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Secretary.

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Defence Secretary John Healey opening remarks from Trinity House agreement press conference 23 October 2024

Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

Defence Secretary John Healey delivered opening remarks alongside German defence minister, Boris Pistorius, after signing the Trinity House Agreement

Location:

Trinity House, London

Delivered on:

23 October 2024 (Transcript of the speech, exactly as it was delivered)

This is a significant day for UK relations and for both our countries. Less than 100 days since I first visited Berlin in July to kick off these negotiations together, we have today signed a landmark defence agreement here at Trinity House in London. First, I want to thank our negotiating teams, they worked at pace, and they have helped us secure a deal which forges closer cooperation between our militaries and our industries, which contains immediate actions and longer term ambitions. Today’s agreement strengthens our security, it will grow our economies.

And you know, when I was Shadow Defence Secretary before the general election, I had conversations with allies and partners and academics that said Britain needed to play a bigger part in NATO. They said European allies needed to take on more responsibility for European security and this, this is the driving force behind our NATO, first UK Defence strategy, behind our reset of UK relations with Europe. We share the same threats, war in Ukraine, conflict in the Middle East, growing Russian aggression. We share the same values, democracy, individual freedom, rule of law.

And in a more dangerous world, allies are our strategic strength, and we must do more together. But I believe then, as I know Boris, you did too, that the UK-Germany defence relationship was underdeveloped. The UK and Germany are currently Europe’s top two defence spenders. We’re currently Europe’s top two supporters of Ukraine in military and economic aid. Yes, there’s 40 years of great cooperation on fast jets between UK and Germany. Yes, both countries have deployed and operated together in Kosovo, in Afghanistan, and to counter IS. But the collaboration has been ad hoc. It has not been systematic, and there is no fully-fledged defence cooperation agreement. And as I started work on this area, with some of you in this room, and I thank you for your contributions. As I started work sometime last year, there were only 28 German military personnel training in the UK. There were only six Brits doing the same in Germany, we only had one bilateral German-UK defence industrial programme. So there was huge potential, which we both wanted to seize. The potential and imperative to respond to increasing threats to strengthen our collective security through NATO, which is the cornerstone for the defence of both our nations.

So today, we have signed this landmark Trinity House Agreement. It secures defence cooperation across all domains, land, sea, air, cyber, space. It will be put on a legal footing in the wider treaty between the UK and Germany. The agreement confirms new lighthouse defence projects between our militaries, and where better to announce these than Trinity house, which is home of England’s official Lighthouse Authority and has been so since 1794. In fact, actually, it goes back longer than that, to Henry the Eighth, when he took the first steps to maritime regulation from this building in 1514. And Admiral Ian Lower, thank you for your hospitality, thank you for hosting us, and thank you to your teams for helping us organise this event.

But in this new agreement, our new cooperation is focused on the now, with our army’s training, exercising, innovating more together on NATO’s eastern flank, on German P8 planes operating out of Lossiemouth to help protect the North Atlantic and on new support for Ukraine through the capability coalitions, and also enabling German seeking helicopters to be equipped with modern missile systems. So cooperation focused on the now, and also cooperation focused on the weapons of the future: developing a new deep strike system together; pursuing new drones that could operate alongside our tanks; our planes and our warships; kick starting work together to protect vital undersea cables in the North Sea; advancing innovation between our armies to shape the future of NATO warfare; driven by AI and emerging technologies. And as well as this, this agreement paves the way for closer industrial cooperation.

So today, Rheinmetall have announced plans to build a new gun barrel factory in Britain, supporting 400 jobs, bringing nearly half a billion pounds of benefit to the UK economy, and reestablishing a critical defence industry for the first time in 10 years, gun barrels built in Britain with British steel for our British armed forces and for our allies. And from artillery to AI, from the weapons of now to the weapons of the future, Helsing have also confirmed today a new investment of 350 million pounds into the UK for the development of AI systems. So this shows today’s agreement gives renewed confidence to investors in the UK defence industrial base. Finally, just to give this a bigger context, our new government was elected in July to deliver change. Before with the election, we promised a new defence agreement with Germany in six months, we’ve signed this landmark agreement in less than four months. This is what turning talk into action looks like. This is what resetting relations with Europe looks like. This is what growing our economy looks like, and this is what a NATO first defence strategy looks like. And today’s agreement also sends a signal to our adversaries. We will deter and we will defend against any aggression together.

Boris, I look forward to working closely with you in putting this agreement into action. Today really is only the start of new, deeper relations between our two nations. And yes, politicians may come and go, but the Trinity house agreement will live on, and it will keep our countries and Europe safely in the years to come. Thank you.

Updates to this page

Published 23 October 2024

MIL OSI United Kingdom –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Dive Into a Lake of Data: Open Energy Data Initiative Increases Big Data Access for Everyone

Source: US National Renewable Energy Laboratory

When data is widely accessible and available to anyone, anywhere, it can transform communities—especially when that data concerns something as vital as energy.

2.6 PB

OF DATA

27,057,932

TOTAL DOWNLOADS

2,142

TOTAL DATASETS

227

DATA PROVIDERS

The Open Energy Data Initiative (OEDI) database makes vast amounts of openly accessible energy data available to anyone. Image from OEDI

The Open Energy Data Initiative (OEDI)—currently funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) and developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)—makes energy data widely available to anyone by providing access to big data via “data lakes,” large collections of open-access energy data that are at anyone’s fingertips in the cloud.

In the past, “big data”—data too large or too complex (or both) to be easily consumed by conventional means—could only be used by people with access to high-performance computing systems or supercomputers. OEDI makes vast amounts of energy data available for schools, companies just getting started, and data enthusiasts of all stripes. Each dataset includes access instructions and examples of how to work with the data.

Accessible from OpenEI, OEDI is a centralized location that can house data generated across the 17 national laboratories and all their partner organizations for research and development funded through DOE, with additional contributions from other federal agencies and private companies. Currently, over 200 providers from government labs, private industries, and universities contribute to OEDI. And that data is available to anyone with a laptop and an internet connection to access and use in the cloud.

OEDI’s data repository runs the gamut, spanning high-resolution data for atmospheric conditions used every day by U.S. weather forecasters; real-world building data in hourly increments that shows buildings’ energy consumption to serve as examples for engineers and architects; high-resolution data that shows how much wind or solar energy a given location can produce, not only for the United States but also many regions around the globe; databases about drilling and laser drilling; raw materials and supply chain analysis; and beyond, in over 2,000 datasets.

“Limited access to big data historically excluded startups, small organizations, and minority-serving institutions from research collaborations and community initiatives,” SETO Director Becca Jones-Albertus said. “OEDI gives universal access to big data, fostering inclusive partnerships that enable better decision-making throughout the clean energy transition.”

NREL researchers Ryan King (left) and Grant Buster (right) discuss datasets using Super-Resolution for Renewable Energy Resource Data with Climate Change Impacts (Sup3rCC), a collection of data that includes 4-km hourly wind, solar, temperature, humidity, and pressure fields for the United States under climate change scenarios. Sup3rCC data is intended to help researchers study the impact of climate change on energy systems with high levels of wind and solar capacity and is available on OEDI. Photo by Joe DelNero, NREL

Open, Accessible, and Standardized

Traditional data repositories are not typically optimized for discovering or sharing data. Huge amounts of data further complicate data sharing by making the cost of storage and the time needed to transfer the data prohibitive, limiting access and reducing the potential for collaboration and innovation. Stored on the cloud, OEDI solves these issues by providing a centralized location for large energy datasets.

Making energy data free and widely accessible allows communities to work with researchers and the energy industry to find solutions that meet the communities’ needs, fostering innovation that benefits everyone.

A sample of OEDI’s 2,142 datasets, which are publicly accessible using Amazon Web Service’s cloud storage. Anyone with a laptop and an internet connection can now access and use this data without having to download and store it. Screen capture from the OEDI Data Lakes page

OEDI further supports accessibility by making data easier to use. Simple access is one thing, but if datasets are messy and difficult to work with, mere access means very little.

Converting raw data into standardized formats can be difficult and time-consuming. By cleaning and curating datasets, OEDI programmers aim to reduce the burden on individual data owners and project teams for data standardization, freeing up time and resources and improving the quality and consistency of standardized data.

OEDI data pipelines automatically detect certain raw data formats and standardize them, displaying the standardized data right alongside the raw data for scientific posterity. OEDI data standards adhere to the precedents from the U.S. General Services Administration’s Open Data and FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable) data principles.

“With DOE support, NREL built OEDI from the ground up to share data,” said Jon Weers, who leads OEDI for NREL. “Anyone can access the data through OEDI directly or through a network of data sharing partners like Data.gov, Google Datasets, and dozens of other sites.”

Introducing Ask OEDI: Your New Research Assistant for Data Questions

Accessibility—making data available to the widest possible audience and reducing the learning curve for working with that data—is an essential function of OEDI. In support of FAIR data principles, NREL developed an artificial intelligence research assistant, AskOEDI, to help users find answers about datasets that go beyond simple searches.

AskOEDI provides answers to research questions about datasets with vetted information. Screen capture from OEDI

AskOEDI is an integrated large language model with the metadata and supporting documents for OEDI datasets and can provide answers to users’ questions using natural language processing and generative machine learning. Users can get answers to questions about specific datasets, including inquiries about the equipment, assumptions, and methodologies used in the origination of a dataset along with more abstract questions, such as the applicability of data to specific research fields. It only pulls answers from information vetted by OEDI and always cites sources, making it an ideal research assistant for OEDI data. AskOEDI increases the utility and discoverability of energy data by providing users with the means to quickly understand the nuances of a dataset without having to search through numerous associated publications.

“Many of the questions that used to be an email to the data owner can now be answered instantly,” Weers said. “As long as they’ve been discussed in a linked publication or supporting document, AskOEDI can quickly find the answers to deeper questions on data such as ‘How was this data collected?’ or ‘What assumptions went into the calculation used for this data column?’ We’re excited to see where this technology goes as we work in this emerging field of artificial intelligence.”

Using Big Data for Big Impacts

OEDI is already impacting communities. The OEDI team supported communities in Puerto Rico in their transition to renewable energy in response to hurricanes Maria and Fiona. Working with DOE, the U.S. Census’ The Opportunity Project (TOP), local governments, and local teams, OEDI researchers facilitated the development of five different innovative solutions to help Puerto Rico increase its resilience and transition to 100% renewable energy.

These solutions were developed by small teams of local collaborators focusing on community-driven solutions by applying and analyzing big data freely accessible through OEDI, which was recognized by Puerto Rico Governor Pedro Pierluisi during the TOP Summit.

Small teams of local collaborators used OEDI to develop community-driven, innovative solutions to help Puerto Rico to increase its energy resilience and transition to renewable energy. Photo by Joe DelNero, NREL

“Open access to data supports local communities,” Weers said. “In the wake of recent hurricanes, communities on the ground in Puerto Rico were able to use OEDI data to help them devise plans to rebuild and reinforce their energy infrastructure their way.”

With OEDI, researchers from national laboratories to high school labs, from the United States and across the world, have greater access to valuable data to answer key energy questions. Over five years, OEDI has increased access to public data by 7,296%, to over 2.28 petabytes of data in 2024. Its data lakes now boast massive amounts of valuable data from solar, wind, geothermal, buildings, and marine energy programs to help anyone seeking to understand and contribute to innovative energy solutions.

Access the Open Energy Data Initiative on OpenEI.

Contact Jon Weers, NREL lead technologist and data systems architect.

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI: Transom Capital-backed Artivo Surfaces Acquires Tom Duffy Company

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

LIVONIA, Mich. and LOS ANGELES, Oct. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Artivo Surfaces, the Transom Capital-backed parent company of Virginia Tile, Galleher, and Trinity Hardwood, is acquiring Tom Duffy Company, a strategic move that significantly strengthens Artivo’s position as a market leader in the tile and flooring industry. With its extensive portfolio of installation materials, hardwood, luxury vinyl tile (LVT), and tile solutions, Tom Duffy brings valuable expertise and a diverse product offering to Artivo’s growing family of products and capabilities.

“For over 70 years, Tom Duffy has earned its place as a trusted partner in the flooring industry,” said Sunil Palakodati, CEO of Artivo Surfaces. “This acquisition expands Artivo’s platform and strengthens our core capabilities. By bringing together Tom Duffy’s exceptional team, strong industry relationships, and loyal customer base, we’re enhancing our ability to serve residential and commercial markets across the country with a broader range of flooring solutions.”

Anne Funsten, President, and CEO of Tom Duffy Company expressed her enthusiasm about joining Artivo Surfaces: “We are thrilled to become part of Artivo Surfaces. This partnership not only enables us to scale our business but also preserves the legacy we have built in an ever-changing market. Artivo’s forward-thinking vision and robust resources create the perfect foundation for our continued growth while allowing us to strengthen the trusted relationships we have nurtured over the decades.”

“This acquisition marks an exciting milestone as Artivo continues to expand its reach and capabilities,” said Steve Kim, Principal at Transom Capital Group. “Tom Duffy has been well known in the West Coast for decades, and their inclusion in the Artivo family strengthens its ability to provide customers with even more comprehensive and innovative solutions. Tom Duffy is Transom Capital’s third acquisition in less than twelve months in this vertical, and we are proud to support Sunil and his leadership team in building a premier surfaces platform.”

Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal advisor to Transom Capital and PNC Bank, N.A. and Blue Torch Capital provided debt financing for the transaction. Wood Warren served as the exclusive financial advisor and Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP served as legal advisor to Tom Duffy.

About Artivo Surfaces
Artivo Surfaces is a multi-regional flooring company and parent company to the Virginia Tile, Galleher LLC, Trinity Hardwood Flooring and Tom Duffy brands. The company’s network covers 48 locations in over 18 states, and they provide a comprehensive range of flooring solutions from coast to coast. Its extensive portfolio features a diverse selection of ceramic, porcelain, natural stone, hardwood, luxury vinyl, and all necessary installation materials. Combining a century of expertise with innovative design and premium products, serving both residential and commercial markets. Artivo’s scale enables it to deliver industry-leading products and solutions while preserving the personalized, high-touch service its customers depend on. 

About Transom Capital Group
Transom Capital Group is an operations-focused private equity firm focused on investing in the middle market. The firm strives to create long-term value by partnering with established businesses and helping them navigate transformative growth. Transom’s functional pattern recognition, access to capital, and ARMOR^SM Value Creation Process, combined with management’s industry expertise, drive improved operational efficiency, top-line growth, cultural transformation, and distinctive outcomes. Transom is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

Media Contact
Sam Butler for Transom Capital
sam@35thAvenuePartners.com

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Manitoba Government Opening its Second Extended Hours Primary Care Clinic

Source: Government of Canada regional news

October 23, 2024

Manitoba Government Opening its Second Extended Hours Primary Care Clinic

Concordia Hospital’s New Extended Hours Primary Care Clinic Will Bring Care Closer to Home: Premier

The Manitoba government is opening its second Extended Hours Primary Care Clinic on Oct. 23, which will be open on evenings, weekends and holidays so patients can access care when and where they need it, Premier Wab Kinew and Health, Seniors and Long-Term Care Minister Uzoma Asagwara announced today.

“We are bringing health care closer to home for northeast Winnipeggers.” said Kinew. “We were elected on the promise to provide convenient and accessible health care to families across Manitoba and these clinics are doing just that. If your kid scrapes their knee, your parents need a checkup or you need to renew your prescription, you can head down to Concordia’s new clinic.”

Located in Room 127A at Concordia Hospital, the Extended Hours Primary Care Clinic offers family doctors and nurses who can treat patients for common ailments and support the ongoing management of chronic conditions.

“Life can’t always adapt to a nine to five schedule and folks can’t always plan for their health-care needs,” Asagwara. “Hard-working Manitobans need convenient options for accessing local care. We had an incredible response to the first Extended Hours Primary Care Clinic at the Grace Hospital. More than 560 patients have been seen since the clinic opened just over a month ago. I’m so glad to be opening another Extended Hours Primary Care Clinic that will reach even more Manitobans.”

“As a long-time resident of the area, it’s great news to hear we’re getting more local health care in northeast Winnipeg,” said Mave Dickson, northeast Winnipeg resident. “Our community will really benefit from accessible and convenient care closer to home.”

Extended Hours Primary Care Clinics are an excellent way to supplement the care patients receive from their regular providers, offering options when their primary physician is unavailable, noted the premier.

The clinic at Concordia Hospital is the second extended-hours clinic to open in Winnipeg. It will be open after hours from 5:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. on weekdays and 1:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. on weekends, and offer special hours during the holidays. Patients can register for same-day appointments online at https://myrightcare.ca and some walk-in spots will be available every day.

For more information on where to seek care for common illnesses, injuries and mental health concerns, visit the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority’s Find Your Right Care page at https://myrightcare.ca.

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MIL OSI Canada News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Beatty & Waters Lead Call for Stronger, More Accountable IFIs
Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Joyce Beatty (3rd District of Ohio)

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Joyce Beatty (D-OH), the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on National Security, Illicit Finance, and International Financial Institutions, and Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee announced plans this week to introduce a legislative package aimed at strengthening and reforming the International Financial Institutions. With the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group underway, this bill will help initiate reforms related to transparency, accountability, and institutional management. Specifically, this bill seeks to hold accountable the persons involved in the child sexual abuse scandal at the Bridge Academies project in Kenya, eliminate onerous loan conditions on developing or distressed countries, improve the debt forgiveness efforts of the IFIs, reduce reliance on Russian agriculture, combat corruption, and more.

“Countries around the world continue to face significant social and economic challenges, from corruption and human rights abuses to debt sustainability crises and the disastrous effects of climate change,” said Congresswoman Beatty. “International Financial Institutions (IFIs) have done substantial work to promote financial stability, poverty reduction, and economic development, but they can do more to address systemic inequities and facilitate debt relief for distressed countries. I am proud to join Ranking Member Waters in introducing this package of meaningful reforms to increase transparency and accountability at the IFIs, strengthen support for low-income countries, and establish robust human rights protections.”

“Over the years, our International Financial Institutions (IFI) have played a crucial role in establishing international order and addressing some of the most pressing economic challenges across the globe,” said Congresswoman Waters. “Despite this success, there have been troubling instances of child abuse, corruption, discrimination, and mismanagement that has hindered IFIs from reaching their full potential. I am eager to advance this bill to the President’s desk and look forward to working across the aisle on ways to strengthen the IMF, World Bank and other Development Banks so that they can create a more equitable and prosperous global economy.”

Key provisions in the legislative package include:
- Treasury Report on Accountability of the World Bank in Child Sexual Abuse – This provision would mandate that Treasury report to Congress on a quarterly basis on actions completed by the World Bank to compensate survivors of child sexual abuse, including with financial compensation and other relief, and to hold accountable those involved in the Bridge Academies project. The quarterly report to Congress must also include details of reforms adopted by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to prevent such failures in the future, as well as any steps taken by the IFC to impede Treasury from sharing any information around this report or the Bridge Academies case with Congress.
- Anti-corruption measures in lending agreements – This provision states that the US press for the incorporation of anti-corruption measures in lending agreements at the IMF to build sustainable economies. Such measures must include ensuring that governments receiving loans make specific, measurable, and time-bound commitments as part of the loan agreements, with consequences for noncompliance.
- Protections for human rights, including LGBTQ+ persons – This provision would mandate that Treasury oppose the World Bank providing financial assistance to countries that engage in the human rights abuses as reported in the State Department’s Annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, including those of people who identify as LGBTQ+.
- Loan Conditions – This provision states that the U.S. encourage the reduction or elimination of loan conditions that: limit spending on key social needs such as health, education, or climate action; weaken environmental, labor, public health regulations; or increase taxes or reduce subsidies in such a way that falls regressively on recipient country populations.
- Reporting on Human Rights Abuses in For-Profit Healthcare – This provision mandates that Treasury report to Congress on a biannual basis on any known accusations made by community groups, CSOs, media, or other credible actors, of human rights abuses at MDB-funded, for-profit hospitals, included those funded by the IFC, and on actions completed by the MDB private sector arms to investigate and address or respond to these accusations. This provision also mandates that the U.S. advocate for the MDBs to examine their investments in healthcare to determine contribution to universal health coverage, the strengthening of national health systems, and the reduction of health inequities.
- Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST) Financing – This provision would amend the most recent appropriations law so that U.S. money could be used to finance loans to the RST in addition to the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust. This is important because the Republicans cut the RST out from potentially receiving loans.
- Quota Increase – This provision would authorize an equiproportional increase in quota at the IMF consistent with the increase Treasury negotiated with the IMF Member countries. If Congress passes this provision the US would retain its veto power and percent of shareholding at the IMF and China’s share would not increase (even though it probably should based on its growth). At the IMF, Member countries’ maximum financial commitments to the Fund are called “quota.” Quota is broadly matched to a Member country’s relative position in the world’s economy, and voting shares at the IMF are in line with how much quota a country pays. This was in President Biden’s most recent budget request.
Read the full bill here.
Read the Section by Section here.

For media inquiries, please contact Cassandra.Johnson@mail.house.gov.

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MIL OSI USA News –
January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Padilla, Schiff Joint Statement on President Trump Visit to Southern California

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.)

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff (both D-Calif.) issued the following statement after President Trump toured the devastation of the fires in Southern California:

“We’re grateful to President Trump for coming to California amidst the ongoing response to these historic fires. It’s difficult to comprehend the scale of the devastation — entire neighborhoods gone — until you see it firsthand. While his continued comments threatening conditions on federal aid and to eliminate FEMA are deeply concerning, we remain hopeful this visit moves the President and Congress closer to focus on relief over partisanship.

“Let us be clear — leveraging disaster aid as a bargaining chip runs in stark contrast to how both Democrats and Republicans have responded to natural disasters for decades. Natural disasters don’t discriminate between blue states or red states. And Americans should be able to count on our support to recover and rebuild in the wake of these tragedies, no matter what state they call home. We will continue to work with our colleagues to ensure that’s the case in California.”

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: McConnell Statement on the Passing of Senator Johnnie Turner

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator for Kentucky Mitch McConnell

LOUISVILLE, KY – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) issued the following statement today regarding the passing of Kentucky State Senator Johnnie Turner:

“Elaine and I were saddened to hear of the passing of our friend, Senator Johnnie Turner. Throughout his service to Kentucky and the nation – in the U.S. Army, the State House, and the State Senate, representing Eastern Kentucky’s communities – Johnnie lived his life for others. In recent years, I remember crossing paths with Johnnie to survey the damage left by the devastating floods that hit Eastern Kentucky. Johnnie was on the scene, ankle-deep in mud, his equipment from home in tow, ready to help folks in Letcher County. That’s just who he was: a good man who loved the mountains and its people. We send our condolences to the entire Turner family, Johnnie’s colleagues in the Senate, and all those touched by his service.”

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Cortez Man Pleads Guilty To Making Threats Against Election Official

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

DENVER – The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announces that Teak Ty Brockbank, 45, of Cortez, pleaded guilty today to one count of transmitting interstate threats.

According to the plea agreement, Brockbank made a series of online threats toward elections officials in Colorado and Arizona, a Colorado state judge, and federal law enforcement agents between September 2021 and August 2022. On September 21, 2021, for example, Brockbank posted on a social media account: “I live in Communist Colorado and this Crazed liberal [referring to Election Official-1] and many others in Communist Colorado needs to- No has to Hang she has to Hang by the neck till she is Dead Dead Dead. There will be accountability for these peoples actions in Communist Colorado and it won’t be judges and it won’t be weakmided cops that bring it!!! It will be Me it will be You it Will be every day people that understand that there life does not matter anymore with the future our country has laid out before it.”

In the plea agreement, Brockbank also admitted that, during that time, he used that account, as well as another social media account to post messages threatening Colorado and Arizona election officials. Brockbank admitted to other threats as well. On August 4, 2022, for example, Brockbank posted a message referring to separate election officials in Arizona and Colorado and then stated: “Once those people start getting put to death then the rest will melt like snowflakes and turn on each other. . . . This is the only way. So those of us that have the stomach for what has to be done should prepare our minds for what we all [a]re going to do!!!!!! It is time.”

Brockbank also posted a message threatening a Colorado state judge on Oct. 2, 2021: “I could pick up my rifle and I could go put a bullet in this Mans head and send him to explain himself to our Creator right now. I would be Justified!!! Not only justified but obligated by those in my family who fought and died for the freedom in this country. . . . What can I do other than kill this man my self?”

Finally, Brockbank allegedly threatened federal law enforcement on July 20, 2022, posting: “ATF CIA FBI show up to my house I am shooting them peace’s of shit first No Warning!! Then I will call the sheriff!!! With everything that these piece of shit agencies have done I am completely justified to just start dropping them as soon as they step on my property! justified.”

United States District Judge S. Kato Crews presided over the change of plea hearing. The FBI Denver Field Office investigated the case. Trial Attorney Jonathan E. Jacobson of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant United States Attorney Cyrus Y. Chung for the District of Colorado handled the prosecution.

Sentencing will be held on February 3, 2025.

This case is part of the Justice Department’s Election Threats Task Force. Announced by Attorney General Merrick B. Garland and launched by Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco in June 2021, the task force has led the Department’s efforts to address threats of violence against election workers, and to ensure that all election workers — whether elected, appointed, or volunteer — are able to do their jobs free from threats and intimidation. The task force engages with the election community and state and local law enforcement to assess allegations and reports of threats against election workers, and has investigated and prosecuted these matters where appropriate, in partnership with FBI Field Offices and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices throughout the country. A year after its formation, the task force is continuing this work and supporting the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and FBI Field Offices nationwide as they carry on the critical work that the Task Force has begun.

Under the leadership of Deputy Attorney General Monaco, the Task Force is led by the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and includes several other entities within the Justice Department, including the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section of the Criminal Division, the Civil Rights Division, the National Security Division, and the FBI, as well as key interagency partners, such as the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. For more information regarding the Justice Department’s efforts to combat threats against election workers, read the Deputy Attorney General’s memo.

To report suspected threats or violent acts, contact your local FBI office and request to speak with the Election Crimes Coordinator. Contact information for every FBI field office may be found here: www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/. You may also contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (225-5324) or file an online complaint at www.tips.fbi.gov. Complaints submitted will be reviewed by the task force and referred for investigation or response accordingly. If someone is in imminent danger or risk of harm, contact 911 or your local police immediately.

Case Number: 24-cr-00291-SKC

MIL Security OSI –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: New Bern Man Pleads Guilty for Posing as Landlord to Fraudulently Collect Nearly $150,000 in COVID-19 Rental Assistance

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

RALEIGH, N.C. – New Bern resident Anthony Lynch, 35, pled guilty to charges that he defrauded a program designed to help struggling North Carolina residents stay in their homes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Mr. Lynch exploited a taxpayer-funded program meant to support struggling families and individuals trying to stay in their homes during an unprecedented global pandemic,” said U.S. Attorney Michael Easley. “Lynch sought nearly $400,000 in emergency federal funds in 25 separate relief applications. His ill-gotten profits have now landed him a federal conviction.”

According to court documents and other information presented in court, Lynch pled guilty to one count of mail fraud for falsely claiming to be the landlord of properties in Craven, Pamlico and Onslow Counties with renters who were unable to pay rent due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Lynch submitted 25 applications to the North Carolina Housing Opportunities and Prevention of Evictions Program (NC HOPE), which was established during the pandemic to provide emergency rental assistance to tenants who struggled to pay rent and therefore faced eviction due to financial difficulties caused by the pandemic.

Despite having no ownership or management responsibilities for any of the properties listed in the 25 applications he submitted, Lynch requested nearly $400,000 in emergency federal funding. His fraudulent applications resulted in 11 checks, totaling $144,000 being mailed to Lynch at his home in New Bern. He faces up to 27 months in prison, if convicted.

The NC HOPE Program administered federal COVID-19 relief funds and provided emergency rental assistance to North Carolina renters who faced eviction and homelessness during the pandemic. The program allowed renters to submit an online application to apply for rental assistance. If approved, the program paid the tenant’s rent, in checks sent directly to the landlord, for up to 15 months of overdue or future rent payments.

Michael F. Easley, Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, made the announcement after the guilty plea was accepted by Chief United States District Judge Richard E. Myers. The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General; the United States Department of Treasury, Office of Inspector General; and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation investigated the case and it is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Haughton.

Related court documents and information are located on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:24-cr-00061.

MIL Security OSI –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: October 22nd, 2024 Heinrich Highlights New Ballistics Testing Machine in Las Cruces to Help Tackle Gun Violence & Solve Violent Crime in Southern New Mexico

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator for New Mexico Martin Heinrich
LAS CRUCES, N.M. — Today, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, highlighted recent funding he’s secured for law enforcement to tackle gun violence, solve crimes, and hold criminals accountable in Southern New Mexico, including a new ballistics testing machine, known as a National Integrated Ballistics Information Network (NIBIN) machine, for Las Cruces.
Currently, there are only four NIBIN machines in New Mexico: two in Albuquerque, one in Santa Fe, and one on loan in Las Cruces, which the Las Cruces Police Department demonstrated today. Over $1 million Heinrich secured through the Appropriations process will add four new NIBIN machines for Las Cruces, Farmington, Gallup, and Roswell.
CAPTION: Heinrich visits with the Las Cruces Police Department to discuss funding he’s secured for a new NIBIN machine in Las Cruces, October 22, 2024.
“A permanent NIBIN machine in Las Cruces will make a real difference in helping to solve violent crime in the region, allowing law enforcement to trace firearms used in crimes and hold criminals accountable, all while saving officers valuable time and resources,” said Heinrich. “When it comes to crime, my focus is on preventing what we can and solving it when we can’t. These machines will help us do both – solving the crimes that happen before those same criminals can do more harm. I will continue to deliver investments to support and better equip our law enforcement with the tools needed to keep New Mexicans safe.”
NIBIN machines are vital to assisting law enforcement in identifying and prosecuting crimes involving firearms through ballistic intelligence.
The intelligence gathered by these NIBIN machines will go to the New Mexico Attorney General’s Crime Gun Intelligence Center, where dedicated and trained analysts will use the information to trace and network firearms used in crimes across the state. The Center will then be able to feed that information back to law enforcement agencies to improve identification of suspects and support successful prosecutions. In addition to securing funding for the NIBIN machines, Heinrich secured language in the 2024 Appropriations Bill directing the expanded use of NIBIN for state and local agencies in the Southwest Border region.
Heinrich-secured funding for the Las Cruces Police Department
Heinrich secured $194,000 in the 2024 Appropriations Bills for the Las Cruces Police Department to purchase equipment to safely analyze fentanyl and other illicit narcotics and create a community engagement effort to educate youth on the dangers of illicit drugs.
In the 2o23 Appropriations Bills, Heinrich secured $1,750,000 for the Las Cruces Police Department’s Regional Critical Response Team to purchase emergency response equipment to keep New Mexicans safe. The legislation also included $450,000 Heinrich secured for the Las Cruces Police Department to purchase camera trailers, drones, automatic license plate readers, and auto-activated car and body cameras to improve public safety and accountability.
For a list of Heinrich’s actions to support law enforcement and first responders across New Mexico, click here.
Heinrich’s longtime leadership to tackle gun violence:
A gun owner and father, Heinrich has long worked to advance and pass bipartisan policies that save lives, protect public safety, and reduce gun violence.
The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA) was the first significant federal gun safety legislation to become law in 30 years. During the bill negotiations, Heinrich specifically worked with U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) to increase criminal penalties for straw purchases and stop illegal gun trafficking out of our country.
Heinrich-led gun trafficking and straw purchase provisions:
Heinrich-led provisions in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act increased criminal penalties for straw purchasers and made it a crime, for the first time ever, to traffic firearms out of the United States. Straw purchasers are people who buy guns for those who cannot buy them directly themselves due to their age, felony criminal convictions, or other limitations. By increasing penalties for straw purchasing, Heinrich’s provision is helping to keep guns out of the hands of criminals and those who would use them against our communities. By making it illegal to traffic firearms out of the country, Heinrich’s provision gave law enforcement the tools needed to prosecute and disrupt the flow of firearms to Mexico and the Northern Triangle, fueling the violence that has driven so many to flee their home countries.
To date, the Department of Justice has charged more than 600 defendants using BSCA’s gun trafficking and straw purchasing laws, removing hundreds of firearms off the streets in the process. These cases are significant, often preventing and prosecuting highly dangerous activity, such as crimes linked to organized trafficking rings and transnational criminal organizations.
For example, in March 2024, the Justice Department charged several defendants with trafficking and straw purchasing over 100 firearms, including many military-grade weapons, that were allegedly intended to be smuggled to a Mexican drug cartel. In April, a defendant was sentenced to 276 months in prison for firearms trafficking and straw purchasing, as well as distribution of fentanyl, where the evidence showed that two of the trafficked firearms had been used in gang-related shootings. Late last year, a defendant was sentenced to two years in prison for running an illegal gun trafficking enterprise, repeatedly taking money to lie on firearm purchase forms and obtain weapons for convicted felons.
In New Mexico, the Office of the United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico has charged 11 defendants with BSCA violations.
In June, Heinrich brought his Banning Unlawful Machinegun Parts (BUMP) Act, bipartisan legislation to ban bump stocks, to the Senate floor through a unanimous consent (UC) request. The effort directly followed a recent Supreme Court ruling to overturn a Trump-era ban on bump stocks, devices designed to indiscriminately kill the highest number of people in the shortest amount of time. U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), objected to Heinrich’s UC request, blocking passage of the legislation. Since the Supreme Court ruling, over 20 senators have signed onto Heinrich’s BUMP Act, bringing support up to over a quarter of the Senate.
Heinrich, U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), and former Senator Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) initially introduced the BUMP Act in the 115th Congress, following the October 1, 2017, mass shooting in which a bump stock was used to fire more than 1,000 bullets into a crowd in just 10 minutes, killing 60 people. U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) also cosponsored that legislation.
Last November, Heinrich introduced the Gas-Operated Semi-Automatic Firearms Exclusion (GOSAFE) Act, legislation to protect communities from gun violence, while safeguarding Americans’ constitutional right to own a firearm for legitimate self-defense, hunting, and sporting purposes. In addition to regulating the sale, transfer, and manufacture of gas-operated semi-automatic weapons, the GOSAFE Act would prevent unlawful modifications of permissible firearms, including bump stocks. Earlier this summer, Heinrich announced that his GOSAFE Act has been introduced in the House by U.S. Representative Lucy McBath (D-Ga.).
In July 2023, Heinrich cosponsored the bicameral Ghost Guns and Untraceable Firearms Act, led by Blumenthal, to require online and other sellers of gun-making kits to comply with federal firearm safety regulations.
In 2017, Heinrich cosponsored the bipartisan Fix NICS Act, which now requires federal and state authorities to produce background check implementation plans and holds federal agencies accountable for reporting relevant criminal records to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). He also led the successful call to repeal the Dickey Amendment, which had previously prevented the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from funding research on gun violence and its effects on public health.

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Following Their Call For Accountability Forr Failures at Buffalo VA, Schumer, Gillibrand, Kennedy, Langworthy Announce Nationwide Review To Identify & Investigate Systemic Issues Within The VA’s Community Care Practices
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for New York Kirsten Gillibrand

Investigation Will Help Ensure That No Veteran – In Buffalo Or Anywhere Else In The Country – Fails To Receive Desperately Needed Treatment Again

Following their call for accountability after egregious failures at the Buffalo VA left veterans waiting weeks or months to receive care, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Representative Tim Kennedy, and Representative Nick Langworthy today announced a nationwide evaluation of the VA’s community care consult practices to root out systemic issues within the VA’s health care network.

At Schumer, Gillibrand, Kennedy, and Langworthy’s request, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) will be conducting a comprehensive review of the VA’s community care consult practices. The investigation will include a review of the VA’s practices around scheduling patient treatment, particularly for high-risk and complex conditions. It will also review practices around handling concerns raised by patients and health care providers in the case of delayed treatment.

“No veteran, in Western NY or anywhere in America, should experience failures like those that occurred at the Buffalo VA. We must make sure this unacceptable failure to provide the care our veterans need never happens again. This new independent investigation by the Government Accountability Office will conduct a top-to-bottom review of the VA’s nationwide practices,” said Senator Schumer. “We must put better infrastructure and oversight practices in place to protect veterans in Western NY and across the country. We will be watching the VA like a hawk to ensure changes are made and VA centers across the country deliver on their promise to our vets to provide them the top-notch care they have earned and deserve.”

“What happened at the Buffalo VA was unacceptable. Nothing should ever get in the way of veterans receiving desperately needed care,” said Senator Gillibrand. “I am glad that the Government Accountability Office is investigating the VA at my urging and I look forward to seeing the results of their investigation. I will continue to monitor this situation closely and fight to ensure that no veteran slips through the cracks.”

“I am pleased that the Government Accountability Office is moving forward with reviewing VA community care practices to ensure our heroes receive the quality and timely medical services they deserve,” said Congressman Kennedy. “I will continue to do everything in my power to uphold our duty of care and get the Buffalo VA back on track.”

“We must keep our nation’s promise to our veterans that when they get home, they get the care they earned and deserve — the failures that caused critical delays in care at the Buffalo VA are absolutely unacceptable,” said Congressman Langworthy. “This new investigation led by the Government Accountability Office will help us identify the problems that allowed this to happen and ensure it never happens again. I’ll be actively involved to make sure we hold the VA accountable and deliver real results for our veterans.”

According to a report from the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General, critically ill patients at the Buffalo VA had their treatments postponed for months or even canceled entirely, despite concerns raised by patients and health care providers. In one case, a patient waited nine weeks for radiation therapy for a new cancer malignancy, despite efforts by the chief of oncology to get the community care team to schedule treatment. In another, a veteran died waiting for palliative radiation therapy that would have eased severe pain from stage 4 cancer. Following the shocking revelations of the report the lawmakers requested an independent investigation by the GAO into the VA community care practices that led to these failures to ensure better care for veterans both in Western NY and across the country.

Specifically, the GAO review will include:
1. Oversight of medical centers’ adherence to Veterans Health Administration (VHA) requirements for processing consults for conditions considered high-risk or complex;
2. Whether consults are appropriately prioritized and consistently processed within VHA’s timeliness requirements;
3. Reviewing how medical facilities, VISN leaders, and the VHA Office of Integrated Veteran Care respond to concerns regarding delays in consult scheduling from providers, staff, patients, and their families and how this is built into VHA’s quality and risk management programs;
4. Best practices to prevent and address leadership deficiencies within the community care scheduling process, including the prioritization of patient safety.
The full text of Senator Schumer, Gillibrand, Kennedy, and Langworthy’s original letter requesting this investigation by the Government Accountability Office is available HERE or below:

Dear Mr. Dodaro:

            On Friday, September 27th, the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) released its findings following its inspection of the VA Western New York Health System in Buffalo, New York. The report – Leaders Failed to Address Community Care Consult Delays Despite Staff’s Advocacy Efforts at VA Western New York Healthcare System in Buffalo – found a shocking pattern of apathy and incompetence on the part of Department facility and community care leaders in addressing the needs of patients with complex and high-risk conditions.

            As the report indicates, these delays caused or led to an increased risk of harm to the patients. One veteran passed away while waiting months to receive palliative care that would have helped manage cancer pain in their final months. Another patient waited nine weeks to schedule radiation therapy for a new cancer malignancy, despite efforts by the chief of oncology to get the community care team to schedule treatment. Another veteran in their twenties continued to suffer from seizures for another 10 months as they waited for a consult to be scheduled, the delay partially caused by a referral being canceled by the community care medical director. These are only some of the cases highlighted by an OIG report that identified incompetence and bureaucratic red tape that failed the veterans in Buffalo again and again.

            The failure by the leadership at the Buffalo VA Medical Center must never occur again, and veterans across the United States must be reassured that they can receive timely and high-quality health care across the VA health care system. Therefore, I request that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) conduct a review of Veterans Integrated Services Networks’ (VISN) community care consult practices. The review should include, but not be limited to:
1. Oversight of medical centers’ adherence to Veterans Health Administration (VHA) requirements for processing consults for conditions considered high-risk or complex;
2. Whether consults are appropriately prioritized and consistently processed within VHA’s timeliness requirements;
3. Reviewing how medical facility, VISN leaders, and the VHA Office of Integrated Veteran Care respond to concerns regarding delays in consult scheduling from providers, staff, patients, and their families and how this is built into VHA’s quality and risk management programs;
4. Best practices to prevent and address leadership deficiencies within the community care scheduling process, including the prioritization of patient safety;
I request a briefing on the preliminary findings with final results to be submitted on a date and in form mutually agreed upon. Please include recommendations, as appropriate, for agency or congressional action in your evaluation.

Sincerely,
MIL OSI USA News –
January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Amendments to the Land Titles Act, 2015 passed the Legislative Assembly
Source: Government of Canada regional news

On October 21, 2024, the Yukon Legislative Assembly unanimously passed Bill No. 42, the 2024 Act to Amend the Land Titles Act, 2015. The amendments passed in this legislation will help ensure that purpose-built affordable housing developments remain affordable over the long term through the use of statutory covenants.

A statutory covenant is an agreement attached to a land title that outlines obligations or restrictions that must be followed by the landowner. The covenants are “statutory” because they are set out in and can be enforced by law.
- Read more about Amendments to the Land Titles Act, 2015 passed the Legislative Assembly
- Add new comment
MIL OSI Canada News –
January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Money to Advance Zero-Emission Homes in New York

Source: US State of New York

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced $10 million is now available to advance new zero-emission homes in New York State. The Building Better Homes – Zero Emission Homes for Healthier Communities program incentivizes the design, construction and marketing of new clean and resilient single-family homes and townhomes and provides training and technical support to builders and developers. Advancing zero-emission new construction across the state will reduce emissions, improve indoor air quality, and create healthy, comfortable and resilient living environments for all New Yorkers.

“New homes built to the latest clean energy and efficiency standards will ensure greener, healthier housing is available to all New Yorkers while helping pave the way toward a more sustainable future,” Governor Hochul said. “This investment is another part of the State’s comprehensive strategy to transform the new construction market, curb emissions, and ensure fewer homes and buildings rely on fossil fuels.”

The Building Better Homes – Zero Emission Homes for Healthier Communities Program, administered by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), provides funding on a first come, first served basis to builders and developers that commit to designing, constructing and growing market awareness and demand for new zero emission single-family homes and townhomes. Projects must meet performance requirements and third-party certification criteria that address clean energy, above code energy efficiency, and resiliency, including heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems that remain operable during power outages or include backup power sources that can be used in the event of a power outage.

New York State Energy Research and Development Authority President and CEO Doreen M. Harris said, “Bringing builders and developers resources to advance zero-emission new construction is at the heart of Governor Hochul’s commitment to build homes that are healthy, comfortable, and maximize consumer control over energy use. This program continues NYSERDA’s long history of working with the market to bring the latest in energy and efficiency measures to more New Yorkers.”

The base incentive per home is up to $7,000 and up to $4,000 for townhomes. Homes located in disadvantaged communities, as defined by the Climate Justice Working Group, will be eligible for the higher incentive amount with an additional $1,000 offered per project in these areas. Funding is also available for Passive House training of staff and contractors to help develop the expertise needed to effectively incorporate these standards into new homes.

Applications for a single home, townhome or multiple homes and townhomes within a housing subdivision will be accepted through December 31, 2025, by 3 p.m. ET or until funds have been exhausted. For more information on this opportunity, including eligibility requirements, please visit NYSERDA’s website.

This program is part of the Building Better Homes Initiative, which is designed to advance market awareness of zero-emission building practices and provide resources that can be distributed to consumers about the benefits of them. Benefits to consumers include improved indoor air quality, reducing the potential for asthma and allergies, and more comfortable living, all resulting from modern, high-performance appliances, such as induction cooktops, convection ovens, and clothes washers with integrated heat pump dryers.

Zero-emission homes are also more likely to operate seamlessly during power outages due to incorporating passive resiliency and survivability measures. With more than 10,000 new homes being built per year in New York State, working with the home building market to reduce emissions is critical to making progress toward the State’s climate and energy goals, including the Governor’s goal to achieve two million climate-friendly homes by 2030.

Buildings are one of the most significant sources of greenhouse gas emissions in New York State, and through NYSERDA and utility programs, more than $6.8 billion is being invested to decarbonize buildings. By improving energy efficiency in buildings and advancing statewide installations of onsite storage, renewables, and electric vehicle charging equipment, the State will reduce its carbon emissions and advance toward the ambitious target of reducing on-site energy consumption by 185 TBtu by 2025, the equivalent of powering 1.8 million homes.

This program is funded through the State’s Clean Energy Fund (CEF).

New York State’s Nation-Leading Climate Plan

New York State’s climate agenda calls for an orderly and just transition that creates family-sustaining jobs, continues to foster a green economy across all sectors and ensures that at least 35 percent, with a goal of 40 percent of the benefits of clean energy investments, are directed to disadvantaged communities. Guided by some of the nation’s most aggressive climate and clean energy initiatives, New York is advancing a suite of efforts – including the New York Cap-and-Invest program (NYCI) and other complementary policies – to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 40 percent by 2030 and 85 percent by 2050 from 1990 levels. New York is also on a path to achieving a zero-emission electricity sector by 2040, including 70 percent renewable energy generation by 2030, and economy-wide carbon neutrality by mid-century. A cornerstone of this transition is New York’s unprecedented clean energy investments, including more than $28 billion in 61 large-scale renewable and transmission projects across the State, $6.8 billion to reduce building emissions, $3.3 billion to scale up solar, nearly $3 billion for clean transportation initiatives and over $2 billion in NY Green Bank commitments. These and other investments are supporting more than 170,000 jobs in New York’s clean energy sector as of 2022 and over 3,000 percent growth in the distributed solar sector since 2011. To reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality, New York also adopted zero-emission vehicle regulations, including requiring all new passenger cars and light-duty trucks sold in the State be zero emission by 2035. Partnerships are continuing to advance New York’s climate action with more than 400 registered and more than 130 certified Climate Smart Communities, nearly 500 Clean Energy Communities, and the State’s largest community air monitoring initiative in 10 disadvantaged communities across the State to help target air pollution and combat climate change.

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: F-35B test jet begins sea trials with Japanese multi-functional destroyer in eastern Pacific Ocean

Source: United States INDO PACIFIC COMMAND

PACIFIC OCEAN –

A U.S. F-35 Lightning II aircraft landed aboard Japan’s Izumo-class multi-functional destroyer JS Kaga (DDH-184) for the first time Oct. 20 off the southern coast of California to begin developmental test aboard the allies’ largest ship.

Royal Navy Lt. Cmdr. Nick Baker, a test pilot with the F-35 Patuxent River Integrated Test Force (Pax ITF), flew a specially instrumented F-35B short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) variant of the 5th generation air system and touched down about 3:15 p.m.

Sea trials will leverage the ship’s recent modifications to conduct fixed-wing aircraft operations. Changes to the Kaga included painting its flight deck with heat-resistant material that tolerates the F-35B’s vectored-thrust engines, installing lights for nighttime operations, and reshaping the flight deck’s bow from a trapezoid to a rectangular shape.

The trials will also pave the way for allies’ increased ability to operate in conjunction with each other.

“This test is essential for strengthening Japan’s defense capabilities and is of utmost importance. We will do our best to achieve good test results together with the ITF,” said Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Capt. Shusaku Takeuchi, commanding officer, JS Kaga. “This test does not merely enhance the capabilities of the Maritime Self-Defense Force. It also improves the interoperability between Japan and the U.S., strengthening the deterrence and response capabilities of the Japan-U.S. alliance, thereby contributing to peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.”

The F-35 is detached from Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Two Three (VX-23), Naval Air Station Patuxent River (NAS Pax River), Maryland. It joins a test team from the Pax ITF, who embarked the ship in San Diego.

In addition to F-35 test pilots, the Pax ITF team includes aircraft maintainers, flight test engineers, flight test control engineers, flight deck personnel, logisticians, and others, with support from the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.

“We are proud to be part of this joint effort to test the compatibility of F-35B aboard JS Kaga,” said Seth Dion, Pax ITF team lead. “Our team has prepared meticulously for this mission, and we are committed to working closely with our allies to achieve our shared goals and strengthen our partnership.”

The sea trials are scheduled to take approximately three weeks.

JS Kaga set sail from its homeport at Kure Naval Base, Japan, in early September.

MIL Security OSI –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Bank of Canada’s latest interest rate cut: Monetary policy is not enough to address economic issues on its own

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Sorin Rizeanu, Assistant Professor, Gustavson School of Business, University of Victoria

The Canadian and American economies are deeply intertwined. With the United States Federal Reserve cautious amid mixed signals from the labour market and rising inflation worries, the Bank of Canada has just lowered its key interest rate to 3.75 per cent – cutting it by half a percentage point.

Strong U.S. job growth and cooling inflation could result in a smaller Fed rate cut compared to its previous cut and to Canada’s recent cut. It could also pause the rate entirely, which may change economic conditions in the U.S. and Canada in the months to come. Upcoming U.S. elections complicate the problem further.

In Canada, cooling inflation, slowing manufacturing sales and more cautious consumer spending opens the door to another half percentage point rate cut by the end of the year.

But does the Bank of Canada have the ability to offset shifts in U.S. monetary policies through its own monetary instruments? In fact, how much room does it have to diverge from U.S. policy at all?

Monetary conditions are transmitted from the world’s biggest financial centres to the rest of the world through gross credit flows and leverage. Any policy differences between Canada and the U.S. immediately impact Canada, including spillover effects on the loonie exchange rates and other widespread economical and social effects.

Canada’s double trilemmas

Canada’s key challenges include economic growth as a potential recession looms, taming inflation, housing, managing interest rates while private and public debt is sky-high and stabilizing Canada’s commodity-linked currency in an increasingly volatile geopolitical environment. Failing to address these challenges could lead to severe systemic imbalances.

A country cannot have an independent monetary policy, stable exchange rate and free capital flows simultaneously. It must choose one side of this triangle and give up the opposite corner.
(Sorin Rizeanu), CC BY-ND

The Bank of Canada has good reasons to cut the interest rate back to 2.5 to 3.5 per cent, but this could have a significant impact on the loonie.

Canada is facing two sets of trilemmas: a monetary one for the central bank and a fiscal one for the government. On the monetary side, stable exchange rates, independent monetary policy and financial market openness are three objectives that cannot all be achieved simultaneously. European countries have sacrificed monetary independence in exchange for a strong euro and financial openness.

It’s impossible for policymakers to pursue all three choices at the same time. For instance, a country spending more without raising taxes has to increase public debt and deficit.
(Sorin Rizeanu), CC BY-ND

Canada, in contrast, has opted for free capital mobility and independent monetary policy at the expense of exchange rate stability. This allows the loonie to be determined by market forces, giving the central bank the ability to adjust interest rates while capital moves freely across the border.

On the fiscal side, the government is grappling with climate change, immigration and wealth inequality. However, there is also strong public resistance to higher taxes, and public debt and deficits are currently at alarming levels.

If the central banks are at odds

If the Bank of Canada were to cut interest rates while the Fed doesn’t, the loonie would likely depreciate sharply, forcing a response. Such a divergence happened in June 2024, with the Fed following with a 0.5 per cent cut only in September.

On such short-term deviations, sterilization is typically implemented to dampen the depreciation of the loonie by acquiring Canadian dollars and selling reserves.

If the central banks were to remain at odds in the longer term, a decrease in money supply as investors flee would likely cause a decrease in domestic bank lending, which is already under pressure from public and private debt and increased default rates.

This could decrease longer term interest rates and put additional pressure on the economy through the capital account. If investors believe the central bank is merely delaying the inevitable depreciation of its currency, it could also reinforce carry trade dynamics — an investment strategy where money is borrowed at a low cost in one currency to earn higher returns from investments in another currency.

The bond market would also react, with notable effects in key economic sectors and asset valuation. Long-term interest rates tend to align more across countries than short-term rates, especially if global factors are influencing real rates or if investors are seeking safer assets.

While the Bank of Canada can set its policy rate independently of the Fed’s rate, it has less control over the long-term. Long-term rates are tied to exchange rates and reflect expectations for future short-term rates and risk factors. Mortgage rates and corporate borrowing rates would be affected as well.

Monetary policy can’t be the only answer

The Bank of Canada’s mandate is to “keep inflation low, stable and predictable.” While this can be fulfilled through rate cuts, diverging from U.S. policy will have widespread effects on the Canadian economy. These impacts will be uneven, with indebted investors and banks likely benefiting while the working class may bear the brunt.

The Bank of Canada focuses on providing liquidity to the financial sector, often with little regulation or oversight. However, this approach tends to overlook challenges faced by the working class. In 2022, for instance, Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem advised against employers increasing wages to match inflation over concern that a wage-price spiral would occur.

Even if the central bank wanted to address these issues, it’s limited by the ability to manage multiple outputs with just one instrument. As a result, the central bank should report not only on inflation, but also on the overall trade-offs of rate cuts.

The Bank of Canada has a vested interest in tampering the effects of a new rate cut, especially since it could trigger a “capital famine” in the long-term and weaken the Canadian dollar. In the short-term, divergences from the U.S. will likely be manageable, but in the longer term, currency depreciation may be unavoidable to keep the economy afloat.

Monetary policy is vital, but it’s merely the first line of defence against inflation. To truly address Canada’s economic issues, both monetary and fiscal policies need to work together in harmony, with a broader public discussion that goes beyond inflation.

Sorin Rizeanu 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. Bank of Canada’s latest interest rate cut: Monetary policy is not enough to address economic issues on its own – https://theconversation.com/bank-of-canadas-latest-interest-rate-cut-monetary-policy-is-not-enough-to-address-economic-issues-on-its-own-238396

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Sorensen Calls for Better Surveillance of the Southern Border
Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Eric Sorensen (IL-17)

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Eric Sorensen (IL-17) along with seven of his colleagues called on the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Alejandro Mayorkas to make sure that surveillance cameras along the U.S.-Mexico border are working properly. A recent report from NBC stated that nearly 30 percent of surveillance cameras along the border are broken.

“Surveillance technologies allow DHS to enforce the law and protect the homeland effectively and efficiently,” Sorensen and the Members wrote. “As Members of Congress, we have consistently and robustly funded programs for smart border technologies for DHS, and as a result, unauthorized border crossings have dropped significantly to the lowest levels in years. The reports of failing technology have left us concerned about the effectiveness of our border security operations.”

Sorensen has been a strong advocate for securing our southern border by proposing legislation to increase the number of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at legal points of entry, introducing the bipartisan Stop Fentanyl at the Border Act to provide CBP with the funding and technology they need to combat the growing fentanyl crisis, and helping launch the Democrats for Border Security Task Force.

Read the full letter here and below.

Dear Secretary Mayorkas and Acting Commissioner Miller,

We write to you expressing concern over reports that 30 percent of surveillance cameras along the border are non-functioning. Surveillance technology systems, particularly those that use autonomous and artificial technologies, play a critical role in keeping our border secure. It is unacceptable that such a high percentage of our border technology is inoperable.

Surveillance technologies allow DHS to enforce the law and protect the homeland effectively and efficiently. At a time when U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has struggled to meet recruitment and retention targets, the need to maximize valuable manpower resources is critical, and smart surveillance technologies have been a game-changer. As Members of Congress, we have consistently and robustly funded programs for smart border technologies for DHS, and as a result, unauthorized border crossings have dropped significantly to the lowest levels in years.

However, these recent reports have outlined that 150 of the 500 Border Patrol surveillance towers along the southwest U.S.-Mexico border are not operational. This number is staggering and unacceptable. We are gravely concerned that this lapse in functioning surveillance technology will compromise border security operations. In order to keep our nation’s border secure, we request the following information:
1. What is the average length of time each camera has been inoperable?
1. How many miles of the southwest border are affected by these outages
1. How much manpower has been diverted to address this issue?
1. What is the cost estimate to get all surveillance towers back online?
1. What steps are being taken to remediate this issue and prevent future mechanical failures?
As Members of Congress, we have a responsibility to ensure that appropriated funds are being used effectively and that all necessary measures are being taken by CBP to improve border security operations. The reports of failing technology have left us concerned about the effectiveness of our border security operations. We thank you for your attention to our concerns.

Congressman Eric Sorensen serves on the House Committee on Agriculture and the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology. Prior to serving in Congress, Sorensen was a local meteorologist in Rockford and the Quad Cities for nearly 20 years. His district includes Illinois’ Quad Cities, Rockford, Peoria, and Bloomington-Normal.

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MIL OSI USA News –
January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: DOD Kicks Off Groundbreaking Applied Research Project in Hypersonic Infrared Targeting Sensing

Source: United States Department of Defense

The Department of Defense (DoD) today announced the Hypersonic Infrared Target Sensing (HITS) joint-service proposal as the winner of the fiscal year 2025 Applied Research for the Advancement of S&T Priorities (ARAP) Program award competition. The HITS team includes the Naval Research Laboratory, Air Force Research Laboratory, and Missile Defense Agency, led by the Combat Capabilities Development Command Army Research Laboratory (DEVCOM ARL).

This three-year, $45-million project will involve the collaboration of more than 50 federal scientists and engineers across the military service labs.

“Investments into our military labs and facilities are imperative for the DoD to invest in technological solutions that attract and retain the future workforce,” said Dr. Aprille Ericsson, the assistant secretary of defense for science and technology and S&T Executive Committee chair, during a check-presentation ceremony at the Pentagon with the HITS team. “The project will also support up to 50 new graduate and postdoctoral researchers on-site or through the labs and their academic partners, growing the DoD’s depth in multiple emerging research areas.”

The HITS research program will address the challenges of developing infrared seekers for hypersonic weapons. This includes locating targets throughout hypersonic flight, advancing gimbal-free target discrimination in extreme hypersonic turbulence, developing high-temperature infrared materials, and addressing thermal distortion through the seeker window.

With additional participation from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the DEVCOM ARL-led team will build in-house capabilities while partnering with academia, university-affiliated research centers, and industry to execute the multidisciplinary effort, leveraging early laboratory demonstrations from basic research investments.

“Our approach encompasses innovative multi-physics modeling, meta-optical design, advanced fabrication techniques, and infrared optical characterization, with the ultimate goal of improving the precision of these weapons at longer ranges in more agile, lower cost platforms,” said Dr. Henry Everitt, senior technologist for optical sciences at DEVCOM ARL and the HITS team lead.

To participate in the annual ARAP award competition, DoD laboratories and centers must submit applied research (BA-2) funding proposals addressing specific technology or capability gaps while enhancing collaboration across the military services and DoD agencies. A proposal must demonstrate a clear pathway from research to product fielding. “The S&T Executive Committee received nine high-quality white paper submissions for this year’s competition and narrowed it down to three finalists,” said Ericsson.

Each finalist team briefed its full proposal to the executive committee, a defense multi-service, multi-agency group coordinated by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, under which Ericsson’s office operates.

“Every team demonstrated tremendous initiative, professionalism, and vision in developing its proposal, proving once again that the dedication and excellence of our defense scientists and engineers are the key ingredients for the ARAP program’s success, as it solves challenging problems for the joint collaborative fight,” said Ericsson.

The call for ARAP white papers for fiscal year 2026 is now open with submissions due on Friday, November 13, 2024. For questions or assistance accessing the DoDTechipedia OUSD(R&E) ARAP Webpage, please contact the R21 Team at osd.pentagon.ousd-atl.mbx.communities-of-interest@mail.mil.

About USD(R&E)

The Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering OUSD(R&E) champions research, science, technology, engineering, and innovation to maintain the U.S. military’s technological advantage. Learn more at www.cto.mil or visit us on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/ousdre.

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Department of Veterans Affairs Implements Rosen’s Bipartisan Law to Strengthen Cybersecurity of Veterans’ Personal Information

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV)

Senator Rosen’s Bipartisan Strengthening VA Cybersecurity Act Required the Department to Obtain An Independent Cybersecurity Assessment And Submit A Plan To Congress To Address Cyber Vulnerabilities
LAS VEGAS, NV – U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV) announced that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has implemented her bipartisan law to strengthen the cybersecurity of veterans’ personal information and data. Her Strengthening VA Cybersecurity Act, signed into law in 2022, directed the Secretary to obtain an independent cybersecurity assessment of VA information systems, and submit to Congress the findings and a remediation plan to address the cybersecurity vulnerabilities. Following the recent completion of that assessment, the VA has submitted a detailed plan to Congress on how it will address vulnerabilities.
“Our veterans rely on the VA to access medical care, benefits, and other critical services, and we must ensure their most personal information is protected from bad actors,” said Senator Rosen. “I worked across party lines to pass bipartisan legislation to protect Nevada veterans’ information, and I’m glad to see that the VA is implementing it by submitting a report to Congress outlining cybersecurity vulnerabilities and their plan to address them. I’ll continue working with the VA to make sure they address these vulnerabilities identified.”
Senator Rosen has been leading bipartisan efforts to deliver for Nevada’s veterans. Last month, she helped pass bipartisan legislation to allocate billions of dollars for PACT Act benefits. Earlier this year, she helped introduce bipartisan legislation to officially authorize the construction of a new VA hospital in Reno, which followed Senator Rosen’s successful push with Senator Cortez Masto to include the hospital in the President’s 2024 Budget Request. She also introduced bipartisan legislation to permanently maintain a helpline for veterans to obtain information and assistance with VA services, which is included in this year’s Senate version of the National Defense Authorization Act. Senator Rosen secured funding to increase access to affordable housing for veterans, continue building Nevada’s first national veterans cemetery in Elko, and increase funding for veteran’s access to telehealth in the last bipartisan government funding package.

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Defense News: SECNAV Del Toro Names Future Nuclear-Powered Attack Submarine USS Atlanta (SSN 813)

Source: United States Navy

ATLANTA (Oct 23, 2024) – Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro announced that the future Virginia-class Nuclear-Powered Attack Submarine SSN 813 will be named USS Atlanta. Del Toro made the announcement during a ship naming ceremony at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum, in Atlanta, on Oct. 23.

The future USS Atlanta honors the city of Atlanta, and the crews of the five previous Navy vessels named Atlanta.

The naming selection of the future USS Atlanta (SSN 813) continues the trend of naming Virginia-class submarines after cities. Secretary Del Toro previously named USS Long Island (SSN 809), USS San Francisco (SSN 810), USS Miami (SSN 811), and USS Baltimore (SSN 812).

“The city of Atlanta shares a storied and historic relationship with our Navy. Since the founding of our great nation, Atlantans from all walks of life have answered the call to service, including President Jimmy Carter, who helped advance our nuclear submarine program alongside Admiral Rickover, “the Father of the Nuclear Navy,” said Del Toro. “It has been 25 years since the Navy has had a ship named after the proud legacy of the city of Atlanta. Today, it is my honor and privilege to name the next Virginia-class submarine, SSN 813, USS Atlanta.”

Congresswoman Nikema Williams, from Georgia’s 5th Congressional District joined Secretary Del Toro for the ceremony honoring Atlanta.

“The naming of this ship is a testament to Atlanta’s history as the cradle of the civil rights movement,” said Williams. “As this vessel sails across the globe, it will carry with it the legacy of civil and human rights leaders like Congressman John Lewis and President Jimmy Carter, embodying Atlanta’s unbreakable spirit and the fight for justice that continues today.”

Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens also served as a guest in the official party and highlighted the honor and meaning behind the naming of the Navy’s newest submarine.

“Thank you, Secretary Del Toro for allowing Atlanta to take its place among the great American cities with namesake vessels,” said Dickens. “We envision the future USS Atlanta sailing and submerging as a testament to some of the same values that this city holds…protecting this nation with courage and strength.

Secretary Del Toro also named the ship sponsor at the ceremony, former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms.

“The ship’s sponsor fills a vital role throughout the life of a warship, serving as the bond between the ship, her crew, and the nation they serve,” said Del Toro. “I am honored that Mayor Bottoms accepted the invitation to serve as ship sponsor. As a leader and champion for the people of Atlanta, she represents the best of our nation, and I thank her for her lifelong commitment to our Navy, to our service men and women, and to the United States of America.”

The city of Atlanta has strong ties to American history. Founded in 1836, the city (originally named Terminus) was incorporated as Atlanta in 1847. Following its destruction in the Civil War, Atlanta rapidly rebuilt, became the state capital in 1868, and is now an important center of industry, finance, and transportation. The greater Atlanta region was home to Naval Air Station Atlanta (1943-2009) and hosted squadrons from Reserve Carrier Air Wing 20, and Marine Aircraft Group 42.

The first Atlanta, a screw gunboat (1858-1859) was renamed Sumpter after commissioning. The second, a protected cruiser (1886-1912) primarily served in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico and as a barracks ship. The third Atlanta (CL-51), a light cruiser (1941-1942), screened Task Force 16 carriers Enterprise and Hornet during the Battle of Midway, supported the Guadalcanal campaign in July and August, and defended Enterprise at the Battle of the Eastern Solomons on 24 August 1942. From 12-13 November 1942, Atlanta took part in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, during which she helped sink the Japanese destroy Akatsuki, and later received the Presidential Unit Citation and the embarked Flag Officer, Rear Admiral Norman Scott, was awarded a posthumous Medal of Honor. Suffering extensive torpedo damage, she was scuttled. The fourth Atlanta (CL-104), a light cruiser (1944-1970) served off Japan with the Fast Carrier Task Force where she conducted shore bombardment missions. The fifth Atlanta (SSN-712), a nuclear fast attack submarine (1982-1999), homeported in Norfolk, VA, completed multiple deployments and fleet readiness exercises during the Cold War before being decommissioned.

Attack submarines are designed to seek and destroy enemy submarines and surface ships; project power ashore with Tomahawk cruise missiles and Special Operation Forces (SOF); carry out Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions; support battle group operations; and engage in mine warfare.

More information on attack submarines can be found here.

Read Secretary Del Toro’s full remarks here.

MIL Security OSI –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: U.S. Coast Guard, Korea Coast Guard strengthen partnership through shared training and cultural exchange in Guam

Source: United States INDO PACIFIC COMMAND

SANTA RITA, Guam –

U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Team Guam and Korea Coast Guard (KCG) crews completed a successful week-long visit to Guam from Oct. 7 to 11, 2024, marked by shared exercises, subject matter expert (SME) exchanges, and a cultural “sports day” aimed at enhancing collaboration and fostering camaraderie between the two forces.

The visit, which involved the training ship KCG 3011 Badaro (바다로호) and its crew making their second-ever visit to Guam, focused on strengthening the long-standing partnership between the USCG and KCG in maritime safety and security across the Pacific region. It builds on the trilateral letter of intent signed by representatives from the U.S. Coast Guard, Japan Coast Guard, and Korea Coast Guard in May 2024 to bolster maritime cooperation.

“The collaboration this week reflects our shared dedication to maritime safety and security,” said Capt. Jessica Worst, commander of U.S. Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam. “We’ve sharpened our operational skills through bilateral training and built lasting relationships that will strengthen our cooperation in the future.”

One of the visit’s highlights was a Search and Rescue Exercise (SAREX), where the crews simulated a man overboard scenario. The exercise demonstrated seamless coordination between the two forces, deploying small boat crews and executing proper search patterns while adjusting to real-time environmental factors. Officials from both sides, including Superintendent General Han Sang Chul, Korea Coast Guard Academy president, and Battalion Chief Roderick Meno from the Guam Fire Department (GFD), observed the exercise from a dedicated platform and discussed near-shore search and rescue dynamics. GFD’s involvement highlighted the importance of local partnerships in responding to emergencies in Guam’s waters.

The week also featured a series of SME exchanges, with a particularly well-received session on search and rescue (SAR). The SAR exchange included a 30-minute question-and-answer session in which KCG personnel compared their systems and capabilities with those of the USCG. The session was a testament to the mutual learning that takes place in such exchanges, aligning closely with the KCG’s mission and providing valuable takeaways for future collaboration.

Complementing the formal exchanges, the two forces participated in a ‘sports day,’ referred to by the KCG as a ‘friendly affair.’ The event was not just about competition, but also about building friendships and fostering goodwill. The event featured spirited competitions in basketball, racquetball, and tug of war, leading to new friendships and exchanges of contacts and social media handles.

Senior Superintendent Ha Tae Young, Director of the Academy Affairs Division, expressed his gratitude at the closing ceremony, stating, “We are now emotionally connected, and we look forward to continuing this relationship.”

As the Badaro departed Guam, the USCG and KCG reflected on the week’s successes, leaving with enhanced operational capabilities and deeper bonds of friendship.

“Our relationship between the U.S. Coast Guard and the Korea Coast Guard is multifaceted, involving cooperative agreements, operational exercises, and collaborative efforts to enforce international sanctions,” said Worst. “This partnership enhances maritime security and strengthens diplomatic ties among the nations involved, contributing to stability in the Pacific region. We look forward to future engagements with our Korean partners.”

-USCG-

The Korea Coast Guard
The KCG transformed significantly since its establishment in 1953. It became an independent agency under the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries in 2017 after being restructured in 2014. The KCG is responsible for various maritime law enforcement duties, including search and rescue operations and maintaining maritime safety off South Korea’s coast. The 295-foot (120 meter) training ship KCG 3011 Badaro (바다로호) has a crew complement of 150 and homeports in Busan, South Korea, where the Korea Coast Guard Academy is also located.

About U.S. Coast Guard Team Guam
U.S. Coast Guard Team Guam, comprising over 350 members across Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, focused on maritime safety, security, and stewardship in Oceania. The team includes U.S. Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam, U.S. Coast Guard Base Guam, and their sub-units, staffed by dedicated active-duty, reserve, and civilian personnel. With a significant presence in Guam, Saipan, and the Micronesia sub-region, this integrated team focuses on operations and logistics to support maritime safety, security, and stewardship in Oceania and maintains close ties with local communities.

For more information about U.S. Coast Guard actions, please get in touch with CWO Sara Muir, public affairs officer, at sara.g.muir@uscg.mil or uscgforcesmicronesia@gmail.com.
You can also see more in this special video from the KCG Team! https://youtu.be/ojrH3s9DDqg?si=c2VgAUN51kVjq3If

MIL Security OSI –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Harris and Trump differ widely on gun rights, death penalty and other civil liberties questions

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Donovan A. Watts, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Auburn University

The Bill of Rights secures key liberties for U.S. citizens against the government’s power. U.S. Congress via Wikimedia Commons

As the election nears, voters are considering the two leading presidential candidates’ records on a wide range of issues, including civil liberties – a broad term used to describe the constitutionally protected freedoms that protect citizens from excessive government power. These key freedoms are contained in the Bill of Rights, the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution. For example, the protection for free speech under the First Amendment and the right to bear arms under the Second Amendment define people’s abilities to criticize the government and own weapons for private use.

In turn, as a scholar of American politics, I have seen that Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have very different records on these crucial American rights.

First Amendment freedoms of speech and press

As California’s attorney general, Harris indirectly found herself in a battle with the First Amendment. For many years, state law required nonprofit organizations registered in California to report names and addresses of donors of amounts over US$5,000 in a single year. In 2010, the year before Harris became attorney general, her predecessor began actually enforcing that law, which Harris continued when she took office in 2011. In 2014, several conservative groups sued Harris, saying her office’s enforcement of the law was violating their First Amendment right to give money anonymously.

Part of Harris’ job was to oversee the defense of the law in court, arguing that soliciting donor names did not bar donor disclosure requirements like California’s. The case lasted beyond her term as California’s top law enforcement officer: The U.S. Supreme Court declared parts of the law unconstitutional in 2021, after Harris had become vice president.

While he was president, Trump’s First Amendment record was more about the media than free speech. He repeatedly declared the press “the enemy of the people.” He has suggested that media outlets who provide coverage he dislikes lose their broadcasting licenses and has pressed to change laws about libel in ways that would make it easier for public figures to file suit against unfavorable coverage.

As California’s attorney general, Kamala Harris worked to reduce gun violence in the state.
Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

Second Amendment right to bear arms

Dating back to her tenure as a district attorney in San Francisco and as California’s attorney general, Harris has been an advocate for stricter gun control laws. However, she is not seeking to take away Americans’ guns – and recently revealed that she herself is a gun owner.

When serving as district attorney in San Francisco, Harris worked with the city’s mayor at the time, Gavin Newsom, to develop some of the strictest local gun regulations in the country. In December 2004, Proposition H was placed on the ballot and passed by majority vote in November 2005. Proposition H banned possessing a handgun within San Francisco, with a few exceptions, and banned purchasing, possession, distribution and manufacturing of all firearms in the city. However, the proposition was overruled by the San Francisco Superior Court, which said gun ownership should be regulated at the state level.

And in 2008, as the U.S. Supreme Court was preparing to hear a key gun control case, Harris led 18 elected prosecutors who urged the justices that a broad right to gun ownership could endanger local and state firearm laws. In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court held that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual the right to possess firearms.

However, the Supreme Court’s ruling did not stop Harris in her continued fight for gun regulation. She pushed for additional funding to confiscate guns from thousands of people whom California law said were banned from having them. Later as a U.S. senator from 2017 to 2021, Harris continued to advocate for gun regulation by sponsoring bills that would have enacted universal background checks and ban assault rifles.

During Harris’ term as vice president, she oversaw the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, which seeks to focus government attention on a wide range of policies to reduce gun violence, including restrictions on firearms, increased mental health services and new powers for prosecutors to use against people who use firearms when committing a crime.

In 2019, while he was president, Donald Trump spoke to a National Rifle Association meeting and expressed support for the organization.
AP Photo/Michael Conroy

Trump’s record on firearms, meanwhile, has been mixed. As president, he signed legislation in 2017 that softened background check requirements for gun buyers with particular mental illness diagnoses. And during the COVID-19 pandemic, he objected to the fact that many local orders to close businesses to protect public health included shutting gun shops.

Yet in 2018, he also moved to ban bump stocks – a device attached to a semiautomatic firearm that enables it to fire more rapidly. His ban was overturned by the Supreme Court in June 2024.

Trump also supported and signed the Fix NICS Act, a bipartisan law that strengthened reporting to the federal gun background checks system by requiring federal agencies to submit semiannual certification reports to the attorney general on their compliance with recordkeeping and transmission requirements.

Eighth Amendment protections against ‘cruel and unusual punishments’

The Eighth Amendment’s protection against “cruel and unusual punishments” has often been used by the Supreme Court to evaluate uses of the death penalty.

Harris has consistently pledged to refuse to seek the death penalty in criminal cases, noting a multitude of systemic flaws that result in its disproportional application based on defendants’ race and income. She also noted the cost to taxpayers of keeping prisoners on death row. Harris’ position was tested just months into her service as district attorney when a police officer was shot and killed in the line of duty in 2004. Harris declined to seek the death penalty for the shooter, who was convicted of murder and is serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

While attorney general of California, however, she defended in court the state’s power to impose the death penalty. But when, in March 2024, the state’s governor – Newsom – declared a halt to executions, sparing all 737 people on California’s death row, Harris praised the action.

Trump’s record on capital punishment dates back long before his political career. In 1989, he took out full-page newspaper ads calling for the return of the death penalty in New York. He specifically wanted it to be applied to the Central Park Five, five young Black and Hispanic men who were wrongly accused of raping and beating a woman. They pleaded not guilty but served years in prison before being exonerated by DNA evidence and the actual criminal’s confession.

During his term as president, Trump resumed federal executions after a 17-year hiatus, executing 13 people in the last six months of his presidency, the last of which was just four days before his term ended.

All in all, as voters decide who to vote for in the upcoming election, analyzing both candidates’ record on civil liberties is a good step in making an informed decision.

Donovan A. Watts 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. Harris and Trump differ widely on gun rights, death penalty and other civil liberties questions – https://theconversation.com/harris-and-trump-differ-widely-on-gun-rights-death-penalty-and-other-civil-liberties-questions-240762

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Manitoba Government Helping More Vulnerable Manitobans Stay Housed

Source: Government of Canada regional news

October 16, 2024

Manitoba Government Helping More Vulnerable Manitobans Stay Housed

New Community-Based Support Services Will Improve Housing Stability for Manitobans with Complex Mental Health Needs: Smith

The Manitoba government will be helping more Manitobans through a new initiative to ensure individuals with serious, long-term mental health disorders can access comprehensive wraparound supports that help keep them housed, Housing, Addictions and Homelessness Minister Bernadette Smith, minister responsible for mental health, announced today.

“Meeting the needs of people living with severe, complex mental health disorders requires a range of programs and services,” said Smith. “This investment will build effective and sustainable services along that continuum of care by providing supports right in the community. We will help vulnerable Manitobans stay out of hospitals and emergency rooms by providing safety and stability in their homes.”

The new $4.3-million initiative will establish a co-ordination hub and expand community-based care, adding 22 new mental health workers to Manitoba’s mental health service system, the minister noted. The investment will enable Shared Health to establish two new interdisciplinary teams that use the Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) model to treat and support up to 300 individuals with severe mental illnesses in community settings.

“These new teams fill a major gap in the suite of community-based services in Winnipeg, supporting Manitobans who often have several co-occurring and complex mental health and addiction needs,” said Arlene MacLennan, director of health services for adult outpatient mental health and addictions, Shared Health. “There is strong evidence from other jurisdictions that this flexible, co-ordinated and streamlined approach reduces costly visits to hospitals and emergency departments, and helps individuals manage their mental health and substance use problems so they can increase stability and make improvements in their lives.”

ACT is an evidence-based service delivery model that provides comprehensive, community-based mental health and addiction services, crisis intervention, medication management, community integration, peer support and housing support services. Flexible Assertive Community Treatment (FACT) teams also use the ACT approach but can adapt the support provided, based on the individual’s needs and without some of the constraints of individual services, such as the length of time a service may be offered.

Shared Health will also pilot a new FACT/ACT Hub to support comprehensive assessments of individuals in the community and in hospital. The investment is a significant first step in building housing with support services while improving access to mental health-care wraparound supports, the minister noted.

The hub will also work to standardize ACT services across the province and provide provincial oversight, added Smith.

– 30 –

MIL OSI Canada News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Governor Cooper Proposes $3.9 Billion in State Funding to Spur Hurricane Helene Relief and Recovery

Source: US State of North Carolina

Headline: Governor Cooper Proposes $3.9 Billion in State Funding to Spur Hurricane Helene Relief and Recovery

Governor Cooper Proposes $3.9 Billion in State Funding to Spur Hurricane Helene Relief and Recovery
mseets
Wed, 10/23/2024 – 14:58

Less than a month after Hurricane Helene hit Western North Carolina, Governor Roy Cooper today shared a state budget recommendation to help rebuild stronger to withstand future storms. Governor Cooper recommends an initial $3.9 billion package to begin rebuilding critical infrastructure, homes, businesses, schools, and farms damaged during the storm.

“Helene is the deadliest and most damaging storm ever to hit North Carolina,“ said Governor Cooper. “This storm left a trail of destruction in our beautiful mountains that we will not soon forget, but I know the people of Western North Carolina are determined to build back better than ever. These initial funds are a good start, but the staggering amount of damage shows we are very much on the front end of this recovery effort.”

Initial damage estimates are $53 billion, roughly three times Hurricane Florence estimates in 2018 and the largest in state history. A strong recovery will require significant investments by private insurers as well as the federal, state and local governments. Large scale disasters fueled by climate change in recent years have shown the challenges and enormous costs of recovery as well as the need to ensure structures are hardened are they are rebuilt to withstand future storms. Successful recoveries require significant early investments to ensure communities have the tools to fully rebuild.

Economy

The economic devastation from Hurricane Helene is unparalleled. Thousands of businesses in the region suffered damages leaving business owners and workers suffering. The Governor’s funding package includes $650 million to address economic losses and physical damage for non-agricultural businesses and non-profit organizations. This would include a revival of the pandemic-era Business Recovery Grant Program, which helped North Carolina’s economy recover faster than the national average. Governor Cooper has already increased unemployment insurance benefits through an executive order with a bipartisan and unanimous vote of the Council of State.

Housing

The Governor’s budget recommendation includes $650 million to address physical damage to residential structures and cost of housing assistance. These investments would jumpstart permanent housing construction in advance of potential federal funds, which can take months or years to be approved.

Utilities and Natural Resources

Critical and high-risk infrastructure was damaged across the region, including water and sewer systems in multiple communities and power generation facilities. Much of this infrastructure is in geographically isolated locations and challenging to reach, slowing restoration of services to communities. The Governor’s funding package includes $578 million to address the physical damage and cleanup of energy, water, waste clean-up, telecommunications, dams and other infrastructure.

Transportation

Hurricane Helene severely impacted approximately 5,000 miles of state-maintained roads across the affected area in Western North Carolina, including several major national interstates and critical transportation corridors. The proposed funding package includes $55 million to address physical damage and state revenue implications of the transportation infrastructure damage.

Agriculture

The funding package includes $422 million to address physical damage and business disruption for agricultural enterprises. This storm caused significant damage to hundreds of thousands of acres of agricultural land and hundreds of structures.

Recovering From Additional Recent Disasters

As North Carolina is still recovering from other recent natural disasters, Governor Cooper’s proposed budget includes $420 million for needs related to PTC-8, Tropical Storm Debby, and funds to complete homeowner assistance for Hurricanes Florence and Matthew.

The full Budget Recommendation can be found here.

###

Oct 23, 2024

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Governor Ron DeSantis Announces Investment in Marine Infrastructure to Support Recovery Through the Florida Disaster Fund
Source: US State of Florida

Governor DeSantis also announced discounts on fishing licenses and progress on Florida’s efforts to take over management of Red Snapper in the Atlantic.

STEINHATCHEE, Fla.—Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced the award of $1,000,000 in funding from the Florida Disaster Fund to the Fish and Wildlife Foundation of Florida to support the rebuilding of fishing and aquaculture infrastructure damaged by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. The funding will go toward the rebuilding of boat slips and docks, the repair of fish houses, impacted aquaculture businesses, and other important infrastructure repairs for Florida’s fishing economy across the Big Bend region.

“The Big Bend’s fishing industry took a direct hit from hurricanes Debby and Helene, and so did the hardworking Floridians who make their living on the water,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “Today’s investments will help to rebuild critical waterside infrastructure and help get Floridians in the fishing and aquaculture industries back to full operations.”

To unlock additional resources from the federal government, Governor DeSantis’ administration also initiated the process of submitting a federal fisheries disaster declaration to the U.S. Secretary of Commerce. This declaration request would provide access to federal funding, subject to appropriation, for offshore, nearshore, and inshore fisheries to rebuild. Governor DeSantis requested a similar federal fisheries disaster declaration following Hurricane Ian and Hurricane Idalia.

Governor DeSantis has also directed the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to expedite any permits or approvals for businesses impacted on uplands or on the water to ensure the rebuilding of damaged structures is not delayed by bureaucracy.

“Governor DeSantis has a proven track record of helping communities recover quickly and rebuild fully after storms,” said Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Executive Director Roger Young. “We are grateful for his leadership and support in assisting the fishing industry as it recovers from hurricanes Debby, Helene, and Milton.”

Additionally, the Governor announced several discounts on fishing and hunting licenses, including lifetime licenses, to get anglers back on the water and provide a boon to the industry that serves them. This includes:
- Half-off short-term licenses for Floridians from October 25, 2024, to January 3, 2025, for the annual and five-year multisport licenses for fishing and hunting; and
- A 50% discount on lifetime sportsman licenses for children up to 17 years of age.
  - Age 4 or younger – $200 (normally $400)
  - Ages 5 to 12 – $350 (normally $700)
  - Ages 13 to 17 – $500 (normally $1,000)
Additionally, FWC is offering annual salt water and freshwater combo licenses for just $5.

Fishing and Florida are inseparable. Florida leads the nation in the number of saltwater fishing anglers, generating a $9.2 billion impact on the State of Florida’s economy. Additionally, the annual dockside value of commercial fisheries was estimated at $244 million. Today’s announcement will help Florida residents regenerate lost income and rebuild their businesses and infrastructure.

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MIL OSI USA News –
January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Defense News: Secretary Del Toro As-Written Remarks at Future Nuclear-Powered Attack Submarine USS Atlanta (SSN 813) Naming Ceremony

Source: United States Navy

Introduction/Thank You

Good morning, everyone!

It is an honor to be with you this morning in Atlanta.

Dr. Evans, thank you for that kind introduction and for the important work you are doing here at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum.

Mayor Dickens, thank you for welcoming us to Atlanta and for your service to the people of this great city.

Congresswoman Williams, thank you for your presence today, and for your partnership and support of our men and women in uniform.

Mr. Carter, thank you for sharing your family’s stories and carrying on their legacy of service.

Mr. McLaurin, thank you for the work you do, preserving and sharing the rich history of the White House.

I also want to extend a warm welcome to our state and local leadership, including Senator Orrock, Representative Jones, Representative Evans, Representative Miller, Council President Shipman, and Council Member Amos. Thank you for being here with us today.

Superintendent Stuckey, thank you for your work at the Jimmy Carter National Historical Park.

President Cabrera, thank you for your leadership of the students of Georgia Tech and your partnership with the Department of the Navy in moving our Navy and Marine Corps’ technological innovations forward.

Captain Hollenbach, I thank you for all you’ve done as the Virginia-class program manager, ensuring our Navy’s warfighting excellence for years to come.

To all of our service members, distinguished guests and visitors here with us today—welcome and thank you for joining us.

World Today

The world is undeniably complex, and while military power helps advance our national security interests abroad, President Jimmy Carter recognized that diplomacy should always play a leading role in achieving lasting peace.

Our world today looks to the United States as a beacon of hope and freedom around the world.

We face challenges in every corner of the world—from the Indo-Pacific, to Europe, and in the Red Sea.

In Europe, we are approaching the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale and illegal invasion of Ukraine.

For the first time since World War II, we face a comprehensive maritime power in the Indo-Pacific.

The People’s Republic of China continues to exert its excessive maritime claims through their navy, coast guard, and maritime militia.

In the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, we have been working tirelessly alongside our NATO allies and Middle Eastern partners to protect innocent civilian mariners and commercial shipping form Iranian-aligned Houthi attacks.

Following the October 7th attacks in Israel one year ago this month, our Navy and Marine Corps were swiftly deployed to the region, forming an integrated force capable of responding to any threat.

And earlier this month, two of our highly capable destroyers, the USS Cole (DDG 67)—a warship which carries a legacy of standing tall to acts of terrorism—and the USS Bulkeley (DDG 84)—which will always have a special place in my naval carer as her first Commanding Officer—aided our Israeli allies in shooting down Iranian ballistic missiles.

I am incredibly proud of the professionalism, dedication, and resilience shown by our Cole and Bulkeley Sailors.

These brave young men and women illustrate the consistent excellence and effectiveness expected of our United States Navy.

And we mourn the loss of two trailblazing, combat-decorated naval aviators from the Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group who passed away during a training event last week: Lieutenant Commander Lyndsay “Miley” Evans and Lieutenant Serena “Dug” Wileman.

Our thoughts are with their families and friends as they cope with the loss of their loved ones—a loss which serves as a poignant reminder that what we ask of our Sailors and Marines is anything but routine, and in many cases dangerous.

We honor their service and sacrifice by reaffirming our commitment to the ideals that inspire us to serve.

City of Atlanta

The city of Atlanta shares a storied and historic relationship with the United States Navy.

Since the very founding of our Nation, Atlantans from all walks of life have answered the call to service.

The Marine Corps’ first aviator, Lieutenant Colonel Alfred Cunningham, was born in Atlanta in 1882 and pioneered early aviation at a time when there were great risks and little appreciation for the danger involved in flying.

Launched in 1943, Naval Air Station Atlanta trained Navy and Marine Corps squadrons from Reserve Carrier Air Wing 20 and Marine Aircraft Group 42.

While Naval Air Station Atlanta no longer serves the Navy, the airfield continues to serve as the General Lucius D. Clay National Guard Center.

Atlanta is, of course, home to the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum and the Carter Center, named after the former Naval Officer, Senator, Governor, and President, Jimmy Carter.

As a Naval Officer, Lieutenant Carter helped advance our nuclear submarine program alongside Admiral Hymen Rickover, the “Father of the Nuclear Navy.”

While in office, President Carter advocated for a more robust Navy—growing our submarine, aviation, and surface forces.

He also fiercely advocated for the recruitment of Hispanic Americans into the Navy and nominated the first Hispanic American to serve as Secretary of the Navy—Edward Hidalgo.

As Secretary of the Navy, I had the opportunity to rename a building at the Naval Academy after President Carter last year.

Carter Hall will be a place of learning for Midshipmen at the Naval Academy for generations to come.

And the city of Atlanta has had five previous Navy ships named after her legacy.

The first USS Atlanta served the Union Navy throughout the Civil War after being captured from the Confederate Navy.

The second USS Atlanta served in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico as a barracks ship.

The third USS Atlanta (CL 51) served as the lead ship of the Atlanta-class of light cruisers and was laid down at the start of the Second World War.

Weeks after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and brought the United States into war, USS Atlanta commissioned at New York Navy Yard and later served as part of Admiral Halsey’s Fleet.

Light cruiser USS Atlanta (CL 104) served in World War II with Fast Carrier Task Force where she conducted shore bombardment missions.

The fifth USS Atlanta (SSN 712) commissioned in 1982, completing multiple deployments and fleet readiness exercises during the Cold War before being decommissioned in 1999.

Ship Naming and Sponsor Announcement

For 25 years, the Navy has been without a ship named after the proud legacy of the city of Atlanta.

And so, it is my honor and privilege to name the next Virginia-class submarine, SSN 813, USS Atlanta.

Our Navy’s submarine force is a lethal combination of one of the most powerful platforms available today manned by our Nation’s best and brightest—people like President Carter.

The Virginia-class Fast Attack Submarines bring tremendous firepower to our Fleet and provide our commanders a valuable asset which strengthens our national security.

And wherever she sails, she will represent not only the legacy of the proud ships who bore the name USS Atlanta before her, but also the thousands of Atlantans who have honorably and faithfully served the United States in uniform, as civil servants, and as activists to better our great Nation.

And I am also proud to announce that the ship sponsor of the future USS Atlanta is former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms.

The ship’s sponsor fills a vital role throughout the life of a warship, serving as the bond between the ship, her crew, and the nation they serve.

I am honored that Mayor Bottoms accepted the invitation to serve as ship sponsor. As a leader and champion for the people of Atlanta, she represents the best of our Nation, and I thank her for her lifelong commitment to our Navy, to our service men and women, and to the United States of America.

Closing

Our maritime services are indeed the most powerful and capable force this world has ever seen.

Before I close my remarks today, I wanted to draw your attention to the portrait on the stage.

It is Mr. Evan Karanovich’s grandfather’s portrait of USS Atlanta (CL 51), the lead ship of the Atlanta-class of eight light cruisers.

On November 13th, 1942, the third USS Atlanta sank while escorting ships during the war.

The portrait hung in his grandfather’s office for years until Mr. Karanovich received it as a commissioning gift.

And he always wondered why, of all the pictures, he received this one.

His grandfather said that despite the ship being lost in battle—like Atlanta, our Navy, and our Nation—we are resilient.

Atlanta’s motto is “Resurgens,” which means “to rise again.”

What better mantra for us to embrace as we move forward?

Mr. Karanovich, thank you for sharing this beautiful portrait and story with all of us to enjoy.

I thank all of you here for your support of our maritime services—you ensure that America remains the greatest nation in the world.

And now, it is my great pleasure to introduce a leader who was born in this great state.

She currently serves Georgia’s 5th Congressional District and is a member of several caucuses including the Congressional Black Caucus, Democratic Women’s Caucus, Congressional Progressive Caucus, Voting Rights Caucus, LBGTQ+ Equality Caucus, and the HBCU Caucus.

Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome Congresswoman Nikema Williams.

MIL Security OSI –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Graves: “Morganza Reach A Protects Terrebonne, Benefits the Nation”

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Garret Graves (6th District of Louisiana)

Congressman Garret Graves (South Louisiana) today announced the historic groundbreaking of “Reach A” in Dularge, Louisiana, of the Morganza-to-the-Gulf (MTG) hurricane protection project alongside project partners Terrebonne Levee and Conservation District (TLCD), the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA), and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE).

“Construction of Reach A plugs a vulnerability gap that otherwise exposes Dularge, Houma, and surrounding communities,” Graves said. “Getting Morganza started and funded has been a top priority. Despite decades of federal inaction, in our short time in Congress we’ve pushed urgently to establish momentum to get the project funded and built as quickly as possible. This project will protect the lives and communities of the Bayou Region who feed and fuel our nation, and we could not leave the field without ensuring Morganza’s path to completion.”

Reach A of the system was identified by the TLCD as a key vulnerability gap that left Houma and surrounding communities exposed to flood risk and storm surge. Reach A construction will occur over several phases, beginning with levee features to protect the Dularge community.

“I want to remind you: local folks didn’t wait for the federal government and we didn’t either,” Graves added. “Dating back to 2008 (while serving as the Chair of CPRA) we worked with our parishes and levee districts to pull together hundreds of millions in state funding in addition to the half a billion we set aside from the Deepwater Horizon settlement. Our early and persistent protection measures have saved the American taxpayer billions in disaster recovery costs, while at the same time providing a major service to our nation’s energy security.”

Morganza background

Although the project became authorized for federal participation in the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2007 (with amendments made to the project in WRDA 2014), at a cost of $15 billion, the 98-mile levee was widely seen as too expensive for the federal government to start investing in.

That changed in November of 2018, when Graves requested the Army Corps revise the original federal role of the project by taking into account investments already made by state and local partners. Within the year, the Corps presented Graves with an Adaptive Criteria Assessment Report (ACAR) which brought the project’s cost down by more than two-thirds of the original estimate. Graves’s intention in officially blessing the work already done by the local levee boards was to increase the project’s benefit-cost ratio (BCR) and make it impossible for the federal government to not invest in the project.

With a positive BCR secured, Graves correctly identified another hurdle: the annual bill which funds the federal government’s flood control investments not only sets limits on how many “new start” projects could be funded annually, but traditionally included language which limited these new starts to projects authorized within the Corps’ Construction account, while Morganza was part of the Mississippi Rivers and Tributaries (MR&T) account. Graves ensured that the House of Representatives’ funding bill included language which made MR&T eligible to receive a new start designation, and heavily lobbied the Senate to allow the change. The Senate relented and, after years of discussions with the White House Office of Management and Budget, Graves announced that the federal government would begin investing in the project in January of 2021.

That year coincided with the return of congressional earmarks, and Graves has successfully secured $78.3 million in dedicated funding for the project to date through that process, $376 million in emergency supplemental funding, and another $93 million awaiting approval in the current funding cycle.

According to the USACE, the MTG project would reduce the risk of flooding due to storm surge to more than 52,000 structures and over 200,000 people in an area. Deterioration of coastal marshes due to saltwater intrusion, land subsidence and the lack of interchanges from the Mississippi River and Tributaries system have steadily increased storm surge inundation over time. Flooding of homes occurred in Lafourche Parish with Hurricane Ida, near the proposed alignment that may be alleviated with the Project.

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MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: Unemployment’s up, house prices are stagnating. But is the Victorian economy doing as badly as it seems?

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Hayward, Emeritus Professor of Public Policy, RMIT University

The early 1990s in Victoria were tough. The economy was contracting severely, the population was shrinking, employment was collapsing and the unemployment rate skyrocketed to the highest in the land.

A long-term Labor government got the blame for allowing state debt to spiral out of control. Victoria, reckoned a popular joke at the time, was “Australia’s Mexico without the sunshine”.

Is it happening all over again?

Some reporting in national media would suggest it is.

The Australian Financial Review has recently run a series on the state, including a piece last week quoting business leaders saying the Victorian economy was in trouble.

Reference was made to the latest unemployment figures as supporting evidence. Victoria’s unemployment rate has risen over the last year, and at 4.4% is now the highest in the country. Rising numbers of company failures and stagnant house prices were also cited.

Earlier in the month, data showing a falling rate of Victorian business start-ups was highlighted, while another Financial Review article examined the decline in the number of conferences. All this was referred to as evidence of a state struggling under the weight of

$8.6 billion in levies [imposed] in [Labor’s] 2023 budget to curb a mountain of state debt that is forecast to reach $188 billion by 2028.

The Australian also ran a feature on Victoria echoing the same themes.

Readers were asked, “What the hell has gone wrong with Victoria?”. Public debt and taxation figured as prominent causes of an economic catastrophe in the making. The Australian deemed the state to be

at best, trapped in stagnation, forcing it to cover falling private investment and expenditure with ever greater public largesse. And at worst […] as the spending and debt build-up sets off the alarms, a vicious spiral is triggered […] until the whole Ponzi scheme collapses.

But are things that bad? What does the economic data actually show?

Some positive signs

It is true that unemployment in Victoria is rising, and is also high compared to the rest of the country. But it has been stable for the last four months, reflecting the impact of interest rate increases over the previous couple of years.

Also, looking back over the last 40 years, the increase has been from a very low base, and remains at an historically low level – and a long way off the highs of the 1990s.

The number of people in the labour force is continuing to grow at a healthy clip. The participation rate is now the highest on record.

Last month, the labour force increased in seasonally adjusted terms by 20,000, and almost all of these additional people ended up in employment.

The growth in employment since the end of the pandemic is notable.

Since January 2023, employment has increased by 268,000, or 8% in seasonally adjusted terms. That’s 37% of the jobs added in the whole of Australia during that time.

Yes, the share of job growth is falling, but it is still higher than the state’s population share, and it is from an unbelievably high base (55% of all jobs created nationally in July were in Victoria).

The Australian Financial Review acknowledged that the latest jobs data were indeed “unexpectedly strong”.

What about business insolvencies?

Victorian insolvencies are on the rise (up 61% in September compared to the same month last year). But so too are they across Australia, with the national number rising at a higher clip (up 70%).

What about the number of conferences in Victoria? We simply cannot be sure whether they are up or down, because there is no consistent data base to settle the matter.

And while Victoria may have fallen behind other states in the number of new startups per 1,000 businesses, the actual number of businesses has increased by more than 31,000, or 3%, since the beginning of the year.

How are house prices and rents holding up?

Yes, house prices are tumbling. In real terms, they are around 20% below their pandemic peak, at least partly caused by a bundle of new property taxes introduced in the 2023/24 state budget to help pay for pandemic-related debt.

But with housing affordability at an all-time low courtesy of high interest rates, that is no bad thing, especially for those keen to buy their first home.

That fall in house prices stands in contrast to a boom in rents over the same time period.

Over the last 12 months, median rents in Victoria have increased by 13.3%, and by 4.3% over the last quarter. In the March quarter, the rental stock fell for the first time on record, perhaps supporting those who see an economy in trouble.

But that fall amounted to barely 10,000 dwellings, or only 2.7% of the stock. Those properties had to be sold to someone, and it is likely many were sold to first time buyers who, in changing tenure, had no net effect on the rental market. A redistribution of wealth like that may be no bad thing.

Debt is high – but so is infrastructure spending

There is no doubt the Victorian economy has been slowing, as has the rest of the country. That is exactly the outcome sought by the Reserve Bank when it pushed up interest rates last year.

But there is little evidence to show Victoria is following the disastrous path of the early 1990s.

Back then, state debt grew alarmingly because of a savage recession. This time round, state debt has grown strongly, but largely to fund a construction pipeline on a scale the state has not seen before.

Infrastructure spending is now running close to $25 billion a year, almost five times what it was a decade ago. There’s a lot of jobs in those numbers, and shortly a lot of that infrastructure will come on line, boosting the state’s economic potential.

There is one other factor driving Victoria’s surprisingly resilient economy. Net international migration increased by 152,000 in the year to March 2024 – almost 30% of the Australian total – driven partly by the return of international students.

Very fast, migration-driven population growth is not being matched by increased output, and the state’s household income per person is continuing its long-term decline, leading some to argue it has become a “poor state”.

Treasurer Tim Pallas will hope that the increase stock of debt-funded infrastructure provides the productivity boost sorely needed to turn that around.

While on several indicators Victoria’s economy is slowing, this largely reflects a national trend. Drilling down into the data shows there are signs of growth, which suggest alarm at this stage is not justified.

David Hayward 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. Unemployment’s up, house prices are stagnating. But is the Victorian economy doing as badly as it seems? – https://theconversation.com/unemployments-up-house-prices-are-stagnating-but-is-the-victorian-economy-doing-as-badly-as-it-seems-241762

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

January 25, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: Being mentally flexible might influence our attitudes to vaccination, a new study shows

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephanie Gomes-Ng, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Auckland University of Technology

Getty Images

Making decisions about our health is a complex and sometimes difficult process.

On top of our own attitudes, experiences and perspectives, we are inundated with information from other people (friends, family, health professionals) and from external sources (news or social media) about what it means to be healthy.

Sometimes, this information is consistent with what we think about our own health. At other times, it may contradict our own beliefs. And to make things even more complicated, sometimes this information is deliberate misinformation.

How do we make sense of all this when making decisions about our health? What determines whether we hold fast to our attitudes, or change our minds?

Most of us can probably relate to this. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we had to change many of our behaviours to slow the spread of the virus. This meant working from home, wearing a mask, staying in our “bubbles”, and eventually getting the vaccine.

While the decision to get vaccinated was an obvious one for many people, it was not as straightforward for others. Research from the period immediately before the COVID vaccine became available in New Zealand showed a sizeable minority was unsure about or unlikely to be vaccinated.

These people were more likely to be young, female and less educated, and were primarily concerned about unknown future side effects. Our new research suggests cognitive (mental) flexibility may also have something to do with attitudes towards vaccination.

A flexible mind

Past research suggests mental flexibility plays an important role in our decision-making. Imagine changing the way you do something at work, having a discussion with someone with a different opinion, or being told you should make healthier choices (such as exercising more).

Some people navigate these situations with ease. Others find it more difficult to adapt. Mental flexibility describes this ability to adapt our attitudes, thoughts or behaviours when faced with new or changing information.

Studies show mental flexibility influences how extreme our opinions are, how likely we are to believe misinformation or “fake news”, whether we make pro-environmental choices or engage in health-promoting behaviours (sun protection or physical exercise, for example).

To increase vaccination coverage, governments often use education campaigns that emphasise the safety, effectiveness and importance of vaccination. However, these campaigns don’t always succeed in reducing feelings of uncertainty about vaccination.

Read more:
Vaccine hesitancy is one of the greatest threats to global health – and the pandemic has made it worse

We wanted to know why, and we thought mental flexibility might play a role. To test this, we surveyed 601 New Zealanders on their opinions and experiences of vaccination.

Some questions asked about external factors, such as how easy they thought it was to access or afford vaccines. Other questions asked about internal factors, such as personal beliefs about vaccination, perceptions of their own heath, and how important or safe they thought vaccines were.

Overall, our participants reported few external barriers to vaccination, with 97% saying they found vaccines accessible or affordable. These percentages are promising, and may reflect the government’s continued efforts to make it easier to get a vaccine.

In comparison, internal factors played a larger role in vaccine uncertainty or hesitancy. In particular, nearly a quarter (22%) of participants reported concerns about the health risks of vaccines. And 12% said they didn’t trust the processes or people who developed vaccines.

Health information campaigns don’t always succeed in reducing anxiety or uncertainty.
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Testing adaptive behaviour

We also asked our participants to play a game designed to measure mental flexibility.

This involved matching cards based on a rule – for example, match the cards with the same number of objects. The rule would randomly change during the game, meaning participants had to adapt their behaviour as the game went on.

Interestingly, people who found it harder to adapt to the rule changes (meaning they had lower levels of mental flexibility) also reported more internal barriers to vaccination.

For example, when we split participants into two groups based on their mental flexibility, the low-flexibility group was 18% more likely to say vaccination was inconsistent with their beliefs. They were also 14% more likely to say they didn’t trust vaccines, and 11% more likely to report concerns about the negative side effects of vaccines.

This wasn’t the case for external factors. Mental flexibility didn’t predict whether people thought vaccines were accessible or affordable.

Information is sometimes not enough

These results suggest making decisions about our health – including whether or not to get vaccinated – depends on more than receiving the “right” information.

Simply being told about the importance of vaccination may not be enough to change attitudes or behaviours. It also depends on each person’s unique cognitive style – the way they perceive and process information.

Declining vaccination rates have been a concern worldwide, including in New Zealand, since well before the pandemic. Our findings suggest health education campaigns may be more effective if they take into account the role of cognitive flexibility.

One technique is to change the way information is framed. For example, instead of just presenting facts about the safety or importance of vaccination, education campaigns could encourage us to question our own perspectives, or to imagine alternative realities by asking “what if?” questions.

Research shows this type of framing can engage our deliberative thought processes (the ones that help us to think deeply and critically), increase mental flexibility, and ultimately make us more receptive to change.

Stephanie Gomes-Ng received funding from the Ember Korowai Takitini Trust for this research. The funders had no influence over the study’s conceptualisation, design, methodology, data collection or interpretation, nor the decision to publish.

– ref. Being mentally flexible might influence our attitudes to vaccination, a new study shows – https://theconversation.com/being-mentally-flexible-might-influence-our-attitudes-to-vaccination-a-new-study-shows-241559

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

January 25, 2025