Terrence Howard, Wesley Snipes and Demetrius Shipp Jr. to star in Cut Throat City
RZA has brought in some major talent for his latest film.
According to Deadline, RZA has tapped Terrence Howard, Wesley Snipes, T.I., All Eyez on Me's Demetrius Shipp Jr., The Get Down's Shameik Moore and Baby Driver's Eiza González for his upcoming heist drama Cut Throat City.
The film, which is set in a post-Katrina New Orleans, is said to center on four boyhood friends who return to their city, to discover their homes have been decimated with no options for employment. Instead, they turn to a local gangster for work and must now pull off "a daring casino heist" in their hometown.
In addition to directing, RZA will oversee the film's soundtrack and score.
The film, which is currently filming in New Orleans, also stars Joel David Moore, Kat Graham, Rob Morgan, Keean Johnson, Denzel Whitaker and Isaiah Washington.
Source-ABC
What does the diesel change mean?
The sale of new diesel cars that do not meet latest emissions standards will face a one-off tax increase in April.
It will be levied on all diesels that do not meet the Real Driving Emissions Step 2 standards on emissions for the first year of ownership.
According to experts, it means that most new diesels would be subject to the rise.
Chancellor Philip Hammond said the tax change would apply only to cars, and "white van man" was unaffected.
Different rates of Vehicle Excise Duty will be levied according to a car's CO2 emissions band.
A Ford Fiesta or Vauxhall Astra would see a one-off £20 rise and a Land Rover Discovery a £400 increase. Cars in the top band, such as a Porsche Cayenne, would be hit with a £500 tax.
The chancellor said: "Drivers buying a new car will be able to avoid this charge as soon as manufacturers bring forward the next-generation cleaner diesels that we all want to see.
The move was part of a series of Budget policies designed to improve air quality and promote electric vehicles.
The chancellor also unveiled a £220m Clean Air Fund, and £400m - split equally between the Treasury and motor industry - to improve the charging infrastructure for electric vehicles.
There will also be another £100m in subsidies to help persuade consumers to buy electric vehicles.
The UK's motor industry trade body, the SMMT, said the chancellor's diesel tax changes risked sending out mixed messages.
Chief executive Mike Hawes said: "Diesel buyers will not face any additional taxation for the next six months, but thereafter, will face additional charges which will undermine fleet renewal efforts, which are the best and quickest way to address air quality concerns.
"Manufacturers are investing heavily in the latest low emission technology. However, it's unrealistic to think that we can fast-track the introduction of the next generation of clean diesel technology which takes years to develop."
But Peter Williams, of the motoring group RAC, said: "The chancellor has chosen to be relatively light touch when it comes to taxing new diesel cars.
"Any new diesel car registered from 1st April 2018 will be hit with a higher first year tax rate unless they conform to the latest real world driving standards.
"So current beleaguered owners of diesel cars can breathe a sigh of relief that they will not be punished further by the Treasury - but they will need to keep their eyes on local authorities who may be introducing clean air zones in the near future."
However, he added that a side effect of the Budget announcement might be a risk that drivers will be encouraged to keep their older diesel vehicles.
Source-BBC
Flirty secretary' smart assistant taken offline in China
One of China's largest tech companies has taken its "flirtatious secretary" virtual assistant offline, following a suggestion that it objectified women.
The avatar, called Vivi, was designed to be built-in on a new virtual reality headset sold by iQiyi, the video platform owned by search giant Baidu.
The voice-controlled assistant could recommend films and video games, but could also be made to flirt and dance.
Vivi has now been taken offline for "modification", said iQiyi.
The virtual reality headset was first announced in March, and Vivi was promoted as a built-in "girlfriend".
Vivi appeared in an office-like setting wearing a blouse and short skirt, and said phrases such as "I am your girlfriend. You must love and adore me".
One reviewer said the avatar could "perform sexy dances with her enchanting figure".
US newspaper the Wall Street Journal asked iQiyi whether Vivi encouraged "a view of women as sexual objects in the workplace".
In response, iQiyi said the product was a "beta-testing version designed to gather users' feedback".
It added: "iQiyi has noticed the issue raised by media and already taken the product offline for further modification. We'd like to make an apology for the concerns it might have raised."
Ex-NFL Network employee alleges sexual misconduct by former players in lawsuit
The NFL Network has suspended three analysts, including Hall of Fame running back Marshall Faulk, after an ex-wardrobe stylist for the network filed suit over sexual harassment on Monday.
The woman, Jami Cantor, alleges a number of offenses by NFL Enterprises in the lawsuit, including sexual harassment, age discrimination, wrongful termination, and unfair business practices.
Bloomberg was first to acquire the lawsuit.
"This is a severe case and I think my client is extremely courageous in coming forward," Laura Horton, Cantor's lawyer, said in a statement. "I'm grateful for the national conversation regarding sexual harassment over the last 60-90 days and I hope the conversation continues.
"The supervisors knew about it, the supervisors observed it. It was insidious in this particular environment. It's outrageous conduct and I fully intend to hold the NFL Network responsible."
The three players named in the suit who are still employed by the NFL Network, which is owned by the league, were suspended Monday.
"Marshall Faulk, Ike Taylor, and Heath Evans have been suspended from their duties at NFL Network pending an investigation into these allegations," Alex Riethmiller, vice president of communications for NFL Media, said in a statement.
The lawsuit also makes allegations against ex-NFL Network executive producer Eric Weinberger, who now works for Bill Simmons Media Group. Allegations against Weinberger include sending Cantor nude pictures and explicit texts, groping her and pressing his crotch against her shoulder.
Cantor was 51 when she was fired by NFL Network on October 10, 2016. She started working there around 2006, according to the filing.
Cantor alleges Faulk regularly asked about her sex life, groped her and once pinned her against a wall while he pulled his pants down. Both Taylor and Evans are accused of sending her nude pictures on multiple occasions.
Ex-NFL Network employees and players Donovan McNabb, Eric Davis and Warren Sapp are also named in the lawsuit.
McNabb, who starred for the Philadelphia Eagles, is alleged to have sent sexually inappropriate text messages. Davis, she says, repeatedly discussed sex in front of Cantor and propositioned her.
Sapp allegedly gave Cantor an adult toy for Christmas three years in a row.
Cantor said she repeatedly complained to superiors about the behavior of the network's employees and nothing was done. She said complaints to NFL Talent Coordinator Marc Watts were ignored, with him saying, "It’s part of the job when you look the way you do."
ABC News has reached out to all of the players' agents for comment but they have yet to respond.
The Ringer, which employs Weinberger, said in a statement, “These are very serious and disturbing allegations that we were made aware of today. We are placing Eric on leave indefinitely until we have a better understanding of what transpired during his time at the NFL, and we will conduct our own internal investigation.”
Faulk was a running back for the Indianapolis Colts and St. Louis Rams and is considered one of the greatest all-purpose backs in NFL history, finishing his 12-year career fourth all-time in yards from scrimmage. He was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 2011.
McNabb left NFL Network in 2013, while Davis left earlier this year. Davis now hosts a radio show on ESPN Los Angeles 710 AM.
Source-ABC
Sky News faces uncertain future after Disney deal
Walt Disney's agreement to buy most of 21st Century Fox's business for $52.4bn (£39bn) has raised further questions about the Sky News channel's future.
Before news of the deal, Rupert Murdoch's Fox had been trying to buy the 61% of satellite broadcaster Sky that it does not yet own.
That attempt attracted the scrutiny of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which is investigating it.
But of all the channels that Sky has in its portfolio, including sports and movies, it is the ownership of its news channel that raises the most difficulties.
Last month, Sky sent shivers down the spines of Sky News journalists by threatening to close the channel if it proved to be an obstacle in Mr Murdoch's takeover bid.
Now it seems that Sky News could fall into Disney's hands as a result of this latest piece of corporate wheeler-dealing.
After all, Fox's efforts to take over Sky become less politically sensitive if the Murdoch family's existing 39% stake in Sky has been sold to Disney, making it more likely that the takeover will go ahead.
Former ITN chief executive Stewart Purvis, who is also a former senior executive at regulator Ofcom, is less pessimistic about the channel's future.
He points out that there are a number of issues to consider, including the possibility that Disney might not wish to go ahead with acquiring the remaining 61% of Sky, even if the CMA approved it.
In fact, the UK's Takeover Panel says Disney has told it that if Mr Murdoch fails to buy the rest of Sky before the Fox takeover deal goes through, it will not feel obliged to make a full bid for the satellite broadcaster.
Mr Purvis adds that it would be "slightly perverse" if Sky News were closed down over concerns that the various deals would lead to an unreasonable concentration of media power, because its absence "would actually reduce media plurality".
Disney owns the ABC television network in the US, which includes its news service.
But as Mr Purvis says, ABC News is safe because it makes money.
"The way that networks look at their news programmes is that they look at the cost compared with advertising revenues within those programmes," he says.
"By that measure, ABC News is profitable. Good Morning America is the leading breakfast programme in the US. There's no way Disney would shut that down."
Sky News, of course, does not enjoy that kind of status. But Mr Purvis says Disney would have to balance that against other factors, including the "political kudos" that owning Sky News would give it in the UK.
"We don't know the outcome of that kind of consideration," he says.
In the US, analysts are concerned that Disney's existing news interests might suffer from the merger, let alone Sky News.
"I would not look to the Disney-Fox merger to bolster the fourth estate," Ben Gomes-Casseres of the Brandeis International Business School told the Washington Post.
"Whether ABC News will be affected in this way, as a side-effect, is also anyone's guess, but there is no doubt that ABC as a TV channel will decrease in importance in the Disney group."
For the moment, Disney is taking a positive attitude towards Sky News.
Disney chairman and chief executive Bob Iger was asked on Bloomberg TV whether the channel had a future after his company completed the Fox deal.
Source-BBC
EU leaders agree to move talks to next stage
EU leaders have agreed to move Brexit talks on to the second phase but called for "further clarity" from the UK about the future relationship it wants.
The first issue to be discussed, early next year, will be the details of an expected two-year transition period after the UK's exit in March 2019.
Talks on trade and security co-operation are set to follow in March.
Theresa May hailed an "important step" on the road but Germany's Angela Merkel said it would get "even tougher".
Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, broke the news that the 27 EU leaders were happy to move on to phase two after they met in Brussels.
He congratulated Mrs May on reaching this stage and said the EU would begin internal preparations for the next phase right now as well as "exploratory contacts with the UK to get more clarity on their vision".
While securing a deal in time for the UK's exit in March 2019 was realistic, he suggested that the next phase would be "more challenging and more demanding".
Mrs May said the two sides would begin discussions on future relations straight away and hoped for "rapid progress" on a transitional phase to "give certainty" to business.
"This is an important step on the road to delivering the smooth and orderly Brexit that people voted for in June 2016," she said.
"The UK and EU have shown what can be achieved with commitment and perseverance on both sides."
Labour's international trade spokesman, Barry Gardiner, welcomed the move forward, but said it would be a "real problem" for business if the EU didn't start talking trade for a further three months.
He also said his party would not put a time limit on a post-Brexit transition phase, as the expected two-year period would be "extremely tight".
The EU has published its guidelines for phase two of the negotiations, with discussions on future economic co-operation not likely to begin until March.
The three-page document says the UK will remain under the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice and be required to permit freedom of movement during any transition period.
And agreements on the Irish border, the so-called divorce bill and the rights of EU and UK citizens, agreed by Mrs May last Friday, must be "respected in full and translated faithfully into legal terms as quickly as possible".
The document says: "As the UK will continue to participate in the customs union and the single market during the transition, it will have to continue to comply with EU trade policy."
While the EU is willing to engage in "preliminary and preparatory discussions" on trade as part of building a "close partnership" after the UK's departure, this means any formal agreement "can only be finalised and concluded once the UK has become a third country".
Source-BBC
Earthquake Hits Indonesia's Java island, Deaths Reported
A strong earthquake shook the Indonesian capital Thursday and other cities on the country's most populous island of Java, killing an unknown number of people amid reports of collapsed buildings.
Authorities issued a tsunami warning for parts of Java's coastline after the quake struck just before midnight Friday. People ran out of buildings in panic in many areas and Indonesian television showed heavy traffic on roads as people left coastal areas.
National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said there were deaths reported but could not immediately provide details. He also said there were reports that buildings had collapsed in the city of Tasikmalaya in western Java and in several western Java districts.
Nugroho said strong tremors were felt for about 20 seconds in the capital of Jakarta and in cities and villages in western and central Java.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake had a magnitude of 6.5 and was about 91 kilometers (56 miles) deep and located inland. Indonesian authorities reported a quake of similar magnitude offshore of Java.
Indonesia sits on the "Pacific Ring of Fire" and has frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
Source-VOA
CDB approves USD76 million to boost development results in St. Kitts and Nevis
- Economic development and enhanced livelihoods: The Country Strategy is designed to achieve improved macroeconomic and fiscal stability; increased productivity; competitiveness and economic diversification; and improved governance through reforms in areas such as project implementation capacity and procurement.
- Inclusive social development: The assistance programme will support enhanced education outcomes; closing the gender gap and increasing gender equality; and better protections for the most vulnerable groups in St. Kitts and Nevis.
- Environmental protection and infrastructure enhancement: Interventions delivered under the Country Strategy will seek to strengthen environmental management and climate-resilient infrastructure, including sea defences, roads, slopes, water and drainage systems, and energy infrastructure.
PUBLIC FORECAST 12:00 PM THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT FRIDAY 15TH DECEMBER 2017.
GENERAL SITUATION: A BROAD SURFACE TROUGH EXTENDS ACROSS THE SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS...WHILE HIGH PRESSURE DOMINATES THE WEATHER PATTERN OVER THE NORTHWEST AND CENTRAL BAHAMAS.
NORTHWEST BAHAMAS
WEATHER: VARIABLY CLOUDY AND MILD TODAY...TURNING FAIR AND COOL TONIGHT.
WINDS: LIGHT AND VARIABLE OVER OPEN WATERS.
SEAS: LESS THAN 3 FEET OVER THE OCEAN.
TURKS & CAICOS
WEATHER: PARTLY TO MOSTLY CLOUDY WITH ISOLATED SHOWERS THROUGH TONIGHT.
ADVISORY: EXPECT GUSTY WINDS & HIGHER SEAS IN OR NEAR HEAVY SHOWERS
WINDS: EAST TO SOUTHEAST AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS OVER OPEN WATERS.
SEAS: 2 TO 4 FEET OVER THE OCEAN.
HIGH TEMPERATURE TODAY 77°F 25°C
LOW TEMPERATURE TONIGHT 61°F 16°C
SUN MOON TIDES
SUNSET: 5:23PM MOONSET: 3:49PM LOW TIDE: 12:07PM & 12:02AM SAT
SUNRISE: 6:48AM SAT. MOONRISE: 5:15AM SAT. HIGH TIDE: 5:55PM & 6:24AM SAT
Mr. Derek Been Appointed as New Director of Immigration
The Turks and Caicos Government is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Derek Been as the new Director of Immigration within the Ministry of Border Control and Employment Services.
Mr. Been who officially took up the post on Wednesday, November 15th, 2017, holds a Post Graduate Degree from the University of Leicester Business School and previously dedicated over 10 years to the Turks and Caicos Islands Civil Service where he served as the former Under Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism, Communication and Immigration from 1999 – 2004; as the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs from 2006-2009 and as the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Works, Utilities and Housing from 2009-2010, before taking up the post of Deputy Director of the Turks and Caicos Islands Ports Authority from 2010-2016.
During his tenure in government Mr. Been had the opportunity to assist in a number of key projects including the construction of the North and Middle Caicos Causeway, Leeward Highway, the introduction of the Ports Authority, the Public Works Change Initiative, the Blue Ribbon Commission and several other key projects.
Mr. Been is a civic leader having dedicated many years of service to the Boys Scouts where he serves as the Leader of the Grand Turk Division and is a member of the Turks and Caicos National Museum. He is also the founder and webmaster of Grand Turk Events which seeks to bring awareness to community events on the island of Grand Turk.
Deputy Governor and Head of the Public Service Her Excellency Anya Williams stated that she was pleased to welcome Mr. Been back to the civil service and in such a critical role at such a critical time; "I am pleased to congratulate Mr. Been on his appointment and to welcome him back to the Turks and Caicos Islands Civil Service. His appointment which is a critical one, comes at a very critical time as we seek to make a number of positive changes in the structures, systems and management in the Ministry of Border Control and more specifically in the Immigration Department.
Mr. Been possesses a wealth of knowledge and experience, having previously served as a former Under Secretary within this and numerous other ministries along with serving as a former Permanent Secretary within government. He is fully aware of both the challenges and needs of the department and has already in his short time in the department set about an action plan for change.
I look forward to working with him and to supporting him in his role where I have every confidence that he will do exceptionally well."
Deputy Premier, Honourable Sean Astwood added, "I would like to take this opportunity to welcome Mr. Been to the Ministry of Border Control and Employment. Mr. Been assumes the vital role of Director of Immigration at a pivotal moment in our country's history, where now more than ever, there needs to be sound direction and developments in the policies and practices guiding both migration and immigration activities for the protection and security of our borders.
Mr. Been, as a former Civil Servant, Under Secretary and Permanent Secretary of numerous areas within Government, brings with him a wealth of knowledge and experience that will be fundamental to the department's ability to address the many challenges that have inundated our communities and social systems over the years. While we have embarked on numerous initiatives for the reshaping of migration and immigration in the TCI, there is a long road ahead of us but I am encouraged by the energy and diversity that Mr. Been has on how the department, and indeed the country, can achieve its goals.
Over the coming weeks Mr. Been will be working to institute new guidelines and policies for the improvement and revitalization of his department and together, with our support, I expect that he will have another long successful tenure with us."
Commenting on the appointment himself Mr. Derek Been said: "I am most thankful to Almighty God for granting me the opportunity to serve in such a role and at such a time. I am fully cognizant of the inherent challenges and threats that seem to dominate the immigration and labour sectors. However, opportunities also exist and the way we manage migration and immigration is critical to the cultural, social and economic well-being of these Islands and for those who conduct business and reside here permanently. The Immigration Department is essentially an enforcement body. The staff that I lead are expected to operate within the provision of the laws of the country. I expect the officers to be fair, firm and consistent in exercising their functions and we expect the Public and our clients to appreciate and adhere to the law.
As it relates specifically to the role as Director, I will support lawful entry to persons (business and pleasure) who will benefit these Islands, while preventing the abuse of the society and its economy.
I look forward to continuing the efforts to improve service delivery and processes that we manage, and to achieve efficiency and effectiveness. Critical to meeting our objectives is increased staff training and cross training, forging strategic alliances and the use of technology to protect our borders. I look forward to supporting the team at the Ministry of Border Control and Employment in achieving the broader objectives."