Category: KB

MIL-OSI Global: From Swift to Springsteen to Al Jolson, candidates keep trying to use celebrities to change voters’ songs

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Matt Harris, Associate Professor of Political Science, Park University

It’s 2016 all over again. And 2020, for that matter. Democrats are staring at what looks to be another coin flip election between their party’s nominee and Donald Trump.

In an election that could come down to a few hundred thousand votes in a handful of states, every voter matters – no matter how you reach them. With that in mind, Democrats are communicating not just on matters of policy, but matters of pop culture.

Specifically, Democrats are embracing football and Taylor Swift. The Harris-Walz campaign trotted out endorsements from 15 Pro Football Hall of Famers and sells Swiftie-style friendship bracelets on its campaign website, among other overtures. Swift herself has endorsed Kamala Harris.

Tim Walz cited his experience as a football coach and mentioned Swift in the vice presidential debate.

Democratic challenger and former NFLer Colin Allred, who is running to unseat GOP Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, has put out ads in which he appears moments from taking to the gridiron.

But how much does pop culture campaigning, if you will, matter? Does trying to link a campaign to a sport, or a culture, or a style of music actually influence elections? Looking to five different election campaigns in the past can give a sense of the effects, or lack thereof, of such campaigning.

An ad for Texas Democrat Rep. Colin Allred, a former NFL player, stresses his football past in his bid to unseat GOP Sen. Ted Cruz.

Reagan and Springsteen

Any discussion of the embrace of pop culture by candidates should probably start with Ronald Reagan’s Bruce Springsteen era.

Reagan, attempting to reach beyond his base, viewed 1984 as a vibes-based election and cited Springsteen as an exemplar of the hope his campaign wished to inspire. Springsteen rejected a request from Reagan’s camp to use his often-misunderstood “Born in the U.S.A.” on the campaign trail. The song’s lyrics describe a down-on-his-luck Vietnam War veteran, but if you don’t listen carefully to the lyrics, the song can sound like a celebration of veterans and being American.

While Reagan went on to win 49 states in that year’s election, perhaps the biggest long-term impact of his courtship of Springsteen fans was to turn Springsteen from a relatively apolitical performer to a staunch supporter of the Democratic Party.

In this way, Springsteen’s transformation mirrors that of Taylor Swift, with Marsha Blackburn, the Tennessee Republican senator, serving as her Reagan – the person who pushed the performer into the political arena after years on the sidelines.

Springsteen and Kerry

Springsteen’s foray into politics eventually led him to back Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry in 2004 with a series of concerts called the “Vote for Change”“ tour.

Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry greets the crowd with musician Bruce Springsteen while campaigning in Columbus, Ohio, on Oct. 28, 2004.
AP Photo/Laura Rauch

Kerry, meanwhile, undertook his own efforts at cultural turf claiming. His attempts to demonstrate his bona fides as a sports-loving everyman went awry at times, when he flubbed the name of “Lambeau Field,” home of Wisconsin’s Green Bay Packers, and referred to a nonexistent Boston Red Sox player, “Manny Ortez.” The ill-fated sports references arguably didn’t hurt his campaign – he won Wisconsin and Massachusetts – but he was ridiculed for a photo-op hunting trip late in the campaign and went on to lose rural Midwestern voters decisively – as well as the election.

Kerry’s dabbling with hunting imagery was perhaps an attempt to dull President George W. Bush’s advantage in perceived strength of leadership, which was in part burnished by his adoption of a cowboy persona.

Harding, Jolson and the Cubs

While Reagan’s attempt to woo 1980s rock fans is one of the best-known attempts to campaign on a mantra of popular culture, it was far from the first.

Sen. Warren Harding’s 1920 front porch campaign for president was given a jolt of enthusiasm by a visit from singer and actor Al Jolson. Harding was also visited in his hometown, Marion, Ohio, by other actors and celebrities and the Chicago Cubs.

Harding’s strategy probably better serves as a template for things to come than a decisive move in the 1920 election: His victory with over 60% of the popular vote suggests no celebrity could have saved Democrat James Cox.

Bill Clinton and MTV

As the Harris-Walz campaign tries to draw votes from Swift’s young fans, parallels can be drawn to Democratic Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton’s attempts to embrace youth culture in the 1992 presidential election. Among other appearances, Clinton took questions from young voters on MTV and played saxophone on “The Arsenio Hall Show.”

While the direct effect of Clinton’s forays into youth culture is difficult to measure, he did surge among young voters relative to Democrat Michael Dukakis’ 1988 presidential campaign.

In his 1992 campaign, Bill Clinton went on MTV to answer young people’s questions, which included ‘If you had it to do over again, would you inhale?’

Ford and football

Any discussion of politicians embracing football culture would be incomplete without a discussion of the American president best at playing football, Gerald Ford, the vice president who became the nation’s 38th president in 1974, when Richard Nixon resigned during the Watergate scandal.

Ford played center on two national championship teams at the University of Michigan. While not using his football player background to the same level as former football coach Walz did at the Democratic National Convention, Ford did make use of his football credentials on the stump during the 1976 presidential campaign and was joined on the campaign trail by Alabama football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant.

But the votes of football fans were apparently not enough to keep Ford in the White House for long. He lost the 1976 election to Democrat Jimmy Carter.

Potentially fruitful pickups

Will the Harris-Walz strategy of recruiting voters through pop culture be successful? Swift’s fans are largely young, suburban women, and NFL fans are strewn across the political spectrum. There are potentially fruitful pickups in both camps. The candidates certainly think it matters: Walz said he “took football back” from Republicans, a claim disputed by Trump.

Stressing pop culture credentials can also provide attention to a campaign, regardless of persuasion. Clinton’s pop culture appearances generated coverage beyond the appearances themselves and were cost-effective for a campaign short on funds.

This type of pop culture campaigning generates coverage, then, even if voters aren’t moved by thinking a candidate shares their love of football or pop music.

Matt Harris 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. From Swift to Springsteen to Al Jolson, candidates keep trying to use celebrities to change voters’ songs – https://theconversation.com/from-swift-to-springsteen-to-al-jolson-candidates-keep-trying-to-use-celebrities-to-change-voters-songs-239381

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: As OpenAI attracts billions in new investment, its goal of balancing profit with purpose is getting more challenging to pull off

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Alnoor Ebrahim, Thomas Schmidheiny Professor of International Business, Tufts University

What’s in store for OpenAI is the subject of many anonymously sourced reports. AP Photo/Michael Dwyer

OpenAI, the artificial intelligence company that developed the popular ChatGPT chatbot and the text-to-art program Dall-E, is at a crossroads. On Oct. 2, 2024, it announced that it had obtained US$6.6 billion in new funding from investors and that the business was worth an estimated $157 billion – making it only the second startup ever to be valued at over $100 billion.

Unlike other big tech companies, OpenAI is a nonprofit with a for-profit subsidiary that is overseen by a nonprofit board of directors. Since its founding in 2015, OpenAI’s official mission has been “to build artificial general intelligence (AGI) that is safe and benefits all of humanity.”

By late September 2024, The Associated Press, Reuters, The Wall Street Journal and many other media outlets were reporting that OpenAI plans to discard its nonprofit status and become a for-profit tech company managed by investors. These stories have all cited anonymous sources. The New York Times, referencing documents from the recent funding round, reported that unless this change happens within two years, the $6.6 billion in equity would become debt owed to the investors who provided that funding.

The Conversation U.S. asked Alnoor Ebrahim, a Tufts University management scholar, to explain why OpenAI’s leaders’ reported plans to change its structure would be significant and potentially problematic.

How have its top executives and board members responded?

There has been a lot of leadership turmoil at OpenAI. The disagreements boiled over in November 2023, when its board briefly ousted Sam Altman, its CEO. He got his job back in less than a week, and then three board members resigned. The departing directors were advocates for building stronger guardrails and encouraging regulation to protect humanity from potential harms posed by AI.

Over a dozen senior staff members have quit since then, including several other co-founders and executives responsible for overseeing OpenAI’s safety policies and practices. At least two of them have joined Anthropic, a rival founded by a former OpenAI executive responsible for AI safety. Some of the departing executives say that Altman has pushed the company to launch products prematurely.

Safety “has taken a backseat to shiny products,” said OpenAI’s former safety team leader Jan Leike, who quit in May 2024.

Open AI CEO Sam Altman, center, speaks at an event in September 2024.
Bryan R. Smith/Pool Photo via AP

Why would OpenAI’s structure change?

OpenAI’s deep-pocketed investors cannot own shares in the organization under its existing nonprofit governance structure, nor can they get a seat on its board of directors. That’s because OpenAI is incorporated as a nonprofit whose purpose is to benefit society rather than private interests. Until now, all rounds of investments, including a reported total of $13 billion from Microsoft, have been channeled through a for-profit subsidiary that belongs to the nonprofit.

The current structure allows OpenAI to accept money from private investors in exchange for a future portion of its profits. But those investors do not get a voting seat on the board, and their profits are “capped.” According to information previously made public, OpenAI’s original investors can’t earn more than 100 times the money they provided. The goal of this hybrid governance model is to balance profits with OpenAI’s safety-focused mission.

Becoming a for-profit enterprise would make it possible for its investors to acquire ownership stakes in OpenAI and no longer have to face a cap on their potential profits. Down the road, OpenAI could also go public and raise capital on the stock market.

Altman reportedly seeks to personally acquire a 7% equity stake in OpenAI, according to a Bloomberg article that cited unnamed sources.

That arrangement is not allowed for nonprofit executives, according to BoardSource, an association of nonprofit board members and executives. Instead, the association explains, nonprofits “must reinvest surpluses back into the organization and its tax-exempt purpose.”

What kind of company might OpenAI become?

The Washington Post and other media outlets have reported, also citing unnamed sources, that OpenAI might become a “public benefit corporation” – a business that aims to benefit society and earn profits.

Examples of businesses with this status, known as B Corps., include outdoor clothing and gear company Patagonia and eyewear maker Warby Parker.

It’s more typical that a for-profit business – not a nonprofit – becomes a benefit corporation, according to the B Lab, a network that sets standards and offers certification for B Corps. It is unusual for a nonprofit to do this because nonprofit governance already requires those groups to benefit society.

Boards of companies with this legal status are free to consider the interests of society, the environment and people who aren’t its shareholders, but that is not required. The board may still choose to make profits a top priority and can drop its benefit status to satisfy its investors. That is what online craft marketplace Etsy did in 2017, two years after becoming a publicly traded company.

In my view, any attempt to convert a nonprofit into a public benefit corporation is a clear move away from focusing on the nonprofit’s mission. And there will be a risk that becoming a benefit corporation would just be a ploy to mask a shift toward focusing on revenue growth and investors’ profits.

Many legal scholars and other experts are predicting that OpenAI will not do away with its hybrid ownership model entirely because of legal restrictions on the placement of nonprofit assets in private hands.

But I think OpenAI has a possible workaround: It could try to dilute the nonprofit’s control by making it a minority shareholder in a new for-profit structure. This would effectively eliminate the nonprofit board’s power to hold the company accountable. Such a move could lead to an investigation by the office of the relevant state attorney general and potentially by the Internal Revenue Service.

What could happen if OpenAI turns into a for-profit company?

The stakes for society are high.

AI’s potential harms are wide-ranging, and some are already apparent, such as deceptive political campaigns and bias in health care.

If OpenAI, an industry leader, begins to focus more on earning profits than ensuring AI’s safety, I believe that these dangers could get worse. Geoffrey Hinton, who won the 2024 Nobel Prize in physics for his artificial intelligence research, has cautioned that AI may exacerbate inequality by replacing “lots of mundane jobs.” He believes that there’s a 50% probability “that we’ll have to confront the problem of AI trying to take over” from humanity.

And even if OpenAI did retain board members for whom safety is a top concern, the only common denominator for the members of its new corporate board would be their obligation to protect the interests of the company’s shareholders, who would expect to earn a profit. While such expectations are common on a for-profit board, they constitute a conflict of interest on a nonprofit board where mission must come first and board members cannot benefit financially from the organization’s work.

The arrangement would, no doubt, please OpenAI’s investors. But would it be good for society? The purpose of nonprofit control over a for-profit subsidiary is to ensure that profit does not interfere with the nonprofit’s mission. Without guardrails to ensure that the board seeks to limit harm to humanity from AI, there would be little reason for it to prevent the company from maximizing profit, even if its chatbots and other AI products endanger society.

Regardless of what OpenAI does, most artificial intelligence companies are already for-profit businesses. So, in my view, the only way to manage the potential harms is through better industry standards and regulations that are starting to take shape.

California’s governor vetoed such a bill in September 2024 on the grounds it would slow innovation – but I believe slowing it down is exactly what is needed, given the dangers AI already poses to society.

Alnoor Ebrahim 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. As OpenAI attracts billions in new investment, its goal of balancing profit with purpose is getting more challenging to pull off – https://theconversation.com/as-openai-attracts-billions-in-new-investment-its-goal-of-balancing-profit-with-purpose-is-getting-more-challenging-to-pull-off-240602

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Godzilla at 70: The monster’s warning to humanity is still urgent

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Amanda Kennell, Assistant Professor of East Asian Languages and Cultures, University of Notre Dame

The monster in the 2023 movie “Godzilla Minus One.” Toho Co. Ltd., CC BY-ND

The 2024 Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to Nihon Hidankyo, the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations. Many of these witnesses have spent their lives warning of the dangers of nuclear war – but initially, much of the world didn’t want to hear it.

“The fates of those who survived the infernos of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were long concealed and neglected,” the Nobel committee noted in its announcement. Local groups of nuclear survivors created Nihon Hidankyo in 1956 to fight back against this erasure.

Atomic bomb survivor Masao Ito, 82, speaks at the park across from the Atomic Bomb Dome in Hiroshima in May 15, 2023.
Richard A. Brooks/AFP via Getty Images

Around the same time that Nihon Hidankyo was formed, Japan produced another warning: a towering monster who topples Tokyo with blasts of irradiated breath. The 1954 film “Godzilla” launched a franchise that has been warning viewers to take better care of the Earth for the past 70 years.

We study popular Japanese media and business ethics and sustainability, but we found a common interest in Godzilla after the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and meltdown at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. In our view, these films convey a vital message about Earth’s creeping environmental catastrophe. Few survivors are left to warn humanity about the effects of nuclear weapons, but Godzilla remains eternal.

Into the atomic age

By 1954, Japan had survived almost a decade of nuclear exposure. In addition to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Japanese people were affected by a series of U.S. nuclear tests in the Bikini Atoll.

When the U.S. tested the world’s first hydrogen bomb in 1954, its devastation reached far outside the expected damage zone. Though it was far from the restricted zone, the Lucky Dragon No. 5 Japanese fishing boat and its crew were doused with irradiated ash. All fell ill, and one fisherman died within the year. Their tragedy was widely covered in the Japanese press as it unfolded.

The Castle Bravo hydrogen bomb test on March 1, 1954, produced an explosion equivalent to 15 megatons of TNT, more than 2.5 times what scientists had expected. It released large quantities of radioactive debris into the atmosphere.

This event is echoed in a scene at the beginning of “Godzilla” in which helpless Japanese boats are destroyed by an invisible force.

“Godzilla” is full of deep social debates, complex characters and cutting-edge special effects for its time. Much of the film involves characters discussing their responsibilities – to each other, to society and to the environment.

This seriousness, like the film itself, was practically buried outside of Japan by an alter ego, 1956’s “Godzilla, King of the Monsters!” American licensors cut the 1954 film apart, removed slow scenes, shot new footage featuring Canadian actor Raymond Burr, spliced it all together and dubbed their creation in English with an action-oriented script they wrote themselves.

This version was what people outside of Japan knew as “Godzilla” until the Japanese film was released internationally for its 50th anniversary in 2004.

From radiation to pollution

While “King of the Monsters!” traveled the world, “Godzilla” spawned dozens of Japanese sequels and spinoffs. Godzilla slowly morphed from a murderous monster into a monstrous defender of humanity in the Japanese films, which was also reflected in the later U.S.-made films.

In 1971, a new, younger creative team tried to define Godzilla for a new era with “Godzilla vs. Hedorah.” Director Yoshimitsu Banno joined the movie’s crew while he was promoting a recently completed documentary about natural disasters. That experience inspired him to redirect Godzilla from nuclear issues to pollution.

World War II was fading from public memory. So were the massive Anpo protests of 1959 and 1960, which had mobilized up to one-third of the Japanese people to oppose renewal of the U.S.-Japan security treaty. Participants included housewives concerned by the news that fish caught by the Lucky Dragon No. 5 had been sold in Japanese grocery stores.

At the same time, pollution was soaring. In 1969, Michiko Ishimure published “Paradise in the Sea of Sorrow: Our Minamata Disease,” a book that’s often viewed as a Japanese counterpart to “Silent Spring,” Rachel Carson’s environmental classic. Ishimure’s poetic descriptions of lives ruined by the Chisso Corp.’s dumping of methyl mercury into the Shiranui Sea awoke many in Japan to their government’s numerous failures to protect the public from industrial pollution.

The Chisso Corp. released toxic methylmercury into Minamata Bay from 1932 to 1968, poisoning tens of thousands of people who ate local seafood.

“Godzilla vs. Hedorah” is about Godzilla’s battles against Hedorah, a crash-landed alien that grows to monstrous size by feeding on toxic sludge and other forms of pollution. The film opens with a woman singing jazzily about environmental apocalypse as young people dance with abandon in an underground club.

This combination of hopelessness and hedonism continues in an uneven film that includes everything from an extended shot of an oil slick-covered kitten to an animated sequence to Godzilla awkwardly levitating itself with its irradiated breath.

After Godzilla defeats Hedorah at the end of the film, it pulls a handful of toxic sludge out of Hedorah’s torso, gazes at the sludge, then turns to stare at its human spectators – both those onscreen and the film’s audience. The message is clear: Don’t just lazily sing about imminent doom – shape up and do something.

Official Japanese trailer for ‘Godzilla vs. Hedorah’

“Godzilla vs. Hedorah” bombed at the box office but became a cult hit over time. Its positioning of Godzilla between Earth and those who would harm it resonates today in two separate Godzilla franchises.

One line of movies comes from the original Japanese studio that produced “Godzilla.” The other line is produced by U.S. licensors making eco-blockbusters that merge the environmentalism of “Godzilla” with the spectacle of “King of the Monsters.”

A meltdown of public trust

The 2011 Fukushima disaster has now become part of the Japanese people’s collective memory. Cleanup and decommissioning of the damaged nuclear plant continues, amid controversies around ongoing releases of radioactive water used to cool the plant. Some residents are allowed to visit their homes but can’t move back there while thousands of workers remove topsoil, branches and other materials to decontaminate these areas.

Before Fukushima, Japan derived one-third of its electricity from nuclear power. Public attitudes toward nuclear energy hardened after the disaster, especially as investigations showed that regulators had underestimated risks at the site. Although Japan needs to import about 90% of the energy it uses, today over 70% of the public opposes nuclear power.

The first Japanese “Godzilla” film released after the Fukushima disaster, “Shin Godzilla” (2016), reboots the franchise in a contemporary Japan with a new type of Godzilla, in an eerie echo of the damages of and governmental response to Fukushima’s triple disaster. When the Japanese government is left leaderless and in disarray following initial counterattacks on Godzilla, a Japanese government official teams up with an American special envoy to freeze the newly named Godzilla in its tracks, before a fearful world unleashes its nuclear weapons once again.

Their success suggests that while national governments have an important role to play in major disasters, successful recovery requires people who are empowered to act as individuals.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Godzilla at 70: The monster’s warning to humanity is still urgent – https://theconversation.com/godzilla-at-70-the-monsters-warning-to-humanity-is-still-urgent-237934

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: The return of 90s culture echoes a backlash to feminism that we’ve seen throughout history

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Julie Whiteman, Lecturer in Marketing, University of Birmingham

I came of age in the 1990s and lived through the heavily gendered pop culture of Spice Girls and All Saints, Oasis and Blur, of lads and ladettes outdoing each other in heavy drinking and sexual exploits.

Now in my 40s, I thought this brash and overtly sexist culture had faded out. It appeared to have been replaced by a socially progressive and inclusive generation focused on body and sex positivity, gender and sexual fluidity. And so I was surprised to see my generation Z research participants romanticise the 1990s as a belle epoque.

First it was Sex and the City, then lad’s mag Loaded and now Oasis. Popular culture from the 1990s is having a moment in the mid-2020s. The 90s have been a stylistic and cultural influence on youth culture for the best part of a decade, with large amounts of money invested in big-name reboots and reunions.

I began researching young adults’ sexual politics and their relationship to popular culture back in 2016. It was clear from my observations of the clothing, social media and references back then that the 90s were a major cultural influence. I remember being surprised by the popularity of the TV shows like Friends and musicians including Shaggy, Oasis and Suede from my own youth.

Every generation has a romanticised nostalgia for the fashion, music and attitudes of the previous. When I was a teenager, my friends and I held a romanticised nostalgia for the music, fashion and sense of freedom we believed characterised the 60s and 70s. This view, however, did not align with my parents’ and their peers’ recollections of that time.

Read more:
Sick of reboots? How ‘nostalgia bait’ profits off Millennial and Gen Z’s childhood memories

What is most interesting here is the apparent contradiction in values. The objectification of women at the heart of 90s pop culture does not gel with what we think of as the sexually open, progressive politics of generation Z. But having studied the intersection of pop culture and gender, I see this current resurgence as part of a misogynistic backlash to feminist progress – something that feminist scholars have highlighted as a typical pattern for years.

Much of 90s popular culture is inherently misogynistic. Loaded and other now-defunct lads’ mags were infamous for their brutal objectification of women, including advice on how to get women into bed by almost any means. The celebrated lad culture epitomised by the likes of Oasis encouraged “men to be men”, with all the macho aggression and limited emotional range that implied.

A damning 2012 National Union of Students report on sexual harassment and assault on university campuses made explicit links to the prevalence of lad culture in UK higher education. It argued lad culture at best objectifies and is dismissive of women, and at worst glamorises sexual assault.

Read more:
Sexual strangulation has become popular – but that doesn’t mean it’s wanted

Gen Z is widely considered a generation of social activists, having grown up in the shadow of movements like #MeToo and the Women’s March that emerged in protest of the election of Donald Trump as US president. These cultural touchpoints in this generation’s upbringing highlight intersections of sex and power.

Some young consumers have acknowledged this mismatch, describing Sex and the City as “outdated” and “cringey”. And incoming Loaded editor Danni Levy seems aware of it too, saying the relaunch is necessary because of the “world gone PC mad”.

Why is 90s culture popular now?

I argue the resurgence of 90s popular culture is actually part of a backlash against the progressive understandings of gender and sexuality associated with generation Z.

Research indicates that gen Z men are less likely to support feminism than baby boomers. Young men and boys are increasingly being influenced by figures like self-proclaimed misogynist Andrew Tate, who faces charges of rape and human trafficking among other offences.

While enjoying 90s television of course doesn’t mean you hold the same misogynistic views as Tate, I believe some popular culture is central to a continuum of backlash against feminist progress.

To explain this, I suggest turning to feminist scholars – including one of my own 90s favourites, Susan Faludi’s excellent 1992 book Backlash: The undeclared war against women. In this work, Faludi details multiple periods of backlash against women’s liberation dating from 195BC. Each of these is linked to repeated “crises of masculinity”.

Much feminist writing details how the very notion of masculinity depends on a subordinate femininity. And so, Faludi argues, advances in feminism equal a crisis of masculinity. Progress begets backlash, and popular culture is a key site where this takes place.

Through my research I work to detail the subtle and nuanced ways this happens. I am currently researching how popular culture interprets and remixes progressive ideas like sex and gender positivity.

At first glance, songs, films and shows may seem to be supportive of women’s sexual liberation, but on closer inspection they can reinforce traditional ideas of what it is to be a woman, or what it is to be attractive. Katy Perry’s recent music video Woman’s World is a classic example of this. Its lyrical appropriation of feminist messages of empowerment is delivered in an outdated visual style that adheres to the male gaze.

Perry and her dancers strut around in swimwear costumes adapted to mimic various “masculine” professions. Critiqued for its lack of authenticity, Perry’s video represents a male sexual dreamworld that is inconsistent with the feminist politics it links itself to.

There is often, in examples like this, a blurring of feminist and anti-feminist ideas – where it seems as though feminism is so commonsense it is no longer necessary, and is therefore neutralised.

A multitude of literature on female sexual desire has emerged in the last few years. It is wide-ranging and imaginative. And yet, much of 90s popular culture flattens this complexity, painting female desire as only a desire to be desired by men.

It prioritises male pleasure and advocates for their sexual dominance over women, reverting to understandings of “acceptable” sex as heterosexual, monogamous and male-led. Despite years of feminist progress, popular culture continues to teach us that women are objects of male sexual fantasy.

Julie Whiteman 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. The return of 90s culture echoes a backlash to feminism that we’ve seen throughout history – https://theconversation.com/the-return-of-90s-culture-echoes-a-backlash-to-feminism-that-weve-seen-throughout-history-238162

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: How Mpox anti-vaxx conspiracies target and stigmatise LGBTQ+ people

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Helen McCarthy, Doctoral Researcher in Criminology and Sociology, York St John University

According to some conspiracy theorists posting on alternative, uncensored social media networks, Mpox is another “scamdemic”, created by a powerful elite to cull populations and generate profit for “big pharma”. According to these social media users, anyone who takes the Mpox vaccine inevitably faces heart attack and death.

Other Mpox conspiracies target hate at LGBTQ+ people.

Through my PhD research into anti-vaccination misinformation, I’ve collected thousands of social media posts, videos, images and links from anti-vaccination Telegram channels, Substack newsletters and Gab groups. Gab Social is a social networking site known for hosting right-wing political content. These platforms are unique in their permissive approach to moderation. Users can post virtually anything they want without restraint.

According to 2023 research, platforms like Gab have become the home of many “alt-right” content creators who have been de-platformed from mainstream social media channels like Facebook and Instagram. Mpox misinformation is thriving in these online locations.

Sexuality and stigma

In the early days of the COVID pandemic, a study identified that misinformation on social media platforms like Facebook, X (formerly known as Twitter) and YouTube frequently blamed specific social groups for infection surges. Now, it’s MPox’s turn.

One Substack creator, for example, considers gay and bisexual men engaging in “high-risk sexual behaviour” a threat to the heterosexual population. He argues abstinence is the only solution – but only for men who have sex with men.

As well as accusing gay and bisexual men of having a “perverted lifestyle that goes against nature and God’s laws”, some anti-vaxx content creators stigmatise people with Mpox as a hidden enemy, who could be “teaching in schools and indoctrinating children”.

One common anti-vaxx conspiracy theory is “vaccine shedding”. This is the idea that vaccinated people can harm the unvaccinated through any kind of contact. One online conspiracy states the Mpox vaccine is particularly prone to shedding. Gay and bisexual men, then, are portrayed as dangerous whether they’re vaccinated or not.

Mpox is routinely characterised by conspiracy theorists as a virus for immoral people. As a result, some anti-vaxx perspectives are shockingly callous – one commenter claims they wouldn’t care at all if “the gays and communists” died from the Mpox vaccine.

Misinformation surrounding Mpox and the vaccine is peppered with such homophobic narratives of infection and contamination – and it’s familiar territory. People suffering from HIV and Aids in the 1980s and 1990s were relentlessly stigmatised as a dangerous other.

While online conspiracy theories present those with Mpox as a menace, in reality, there have only been a small number of mild Mpox cases identified in the UK since 2022. Though the majority of confirmed cases of Mpox in the UK have been in gay and bisexual men – and Mpox can be transmitted through close sexual contact – people can also become infected if they’re exposed to coughing and sneezing, or share clothing, bedding and towels with an infected person.

Moderation and misinformation

In August 2024, a new strain of Mpox was identified in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and some neighbouring countries. An estimated 10 million vaccines are needed to meet demand in affected African nations. In September 2024, the UK government ordered 150,000 doses of an Mpox vaccine to be distributed among gay and bisexual men and healthcare and humanitarian workers who may be exposed.

Just as many of us might check a reliable, verified medical source to find out more about Mpox, so alternative social media users look to the sources they trust. This commonly includes doctors blowing the whistle on alleged vaccine injury, conspiracy theory “news” sites and prominent right wing figures like Tucker Carlson. People selling alternative remedies and products promising miraculous detox are never far away to profit from vaccine misinformation.

Users share these sources across Gab groups, comment threads and Telegram channels, layering their own beliefs on top. This generates even more views and shares, which is one of the reasons why social media is such a good incubator for conspiracy theories and misinformation.

Another reason is the lack of content moderation on alternative social media sites. Substack describes itself as “a place for independent writing”. Users are not supposed to share any content which incites violence, contains sex or nudity, or illegal activity. Telegram takes a similar approach. Gab also draws the line at illegal content, but mainly encourages users to hide content they don’t want to see or ignore it.

The arguments for or against unrestrained free speech on the internet are complex. But sites like Gab reveal what an unmoderated internet can look like – hate of every variety can find a home here if that’s what the users choose to post. Mpox is just another topic to generate even more shareable content.

Helen McCarthy 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. How Mpox anti-vaxx conspiracies target and stigmatise LGBTQ+ people – https://theconversation.com/how-mpox-anti-vaxx-conspiracies-target-and-stigmatise-lgbtq-people-239981

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: How Sally Rooney came to be dubbed the ‘voice of a generation’
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Ellen Wiles, Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing, University of Exeter

Sally Rooney’s new novel, Intermezzo, is finally here – and nearly everyone I know seems to be reading it. It’s almost like the pre-streaming days, when everyone would settle on the sofa at the same time to watch the new hit TV series. The sense that we were all part of the same unfolding experience of a story was part of the joy.

Not many authors can achieve that in this era of the digital kaleidoscope, when myriad creative experiences can be accessed at the touch of a button. Rooney’s cult status has led to her being described as the “voice of a generation”. The label generally refers to an author whose work particularly resonates with people in their 20s and 30s. But why have Rooney’s books had this effect? And who were the literary voices of previous generations?

Logically, of course, the phrase is inaccurate when applied to any single writer. Generations include vastly different cohorts and people from diverse backgrounds, and no authorial voice can actually represent them all. Rooney couldn’t, even if everyone on the planet were reading Intermezzo right now – which they’re not. At least, not quite. And yet, as a phrase used to describe a writer whose work has had a notably greater impact than most others, it is worth interrogating.

No one’s 20s and 30s look the same. You might be saving for a mortgage or just struggling to pay rent. You could be swiping dating apps, or trying to understand childcare. No matter your current challenges, our Quarter Life series has articles to share in the group chat, or just to remind you that you’re not alone.

Read more from Quarter Life:
To be the person crowned with this label – to have to embody “the voice of a generation” – must feel simultaneously like an honour and a burden. Rooney herself has outwardly rejected it. In 2018 she told the Guardian: “I certainly never intended to speak for anyone other than myself. Even myself I find it difficult to speak for.”

And yet she invariably speaks persuasively and cogently in public events about her books: an ability which no doubt stems from her background as a champion debater.

Rooney speaks about Palestine during the launch of her new novel, Intermezzo.

This ability also brings a rare clarity to her writing. Rooney has a knack for describing with precision, and also with lyricism, the textural experience of being a young person in the world, particularly an intelligent yet lonely young person. Her characters feel almost as strongly about big ideas as they do about their animal desires.

Read more:
How does someone become the ‘voice of a generation’? A brief history of the concept

It’s a hard time to be young. Rooney understands and engages with the high cost of living, precarious jobs, stark social inequality and the climate crisis in her novels. Yet these ideas and political concerns never subsume the specific human characters, in specific Irish settings, that lie at the heart of each story. These are surely some of the intersecting reasons why her fiction has resonated so widely with the under 30s.

Intermezzo can be distinguished from Rooney’s previous two novels in its interrogation of intimate relationships that are perceived to be highly unconventional, and exploring how the characters negotiate that social tension. I like to think that’s why it has sparked so much interest – but I may well be biased, since my forthcoming novel, The Unexpected, does the same thing, albeit with a co-parenting angle.

Voices of generations past

Looking back a generation, Zadie Smith’s novel White Teeth, published in 2000 when she was in her early 20s, sparked a comparable reading fever, and prompted the same “voice of a generation” label.

Smith broke new ground back then with the fresh, funny and profound quality of her writing about the multicultural community of north-west London, particularly through her sparkling dialogue. Like Rooney’s fiction, Smith’s addresses pressing political issues, notably relating to race, class and migration, and yet those concerns never overpower the vivid individuality of her characters.

Like Rooney, Smith is a compelling public speaker, articulating her ideas with directness and wit. Her clear public “voice” surely helped the “voice of a generation” label to adhere. Yet Smith similarly rejected the idea that she had ever sought to represent any generation or group through her fiction. Conversely, she has denied even having a singular “voice” that might be linked to arbitrary aspects of her autobiography. Instead, she describes always having had multiple voices in her head, arguing that good fiction actually stems from a productive self-doubt, combined with a sense of compassion and curiosity about other people and the world.

Turning the dial back further, into the 20th century, the so-called “voices of a generation” that come to mind are mostly white men. Brett Easton Ellis and J.D. Salinger, for instance, in the US; and Martin Amis and Ian McEwan in the UK.

It is heartening that fiction is no longer so dominated by male writers, especially when fiction readers remain predominantly female. And over the last two decades, it has been great to witness the championing of more diverse authors in the publishing industry: a shift which has been long overdue.

Still, as the real world appears to become increasingly divided through social media bubbles and extremist politics, it seems more important than ever to hold onto the vital role of fiction. Not as a loudspeaker for authorial “voices” that are assumed to represent neatly defined groups of people, but as a portal to imagined voices that reveal how unique yet interconnected we all are. Fiction is a force that can draw us together, regardless of our backgrounds, and increase our empathy for one another.

If a single writer can spark as many people as Rooney has to engage collectively in deep appreciation for their works of fiction, then it seems important to find a shorthand to capture that. If “the voice of a generation” is too exclusive, perhaps “a voice for a generation” is a more nuanced alternative.

Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

Ellen Wiles is the author of the new novel, The Unexpected – out on 21 November 2024 from HQ (HarperCollins).

– ref. How Sally Rooney came to be dubbed the ‘voice of a generation’ – https://theconversation.com/how-sally-rooney-came-to-be-dubbed-the-voice-of-a-generation-240063
MIL OSI – Global Reports –
January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: How does someone become the ‘voice of a generation’? A brief history of the concept

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Helen Kingstone, Senior Lecturer in English Literature, Royal Holloway University of London

Sally Rooney, author of Normal People and now Intermezzo, keeps being called “the voice of a generation”. And she’s just the latest in a sequence of authors to get this accolade.

In 1991, Douglas Coupland’s novel Generation X supposedly made him the “voice of” that generation. Looking further back, J.D. Salinger’s first and only novel, Catcher in the Rye (1951), seemed to capture the voice of a generation at the time, and has resonated with successive generations of awkward and disaffected teenagers ever since.

What’s behind this phenomenon is generational thinking. It seems to be everywhere at the moment, providing the media with easy taglines, spreading cliches and unnecessarily sowing division. But its history goes back far beyond even the baby-boomers.

In the 19th century, after the radical upheavals of the Enlightenment , the “age of revolutions” and the Industrial Revolution, some people wondered if perhaps they could reject tradition completely. Groups of young artists began to rebel against a model of discipleship that required them to learn from their elders.

Instead of following the art world’s top-down, paternalistic apprenticeship model, these fraternities and brotherhoods (yes, they were mainly men) declared that were innovating a new dawn in art.

The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, for example, now viewed as quaint, were definitely Victorian radicals, as were the impressionists 25 years later. These tight-knit groups of artists had a strong sense of generational identity, rebelling against their predecessors.

In one important way, however, they were different from the modern “voice of a generation” figures because these groups also saw themselves as rebelling against their own peers. We now might see them as iconic of their generation, but at the time, they were rejects, though elite ones – bohemian in the original sense. Crucially, they were honest about their oddity. They knew they were unusual, so they didn’t claim to be speaking for everyone.

This paradox highlights one of the challenges of history: that we’re understandably most captivated by people who were “ahead of their time”, but these people are therefore probably not representative of their time.

Read more:
How Sally Rooney came to be dubbed the ‘voice of a generation’

The origins of generational thinking

The idea of generations as self-conscious group identities came into being with the trauma and upheaval of the first world war. Over the next couple of decades, writers who had come of age during the war narrated how it had decimated and traumatised their generation.

Examples include Erich Maria Remarque’s novel All Quiet on the Western Front (1928), R.C. Sherriff’s play Journey’s End (1928) and Vera Brittain’s autobiography, Testament of Youth (1933).

These stories all express an angry sense of having been “lions led by donkeys”. They envisage an unbridgeable divide between their own front-line generation, sacrificing its youth, and an older generation of complacent army commanders.

They also trace a second divide between themselves and the slighter younger generation who came of age after the war’s end and didn’t want to think about it. Brittain poignantly describes how this new fresh-faced generation experienced her grief as passé.

These first world war writers did consciously speak as the voice of a specific “lost generation”. But like any such label, this also obscures a more complex reality.

Not all first world war soldiers were in the first flush of youth like Wilfred Owen, Robert Graves, Remarque and Sherriff. In fact, men were recruited up to the age of 41 in Britain, 43 in Russia, 48 in France and 50 in Austria-Hungary.

As a result, between 3 million and 4 million women were widowed by the war, and between 6 million and 8 million children were left fatherless. On this reckoning, there is probably more than one first world war generation.

This complexity highlights one of the tricky things about the generations concept. It refers both to relationships within families (parents and children) and to commonalities beyond the family, among contemporaries across society. Sometimes these two dimensions align neatly, as in the “lost generation”, but sometimes they don’t, like for those older soldiers who don’t fit inside that label.

Why generational labels matter

My research has shown that generational ideas are real and do matter – but need to be handled with care.

Generation talk all too often slips into generalisation, which can then be used to sow division. The word “generationalism” has been coined by researchers to highlight this issue.

To counteract this, a network of researchers and third sector colleagues, led by myself and sociologist Jennie Bristow, have worked together to produce a guide entitled Talking About Generations: 5 Questions to Ask Yourself, which encourages people working with the concept of generation to pause and check their motivations and meaning before using the term.

Labels like “the voice of a generation” always depend on speculating about what other people are thinking and feeling. This risks flattening and homogenising generational experience – not all millennials are Sally Rooneys, after all.

Rooney herself has said in an interview: “I certainly never intended to speak for anyone other than myself.” Any “voice of a generation” needs, in practice, to be plural “voices”.

Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

Helen Kingstone has received funding from Wellcome: it funded the research behind the guide for ‘Talking about Generations’.

– ref. How does someone become the ‘voice of a generation’? A brief history of the concept – https://theconversation.com/how-does-someone-become-the-voice-of-a-generation-a-brief-history-of-the-concept-240495

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: ‘Strabane – Blessing a Town into Poetry’ features in Island Voices lecture

Source: Northern Ireland – City of Derry

‘Strabane – Blessing a Town into Poetry’ features in Island Voices lecture

14 October 2024

The town of Strabane will be lauded by poet Maureen Boyle during a literary lunchtime lecture in the Tower Museum as part of Derry City and Strabane District Council’s Island Voices programme.

This year the Island Voices lectures are exploring the theme of ‘home’ in the work of local writers from the English, Irish and Ulster-Scots traditions.

Island Voices features talks by Belfast-born Réaltán Ní Leannáin, Maureen Boyle from Sion Mills, and Alan Millar from the Laggan Valley in East Donegal, the series explores identity and belonging within the context of our shared languages of English, Irish and Ulster-Scots.

Irish Language writer Réaltán Ní Leannáin opened the series with a lecture entitled ‘From Burgu to Belfast’.

The next lecture on Thursday, 24 October will feature Sion writer Maureen Boyle speaking about ‘Writing ‘Strabane’ – Blessing a Town Into Poetry’.

In 2018 Maureen was commissioned by Radio 4 to write a poem on her family’s hometown for a series called ‘Conversations on a Bench’.

Growing up in the village of Sion Mills, it was the nearby town of Strabane which captured Maureen’s imagination. It was where her father had grown up, and her family later moved into the town. Every aspect of Maureen’s childhood memories are recalled in the poem – from the congested lungs of the mill workers to the smoky smell of her father’s bomb damage sale jackets in the family wardrobe.

In this talk, Maureen will explore the process of the poem’s creation, the motivation to write it, the research involved and the process of translating research into poetry.

An acclaimed poet Maureen won a UNESCO medal for a book of poems in 1979 at the age of 18. She has also won various awards including the Ireland Chair of Poetry Prize, the Strokestown International Poetry Prize, the Fish Short Memoir Prize, the Inaugural Ireland Chair of Poetry Travel Bursary and Awards from the Arts Council of Northern Ireland. Commissions include one to write a poem on the Crown Bar in Belfast for the BBC in 2008 and for a poem on a painting in the O’Brien Collection in Washington. Some of her work has been translated into German, Flemish and French.

Those who attend Maureen’s lecture on Thursday, 24^th October will get a unique insight into the enduring impact the poet’s hometown of Strabane has had on her life.

The final lecture in the series features Alan Millar with his talk ‘Hame an awa – Scots wurds in Irish toonlands’. It will take place on Thursday, 28 November.

All talks in the series are free but booking is essential. Each one will begin at 1pm and there are light refreshments available from 12.30pm. To book your place please contact the Tower Museum, T: (028) 7137 2411 or email [email protected]

Further information: Pól Ó Frighil, Languages Team, Derry City and Strabane District Council, [email protected]

MIL OSI United Kingdom –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: NATO Chief Scientist launches Grants Programme to foster global security innovation

Source: NATO

NATO has officially launched its Chief Scientist Grants Programme, dedicated to fostering excellence in science and technology research. In total, 500,000 euros will support research projects focused on advancing science and contributing to global security. Researchers from NATO member countries are invited to apply, with grants ranging from 25,000 euros to 100,000 euros. These will support projects in areas such as deterrence and defence; diversity in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields; emerging and disruptive technologies; as well as Science and Technology (S&T) resilience and foresight.

The NATO Chief Scientist Grants Programme

PLEASE NOTE:
You can now apply for the NATO Chief Scientist Grants Programme.

APPLY HERE

Who: The grants are open to nationals from NATO Allies who are working for or affiliated with NATO Allied governments, research institutes, non-governmental organizations or the private sector. Applicants need to be resident in the country where the institution they are working for is located. The programme particularly encourages applications from women in STEM fields.

What: Applicants must submit an application form including a proposal related to one of the listed focus areas. Qualifying projects will need to be completed by end 2025. Proposals should include a forward-looking general problem statement and aim for both scientific excellence and real-world security impact.

Applicants should also address the economic viability of their proposals, and include reference to the Applicant’s experience handling similar projects. The application should include an evaluation of potential risks associated with the proposal, and a risk response plan.

When: Applications are open from now until November 15, 2024. Shortlisted candidates may be contacted in December 2024, and selected candidates will be notified by January 2024. All selected projects will have to be completed by the end of 2025.

This marks a significant opportunity for researchers to contribute to global security and technological advancement, while also promoting diversity and inclusion in defence-related STEM fields. Any inquires may be directed to mbx.sto@hq.nato.int.

MIL Security OSI –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: UK announces sanctions against Iranian military figures and organisations following attack on Israel
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

The UK announces sanctions against Iranian individuals and organisations following Iran’s continued dangerous and destabilising activity across the Middle East
the UK announces sanctions against Iranian individuals and organisations following Iran’s continued dangerous and destabilising activity across the Middle East.

sanctions target senior figures in the Islamic Republic of Iran Army, Iran’s Air Force and organisations linked to Iran’s ballistic and cruise missile development.

announcement follows Iran’s attack against Israel on 1 October which threatened to escalate the conflict in the Middle East.

The UK has today (14th October) announced a new round of sanctions targeting senior Iranian military figures and organisations for their role in attempting to destabilise the Middle East.

In response to Iran’s attack against Israel on 1 October, today’s package targets senior figures who facilitate this behaviour, in the Islamic Republic of Iran Army, Iran’s Air Force and the IRGC Intelligence Organisation.

The package will also designate Farzanegan Propulsion Systems Design Bureau (FPSDB), which designs and manufactures parts that can be used in cruise missiles, as well as the Iranian Space Agency, which develops technologies that have applications in ballistic missile development.

Foreign Secretary, David Lammy said:

Despite repeated warnings, the dangerous actions of Iran and its proxies are driving further escalation in the Middle East.

Following its ballistic missile attack on Israel, we are holding Iran to account and exposing those who facilitated these acts.

Alongside allies and partners, we will continue to take necessary measures to challenge Iran’s unacceptable threats and press for de-escalation across the region.

Today’s announcement follows repeated warnings from the UK and international partners calling on Iran to cease its dangerous and escalatory activity across the Middle East.

It also follows the G7 joint statement condemning Iran’s missile attack on Israel and outlined the necessary steps being taken in response.

The Foreign Secretary also discussed Iran’s actions with European partners at the EU Foreign Affairs Council today, where he continued to push for de-escalation across the region.

Individuals sanctioned today and are subject to a travel ban and asset freeze, include:

Abdolrahim Mousavi: Commander-in Chief of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army and a member of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.

Mohammad-Hossein Dadras: Deputy Commander-in Chief of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army.

Hamid Vahedi: Commander of the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force.

Mohammad Kazemi: Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Intelligence Chief.

Habibollah Sayyari: Head of the Joint Staff of the Iranian Army and Deputy Chief for Coordination of the Iranian Army.

Ali-Mohammad Naini: IRGC Spokesperson.

Houssein Pourfarzaneh: Chief Engineer of Farzanegan Propulsion Systems Design Bureau (FPSDB).

The following organisations are also subject to an asset freeze:

Farzanegan Propulsion Systems Design Bureau (FPSDB): FPSDB designs and manufactures engine technology which can be used in cruise missiles.

The Iranian Space Agency: The Iranian Space Agency develops space launch vehicle technologies, which have applications in ballistic missile development.

The UK already has over 400 sanctions imposed on Iran, including designations against the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in its entirety and many of those responsible for the recent attack on Israel.

The UK will continue to work with international partners to hold Iran to account for its escalatory behaviour in the Middle East and its attempts to undermine global security.

The UK is clear that a wider regional conflict must be avoided at all costs and is committed to working with partners to secure a ceasefire on all sides.

Media enquiries

Email newsdesk@fcdo.gov.uk

Telephone 020 7008 3100

Contact the FCDO Communication Team via email (monitored 24 hours a day) in the first instance, and we will respond as soon as possible.

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Published 14 October 2024
MIL OSI United Kingdom –
January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Artist Maurice Wade celebrated in rare city landscape exhibition

Source: City of Stoke-on-Trent

Published: Monday, 14th October 2024

A large-scale exhibition celebrating the work of local artist, Maurice Wade, has opened to the public for the first time.

Visitors will get a rare glimpse of his North Staffordshire-inspired landscapes featuring many well-known locations including Etruria Hall, Burslem, Longport and the local canal network – now on show at the Potteries Museum & Art Gallery.

Born in Burslem in 1917, Maurice Wade trained during the 1930s at the Burslem School of Art and went on to teach at a local boys school in the 1960s.

The critically acclaimed artist exhibited at the Royal Academy, Paris Salon and The Royal Society of British Artists. His works feature in a number of public collections, including the Potteries Museum & Art Gallery and the Government Art Collection. Today, Wade is extremely collectable and his paintings are highly regarded by art lovers.

Councillor Jane Ashworth, leader of Stoke-on-Trent City Council, said: “It is great that we are being able to highlight the work of this important artist, who was born right here in Stoke-on-Trent, in their home city.

“We should all be really proud that our city’s unique landscape features in these paintings and was the inspiration behind most of Maurice Wade’s work, especially as we are gearing up to celebrate our Centenary next year.

“The exhibition is on until January 2025, so there’s plenty of time to go along and enjoy this fantastic display.”

Maurice Wade felt a growing compulsion to paint when he returned to the Potteries in 1951, after serving in the army during the Second World War.

Following Wade’s death in 1991, his work was seemingly forgotten however over the last few years, there has been a renewed interest in the artist and a growing recognition of his important contribution to contemporary British art in the 20th century.

This special display will bring together over 90 paintings from Wade’s private collections, for the very first time.

The exhibition will highlight Wade’s fascination with North Staffordshire and will be accompanied by a fully illustrated book edited by Petr Hajek, with contributions by David Powell.

Dr Samantha Howard, Curator of Arts at the Potteries Museum & Art Gallery, said: “Maurice Wade – A Painter from No. 57 is a truly not-to-be missed opportunity to see so many wonderful paintings brought together from private collections that showcase the breadth and depth of the artist’s practice over 30 years”.

Maurice Wade – A Painter from No. 57 will until Sunday 26 January. Tickets are £6, £4 (concessions) and under 16s go free.

To find out more about what’s happening at all of the city’s museums, visit http://www.stokemuseums.org.uk

MIL OSI United Kingdom –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Disaster Recovery Centers Open in Aiken, Anderson Counties

Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

Headline: Disaster Recovery Centers Open in Aiken, Anderson Counties

Disaster Recovery Centers Open in Aiken, Anderson Counties

Disaster Recovery Centers are open in Aiken and Anderson counties to provide in-person assistance to South Carolinians affected by Hurricane Helene.

Aiken County
Nancy Carson Library
135 Edgefield Road
North Augusta, SC 29841

Open Oct. 14-17 from 8 a.m.-7 p.m.

Anderson County
Anderson County Library
300 N. McDuffie St.
Anderson, SC 29621

Open Oct. 14-17 from 9 a.m.-8 p.m.

These two locations join the centers previously opened in Barnwell, Greenville and Lexington counties.

Barnwell County
Barnwell Regional Airport
155 State Road S-6-398
Barnwell, SC 29812

Open Oct. 13–15 from 8 a.m.–7 p.m.

Greenville County
Freetown Community Center
200 Alice Ave.
Greenville, SC 29611

Open daily from 8 a.m.–7 p.m.

Lexington County
Batesburg-Leesville Fire Station
537 W. Church St.
Batesburg, SC 29006

Open Oct. 13–16 from 8 a.m.–7 p.m.

Additional Disaster Recovery Centers will open soon in more affected areas. You can visit any open center to meet with representatives of FEMA, the state of South Carolina and the U.S. Small Business Administration. No appointment is needed. To find other center locations, go to fema.gov/drc or text “DRC” and a Zip Code to 43362.

Homeowners and renters in Abbeville, Aiken, Allendale, Anderson, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Cherokee, Chester, Edgefield, Fairfield, Greenville, Greenwood, Hampton, Jasper, Kershaw, Laurens, Lexington, McCormick, Newberry, Oconee, Orangeburg, Pickens, Richland, Saluda, Spartanburg, Union and York counties and tribal members of the Catawba Indian Nation can apply for federal assistance.

The quickest way to apply is to go online to DisasterAssistance.gov. You can also apply using the FEMA App for mobile devices or calling toll-free 800-621-3362. The telephone line is open every day and help is available in many languages. If you use a relay service, such as Video Relay Service (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA your number for that service. For a video with American Sign Language, voiceover and open captions about how to apply for FEMA assistance, select this link.

FEMA programs are accessible to survivors with disabilities and others with access and functional needs.

kwei.nwaogu
Mon, 10/14/2024 – 12:04

MIL OSI USA News –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: When AI plays favourites: How algorithmic bias shapes the hiring process

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Mehnaz Rafi, PhD Candidate, Haskayne School of Business, University of Calgary

Given the rapid integration of AI into human resource management across many organizations, it’s important to raise awareness about the complex ethical challenges it presents. (Shutterstock)

A public interest group filed a U.S. federal complaint against artificial intelligence hiring tool, HireVue, in 2019 for deceptive hiring practices. The software, which has been adopted by hundreds of companies, favoured certain facial expressions, speaking styles and tones of voice, disproportionately disadvantaging minority candidates.

The Electronic Privacy Information Center argued HireVue’s results were “biased, unprovable and not replicable.” Though the company has since stopped using facial recognition, concerns remain about biases in other biometric data, such as speech patterns.

Similarly, Amazon stopped using its AI recruitment tool, as reported in 2018, after discovering it was biased against women. The algorithm, trained on male-dominated resumes submitted over 10 years, favoured male candidates by downgrading applications that included the word “women’s” and penalizing graduates of women’s colleges. Engineers tried to address these biases, but could not guarantee neutrality, leading to the project’s cancellation.

These examples highlight a growing concern in recruitment and selection: while some companies are using AI to remove human bias from hiring, it can often reinforce and amplify existing inequalities. Given the rapid integration of AI into human resource management across many organizations, it’s important to raise awareness about the complex ethical challenges it presents.

Ways AI can create bias

As companies increasingly rely on algorithms to make critical hiring decisions, it’s crucial to be aware of the following ways AI can create bias in hiring:

1. Bias in training data. AI systems rely on large datasets — referred to as training data — to learn patterns and make decisions, but their accuracy and fairness are only as good as the data they are trained on. If this data contains historical hiring biases that favour specific demographics, the AI will adopt and reproduce those same biases. Amazon’s AI tool, for example, was trained on resumes from a male-dominated industry, which led to gender bias.

2. Flawed data sampling. Flawed data sampling occurs when the dataset used to train an algorithm is not representative of the broader population it’s meant to serve. In the context of hiring, this can happen if training data over-represents certain groups —typically white men — while under-representing marginalized candidates.

As a result, the AI may learn to favour the characteristics and experiences of the over-represented group while penalizing or overlooking those from underrepresented groups. For example, facial analysis technologies have shown to have higher error rates for racialized individuals, particularly racialized women, because they are underrepresented in the data used to train these systems.

Read more:
Artificial intelligence can discriminate on the basis of race and gender, and also age

3. Bias in feature selection. When designing AI systems, developers choose certain features, attributes or characteristics to be prioritized or weighed more heavily when the AI is making decisions. But these selected features can lead to unfair, biased outcomes and perpetuate pre-existing inequalities.

For example, AI might disproportionately value graduates from prestigious universities, which have historically been attended by people from privileged backgrounds. Or, it might prioritize work experiences that are more common among certain demographics.

This problem is compounded when the features selected are proxies for protected characteristics, such as zip code, which can be strongly related to race and socioeconomic status due to historical housing segregation.

Bias in hiring algorithms raises serious ethical concerns and demands greater attention toward the mindful, responsible and inclusive use of AI.
(Shutterstock)

4. Lack of transparency. Many AI systems function as “black boxes,” meaning their decision-making processes are opaque. This lack of transparency makes it difficult for organizations to identify where bias might exist and how it affects hiring decisions.

Without insight into how an AI tool makes decisions, it’s difficult to correct biased outcomes or ensure fairness. Both Amazon and HireVue faced this issue; users and developers struggled to understand how the systems assessed candidates and why certain groups were excluded.

5. Lack of human oversight. While AI plays an important role in many decision-making processes, it should augment, rather than replace, human judgment. Over-reliance on AI without adequate human oversight can lead to unchecked biases. This problem is exacerbated when hiring professionals trust AI more than their own judgment, believing in the technology’s infallibility.

Overcoming algorithmic bias in hiring

To mitigate these issues, companies must adopt strategies that prioritize inclusivity and transparency in AI-driven hiring processes. Below are some key solutions for overcoming AI bias:

1. Diversify training data. One of the most effective ways to combat AI bias is to ensure training data is inclusive, diverse and representative of a wide range of candidates. This means including data from diverse racial, ethnic, gender, socioeconomic and educational backgrounds.

2. Conduct regular bias audits. Frequent and thorough audits of AI systems should be conducted to identify patterns of bias and discrimination. This includes examining the algorithm’s outputs, decision-making processes and its impact on different demographic groups.

It is important to actively involve human judgment in AI-driven decisions, particularly when making final hiring choices.
(Shutterstock)

3. Implement fairness-aware algorithms. Use AI software that incorporates fairness constraints and is designed to consider and mitigate bias by balancing outcomes for underrepresented groups. This can include integrating fairness metrics such as equal opportunity, modifying training data to show less bias and adjusting model predictions based on fairness criteria to increase equity.

4. Increase transparency. Seek AI solutions that offer insight into their algorithms and decision-making processes to make it easier to identify and address potential biases. Additionally, make sure to disclose any use of AI in the hiring process to candidates to maintain transparency with your job applicants and other stakeholders.

5. Maintain human oversight. To maintain control over hiring algorithms, managers and leaders must actively review AI-driven decisions, especially when making final hiring choices. Emerging research highlights the critical role of human oversight in safeguarding against the risks posed by AI applications. However, for this oversight to be effective and meaningful, leaders must ensure that ethical considerations are part of the hiring process and promote the responsible, inclusive and ethical use of AI.

Bias in hiring algorithms raises serious ethical concerns and demands greater attention toward the mindful, responsible and inclusive use of AI. Understanding and addressing the ethical considerations and biases of AI-driven hiring is essential to ensuring fairer hiring outcomes and preventing technology from reinforcing systemic bias.

Mehnaz Rafi 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. When AI plays favourites: How algorithmic bias shapes the hiring process – https://theconversation.com/when-ai-plays-favourites-how-algorithmic-bias-shapes-the-hiring-process-239471

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Transparency and trust: How news consumers in Canada want AI to be used in journalism

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Nicole Blanchett, Associate Professor, Journalism, Toronto Metropolitan University

Developing clear policies and principles that are communicated with audiences should be an essential part of any newsroom’s AI practice. (Shutterstock)

When it comes to artificial intelligence (AI) and news production, Canadian news consumers want to know when, how and why AI is part of journalistic work. And if they don’t get that transparency, they could lose trust in news organizations.

News consumers are so concerned about how the use of AI could impact the accuracy of stories and the spread of misinformation, a majority favour government regulation of how AI is used in journalism.

These are some of our preliminary findings after surveying a representative sample of 1,042 Canadian news consumers, most of whom accessed news daily.

This research is part of the Global Journalism Innovation Lab which researches new approaches to journalism. Those of us on the team at Toronto Metropolitan University are particularly interested in looking at news from an audience perspective in order to develop strategies for best practice.

The industry has high hopes that the use of AI could lead to better journalism, but there is still a lot of work to be done in terms of figuring out how to use it ethically.

Not everyone, for example, is sure the promise of time saved on tasks that AI can do faster will actually translate into more time for better reporting.

We hope our research will help newsrooms understand audience priorities as they develop standards of practice surrounding AI, and prevent further erosion of trust in journalism.

AI and transparency

We found that a lack of transparency could have serious consequences for news outlets that use AI. Almost 60 per cent of those surveyed said they would lose trust in a news organization if they found out a story was generated by AI that they thought was written by a human, something also reflected in international studies.

The overwhelming majority of respondents in our study, more than 85 per cent, want newsrooms to be transparent about how AI is being used. Three quarters want that to include labelling of content created by AI. And more than 70 per cent want the government to regulate the use of AI by news outlets.

Organizations like Trusting News, which helps journalists build trust with audiences, now offer advice on what AI transparency should look like and say it’s more than just labelling a story — people want to know why news organizations are using AI.

Audience trust

Our survey also showed a significant contrast in confidence in news depending on the level of AI used. For example, more than half of respondents said they had high to very high trust in news produced just by humans. However, that level of trust dropped incrementally the more AI was involved in the process, to just over 10 per cent for news content that was generated by AI only.

In questions where news consumers had to choose a preference between humans and AI to make journalistic decisions, humans were far preferred. For example, more than 70 per cent of respondents felt humans were better at determining what was newsworthy, compared to less than six per cent who felt AI would have better news judgement. Eighty-six per cent of respondents felt humans should always be part of the journalistic process.

As newsrooms struggle to retain fractured audiences with fewer resources, the use of AI also has to be considered in terms of the value of the products they’re creating. More than half of our survey respondents perceived news produced mostly by AI with some human oversight as less worth paying for, which isn’t encouraging considering the existing reluctance to pay for news in Canada.

This result echoes a recent Reuters study, where an average of 41 per cent of people across six countries saw less value in AI-generated news.

Concerns about accuracy

In terms of negative impacts of AI in a newsroom, about 70 per cent of respondents were concerned about accuracy in news stories and job losses for journalists. Two-thirds of respondents felt the use of AI might lead to reduced exposure to a variety of information. An increased spread of mis- and disinformation, something recognized widely as a serious threat to democracy, was of concern for 78 per cent of news consumers.

Using AI to replace journalists was what made respondents most uncomfortable, and there was also less comfort with using it for editorial functions such as writing articles and deciding what stories to develop in the first place.

There was far more comfort with using it for non-editorial tasks such as transcription and copy editing, echoing findings in previous research in Canada and other markets.

We also gathered a lot of data unrelated to AI to get a sense of how Canadians are tapping into news and the news they’re tapping into. Politics and local news were the two most popular types of news, chosen by 67 per cent of respondents, even though there is less local news to consume due to extensive cuts, mergers and closures.

A lot of people in our sample of Canadians, around 30 per cent, don’t actively look for news. They let it find them, something called passive consumption. And although this is proportionally higher in news consumers under 35, this isn’t just a phenomenon seen in the younger demographic. More than half of those who reported letting news find them were over 35 years old.

Although smartphones are increasingly becoming the likely access points of news for many consumers, including almost 70 per cent for those 34 and under and about 60 per cent of those between 35 and 44, television is where most news consumers in our study reported getting their journalism.

Respondents in our survey were asked to select all of their points of news access. More than 80 per cent of participants chose some form of TV, with some respondents picking two TV formats, for example, cable TV and smart TV. Surprisingly to us, half of 18-24 year olds reported TV as an access point for news. For those 44 and under, it was more often through a smart TV, though. As shown in other Canadian studies, TV news still plays an important role in the media landscape.

This is just a broad look at the data we have collected. Our analysis is just beginning. We’re going to dig deeper into how different demographics feel about the use of AI in journalism and how the use of AI might impact audience trust.

We will also soon be launching our survey with research partners in the United Kingdom and Australia to find out if there are differences in perceptions of AI in the three countries.

Even these initial results provide a lot of evidence that, as newsrooms work to survive in a destabilized market, using AI could have detrimental effects on the perceived value of their journalism. Developing clear policies and principles that are communicated with audiences should be an essential part of any newsroom’s AI practice in Canada.

Nicole Blanchett receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and The Creative School at Toronto Metropolitan University.

Charles H. Davis receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and has received funding from Toronto Metropolitan University.

Mariia Sozoniuk works with the Explanatory Journalism Project which is supported by funding from The Creative School at Toronto Metropolitan University and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).

Sibo Chen receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and The Creative School at Toronto Metropolitan University.

– ref. Transparency and trust: How news consumers in Canada want AI to be used in journalism – https://theconversation.com/transparency-and-trust-how-news-consumers-in-canada-want-ai-to-be-used-in-journalism-240527

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Too many kids face bullying rooted in social power imbalances — and educators can help prevent this

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Deinera Exner-Cortens, Associate Professor of Psychology and Tier 2 Canada Research Chair (Childhood Health Promotion), University of Calgary

Educators can help kids understand the difference between using power negatively and positively, and encourage its positive use to build respectful environments. (Allison Shelley/The Verbatim Agency for EDUimages), CC BY-NC

Being at school among peers and friends can be exciting and positive for many children and youth. But, too many kids in Canada face the reality of being bullied because of some aspect of who they are.

This type of bullying — known as identity-based or bias-based bullying — is extremely harmful to kids’ sense of belonging at school, and has negative effects on their physical and mental health, their academic achievement and their social well-being.

As psychology researchers and directors of the Promoting Relationships and Eliminating Violence Network (PREVNet), we developed accessible learning modules for educators so they can learn to recognize identity-based bullying, and intervene to stop it.

While explicitly developed with education settings in mind, these may also be helpful for parents or other caring adults in situations of influence for children’s peer relations. These modules will be available in French by the end of the year.

Harmful to kids’ well-being

Bullying has several key elements that make it so harmful to kids’ well-being.

Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behaviour that is often repeated over time. These behaviours can be verbal, social, physical, sexual and/or cyber in nature.

It happens in relationships where there is a power imbalance. In other words, the child who bullies holds more power than the child who experiences the bullying. In the case of identity-based bullying, this power imbalance is rooted in the types of power differences we see at a larger societal level.

Bullying behaviours can be verbal, social, physical or sexual, and can take place in person or online.
(Shutterstock)

Social power dynamics, identity-based bullying

It is well-documented that Indigenous youth, Black youth, 2SLGBTQIA+ youth and youth with disabilities experience discrimination in Canada.

But why? Put simply, these experiences of discrimination are rooted in Canada’s settler-colonial history, which institutionalized racialized, class-based and colonial norms and forms of social privilege. These institutionalized forms of privilege resulted in greater political, social and economic power being granted to groups as they more closely aligned with these norms, with the greatest power allotted to those at the top of this “civilized” ideal: people who are white (western European), Christian, wealthy, cisgender, heterosexual, settler men.

Read more:
Rethinking masculinity: Teaching men how to love and be loved

Groups who have been granted unearned power and privilege through these systems work to maintain their power through things like stigma, discrimination and other forms of oppression, while groups marginalized as “other” — less aligned with these dominant norms — continue to experience and hold less power across the socio-political-economic spectrum.

And, youth who hold more than one socially marginalized identity often experience even greater discrimination.

Schools as societal institutions

Since schools are societal institutions, the discrimination and other forms of oppression that are used by dominant groups to maintain power in larger society are mirrored within schools through identity-based bullying.

With identity-based bullying, the power imbalance that is a key feature of bullying behaviour is rooted in these larger social power imbalances.

Because we all hold multiple social identities, a social power perspective also explains how these identities interact. Take, for example, a situation where a white, queer student is bullying a Black, queer student. Although both students are marginalized based on their queer identities, the white student still benefits from the power and privilege afforded to whiteness. So, this situation still reflects a power dynamic based on social identities.

Read more:
Racism contributes to poor attendance of Indigenous students in Alberta schools: New study

Educator interventions

Identity-based bullying is likely an issue in your neighbourhood school. In data we collected from 1,200 youth across Canada in 2023, one in three reported identity-based bullying because of their body weight, race or skin colour, disability, religion, sexual orientation and/or gender identity.

Second, identity-based bullying impacts kids’ experiences at school. For example, a recent study from the United States found that youth who experienced multiple forms of identity-based bullying were the most likely to report avoiding class or activities. This study also found that if these same students felt more supported by adults at their school, they reported less school avoidance. This means caring educators are a protective factor for youth experiencing identity-based bullying.

Our research has proposed ways educators specifically can prevent identity-based bullying in their schools:

1) Educators (or other adults engaged in a school community) could examine their school board policy on bullying, and make sure it specifically mentions the role of social identities. If it doesn’t, educators can work to change it. A great example of naming identities when defining bullying can be seen in the Northwest Territories’ Education Act.

2) Be self-reflective and aware. As a first step, educators can explore their own unconscious biases and reflect on how they may be influencing the classroom climate.

3) Be a positive role model. Students look to adults about how to behave. Celebrate the strengths of all students and role model how to be respectful and inclusive. Also role model how to helpfully intervene when harmful behaviour occurs.

4) Actively create opportunities for positive peer dynamics in the classroom. Be intentional about creating groups to ensure that students who are excluded are given the opportunity to interact and work with students who are kind and prosocial, and who may have similar interests and abilities.

Educators can teach strategies that help all students learn how to be positive allies.
(Shutterstock)

5) Empower all students to intervene safely and effectively. Actively educate students on how to recognize identity-based bullying and provide strategies that will help all students to be positive allies.

6) Work at classroom, school and community levels to create a welcoming, inclusive environment for all children. For educators, this can include things like conducting curriculum review, actively incorporating learning about power, privilege and oppression, creating and supporting clubs like gay-straight alliances and working to create a trauma-informed classroom.

These strategies can be consolidated and deepened through engaging with our new anti-bullying training modules, which focus specifically on identity-based bullying.

In these ways, educators and other caring adults can help kids understand the difference between using power negatively and positively, and encourage its positive use to build inclusive, respectful and safe environments for all.

Deinera Exner-Cortens receives funding from the Public Health Agency of Canada and the Canada Research Chairs program. She is also the director of PREVNet Inc, a registered charitable organization in Canada.

Elizabeth (Liz) Baker receives funding from the Public Health Agency of Canada and Alberta’s Children Services. She is affiliated with PREVNet as Executive Director.

Wendy Craig receives funding from Public Health Agency of Canada. She is the Scientific Co-Director of PREVNet (Promoting Healthy Relationships and Eliminating Violence Network.

– ref. Too many kids face bullying rooted in social power imbalances — and educators can help prevent this – https://theconversation.com/too-many-kids-face-bullying-rooted-in-social-power-imbalances-and-educators-can-help-prevent-this-237613

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: What you need to know about cold and flu season

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Jennifer Guthrie, Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Immunology, Western University

Flu shots are recommended for most Canadians over six months old. (Shutterstock)

As the fall months settle in, Canadians are being urged to take precautions against the upcoming flu season.

Flu season in Canada typically peaks between December and February, but the virus can circulate much earlier. Public health officials are advocating for early vaccination, emphasizing that the annual flu vaccine is the most effective way to protect against infection and reduce the severity of illness.

Clinics across Canada offer flu shots free of charge.

Influenza

Influenza, commonly known as the flu, is a respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses that spread easily from person to person. These viruses mainly affect the nose, throat and lungs. Flu symptoms typically include fever, chills, muscle aches, cough, congestion, runny nose, headaches and fatigue.

Unlike the common cold, which often develops slowly, the flu tends to hit suddenly and can lead to severe complications like pneumonia, bronchitis and even death, particularly in high-risk groups such as young children, seniors over 65, pregnant individuals, and those with chronic conditions like asthma, diabetes or heart disease.

Influenza spreads mainly through droplets when an infected person coughs, sneezes or talks. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people nearby, or they can linger on surfaces where the virus can survive for up to 48 hours. Preventive measures such as handwashing, mask-wearing and staying home when symptomatic help reduce the spread of the virus.

How the flu vaccine works

Each year, flu vaccines are updated to protect against the influenza viruses that research indicates will be most common during the upcoming season. The flu shot contains inactivated or weakened influenza viruses, which cannot cause the flu but help the immune system develop antibodies. These antibodies protect against infection when exposed to live flu viruses.

The vaccine typically takes about two weeks after administration for immunity to build up, which is why public health officials recommend getting vaccinated in the fall, before flu rates start to rise. This gives individuals enough time to develop immunity before influenza becomes more widespread.

Can you get flu and COVID-19 vaccines together?

Each year, flu vaccines are updated to protect against the influenza viruses that research indicates will be most common during the upcoming season.
(Shutterstock)

Public health experts have confirmed that it is safe to receive the flu vaccine and the COVID-19 vaccine at the same time. Doing so can provide protection against both illnesses and reduce the chances of severe complications from either virus. Administering both vaccines during the same visit is a convenient way to ensure you’re protected for the season, especially as COVID-19 continues to circulate alongside influenza.

Benefits of the flu shot

One of the key benefits of flu vaccination is that it significantly reduces the risk of severe illness, hospitalization and death from the flu. While flu vaccines aren’t 100 per cent effective at preventing infection, they greatly lessen the severity of the illness and reduce the spread of the virus in the community. This is especially important for protecting high-risk groups like seniors, children, pregnant people and individuals with chronic health conditions.

Additionally, widespread flu vaccination helps prevent the health-care system from becoming overwhelmed, especially in a year when other respiratory viruses like respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and COVID-19 are still circulating. By reducing the overall number of flu-related hospitalizations, vaccines also free up health-care resources for other urgent needs.

Why get vaccinated every year?

One of the unique challenges of influenza is that the virus mutates constantly. Because of these frequent changes, immunity from last year’s vaccine won’t provide full protection this season. This is why the flu vaccine is updated annually to match the most prevalent strains of the virus.

Even if a person received a flu shot the previous year, it’s important to get vaccinated again to stay protected against new viral strains circulating in the population. Flu vaccines are reformulated each year based on global surveillance data collected by organizations like the World Health Organization (WHO) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Misconceptions about the flu vaccine

Despite clear benefits, misconceptions about the flu shot continue to contribute to low vaccination rates.

Some people believe that the flu vaccine can cause the flu, but this is a myth. The inactivated viruses in the flu vaccine cannot cause illness. After receiving the vaccine, some people may experience mild side-effects like soreness at the injection site or a low-grade fever, but these symptoms are short-lived and far less severe than a full-blown flu infection.

Another misconception is that the flu shot is not necessary for healthy adults. While healthy people may have a lower risk of severe flu complications, they can still spread the virus to more vulnerable individuals, such as young children, seniors or immunocompromised family members. Getting vaccinated helps protect both the individual and the community through herd immunity.

Jennifer Guthrie 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. What you need to know about cold and flu season – https://theconversation.com/what-you-need-to-know-about-cold-and-flu-season-240962

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: GUU employees took part in a webinar on the adaptation of first-year students with disabilities to university conditions

MILES AXLE Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

Source: State University of Management – Official website of the State –

On October 8, 2024, the network of resource educational and methodological centers for the training of people with disabilities and individuals with limited health capabilities (RUMC VO) held a webinar on the topic: “Organizational and methodological aspects of psychological and pedagogical support for first-year students with disabilities and disabilities during their adaptation to the university environment.” The event was attended by more than 380 specialists and representatives of universities from all over the country, including from the State University of Management.

The participants were addressed with a welcoming speech by Deputy Director of the Department of State Youth Policy and Educational Activities of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation Anna Braines and Deputy Director of the Department of Personnel Policy of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation Sergey Antonov.

“It is very important to share already developed practices and scale up positive experiences that will help effectively adapt students with disabilities to the educational environment,” said Anna Brynes.

“Universities are creating all the necessary conditions for the successful education of students with disabilities. But it is important not only to create a barrier-free environment, but also to provide full support at all stages of adaptation,” noted Sergey Antonov.

The key topics of the webinar were:

Psychological, pedagogical and social aspects of adaptation of first-year students with disabilities; Barriers and psychological mechanisms of adaptation; Comprehensive diagnostics of students at the stage of primary adaptation; Mentoring and inclusive volunteering; Social integration of students with disabilities.

Webinar speakers: experts from leading Russian universities, including representatives of the State University of Management, Minin University, Cherepovets State University, Southern Federal University, North Caucasus Federal University and others, shared their experience and methods of supporting students with disabilities.

The webinar ended with an active question and answer session, during which support was given to the proposal to publish a collection of best practices for the adaptation of students with disabilities next year.

Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 10/14/2024

Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

GUU employees took part in a webinar on the adaptation of first-year students with disabilities to university conditions

embedded content

MIL OSI Russia News –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Alice Mak meets Jiangsu delegation

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

Secretary for Home & Youth Affairs Alice Mak met Jiangsu Provincial Committee of the Communist Youth League of China Deputy Secretary and Jiangsu Youth Federation President Xiong Jun today to discuss promoting youth exchanges between Jiangsu and Hong Kong.

Miss Mak welcomed Mr Xiong and his delegation to Hong Kong, pointing out that the Jiangsu Youth Federation is an important partner of the Home & Youth Affairs Bureau.

Both parties signed a memorandum of understanding last October to deepen co-operation in youth development. Miss Mak noted that both parties have achieved significant progress in various areas such as youth exchange and internship, innovation and entrepreneurship over the past year.

The Funding Scheme for Youth Internship in the Mainland and the Funding Scheme for Youth Exchange in the Mainland include various youth exchange and internship projects that cover Jiangsu.

Miss Mak said she looks forward to continued co-operation with Jiangsu on strengthening youth development and exchanges, with a view to providing more opportunities for Hong Kong youth to gain first-hand experience and understand national affairs.

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Foster Portsmouth’s ‘Steve’ the seagull spreads his wings at Southsea seafront

Source: City of Portsmouth

The Foster Portsmouth team and ‘Steve’ the seagull completed a first last week with an exciting tuk tuk tour of Southsea seafront.

The tour, on Thursday 10 October, took in a number of local businesses along Southsea seafront who offered support in raising vital awareness of the need for additional foster carers in the Portsmouth area.

These included the Coffee Cup, BH Live’s Pyramids and Hover Travel at Clarence Esplanade, and Hotwalls Studios and ‘The Canteen‘ in Broad Street.

The eye-catching, all-electric and environmentally friendly rickshaw tuk tuk, which was funded by the Arts Council England as part of its Libraries Improvement Fund, usually tours the city with a small collection of books available to browse and borrow.

Foster Portsmouth was thrilled to be able to utilise the tuk tuk on one of its days off to showcase our mission to find more loving foster homes for the city’s vulnerable children and young people.

Cllr Suzy Horton, Cabinet Member for Children, Families and Education at Portsmouth City Council, said:

“This tour is another great way of utilising our libraries’ tuk tuk. It is vital that we continue to draw attention to the need for additional foster carers in the Portsmouth area, and what better way than ‘Steve’ the seagull taking a tour with the Foster Portsmouth team along our city’s seafront.”

“I’d like to thank the five local businesses who have jumped on board our tuk tuk tour and allowed us to raise the profile of children from our city who find themselves in need of a loving home.”

The tour provided an opportunity for those in and around Southsea to discover more about the rewards fostering can bring, and to get answers to any questions they may have from our experienced team.

We need more foster carers from diverse backgrounds. Anyone aged 21+ with a spare bedroom could foster with Foster Portsmouth regardless of their age, gender, faith, ethnicity, sexuality, marital or work status, or whether they rent or own their own home.

Our foster carers come from Portsmouth itself or the immediate surrounding areas, from Emsworth and Rowlands Castle to Gosport and Fareham, and Waterlooville and Petersfield to Havant and Hayling Island.

Our foster carers come from all walks of life, and they all share the same commitment and motivation to make a positive difference to a child’s life. This could be a short or long-term arrangement for a child, young person or siblings until they’re ready to live independently or are able to go home, support for children seeking asylum or children with a disability, supported lodgings to develop their independent living skills, a parent and baby placement, or respite care.

Foster carers receive excellent, local training and 24/7 support, including through our pioneering Mockingbird Programme support network and mentoring scheme, and competitive fees and allowances.

To enquire about fostering with Foster Portsmouth, or to arrange a 1:1 with one of our experienced team or existing foster carers, please fill in our contact form at http://www.foster.portsmouth.gov.uk/enquire-now, call 0300 1312797 or email info@lafosteringse.org.uk.

MIL OSI United Kingdom –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: EUAA’s first Fundamental Rights Strategy reinforces safeguards for applicants throughout its operations
Source: European Asylum Support Office

The Management Board of the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) has adopted the Agency’s first Fundamental Rights Strategy. The Strategy, proposed by the Agency’s Fundamental Rights Officer, is a feature of the EUAA’s new mandate, and the result of a broad consultation with members of the EUAA Consultative Forum, around 120 civil society organisations, and the UNHCR.

The Fundamental Rights Strategy defines several goals, including promoting and ensuring compliance with fundamental rights in all the Agency’s activities and builds on various measures and procedures, which the EUAA has put in place for its growing operations over the past years.

It aims to redouble guarantees for the dignified and fair treatment of applicants for international protection, in the context of EUAA operations supporting national asylum and reception authorities. The Agency currently has approximately 1500 personnel deployed in 11 Member States.

The publication of this Strategy demonstrates the importance that EUAA places on ensuring that all the rights of applicants for international protection are fully respected throughout our activities. It is the result of months of dedicated work spearheaded by our Fundamental Rights Officer in cooperation with several colleagues from across the Agency and with input from civil society organisations.

Ms Nina GREGORI Executive Director of the EUAA

The adoption of the first Fundamental Rights Strategy marks another significant milestone in the Agency’s unwavering commitment to fundamental rights. I am particularly pleased that this achievement is the result of a large participatory process, thus underscoring the Agency’s commitment to fostering fundamental rights through a shared and inclusive vision

Mr François DELEU Fundamental Rights Officer

The Agency’s approach to developing this first Fundamental Rights Strategy was underpinned by four pillars:
- A participatory process – Benefitting from a wide consultation, including with the European Commission, Member States, the UNHCR and Civil Society; it is the result of a broad, collaborative effort, that will be responsive to concrete needs.
- A focus on operational support – Aiming to equip EUAA Asylum Support Teams, which include national experts, Agency staff and external experts, with a comprehensive set of tools to promote and respect fundamental rights in our operations. It also provides for regular visits to country operations by the Fundamental Rights Officer and his team.
- Mainstreaming of Fundamental Rights – A central focus is promoting and embedding fundamental rights across all areas of the Agency’s work, with particular attention given to the future Monitoring Mechanism for the application of the EU’s asylum rules.
- Strengthening access to accountability – As an important first step in implementation, the Agency has launched dedicated webpages for its Complaints Mechanism. Applicants for international protection are provided with essential information on how to seek recourse if they feel that a member of an EUAA Asylum Support Team has violated their rights.
Background

In line with provisions of Articles 50, 51 and 57 of the EUAA Regulation, the Agency is required to fully adhere to the protection of fundamental rights, as these are developed through Union and relevant international law, such as the Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, in all its activities. Furthermore, the Agency has a duty to adopt and implement a Strategy to that effect, the text of which shall be consulted with representatives of Civil Society Organisations as members of the EUAA Consultative Forum and the UNHCR.
MIL OSI Europe News –
January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI: VERB Chairman & CEO Letter to Stockholders

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. and LAS VEGAS, Oct. 14, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Verb Technology Company, Inc. (Nasdaq: VERB) (“VERB” or the “Company”), the company behind MARKET.live, a leading livestream social shopping platform, and GO FUND YOURSELF!, a TV show and innovative new platform disrupting the crowd funding industry, releases the full unredacted text of VERB Chairman & CEO Rory J. Cutaia’s Letter to Stockholders, distributed via Form 8-K filed on Friday, October 11, 2024.

VERB Stockholders:

I’m Rory J. Cutaia, VERB CEO, and I wanted to take this opportunity to share some information about the Company. Specifically, I want to address the recent reverse stock split, the current share price, the current businesses that comprise the Company, our financial condition, and finally, our future prospects.

But first – here’s the headline – as of today, October 10, 2024, our market cap is approximately $3.8M, and as of our last Form 10-Q filing, we had cash in the bank of approximately $17.2M – and the only debt we have is a ridiculously small, low interest (3.75%), low payment, 30-year term SBA loan of approximately $125K.

So do the math – this means if we traded at nothing more than our net cash value, the stock should be trading at more than $22 per share.

And that assumes we get ZERO value for the underlying businesses – ZERO.

It makes no sense to me that the stock should trade the way it does. I can only assume that people are not reading the filings, analyzing the financials, and recognizing the amazing opportunity that the new VERB represents.

This is where I want to direct readers to the safe harbor provision disclosures at the bottom of this letter as I intend to make forward looking statements in what follows.

We have completely restructured, realigned, reinvented, reconstituted, and reinvigorated our business. We sold an unprofitable business unit that was operating in a challenging business sector. We’ve since restructured VERB as a holding company with three distinct, yet complimentary business units, one of which we have yet to announce. Each is managed by a separate management team, incentivized for success, and all three are currently generating revenue and are growing and growing at a rate that far outpaces the rate of revenue growth we have ever experienced. Third quarter results will be exceedingly better than second quarter results as these business units are now hitting their stride, and based on what we’re seeing right now, fourth quarter will greatly exceed third quarter results.

I believe we’ve placed ourselves atop a wave of three hot high-growth opportunities that are an outgrowth of recent changes in consumer, business, and societal behaviors, as well as recent changes in securities regulations, that are currently experiencing meaningful growth right now and into the foreseeable future.

Our MARKET.live business has evolved to one of a service provider to brands fueled by our blossoming partnership with TikTok. Our revenue model has changed from a percent-of-client-sales model to a fixed-price, contract-based, recurring revenue business. Over the past six months you will have seen fewer MARKET.live businesses stream on MARKET.live – NOT because that business is declining – but because as we expanded our partnership with TikTok we shifted most of our live productions to TikTok Shop. A completely revamped MARKET.live is in the works and nearing release. More on that soon.

Our GO FUND YOURSELF SHOW business vertical, though just-launched, is disrupting the equity crowd-funding sector, offering Reg CF and Reg A issuers an unmatched opportunity to create broad-based awareness for their equity offerings among the investment community. The GO FUND YOURSELF show format also reaches the everyman and everywoman non-accredited investor that can learn about and participate in these types of offerings. Our revenue model includes cash and equity-based fees paid by the issuers for appearances on the show, including fees for show assets we create for the issuers to use for their own marketing purposes. We also take a percentage of sales revenue from those issuers who utilize the Show’s unique shoppable platform to sell their products. We also generate revenue from sponsorships and advertisers.

Our third business vertical is currently operating in stealth mode as we refine the user/subscriber experience. We believe this business represents an explosive revenue growth opportunity in one of the fastest-growing business sectors in the world today and I can’t wait to reveal it to you.

As to the reverse stock split, we did everything reasonably possible – and then some – to avoid it. In the end, it’s not our call – let me repeat that because I don’t think some investors realize that – WE DON’T UNILATERALLY DECIDE TO DO A STOCK SPLIT. IT IS A DECISION MADE BY THE STOCKHOLDERS. Because of the way the stock traded, we received a delisting notice from Nasdaq.

Our obligation as management and as board members is to take the steps required to give our stockholders the option to decide our path forward – delist from Nasdaq and potentially list on the OTC, or reverse split the shares and retain our Nasdaq listing. Neither management, nor our Board is able to implement a reverse stock split unless the stockholders decide to do so. Our job was to provide every stockholder with all the information needed to make that decision for themselves. If we had not given stockholders the option to choose, and if we had unilaterally decided NOT to do a reverse stock split, and we allowed VERB to be delisted – we would have violated our obligations to all stockholders and we would have been held accountable.

On September 26, 2024, a significant majority of the stockholders that cast a vote, decided to do a reverse stock split in order to stay listed on Nasdaq. It was then our job to carry out that decision, which we’ve done. And now we look forward to the value creation opportunities that lay before us.

We are extremely well capitalized – on even the most modest revenue assumptions, we have years of cash runway.

We have virtually no debt to service.

We have a super clean cap table – all of the warrants have either expired or are so far out of the money as to be irrelevant.

There’s no hedge fund out there with cheap VERB shares they plan to short against warrants that they picked up for little or no consideration through a bad financing – as they simply don’t exist.

We have an unbelievably small, tight float – only 763,230 shares as of October 9, 2024.

We have three revenue generating, high-performing/growing business units.

And once again – assuming all three of these businesses are worth zero – no value whatsoever – and we trade on nothing more than LIQUIDATION VALUE CASH IN THE BANK – we should be trading at more than $22 per share right now.

Think about that.

And think about this – as and when we see the stock trading in the range we believe it should – I will absolutely advocate for, and petition our Board to consider a FORWARD stock split. My interests are completely – 100% aligned with those of every stockholder – as are the interests of our management team and our Board.

We win together and now is our time.

Best,

Rory

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This communication contains “forward-looking statements” as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and include, without limitation, any statement that may predict, forecast, indicate or imply future results, performance, or achievements. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of our business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. Our actual results and financial condition may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others, those identified in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including the risk factors included in our annual report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on April 1, 2024. Any forward-looking statement made by us herein is based only on information currently available to us and speaks only as of the date on which it is made. We undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

About VERB Technology Company

Verb Technology Company, Inc. (NASDAQ: VERB), is the innovative force behind interactive video-based social commerce. The Company’s MARKET.live platform is a multi-vendor, livestream social shopping destination at the forefront of the convergence of ecommerce and entertainment, where brands, retailers, creators, and influencers engage their customers, clients, fans, and followers across multiple social media channels simultaneously. GO FUND YOURSELF!, is a revolutionary interactive social crowd funding platform for public and private companies seeking broad-based exposure across social media channels for their crowd-funded Regulation CF and Regulation A offerings. The platform combines a ground-breaking interactive TV show with MARKET.live’s back-end capabilities allowing viewers to tap on their screen to facilitate an investment, in real time, as they watch companies presenting before the show’s panel of “Titans”. Presenting companies that sell consumer products are able to offer their products directly to viewers during the show in real time through shoppable onscreen icons. The Company is headquartered in Las Vegas, NV and operates full-service production and creator studios in Los Alamitos, California and Philadelphia, PA.

Investor Relations:
investors@verb.tech

Media Contact:
info@verb.tech

The MIL Network –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: Representatives of the State University of Management performed in the final of the All-Russian competition “Professional Tomorrow”

MILES AXLE Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

Source: State University of Management – Official website of the State –

Representatives of the State University of Management took part in the final of the All-Russian network competition of student projects “Professional Tomorrow” with the participation of students with disabilities, which was held at the Novosibirsk State Technical University NETI.

In 2024, the competition had two stages: correspondence and in-person. In total, students from 178 Russian universities from 71 regions took part, 115 students made it to the in-person stage.

The State University of Management was among the universities that submitted the largest number of applications.

33 students, including those with disabilities and health limitations, took part in the correspondence stage of the Competition from the RUC GUU and its partner universities in the assigned territories. Three projects became Laureates of the Competition and passed to the face-to-face stage.

As part of the three-day program, the Institute of Social Technologies of NSTU NETI held defenses of competition works in six nominations: “Professionally Oriented Project”, “Scientific Article”, “Useful Invention”, “Professional Startup”, “Social Advertising and Inclusive Blogging”, and “Social Project”.

The contestants were also offered a cultural, leisure and educational program, including field trips around Novosibirsk, master classes and motivational lectures.

Tatyana Beregovskaya, coordinator of the RUC GUU, took part in the business program dedicated to the development of higher inclusive education.

According to the results of the final, 4th year student of the Institute of Personnel Management, Social and Business Communications of the State University of Management Almira Valitova took 3rd place in the nomination “Professional Startup”, presenting a project aimed at creating a career guidance chatbot for schoolchildren with disabilities.

Let us recall that the inclusive student competition has been held since 2018 by a network of resource educational and methodological centers for training people with disabilities and individuals with limited health capabilities together with the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation.

Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 10/14/2024

Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

Representatives of the State University of Management performed in the final of the All-Russian competition “Professional Tomorrow”

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MIL OSI Russia News –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Yellowknife — Four arrested after Yellowknife RCMP respond to weekend home invasion
Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police

On August 24^th, 2024 Yellowknife RCMP received a complaint that a group of masked individuals was attempting to gain entry to an occupied residence in Yellowknife.

Officers attended the location and arrested 4 suspects after a brief altercation. A hand gun was subsequently located and seized after the arrests.

Yellowknife RCMP’s General Investigation Unit has been engaged and the investigation is continuing.

Two arrested subjects are currently facing charges as a result of the incident.

28-year-old Suleiman Abdow of Edmonton has been charged with:
- Resisting/obstructing a peace officer, contrary to section 129(a) of the Criminal Code
· Fail to comply with release order conditions (3 counts), contrary to section 145(5)(a) of the Criminal Code

· Mischief under $5000, contrary to section 430(4) of the Criminal Code

· Fail to comply with probation order conditions, contrary to section 733.1(1) of the Criminal Code

· Disguised with intent to commit an offence, contrary to section 351(2) of the Criminal Code

32-year-old Joshua Desjarlais of Yellowknife has been charged with:
- Resisting/obstructing a peace officer (2 counts), contrary to section 129(a) of the Criminal Code
- Fail to comply with release order conditions, contrary to section 145(5)(a) of the Criminal Code
- Mischief over $5000, contrary to section 430(3) of the Criminal Code
· Disguised with intent to commit an offence, contrary to section 351(2) of the Criminal Code

Abdow and Desjarlais both appeared before a Justice of the Peace and were remanded into custody.

The remaining two suspects were released by police.

Anyone who has information about this incident is asked to contact the Yellowknife RCMP at 669-1111 or Crime Stoppers at http://www.p3tips.com. In the event of an emergency call, 911.

MIL Security OSI –
January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: How to Apply for FEMA Assistance in Florida After Hurricane Milton
Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

Headline: How to Apply for FEMA Assistance in Florida After Hurricane Milton

How to Apply for FEMA Assistance in Florida After Hurricane Milton
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Homeowners and renters in 34 Florida counties and the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida who had uninsured or underinsured damage or losses caused by Hurricane Milton may now apply for FEMA disaster assistance.

FEMA may be able to help with serious needs, displacement, temporary lodging, basic home repair costs, personal property loss or other disaster-caused needs. Homeowners and renters in Brevard, Charlotte, Citrus, Clay, Collier, DeSoto, Duval, Flagler, Glades, Hardee, Hendry, Hernando, Highlands, Hillsborough, Indian River, Lake, Lee, Manatee, Marion, Martin, Okeechobee, Orange, Osceola, Palm Beach, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, Putnam, Sarasota, Seminole, St. Johns, St. Lucie, Sumter and Volusia counties and the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida can apply.

How to Apply

If you applied to FEMA after Hurricanes Debby or Helene and have additional damage from Hurricane Milton, you will need to apply separately for Milton and provide the dates of your most recent damage. Apply online at DisasterAssistance.gov. You can also apply using the FEMA mobile app or by calling FEMA’s helpline toll-free at 800-621-3362. Lines are open every day and help is available in most languages. If you use a relay service, captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA your number for that service. To view an accessible video on how to apply visit Three Ways to Apply for FEMA Disaster Assistance – YouTube.

FEMA’s disaster assistance offers new benefits that provide flexible funding directly to survivors. In addition, a simplified process and expanded eligibility allows Floridians access to a wider range of assistance and funds for serious needs.

What You’ll Need When You Apply
- A current phone number where you can be contacted.
- Your address at the time of the disaster and the address where you are now staying.
- Your Social Security number.
- A general list of damage and losses.
- Banking information if you choose direct deposit.
- If insured, the policy number or the agent and/or the company name.
If you have homeowners, renters or flood insurance, file a claim as soon as possible. FEMA cannot duplicate benefits for losses covered by insurance. If your policy does not cover all your disaster expenses, you may be eligible for federal assistance.

If you applied for assistance for multiple disasters, please note that each event may require a separate home inspection. During these inspections, the inspector will document damage and causes individually.

FEMA is contacting registered applicants, including those affected by multiple disasters, to help them navigate the process more effectively. These calls may come from unfamiliar area codes or phone numbers. If you are concerned about verifying that FEMA is trying to reach you, call 800-621-3362. FEMA representatives never charge applicants for disaster assistance, FEMA services are free.

As part of the Major Disaster Declaration, President Biden also authorized FEMA Public Assistance for debris removal and emergency protective measures, including Direct Federal Assistance, for 34 counties and the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, and the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program statewide.

For the latest information about Florida’s recovery, visit fema.gov/disaster/4834. Follow FEMA on X at x.com/femaregion4 or on Facebook at facebook.com/fema.
kirsten.chambers
Mon, 10/14/2024 – 13:20

MIL OSI USA News –
January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Be Alert to Fraud After Florida Hurricanes

Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

Headline: Be Alert to Fraud After Florida Hurricanes

Be Alert to Fraud After Florida Hurricanes

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.- Floridians should be aware that con artists and criminals may try to obtain money or steal personal information through fraud or identity theft after Hurricanes Milton, Helene and Debby. In some cases, thieves try to apply for FEMA assistance using names, addresses and Social Security numbers they have stolen from people affected by a disaster.

If a FEMA inspector comes to your home and you did not submit a FEMA application, your information may have been used without your knowledge to create a FEMA application. If this happens, please inform the inspector that you did not apply for FEMA assistance so they can submit a request to stop further processing of the application.

If you did not apply for assistance but receive a letter from FEMA, please call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362. The helpline will submit a request to stop further processing of that application.

If you do want to apply for FEMA assistance after stopping an application made in your name without your knowledge, the helpline will assist you in creating a new application.

Scams

FEMA Disaster Survivor Assistance (DSA) crews, housing inspectors and other officials will be working in areas impacted by the recent hurricanes. They carry official photo identification. FEMA representatives never charge applicants for disaster assistance, inspections or help in filling out applications. Their services are free.

Don’t give your banking information to a person claiming to be a FEMA housing inspector. FEMA inspectors are never authorized to collect your personal financial information.

If you believe you are the victim of a scam, report it immediately to your local police or sheriff’s department or contact Florida’s Office of the Attorney General by calling 866-9-NO-SCAM (866-966-7226) or visit myfloridalegal.com. To file a fraud complaint, go online to Scam Report (myfloridalegal.com).

If you have knowledge of fraud, waste or abuse, you can report these tips – 24 hours a day, seven days a week – to the FEMA Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721. You can also email StopFEMAFraud@fema.dhs.gov to report a tip.

kirsten.chambers
Mon, 10/14/2024 – 13:38

MIL OSI USA News –

January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: AFRICA/SUDAN – Fighting continues in Khartoum: 23 civilians killed in attack on a market

Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

Monday, 14 October 2024 wars

Khartoum (Agenzia Fides) – Fighting continues in the Sudanese capital Khartoum, where the Sudanese armed forces are trying to expel the militiamen of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) from their positions. Civilians are particularly affected, affected by bombings such as the one carried out on Sunday 13 October in a market south of Khartoum, which killed at least 23 people and injured 40. The massacre is attributed to a bombing by army aircraft, which, together with the air force, is trying to prevail over the RSF forces entrenched in some well-defended strongholds in the capital. The fact that the army has serious intentions to attack these positions is shown by the photos published by the “Sudan Tribune” of the army’s armored trucks, which are built like veritable mobile mini-fortresses to fight snipers hiding on roofs. The armored vehicles are equipped with 360-degree cameras and are intended to protect the advancing regular soldiers from one of the greatest dangers in urban combat: snipers with a sniper rifle or an anti-tank rocket launcher. The other major danger is mines and homemade booby traps. The forgotten war in Sudan is not a religious war, because most of the fighters share the Muslim faith, but there are incidents in which Christian minorities are involved. This happened in early October, when a group of believers belonging to the “Sudan Christian Curch Al Iziba” were captured by members of the army’s military intelligence service in northern Khartoum. According to Osama Saeed Musa Koudi, chairman of the Sudanese Christian Youth Union, quoted by the online daily Altaghyeer, those arrested were arrested in groups between October 2 and 7, including 16 men, 25 women and 54 children. They all come from the Nuba Mountains and are accused of being supporters of the Rapid Support Forces simply because they stayed in the RSF-occupied areas of Khartoum because they had no way to go elsewhere. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 14/10/2024)
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January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: EUROPE/ITALY – International Conference: Marco Polo and the Franciscans in the East

Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

Tolentino (Agenzia Fides) – “In the footsteps of Tommaso da Tolentino and Father Matteo Ricci” is the title of the opening session of the international conference “Travel Notes: Marco Polo and the Franciscans in the East in the 13th and 14th centuries”, which will take place next Friday and Saturday in the Italian city of Tolentino. The initiative, which is part of the official program of the celebrations for the 700th anniversary of Marco Polo’s death, is being scientifically supported by the Pontifical “Antonianum” University in Rome, the University “Ca’ Foscari” in Venice and the University of Macerata. With the contributions of renowned speakers from Italian and foreign universities, the conference aims to highlight travel as a form of exchange and encounter between different cultures and religions in dialogue with each other.Many cities in the Marche region of Italy have maintained relations with Venice for centuries, especially across the Adriatic: merchants and mendicants, such as the Franciscan Tommaso da Tolentino, set out in 1290 to reach first Armenia, then Persia, India and perhaps China, almost always travelling on Venetian merchant ships. On Friday afternoon, Gianni Valente, Director of Fides, will give a conference on the “Primum Concilium Sinense” that took place in Shanghai 100 years ago, between May and June 1924, to kick off the work in the church of San Catervo, which will be introduced by greetings from the Bishop of Macerata, Nazzareno Marconi, and Father Simone Giampieri, Provincial of the Franciscans. The documents of this Council – says the Director of Fides – express “the urgency of freeing the Catholic presence and works in China from everything that could make the Church appear as a para-colonial entity enslaved by foreign potentates”.On Saturday 19 October, the Nicola Vaccaj Theatre will host a three-day conference, which will begin with the greetings of the civil and religious authorities, followed by a long day of work on the theme that gives the entire conference its title. The chairman of the “Committee for the celebrations in memory of Blessed Tommaso da Tolentino”, the architect Franco Casadidio, stresses: “The aim of the conference is to enhance the centenary by highlighting the historical figure of Marco Polo from the perspective of the journeys he undertook, which link him to the routes of some important Franciscan figures who crossed Sino-Mongolian Asia and India for reasons related to evangelization and for purely diplomatic reasons. These itineraries represent an inexhaustible source of information at a religious, anthropological, geopolitical and cultural-historical level, and the choice of the title is intended to highlight the study of the typology of diary-chronicle sources, of which “Il Milione” (by Marco Polo) is an excellent example. Another section is dedicated to the travels of other non-Franciscan figures, such as monks and travelers, or to local chronicles of journeys and itineraries in this particular historical period”. (EG) (Agenzia Fides, 14/10/2024)

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January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: ASIA/SOUTH KOREA – “Korea Mission Society” celebrates its 50th anniversary: “A community on the move”

Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

Monday, 14 October 2024

Korea Mission Society

Seoul (Agenzia Fides) – The spirit is one of going out, of communicating the Gospel “ad gentes”. Fifty years after its foundation, the “Korea Mission Society” (KMS) continues to practice this missionary spirit and reaffirms its commitment to sending missionaries, priests, religious and lay people to countries and particular Churches that need support for the apostolate. Currently, 85 missionaries have been sent outside Korea to nine countries, including Papua New Guinea, Taiwan and Hong Kong, as well as others in Africa and America. “We go where we are needed,” explained Father Choi Kang, Vice President of the Korea Mission Society, describing the activities and reflections that the 50th anniversary of the founding of the missionary community founded in 1975 will bring.The spirit is that of the origins, the spirit of a “community on the move,” explained Father Choi Kang, announcing a symposium to be held on October 19 at the Catholic University of Korea.”We will study, with academic knowledge, the meaning and influence that this missionary impulse has had on the Korean Church over the past 50 years, with reports from each diocese,” he stresses. On February 26, 2025, the exact date of the founding anniversary, a commemorative Mass will be held at Myeongdong Cathedral in Seoul, while seminars and meetings are planned for missionaries, but also for all believers interested in delving into the experience of the first proclamation and the “missio ad gentes.” “In this sense,” the priest stressed, “the agreement signed with Catholic Peace Broadcasting to produce a series of multimedia services and documentaries that can illustrate the history and missionary commitment of Korean Catholics over the past 50 years, but also in the past, will be useful.” Father Doo-young Jeong, President of the KMS, added: “I hope that this anniversary can be an opportunity for the Korean Church to deepen its essence as a ‘sharing Church’ and to extend the mission to the whole world.” An important aspect today are the lay missionaries who are associate members of the Society: their “rich experience” is a great help to the mission of the Korean Church, it is said. The Korea Mission Society (KMS) was founded in 1975 by the Bishop Emeritus of Busan, Bishop John A. Choi Jae-seon, and recognized by the Korean Bishops’ Conference. Founded about 22 years after the end of the Korean War (1953), the KMS has played a key role in making the Korean Church a “giving Church,” it says. The Society currently has 87 members, including missionary priests and lay people, and is now a diocesan Society of Apostolic Life under the responsibility of the Archdiocese of Seoul. The Society also manages a “Mission School” open to all those interested in missionary work in Korea, to prepare the faithful for pastoral work abroad. It is “open to the whole world, wherever there is a need for missionaries,” emphasizes the Korea Mission Society, with a particular focus on Asia. (PA) (Agenzia Fides, 14/10/2024)
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January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: AFRICA/GHANA – “Environmental Prayer Walk”: peaceful rally against illegal gold mining

Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

Accra (Agenzia Fides) – On October 11, the Archdiocese of Accra invited people to the “Environmental Prayer Walk”, which took place peacefully and without incidents, with the participation of thousands of people. The rally was primarily intended to denounce the phenomenon of illegal gold mining “galamsey” (see Fides, 9/10/2024).”It is the fight of all of us. Policy makers, those who are involved in the business, our traditional leaders and indeed every Ghanaian,” said Father Micheal Kobina Ackon Quaicoe, Executive Director of the “Governance, Justice and Peace Directorate” of the Ghanaian Bishops’ Conference. The march ended with the reading of a petition in front of the Presidential Palace calling for concrete measures to stop illegal and unregulated mining of gold and other minerals, which causes serious environmental damage and incurs high human costs for the population. In addition to the Catholics, other groups such as “FixTheCountry” and “Democracy Hub” joined the initiative, expressing their support for environmental protection, calling for an end to illegal gold mining and the protection of the country’s water resources. These actions are all the more urgent because illegal gold mining has already caused an environmental disaster. The environmental crisis has given rise to calls for drastic measures, including the imposition of a state of emergency in mining areas and the cancellation of mining licenses. This comes at a time when Ghana, struggling with an economic crisis, is preparing to resume foreign debt repayments in two weeks. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 14/10/2024)
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January 23, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: AMERICA/HONDURAS – One month after the murder of pastoral worker Juan Antonio López: Three suspects arrested in Honduras

Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

Monday, 14 October 2024

by Laura Gomez RuizTocoa (Agenzia Fides) – On September 14, Juan Antonio López (46), married and father of two daughters, coordinator of social pastoral care in the diocese of Trujillo and founding member of the Pastoral Care for Integral Ecology in Honduras, was shot dead in his car after attending a Eucharistic celebration in the Fabio Ochoa colony in the municipality of Tocoa, a city where he was also a councilor, about 300 kilometers from Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras.López was known for his commitment to social justice and drew strength and courage from the source of his Christian faith. As the person in charge of preaching the Word of God in his parish and a member of the Ecclesial Ecological Network of Mesoamerica (REMAM), his special vocation also led him to work to protect natural resources for the benefit of the most vulnerable in his country. A commitment that brought him into conflict with the interests of the mining companies operating in Honduras.According to witnesses, armed men on motorcycles approached him as he was leaving the church where he had attended the Eucharist that evening and shot him. López died instantly. He had recently denounced the pollution of the Guapinol and San Pedro rivers, which are threatened by illegal mining projects that endanger the water resources on which local communities depend. According to investigators, this may have been the motive for his murder.Local media reported that the crime occurred just hours after a press conference in which López, along with other community leaders, denounced alleged links between members of the Tocoa municipal government and organized crime.The National Police, meanwhile, arrested several suspects, and last Wednesday a court in San Pedro Sula issued an indictment and remanded three alleged perpetrators in custody. The evidence presented included images from security cameras in which the defendants were identified, as well as testimony from protected persons. In addition, the geolocation of the defendants’ phones confirms the suspicion that they had been following the victim for days and planned the murder. The lawyer for Juan López’s family asked prison authorities to guarantee the safety of the defendants in the hope that they would reveal the names of those behind the crime.”Juan’s commitment to ecology was not ideological, but the fruit of his faith,” said the bishop of the diocese of Trujillo, Jenry Ruiz. In a message published after the murder, Ruiz wrote: “For him, social, environmental and political commitment was not a matter of ideology, but an expression of his Christianity. He was a true servant of God and a tireless defender of his people.”López lived with the conviction that faith must be translated into concrete actions in favor of the weakest. His devotion to Saint Oscar Romero and his work in grassroots ecclesial communities drove him to work for social justice and dedicate his life to protecting Honduras’ rural communities and natural resources.”He knew that his commitment to protecting water and rivers put him in danger,” said a relative of the victim, recalling that he had previously received threats. Since 2023, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) had taken precautionary measures to protect him because he had received death threats for his work in defense of the environment.López’s murder is part of a growing repression against human rights activists in Honduras. “This crime is not an isolated case,” said REMAM and the “Laudato Sì” movement in a joint statement: “He is not just another name in the statistics; he was a child of God, a close and kind brother. We honor his testimony of faith and his work for a better common home,” added the Archbishop of Yucatán and President of REMAM, Gustavo Rodríguez Vega.Already in January 2022, there was a similar murder in Honduras: the pastoralworker Pablo Isabel Hernández (see Fides, 12/1/2022), was killed in the parish of San Marcos de Caiquín, in the department of Lempira, on his way to a celebration of the Word of God. In the same year, on March 2, the Catholic priest Enrique Vásquez was also killed on his way to his parents. His body was found north of San Pedro Sula, in Santa Cruz de Yojoa, with multiple gunshot wounds (see Fides, 4/3/2022).The Bishops’ Conference of Honduras, meanwhile, called on the authorities to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation. “We are deeply saddened,” the statement said the Bishops’ Conference, which asks the faithful to pray for López, “a true disciple and missionary”. “Juan Antonio López was a man committed to the truth, honest and courageous, who demonstrated his faith through his concrete actions,” say the bishops.Pope Francis, after the Angelus prayer, on Sunday 22 September, recalled the importance of protecting those who work for the common good. “I join in the grief of this local Church and in the condemnation of all forms of violence,” said the Pope, “I am close to all those who see their basic rights trampled on, as well as to those who work for the common good and in this way respond to the cry of the poor and the earth”, referring to the sad fate of Juan Antonio López. (Agenzia Fides, 14/10/2024)
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MIL OSI Europe News –

January 23, 2025