EUROPE IS VITAL TO SECURITY

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE
Stavridis: Europe Remains Vital to Current, Future Security
A Navy EA-18G Growler takes off from Aviano Air Base, Italy, in support of the initial phase of Joint Task Force Odyssey Dawn, the mission to protect Libyan civilians under threat of attack by Gadhafi regime forces, March 20, 2011. U.S. European Command officials call the mission a demonstration of NATO's effectiveness. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Nadine Y. Barclay

By Donna Miles
WASHINGTON, May 3, 2012 - U.S. European Command, along with NATO allies and other close partnerships in Europe, remains critical to the United States, even as it implements new defense strategic guidance focused on challenges in the Asia-Pacific region and the Middle East, Navy Adm. James G. Stavridis, the Eucom and NATO's supreme allied commander for Europe, said.
"Let's face it: our most enduring pool of partners exists in the European theater," Stavridis said during a recent interview with the Pentagon Channel and American Forces Press Service.

He noted the strength of the 28-member NATO alliance, a 3 million-strong force with 24,000 aircraft and 800 ships. In addition, the allies have a $31 trillion collective gross national product, about $300 billion of which is devoted to defense budgets.
"This is an alliance of enormous resources, and it represents those that stand with us today in Afghanistan, in the Balkans, in the Libya operation and in [counterpiracy]," Stavridis said. "So these strategic, enduring partnerships in Europe are going to underpin the strategic focus on the challenges in Asia and in the Middle East."

That demands even more focus on Europe and NATO, explained Navy Rear Adm. Mark C. Montgomery, Eucom's deputy director for plans, policy and strategy. To address that risk elsewhere on the globe, he said, "we need to actually redouble our efforts to maintain our partners' capability and capacity."

Navy Vice Adm. Charles W. Martoglio, Stavridis' former chief of staff and now deputy commander, called the U.S. military "the glue that enables NATO to operate at the high level of efficiency that it does."

The U.S. military presence in Europe offers assurance to allies while helping them maintain the stability and economic foundation that helps create security, he explained. "So it is a win on the U.S. side, and it is a win on the European side," he said.

But beyond the U.S. commitment to the NATO alliance, Stavridis noted Europe's strategic geographic position. Forces easily can pivot from Europe into the Middle East, the Levant area at the crossroads of western Asia, the eastern Mediterranean and northeastern Africa, the Mediterranean as during the Libya operations, and down into Africa, he said.
The alliance also is postured to address security challenges, such as violent extremist organizations, directly on the European continent. "While [terrorists] have been active in Europe and there have been acts of terrorism in Europe over the last 10 years, Europe has been used primarily as a recruiting and financial center for terror activities," Martoglio said. "But that can change quickly, should it ever get into the interests of violent extremist organizations to carry out large-scale attacks in Europe."

Ultimately, Martoglio said, Eucom's forward presence makes the United States more secure. "We are a nation that has an expeditionary capability. We fight our wars overseas so we don't fight them on our own shores," he said. "And Europe and our European partners are huge enablers of that expeditionary military capability."

Stavridis said maintaining U.S. forces in Europe enhances their ability to build that capability in partnership with NATO allies and other coalition partners.

"Being in Europe gives us the opportunity to train, exercise and work every day with this combat-ready force that has fought with us in Afghanistan, the Balkans, in [counterpiracy] and other missions," he said. "So there are a lot of good reasons for us to be engaged and 'home-ported,' as we would say in the Navy, in Europe."

The new force posture in Europe, with a 15-percent troop reduction to be offset partially with increased ship, aircraft and special operations capabilities, ensures the proper force number and configuration to support the new strategy guidance, he said.

As it is implemented, Stavridis offered assurance that forces assigned to Eucom will stay actively engaged in vital real-world missions in Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
"We will continue to have an important and enduring mission in the European theater for many years to come," he said.

ATTORNEY GENERAL HOLDER AT DETROIT NAACP CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION

FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE 
Attorney General Eric Holder Speaks at the Detroit NAACP Centennial Celebration 57th Annual Fight for Freedom DinnerDetroit ~ Sunday, May 6, 2012
Thank you, Reverend Anthony, for those kind words – and thank you all for the opportunity to take part in this momentous celebration.   It’s a pleasure to join Mayor Bing, along with Detroit’s hardworking Congressional delegation – Senator Levin, Senator Stabenow, Congressman Conyers, and Congressman Clarke – in marking the centennial of the largest – and one of the most accomplished – NAACP branches in the country.

I’d like to thank this branch’s leadership and membership – as well as tonight’s General Chairs and Co-Chairs – for all they’ve done to bring us together tonight.   And I’d particularly like to congratulate this year’s award recipients – Rhonda Walker, Nabih Ayad, Rachel Maddow, Maureen Taylor, and Reverend Dr. Julius Hope – on this prestigious, and well-deserved, recognition.

It’s a privilege to be back in the Motor City – and to bring greetings from President Obama.   This is an historic evening – an occasion to take pride in the legacy of achievement that has come to define and distinguish the work of the NAACP and, in particular, of its Detroit Branch.   But it’s also an important opportunity to take stock of what’s left to do – and to consider the challenges that lie before us.   So, as we come together to celebrate the power of individual voices, and the collective action – and nationwide progress – that a single person can help to inspire – let us also reflect on the responsibilities that each one of us shares – responsibilities to ourselves and each other, to our children, and to our predecessors – whose examples of courage – and commitment to collaboration – continue to show us the way forward.

Just over a century ago – at a time when segregation was the law of the land, and too many communities across our nation were gripped by fear and shattered by violence – a group of visionaries came together – driven by concern and frustration – to put forward a dream of hope for their own communities – and for all of their fellow citizens.

Since then, the NAACP has stood on the front lines of our nation’s fight to ensure security, opportunity, and justice – and equal treatment.   In a direct sense, this organization enabled many of the sweeping, transformative changes that shifted the course of the twentieth century – and paved the way for remarkable, once-unimaginable progress.   And since 1912 – when the Detroit Branch received its charter – there’s no question that this community has been at the center of these historic efforts.

When housing discrimination rocked the state of Michigan, it was the NAACP that stepped up and provided the funding to take this struggle to the court system – winning a major legal victory in 1925.

When the indignities of the unjust “separate but equal” doctrine could be tolerated no longer, it was the NAACP that shepherded a legal challenge all the way to the Supreme Court – and in 1954 helped secure the landmark Brown ruling.   That same year, the Detroit Branch obtained a decision in federal court that ended segregation in this city’s public housing system.

When pioneers like W.E.B. DuBois, Walter White, James Weldon Johnson, Rosa Parks, Medgar Evers – and a young Montgomery preacher named Martin Luther King, Jr. – raised their voices, and even risked their lives, in pursuit of a more perfect union, each of them found a position of leadership – and a community of committed partners – in the NAACP.

And when a bright young woman named Vivian Malone – who would later become my sister-in-law – set her sights on a quality college education, but was barred from enrolling in her state’s university because of her race, she came to the NAACP for advice as she mounted a legal challenge.   And in 1963 – with the support of the courts; with the help of my predecessor, Attorney General Robert Kennedy; and with the eyes of the nation upon her – she stepped past Governor George Wallace to integrate the University of Alabama.

Long before I married her sister, Vivian became that University’s first African-American graduate.   For the rest of her life, she fought for equal opportunity as a member of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, and as an activist with the National Council of Negro Women and the NAACP.   Although she passed away several years ago – much too soon – her courage has inspired me since I was a young man, seeing the iconic news images of that infamous “Stand in the Schoolhouse Door” for the very first time.   And her example continues to guide me even today.

In fact, stories like Vivian’s – and landmark achievements like the ones this Branch has helped to bring about – were what drove me, as an aspiring attorney, to spend my first summer in law school working for the NAACP’s Legal Defense and Educational Fund – where I had the chance to be part of a tradition of service that was established by legendary attorneys like Charles Hamilton Houston and Thurgood Marshall, and later strengthened by brilliant, dedicated leaders like my good friend John Payton.   Not long after, I launched my career in public service at the Department of Justice.

Today, I am humbled to be a direct beneficiary of the progress that the NAACP has made possible over the years.   And I’m honored to serve in the Administration of President Barack Obama, another direct beneficiary of this work.

Yet, despite the significant, once-unimaginable advances that have marked the century since this group convened its first meetings – not far from where we gather tonight, at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church – the unfortunate fact is that, in 2012, our nation’s long struggle to overcome injustice, to eliminate disparities, to bridge long-standing divisions, and to eradicate violence has not yet ended.

On the contrary – this work remains as important – and as urgent – as ever before.

Of course, you already know this.   You know that, in far too many American cities, there are neighborhoods where too many kids go to prison and too few go to college; where the doors to education and opportunity seem to be firmly closed; and where, for many young people, funerals are more common than weddings.   There are school districts where suspensions are disproportionately likely to be imposed on black students, Hispanic students, poor students, and students with special needs – increasing the chances that they’ll be involved with the juvenile justice system.

Fortunately, on each of these fronts, the Detroit NAACP has responded not with despair, but with resolve.   You are carrying on – and continuing to strengthen – the tradition of advocacy and empowerment that has become your hallmark.   You’re calling forth – and bringing out – the very best in this city’s residents.   You’re fighting to safeguard civil rights, to ensure embattled voting rights, and to expand learning and employment opportunities in every community.   And you’re working – on the streets as well as in the courts – to strengthen our criminal justice system, to achieve fairness in our immigration and sentencing policies, and to prevent and combat violence and crime – especially among our young people.

This is an issue that has – rightly – garnered significant national attention in recent months – as our nation has struggled to make sense of the tragic shooting death of a Florida teenager named Trayvon Martin.   As this case moves through the legal system, Justice Department officials will continue to communicate closely with state and local authorities to ensure that community concerns are heard, tensions are alleviated, and – as with every investigation at every level – appropriate actions are guided by the facts and the law.

But – as we all know – the reality is that certain aspects of this case are far from unique.   And incidents of violence involving young people are anything but rare.

Nationwide, homicide is the leading cause of death for black men between the ages of 15 and 24.  More than 60 percent of all young people are exposed to violence at some point in their lives, either as victims or as witnesses.   And one report even showed that – here in Detroit – an average of two young black men are killed every week – a murder rate nearly seven times higher than the population at large.

I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that this is shocking.   It is unacceptable.   And it’s why the leadership of organizations like the NAACP – and the engagement of activists throughout Detroit and across the country – remains as vital as ever.

It’s also why, under the Obama Administration, the Justice Department has made an unprecedented commitment to protecting the safety – and potential – of our children.   For the first time in history, we are directing significant resources for the express purpose of addressing childhood exposure to violence, raising awareness of its ramifications, and advancing scientific inquiry on its causes and characteristics.   Through our landmark Defending Childhood Initiative, which I launched in 2010 – and our National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention, which is implementing an action plan right here in Detroit – we’re developing strategies for reducing violence and countering its negative impact.   And in six cities – including this one – an innovative pilot initiative known as “Strong Cities, Strong Communities” is allowing local leaders to leverage federal, state, local, business, and non-profit partnerships in order to enhance cooperation on a host of community-based efforts – including violence prevention.

I believe there’s good reason for optimism about where this work will lead us – and the progress that this type of collaboration has made possible.   And I’m pleased to report that a similar spirit of partnership – and a robust, Department-wide commitment to protecting the most vulnerable among us, confronting longstanding divisions, and overcoming persistent disparities – has infused the Administration’s endeavors on a range of critical areas.

Nowhere is this more clear than in the determined efforts of our Civil Rights Division.   As Attorney General, I have the great privilege – and the solemn duty – of enforcing many of the laws and reforms that the NAACP and other groups have fought, over the past century, to enact.  For the Department and our allies across the country, this work is among our highest priorities.  And I’m proud to say that our approach has never been more effective.

Over the past three years, the Department’s Civil Rights Division has filed more criminal civil rights cases than ever before, including record numbers of police misconduct, hate crimes, and human trafficking cases.   We’ve moved aggressively to combat continuing racial segregation in schools – and to eliminate discriminatory practices in our housing and lending markets.   We’ve taken decisive action to vigorously enforce the 1965 Voting Rights Act – our nation’s most important civil rights statute – by challenging attempts to disenfranchise many of our fellow citizens.    And we’ve reinvigorated sweeping efforts to ensure that, in our workplaces and military bases; in our housing and lending markets; in our schools and places of worship; in our immigrant communities and our voting booths – the rights of all Americans are protected.

Across the Administration, we’re working in a range of other innovative ways to achieve fairness and expand opportunity – from successfully advocating for the reduction of the unfair and unjust 100-to-1 sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine offenses – to launching a new, Department-wide Diversity Management Initiative.   And our determination to build on these efforts has, quite simply, never been stronger.

Of course, I cannot pretend that the road ahead will be an easy one.   And I recognize – and have seen firsthand – that doing what’s right may not always be the same as doing what’s popular.

But I firmly believe that each of us has the power – and the responsibility – to take up the unfinished struggle for equal opportunity and justice.   To rise to this moment of possibility – and seize our chance to protect and empower those who need our help most.

After all – if, as they say, what’s past is prologue – tonight’s celebration of your first 100 years should inspire a great deal of confidence about where the NAACP’s Detroit Branch will lead us over the next 100.

And, as we look toward the future we seek – and, together, must build – know that my colleagues and I at every level of the Justice Department are privileged to count you as partners.   Know that I am hopeful about all that we can – and will – achieve together.   And finally, know that I am honored to stand with you – tonight and always – in living out the spirit that inspired the creation of the NAACP – and that must always drive our pursuit of a more inclusive, more just, and more perfect union.  The creation of that better America is within our grasp.   If we commit ourselves, if we work together, if we remember the sacrifices of those who envisioned a better world – not for them, but for us – there is nothing we cannot accomplish.   So let us leave tonight secure in the knowledge that our destiny – our nation's destiny – will be determined primarily by the resolve and the vigor that we bring to this endeavor.   I look forward to working with all of you.

Thank you.

USNS MERCY LEAVES SAN DIEGO HARBOR

FROM:   U.S. NAVY
The Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) transits San Diego Harbor as the ship departs for Pacific Partnership 2012. Pacific Partnership is an annual U.S. Pacific Fleet humanitarian and civic action exercise designed to work with and through host nations to build partnerships and a collective ability to respond to natural disasters. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Eva-Marie Ramsaran (Released)

DOD AND CONSUMERS FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU PARTNER TO PROTECT SERVICE MEMBER FINANCES

FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Robert L. Gordon III, deputy assistant secretary of defense for military community and family policy, and Holly Petreaus, who heads the office of service members affairs for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, prepare to sign a joint statement of principles for protecting service members and their families from financial and consumer fraud and abuse during a ceremony at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., May 4, 2012. DOD photo by Steven Wood
DOD, Financial Protection Bureau Underscore Partnership
By Lisa Daniel
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, May 4, 2012 - Defense Department and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau officials attended a Pentagon ceremony here today where they signed a joint statement of shared principles that underscores their partnership to protect the finances of service members.

Robert L. Gordon III, deputy assistant secretary of defense for military community and family policy who signed for the department, said the ceremony was another example of the DOD and the bureau coming together to protect service members.
"This is just the beginning," Gordon said, "... as we think of novel and new ways to form a great partnership for our community."

Holly Petraeus, who signed for the bureau and leads its office of service member affairs, said the ceremony was "an outward expression of what we're already doing."
Petraeus, wife of retired Army Gen. David H. Petraeus who now serves as CIA director, said it was important to put on paper DOD's and the bureau's shared interests. As spelled out in the statement, those include:

-- Protecting service members and their families from illegal consumer financial practices and products;

-- Enabling the department and the bureau to provide input to each other to reduce financial risk for service members and their families;
-- Working together to address consumer financial concerns of military members and their families;

-- Reducing risk in the small-dollar lending market; and
-- Supporting financial literacy among service members and their families.
The statement says the department and bureau will work together to monitor market trends directed at service members and their families, coordinate consumer protection measures, identify risky small-dollar loans, and identify ways to improve laws related to financial protection of military members and their families.
"We feel that financial fitness is part of resilience and it's part of readiness for our service members and their families," Gordon said.

Too often, Petraeus said, scam artists prey on service members and their families and many have learned how to get around the language of the law. Service members and their families, she said, should take any concerns about financial and consumer protection to their installation's financial or legal offices.
"That can hold off a lot of trouble," Petraeus said.

NAVY'S ENERGY PARTNERSHIP WITH CALIFORNIA

FROM:  U.S. NAVY
Navy, California Officials Meet to Advance Energy Partnership Goals
From Naval Facilities Engineering Command Headquarters Public Affairs
SAN DIEGO (NNS) -- Representatives from California government and industry met with Navy energy leadership April 25 to discuss important energy issues, mutual challenges, and ideas on how to ensure sufficient, secure and affordable energy in the future.

Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations, and Environment Jackalyne Pfannenstiel kicked off a two-day "Smart Power Partnership Initiative" (SPPI) stakeholder summit that set forth the Navy's vision to develop regional smart grids capable of sharing power and responding quickly to grid outages and load curtailment events.

"We are seeking win-win scenarios with California through proactive efforts in which the Navy can ensure continuity of critical missions and participate in cost-incentives programs while simultaneously helping California meet load demands reliably during peak events and emergencies," said Pfannenstiel.

Leaders from the California Energy Commission, California Office of the Governor, California Public Utilities Commission, California Independent System Operator, Western Area Power Administration, Southern California Edison, and San Diego Gas and Electric participated with Navy officials in presentations and panel discussions on such issues as demand response, transmission planning, energy security, renewable energy, and associated regulatory requirements.

The Navy's flagship Smart Power Partnership Initiative is aimed at leveraging existing and planned energy investments inside installation fence lines, such as smart meters, and enhancing partnerships with energy suppliers and regulators. The initiative also explores how these investments can enable the Department of the Navy (DON) to reduce its electricity purchase costs and foster cost-effective renewable energy production at Navy and Marine Corps installations. Cost savings will come largely from aggregating the loads across installations and participation in significant utility demand response programs, in emergencies or to reduce costs.

"While our effort is long-term, proactive and strategic, the ongoing challenges with the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station highlight the importance of efforts we are piloting with SPPI," Pfannenstiel said.

The smart power initiative is currently being piloted among San Diego-area Navy and Marine Corps installations. Initial findings are expected this summer, and will be used to validate the concept and potentially export it to other large Navy and Marine Corps base areas.

In March, DON and San Diego Gas and Electric capitalized on a Navy-wide security exercise to test the ability of San Diego Navy and Marine Corps installations to reduce electrical consumption during an electricity curtailment period.

The Department of Navy's Energy Program requires the Navy to improve energy efficiency and increased use of alternative energy. Together, these strategies increase combat capability, reduce overall dependence on petroleum, and mitigate the risks posed by vulnerable energy supplies.

Also, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus established a 1 GW Task Force to assess and select renewable energy projects that will achieve DON's goal of producing or procuring 1 GW of renewable energy on or adjacent to Navy and Marine Corps installations. The 1 GW Task Force will work to achieve this goal at no additional cost to the taxpayer by using existing third-party financing mechanisms such as power purchase agreements (PPAs),joint ventures (JVs), enhanced use leases (EULs), utility energy savings contracts (UESCs), and energy saving performance contracts (ESPCs).

The 1 GW initiative continues progress toward the broadest of SECNAV's five energy goals: that by no later than 2020, at least half of all Navy energy consumption, afloat and ashore, would come from alternative sources.

TERRESTRIAL-TRUNKED RADIO PROVIDES RANGE IN DESOLATE ENVIRONMENTS

FROM:  U.S. AIR FORCE SPACE COMMAND
The desolate environment at Thule Air Base makes reliable communication vital. The 821st Air Base Group is implementing a new land mobile radio system to enhance communications capabilities and improve safety. The 821st ABG is one of the 21st Space Wing’s many geographically separated units.

Security forces enhances situational awareness with Arctic command, control innovation
rom 821st Air Base Group

5/4/2012 - THULE AIR BASE, Greenland -- Airmen at Thule Air Base are adopting a new land mobile radio system, enhancing their communications capabilities.

Known as Terrestrial-Trunked Radio, or TETRA for short, this LMR system's employment will result in enhanced situational awareness, removal of a redundant command and control node, savings of one security forces post, and enhanced emergency services interoperability across all 821st Air Base Group agencies. The new system will enhance emergency services at the remote site.

The security forces' base defense operations center manages a command and control structure involving numerous first responder agencies across a massive geographic area encompassing 2,400 acres of real estate. The installation resides approximately 900 miles south of the North Pole, 15 miles from the polar ice cap, on an inlet to the Arctic Ocean known as North Star Bay.

The air base's mission requires daily travel exceeding 10 miles across rocky terrain with significant changes in elevation. Thule AB routinely experiences hurricane force winds during long and arduous storm seasons from September through May. As a result, procedures adopted for safety and mission execution mandate BDOC maintain contact with all personnel traveling across the installation during contingency storm operations. In fact, all movement is strictly controlled by the installation commander due to potential white-out storm conditions resulting from 100 mph winds and the risk to personnel should they lose situational awareness during their commute.

In all, the security forces squadron maintains communication with a host of customers, including the squadron's posted forces, Danish police, and contractor-provided fire and medical response forces, and manages interoperability between installation senior leaders and four separate command and control centers. Prior to TETRA, BDOC managed this requirement across three disparate communications platforms.

The TETRA currently being installed at Thule AB is unique in that, unlike typical first responder systems, it is based on the UHF electromagnetic wavelength rather than the typical VHF range. As a result, it provides greater range and the ability to pierce the dense walls of Thule's facilities, used to combat the severe environmental climate.

The TETRA system provides a suite of capabilities including GPS location designation for all users, multiple voice-call modes - person to person or full network broadcast - text capability, and duress annunciation. As a result, BDOC can maintain communications with all 821st Air Base Group and Greenland contractor senior leadership, and all non-emergency and emergency response agencies on one LMR platform.

At the same time, BDOC can visually track - via a digital mapping display - the location and travel data associated with all personnel in possession of a new handheld TETRA, and verify the employment of security forces personnel during all other contingency response incidents. Finally, the range of this system will allow the primary BDOC to control all forces across the 2,400 acre Thule defense area.

Many organizations participated in this shift to ensure the first responder community at Thule AB had a system capable of the significant geographic coverage and situational awareness necessary to ensure sound response protocols. The 821st Support Squadron Communication Flight recognized the technological capability, conducted site surveys and system testing, and communicated to the Air Force Space Command Communications and Information Directorate the need and justification that resulted in approval for a system not previously used.

The 821st Security Forces Squadron plans and programs section coordinated the re-write of an existing AFI with the AFSPC Security Forces Directorate to allow for the employment of the new technology. Finally, identification of the system and its potential occurred as a result of the communication's expertise that resides within the Greenland contractor's staff, who is also the primary installer of the equipment which achieved initial operational capability at the end of April.

The ability of those involved in the acquisition and employment of TETRA to break through long-held beliefs about one way to do business has resulted in a level of situational awareness never before possessed at Thule AB.

In times of shrinking budgets and reduced manpower, innovation is critical to the success of force protection initiatives. When dominating the high ground from a climatically-challenging area like Thule AB, innovation is vital.

MELTING GLACIERS AND RISING OCEANS

FROM:  NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Analysis of Speed of Greenland Glaciers Gives New Insight for Rising Sea Level
May 4, 2012
Changes in the speed that ice travels in more than 200 outlet glaciers indicates that Greenland's contribution to rising sea level in the 21st century could be significantly less than the upper limits some scientists thought possible.

The finding comes from a paper funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and NASA and published in today's journalScience.

While the study indicates that a melting Greenland's contributions to rising sea levels could be less than expected, researchers concede that more work needs to be done before any definitive trend can be identified.

Studies like this one are designed to examine more closely and in greater detail what is actually happening with the ice sheets, often using newer and more precise tools and thereby better defining the parameters that scientists use to make predictions, such as the upper limits of sea-level rise.

"This study provides more evidence that the rate at which these glaciers can dump ice into the ocean is indeed limited," said Ian Howat, assistant professor of Earth sciences and member of the Byrd Polar Research Center at Ohio State University, a co-author on the paper. "What remains to be seen is how long the acceleration will continue--but it appears that our worst-case scenarios aren't likely."

The fate of the Earth's ice sheets and their potential contributions to sea-level rise as the globe warms are among the major scientific uncertainties cited in the Fourth Assessment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). This is in part because the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets have historically been, and in large measure continue to be, relatively sparsely monitored, as compared to other parts of the globe.

The faster the glaciers move, the more ice and melt water they release into the ocean.
In previous studies, scientists trying to understand the contribution of melting ice to rising sea level in a warming world considered a scenario in which the Greenland glaciers would either double or increase by as much as ten-fold their velocity between 2000 and 2010 and then stabilize at the higher speed.

This new study shows Greenland ice would likely move at the lower rate--a doubling of its speed--and contribute about four inches to rising sea level by 2100. The previous studies used the higher speed and estimated the glaciers would contribute nearly 19 inches by the end of this century.

In the new study, the scientists extracted a decade-long record of changes in Greenland outlet glaciers by producing velocity maps using data from the Canadian Space Agency's Radarsat-1 satellite, Germany's TerraSar-X satellite and Japan's Advanced Land Observation Satellite. They started with the winter of 2000-01 and then repeated the process for each winter from 2005-06 through 2010-11 and found that the outlet glaciers had not increased in velocity as much as had been speculated.

"So far, on average we're seeing about a 30 percent speedup in 10 years [of Greenland glaciers, which gives new insight for rising sea level]," said Twila Moon, a University of Washington doctoral student in Earth and space sciences and lead author of the paper documenting the observations.

"This study is a great example of the power of high-resolution data sets in both space and time, and the importance of looking carefully at as much data as possible in helping make the best predictions we can of future changes", said Henrietta Edmonds, program director for Arctic Natural Sciences in NSF's Office of Polar Programs.

The scientists saw no clear indication in the new research that the glaciers will stop gaining speed during the rest of the century, and so by 2100 they could reach or exceed the scenario in which they contribute four inches to sea level rise.

The record showed a complex pattern of behavior. Nearly all of Greenland's largest glaciers that end on land move at top speeds of 30 to 325 feet a year, and their changes in speed are small because they are already moving slowly. Glaciers that terminate in fjord ice shelves move at 1,000 feet to a mile a year, but didn't gain speed appreciably during the decade.

In the East, Southeast and Northwest areas of Greenland, glaciers that end in the ocean can travel seven miles or more in a year. Their changes in speed varied (some even slowed), but on average the speeds increased by 28 percent in the Northwest and 32 percent in the Southeast during the decade.

Moon said she was drawn to the research from a desire to take the large store of data available from the satellites and put it into a usable form to understand what is happening to Greenland's ice. "We don't have a really good handle on it and we need to have that if we're going to understand the effects of climate change," she said.  "We are going to need to continue to look at all of the ice sheet to see how it's changing, and we are going to need to continue to work on some tough details to understand how individual glaciers change."

Satellite view of northwest Ireland

Satellite view of northwest Ireland

100,000 STRONG STATE DEPARTMENT INITIATIVE

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
100,000 Strong Initiative
Fact Sheet Office of the Spokesperson Washington, DC
May 4, 2012
On May 4, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chinese State Councilor Liu Yandong hailed the importance of people-to-people engagement during the third annual U.S.-China Consultation on People-to-People Exchange (CPE). The CPE aims to enhance and strengthen ties between the citizens of the United States and China in the areas of education, culture, sports, science and technology, and women’s issues.
At today’s closing plenary of the CPE, Secretary Clinton announced new private sector pledges in support of the 100,000 Strong Initiative, which seeks to increase the number and diversify the composition of Americans studying in China. To date, the Initiative has received pledges of over $15 million and the Chinese government has offered 20,000 scholarships for Americans studying in China in support of the Initiative. New announcements today include:

Creation of the 100,000 Strong Foundation: Secretary Clinton announced that the Ford Foundation will independently provide $1 million in seed funding to stand up a private non-profit that will promote and perpetuate the goals of the 100,000 Strong Initiative. The new organization will launch a national public relations campaign to encourage Americans to study abroad in China as well as solicit new resources to create opportunities for students from underserved communities to study in China.

Funding Stream from New Web Platform: GlamourPin, a web-based commerce platform for Chinese consumers, will independently support the growth of the 100,000 Strong Foundation by providing a royalty of one percent of all sales to enhance educational exchange between American and Chinese youth.

Over $1 Million in New Corporate Funding for China Exchange Programs: American corporations continue to support the 100,000 Strong Initiative through grants to schools and study abroad programs. New corporate donors include Bank of China ($315,000), Microsoft ($100,000) and Motorola Mobility Foundation ($400,000). These funds will go to support increased study abroad opportunities for underserved high school students through Americans Promoting Study Abroad (APSA), the Chicago Public School System, OneWorldNow!, and the DC Center for Global Education and Leadership. Wanxiang America has independently supported the Initiative. Deloitte and Hilton Worldwide have also committed $100,000 each to support study abroad in China.

Launch of Scholarship Campaign for HBCU Students: Secretary Clinton has issued a call to action to presidents of public and private Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to double the number of their students who study abroad in China. Under the 100,000 Strong Initiative, the Thurgood Marshall College Fund is working to create a scholarship for students at public and private HBCUs that would provide financial aid for their study abroad in China. Currently, African-Americans are underrepresented in study abroad programs globally and in China.

Scholarships for Seattle Youth to Travel to Chongqing: The Chongqing Municipal Education Commission will provide 40 scholarships under the “Seattle Strong” campaign, a local affiliation with the 100,000 Strong Initiative, OneWorldNow! (OWN!) and the City of Seattle. The scholarships will help underserved Seattle Public School youth engage in an intensive Mandarin language immersion program in Seattle followed by three weeks of study in Chongqing.

Expanding Ties to Jiangsu Province: The 100,000 Strong Initiative and the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Government are committed to increasing two-way educational exchange between American high school students and their counterparts from Jiangsu Province. This effort, like the Seattle-Chongqing partnership, is designed to support people-to-people ties on the sub-national level.

New Partnership Between Institute of International Education and Hanban: The Institute of International Education and Hanban agreed to work together on a new scholarship to provide more opportunities for Americans to study in China. They will support 60-70 American students who are pursuing M.A. or PhD degrees in the United States to spend two or three semesters in a host university in China for advanced language training, coursework, and research related to the study of modern and contemporary China.

The United States and China are cooperating closely to achieve the goals of the 100,000 Strong Initiative: to increase dramatically the number, and diversify the composition, of American students studying in China as a means to enhance people-to-people ties between our two nations.

TWO INVESTOR SEMINAR SALESPEOPLE ARE CHARGED FOR SECURITIES LAW VIOLATIONS

FROM:  SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION 
May 1, 2012
SEC Charges Two Former Investor Seminar Salespeople with Securities Law Violations
On April 30, 2012, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a settled civil injunctive action against two former salespeople in the investor seminar industry. Defendants Darlene Nelson Powell and Robert Eldridge consented to the entry of final judgments without admitting or denying the allegations of the Commission’s complaint.

The Commission’s complaint alleges that Powell and Eldridge were independent contractors for Long Term-Short Term Inc., d/b/a BetterTrades, and sold products and services to investors who wanted to learn how to trade options and other securities. The complaint alleges that Eldridge put on a live online securities trading mentoring program under the name “Daily Cash Flow Trading Lab.” According to the complaint, Eldridge made misleading statements that he was an experienced, successful securities trader and made additional misleading statements about the success of securities trading in the Daily Cash Flow Trading Lab. Based on Eldridge’s misrepresentations, the complaint alleges that customers purchased subscriptions to the trading lab and traded securities he recommended. The complaint further alleges that Powell misleadingly portrayed herself as an expert securities investor who made her living trading securities. Contrary to her representation that she became wealthy trading securities, the complaint alleges that she was not a successful securities trader. According to the complaint, Powell’s self-portrayal as a successful securities trader misled investors into believing that they too would profit trading securities if they purchased the instructional courses and other products and sold and followed the securities trading strategies she espoused. The complaint alleges that, by their conduct, the defendants violated Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (“Exchange Act”) and Exchange Act Rule 10b-5.

Defendants Powell and Eldridge consented to final judgments enjoining them from violating the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws, and enjoining them for five years from receiving compensation from participating in securities trading seminars. Powell consented to the entry of a final judgment imposing a civil money penalty of $130,000 and ordering her to pay disgorgement of $81,036 and prejudgment interest of $21,840. Eldridge consented to a judgment that does not impose civil penalties based on his sworn representations in a Statement of Financial Condition and other documents.

ARRAIGNMENTS OVER, 9/11 TRIAL IS COMING

DETENTION CAMP – A U.S. Army soldier stands guard as a detainee spends time in the exercise yard outside Camp Five at the Joint Task Force Guantanamo detention center on Naval Base Guantanamo Bay.  U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Jon Soucy.   

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE
Arraignment Ends as Legal Teams Gird for Long 9/11 Trial
By Karen Parrish
NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba, May 6, 2012 - Defense and prosecution teams said today they expect the trial of five alleged 9/11 co-conspirators to take many months or years, while family members of those killed Sept. 11, 2001, said they're glad the trial is in the military's hands.

Yesterday's roughly 13-hour arraignment here of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Walid Muhammad Salih Mubarak bin Attash, Ramzi bin al Shibh, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali and Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi was the first chapter of what attorneys on both sides describe as an epically complicated trial to come.

Army Col. James Pohl, the judge in the case, yesterday set the first motions hearing for June 12. Army Brig. Gen. Mark Martins, chief prosecutor, said he expects "hundreds of motions" during the proceedings.

"For so many determined people involved in this trial, the pursuit of justice is worth every moment spent," he said.

Martin noted many of the motions the defense team has filed and likely will file involve classification issues. The motions process -- in which either side can file, the other side responds, and finally the judge rules – serves to "tee up" a common approach to contested issues, the general said.

Martins acknowledged government investigations have concluded defendants were tortured during the early stages of their confinement. That greatly complicates the case, he said, but doesn't lessen the trial's importance. Torture is deplorable and shameful, he said. "The remedy is not to just dismiss all charges; it's harder than that," he added.

Martins said the government's case will not include any evidence resulting from torture. He added he doesn't agree with defense attorneys' contention that classification rules prevent them from discussing their clients' mistreatment or torture with them.

"They can talk to their clients about anything," the chief prosecutor said. What attorneys can't do, he said, is provide their clients with information that involves "sources and methods": locations of detention facilities; identities of cooperating governments; identities of anyone involved in the capture, transfer, detention or interrogation of detainees; interrogation techniques applied to individual detainees unless that information has been declassified; and conditions of confinement.

"If, in those five categories, there's material that relates to source and method that can still protect people from terrorist attacks, ... then that's going to be classified, and we're going to work to protect it," he said. Typically, that sort of information would be discussed in closed court, he said.

Defense attorneys have a "healthy skepticism" about the level of transparency possible in the case, Martins noted.

"What we're trying to do is put the question of the fate of these individuals – their guilt or innocence ... and the appropriate sentence – to a panel of 12 jury men and women," he said.

Defense attorneys differed in the views they shared with reporters today on yesterday's arraignment.

James Harrington is "learned counsel" for Shibh, which means he is experienced in death penalty cases. Under military commissions rules, each defendant in a capital case is assigned a learned counsel.

While the arraignment was very long, Harrington said, "I could say it went smoother than some people had anticipated. ... Things are set to progress."

Defense teams' jobs are to defend their clients, regardless of public opinion or the sympathy the attorneys feel for 9/11 victims' families, he added. "[The defendants] are entitled to a fair trial," he said. "It's our obligation to try and get them a fair trial."
Navy Cmdr. Walter Ruiz, learned counsel for Hawsawi, said yesterday's proceedings were "terrible."

"We had some measure of hope" that legal issues raised by defense attorneys would be heard, Ruiz said. "They were not."

He said that after the arraignment yesterday, he discussed the likely duration of the coming hearings and eventual trial with a colleague. Ruiz recounted what he told his coworker: "I said, 'I didn't believe you when you said I might retire from here.' And then I said, 'I may never have another legal job.'"

He added he hopes the second trial for the accused – the first was suspended, and the military commission process changed – doesn't repeat the mistakes of the earlier proceedings.

"What is important to understand is that the reason this process has to drag on ... is because [proceedings under the previous rules] tried to cut corners constitutionally ... [and] procedurally," Ruiz said.

While attorneys on both sides predict a hard grind ahead, several family members of 9/11 victims who attended the arraignment said they are glad the proceedings happen here.
Mary Henwood and her sister, Tara Henwood-Butzbaugh, attended the proceedings in memory of their brother, John Henwood, who was 35 when he was killed in the World Trade Center's Tower 1.

"He was murdered that day. He was terrorized, and he was murdered," she said. To the question of whether military commissions are appropriate to the case, she replied, "Absolutely."

Henwood said she has met with the prosecution and has seen the trial facilities here. "I feel very comfortable that this is finally happening," she said.

Cliff and Christina Russell came here in honor of Cliff's brother, Stephen, a New York City firefighter who died in Tower 1.
"I'm comfortable with it being [a capital case], ... I'm comfortable with it being military, and I'm comfortable with it being here, as opposed to being in [a] federal courthouse," he said.

Russell added he came to see the proceedings not out of a desire for vengeance, but for "some kind of psychological satisfaction."
Eddie Bracken came to Cuba to pay tribute to his sister, Lucy Fishman, who died in Tower 2. Bracken said a fair and just trial for the accused will show the world what America is based on.

"Do I respect the people that are defending them? Yes," he said. "It's about our justice system and how we uphold it."
On the location, Bracken said, "I'd rather have it here. This is the safest place in the world."

Bracken offered a comment he'd direct to Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta if he were here: "Your people are doing a great job."

Martins said the reading of the charges in yesterday's arraignment provided a "stirring reminder" of the crimes that occurred Sept. 11, 2001.

MOTORCYCLE SAFETY A DEFENSE PRIORITY

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE

Motorcycle Safety Remains Top Priority for Defense Leaders

By Army Sgt. 1st Class Tyrone C. Marshall Jr.

WASHINGTON, May 4, 2012 - Preventing motorcycle accidents and fatalities remains a top priority for Defense Department leaders, a senior defense official said today, with training and awareness reducing the number of incidents.

"We had seen fatalities and accidents increasing as motorcycle ownership increased," Joseph Angello, DOD's director of operational readiness and safety, told the Pentagon Channel and American Forces Press Service. In 2008, the peak year for fatalities, he added, 124 service members died in motorcycle accidents.

"Since that time -- through training, through emphasis, through leadership [and] through the phenomenal work of our military services -- we've brought that number down," he said. "We lost 92 [service members] last year, and this year our trends look like we will be at that level or less."

Every loss is tragic and affects spouses, parents other family members, the service member's unit and the Defense Department, Angello said.

"We don't want anyone to lose their life in a motorcycle accident," he said. "We want them to drive safe; we want them to wear protective gear -- helmets, appropriate shoes, appropriate attire, and leathers. ... But sometimes, the best protection against a motorcycle accident is awareness, training and control. That's your best protection."

As a motorcycle rider since age 11, Angello said, he knows how much fun riding can be. But it's important for riders to respect the fact that motorcycles also are inherently dangerous, he added.

"It takes effort to ride a motorcycle properly," he said. "Accidents happen in the blink of an eye, [and] those mistakes are unforgiving." Riders who ride safely 99 times out of 100, he added, can experience a "high regret factor" the one time they don't.

The director noted motorcycle training is mandatory for all DOD personnel. In addition, military personnel are required to wear personal protective equipment, such as long sleeves, eye protection and helmets, even if they are in a "no-helmet" state.

"If you are a military member and you want to ride a motorcycle, you must have the training," Angello said. "Each of our services -- a lot of them are common courses -- have a basic motorcycle safety course. You must take it or a refresher course, an advanced rider course, or a sports bike course."

The Navy and Marine Corps developed the sports bike course in 2008 and shared it through the Defense Safety Oversight Council Private Motor Vehicle Task Force. "Sports bikes are phenomenal pieces of engineering, with power-to-weight ratios like we've never seen before," Angello said. "As a result, they are very dangerous. If ridden properly, it's enjoyment -- it's fun. But they are unforgiving."

Numerous deployments over the last decade have had an impact on the number of service members involved in motorcycle accidents, Angello said.

"We have noted, and other studies have noted, there is an increase in motorcycle accidents when people return from deployment," he said. "Our data shows [it happens] particularly within the first year when returning from deployment."

Theories as to why these fatalities are occurring include service members not having the opportunity to ride a motorcycle during deployment or the change in driving conditions when they're back home, Angello said.

"Others talk of theories such as, 'You become 'bulletproof' from your experience in theater, and you take more risks at home,'" he said. "Whatever the cause, we in DOD are taking it very seriously. When people return from deployment our leaders are ensuring people get trained."

Angello, who noted he has taken motorcycle training himself, urged all service members to take advantage of "some of the best training offered in this nation."

"Right now, the courses are for service members," he said. "Some of the installations, on a space-available basis, make arrangements for family members. However, any military member who has a dependent who wants to ride a motorcycle -- they should be trained."

Angello lauded military leaders for their commitment to addressing motorcycle safety for having "offered courses that make a difference in people's lives," and urged all military members to be ready to ride, just as they are ready for the mission when they serve in uniform.

"Ready to ride -- right equipment, right training, right conditions," he said. "Keep your awareness up, and you're ready to ride.

ATTORNEY GENERAL HOLDER SPEAKS AT MICHIGAN LAW SCHOOL SENIOR DAY

FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Attorney General Eric Holder Speaks at the University of Michigan Law School Senior Day Ceremony Ann Arbor, Mich. ~ Sunday, May 6, 2012
Distinguished faculty, administrators, and alumni; proud parents, family, and friends; and, above all, members of the Class of 2012: thank you for inviting me to share in this moment, and for welcoming me to your extraordinary campus. It’s easy to see why Michigan has built a reputation as "the most beautiful law school in the country." It was a pleasure to visit the historic law quad – and to see the stunning, new, state-of-the-art South Hall. And it is a privilege – and a very humbling experience – to share the stage with an academic leader who is very widely regarded, and has even been named by AbovetheLaw.com, as "America’s hottest Dean."

Dean Caminker, congratulations on reaching this pinnacle in your career – and for having the good judgment to quit while you’re ahead, which I can only assume is the reason you’ve announced your plans to return to the classroom and to your love of teaching after the next school year. However, I must admit I’m holding out hope that you might follow the path of your colleague – and fellow "beautiful person" – Steve Croley, who’s currently on leave from this law school and doing important work at the White House, where he’s become known as "the Tom Cruise of the West Wing."

But, of course, Steve is just one of many Michigan alums who is standing out – and providing critical service – at the highest levels of government. Along with Interior Secretary Ken Salazar; United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan, Barb McQuade, who I’m glad is here with us today; Senior Advisor to the President, Valerie Jarrett – and so many others – lawyers who were trained here at U of M are making meaningful contributions – all across, and far beyond, the country – in advancing the goals that we share, and affirming the values that inspired the founding of this remarkable institution – and brought each of you here to Ann Arbor.

Because of you and your predecessors – and because of the graduates we celebrate today – Michigan Law School is much more than a Mecca for good-looking people. It is a meeting ground for the thoughtful exchange of ideas – where issues of national importance, and global consequence, are regularly discussed and addressed; where policies aimed at expanding opportunity – from integration to affirmative action – have proven their value and provided a model of success; where a spirit of both community and compassion has taken hold; and where, for every person on this campus – no matter what you look like or believe; no matter where you’re from or how you worship; no matter who you are or who you love – you can be assured that, when it comes to protecting your best interests and basic rights, your classmates and colleagues are willing to stand up, to speak out – and even to walk out – on your behalf.

That concept – of unity and solidarity; and that the suffering of one affects the security of all – has been a defining characteristic of Michigan’s culture for more than 150 years. And I’m hardly the first to recognize it.

More than half a century ago, in the fall of 1960, when then-Senator John F. Kennedy visited this campus – to announce the concept of the Peace Corps – he observed the very same thing. Standing on the famous Michigan steps, he noted that "this University is not maintained by its alumni, or by the state, merely to help its graduates have an economic advantage in the life struggle. There is certainly a greater purpose."

That night, the soon to be President spoke directly to the students gathered before him. He called on them to reexamine their attitudes and to reconsider their possibilities. He reminded them of their readiness, and responsibility, to serve. And he enlisted their partnership in the pursuit of peace, progress, and – above all – justice.

Today, graduates, I ask the same of you. And I also ask that, for a few minutes, you set aside your concerns about job prospects, though I know they are many; that you set aside the fresh memories of final exams, though I hope they are already fading; and that you instead consider why, of all things in this world, you chose to become lawyers.
Whether you’re imagining a future defending the accused in a courtroom, drafting rulings in your chambers, prosecuting human rights abuses in your homeland, serving the people of your state in Congress, or some other path altogether, I would wager that your presence here today has something to do with the wisdom JFK offered to future generations half a century ago – only yards away from this very spot.

The obligations that President Kennedy spoke of – to contribute to the strength of this country and to help protect the rights of others and to respect the dignity of all – have now become your charge. This afternoon, as you celebrate everything you’ve achieved and experienced here, I know the last thing you want to think about is a new bond of responsibility. But, starting now, that is precisely what you must do.

Yes, you are entering an uncertain world – one burdened by economic difficulty but showing signs of recovery. And you are taking leave of this campus in an age, not only of change, but also of unprecedented challenge, new threats, and an ongoing terrorist war. A time when – despite the incredible healing, and the once-unimaginable progress, that we’ve seen in recent decades – longstanding divisions and disparities remain. It is also a time when the poorest among us continue to suffer most. There are also more systemic threats to our society: terrorists who live only to murder the innocent; an environment in the balance and at the mercy of mankind; a justice system whose promise of fairness is too often compromised by the large number of people who cannot afford or access adequate representation; and the alarming number of children who are exposed to crime, violence, disease, and neglect.

Yet, you must resist the temptation to feel as though you have been dealt a bad hand. In fact, what you have been given is a rare chance.

Know this: times of difficulty, of novel questions and new tests, are the most exciting, and consequential, times to be a lawyer. Since our nation’s earliest days, the service and contributions of attorneys – and, very often, of young attorneys – have kept the great and unique American experiment in motion. Throughout our nation’s history, people with exactly your training and experience were on the front lines of efforts to abolish slavery and segregation; to secure voting rights for women and civil rights for all; to ensure that our schools were accessible – and affordable – for our students; to provide health care for our seniors and our poor, and to guarantee decent wages for our fellow workers and their right to organize.

Now, graduates, it’s your turn. And, today, it is your time – to improve the course of our country and world, to strengthen the structures and rules that govern our society, to find the most innovative and effective ways to combat injustice, and to ensure that the change that you envision is transformed into the reality of people's lives.

I realize that I’m asking you to take up – and to carry forward – some weighty responsibilities. But I have no doubt that you are ready. And, after three years on this campus, you are superbly prepared. Just think about what you have learned here – and how much you, already, have achieved.

Each one of you survived "Transnat." You’ve mastered the rules of "Whirlyball." You’ve made it through Professor Seinfeld’s exhaustive lectures – not only about legal theory, but about theJersey Shore. You’ve put on the most acclaimed Culture Show, and the most successful SFF Auction, in school history – however, you did fail to keep some of these events off of YouTube. All I can say is: Lady Gaga would be proud.

Throughout the football season – on game day – you made sure the law school section of the "Big House" was always packed – and the same was true for the law school section of Rick’s. I’m certain that your unwavering support was essential in propelling the Wolverines to become this year’s Sugar Bowl Champions. Go Blue!

And although the members of this class have become known for their willingness to do just about anything for free food – especially if Zingerman’s sandwiches are involved – when it comes to giving back, your generosity has set a new standard. In fact, the Class of 2012 has raised record levels of funding to support critical public interest programs and projects – and to help close alarming, and unacceptable, gaps in legal services nationwide.

But you haven’t just served as role models for the 1-L’s and 2-L’s. You’ve become leaders for the entire campus. And you’ve made a difference – and your efforts have had a measurable impact – far beyond this University. You’ve contributed thousands of hours volunteering to help struggling residents, students, seniors, and veterans in Detroit. You’ve worked to provide pro bono legal assistance to tribal communities. You’ve traveled the globe to enhance freedom of expression, rallied against torture, and led international human rights workshops. You’ve gained hands-on experience helping victims through the very first human trafficking clinic in the nation – and you’ve shown your resolve to raise awareness about these heinous crimes – and to document, and strengthen, the record progress that the Justice Department and partners like you have made in combating them – by compiling the first public database of human trafficking cases in the United States.

You’ve also brought together judges, activists, and Supreme Court Justices to discuss ways to strengthen our legal system. And you’ve joined forces with local officials and community stakeholders to seek out ways to combat gang violence, to assist struggling entrepreneurs, and to protect the rights of immigrant families. And through your internships and your partnerships with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and with local law enforcement, you’ve worked to honor and uphold essential civil rights protections – including the landmark Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which President Obama signed into law nearly 3 years ago, marking a crucial step forward in safeguarding gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered individuals from vicious hate crimes.

In short, you have defined your time on this campus – and your pursuit of a law degree – not as a means to an end, but as a step toward a larger societal goal. And it’s no surprise that you’ve advanced this common goal in many different ways – for this is a terrifically diverse class.

You represent 38 states – plus Washington, D.C., Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands – as well as 14 countries. Some of you had never set foot in the United States before you arrived in Ann Arbor – and one graduate had never been in a motorized vehicle until she boarded a plane to America to seek political asylum. Many of you are the first in your family – not just to receive a law degree, but to have attended college. And you’ve come from 144 different undergrad institutions.¡¡ You range in age from 21 to 63. Twelve percent of you already have an advanced degree – and nearly all of you have post-collegiate professional or academic experience.

You are Fulbright and Truman scholars, AmeriCorps and Peace Corps volunteers, and Teach for America alumni. You’re filmmakers, musicians, reporters, military and police officers, and intelligence and legislative analysts. We have a former Notre Dame tight end, a nuclear reactor systems engineer, a wilderness ranger and a wild-land firefighter, a shoe designer, and a sheep farmer – and someone who, I’m told, has the same level security clearance that I do.

You’ve accomplished a great deal already. And there is, quite simply, no limit to what you can achieve. As you move toward continued success, we can all be encouraged by the plans that many of you are making for your future.

Already, one quarter of today’s graduates have accepted public interest positions – and will be filling a variety of exciting – and essential – posts at government agencies, judicial courts, and non-profit organizations.

For example, Kate O'Connor and Sam Dratch will be bringing their skills – and experience working with the Innocence Clinic – to state public defender offices in North Carolina and Florida. Jena Gutierrez will be joining The Florence Project in Florence, Arizona – representing unaccompanied minors detained in Arizona for immigration removal proceedings. Nick Hambley and Zach Dembo will be joining the U.S. Navy JAG Corps. Paige Fern will be moving to Los Angeles to continue the work she began here in Ann Arbor to protect the rights – and to raise awareness about the needs – of foster children. Colleen Manwell will be heading to the Neighborhood Defender Services of Harlem to represent individuals with mental health issues in civil cases. Stacey McClurkin will be joining the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office in Jonesboro, Georgia. And Amanda Klovers will be returning to Washington, D.C. – and coming to our nation’s Department of Justice – where she’ll be working for me.

But no matter your plans or future path, however you choose to move forward, each one of you will find your own answer to a question that Dean Z posed when you first arrived here as 1-L’s.

"What could be more exciting," she asked, "than studying for a career that gives you the opportunity not only to shape the world but to improve the world?"
Class of 2012, I’m here to tell you that there is, in fact, something more exciting than studyingfor this career – and that’s starting this career.

As of today, you are no longer merely students of the law. You are now stewards of our justice system. However you decide to seize this opportunity, I can think of no more exciting time to be entering the legal profession than in this new decade of the 21st century. You all have the potential – as well as the power that a Michigan law degree affords – to improve your own circumstances, to assist and protect others, and to lead our nation, and our world, toward a new era of prosperity, healing, and opportunity.
So, let me be the first to officially welcome you into a profession that will provide countless chances for you to hone your new skills, continue your learning process, channel your greatest passions, and to shape and improve the world we share.

That is your mission – and that, Class of 2012, is your responsibility.
Congratulations on reaching this moment – and thank you, once again, for allowing me to celebrate it with you. I am proud of each one of you – and I am counting on you all. A world that is still so riven with misgiving and despair is also full of hope, and hungers for the possibility of change. You must use your God-given talents and acquired skills to make this world – your world – a truly better place. I know that each one of you has that ability – and that possibility – within you. Your duty is to make certain that "what might be possible" does not become "what might have been." I am confident that you will meet your responsibilities, exceed your expectations, and help to transform our nation – and this world – for the better.
Congratulations, Class of 2012.

PRESIDENT OBAMA AND THE FUTURE OF AFGHANISTAN

Photo:  White House

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE

Obama Praises Military, Highlights 'New Chapter in Afghanistan'

By Army Sgt. 1st Class Tyrone C. Marshall Jr.

WASHINGTON, May 5, 2012 - In his weekly address today, President Barack Obama discussed his trip to Afghanistan, where he signed a historic agreement setting the stage for a long-term partnership.

"As commander in chief, nothing is more humbling or inspiring than the chance to spend some time with our troops," Obama said. "At Bagram Air Base, I visited with some of our outstanding men and women in uniform. I thanked them for their extraordinary service. And I let them know that America honors their sacrifice."

Because of their bravery and dedication, the president said, the Taliban's momentum has been broken, a strong Afghan security force has been established and al-Qaida's leadership has been devastated.

"One year ago, our troops launched the operation that killed Osama bin Laden," Obama said. "The goal that I set – to defeat al-Qaida and deny it a chance to rebuild – is within reach.

"Because of the progress we have made," he continued, "I was able to sign an historic agreement between the United States and Afghanistan that defines a new kind of relationship between our countries: a future in which Afghans are responsible for the security of their nation and we build an equal partnership between two sovereign states -- a future in which the war ends and a new chapter begins."

Though the "enormous sacrifices" of U.S. men and women are not over, Obama said, many are already returning home.

"Last year, we removed 10,000 U.S. troops from Afghanistan," he said. "Another 23,000 will leave by the end of the summer. As our coalition agreed, by the end of 2014, the Afghans will be fully responsible for the security of their country."

Urging the American people to help "secure the care and benefits our veterans have earned, so that we serve them as well as they have served us," the president praised the courage, commitment, selflessness and teamwork of troops. They have something to teach the rest of the nation, he said.

"If we follow their example," Obama said, "then I have no doubt we will preserve the promise of this country, protect the freedoms we cherish, and leave for our children an America that's built to last."

WORKER'S' MEMORIAL DAY

FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Workers' Memorial Day Summit in Los Angeles 
In observance of Workers' Memorial Day, Secretary Solis last week announced a major new outreach and education campaign to prevent deadly falls at construction sites. Solis, speaking at the Action Summit for Worker Safety and Health at East Los Angeles College, said, "This is how we can honor the fallen: by standing up together with courage and conviction and saying two words that will echo across this country: Never Again." The Occupational Safety and Health Administration will lead the awareness campaign. The event brought together business, trade organizations, union and government officials and workers committed to eliminating workplace deaths and the needless suffering experienced by workers and families across the nation.

A Memorial March, and a Powerful Moment
Labor Department agencies and staff joined with the nation last week in commemorating Workers' Memorial Day with events from California to Maine. The events gave worker advocates, union representatives, state and local government officials and others the opportunity to reflect on the terrible costs of unsafe working conditions. At one Philadelphia event, a Workers' Memorial Day procession took on an unexpected, urgent meaning. The event was organized by the Philadelphia Area Project on Occupational Safety and Health, and it closed with a march from the Sheet Metal Workers' Hall to Penn's Landing on the Delaware River, where the assembled mourners read the names of fallen workers and floated roses into the river in their honor. Along the way, members of the procession spotted two workers in a forklift elevated 18 feet above the ground, doing electrical work on a lamp in the Penn's Landing parking lot. Neither worker was using proper fall protection. Several Occupational Safety and Health Administration officials immediately left the procession to remove the workers and address safety issues. As the forklift was lowered, a clip snapped that was holding in place the cage being used as the workspace — a potentially fatal incident if not for the intervention of OSHA officials. The incident proved that memory is not always a passive exercise, and the awareness generated by an event like Workers' Memorial Day can ensure the immediate safety of workers.

OSHA's Michaels Honors Fallen Workers
On the eve of Workers Memorial Day, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels gave remarks at the memorial ceremony hosted by the National Labor College in Silver Spring, Md., to honor those who have died on the job. Michaels was joined by United Mine Workers President Cecil Roberts and the Association of Flight Attendants International Vice President Sara Nelson in a program that also paid tribute to first responders and public employees as part of the college's mission to serve the educational needs of the labor movement. Speaking from the campus' famed National Workers Memorial, Michaels invoked the inspiration drawn from these lives as a driving force behind OSHA's mission to protect workers from preventable workplace hazards. "We must remember that no job is a good job unless it's a safe job," Michaels said. "We resolve to honor their memory by pursuing our shared mission to ensure the safety and health of America's workforce." The event followed an earlier observance at the Labor Department, during which employees observed a moment of silence to honor fallen workers.

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND BUTLER UNIVERSITY RESOLVE TITLE IX ATHLETICS COMPLIANCE REVIEW

FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
U.S. Education Department Reaches Agreement with Butler University to Resolve Title IX Athletics Compliance Review
MAY 3, 2012
The U.S. Department of Education announced today that its Office for Civil Rights has entered into a resolution agreement with Butler University in Indianapolis to resolve a compliance review that was initiated at the university. The review examined whether the institution discriminates against female students by denying them an equal opportunity to participate in intercollegiate athletics and whether the university discriminates in awarding athletic scholarships.

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX), 20 U.S.C. § 1681, and its implementing regulation, 34 C.F.R. Part 106, prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex. The university is a private, co-educational institution whose intercollegiate athletics teams compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s Division I.

According to data provided by Butler, during the 2010-11 school year women made up 2,267, or 59.6 percent, of the university’s full-time undergraduate students.  But, the institution’s 164 female athletes comprised only 36.5 percent of its 449 athletes. Butler’s 285 male athletes represented 63.5 percent of its athletes. During the 2010-11 academic year, the university distributed more than $3.8 million in athletic scholarships to male and female athletes. Women received 53.4 percent of this amount and men 46.6 percent.

“The many benefits that students derive from participating in athletic competition are well-documented and extend far beyond the playing field,” said Russlynn Ali, assistant secretary for the Office for Civil Rights. “In this 40th anniversary year for Title IX, a case like this reminds us how critical this statute continues to be in ensuring equal opportunity for women in education. OCR is committed to ensuring that student athletes have equal access to those benefits, including equal opportunities to participate in sports and to be awarded scholarships based on their athletic abilities. Today’s announcement is an important step in OCR’s continued efforts to work with the nation’s institutions to accomplish this result.”

According to the agreement, by Sept. 1, the university has to demonstrate that it is accommodating effectively the interests and abilities of female students in order to provide them an equal opportunity to participate in sports or, if unable to demonstrate current compliance, submit a detailed plan to OCR to accommodate effectively the interests and abilities of female students in its athletics program over the next three academic years.  The plan must include a description of interim steps that the university will take during the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 academic years to increase athletic participation opportunities for women.
With respect to scholarships, by Sept. 1, Butler must also demonstrate that during the 2011-2012 school year equal opportunities are being provided in awarding athletic scholarships to male and female athletes.  Or, if the university is unable to demonstrate this, it must submit a detailed plan to ensure that by the beginning of the 2014-2015 academic year, Butler is in full compliance with its Title IX obligation to provide athletic scholarships in a non-discriminatory manner.

The agreement makes clear that OCR does not require or encourage the elimination of any university athletic teams and that it is seeking action from the university that does not involve the elimination of athletic opportunities. The agreement also states that nothing in the agreement requires Butler to cut the amounts of athletic scholarships it offers to either sex, and that any such cuts are discouraged.

GSA REPORT RELEASED ON GREEN BUILDING CERTIFICATION SYSTEMS

FROM:  U.S. GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION
GSA Releases Initial Report on Green Building Certification Systems
WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. General Services Administration released its review of the Green Building Certification Systems. This initial report is the first step in an extensive review process -- including a public comment period – that evaluates tools that could help federal agencies meet their goals for maintaining and constructing more sustainable and efficient buildings.  When completed, the use of updated building certification systems will help GSA’s customer agencies meet federal requirements for green construction, save taxpayer dollars and meet the goals of President Obama’s Executive Order on Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance (EO 13514).  

The U.S. government owns and leases nearly 3.4 billion square feet of real estate and is the largest consumer of energy in the United States. The U.S. General Services Administration oversees the leasing and construction of over 9,600 buildings in the federal government building portfolio, and every five years, the agency is required to review building certification systems for the entire government under the Energy Independence Security Act. In this most recent review, more than 180 green building certification systems, tools, and standards were initially screened by an independent laboratory to determine which were most applicable for construction of new buildings, major renovations, and upgrades to existing facilities.

After the most recent evaluation of green building certification systems in April, GSA successfully narrowed the field by selecting systems that employed whole building evaluations, are available within the US market, and have third party certifications.

Three certification systems passed the screening criteria: Green Building Initiative's Green Globes, U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), and the International Living Building Challenge. The initial findings from GSA revealed that none of the three building certification systems cover 100% of the Federal building requirements for new construction, major renovations, or existing buildings.

GSA will hold public listening sessions for members of the public to provide feedback on its review and convene an interagency review group to evaluate and make recommendations on how to guide government construction towards meeting the goals of President Obama’s sustainability executive order. The inter agency task is co-chaired by GSA, the Department of Energy and the Department of Defense. Agencies with large portfolio holdings such as the Department of State, National Park Service, Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Forest Service have also been invited to take part.  

The review group’s findings will be shared through a notice-and-comment period advertised in the Federal Register.  Following public comment, GSA, DOD, and DOE will develop formal recommendations on how green building certification systems will be used to facilitate high performance in the federal sector. GSA expects to make its final recommendation to the Secretary of Energy in Fall of 2012.
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Green Building Certification Systems
GSA is a centralized, federal procurement, property management, policy development and information provision agency, created by Congress to improve government efficiency and help federal agencies better serve the public.  In this role, GSA acquires products and services on behalf of federal agencies; plays a key role in developing and implementing governmentwide policies; provides services and solutions for the office operations of more than 1 million federal workers; and encourages a citizen-centric relationship with government by providing a single "point of entry" to the information and services citizens need in a timeframe they can appreciate.

VETERAN UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FALLING

FROM:  U.S. VETERANS ADMINISTRATION
Post-9/11 Veteran Unemployment Rate Still Falling; At 9.2 Percent
May 4, 2012 by Brandon Friedman
On Friday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released Veteran unemployment data for the month of April. The unemployment rate for one closely watched group, Iraq and Afghanistan-era Veterans (or Gulf War II-era Veterans), fell more than a full percentage point to 9.2 percent.

While much work remains to be done, since January 2012, post-9/11 Veterans have experienced the lowest unemployment rate in any combined four-month period since 2008. Additionally, the trend over the past 28 months—since January 2010—remains downward for America’s most recent Veterans.

Tracking Veteran unemployment is notoriously difficult, and we often see significant swings from one month to the next—which is why looking at the long-term trend is critically important. While we’re heartened that the unemployment rate among younger Veterans has fallen over the long term, it is still too high as long as thousands of returning Veterans still can’t find meaningful work.

If anything, today’s positive figure reminds us that there’s still much work to be done. VA, in conjunction with the White House and our private sector partners, remains committed to ensuring that the unemployment rate for all Veterans continues its downward path.

2012 WARRIOR GAMES CAME TO AN END

FROM:  U.S. NAVY
Vice Chief of Naval Operations (VCNO) Adm. Mark Ferguson visits with members of the Navy/Coast Guard team during the 2012 Warrior Games. More than 200 wounded, ill or injured service members from the U.S. and British armed forces are scheduled to compete in the Paralympics-style competition, May 1-5. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class David Danals (Released)