FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Press Availability After P5+1 Talks
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Geneva, Switzerland
November 24, 2013
SECRETARY KERRY: Well, good very early morning to all of you. It’s been a long day and a long night, and I’m delighted to be here to share some thoughts with you about the recent negotiations. I particularly want to thank the Swiss Government. I want to thank the United Nations. It’s been a (inaudible) and we’re honored to be here, even at this very early hour of the morning. I particularly want to thank my colleagues from the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Russia, China, and especially Lady Cathy Ashton, who is not only a good friend but a persistent and dogged negotiator and somebody who’s been staying at this for a long period of time. And we’re very grateful for her stewardship of these negotiations.
And if I can take a moment, I really want to thank the team from the United States. There have been a great many people involved in this effort for a long period of time now, both here in Switzerland with us now, but also back in the United States, and they know who they are. But I will single out our Under Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, who has been a dogged, unbelievably patient hand and a skillful hand, and she has helped through long and arduous months – years of stewardship of our part of this within the P5+1, and I’m very grateful to her for those long efforts and all of her team.
At the United Nations General Assembly in September, President Obama asked me and our team to work with our partners in order to pursue a negotiated settlement or solution with respect to the international community’s concerns about Iran’s nuclear program. Last month, the P5+1 entered into a more accelerated negotiation after a number of years of meetings in various parts of the world and efforts to engage Iran in serious negotiations. The purpose of this is very simple: to require Iran to prove the peaceful nature of its nuclear program and to ensure that it cannot acquire a nuclear weapon. And the reason for this is very clear. The United Nations Security Council found that they were not in compliance with the NPT or other IAEA and other standards. And obviously, activities such as a secret, multi-centrifuge mountain hideaway, which was being used for enrichment, raised many people’s questions, which is why ultimately sanctions were put in place.
Today, we are taking a serious step toward answering all of those important questions that have been raised through the United Nations Security Council, through the IAEA, and by individual countries. And we are taking those steps with an agreement that impedes the progress in a very dramatic way of Iran’s principal enrichment facilities and parts of its program, and ensures they cannot advance in a way that will threaten our friends in the region, threaten other countries, threaten the world. The fact is that if this step – first step – leads to what is our ultimate goal, which is a comprehensive agreement that will make the world safer. This first step, I want to emphasize, actually rolls back the program from where it is today, enlarges the breakout time, which would not have occurred unless this agreement existed. It will make our partners in the region safer. It will make our ally Israel safer. This has been a difficult and a prolonged process. It’s been difficult for us, and it’s been difficult for our allies, and it’s obviously been difficult for the Government of Iran. The next phase, let me be clear, will be even more difficult, and we need to be honest about it. But it will also be even more consequential.
And while we obviously have profound differences with Iran yet to be resolved, the fact is that this agreement could not have been reached without the decision of the Iranian Government to come to the table and negotiate. And I want to say tonight that Foreign Minister Zarif worked hard, deliberated hard, and we are obviously, we believe, better that the decision was made to come here than not to, and to work hard to reach an agreement. And we thank the Foreign Minister for those efforts.
Together now, we need to set about the critical task of proving to the world what Iran has said many times – that its program is in fact peaceful. Now, with this first step, we have created the time and the space in order to be able to pursue a comprehensive agreement that would finish the work that President Obama began on the very first day in office, and that is to ensure that Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon. President Obama worked intensively and his Administration worked intensively before I even came in; when I was in the Congress and voted for sanctions, the President worked in order to put in place a significant sanctions regime, an unprecedented regime. And he worked with countries around the world in order to ensure broad participation and support for these sanctions. That has been essential to the success of these sanctions. And we believe that it is the sanctions that have brought us to this negotiation and ultimately to the more significant negotiation to follow for a comprehensive agreement.
Make no mistakes, and I ask you, don’t interpret that the sanctions were an end unto themselves. They weren’t. The goal of the sanctions was always to have a negotiation. And that is precisely what is now taking place, and that negotiation’s goal is to secure a strong and verifiable agreement that guarantees the peacefulness of Iran’s nuclear program. For more than 40 years, the international community has been united in its willingness to negotiate in good faith. And we have been particularly crystal clear that we will do whatever is necessary in order to prevent Iran from having a nuclear weapon. We have also said that we prefer a peaceful solution, a peaceful path for Iran to respond to the international community’s concerns. And as a result of those efforts, we took the first step today to move down that path.
The measures that we have committed to will remain in place for six months, and they will address the most urgent concerns about Iran’s nuclear program. Since there have been many premature and even misleading reports, I want to clearly outline what this first step entails. First, it locks the most critical components of a nuclear program into place and impedes progress in those critical components in a way that actually rolls back the stockpile of enriched uranium and widens the length of time possible for breakout. That makes people safer. With daily access – we will gain daily access to key facilities. And that will enable us to determine more quickly and with greater certainty than ever before that Iran is complying. Here’s how we do that: Iran has agreed to suspend all enrichment of uranium above 5 percent. Iran has agreed to dilute or convert its entire stockpile of 20 percent enriched uranium.
So let me make clear what that means. That means that whereas Iran today has about 200 kilograms of 20 percent enriched uranium, they could readily be enriched towards a nuclear weapon. In six months, Iran will have zero – zero. Iran will not increase its stockpile of 3.5 percent lower-enriched uranium over the next six months, and it will not construct additional enrichment facilities. Iran will not manufacture centrifuges beyond those that are broken and must be replaced. Very importantly, Iran will not commission or fuel the Arak reactor – Arak, A-r-a-k, reactor – an unfinished facility, that if it became operational would provide Iran with an alternative plutonium path to a nuclear weapon.
And to ensure that these commitments are met, Iran has agreed to submit its program to unprecedented monitoring. For the international community, this first step will provide the most far-reaching insight and view of Iran’s nuclear program that the international community has ever had. This first step – let me be clear. This first step does not say that Iran has a right to enrichment. No matter what interpretive comments are made, it is not in this document. There is no right to enrich within the four corners of the NPT. And this document does not do that. Rather, the scope and role of Iran’s enrichment, as is set forth in the language within this document, says that Iran’s peaceful nuclear program is subject to a negotiation and to mutual agreement. And it can only be by mutual agreement that enrichment might or might not be able to be decided on in the course of negotiations.
So what is on the other side of the ledger here? Again, there have been a number of premature reports and reactions, so I want to be clear about what this step provides, this first step, and what it doesn’t provide. In return for the significant steps that Iran will take that I just listed – and there are more, incidentally, than I just listed; those are the principal – the international community will provide Iran with relief that is limited and, perhaps most importantly, reversible. The main elements of this relief would hold Iran’s oil sales steady and permit it to repatriate $4.2 billion from those sales. And that would otherwise be destined for an overseas account restricted by our sanctions. In addition, we will suspend certain sanctions on imports of gold and precious metals, Iran’s auto sector, and Iran’s petrochemical exports, potentially – potentially – providing Iran with about $1.5 billion in additional export revenues.
For the benefit of the Iranian people, we will also facilitate humanitarian transactions that are already allowed by U.S. law. No U.S. law will be changed. Nothing will have to be different. In fact, the sanctions laws specifically exempt humanitarian assistance. So this channel will not provide Iran any new source of funds, but we will help them in order to try to provide the people of Iran with additional assistance. It simply improves access to goods that were never intended to be denied to the Iranian people.
Now, I want to emphasize the core sanctions architecture that President Obama, together with allies and friends around the world, have put together, that core architecture remains firmly in place through these six months, including with respect to oil and financial services. To put this number in perspective, during this six-month phase, the oil sanctions that will remain in place will continue to cause over 25 billion in lost revenues to Iran, or over $4 billion a month. That is compared to what Iran earned before this took effect – the sanctions. And while Iran will get access to the 4.2 billion that I talked about of the restricted oil revenues, 14 to 16 billion of its sales during this period will be locked up and out of reach.
Together with our partners, we are committed to maintaining our commitment to vigorously enforcing the vast majority of the sanctions that are currently in place. Again, let me repeat: This is only the first step. But it is a first step that guarantees while you take the second step and move towards a comprehensive agreement, Iran’s fundamentals of its program are not able to progress – Fordow, Natanz, Arak, and other centrifuge and other things that matter. So that is a critical first step.
And I will say to all of you that as we conclude this first round of negotiation, with the beginning of the possibility of a much broader accomplishment down the road, it is our responsibility to be as firmly committed to diplomacy and as relentless in our resolve over the years as we have been to bring the concerted pressure that brought us to this moment. For the Iranian Government, it’s their responsibility to recognize that this first phase is a very simple test. Many times, Iran, I think you heard the Foreign Minister here tonight reiterate, that they have a peaceful program and that’s their only intention. Folks, it is not hard to prove peaceful intent if that’s what you want to do. We are anxious to try to make certain that this deal ultimately will do exactly that – prove it.
And I will just say finally, I know that there are those who will assert that this deal is imperfect. Well, they too bear a responsibility, and that is to tell people what the better alternative is. Some might say we should simply continue to increase pressure – just turn up the screws, continue to put sanctions on, and somehow that’s going to push Iran towards capitulation or collapse. Not by any interpretation that we have from all the experts and all of the input that we have, and from all of the countries – the P5+1 – that took place in this today, none of them believe that would be the outcome.
Instead, we believe that while we are engaged in that effort, Iran’s program would actually march forward. It would gain. And while it gains, it would become more dangerous in the region and countries like Israel and the Emirates, other people in the region who are threatened, would in fact be more threatened.
So we believe that you would wind up with an Iran with bigger stockpiles, with more advanced centrifuges and more progress at pursuing a plutonium track. And President Obama believes that doesn’t benefit anybody.
In 1973 – 19 – excuse me, in 2003, when the Iranians made an offer to the former Administration with respect to their nuclear program, there were 164 centrifuges. That offer was not taken. Subsequently, sanctions came in, and today there are 19,000 centrifuges and growing. So people have a responsibility to make a judgment about this choice. And I am comfortable, as is President Obama, that we have made the right choice for how you proceed to get a complete agreement.
Moreover, making sanctions the sum total of our policy will not strengthen the international coalition that we have built in order to bring Iran to the negotiating table. Instead, it would actually weaken that coalition, and many people believe that to merely continue at a time where Iran says, “We’re prepared to negotiate,” would in fact break up the current sanctions regime. Others argue for military action as a first resort. Well, President Obama and I do not share a belief that war is a permanent solution, and it should never be the first option. Instead, that particular option involves enormous risks in many different ways, and as President Obama has often said, while that option remains available to us – and the President will not take it off the table – he believes that that can only be entertained after we have made every effort to resolve the dispute through diplomacy, barring some immediate emergency that requires a different response.
So I close by saying to all of you that the singular objective that brought us to Geneva remains our singular objective as we leave Geneva, and that is to ensure that Iran does not acquire a nuclear weapon. In that singular object, we are resolute. Foreign Minister Zarif emphasized that they don’t intent to do this, and the Supreme Leader has indicated there is a fatwa, which forbids them to do this. We want to see the process put in place by which all of that is proven, not through words but with actions. And we are prepared to work in good faith, with mutual respect, to work in a way as we did in the last days – cordially, with an atmosphere that was respectful, even as it was tough, as we move towards the process of making certain that this threat will be eliminated. In that singular object, we are absolutely resolute, and in that mission, we are absolutely committed, and in that endeavor, we will do everything in our power to be able to succeed.
On that note, I’m happy to answer a couple of questions.
MODERATOR: The first question will be from Anne Gearan of The Washington Post.
SECRETARY KERRY: Anne, hi.
QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, you started with your – about (inaudible) who want this on Iran, and you’re opposed for what it will do on a sort of a technical level. I would hope that you might just take a moment and reflect on what this agreement may mean or signify longer term or in a larger sense. And this is – you just came through several months that represent the first time that a diplomatic level from the United States and one from Iran sat together and talked about anything, much less something of this moment. What is your view and what is your hope for the next steps as far as the U.S. relationship with Iran will be?
SECRETARY KERRY: Well, I – the – obviously it is not insignificant, nor does it just fly be me, nor the President, who took great risks in committing on this and making certain that we would proceed forward with this endeavor. It’s no small thing, I think, that since 1979, for about 34 years, Iran and the United States have not been able to talk to each other. And there’s been enormous buildup of suspicion and an enormous buildup of animosity, and there have been moments here and there where there might have been some kind of minor assistance one way or the other. For instance, when we went into Afghanistan in 2001, there actually was some assistance back home (inaudible) from Iran. So there have been these moments.
But I think by and large, it is fair to say that Iran’s choices have created a very significant barrier, and huge security concerns for our friends in the region, for Israel, for Gulf states and others, and obviously they have made certain choices that are deeply, profoundly unsettling in terms of stability in the region and the possibility of anything except our focus on (inaudible). It’s too early for us to talk about other things. It’s just not right. Obviously, one would hope that Iran will make choices that it will rejoin the community of nations in full. The first step is to resolve the nuclear issue, and it shouldn’t be hard if you are in fact absolutely determined to make good on the promise that this is a peaceful program.
So our hope is that the (inaudible) engagement and the resolution of its differences with respect to the UN and the international community can indeed lead to what the Foreign Minister and President Rouhani have talked about, which is a new relationship with the West and with its neighbors. But nobody that I know of is going to accept the words at face value. It is going to be proven by the choices Iran makes, by the actions that it takes. We are open. President Obama has made clear that he is prepared to put in motion the steps that can improve those attributes, to put these words to the test. And that’s exactly what we’re doing now with this first step. And we look forward to, hopefully in a short span of time, being able to put together a comprehensive agreement that will provide the guarantees necessary to our friends in the region.
Let me be crystal clear to Israel, to our other friends in the region, to any neighbor who feels threatened, that the next step requires proof certain of a failsafe set of steps which eliminate the current prospect of a breakout and the creation of a nuclear weapon. That will require dismantling certain things. It will require stopping certain kinds of activities. It will require some fundamental choices, and we’re prepared to work with Iran in order to put in place a protocol that achieves those ends.
So I think this is potentially a significant moment, but I’m not going to stand here in some triumphal moment and suggest to you that this is an end unto itself. It is not. It is a step towards the much more significant goal and the much harder to achieve goal of having a program that is absolutely failsafe provable to be only possible to be peaceful. And that’s what we have to work for now.
MODERATOR: The last question will be from Nicole Gaouette of Bloomberg News.
QUESTION: Hi, Mr. Secretary. Congratulations to you and your team. I’m wondering (inaudible) and how you answer the criticism from Israel that by easing sanctions, you have less leverage over Iran, say, than you did yesterday. They’re (inaudible) reach that settlement. I also just wondered if you have a brief comment about more sanctions being in place. That’s been true for a long time, and for a long time (inaudible) Congress.
SECRETARY KERRY: (Inaudible.)
QUESTION: (Inaudible) by the Congress and designed to give new sanctions. And in my email feed, there are already statements from Republican senators saying it’s not good enough. The – my understanding is that this deal --
SECRETARY KERRY: Gee, you mean members of the other party (inaudible). (Laughter.)
QUESTION: (Inaudible.) My understanding is that you – the P5+1 are pledging not to increase nuclear-review sanctions for the next six months if Iran complies? How can you assure that you can get the majority in the Congress (inaudible)?
SECRETARY KERRY: Well, those are two very good questions. Let me answer both of them very directly. First of all, with respect to Israel and Prime Minister Netanyahu, Prime Minister Netanyahu is a friend of mine, a man I have great respect for and I’ve worked with very closely, particularly right now, on the Middle East peace process. I talk to him several times a week. I’ve talked to him as recently as the last days about this very issue, on several occasions. And the fact that we might disagree about a tactic does not mean there is a sliver of daylight between us with respect to our strategy. The tactic is whether or not you increase sanctions or take advantage of this moment to pull the progress and guarantee you have insight into their program while you keep the pressure on. And it’s a difference of judgment. It would be nice, but there is no difference whatsoever between the United States and Israel and what the end goal must be here. We cannot have an Iran that is going to threaten its neighbors, and that has a nuclear weapon. From the day President Obama came into office, he made it clear that a centerpiece of his policy is that Iran will not have a nuclear weapon.
Now, Iran says it doesn’t want a nuclear weapon, it is going after a nuclear weapon. Therefore, it ought to be really easy to do the things that other nations do who enrich, and prove that their program is peaceful. So that’s what we’re looking for. We’re looking for it in absolute sync with our friends in Israel. And I have said frequently, no deal is better than a bad deal. We are not going to strike, ultimately, a bad deal. And you have to be able to prove that this program is peaceful. That means you’re going to have to look at putting on the grave uranium and what happens to it. You’re going to have to have limitations on certain components. You’re going to have to have limitations on the type of facilities. Arak, a heavy-water plutonium facilities, has no business within the framework of a peaceful program. We’ve been very clear about that.
So there are many things. I’m not going to go through them all right now, but it is crystal clear that Israel and the United States have the same goal, the same strategic interest, and we will stand with Israel with respect to this policy and the other allies in the region who are equally concerned about what Iran might or might not choose to do.
Now, with respect to the second part of your question, the Congress, look, I have great confidence in my colleagues in the Congress. I think they are going to look at this very carefully, and they should. And I look forward to going up on the Hill. I look forward to engaging with my former colleagues, explaining what we’ve done, why we can keep the – and working together with Congress in order to achieve the goal that Congress embraced when they put these sanctions in place in the first place. Congress sought to have negotiations.
Now ultimately, if somehow we wind up (inaudible) and Congress – midterm election obviously – the President obviously has a possibility of a veto. There have been. But I don’t think it should come to that. We don’t want it to come to that. I don’t if it will come to that. I believe Congress will see the wisdom of pursuing this for the very specific purposes that I’ve articulated with very straight delineation of exactly how we’re going to achieve our goals. And it was really a cooperative effort. And we will brief Congress readily. We will work for Congress in a very cooperative way. And I think Congress will be a very important partner in helping us put this to the test over the course of the next six months.
MODERATOR: That’s it, everyone.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you all very much. Appreciate it.
Sunday, November 24, 2013
NAVY RESERVE READY MOBILIZATION POOL ELIMINATED DUE TO DRAWDOWNS
 |
| 130124-N-IE116-395 LASH-E JUWAYN, Afghanistan (Jan. 24, 2013) Soldiers and Sailors assigned to Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) Farah and leadership from the Farah directorate of agriculture, irrigation and livestock file onto a CH-47 Chinook helicopter after a key leader engagement in Lash-e Juwayn. PRT Farah met with key leaders in Lash-e Juwayn to discuss an ongoing irrigation project. PRT Farah's mission is to train, advise and assist Afghan government leaders at the municipal, district and provincial levels in Farah province, Afghanistan. Their civil military team is comprised of members of the U.S. Navy, U.S. Army, the U.S. Department of State and the Agency for International Development (USAID). (U.S. Navy photo by Chief Hospital Corpsman Josh Ives/Released) |
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Navy Reserve Ready Mobilization Pool Disestablished
Release Date: 11/22/2013 7:58:00 PM
From Commander, Navy Reserve Forces Command Public Affairs
NORFOLK, Va. (NNS) -- Beginning Jan. 1, 2014, the Reserve Ready Mobilization Pool (RMP) will no longer be used to involuntarily recall Reserve Sailors.
The RMP is being eliminated due to the drawdown in Iraq and Afghanistan and the extremely high mobilization volunteer rate throughout the Navy Reserve Force.
"Although our immediate need for a large forward deployed force has been reduced in correlation with the drawdown in Afghanistan, our Reserve Sailors will continue to stand, 'Ready. Anytime, Anywhere," said Rear Adm. Bryan Cutchen, commander, Navy Reserve Forces Command.
Across the force, the volunteer rate has consistently remained near 75 percent, with a September 2013 volunteer rate of 87.7 percent. This high volunteer rate is projected to continue due to the opportunities mobilizations provide for valuable career growth in a variety of joint and specialized billets.
The Ready Mobilization Pool (RMP) was first implemented in 2009 to manage the mobilization of Reserve Officers. In 2010, Reserve Enlisted personnel were added to the pool, coinciding with an increase in the number of mobilizations across the entire Reserve Force which had reached their highest level since 2003.
The mission of the Navy Reserve is to deliver strategic depth and operational capability to the Navy, Marine Corps, and Joint Forces.
WINDMILL ENERGY COMPANY RECEIVES SENTENCE FOR KILLING BIRDS
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Friday, November 22, 2013
Utility Company Sentenced in Wyoming for Killing Protected Birds at Wind Projects
Duke Energy Renewables Inc., a subsidiary of Duke Energy Corp., based in Charlotte, N.C., pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Wyoming today to violating the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) in connection with the deaths of protected birds, including golden eagles, at two of the company’s wind projects in Wyoming. This case represents the first ever criminal enforcement of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act for unpermitted avian takings at wind projects.
Under a plea agreement with the government, the company was sentenced to pay fines, restitution and community service totaling $1 million and was placed on probation for five years, during which it must implement an environmental compliance plan aimed at preventing bird deaths at the company’s four commercial wind projects in the state. The company is also required to apply for an Eagle Take Permit which, if granted, will provide a framework for minimizing and mitigating the deaths of golden eagles at the wind projects.
The charges stem from the discovery of 14 golden eagles and 149 other protected birds, including hawks, blackbirds, larks, wrens and sparrows by the company at its “Campbell Hill” and “Top of the World” wind projects in Converse County between 2009 and 2013. The two wind projects are comprised of 176 large wind turbines sited on private agricultural land.
According to the charges and other information presented in court, Duke Energy Renewables Inc. failed to make all reasonable efforts to build the projects in a way that would avoid the risk of avian deaths by collision with turbine blades, despite prior warnings about this issue from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). However, the company cooperated with the USFWS investigation and has already implemented measures aimed at minimizing avian deaths at the sites.
“This case represents the first criminal conviction under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act for unlawful avian takings at wind projects,” said Robert G. Dreher, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division. “In this plea agreement, Duke Energy Renewables acknowledges that it constructed these wind projects in a manner it knew beforehand would likely result in avian deaths. To its credit, once the projects came on line and began causing avian deaths, Duke took steps to minimize the hazard, and with this plea agreement has committed to an extensive compliance plan to minimize bird deaths at its Wyoming facilities and to devote resources to eagle preservation and rehabilitation efforts.”
“The Service works cooperatively with companies that make all reasonable efforts to avoid killing migratory birds during design, construction and operation of industrial facilities,” said William Woody, Assistant Director for Law Enforcement of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “But we will continue to investigate and refer for prosecution cases in which companies - in any sector, including the wind industry - fail to comply with the laws that protect the public’s wildlife resources.”
More than 1,000 species of birds, including bald and golden eagles, are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). The MBTA, enacted in 1918, implements this country’s commitments under avian protection treaties with Great Britain (for Canada), Mexico, Japan and Russia. The MBTA provides a misdemeanor criminal sanction for the unpermitted taking of a listed species by any means and in any manner, regardless of fault. The maximum penalty for an unpermitted corporate taking under the MBTA is $15,000 or twice the gross gain or loss resulting from the offense, and five years’ probation.
According to papers filed with the court, commercial wind power projects can cause the deaths of federally protected birds in four primary ways: collision with wind turbines, collision with associated meteorological towers, collision with, or electrocution by, associated electrical power facilities, and nest abandonment or behavior avoidance from habitat modification. Collision and electrocution risks from power lines (collisions and electrocutions) and guyed structures (collision) have been known to the utility and communication industries for decades, and specific methods of minimizing and avoiding the risks have been developed, in conjunction with the USFWS. The USFWS issued its first interim guidance about how wind project developers could avoid impacts to wildlife from wind turbines in 2003, and replaced these with a “tiered” approach outlined in the Land-Based Wind Energy Guidelines (2012 LBWEGs), developed with the wind industry starting in 2007 and released in final form by the USFWS on March 23, 2012. The Service also released Eagle Conservation Plan Guidance in April 2013 and strongly recommends that companies planning or operating wind power facilities in areas where eagles occur work with the agency to implement that guidance completely.
For wind projects, due diligence during the pre-construction stage—as described in the 2003 Interim Guidelines and tiers I through III in the 2012 LBWEGs—by surveying the wildlife present in the proposed project area, consulting with agency professionals, determining whether the risk to wildlife is too high to justify proceeding and, if not, carefully siting turbines so as to avoid and minimize the risk as much as possible, is critically important because, unlike electric distribution equipment and guyed towers, at the present time, no post-construction remedies, except “curtailment” (i.e., shut-down), have been developed that can “render safe” a wind turbine placed in a location of high avian collision risk. Other experimental measures to reduce prey, detect and deter avian proximity to turbines are being tested. In the western United States, golden eagles may be particularly susceptible to wind turbine blade collision by wind power facilities constructed in areas of high eagle use.
The $400,000 fine imposed in the case will be directed to the federally-administered North American Wetlands Conservation Fund. The company will also pay $100,000 in restitution to the State of Wyoming, and perform community service by making a $160,000 payment to the congressionally-chartered National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, designated for projects aimed at preserving golden eagles and increasing the understanding of ways to minimize and monitor interactions between eagles and commercial wind power facilities, as well as enhance eagle rehabilitation and conservation efforts in Wyoming. Duke Energy Renewables is also required to contribute $340,000 to a conservation fund for the purchase of land, or conservation easements on land, in Wyoming containing high-use golden eagle habitat, which will be preserved and managed for the benefit of that species. The company must implement a migratory bird compliance plan containing specific measures to avoid and minimize golden eagle and other avian wildlife mortalities at company’s four commercial wind projects in Wyoming.
According to papers filed with the court, Duke Energy Renewables will spend approximately $600,000 per year implementing the compliance plan. Within 24 months, the company must also apply to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for a Programmatic Eagle Take Permit at each of the two wind projects cited in the case.
The case was investigated by Special Agents of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and prosecuted by Senior Counsel Robert S. Anderson of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Conder of the District of Wyoming.
Friday, November 22, 2013
Utility Company Sentenced in Wyoming for Killing Protected Birds at Wind Projects
Duke Energy Renewables Inc., a subsidiary of Duke Energy Corp., based in Charlotte, N.C., pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Wyoming today to violating the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) in connection with the deaths of protected birds, including golden eagles, at two of the company’s wind projects in Wyoming. This case represents the first ever criminal enforcement of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act for unpermitted avian takings at wind projects.
Under a plea agreement with the government, the company was sentenced to pay fines, restitution and community service totaling $1 million and was placed on probation for five years, during which it must implement an environmental compliance plan aimed at preventing bird deaths at the company’s four commercial wind projects in the state. The company is also required to apply for an Eagle Take Permit which, if granted, will provide a framework for minimizing and mitigating the deaths of golden eagles at the wind projects.
The charges stem from the discovery of 14 golden eagles and 149 other protected birds, including hawks, blackbirds, larks, wrens and sparrows by the company at its “Campbell Hill” and “Top of the World” wind projects in Converse County between 2009 and 2013. The two wind projects are comprised of 176 large wind turbines sited on private agricultural land.
According to the charges and other information presented in court, Duke Energy Renewables Inc. failed to make all reasonable efforts to build the projects in a way that would avoid the risk of avian deaths by collision with turbine blades, despite prior warnings about this issue from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). However, the company cooperated with the USFWS investigation and has already implemented measures aimed at minimizing avian deaths at the sites.
“This case represents the first criminal conviction under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act for unlawful avian takings at wind projects,” said Robert G. Dreher, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division. “In this plea agreement, Duke Energy Renewables acknowledges that it constructed these wind projects in a manner it knew beforehand would likely result in avian deaths. To its credit, once the projects came on line and began causing avian deaths, Duke took steps to minimize the hazard, and with this plea agreement has committed to an extensive compliance plan to minimize bird deaths at its Wyoming facilities and to devote resources to eagle preservation and rehabilitation efforts.”
“The Service works cooperatively with companies that make all reasonable efforts to avoid killing migratory birds during design, construction and operation of industrial facilities,” said William Woody, Assistant Director for Law Enforcement of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “But we will continue to investigate and refer for prosecution cases in which companies - in any sector, including the wind industry - fail to comply with the laws that protect the public’s wildlife resources.”
More than 1,000 species of birds, including bald and golden eagles, are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). The MBTA, enacted in 1918, implements this country’s commitments under avian protection treaties with Great Britain (for Canada), Mexico, Japan and Russia. The MBTA provides a misdemeanor criminal sanction for the unpermitted taking of a listed species by any means and in any manner, regardless of fault. The maximum penalty for an unpermitted corporate taking under the MBTA is $15,000 or twice the gross gain or loss resulting from the offense, and five years’ probation.
According to papers filed with the court, commercial wind power projects can cause the deaths of federally protected birds in four primary ways: collision with wind turbines, collision with associated meteorological towers, collision with, or electrocution by, associated electrical power facilities, and nest abandonment or behavior avoidance from habitat modification. Collision and electrocution risks from power lines (collisions and electrocutions) and guyed structures (collision) have been known to the utility and communication industries for decades, and specific methods of minimizing and avoiding the risks have been developed, in conjunction with the USFWS. The USFWS issued its first interim guidance about how wind project developers could avoid impacts to wildlife from wind turbines in 2003, and replaced these with a “tiered” approach outlined in the Land-Based Wind Energy Guidelines (2012 LBWEGs), developed with the wind industry starting in 2007 and released in final form by the USFWS on March 23, 2012. The Service also released Eagle Conservation Plan Guidance in April 2013 and strongly recommends that companies planning or operating wind power facilities in areas where eagles occur work with the agency to implement that guidance completely.
For wind projects, due diligence during the pre-construction stage—as described in the 2003 Interim Guidelines and tiers I through III in the 2012 LBWEGs—by surveying the wildlife present in the proposed project area, consulting with agency professionals, determining whether the risk to wildlife is too high to justify proceeding and, if not, carefully siting turbines so as to avoid and minimize the risk as much as possible, is critically important because, unlike electric distribution equipment and guyed towers, at the present time, no post-construction remedies, except “curtailment” (i.e., shut-down), have been developed that can “render safe” a wind turbine placed in a location of high avian collision risk. Other experimental measures to reduce prey, detect and deter avian proximity to turbines are being tested. In the western United States, golden eagles may be particularly susceptible to wind turbine blade collision by wind power facilities constructed in areas of high eagle use.
The $400,000 fine imposed in the case will be directed to the federally-administered North American Wetlands Conservation Fund. The company will also pay $100,000 in restitution to the State of Wyoming, and perform community service by making a $160,000 payment to the congressionally-chartered National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, designated for projects aimed at preserving golden eagles and increasing the understanding of ways to minimize and monitor interactions between eagles and commercial wind power facilities, as well as enhance eagle rehabilitation and conservation efforts in Wyoming. Duke Energy Renewables is also required to contribute $340,000 to a conservation fund for the purchase of land, or conservation easements on land, in Wyoming containing high-use golden eagle habitat, which will be preserved and managed for the benefit of that species. The company must implement a migratory bird compliance plan containing specific measures to avoid and minimize golden eagle and other avian wildlife mortalities at company’s four commercial wind projects in Wyoming.
According to papers filed with the court, Duke Energy Renewables will spend approximately $600,000 per year implementing the compliance plan. Within 24 months, the company must also apply to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for a Programmatic Eagle Take Permit at each of the two wind projects cited in the case.
The case was investigated by Special Agents of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and prosecuted by Senior Counsel Robert S. Anderson of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Conder of the District of Wyoming.
USDA ANNOUNCES INVITATION TO SELL SUGAR
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
USDA Announces November 2013 Feedstock Flexibility Program Results and a New CCC Invitation to Sell Sugar for Non-Food Uses
WASHINGTON, Nov. 22, 2013 — U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) today announced the results of CCC’s offer made on Nov. 14, 2013, to sell its sugar inventory for bioenergy production under the Feedstock Flexibility Program (FFP). CCC also announced a new invitation to sell the remainder of its recently acquired sugar inventory for both bioenergy production under the Feedstock Flexibility Program and other non-food uses. CCC successfully sold 216,750 short tons to bioenergy producers for $11.3 million under the Nov. 14 offer, but still holds 79,750 tons in inventory.
Today’s invitation reduces the minimum quantity for bids to 5,000 tons and offers sugar for both bioenergy and other non-food uses. This invitation, and all of the Farm Service Agency’s actions to address the 2012 sugar crop-year surplus, can be found on the Farm Service Agency (FSA) Commodity Operations website at www.fsa.usda.gov/FSA/webapp?area=home&subject=coop&topic=pas-sa
CCC acquired 296,500 short tons of sugar on Oct. 1, 2013, in lieu of cash repayments on its remaining 2012 crop year sugar loans. These sugar loan forfeitures were the result of record domestic sugar production, record Mexican sugar imports, and world prices falling below U.S. price support levels for the first time in several years. CCC is prohibited by the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (the 2008 farm bill) from selling its sugar inventory for domestic food use unless there is an emergency sugar shortage.
USDA Announces November 2013 Feedstock Flexibility Program Results and a New CCC Invitation to Sell Sugar for Non-Food Uses
WASHINGTON, Nov. 22, 2013 — U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) today announced the results of CCC’s offer made on Nov. 14, 2013, to sell its sugar inventory for bioenergy production under the Feedstock Flexibility Program (FFP). CCC also announced a new invitation to sell the remainder of its recently acquired sugar inventory for both bioenergy production under the Feedstock Flexibility Program and other non-food uses. CCC successfully sold 216,750 short tons to bioenergy producers for $11.3 million under the Nov. 14 offer, but still holds 79,750 tons in inventory.
Today’s invitation reduces the minimum quantity for bids to 5,000 tons and offers sugar for both bioenergy and other non-food uses. This invitation, and all of the Farm Service Agency’s actions to address the 2012 sugar crop-year surplus, can be found on the Farm Service Agency (FSA) Commodity Operations website at www.fsa.usda.gov/FSA/webapp?area=home&subject=coop&topic=pas-sa
CCC acquired 296,500 short tons of sugar on Oct. 1, 2013, in lieu of cash repayments on its remaining 2012 crop year sugar loans. These sugar loan forfeitures were the result of record domestic sugar production, record Mexican sugar imports, and world prices falling below U.S. price support levels for the first time in several years. CCC is prohibited by the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (the 2008 farm bill) from selling its sugar inventory for domestic food use unless there is an emergency sugar shortage.
4 FISHERMEN INDICTED FOR INTERSTATE SALE OF STRIPED BASS
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Four Commercial Fishermen Indicted in Maryland for Illegal Harvest and Interstate Sale of Striped Bass from Chesapeake Bay
One Charged with Threatening Retaliation and Witnesses Tampering During Investigation
Four commercial fishermen and one company were indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury in Baltimore for a criminal conspiracy involving the illegal harvesting and interstate sale of striped bass on the Chesapeake Bay, announced Robert G. Dreher, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, and Rod J. Rosenstein, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland.
According to court documents, Michael D. Hayden Jr., his company, William J. Lednum, Kent Sadler and Daniel Murphy engaged in a multi-year conspiracy during which time they harvested tens of thousands of pounds of striped bass on the Chesapeake Bay in violation of Maryland fishing regulations, falsified documents filed with the State of Maryland, and then transported and sold those poached fish in interstate commerce. In addition, after the investigation of these crimes began, it is alleged that Hayden attempted to manipulate some witnesses’ testimony while trying to outright prevent the testimony and cooperation of others. In addition, it is alleged that in at least one incident, Hayden threatened to retaliate against another potential witness he believed to be cooperating with investigators. Hayden was arrested on Sept. 17, 2013, having been charged in a criminal complaint with several counts of witness intimidation and retaliation.
The 26-count indictment charges the defendants with conspiracy, and Lacey Act violations. These charges carry possible terms of incarceration of five years. In addition, the witness intimidation/retaliation charges against Mr. Hayden each carry a maximum-term of 20 years in prison.
An indictment is a charging document and all defendants are innocent until proven guilty.
This case is being investigated by criminal investigators with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Natural Resources Police and Special Agents from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The case is being jointly prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland and the Environmental Crimes Section of the United States Department of Justice.
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Four Commercial Fishermen Indicted in Maryland for Illegal Harvest and Interstate Sale of Striped Bass from Chesapeake Bay
One Charged with Threatening Retaliation and Witnesses Tampering During Investigation
Four commercial fishermen and one company were indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury in Baltimore for a criminal conspiracy involving the illegal harvesting and interstate sale of striped bass on the Chesapeake Bay, announced Robert G. Dreher, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, and Rod J. Rosenstein, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland.
According to court documents, Michael D. Hayden Jr., his company, William J. Lednum, Kent Sadler and Daniel Murphy engaged in a multi-year conspiracy during which time they harvested tens of thousands of pounds of striped bass on the Chesapeake Bay in violation of Maryland fishing regulations, falsified documents filed with the State of Maryland, and then transported and sold those poached fish in interstate commerce. In addition, after the investigation of these crimes began, it is alleged that Hayden attempted to manipulate some witnesses’ testimony while trying to outright prevent the testimony and cooperation of others. In addition, it is alleged that in at least one incident, Hayden threatened to retaliate against another potential witness he believed to be cooperating with investigators. Hayden was arrested on Sept. 17, 2013, having been charged in a criminal complaint with several counts of witness intimidation and retaliation.
The 26-count indictment charges the defendants with conspiracy, and Lacey Act violations. These charges carry possible terms of incarceration of five years. In addition, the witness intimidation/retaliation charges against Mr. Hayden each carry a maximum-term of 20 years in prison.
An indictment is a charging document and all defendants are innocent until proven guilty.
This case is being investigated by criminal investigators with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Natural Resources Police and Special Agents from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The case is being jointly prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland and the Environmental Crimes Section of the United States Department of Justice.
ONCOLOGY COMPANY TO PAY OVER $2 MILLION TO SETTLE FALSE MEDICARE CLAIMS ALLEGATIONS
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Vantage Oncology LLC to Pay More Than $2.08 Million for False Medicare Claims for Radiation Oncology Services
Vantage Oncology LLC (Vantage) has agreed to pay the government more than $2.08 million to settle allegations that it submitted false claims to Medicare for radiation oncology services performed at its Illinois centers from 2007 through June 2012, the Justice Department announced today. Vantage owns and manages radiation oncology centers in multiple states, including two centers in Spring Valley and Streator, Ill.
“Billing Medicare for patient care that is not necessary or appropriate contributes to the soaring costs of health care,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division Stuart F. Delery. “The Department of Justice is committed to protecting public funds and guarding against abuse of the Medicare system.”
The government alleged that Vantage double billed and overbilled Medicare for certain procedures, billed for services that lacked supporting documentation and improperly billed for radiation treatment provided to patients without proper physician supervision.
“Our office remains committed to ensuring appropriate patient care and protecting the integrity of government insurance programs,” said U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio C arter M. Stewart .
“Cheating taxpayers by double billing, overbilling and wrongly billing for services without required medical oversight will not be tolerated,” said Special Agent in Charge with the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Lamont Pugh III. “The Office of Inspector General is committed to identifying, investigating and holding accountable those who improperly profit at the expense of the Medicare program.”
This settlement resolves a lawsuit filed by former Vantage employee Suleiman Refaei under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act. The Act allows private citizens with knowledge of fraud to bring civil actions on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery. Refaei will receive $354,450.
This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by Attorney General Eric Holder and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $16.7 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $11.9 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.
The investigation was jointly handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio; the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch and the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General.
The case is captioned United States ex rel. Suleiman Refaei v. Vantage Oncology, et al., Case No. 1:10-cv-833 (S.D. Ohio). The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Vantage Oncology LLC to Pay More Than $2.08 Million for False Medicare Claims for Radiation Oncology Services
Vantage Oncology LLC (Vantage) has agreed to pay the government more than $2.08 million to settle allegations that it submitted false claims to Medicare for radiation oncology services performed at its Illinois centers from 2007 through June 2012, the Justice Department announced today. Vantage owns and manages radiation oncology centers in multiple states, including two centers in Spring Valley and Streator, Ill.
“Billing Medicare for patient care that is not necessary or appropriate contributes to the soaring costs of health care,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division Stuart F. Delery. “The Department of Justice is committed to protecting public funds and guarding against abuse of the Medicare system.”
The government alleged that Vantage double billed and overbilled Medicare for certain procedures, billed for services that lacked supporting documentation and improperly billed for radiation treatment provided to patients without proper physician supervision.
“Our office remains committed to ensuring appropriate patient care and protecting the integrity of government insurance programs,” said U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio C arter M. Stewart .
“Cheating taxpayers by double billing, overbilling and wrongly billing for services without required medical oversight will not be tolerated,” said Special Agent in Charge with the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Lamont Pugh III. “The Office of Inspector General is committed to identifying, investigating and holding accountable those who improperly profit at the expense of the Medicare program.”
This settlement resolves a lawsuit filed by former Vantage employee Suleiman Refaei under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act. The Act allows private citizens with knowledge of fraud to bring civil actions on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery. Refaei will receive $354,450.
This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by Attorney General Eric Holder and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $16.7 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $11.9 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.
The investigation was jointly handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio; the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch and the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General.
The case is captioned United States ex rel. Suleiman Refaei v. Vantage Oncology, et al., Case No. 1:10-cv-833 (S.D. Ohio). The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
MEMORIES OF THE KENNEDY ASSASSINATION FROM THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
FROM: THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
The Sound of Drums
November 22, 2013 by Jennifer Gavin
On Friday, November 22, 1963, the students in Mrs. Maxwell’s third-grade class at Sabin Elementary School in southwest Denver got a singular history lesson: the news came in that President John F. Kennedy had been murdered.
Janet Maxwell, a popular young instructor who taught 25 kids reading, math, science and history by turns, was trying to get an educational program on a radio at the front of the classroom – a weekly radio play called “I Am an American” in which actors dramatized the lives of famous figures in U.S. history. But she couldn’t seem to lock in the station. So she went next door to Mrs. Grossman’s room to see if they were having difficulty there, as well.
When she came back, perhaps 10 minutes later, her students – I was one of them — were startled to find her weeping.
“Boys and girls, I don’t know how to tell you this,” she said. “President Kennedy has been shot. I hope he will be all right.”
We were stunned. A couple of kids began crying, too. We were old enough to understand that the leader of our country was fighting for his life, and might even be dead. The president! The president of the United States.
This was not an era of instant communication. There might have been one TV in the whole school. But we did have the radio in the classroom, and Mrs. Maxwell began dialing around to find news coverage of the shooting.
It was only a matter of minutes before the announcement came: President Kennedy was dead.
Mrs. Maxwell tried to project an air of calm, but her grief could not be hidden, and it upset all of us.
Lunchtime came, and we took our sack lunches and went out on the gravel field beside the school. Some kids were hysterical. Other kids were silent, a little frightened by the effect this news had on adults. I wondered what my Mom and Dad were thinking. I knew they liked President Kennedy and had voted for him.
We tried to have a normal afternoon in school, but no one could keep their mind on the work. One boy cracked an inappropriate joke; Mrs. Maxwell upbraided him. At 3:20 we got to go home.
That night I went to my friend Jonnie Sue’s house for a sleepover. My mother urged me to have fun and not to dwell too much on the sad event.
But all Jonnie Sue and I did Saturday morning, when we would ordinarily have been watching cartoons, was to stay glued to the wall-to-wall television coverage of the assassination, the swearing-in of LBJ, the speculation about the arrested man, Lee Harvey Oswald. I walked home at noon and a few hours were spent away from the TV.
Sunday morning I got up and went to the basement, where we had a big black-and-white tube set. As I sat there in my pajamas, police officers were seen moving Lee Harvey Oswald along a corridor crowded with people. A man—later identified as Jack Ruby — stepped forward, and suddenly Oswald’s face contorted in pain. He had been shot, right there on live TV, and I had witnessed it as it happened.
I ran upstairs, delivering my first “flash” in a lifetime that later included 18 years as a newspaperwoman: “Dad! Dad! Somebody shot Lee Harvey Oswald!”
The true tragedy came through to me as I watched the state funeral Monday on TV. JFK’s children stood by their mother as their father’s casket rolled past. I was only a little older than those kids. The roll of the drums was unforgettable:
Brum – brum – brum – brrrr
Brum – brum – brum – brrrr
Brum – brum – brum – brrrr
Brum
Brum – ba – brum.
It may be hard for people born more recently to grasp the impact John F. Kennedy had on lives in that era. In later years I met several people who had been inspired by his challenge to “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country” and in response had actually joined the Peace Corps or done some kind of public service. Kennedy’s killing did great damage to their collective spirit.
Within five years, both Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King were dead at the hands of assassins. It was a profoundly disquieting time.
But this is America. New leaders step forward, and we build the bench so new leaders can step forward. Democracy can be untidy, and not always satisfying, but it still beats the alternatives.
Who will fill out that bench – by serving on the city council, or the school board, or in the legislature?
What can you do for your country?
The Sound of Drums
November 22, 2013 by Jennifer Gavin
On Friday, November 22, 1963, the students in Mrs. Maxwell’s third-grade class at Sabin Elementary School in southwest Denver got a singular history lesson: the news came in that President John F. Kennedy had been murdered.
Janet Maxwell, a popular young instructor who taught 25 kids reading, math, science and history by turns, was trying to get an educational program on a radio at the front of the classroom – a weekly radio play called “I Am an American” in which actors dramatized the lives of famous figures in U.S. history. But she couldn’t seem to lock in the station. So she went next door to Mrs. Grossman’s room to see if they were having difficulty there, as well.
When she came back, perhaps 10 minutes later, her students – I was one of them — were startled to find her weeping.
“Boys and girls, I don’t know how to tell you this,” she said. “President Kennedy has been shot. I hope he will be all right.”
We were stunned. A couple of kids began crying, too. We were old enough to understand that the leader of our country was fighting for his life, and might even be dead. The president! The president of the United States.
This was not an era of instant communication. There might have been one TV in the whole school. But we did have the radio in the classroom, and Mrs. Maxwell began dialing around to find news coverage of the shooting.
It was only a matter of minutes before the announcement came: President Kennedy was dead.
Mrs. Maxwell tried to project an air of calm, but her grief could not be hidden, and it upset all of us.
Lunchtime came, and we took our sack lunches and went out on the gravel field beside the school. Some kids were hysterical. Other kids were silent, a little frightened by the effect this news had on adults. I wondered what my Mom and Dad were thinking. I knew they liked President Kennedy and had voted for him.
We tried to have a normal afternoon in school, but no one could keep their mind on the work. One boy cracked an inappropriate joke; Mrs. Maxwell upbraided him. At 3:20 we got to go home.
That night I went to my friend Jonnie Sue’s house for a sleepover. My mother urged me to have fun and not to dwell too much on the sad event.
But all Jonnie Sue and I did Saturday morning, when we would ordinarily have been watching cartoons, was to stay glued to the wall-to-wall television coverage of the assassination, the swearing-in of LBJ, the speculation about the arrested man, Lee Harvey Oswald. I walked home at noon and a few hours were spent away from the TV.
Sunday morning I got up and went to the basement, where we had a big black-and-white tube set. As I sat there in my pajamas, police officers were seen moving Lee Harvey Oswald along a corridor crowded with people. A man—later identified as Jack Ruby — stepped forward, and suddenly Oswald’s face contorted in pain. He had been shot, right there on live TV, and I had witnessed it as it happened.
I ran upstairs, delivering my first “flash” in a lifetime that later included 18 years as a newspaperwoman: “Dad! Dad! Somebody shot Lee Harvey Oswald!”
The true tragedy came through to me as I watched the state funeral Monday on TV. JFK’s children stood by their mother as their father’s casket rolled past. I was only a little older than those kids. The roll of the drums was unforgettable:
Brum – brum – brum – brrrr
Brum – brum – brum – brrrr
Brum – brum – brum – brrrr
Brum
Brum – ba – brum.
It may be hard for people born more recently to grasp the impact John F. Kennedy had on lives in that era. In later years I met several people who had been inspired by his challenge to “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country” and in response had actually joined the Peace Corps or done some kind of public service. Kennedy’s killing did great damage to their collective spirit.
Within five years, both Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King were dead at the hands of assassins. It was a profoundly disquieting time.
But this is America. New leaders step forward, and we build the bench so new leaders can step forward. Democracy can be untidy, and not always satisfying, but it still beats the alternatives.
Who will fill out that bench – by serving on the city council, or the school board, or in the legislature?
What can you do for your country?
MALWARE SCAMMER SETTLES FTC COMPLAINT
FROM: U.S. FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION FTC
Tech Support Scheme Participant Settles FTC Charges
One of the defendants in an alleged tech support scheme has agreed to settle a Federal Trade Commission complaint against him and give up the money he made from the scheme.
Navin Pasari is a defendant in one of six complaints filed by the FTC in September 2012 as part of the Commission’s ongoing efforts to protect consumers from online scams. According to the complaint against Pasari and his co-defendants, the defendants placed ads with Google, which appeared when consumers searched for their computer company’s tech support telephone number. After getting consumers on the phone, the defendants’ telemarketers allegedly claimed they were affiliated with legitimate companies, including Dell, Microsoft, McAfee and Norton, and told consumers they had detected malware that posed an imminent threat to their computers. The scammers then offered to rid the computer of the non-existent malware for fees ranging from $139 to $360.
The stipulated final order against Pasari imposes a $14,369 monetary judgment, which represents the total amount of money Pasari received in connection with the scam. The final order also requires him to divest his ownership interest in PCCare247 Inc., another defendant in the action, and transfer any proceeds he receives from the divestiture to the FTC.
In addition, the final order prohibits Pasari from opening or assisting with the opening of payment processing accounts for a company or other entity unless he personally supervises the accounts. The final order also prohibits Pasari from misrepresenting or assisting others in misrepresenting any information to consumers.
While the stipulated final order announced today resolves the FTC’s claims against Pasari, litigation continues against the remaining defendants in each of these actions.
The Commission vote approving the stipulated final order was 4-0. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York entered the judgment on Nov. 12, 2013.
NOTE: Stipulated orders have the force of law when signed and approved by the District Court judge.
The Federal Trade Commission works for consumers to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices and to provide information to help spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint in English or Spanish, visit the FTC’s online Complaint Assistant or call 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357). The FTC enters complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to more than 2,000 civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad. The FTC’s website provides free information on a variety of consumer topics. Like the FTC on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and subscribe to press releases for the latest FTC news and resources.
Tech Support Scheme Participant Settles FTC Charges
One of the defendants in an alleged tech support scheme has agreed to settle a Federal Trade Commission complaint against him and give up the money he made from the scheme.
Navin Pasari is a defendant in one of six complaints filed by the FTC in September 2012 as part of the Commission’s ongoing efforts to protect consumers from online scams. According to the complaint against Pasari and his co-defendants, the defendants placed ads with Google, which appeared when consumers searched for their computer company’s tech support telephone number. After getting consumers on the phone, the defendants’ telemarketers allegedly claimed they were affiliated with legitimate companies, including Dell, Microsoft, McAfee and Norton, and told consumers they had detected malware that posed an imminent threat to their computers. The scammers then offered to rid the computer of the non-existent malware for fees ranging from $139 to $360.
The stipulated final order against Pasari imposes a $14,369 monetary judgment, which represents the total amount of money Pasari received in connection with the scam. The final order also requires him to divest his ownership interest in PCCare247 Inc., another defendant in the action, and transfer any proceeds he receives from the divestiture to the FTC.
In addition, the final order prohibits Pasari from opening or assisting with the opening of payment processing accounts for a company or other entity unless he personally supervises the accounts. The final order also prohibits Pasari from misrepresenting or assisting others in misrepresenting any information to consumers.
While the stipulated final order announced today resolves the FTC’s claims against Pasari, litigation continues against the remaining defendants in each of these actions.
The Commission vote approving the stipulated final order was 4-0. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York entered the judgment on Nov. 12, 2013.
NOTE: Stipulated orders have the force of law when signed and approved by the District Court judge.
The Federal Trade Commission works for consumers to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices and to provide information to help spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint in English or Spanish, visit the FTC’s online Complaint Assistant or call 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357). The FTC enters complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to more than 2,000 civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad. The FTC’s website provides free information on a variety of consumer topics. Like the FTC on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and subscribe to press releases for the latest FTC news and resources.
Saturday, November 23, 2013
U.S. EXPRESSES CONCERN OVER CHINA'S EAST CHINA SEA AIR DEFENCE IDENTIFICATION ZONE
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Statement on the East China Sea Air Defense Identification Zone
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
November 23, 2013
The United States is deeply concerned about China's announcement that they've established an "East China Sea Air Defense Identification Zone." This unilateral action constitutes an attempt to change the status quo in the East China Sea. Escalatory action will only increase tensions in the region and create risks of an incident.
Freedom of overflight and other internationally lawful uses of sea and airspace are essential to prosperity, stability, and security in the Pacific. We don't support efforts by any State to apply its ADIZ procedures to foreign aircraft not intending to enter its national airspace. The United States does not apply its ADIZ procedures to foreign aircraft not intending to enter U.S. national airspace. We urge China not to implement its threat to take action against aircraft that do not identify themselves or obey orders from Beijing.
We have urged China to exercise caution and restraint, and we are consulting with Japan and other affected parties, throughout the region. We remain steadfastly committed to our allies and partners, and hope to see a more collaborative and less confrontational future in the Pacific.
Statement on the East China Sea Air Defense Identification Zone
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
November 23, 2013
The United States is deeply concerned about China's announcement that they've established an "East China Sea Air Defense Identification Zone." This unilateral action constitutes an attempt to change the status quo in the East China Sea. Escalatory action will only increase tensions in the region and create risks of an incident.
Freedom of overflight and other internationally lawful uses of sea and airspace are essential to prosperity, stability, and security in the Pacific. We don't support efforts by any State to apply its ADIZ procedures to foreign aircraft not intending to enter its national airspace. The United States does not apply its ADIZ procedures to foreign aircraft not intending to enter U.S. national airspace. We urge China not to implement its threat to take action against aircraft that do not identify themselves or obey orders from Beijing.
We have urged China to exercise caution and restraint, and we are consulting with Japan and other affected parties, throughout the region. We remain steadfastly committed to our allies and partners, and hope to see a more collaborative and less confrontational future in the Pacific.
U.S MARSHALS SERVICE ARRESTS SUSPECT IN CONNECTION WITH BOMB THREAT
FROM: U.S. MARSHALS SERVICE
November 21, 2013 Eastern District of Virginia
U.S. Marshals Task Force Arrests Suspect in Connection with a Bomb Threat
Alexandria, VA – U.S. Marshal Robert Mathieson announces the capture of William Wyatt Raum. Raum was wanted by the Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO) in connection with a bomb threat communicated earlier this month.
On Oct. 29, the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center received a bomb threat from an unknown suspect. On Nov. 4, the FCSO requested their deputy sheriff assigned to the U.S. Marshals Service’s fugitive task force to investigate the threat. The investigation determined Raum as the alleged offender.
The case was adopted by the U.S. Marshals task force located within the federal Eastern District of Virginia. At approximately 6:00 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 18, task force officers and Deputy U.S. Marshals located and apprehended Raum in an apartment complex located on Marlboro Pike in Capitol Heights, MD. Raum was transported to the Prince George’s County Police Department and is awaiting extradition to Fairfax County.
The U.S. Marshals-led fugitive task force within E/VA is made possible by the collaboration of the U.S. Marshals Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Secret Service, Alexandria Police Department, Virginia State Police, Fairfax County Police Department, Fairfax County Sheriff's Department, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Diplomatic Security Service.
The task force within the Metropolitan D.C. area was founded in 2004 and, to date, has arrested tens of thousands of fugitives. The success of the task force directly correlates to it being a truly joint endeavor. Each agency brings its unique skills and expertise toward the common goal of pursuing and arresting the worst of the worst.
The U.S. Marshals Service arrested more than 36,000 federal fugitives, 86,700 state and local fugitives, and 11,800 sex offenders in fiscal year 2013. Our investigative network and capabilities allow for the unique ability to track and apprehend any fugitive who attempts to evade police capture, anywhere in the country.
November 21, 2013 Eastern District of Virginia
U.S. Marshals Task Force Arrests Suspect in Connection with a Bomb Threat
Alexandria, VA – U.S. Marshal Robert Mathieson announces the capture of William Wyatt Raum. Raum was wanted by the Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO) in connection with a bomb threat communicated earlier this month.
On Oct. 29, the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center received a bomb threat from an unknown suspect. On Nov. 4, the FCSO requested their deputy sheriff assigned to the U.S. Marshals Service’s fugitive task force to investigate the threat. The investigation determined Raum as the alleged offender.
The case was adopted by the U.S. Marshals task force located within the federal Eastern District of Virginia. At approximately 6:00 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 18, task force officers and Deputy U.S. Marshals located and apprehended Raum in an apartment complex located on Marlboro Pike in Capitol Heights, MD. Raum was transported to the Prince George’s County Police Department and is awaiting extradition to Fairfax County.
The U.S. Marshals-led fugitive task force within E/VA is made possible by the collaboration of the U.S. Marshals Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Secret Service, Alexandria Police Department, Virginia State Police, Fairfax County Police Department, Fairfax County Sheriff's Department, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Diplomatic Security Service.
The task force within the Metropolitan D.C. area was founded in 2004 and, to date, has arrested tens of thousands of fugitives. The success of the task force directly correlates to it being a truly joint endeavor. Each agency brings its unique skills and expertise toward the common goal of pursuing and arresting the worst of the worst.
The U.S. Marshals Service arrested more than 36,000 federal fugitives, 86,700 state and local fugitives, and 11,800 sex offenders in fiscal year 2013. Our investigative network and capabilities allow for the unique ability to track and apprehend any fugitive who attempts to evade police capture, anywhere in the country.
HHS SAYS SMOKER WHO LOOK HEALTHY MAY STILL BE SICK
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICE
From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.
Even a smoker who looks healthy – and whose doctor might even find no sign of health damage from smoking – might already be sick. Researcher Ronald Crystal of Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City saw it when he compared airway cells from nonsmokers and from smokers who had no sign of lung disease, based on standard clinical tests.
Crystal says some hypothetical man smoking outside a building might think he’s OK, but he’s not:
“When you look at the cells lining his airways, the biology of those cells are markedly different, and they are clearly abnormal.”
Crystal says quitting can let lungs heal from smoke damage, but some cells never fully recover – so it’s best never to start.
The study in the journal Stem Cell was supported by the National Institutes of Health.
Learn more at healthfinder.gov.
HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I’m Ira Dreyfuss.
Last revised: November 21, 2013
From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.
Even a smoker who looks healthy – and whose doctor might even find no sign of health damage from smoking – might already be sick. Researcher Ronald Crystal of Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City saw it when he compared airway cells from nonsmokers and from smokers who had no sign of lung disease, based on standard clinical tests.
Crystal says some hypothetical man smoking outside a building might think he’s OK, but he’s not:
“When you look at the cells lining his airways, the biology of those cells are markedly different, and they are clearly abnormal.”
Crystal says quitting can let lungs heal from smoke damage, but some cells never fully recover – so it’s best never to start.
The study in the journal Stem Cell was supported by the National Institutes of Health.
Learn more at healthfinder.gov.
HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I’m Ira Dreyfuss.
Last revised: November 21, 2013
LADEE READY TO COLLECT LUNAR DATA
Right: An Artist’s concept of NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) spacecraft in orbit above the moon as dust scatters light during the lunar sunset. Image Credit-NASA AMES- Dana Berry
NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) is ready to begin collecting science data about the moon.
On Nov. 20, the spacecraft successfully entered its planned orbit around the moon's equator -- a unique position allowing the small probe to make frequent passes from lunar day to lunar night. This will provide a full scope of the changes and processes occurring within the moon's tenuous atmosphere.
LADEE now orbits the moon about every two hours at an altitude of eight to 37 miles (12-60 kilometers) above the moon's surface. For about 100 days, the spacecraft will gather detailed information about the structure and composition of the thin lunar atmosphere and determine whether dust is being lofted into the lunar sky.
"A thorough understanding of the characteristics of our lunar neighbor will help researchers understand other small bodies in the solar system, such as asteroids, Mercury, and the moons of outer planets," said Sarah Noble, LADEE program scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
Scientists also will be able to study the conditions in the atmosphere during lunar sunrise and sunset, where previous crewed and robotic missions detected a mysterious glow of rays and streamers reaching high into the lunar sky.
“This is what we’ve been waiting for – we are already seeing the shape of things to come,” said Rick Elphic, LADEE project scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif.
On Nov. 20, flight controllers in the LADEE Mission Operations Center at Ames confirmed LADEE performed a crucial burn of its orbit control system to lower the spacecraft into its optimal position to enable science collection. Mission managers will continuously monitor the spacecraft's altitude and make adjustments as necessary.
"Due to the lumpiness of the moon's gravitational field, LADEE's orbit requires significant maintenance activity with maneuvers taking place as often as every three to five days, or as infrequently as once every two weeks," said Butler Hine, LADEE project manager at Ames. "LADEE will perform regular orbital maintenance maneuvers to keep the spacecraft’s altitude within a safe range above the surface that maximizes the science return."
In addition to science instruments, the spacecraft carried the Lunar Laser Communications Demonstration, NASA's first high-data-rate laser communication system. It is designed to enable satellite communication at rates similar to those of high-speed fiber optic networks on Earth. The system was tested successfully during the commissioning phase of the mission, while LADEE was still at a higher altitude.
LADEE was launched Sept. 6 on a U.S. Air Force Minotaur V, an excess ballistic missile converted into a space launch vehicle and operated by Orbital Sciences Corp. of Dulles, Va. LADEE is the first spacecraft designed, developed, built, integrated and tested at Ames. It also was the first probe launched beyond Earth orbit from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility on the Virginia coast.
NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington funds the LADEE mission. Ames manages the overall mission and serves as a base for mission operations and real-time control of the probe. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., manages the science instruments and technology demonstration payload, the science operations center and overall mission support. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., manages LADEE within the Lunar Quest Program Office.
HHS SAYS STUDY SHOWS OVERWEIGHT KIDS HAVE INCREASED HYPERTENSION RISK AS ADULTS
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.
A study indicates that young people who are overweight or obese have a higher risk of high blood pressure, or hypertension, when they grow up.
At Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health, researcher Sara Watson saw this in 27 years of data on more than 1,100 teenagers:
“Children and adolescents who were overweight had double the risk of having hypertension as young adults. Those who were obese had quadruple the risk.”
Put another way, 6 percent of normal weight youth grew up to have hypertension, but 14 percent of overweight children and 26 percent of obese children did.
Watson says it looks increasingly like heart disease starts young.
The study presented at an American Heart Association meeting was supported by the National Institutes of Health.
From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.
A study indicates that young people who are overweight or obese have a higher risk of high blood pressure, or hypertension, when they grow up.
At Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health, researcher Sara Watson saw this in 27 years of data on more than 1,100 teenagers:
“Children and adolescents who were overweight had double the risk of having hypertension as young adults. Those who were obese had quadruple the risk.”
Put another way, 6 percent of normal weight youth grew up to have hypertension, but 14 percent of overweight children and 26 percent of obese children did.
Watson says it looks increasingly like heart disease starts young.
The study presented at an American Heart Association meeting was supported by the National Institutes of Health.
CDC SAYS DIAGNOSES OF ADHD RISING AMONG U.S. CHILDREN
FROM: CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION
ADHD Estimates Rise
Continued Increases in ADHD Diagnoses and Treatment with Medication among U.S. Children
Two million more children in the United States have been diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and one million more U.S. children were taking medication for ADHD over an 8 year period (2003-2004 to 2011-2012), according to a new study Adobe PDF file [1.81 MB]External Web Site Icon led by CDC. According to CDC scientists, children are commonly being diagnosed at a young age. Half of children diagnosed with ADHD are diagnosed by 6 years of age. Children with more severe ADHD tend to be diagnosed earlier, about half of them by the age of 4, based on reports by parents.
ADHD is one of the most common chronic conditions of childhood. It often persists into adulthood. Children with ADHD may have trouble paying attention and/or controlling impulsive behaviors. Effective treatments for ADHD include medication, mental health treatment, or a combination of the two. When children diagnosed with ADHD receive proper treatment, they have the best chance of thriving at home, doing well at school, and making and keeping friends.
In 2011-2012, 11 percent of U.S. children 4-17 years of age had been diagnosed with ADHD and 6.1 percent of U.S. children 4-17 years of age were taking medication for ADHD. Of the children with current ADHD, 69 percent were taking medication for ADHD treatment.
States vary widely in terms of the percentage of their child population diagnosed and treated with medication for ADHD. The percentage of children with a history of an ADHD diagnosis ranges from 15 percent in Arkansas and Kentucky to 4 percent in Nevada.
Medication treatment for ADHD is most common among children reported by their parents as having more severe ADHD.
Nearly one in five high school boys and one in 11 high school girls in the United States were reported by their parents as having been diagnosed with ADHD by a healthcare provider.
Note to parents: If you have concerns about your child’s behavior, complete the ADHD checklist, visit CDC's ADHD website and discuss your concerns with your child’s healthcare provider.
ADHD Estimates Rise
Continued Increases in ADHD Diagnoses and Treatment with Medication among U.S. Children
Two million more children in the United States have been diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and one million more U.S. children were taking medication for ADHD over an 8 year period (2003-2004 to 2011-2012), according to a new study Adobe PDF file [1.81 MB]External Web Site Icon led by CDC. According to CDC scientists, children are commonly being diagnosed at a young age. Half of children diagnosed with ADHD are diagnosed by 6 years of age. Children with more severe ADHD tend to be diagnosed earlier, about half of them by the age of 4, based on reports by parents.
ADHD is one of the most common chronic conditions of childhood. It often persists into adulthood. Children with ADHD may have trouble paying attention and/or controlling impulsive behaviors. Effective treatments for ADHD include medication, mental health treatment, or a combination of the two. When children diagnosed with ADHD receive proper treatment, they have the best chance of thriving at home, doing well at school, and making and keeping friends.
In 2011-2012, 11 percent of U.S. children 4-17 years of age had been diagnosed with ADHD and 6.1 percent of U.S. children 4-17 years of age were taking medication for ADHD. Of the children with current ADHD, 69 percent were taking medication for ADHD treatment.
States vary widely in terms of the percentage of their child population diagnosed and treated with medication for ADHD. The percentage of children with a history of an ADHD diagnosis ranges from 15 percent in Arkansas and Kentucky to 4 percent in Nevada.
Medication treatment for ADHD is most common among children reported by their parents as having more severe ADHD.
Nearly one in five high school boys and one in 11 high school girls in the United States were reported by their parents as having been diagnosed with ADHD by a healthcare provider.
Note to parents: If you have concerns about your child’s behavior, complete the ADHD checklist, visit CDC's ADHD website and discuss your concerns with your child’s healthcare provider.
PRESIDENT OBAMA'S WEEKLY ADDRESS FOR NOVEMBER 23, 2013
FROM: THE WHITE HOUSE
Weekly Address: Working with Both Parties to Keep the Economy Moving Forward
WASHINGTON, DC— In his weekly address, President Obama said our economy is moving in the right direction. We have cut our deficits by more than half, businesses have created millions of new jobs, and we have taken significant steps to reverse our addiction to foreign oil and fix our broken health care system.
The audio of the address and video of the address will be available online atwww.whitehouse.gov at 6:00 a.m. ET, November 23, 2013.
Remarks for President Barack Obama
Weekly Address
The White House
November 23, 2013
Hi, everybody. Over the past couple months, most of the political headlines you’ve read have probably been about the government shutdown and the launch of the Affordable Care Act. And I know that many of you have rightly never been more frustrated with Washington.
But if you look beyond those headlines, there are some good things happening in our economy. And that’s been my top priority since the day I walked into the Oval Office.
After decades in which the middle class was working harder and harder just to keep up, and a punishing recession that made it worse, we made the tough choices required not just to recover from crisis, but to rebuild on a new foundation for stronger, more durable economic growth.
Five years later, we have fought our way back. Our businesses have created 7.8 million new jobs in the past 44 months. Another 200,000 Americans went back to work last month.
The American auto industry has come roaring back with more than 350,000 new jobs – jobs churning out and selling the high-tech, fuel-efficient cars the world wants to buy. And they’re leading the charge in a manufacturing sector that has added jobs for the first time since the 1990s – a big reason why our businesses sell more goods and services “Made in America” than ever before.
We decided to reverse our addiction to foreign oil. And today, we generate more renewable energy than ever, more natural gas than anybody, and for the first time in nearly 20 years, America now produces more oil than we buy from other countries.
We decided to fix a broken health care system. And even though the rollout of the marketplace where you can buy affordable plans has been rough, so far, about 500,000 Americans are poised to gain health coverage starting January 1st. And by the way, health care costs are growing at the slowest rate in 50 years.
And one more thing: since I took office, we’ve cut our deficits by more than half. And that makes it easier to invest in the things that create jobs – education, research, and infrastructure.
Imagine how much farther along we could be if both parties were working together. Think about what we could do if a reckless few didn’t hold the economy hostage every few months, or waste time on dozens of votes to repeal the Affordable Care Act rather than try to help us fix it.
In the weeks ahead, I’ll keep talking about my plan to build a better bargain for the middle class. Good jobs. A good education. A chance to buy a home, save, and retire. And yes, the financial security of affordable health care. And I’ll look for any willing partners who want to help.
Because of your hard work and tough sacrifices over the past five years, we’re pointed in the right direction. But we’ve got more work to do to keep moving that way. And as long as I’m President, I’ll keep doing everything I can to create jobs, grow the economy, and make sure that everyone who works hard has a chance to get ahead. Thanks, and have a great weekend.
REMARKS AT 2013 U.S.-CHINA HIGH-LEVEL CONSULTATION ON PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE EXCHANGE
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks at the Closing Session of the 2013 U.S.-China High-Level Consultation on People-to-People Exchange
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Chinese Vice Premier Liu Yandong
Ben Franklin Room
Washington, DC
November 21, 2013
SECRETARY KERRY: What a pleasure to be here. Vice Premier Liu, we are really honored to have you here, and it’s a pleasure to see all of you here. I thank you so much for coming to join us for this consultation on people-to-people exchanges. This really is where the action is, and I am excited by the energy and I’m excited by the discussion. Madame Liu and I spent a little extra time talking – and I hope you’ll forgive us – but we really were excited about the panoply of possibilities, the ways in which we can expand these exchanges which make all the difference in the world, I cannot tell you.
As I am privileged to travel as Secretary and go to so many different countries, and I meet finance ministers, environment ministers, prime ministers, foreign ministers who proudly say, “I was educated at Princeton,” or “I was educated at University of California,” or “I was educated,” somewhere in the United States, or in Great Britain, in Europe, or somewhere, but the pride that all of them have for that experience and the connection that they feel is absolutely invaluable in terms of breaking down barriers, building understanding, bringing countries together, avoiding conflicts, uniting our peoples, and doing all of the things that diplomacy is about.
So I am really pleased to welcome Vice Premier Liu here to continue this, and Vice Minister Hao, thank you very much for your leadership. And I’m delighted with our new and energetic addition to our team here at the State Department with Assistant Secretary Evan Ryan and Assistant Secretary Danny Russell, sitting here in the front seat. We have a great team, all of whom care enormously about this particular program, but more importantly, about the region and about our ability to be able to connect.
I’ve been to Asia many, many times throughout my life, and three times since I became Secretary of State. And every time that I visit the region, I really come home with a much deeper understanding of the people, the challenges that they face, and especially the issues that matter to people individually. And as you saw in the video there, they really are the same; they’re not that different – people aspiring to jobs, to education, to opportunity, to family, to absence of conflict and presence of security, stability, all of these things.
Since Vice Premier Liu and Secretary Clinton launched this initiative in 2010, we have really worked hard, and we’re going to continue to work hard, in order to give more people the opportunity to be able to build their own understanding through people-to-people exchanges. There just isn’t anything more valuable. And we got excited over lunch talking about the possibilities of kids from high schools in the middle part of America and farm country going and meeting farm folks in China, the middle part or the western part of China and so forth, and building these linkages. That’s how we’re going to solve problems, I guarantee you, in the short run and the long run.
And this annual forum has served as a powerful way to address challenges and to identify new ways for us to be able to enhance our engagement. For example, thanks to the Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant Program, which came out of last year’s CPE, students in the United States have been able to benefit from the skilled Chinese instructors like Chen Shengu or – well, Chen really normally teaches at Hainan University – the Normal University in China, but he’s currently serving as FLTA in my hometown of Boston, teaching Mandarin to students of Boston University. And Chen’s here today, and if you ask him, he’ll tell you how gratifying it is to teach American students not only his language, but just about life in China, and about what they’re thinking, and he and his contemporaries, and what they want out of life.
He’ll also tell you how much he is learning himself by being there. They say it takes an outsider to fully understand and comprehend the culture of a nation. Well, Chen has a master’s degree now, I want you to know, in American studies. But if, as a result of being in Boston over this last period of time, he can now provide an explanation for the mania that is part of Red Sox Nation – (laughter) – then someone should give him a Ph.D. immediately, folks – (laughter) – which he will have earned.
The fact is that thanks to the CPE, American and Chinese citizens are learning from one another every single day. And astronomy students are coming together to discover new challenges and developments in both Western and Chinese space exploration. Playwrights are connecting virtually in order to stage theater performances, and live-stream them to cities in China and the United States simultaneously.
American organizations like the Thomas Jefferson Foundation are planning exhibits in China. And world-class athletes are acting as sports envoys to promote athletic inclusion and adaptation for young people with disabilities. Just this morning, I was on the Hill testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the Disabilities Treaty, which can help raise global standards of dealing with disabilities to the ADA standards that we have here in America. And it’s a wonderful way to include people who might otherwise be discriminated against or left on the sidelines of life.
Our educational exchanges are truly more widespread than ever before. And if I’m able to encourage that, as I hope to, they will be even more widespread over the course of these next years. Thousands – hundreds of thousands of Chinese students and teachers like Chen are coming to American colleges and universities. And later today, Vice Premier Liu and I will speak about President Obama’s 100,000 Strong Initiative and the foundation of the same name which is aimed at sending 100,000 American students to study in China by the end of next year.
President Obama sent over a letter to express his support for the CPE, and in that letter he wrote: “The Chinese and American peoples want a strong, cooperative relationship. And it is in our interest to work together to meet the global challenges that we face.” Both President Obama, President Xi share a deep commitment to expanding the people-to-people exchanges between our countries. And that is because these exchanges give folks a chance to be able to have a deeper understanding of each other’s way of life, and eventually that understanding can grow into trust. And trust, as we all know, grows into partnership and into a whole lot of benefits in the long run.
Forty-two years ago, nine ping pong players, four officials, and two family members became the first Americans to set foot in China since the Cultural Revolution of 1949. Time Magazine called the visit “the ping heard around the world.” (Laughter.) But the truth is that Americans did a lot more than play ping pong when they were there. They spent time with Chinese students, with factory workers. They visited treasured Chinese sites like the Great Wall and the Summer Palace. And they went to see the Canton Ballet. Their visit literally opened a new chapter in the history of United States and China relations. And it wasn’t only because they played ping pong. It was through their visit to China that it became clear that despite the many differences between our peoples – differences that often politics and ideologues, and sometimes even demagogues, get in the way of – that there are also always a huge number of similarities and ways that we can bind people together.
Ultimately, these exchanges can do a lot more than just bridge gaps between two different people. They can bring together the two largest polluters on earth to help combat the serious challenge of climate change. They can bring together the two largest economies on earth to help drive the shared prosperity that we want for all people. They can bring together two of the most powerful nations on earth to promote peace, security, and stability in every corner of the globe.
As President Obama put it in his letter, the world is looking to the United States and China to work together to solve pressing challenges. And there is great potential for athlete, cultural, and scientific exchanges to help solve problems for the benefit of all. By improving and expanding the ties between the people of our two countries, the CPE is providing critical gateways to important solutions. Well, the President and I and our counterparts in China know that enabling people in countries to come together in pursuit of those goals will lead not only to greater understanding, but eventually to an even stronger partnership between our two countries.
The many collaborative people-to-people initiatives that come out of the CPE are a critical part of that process. They’re as good as anything else that we do in form of diplomacy. And I look forward to building on that progress, on all of the progress that we’ve made on using your ideas, your energy, your enthusiasm, your creativity. And together, if we continue to do this, this relationship will become one of the great relationships of all time, and a game-changer for the planet.
That’s our hope. Now it’s my pleasure to introduce a woman who, as I learned at lunch, probably holds more portfolios in China than any other single person – in charge of health, education, media – what did I – of sports – (laughter) – I mean, you run the list – culture – it’s quite extraordinary, and I’m really delighted to introduce her to you, the Vice Premier of China, Madame Liu. (Applause.)
VICE PREMIER LIU: (Inaudible.)
SECRETARY KERRY: I told you she was powerful. (Laughter.)
VICE PREMIER LIU: (Via interpreter) (Inaudible) that the Chinese President, Mr. Xi Jinping, attaches great importance to this consultation, and he has sent to us a message of congratulation, and I would like to read to you now:
“On the occasion of the conclusion of the first round of China-U.S. High Level Consultation on People-to-People Exchange, I would like to extend my warm congratulations. The China-U.S. relationship is one of the most important bilateral relations in this world. China is the world’s biggest developing country and the U.S. the biggest developed one. China and the U.S. are both permanent members of the UN Security Council. Our two countries face common challenges and shoulder important responsibilities in addressing a number of issues concerning world peace and development.
“To build between China and the United States a new model of major country relationship that features no conflict or confrontation, mutual respect, and win-win cooperation calls for active support and broad participation by the public and various social sectors in both countries. Over the years, the people-to-people exchange has played a positive role in enhancing China-U.S. relations and become an important pillar for the growth of the relations between our two countries.
“During the past three years in particular, nearly 100 outcomes under the CPE framework have been implemented, and this has enhanced the level of people-to-people exchange between our two countries and provided new impetus to the growth of China-U.S. relations. I hope the CPE mechanism will build on the past achievements and open up new prospects, expand areas of communication, deepen cooperation, and make new contribution to building the bridge of heart-to-heart communication between the Chinese and American peoples, and the development of the new model of major country relationship between China and the United States.”
Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends, the messages of congratulations from President Xi Jinping and President Obama reflect the important agreement between our two presidents on deepening people-to-people exchange between our two countries. This will surely lend an important impetus to the building of the new model of major country relationship between China and the United States. The Secretary and I have just assigned a Memorandum of Understanding on High-Level Consultation on People-to-People Exchange. Our coordinators have briefed us on the outcomes of consultations in each field, and we have heard excellent ideas from youth representatives on how to build the new model of major country relationship and increase youth exchanges. I’m sure encouraged by what I’ve heard. I wish to congratulate you on the success of this round of consultation. And I thank both teams for their hard work and Secretary Kerry and our American colleagues for their gracious hospitality and thoughtful arrangements. (Applause.)
People-to-people exchange between China and America has a time-honored history. As early as over 200 years ago, the merchant ship Empress of China left New York harbor for China, marking the beginning of China-U.S. friendly exchange. More than 70 years ago, the people of China and America fought shoulder to shoulder in the antifascist war and forged profound friendship. And about 1,500 American (inaudible) the Flying Tigers have contributed their lives to this endeavor. Forty-two years ago, the ping pong diplomacy, which attracted worldwide attention, reopened the once-closed gate of China-U.S. exchange.
In early 1979, Mr. Deng Xiaoping paid a visit to the United States. The moment when Deng tried on the cowboy hat at a rodeo in Simonton became a classic snapshot in history of China-U.S. exchange. And 28 years ago, a party secretary from a Chinese county who is now the President of China, Mr. Xi Jinping, visited the United States. And during his visit, he stayed with a local family for two nights in a small town in Iowa where he developed a friendship with local residents. During his visit to the United States last February, President Xi revisited the small town and had a get-together with his old friends by the fireplace, which is yet another wonderful story of the friendship between the Chinese leader and ordinary Americans. Just as small streams were joined together to become a large river, the heartfelt mutual affection and the growing friendly exchange between the Chinese and American peoples will push China-U.S. relations to break waves and surge ahead.
Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends, the establishment and development of the CPE is a major event in our people-to-people exchange and the history of our bilateral relations. Over the past three years and more, the CPE has made continued progress and implemented over 100 important outcomes in the six areas of education, science and technology, culture, sports, women, and youth. The 100,000 Strong Initiative of the U.S. side has enabled 6- to 8,000 American students to study in China, and the (inaudible) 10,000 projects of the Chinese side has in total sent nearly 10,000 people to the United States for Ph.D. studies or joint Ph.D. programs, and invited over 10,000 Americans to China for visits or studies.
The China-U.S. Cultural Forum and the China-U.S. High-Level Women Leaders Dialogue have all become famous events. The Chinese cultural series were very well received in the United States. Traditional Chinese poets such as Oh Zhu and Hauz Shigone have gradually entered local U.S. communities. The two sides have also made positive progress in breast cancer cooperation and promotion of clean cookstoves. It’s fair to say that China-U.S. people-to-people exchange now enjoys a stronger foundation, greater substance, wider coverage, more diverse participation, and stronger, far-reaching influence.
China-U.S. relations now stand at a new historic starting point, and they face new opportunities of growth. After their two meetings held in Annenberg estate and in St. Petersburg, President Xi and President Obama reached important agreement on building a new model of major country relationship between China and the United States. People-to-people exchange as one of the three pillars supporting the growth of China-U.S. relations plays an indispensible role and a strategic role in the building of this new model of major country relationship. Continued progress in people-to-people exchange can enable us to more effectively increase mutual understanding and trust and uphold mutual interests. In so doing we will enable our public to better appreciate the spirit of mutual respect and win-win cooperation that’s laying a solid, popular basis for the new model of major country relations between our two countries. We hope to work with the U.S. side to make the best use of this pioneering row of people-to-people exchange mechanism and comprehensively deepen and broaden such exchange.
With this in mind, I wish to make three proposals. First, we need to seek common ground while reserving differences and further capitalize the bridge-building role of mutual learning among various civilizations. Our world, rich and colorful as it is, has different civilizations. It is the beautiful leaves of different colors that make Washington, D.C. in autumn so beautiful. There are no two identical leaves in the world. It’s only natural that China and the United States, two major countries with different national conditions, histories, cultures, and systems have differences with each other. The American people have the American dream while the Chinese people have the Chinese dream.
Despite our different choice of development paths, we have a lot in common as we all endeavor to pursue people’s happiness, social harmony, economic prosperity, and world peace. People-to-people exchange is a solid bridge connecting China and the United States, and they will lead us to our common bright future. We need to further increase interactions between cultural institutions, organizations and industries; learn from each other and draw upon each other’s strength to seek commonality and harmony from diversity and difference; and pursue development through interactions in a joint effort to promote progress of human civilizations.
Second, we need to build trust, dispel misgivings, and further strengthen the catalytic effect of mutual trust between us. Former U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt has a famous saying that the only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today. Some of the differences and problems between China and the United States are, to a large extent, the result of lack of mutual understanding and trust. People-to-people exchange could gradually yet steadily bring the two peoples closer, increase their mutual trust, and remove prejudices and differences between them so that bilateral relations between us will become more resilient and dynamic.
To this end, we need to further encourage all forms of exchanges between people from all sectors and at all ages, and ensure the success of the exchange between young political leaders, scientists, engineers, and artists, and the Youth RME Partnership program with a view to improving understanding of each other’s national and social conditions. Third, we need to keep abreast of the times and open up new prospects of China-U.S. people-to-people exchange.
I am delighted to see that this meeting of the CPE is marked by three highlights. First, the theme activities of years and innovation have been launched. The hope of sustainable development of China-U.S. relations lies in the youth. Youth is the fresh force of the two countries and represents the bright future. I hope they will work together and enhance cooperation to cope with the common challenges facing us and make fresh contribution to world peace and progress.
Second, think tank exchanges have been introduced. This afternoon, I will engage in interactions with American scholars from think tanks at the United States Institute of Peace. I hope Chinese and American scholars will carry out more joint research programs on such topics as how to build the new model of major country relationship and strengthen people-to-people exchange, providing intellectual support, policy recommendations, and a theoretical basis for China-U.S. people-to-people exchange.
Third, provincial state people-to-people exchange under the framework of the CPE have expanded in depth and breadth. We need to bring the priority of our work down to lower levels and fully leverage the role of the mechanism of sister provinces, states, and cities so as to make people-to-people exchange closer to the society and people, and ensure that people are truly involved and benefit from it in this way. More and more people of our two countries will participate in and contribute to the exchange and share in its fruits. I believe the seeds of friendship, trust, and cooperation that we saw today will surely grow into a towering tree and yield bumper harvest.
Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends, I am convinced that with the platform of the CPE, mutual understanding, trust, and friendship between the two peoples will further build up, and the giant ship of China-U.S. relations will sail more steadily toward its great goal. I look forward to working with Secretary Kerry and everyone here to create an even brighter future for China-U.S. people-to-people exchange, and make our due contribution to the growth of China-U.S. relations, to the well-being of the two peoples and world peace. Thank you. (Applause.)
Remarks at the Closing Session of the 2013 U.S.-China High-Level Consultation on People-to-People Exchange
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Chinese Vice Premier Liu Yandong
Ben Franklin Room
Washington, DC
November 21, 2013
SECRETARY KERRY: What a pleasure to be here. Vice Premier Liu, we are really honored to have you here, and it’s a pleasure to see all of you here. I thank you so much for coming to join us for this consultation on people-to-people exchanges. This really is where the action is, and I am excited by the energy and I’m excited by the discussion. Madame Liu and I spent a little extra time talking – and I hope you’ll forgive us – but we really were excited about the panoply of possibilities, the ways in which we can expand these exchanges which make all the difference in the world, I cannot tell you.
As I am privileged to travel as Secretary and go to so many different countries, and I meet finance ministers, environment ministers, prime ministers, foreign ministers who proudly say, “I was educated at Princeton,” or “I was educated at University of California,” or “I was educated,” somewhere in the United States, or in Great Britain, in Europe, or somewhere, but the pride that all of them have for that experience and the connection that they feel is absolutely invaluable in terms of breaking down barriers, building understanding, bringing countries together, avoiding conflicts, uniting our peoples, and doing all of the things that diplomacy is about.
So I am really pleased to welcome Vice Premier Liu here to continue this, and Vice Minister Hao, thank you very much for your leadership. And I’m delighted with our new and energetic addition to our team here at the State Department with Assistant Secretary Evan Ryan and Assistant Secretary Danny Russell, sitting here in the front seat. We have a great team, all of whom care enormously about this particular program, but more importantly, about the region and about our ability to be able to connect.
I’ve been to Asia many, many times throughout my life, and three times since I became Secretary of State. And every time that I visit the region, I really come home with a much deeper understanding of the people, the challenges that they face, and especially the issues that matter to people individually. And as you saw in the video there, they really are the same; they’re not that different – people aspiring to jobs, to education, to opportunity, to family, to absence of conflict and presence of security, stability, all of these things.
Since Vice Premier Liu and Secretary Clinton launched this initiative in 2010, we have really worked hard, and we’re going to continue to work hard, in order to give more people the opportunity to be able to build their own understanding through people-to-people exchanges. There just isn’t anything more valuable. And we got excited over lunch talking about the possibilities of kids from high schools in the middle part of America and farm country going and meeting farm folks in China, the middle part or the western part of China and so forth, and building these linkages. That’s how we’re going to solve problems, I guarantee you, in the short run and the long run.
And this annual forum has served as a powerful way to address challenges and to identify new ways for us to be able to enhance our engagement. For example, thanks to the Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant Program, which came out of last year’s CPE, students in the United States have been able to benefit from the skilled Chinese instructors like Chen Shengu or – well, Chen really normally teaches at Hainan University – the Normal University in China, but he’s currently serving as FLTA in my hometown of Boston, teaching Mandarin to students of Boston University. And Chen’s here today, and if you ask him, he’ll tell you how gratifying it is to teach American students not only his language, but just about life in China, and about what they’re thinking, and he and his contemporaries, and what they want out of life.
He’ll also tell you how much he is learning himself by being there. They say it takes an outsider to fully understand and comprehend the culture of a nation. Well, Chen has a master’s degree now, I want you to know, in American studies. But if, as a result of being in Boston over this last period of time, he can now provide an explanation for the mania that is part of Red Sox Nation – (laughter) – then someone should give him a Ph.D. immediately, folks – (laughter) – which he will have earned.
The fact is that thanks to the CPE, American and Chinese citizens are learning from one another every single day. And astronomy students are coming together to discover new challenges and developments in both Western and Chinese space exploration. Playwrights are connecting virtually in order to stage theater performances, and live-stream them to cities in China and the United States simultaneously.
American organizations like the Thomas Jefferson Foundation are planning exhibits in China. And world-class athletes are acting as sports envoys to promote athletic inclusion and adaptation for young people with disabilities. Just this morning, I was on the Hill testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the Disabilities Treaty, which can help raise global standards of dealing with disabilities to the ADA standards that we have here in America. And it’s a wonderful way to include people who might otherwise be discriminated against or left on the sidelines of life.
Our educational exchanges are truly more widespread than ever before. And if I’m able to encourage that, as I hope to, they will be even more widespread over the course of these next years. Thousands – hundreds of thousands of Chinese students and teachers like Chen are coming to American colleges and universities. And later today, Vice Premier Liu and I will speak about President Obama’s 100,000 Strong Initiative and the foundation of the same name which is aimed at sending 100,000 American students to study in China by the end of next year.
President Obama sent over a letter to express his support for the CPE, and in that letter he wrote: “The Chinese and American peoples want a strong, cooperative relationship. And it is in our interest to work together to meet the global challenges that we face.” Both President Obama, President Xi share a deep commitment to expanding the people-to-people exchanges between our countries. And that is because these exchanges give folks a chance to be able to have a deeper understanding of each other’s way of life, and eventually that understanding can grow into trust. And trust, as we all know, grows into partnership and into a whole lot of benefits in the long run.
Forty-two years ago, nine ping pong players, four officials, and two family members became the first Americans to set foot in China since the Cultural Revolution of 1949. Time Magazine called the visit “the ping heard around the world.” (Laughter.) But the truth is that Americans did a lot more than play ping pong when they were there. They spent time with Chinese students, with factory workers. They visited treasured Chinese sites like the Great Wall and the Summer Palace. And they went to see the Canton Ballet. Their visit literally opened a new chapter in the history of United States and China relations. And it wasn’t only because they played ping pong. It was through their visit to China that it became clear that despite the many differences between our peoples – differences that often politics and ideologues, and sometimes even demagogues, get in the way of – that there are also always a huge number of similarities and ways that we can bind people together.
Ultimately, these exchanges can do a lot more than just bridge gaps between two different people. They can bring together the two largest polluters on earth to help combat the serious challenge of climate change. They can bring together the two largest economies on earth to help drive the shared prosperity that we want for all people. They can bring together two of the most powerful nations on earth to promote peace, security, and stability in every corner of the globe.
As President Obama put it in his letter, the world is looking to the United States and China to work together to solve pressing challenges. And there is great potential for athlete, cultural, and scientific exchanges to help solve problems for the benefit of all. By improving and expanding the ties between the people of our two countries, the CPE is providing critical gateways to important solutions. Well, the President and I and our counterparts in China know that enabling people in countries to come together in pursuit of those goals will lead not only to greater understanding, but eventually to an even stronger partnership between our two countries.
The many collaborative people-to-people initiatives that come out of the CPE are a critical part of that process. They’re as good as anything else that we do in form of diplomacy. And I look forward to building on that progress, on all of the progress that we’ve made on using your ideas, your energy, your enthusiasm, your creativity. And together, if we continue to do this, this relationship will become one of the great relationships of all time, and a game-changer for the planet.
That’s our hope. Now it’s my pleasure to introduce a woman who, as I learned at lunch, probably holds more portfolios in China than any other single person – in charge of health, education, media – what did I – of sports – (laughter) – I mean, you run the list – culture – it’s quite extraordinary, and I’m really delighted to introduce her to you, the Vice Premier of China, Madame Liu. (Applause.)
VICE PREMIER LIU: (Inaudible.)
SECRETARY KERRY: I told you she was powerful. (Laughter.)
VICE PREMIER LIU: (Via interpreter) (Inaudible) that the Chinese President, Mr. Xi Jinping, attaches great importance to this consultation, and he has sent to us a message of congratulation, and I would like to read to you now:
“On the occasion of the conclusion of the first round of China-U.S. High Level Consultation on People-to-People Exchange, I would like to extend my warm congratulations. The China-U.S. relationship is one of the most important bilateral relations in this world. China is the world’s biggest developing country and the U.S. the biggest developed one. China and the U.S. are both permanent members of the UN Security Council. Our two countries face common challenges and shoulder important responsibilities in addressing a number of issues concerning world peace and development.
“To build between China and the United States a new model of major country relationship that features no conflict or confrontation, mutual respect, and win-win cooperation calls for active support and broad participation by the public and various social sectors in both countries. Over the years, the people-to-people exchange has played a positive role in enhancing China-U.S. relations and become an important pillar for the growth of the relations between our two countries.
“During the past three years in particular, nearly 100 outcomes under the CPE framework have been implemented, and this has enhanced the level of people-to-people exchange between our two countries and provided new impetus to the growth of China-U.S. relations. I hope the CPE mechanism will build on the past achievements and open up new prospects, expand areas of communication, deepen cooperation, and make new contribution to building the bridge of heart-to-heart communication between the Chinese and American peoples, and the development of the new model of major country relationship between China and the United States.”
Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends, the messages of congratulations from President Xi Jinping and President Obama reflect the important agreement between our two presidents on deepening people-to-people exchange between our two countries. This will surely lend an important impetus to the building of the new model of major country relationship between China and the United States. The Secretary and I have just assigned a Memorandum of Understanding on High-Level Consultation on People-to-People Exchange. Our coordinators have briefed us on the outcomes of consultations in each field, and we have heard excellent ideas from youth representatives on how to build the new model of major country relationship and increase youth exchanges. I’m sure encouraged by what I’ve heard. I wish to congratulate you on the success of this round of consultation. And I thank both teams for their hard work and Secretary Kerry and our American colleagues for their gracious hospitality and thoughtful arrangements. (Applause.)
People-to-people exchange between China and America has a time-honored history. As early as over 200 years ago, the merchant ship Empress of China left New York harbor for China, marking the beginning of China-U.S. friendly exchange. More than 70 years ago, the people of China and America fought shoulder to shoulder in the antifascist war and forged profound friendship. And about 1,500 American (inaudible) the Flying Tigers have contributed their lives to this endeavor. Forty-two years ago, the ping pong diplomacy, which attracted worldwide attention, reopened the once-closed gate of China-U.S. exchange.
In early 1979, Mr. Deng Xiaoping paid a visit to the United States. The moment when Deng tried on the cowboy hat at a rodeo in Simonton became a classic snapshot in history of China-U.S. exchange. And 28 years ago, a party secretary from a Chinese county who is now the President of China, Mr. Xi Jinping, visited the United States. And during his visit, he stayed with a local family for two nights in a small town in Iowa where he developed a friendship with local residents. During his visit to the United States last February, President Xi revisited the small town and had a get-together with his old friends by the fireplace, which is yet another wonderful story of the friendship between the Chinese leader and ordinary Americans. Just as small streams were joined together to become a large river, the heartfelt mutual affection and the growing friendly exchange between the Chinese and American peoples will push China-U.S. relations to break waves and surge ahead.
Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends, the establishment and development of the CPE is a major event in our people-to-people exchange and the history of our bilateral relations. Over the past three years and more, the CPE has made continued progress and implemented over 100 important outcomes in the six areas of education, science and technology, culture, sports, women, and youth. The 100,000 Strong Initiative of the U.S. side has enabled 6- to 8,000 American students to study in China, and the (inaudible) 10,000 projects of the Chinese side has in total sent nearly 10,000 people to the United States for Ph.D. studies or joint Ph.D. programs, and invited over 10,000 Americans to China for visits or studies.
The China-U.S. Cultural Forum and the China-U.S. High-Level Women Leaders Dialogue have all become famous events. The Chinese cultural series were very well received in the United States. Traditional Chinese poets such as Oh Zhu and Hauz Shigone have gradually entered local U.S. communities. The two sides have also made positive progress in breast cancer cooperation and promotion of clean cookstoves. It’s fair to say that China-U.S. people-to-people exchange now enjoys a stronger foundation, greater substance, wider coverage, more diverse participation, and stronger, far-reaching influence.
China-U.S. relations now stand at a new historic starting point, and they face new opportunities of growth. After their two meetings held in Annenberg estate and in St. Petersburg, President Xi and President Obama reached important agreement on building a new model of major country relationship between China and the United States. People-to-people exchange as one of the three pillars supporting the growth of China-U.S. relations plays an indispensible role and a strategic role in the building of this new model of major country relationship. Continued progress in people-to-people exchange can enable us to more effectively increase mutual understanding and trust and uphold mutual interests. In so doing we will enable our public to better appreciate the spirit of mutual respect and win-win cooperation that’s laying a solid, popular basis for the new model of major country relations between our two countries. We hope to work with the U.S. side to make the best use of this pioneering row of people-to-people exchange mechanism and comprehensively deepen and broaden such exchange.
With this in mind, I wish to make three proposals. First, we need to seek common ground while reserving differences and further capitalize the bridge-building role of mutual learning among various civilizations. Our world, rich and colorful as it is, has different civilizations. It is the beautiful leaves of different colors that make Washington, D.C. in autumn so beautiful. There are no two identical leaves in the world. It’s only natural that China and the United States, two major countries with different national conditions, histories, cultures, and systems have differences with each other. The American people have the American dream while the Chinese people have the Chinese dream.
Despite our different choice of development paths, we have a lot in common as we all endeavor to pursue people’s happiness, social harmony, economic prosperity, and world peace. People-to-people exchange is a solid bridge connecting China and the United States, and they will lead us to our common bright future. We need to further increase interactions between cultural institutions, organizations and industries; learn from each other and draw upon each other’s strength to seek commonality and harmony from diversity and difference; and pursue development through interactions in a joint effort to promote progress of human civilizations.
Second, we need to build trust, dispel misgivings, and further strengthen the catalytic effect of mutual trust between us. Former U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt has a famous saying that the only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today. Some of the differences and problems between China and the United States are, to a large extent, the result of lack of mutual understanding and trust. People-to-people exchange could gradually yet steadily bring the two peoples closer, increase their mutual trust, and remove prejudices and differences between them so that bilateral relations between us will become more resilient and dynamic.
To this end, we need to further encourage all forms of exchanges between people from all sectors and at all ages, and ensure the success of the exchange between young political leaders, scientists, engineers, and artists, and the Youth RME Partnership program with a view to improving understanding of each other’s national and social conditions. Third, we need to keep abreast of the times and open up new prospects of China-U.S. people-to-people exchange.
I am delighted to see that this meeting of the CPE is marked by three highlights. First, the theme activities of years and innovation have been launched. The hope of sustainable development of China-U.S. relations lies in the youth. Youth is the fresh force of the two countries and represents the bright future. I hope they will work together and enhance cooperation to cope with the common challenges facing us and make fresh contribution to world peace and progress.
Second, think tank exchanges have been introduced. This afternoon, I will engage in interactions with American scholars from think tanks at the United States Institute of Peace. I hope Chinese and American scholars will carry out more joint research programs on such topics as how to build the new model of major country relationship and strengthen people-to-people exchange, providing intellectual support, policy recommendations, and a theoretical basis for China-U.S. people-to-people exchange.
Third, provincial state people-to-people exchange under the framework of the CPE have expanded in depth and breadth. We need to bring the priority of our work down to lower levels and fully leverage the role of the mechanism of sister provinces, states, and cities so as to make people-to-people exchange closer to the society and people, and ensure that people are truly involved and benefit from it in this way. More and more people of our two countries will participate in and contribute to the exchange and share in its fruits. I believe the seeds of friendship, trust, and cooperation that we saw today will surely grow into a towering tree and yield bumper harvest.
Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends, I am convinced that with the platform of the CPE, mutual understanding, trust, and friendship between the two peoples will further build up, and the giant ship of China-U.S. relations will sail more steadily toward its great goal. I look forward to working with Secretary Kerry and everyone here to create an even brighter future for China-U.S. people-to-people exchange, and make our due contribution to the growth of China-U.S. relations, to the well-being of the two peoples and world peace. Thank you. (Applause.)
THREE EXECUTIVES PLEAD GUILTY TO ROLES IN SEATBELT PRICE FIXING CONSPIRACY
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Three Takata Corp. Executives Agree to Plead Guilty to Participating in Global Seatbelt Price Fixing Conspiracy
All Agree to Serve Prison Time in the United States
Three high-level executives of Tokyo-based Takata Corp. have agreed to plead guilty for their participation in a conspiracy to fix prices of seatbelts installed in cars sold in the United States, the Department of Justice announced today. The executives have also agreed to serve time in a U.S. prison.
According to the one-count felony charges filed separately against each of the executives today in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan in Detroit, Yasuhiko Ueno, Saborou Imamiya and Yoshinobu Fujino participated in a conspiracy to rig bids for, and to fix, stabilize and maintain the prices of seatbelts sold to Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co. Ltd., Nissan Motor Co. Ltd., Fuji Heavy Industries Inc. – more commonly known by its brand name, Subaru – and Mazda Motor Corp. in the United States and elsewhere. The three executives have agreed to serve prison sentences ranging from 14 to 19 months, and to cooperate with the department’s ongoing investigation.
Ueno was employed by Takata’s Auburn Hills, Mich.-based U.S. subsidiary, TK Holdings Inc., in the United States as senior vice president for sales for Japanese manufacturers from at least January 2006 through December 2007. From early 2008 through June 2009, Ueno was employed by Takata in Japan as deputy division director of the customer relations division, and as director of the customer relations division from June 2009 through at least February 2011. According to the charge, Ueno’s involvement in the conspiracy lasted from at least as early as January 2006 until at least February 2011. Ueno has agreed to serve 19 months in prison and to pay a $20,000 criminal fine.
Imamiya was employed by Takata in Japan as general manager for Toyota sales from at least January 2008 to July 2009, and as director of the customer relations division from July 2009 through at least February 2011. According to the charge, Imamiya’s involvement in the conspiracy lasted from at least as early as January 2008 until at least February 2011. Imamiya has agreed to serve 16 months in prison and to pay a $20,000 criminal fine.
Fujino was employed by Takata in Japan as the manager of the Toyota group within the customer relations division from at least January 2004 through June 2005, and as the manager of the Mazda group within the customer relations division from June 2005 through the end of 2007. From the beginning of 2008 through at least February 2011, Fujino was employed by TK Holdings in the United States as assistant vice president for sales for Japanese manufacturers. According to the charge, Fujino’s involvement in the conspiracy lasted from at least as early as January 2004 until at least February 2011. Fujino has agreed to serve 14 months in prison and to pay a $20,000 criminal fine.
Takata Corp. is a manufacturer of automotive occupant safety systems, including seatbelts. Seatbelts are safety strap restraints designed to secure an occupant in position in a vehicle in the event of an accident, and may be sold bundled with related parts according to the needs of the automobile manufacturer. According to the charges, the Takata executives and their co-conspirators carried out the conspiracy by, among other things, agreeing during meetings and communications to coordinate bids submitted to the automobile manufacturers.
On Sept. 26, 2013, Gary Walker, an executive of TK Holdings Inc., agreed to plead guilty and serve a sentence of 14 months in prison for his involvement in the same conspiracy. On Oct. 9, 2013, Takata Corp. agreed to plead guilty for its involvement in the conspiracy and to pay a criminal fine of $71.3 million.
Each of the executives is charged with price fixing in violation of the Sherman Act, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million criminal fine for individuals. The maximum fine for an individual may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine.
Including today’s charges, 24 individuals have been charged in the department’s investigation into price fixing and bid rigging in the auto parts industry. Additionally, 21 corporations have been charged.
The current prosecution arose from an ongoing federal antitrust investigation into price fixing, bid rigging and other anticompetitive conduct in the automotive parts industry, which is being conducted by each of the Antitrust Division’s criminal enforcement sections and the FBI. Today’s charges were brought by the National Criminal Enforcement Section, with the assistance of the Detroit, Michigan, Field Office of the FBI.
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Three Takata Corp. Executives Agree to Plead Guilty to Participating in Global Seatbelt Price Fixing Conspiracy
All Agree to Serve Prison Time in the United States
Three high-level executives of Tokyo-based Takata Corp. have agreed to plead guilty for their participation in a conspiracy to fix prices of seatbelts installed in cars sold in the United States, the Department of Justice announced today. The executives have also agreed to serve time in a U.S. prison.
According to the one-count felony charges filed separately against each of the executives today in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan in Detroit, Yasuhiko Ueno, Saborou Imamiya and Yoshinobu Fujino participated in a conspiracy to rig bids for, and to fix, stabilize and maintain the prices of seatbelts sold to Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co. Ltd., Nissan Motor Co. Ltd., Fuji Heavy Industries Inc. – more commonly known by its brand name, Subaru – and Mazda Motor Corp. in the United States and elsewhere. The three executives have agreed to serve prison sentences ranging from 14 to 19 months, and to cooperate with the department’s ongoing investigation.
Ueno was employed by Takata’s Auburn Hills, Mich.-based U.S. subsidiary, TK Holdings Inc., in the United States as senior vice president for sales for Japanese manufacturers from at least January 2006 through December 2007. From early 2008 through June 2009, Ueno was employed by Takata in Japan as deputy division director of the customer relations division, and as director of the customer relations division from June 2009 through at least February 2011. According to the charge, Ueno’s involvement in the conspiracy lasted from at least as early as January 2006 until at least February 2011. Ueno has agreed to serve 19 months in prison and to pay a $20,000 criminal fine.
Imamiya was employed by Takata in Japan as general manager for Toyota sales from at least January 2008 to July 2009, and as director of the customer relations division from July 2009 through at least February 2011. According to the charge, Imamiya’s involvement in the conspiracy lasted from at least as early as January 2008 until at least February 2011. Imamiya has agreed to serve 16 months in prison and to pay a $20,000 criminal fine.
Fujino was employed by Takata in Japan as the manager of the Toyota group within the customer relations division from at least January 2004 through June 2005, and as the manager of the Mazda group within the customer relations division from June 2005 through the end of 2007. From the beginning of 2008 through at least February 2011, Fujino was employed by TK Holdings in the United States as assistant vice president for sales for Japanese manufacturers. According to the charge, Fujino’s involvement in the conspiracy lasted from at least as early as January 2004 until at least February 2011. Fujino has agreed to serve 14 months in prison and to pay a $20,000 criminal fine.
Takata Corp. is a manufacturer of automotive occupant safety systems, including seatbelts. Seatbelts are safety strap restraints designed to secure an occupant in position in a vehicle in the event of an accident, and may be sold bundled with related parts according to the needs of the automobile manufacturer. According to the charges, the Takata executives and their co-conspirators carried out the conspiracy by, among other things, agreeing during meetings and communications to coordinate bids submitted to the automobile manufacturers.
On Sept. 26, 2013, Gary Walker, an executive of TK Holdings Inc., agreed to plead guilty and serve a sentence of 14 months in prison for his involvement in the same conspiracy. On Oct. 9, 2013, Takata Corp. agreed to plead guilty for its involvement in the conspiracy and to pay a criminal fine of $71.3 million.
Each of the executives is charged with price fixing in violation of the Sherman Act, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million criminal fine for individuals. The maximum fine for an individual may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine.
Including today’s charges, 24 individuals have been charged in the department’s investigation into price fixing and bid rigging in the auto parts industry. Additionally, 21 corporations have been charged.
The current prosecution arose from an ongoing federal antitrust investigation into price fixing, bid rigging and other anticompetitive conduct in the automotive parts industry, which is being conducted by each of the Antitrust Division’s criminal enforcement sections and the FBI. Today’s charges were brought by the National Criminal Enforcement Section, with the assistance of the Detroit, Michigan, Field Office of the FBI.
LIVING LEGEND AWARD HONORS MEXICAN ANTHROPOLOGIST MIGUEL LEON-PORTILLA
FROM: U.S. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
A Celebration of Mexico: Honoring a “Living Legend”
November 21, 2013 by Erin Allen
Mexican anthropologist and historian Miguel León-Portilla is the newest recipient of the Library of Congress Living Legend Award for his work in studying the Náhuatl language and literature – the ancient, still-spoken tongue of the Aztecs. The award will be conferred upon León-Portill at the Library’s “Celebration of Mexico”on Dec. 12.
The Living Legend Award honors those who have made significant contributions to America’s diverse cultural, scientific and social heritage. León-Portilla is the world’s foremost authority on Náhuatl philology and philosophy. He has spearheaded an entire scholarly discipline to evaluate and understand Náhuatl literature and thought, extending from pre-Columbian times to the 1.5 million speakers of Náhuatl today. The language of the Aztecs, Náhuatl has been spoken in Central Mexico since at least the 7th century AD.
A Celebration of Mexico: Honoring a “Living Legend”
November 21, 2013 by Erin Allen
Mexican anthropologist and historian Miguel León-Portilla is the newest recipient of the Library of Congress Living Legend Award for his work in studying the Náhuatl language and literature – the ancient, still-spoken tongue of the Aztecs. The award will be conferred upon León-Portill at the Library’s “Celebration of Mexico”on Dec. 12.
The Living Legend Award honors those who have made significant contributions to America’s diverse cultural, scientific and social heritage. León-Portilla is the world’s foremost authority on Náhuatl philology and philosophy. He has spearheaded an entire scholarly discipline to evaluate and understand Náhuatl literature and thought, extending from pre-Columbian times to the 1.5 million speakers of Náhuatl today. The language of the Aztecs, Náhuatl has been spoken in Central Mexico since at least the 7th century AD.
PRESIDENT OBAMA'S REMARKS AT CHAMPIONS OF CHANGE CONNECT ED
FROM: THE WHITE HOUSE
Remarks by the President at Champions of Change ConnectED Event
South Court Auditorium
November 21, 2013
THE PRESIDENT: Well, hello, everybody. Have a seat, have a seat. And thank you, Misa, for the introduction and, more importantly, what you are doing in the classroom every single day, which is making such a big difference. And I want to welcome all of you who are here. This is one of my favorite events we do periodically. It gives me an opportunity to say thanks and recognize people who are making extraordinary contributions in their local communities. And we’re learning from you, seeing what works, seeing what has an impact.
We call them Champions of Change: people who have done some innovative work that hopefully can be replicated in other parts of the country once they have good models that are having success. And today, we are honoring 10 educators who use technology to support one of our country’s top priorities, and that’s preparing our kids and our workers for the competition that they’re going to face in a 21st century global economy.
In an age when the world’s information is just a click away, we’ve got to bring our schools and our libraries into the 21st century. That’s why five months ago I launched an initiative that we’re calling ConnectED to bring high-speed Internet to 99 percent of American students over the next five years. And this is going to be a top priority for me. It’s going to take some hard work across my administration, but I’m committed to getting it done.
Because this is not just about wiring schools; it’s about changing students’ lives. It’s about using technology to give students a chance to learn at their own pace, whether they’re catching up on a subject or moving ahead to the next level. It’s about giving teachers a better data set so they can see exactly what’s working and what isn’t for particular students. It’s about unleashing a new market for educational devices and apps that will create jobs and spur innovation.
And it’s about supporting outstanding, innovative educators like our Champions for Change. Because of their work in North Dakota, young people with autism are using educational apps to discover abilities that they didn’t even know that they had. In Colorado, preschoolers have now obtained access to a digital discovery center that helps them to get a great education from the earliest age. In Georgia, students at an after-school technology club are learning skills that are going to help them succeed in college and throughout their careers. And today’s Champions of Change are helping to give our students what every parent wants for their child -- the chance to go as far as their talents and hard work will take them.
So to all of our Champions for Change, we want to thank you for your extraordinary efforts. As long as I’m President, I’m going to keep working not only to support the great work that educators and librarians are doing across the country but more fundamentally to make sure that young people are getting every opportunity that they deserve to thrive and succeed in this modern economy. And I see some young people here and they look like they’re doing pretty good. (Laughter.) Although they may be bored by me making too long a speech. (Laughter.)
Thank you very much, everybody.
Remarks by the President at Champions of Change ConnectED Event
South Court Auditorium
November 21, 2013
THE PRESIDENT: Well, hello, everybody. Have a seat, have a seat. And thank you, Misa, for the introduction and, more importantly, what you are doing in the classroom every single day, which is making such a big difference. And I want to welcome all of you who are here. This is one of my favorite events we do periodically. It gives me an opportunity to say thanks and recognize people who are making extraordinary contributions in their local communities. And we’re learning from you, seeing what works, seeing what has an impact.
We call them Champions of Change: people who have done some innovative work that hopefully can be replicated in other parts of the country once they have good models that are having success. And today, we are honoring 10 educators who use technology to support one of our country’s top priorities, and that’s preparing our kids and our workers for the competition that they’re going to face in a 21st century global economy.
In an age when the world’s information is just a click away, we’ve got to bring our schools and our libraries into the 21st century. That’s why five months ago I launched an initiative that we’re calling ConnectED to bring high-speed Internet to 99 percent of American students over the next five years. And this is going to be a top priority for me. It’s going to take some hard work across my administration, but I’m committed to getting it done.
Because this is not just about wiring schools; it’s about changing students’ lives. It’s about using technology to give students a chance to learn at their own pace, whether they’re catching up on a subject or moving ahead to the next level. It’s about giving teachers a better data set so they can see exactly what’s working and what isn’t for particular students. It’s about unleashing a new market for educational devices and apps that will create jobs and spur innovation.
And it’s about supporting outstanding, innovative educators like our Champions for Change. Because of their work in North Dakota, young people with autism are using educational apps to discover abilities that they didn’t even know that they had. In Colorado, preschoolers have now obtained access to a digital discovery center that helps them to get a great education from the earliest age. In Georgia, students at an after-school technology club are learning skills that are going to help them succeed in college and throughout their careers. And today’s Champions of Change are helping to give our students what every parent wants for their child -- the chance to go as far as their talents and hard work will take them.
So to all of our Champions for Change, we want to thank you for your extraordinary efforts. As long as I’m President, I’m going to keep working not only to support the great work that educators and librarians are doing across the country but more fundamentally to make sure that young people are getting every opportunity that they deserve to thrive and succeed in this modern economy. And I see some young people here and they look like they’re doing pretty good. (Laughter.) Although they may be bored by me making too long a speech. (Laughter.)
Thank you very much, everybody.
THUNDERSNOW: THE SOUND OF LAKE-EFFECT SNOW IN THE GREAT LAKES REGION
FROM: NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Scientists brave Old Man Winter to dig out secrets of lake-effect snows
'Tis the season...for snow.
Thundersnow.
Rare anywhere, thundersnow is sometimes heard during the lake-effect snowstorms of the Great Lakes. The interaction of clouds and ice pellets inside these storms generates a charge, with lightning and thunder the result.
How to catch thundersnow in action? This winter, stalwart veterans of tornadoes, hurricanes and other severe storms will be watching.
One is known as the Doppler-on-Wheels (DOW), a National Science Foundation (NSF) national facility used by NSF-supported and other researchers. Joining it is a University of Wyoming instrumented aircraft, the King Air, also an NSF-funded national facility.
In rain, sleet or snow, like the postman, they always deliver...storm data.
Using the DOW, the King Air and other equipment, scientists from across the country will converge on the shores of Lake Ontario from Dec. 5-21, 2013, and Jan. 4-29, 2014.
They will work to better understand the atmospheric conditions and mechanisms that lead to the deep snows that accumulate across the region each winter.
The project is called OWLeS (Ontario Winter Lake-effect Systems). OWLeS is funded by NSF and is a collaborative effort of nine universities.
Participating institutions are the University of Wyoming, University of Illinois, University of Utah, State University of New York (SUNY) Oswego, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Millersville University, Penn State University, University of Alabama in Huntsville, SUNY Albany and the Center for Severe Weather Research (CSWR) in Boulder, Colo.
Although lake-effect snowstorms happen near all the Great Lakes, the New York area along Lake Ontario has some of the deepest snowfalls. Average annual snow reaches more than 100 inches. Nearby locations, such as the Tug Hill Plateau, may be blanketed with more than 250 inches each year.
But lake-effect snows aren't limited to the shores of Lake Ontario.
New York's Finger Lakes region also bears the brunt of lake-enhanced snowstorms. Complex interactions between the local environment and the far-reaching influence of Lake Ontario can significantly affect the location of lake-effect snowbands, says scientist Scott Steiger of SUNY Oswego.
"Even winter-hardened Great Lakes residents and infrastructure can be severely affected by heavy lake-effect snows," says Brad Smull, program director in NSF's Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences, which funded the research.
"OWLeS' unique suite of modern mobile observing equipment and computer-based storm models will help us understand the processes that control the timing and location of these zones of heavy snow."
OWLeS scientists will use a network of specialized weather instrumentation--including three DOWs, the King Air, several weather balloon sounding systems, and a vertically-pointing radar wind profiler---to study the inner workings of lake-effect snowstorms.
The DOW and the King Air will intercept the lake-effect snowbands that cause the heavy snowfalls of the Lake Ontario region.
The King Air will fly over Lake Ontario, collecting data on snow and ice pellets, temperatures and other properties inside lake-effect snowbands.
The DOW looks more like the dish of a radio telescope than a sophisticated weather instrument. It's mounted on the back of a flat-bed truck. DOW-on-board, the truck becomes an odd configuration of generator, equipment and operator cabin.
Ungainly as it may appear, it's ideally suited to providing detailed information on the inner workings of snowstorms, says Josh Wurman, CSWR director.
The DOW uses Doppler radar to produce velocity data about objects--such as severe storms--at a distance.
"The King Air also carries Doppler radar that will transect the snowbands and a lidar that will show how the bands first form near the upwind side of the lake," says Bart Geerts of the University of Wyoming, co-lead scientist on the project with David Kristovich of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Lakes upwind of Lake Ontario can have a big influence on how heavily, and where, lake-effect snows fall.
"Air that has been moistened and mixed by moving over Lake Huron, Lake Michigan and even Lake Superior can play a major role in the large amount of snow that falls in the Lake Ontario snowbelt," says Kristovich.
Some of the questions scientists will investigate during OWLeS include:
What environmental factors have the greatest influence on the amount of snowfall and location of snowbands over and near Lake Ontario?
How do other Great Lakes affect the amount of snow that falls near Lake Ontario?
How does the interplay between winds and clouds produce long-lived snowbands far downstream of open water?
How does the local terrain influence the strength and longevity of these systems?
As snows begin to fall, the researchers will head out to collect data. The results will lead to increased predictability of, and preparedness for, Old Man Winter.
-NSF-
Scientists brave Old Man Winter to dig out secrets of lake-effect snows
'Tis the season...for snow.
Thundersnow.
Rare anywhere, thundersnow is sometimes heard during the lake-effect snowstorms of the Great Lakes. The interaction of clouds and ice pellets inside these storms generates a charge, with lightning and thunder the result.
How to catch thundersnow in action? This winter, stalwart veterans of tornadoes, hurricanes and other severe storms will be watching.
One is known as the Doppler-on-Wheels (DOW), a National Science Foundation (NSF) national facility used by NSF-supported and other researchers. Joining it is a University of Wyoming instrumented aircraft, the King Air, also an NSF-funded national facility.
In rain, sleet or snow, like the postman, they always deliver...storm data.
Using the DOW, the King Air and other equipment, scientists from across the country will converge on the shores of Lake Ontario from Dec. 5-21, 2013, and Jan. 4-29, 2014.
They will work to better understand the atmospheric conditions and mechanisms that lead to the deep snows that accumulate across the region each winter.
The project is called OWLeS (Ontario Winter Lake-effect Systems). OWLeS is funded by NSF and is a collaborative effort of nine universities.
Participating institutions are the University of Wyoming, University of Illinois, University of Utah, State University of New York (SUNY) Oswego, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Millersville University, Penn State University, University of Alabama in Huntsville, SUNY Albany and the Center for Severe Weather Research (CSWR) in Boulder, Colo.
Although lake-effect snowstorms happen near all the Great Lakes, the New York area along Lake Ontario has some of the deepest snowfalls. Average annual snow reaches more than 100 inches. Nearby locations, such as the Tug Hill Plateau, may be blanketed with more than 250 inches each year.
But lake-effect snows aren't limited to the shores of Lake Ontario.
New York's Finger Lakes region also bears the brunt of lake-enhanced snowstorms. Complex interactions between the local environment and the far-reaching influence of Lake Ontario can significantly affect the location of lake-effect snowbands, says scientist Scott Steiger of SUNY Oswego.
"Even winter-hardened Great Lakes residents and infrastructure can be severely affected by heavy lake-effect snows," says Brad Smull, program director in NSF's Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences, which funded the research.
"OWLeS' unique suite of modern mobile observing equipment and computer-based storm models will help us understand the processes that control the timing and location of these zones of heavy snow."
OWLeS scientists will use a network of specialized weather instrumentation--including three DOWs, the King Air, several weather balloon sounding systems, and a vertically-pointing radar wind profiler---to study the inner workings of lake-effect snowstorms.
The DOW and the King Air will intercept the lake-effect snowbands that cause the heavy snowfalls of the Lake Ontario region.
The King Air will fly over Lake Ontario, collecting data on snow and ice pellets, temperatures and other properties inside lake-effect snowbands.
The DOW looks more like the dish of a radio telescope than a sophisticated weather instrument. It's mounted on the back of a flat-bed truck. DOW-on-board, the truck becomes an odd configuration of generator, equipment and operator cabin.
Ungainly as it may appear, it's ideally suited to providing detailed information on the inner workings of snowstorms, says Josh Wurman, CSWR director.
The DOW uses Doppler radar to produce velocity data about objects--such as severe storms--at a distance.
"The King Air also carries Doppler radar that will transect the snowbands and a lidar that will show how the bands first form near the upwind side of the lake," says Bart Geerts of the University of Wyoming, co-lead scientist on the project with David Kristovich of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Lakes upwind of Lake Ontario can have a big influence on how heavily, and where, lake-effect snows fall.
"Air that has been moistened and mixed by moving over Lake Huron, Lake Michigan and even Lake Superior can play a major role in the large amount of snow that falls in the Lake Ontario snowbelt," says Kristovich.
Some of the questions scientists will investigate during OWLeS include:
What environmental factors have the greatest influence on the amount of snowfall and location of snowbands over and near Lake Ontario?
How do other Great Lakes affect the amount of snow that falls near Lake Ontario?
How does the interplay between winds and clouds produce long-lived snowbands far downstream of open water?
How does the local terrain influence the strength and longevity of these systems?
As snows begin to fall, the researchers will head out to collect data. The results will lead to increased predictability of, and preparedness for, Old Man Winter.
-NSF-
Friday, November 22, 2013
DEFENSE DEPARTMENT CONTRACTS FOR NOVEMBER 22, 2013
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
CONTRACTS
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
BAE Systems Aerospace, Phoenix, Ariz., has been awarded a maximum $11,093,991 modification (P00102) exercising the first one-year option period on a one-year base contract (SPM8EH-13-D-0002) with four one-year option periods for life preservers and component parts. This is a firm-fixed-price with economic-price contract. Location of performance is Arizona with a Dec. 5, 2014 performance completion date. Using military service is Air Force. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pa.
Patriot Industries Inc.*, Monticello, Ky., has been awarded a maximum $9,262,151 firm-fixed-price contract for modular lightweight load carrying equipment. This contract is a competitive acquisition and ten offers were received. Location of performance is Kentucky with a Nov. 30, 2014 performance completion date. This is a one-year base contract with two one-year option periods. Using military services are Army and Air Force. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pa., (SPM1C1-14-D-1002).
AIR FORCE
Lockheed Martin Corp., Sunnyvale, Calif., has been awarded a $105,083,207 modification (P00057) to an existing cost-plus-award-fee contract (FA8808-10-C-0002) to provide MILSATCOM Orbital Operations and Logistics Sustainment Support functions to support the operations and sustainment of Milstar and the Defense Satellite Communications System. This modification exercises the fourth option year. Work will be performed in Sunnyvale,
Calif., and is expected to be completed by Nov. 30, 2014. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $17,500,000 are being obligated at time of award. Space and Missile Systems Center/PKJ, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado Springs, Colo., is the contracting activity.
Jacobs Technology Inc., Lincoln, Mass., has been awarded a $12,800,149 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification (P00013) on an existing contract (FA8721-13-C-00008) to continue providing disciplined systems/specialty engineering and technical/Information Assurance services, support, and products using established government, contractor, and industry processes. This contract provides a broad array of classified cryptographic and information assurance (IA) systems, equipment, services and support across different DoD agencies, U.S. military departments and various foreign military sales customers. A good portion of the contract supports developing, acquiring, modernizing, testing, fielding, sustaining and disposing of COMSEC systems, sustaining SIGINT equipment, providing key management, providing information assurance services, and providing cryptographic/IA logistical and field support services. In addition, the contract also supports the Defense Enterprise Accounting and Management System program. Work will be performed at Lincoln, Mass., and is expected to be completed by May 19, 2014. Fiscal 2013 research and development and procurement funds and fiscal 2014 research and development, procurement and operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $2,342,754 will be obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center/PZM, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., is the contracting activity.
ARMY
Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., Stratford, Conn., was awarded a $46,867,800 firm-fixed-price contract to convert 26 UH-60M Black Hawk aircraft to Taiwan Army and Taiwan National Airborne Service Corps configurations. Estimated completion date is Aug. 30, 2016. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds were obligated at the time of the award. One bid was solicited and one received. Work location is Stratford, Conn. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal (Aviation), Ala., is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-12-C-0008).
Weeks Marine Inc., Covington, La., was awarded a $21,253,000 firm-fixed-price contract for pipeline dredging of the Bayport Flare and Houston Ship Channel, Redfish to Beacon 78, Chambers County, Texas. Dredging consists of 742,000 cubic yards for Bayport Flare Sections 1 and 2; and 3,989,000 cubic yards for Houston Ship Channel Sections 4 through 14. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Army funds in the amount of $17,306,000 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is Dec. 3, 2014. Bids were solicited via the Internet with two received. Work location will be Anahuac, Texas. Army Corps of Engineers, Galveston, Texas, is the contracting activity (W9126G-14-C-0001).
Hamp’s Construction LLC, New Orleans, La. was awarded an $11,658,930 firm-fixed-price contract for clearing and grubbing the existing levee, including debris disposal, demolition of the flood wall and cutting sheet piles. Hamp’s will also remove abandoned pipelines, remove and replace existing riprap armament, furnish borrow pit preparation, construct a levee enlargement, and surface same, realign and surface access ramps, install deep soil mixing material for ground improvement including soil and excavation disposal, and seeding, fertilizing and mulching, and other related work. Estimated completion date is Aug. 29, 2014. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds were obligated at the time of the award. Bids were solicited via the Internet with six received. Work location is Buras, La. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans, La., is the contracting activity (W912P8-14-C-0009).
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Aerospace Systems, Redondo Beach, Calif., was awarded an $8,192,012 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for a protected Military Satellite Communications design for affordability risk reduction demonstration. This is proposed against Army Research Laboratory broad agency announcement. Estimated completion date is Jan. 21, 2015. Fiscal 2014 research, development, test and evaluation funds were obligated at the time of the award. Bids were sent out via the Internet with an indeterminate number received. Work location is Redondo Beach, Calif. Army Contracting Command, Adelphi, Md., is the contracting activity (W911QX-14-C-0004).
Shavers-Whittle Construction LLC, Mandeville, La., was awarded an $8,112,606 firm-fixed-price contract for the Southeast Louisiana Urban Flood Control Project, Soniat Canal, Jefferson Parish, La. Estimated completion date is Aug. 5, 2015. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds were obligated at the time of the award. Bids were solicited via the Internet with eight received. Work location will be New Orleans, La. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans, La., is the contracting activity (W912P8-14-C-0010).
SOS International, Reston, Va. was awarded a $7,299,684 modification (P00009) to firm-fixed-price contract W52P1J-11-C-0058 which will execute option year two for public affairs operations in support of U.S. Forces - Afghanistan. Estimated completion date is Nov. 26, 2014. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Army funds were obligated at the time of the award. Bids were solicited via the Internet with four received. Work location will be Afghanistan. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island, Ill., is the contracting activity (52P1J-11-C-0058).
Black River Constructors Joint Venture, La Crosse, Wis., was awarded a $7,299,000 firm-fixed-price contract for The Grand Encampment Island Unloading Project to remove dredged and other materials from the Mississippi River’s Grand Encampment Island, Pool 4, Buffalo County, Wis. Estimated completion date is Nov. 15, 2015. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds were obligated at the time of the award. Bids were solicited via the Internet with two received. Work location will be Alma, Wis. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul, Minn., is the contracting activity (W912ES-14-C-0002)
NAVY
Bell-Boeing Joint Project Office, Amarillo, Texas, is being awarded a $33,023,240 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to delivery order 0044 previously issued against a basic ordering agreement (N00019-12-G-0006) in support of the V-22. This modified order provides for engineering and technical support for the V-22 flight control system and on-aircraft avionics software; flight test planning and coordination of changed avionics and flight control configuration; upgrade planning of avionics and flight controls, including performance of qualification testing and integration testing on software products. Work will be performed at Ridley Park, Pa. (90 percent) and Fort Worth, Texas (10 percent), and is expected to be completed in December 2015. Fiscal 2013 aircraft procurement, Navy; fiscal 2013 aircraft procurement, Air Force; fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Air Force; and fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Navy contract funds in the amount of $33,023,240 will be obligated at time of award, of which $7,907,796 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.
Raytheon Co., Integrated Defense Systems, Tewksbury, Mass., is being awarded a $17,000,000 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-10-C-5126) to exercise fiscal 2014 options for deferred mission systems equipment for DDG 1001. Work will be performed in Portsmouth, R.I. (48 percent), Minneapolis, Minn. (41 percent), and Moorestown, N.J. (11 percent), and is expected to be completed by April 2017. Fiscal 2014 shipbuilding and conversion, Navy funds in the amount of $17,000,000 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.
Lockheed Martin Corp., Missiles and Fire Control, Orlando, Fla., is being awarded $13,297,674 for cost-plus-fixed-fee order 0015 under a previously awarded basic ordering agreement (N00164-11-G-JQ97) for the procurement of eight redesigned Turret Electronic Unit prototypes and related data items for the Target Sight Systems AN/AAQ-30(A). This acquisition is for the AN/AAQ-30 Target Sight Systems (TSS) that is to be integrated into the AH-1Z Cobra Attack Helicopter. This integration is part of the U.S. Marine Corps H-1 Upgrades Program for the remanufacture of legacy aircraft with state of the art designs incorporated into the existing fleet of AH-1W’s, converting them to AH-1Z. The TSS provides target identification and tracking, passive targeting for integrated weapons, including Hellfire missiles, and a laser designation capability supporting friendly laser-guided weapons. Work will be performed in Orlando, Fla., and is expected to be completed by April 2016. Fiscal 2013 aircraft procurement Navy contract funds in the amount of $13,297,674 will be obligated at time of award, and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured in accordance with 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1), as set forth in FAR 6.203-1(b)(1)(ii) - only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane, Ind., is the contracting activity.
MISSILE DEFENSE AGENCY
Kearfott Corp., Little Falls, N.J., is being awarded an $18,700,000 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to design, develop, assemble and test high fidelity inertial measurement units (IMU) that meet or exceed the requirements of MDA-STD-005 for the Missile Defense Agency Advanced Technology Risk Reduction. Options work will also include qualification testing, highly accelerated life test/high accelerated stress screening and service life tests, and delivery of one set of IMU test station equipment. The work will be performed in Little Falls, N.J. The performance period is from November 2013 through September 2018. This contract was competitively procured via publication on the Federal Business Opportunities website with 112 proposals received. Fiscal 2014 research, development, test, and evaluation funds in the amount of $700,000 are being obligated on this award. The Missile Defense Agency, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (HQ0147-14-C-0002).
*Small Business
CONTRACTS
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
BAE Systems Aerospace, Phoenix, Ariz., has been awarded a maximum $11,093,991 modification (P00102) exercising the first one-year option period on a one-year base contract (SPM8EH-13-D-0002) with four one-year option periods for life preservers and component parts. This is a firm-fixed-price with economic-price contract. Location of performance is Arizona with a Dec. 5, 2014 performance completion date. Using military service is Air Force. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pa.
Patriot Industries Inc.*, Monticello, Ky., has been awarded a maximum $9,262,151 firm-fixed-price contract for modular lightweight load carrying equipment. This contract is a competitive acquisition and ten offers were received. Location of performance is Kentucky with a Nov. 30, 2014 performance completion date. This is a one-year base contract with two one-year option periods. Using military services are Army and Air Force. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pa., (SPM1C1-14-D-1002).
AIR FORCE
Lockheed Martin Corp., Sunnyvale, Calif., has been awarded a $105,083,207 modification (P00057) to an existing cost-plus-award-fee contract (FA8808-10-C-0002) to provide MILSATCOM Orbital Operations and Logistics Sustainment Support functions to support the operations and sustainment of Milstar and the Defense Satellite Communications System. This modification exercises the fourth option year. Work will be performed in Sunnyvale,
Calif., and is expected to be completed by Nov. 30, 2014. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $17,500,000 are being obligated at time of award. Space and Missile Systems Center/PKJ, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado Springs, Colo., is the contracting activity.
Jacobs Technology Inc., Lincoln, Mass., has been awarded a $12,800,149 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification (P00013) on an existing contract (FA8721-13-C-00008) to continue providing disciplined systems/specialty engineering and technical/Information Assurance services, support, and products using established government, contractor, and industry processes. This contract provides a broad array of classified cryptographic and information assurance (IA) systems, equipment, services and support across different DoD agencies, U.S. military departments and various foreign military sales customers. A good portion of the contract supports developing, acquiring, modernizing, testing, fielding, sustaining and disposing of COMSEC systems, sustaining SIGINT equipment, providing key management, providing information assurance services, and providing cryptographic/IA logistical and field support services. In addition, the contract also supports the Defense Enterprise Accounting and Management System program. Work will be performed at Lincoln, Mass., and is expected to be completed by May 19, 2014. Fiscal 2013 research and development and procurement funds and fiscal 2014 research and development, procurement and operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $2,342,754 will be obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center/PZM, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., is the contracting activity.
ARMY
Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., Stratford, Conn., was awarded a $46,867,800 firm-fixed-price contract to convert 26 UH-60M Black Hawk aircraft to Taiwan Army and Taiwan National Airborne Service Corps configurations. Estimated completion date is Aug. 30, 2016. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds were obligated at the time of the award. One bid was solicited and one received. Work location is Stratford, Conn. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal (Aviation), Ala., is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-12-C-0008).
Weeks Marine Inc., Covington, La., was awarded a $21,253,000 firm-fixed-price contract for pipeline dredging of the Bayport Flare and Houston Ship Channel, Redfish to Beacon 78, Chambers County, Texas. Dredging consists of 742,000 cubic yards for Bayport Flare Sections 1 and 2; and 3,989,000 cubic yards for Houston Ship Channel Sections 4 through 14. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Army funds in the amount of $17,306,000 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is Dec. 3, 2014. Bids were solicited via the Internet with two received. Work location will be Anahuac, Texas. Army Corps of Engineers, Galveston, Texas, is the contracting activity (W9126G-14-C-0001).
Hamp’s Construction LLC, New Orleans, La. was awarded an $11,658,930 firm-fixed-price contract for clearing and grubbing the existing levee, including debris disposal, demolition of the flood wall and cutting sheet piles. Hamp’s will also remove abandoned pipelines, remove and replace existing riprap armament, furnish borrow pit preparation, construct a levee enlargement, and surface same, realign and surface access ramps, install deep soil mixing material for ground improvement including soil and excavation disposal, and seeding, fertilizing and mulching, and other related work. Estimated completion date is Aug. 29, 2014. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds were obligated at the time of the award. Bids were solicited via the Internet with six received. Work location is Buras, La. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans, La., is the contracting activity (W912P8-14-C-0009).
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Aerospace Systems, Redondo Beach, Calif., was awarded an $8,192,012 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for a protected Military Satellite Communications design for affordability risk reduction demonstration. This is proposed against Army Research Laboratory broad agency announcement. Estimated completion date is Jan. 21, 2015. Fiscal 2014 research, development, test and evaluation funds were obligated at the time of the award. Bids were sent out via the Internet with an indeterminate number received. Work location is Redondo Beach, Calif. Army Contracting Command, Adelphi, Md., is the contracting activity (W911QX-14-C-0004).
Shavers-Whittle Construction LLC, Mandeville, La., was awarded an $8,112,606 firm-fixed-price contract for the Southeast Louisiana Urban Flood Control Project, Soniat Canal, Jefferson Parish, La. Estimated completion date is Aug. 5, 2015. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds were obligated at the time of the award. Bids were solicited via the Internet with eight received. Work location will be New Orleans, La. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans, La., is the contracting activity (W912P8-14-C-0010).
SOS International, Reston, Va. was awarded a $7,299,684 modification (P00009) to firm-fixed-price contract W52P1J-11-C-0058 which will execute option year two for public affairs operations in support of U.S. Forces - Afghanistan. Estimated completion date is Nov. 26, 2014. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Army funds were obligated at the time of the award. Bids were solicited via the Internet with four received. Work location will be Afghanistan. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island, Ill., is the contracting activity (52P1J-11-C-0058).
Black River Constructors Joint Venture, La Crosse, Wis., was awarded a $7,299,000 firm-fixed-price contract for The Grand Encampment Island Unloading Project to remove dredged and other materials from the Mississippi River’s Grand Encampment Island, Pool 4, Buffalo County, Wis. Estimated completion date is Nov. 15, 2015. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds were obligated at the time of the award. Bids were solicited via the Internet with two received. Work location will be Alma, Wis. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul, Minn., is the contracting activity (W912ES-14-C-0002)
NAVY
Bell-Boeing Joint Project Office, Amarillo, Texas, is being awarded a $33,023,240 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to delivery order 0044 previously issued against a basic ordering agreement (N00019-12-G-0006) in support of the V-22. This modified order provides for engineering and technical support for the V-22 flight control system and on-aircraft avionics software; flight test planning and coordination of changed avionics and flight control configuration; upgrade planning of avionics and flight controls, including performance of qualification testing and integration testing on software products. Work will be performed at Ridley Park, Pa. (90 percent) and Fort Worth, Texas (10 percent), and is expected to be completed in December 2015. Fiscal 2013 aircraft procurement, Navy; fiscal 2013 aircraft procurement, Air Force; fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Air Force; and fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Navy contract funds in the amount of $33,023,240 will be obligated at time of award, of which $7,907,796 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.
Raytheon Co., Integrated Defense Systems, Tewksbury, Mass., is being awarded a $17,000,000 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-10-C-5126) to exercise fiscal 2014 options for deferred mission systems equipment for DDG 1001. Work will be performed in Portsmouth, R.I. (48 percent), Minneapolis, Minn. (41 percent), and Moorestown, N.J. (11 percent), and is expected to be completed by April 2017. Fiscal 2014 shipbuilding and conversion, Navy funds in the amount of $17,000,000 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.
Lockheed Martin Corp., Missiles and Fire Control, Orlando, Fla., is being awarded $13,297,674 for cost-plus-fixed-fee order 0015 under a previously awarded basic ordering agreement (N00164-11-G-JQ97) for the procurement of eight redesigned Turret Electronic Unit prototypes and related data items for the Target Sight Systems AN/AAQ-30(A). This acquisition is for the AN/AAQ-30 Target Sight Systems (TSS) that is to be integrated into the AH-1Z Cobra Attack Helicopter. This integration is part of the U.S. Marine Corps H-1 Upgrades Program for the remanufacture of legacy aircraft with state of the art designs incorporated into the existing fleet of AH-1W’s, converting them to AH-1Z. The TSS provides target identification and tracking, passive targeting for integrated weapons, including Hellfire missiles, and a laser designation capability supporting friendly laser-guided weapons. Work will be performed in Orlando, Fla., and is expected to be completed by April 2016. Fiscal 2013 aircraft procurement Navy contract funds in the amount of $13,297,674 will be obligated at time of award, and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured in accordance with 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1), as set forth in FAR 6.203-1(b)(1)(ii) - only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane, Ind., is the contracting activity.
MISSILE DEFENSE AGENCY
Kearfott Corp., Little Falls, N.J., is being awarded an $18,700,000 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to design, develop, assemble and test high fidelity inertial measurement units (IMU) that meet or exceed the requirements of MDA-STD-005 for the Missile Defense Agency Advanced Technology Risk Reduction. Options work will also include qualification testing, highly accelerated life test/high accelerated stress screening and service life tests, and delivery of one set of IMU test station equipment. The work will be performed in Little Falls, N.J. The performance period is from November 2013 through September 2018. This contract was competitively procured via publication on the Federal Business Opportunities website with 112 proposals received. Fiscal 2014 research, development, test, and evaluation funds in the amount of $700,000 are being obligated on this award. The Missile Defense Agency, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (HQ0147-14-C-0002).
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