DENVER—Today, the United States Senate confirmed President Trump’s pick for Interior Secretary, David Bernhardt. In response, the Center for Western Priorities released the following statement from Deputy Director Aaron Weiss:
“If this was the Department of Oil and Gas Drilling, David Bernhardt would be the perfect candidate for the job. But as Deputy Interior Secretary, Bernhardt proved over and over again that he will always put his former clients’ wishes ahead of the needs of America’s public lands.
“Bernhardt is already facing the prospect of federal investigations, and he’s on track to be under even more scrutiny than his predecessor, Ryan Zinke. Starting today, it’s vital that Congress carry out its oversight responsibilities to shine a bright light on Bernhardt’s past and future actions at the Interior Department.”
Nearly three-quarters of Bernhardt’s 27 former clients have actively lobbied the Interior Department since 2017 [Center for American Progress]
Fifteen times former clients of the acting Interior Secretary got favorable decisions [CNN]
Interior staff routinely deleted Bernhardt calendars from Google doc, drawing scrutiny from Congress [Washington Post]
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Kids receive free, customizable Marvel Avengers cinch bag to decorate in store
To celebrate the upcoming theatrical release of Marvel® Avengers: Endgame, kids are invited to a special super hero event at local JCPenney stores this Saturday, April 13. Kids are encouraged to attend dressed as their favorite super hero to decorate a Marvel Avengers cinch bag (pictures below). Part of the retailer’s monthly in-store Kids Zone Events, this fun (and FREE!) craft will take place from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m., local time. All children must be accompanied by an adult.
After enjoying this fun craft, parents and kids can shop Marvel Avengers product in the JCPenney kids department, featuring Marvel LEGO sets, Marvel tees and pajamas, Marvel watches and Marvel action figures.
Unique to this super hero event, parents will receive a bonus coupon of 20% off all Hasbro toys valid only on April 13 in-store and at jcp.com. This coupon applies to Marvel, Transformers, Nerf and My Little Pony toys, to name a few, so kids can pick out a new toy to take home at a discounted price.
The JCPenney Kids Zone program offers a free, interactive workshop for kids on the second Saturday of each month. At every Kids Zone event, attending adults are presented with a 10% off one-day only coupon. The Kids Zone coupon is stackable with other active coupons for maximum savings.
Upcoming Kids Zone workshops taking place in all JCPenney stores includes decorating a Nickelodeon JoJo Siwa or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Mother’s Day card on May 11 and creating a DC Hero-themed foam frame for Father’s Day on June 8. Advance sign up is not required.
Please let your viewers/readers know about this exciting, festive activity happening in local JCPenney stores.
WHEN:
Saturday, April 13
11 a.m. to 12 p.m., local time
WHERE:
Your local JCPenney store
Visit JCPenney.com and click on “find a store”
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What Does it Mean to Teach Peace?
By Ellen Birkett Lindeen
510 words
Depending on your age, people associate peace with protesting the Vietnam War, songs, movies and marches of the 1960’s, the time before 9/11, quiet getaway retreats, or their yoga class. So whatdoes it mean to teach peace and howwould one do it? I think the whyis obvious.
I have been teaching all my life – first more than a decade at the high school level and after that, college students. Most of my courses were writing, composition, and literature, but at a certain point in my career I heard about the field of Peace Studies, and I wanted to learn more. I went back to school, completed the most meaningful coursework I have ever undertaken, and began teaching peace. People frequently ask me what it means to teach peace, or even what specifically I teach.
Here’s the short version. Conflict is not bad; conflict is necessary for all people to have a voice, but conflict is not the same as violence. Violent conflict is not inevitable. Just as people can be taught to kill in the armed services, they can be taught to use other methods of interaction. Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution includes concepts, history, and strategies so that people can learn to stop being violent. My goal is for people to stop killing each other.
Course readings reveal misleading anthropological research which is currently undergoing revision. Humans likely do not come from such violent beginnings. This is a well-entrenched myth, but one that is easy to maintain by those whose plan is to perpetuate armed conflict. The course includes the Harvard Negotiation Project concepts, which delineate roles for individuals and groups to use to prevent, resolve, and contain conflicts, large and small, in ways which bring about satisfaction for everyone. The curriculum includes readings by Thoreau, Gandhi, King, Gene Sharp, Roger Fisher, Bill Ury, the Dalai Lama, Jane Addams, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Margaret Mead, and about the United Nations and Vision for Humanity. We read, discuss, listen, analyze, agree and disagree, reach conclusions, and discuss more.
A crucial goal within the course is to learn nonviolent ways to bring about needed change in people, societies, communities or countries. Conflict is expected. Most political science courses focus on war, not peace, but courses in peace studies do not necessarily focus only on historical peacetimes. Peace does not mean the absence of war; that is called negative peace. Positive peace is based on eight factors according to the Institute for Economics and Peace: acceptance of the rights of others, low levels of corruption, free flow of information, high levels of human capital, good relations with neighbors, sound business environment, well-functioning government, and equitable distribution of resources. To work for a sustainablepeace, people focus on factors to generate positive peace, rather than simply to avoid violence. A more peaceful world, or at least a less violent one, seems like a dream worth envisioning to me, and my students agree. What if peace has not been achieved only because people thought it was unattainable? Whydo I teach peace? Because I believe it is possible.
–end–
Ellen Birkett Lindeen, syndicated by PeaceVoice,is an Emeritus Professor of English at Waubonsee Community College where she taught Peace Studies & Conflict Resolution and Human Rights & Social Justice.
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Governor’s Office of Economic Development Enters Agreement with Ancestry to Expand Company's Operations
SALT LAKE CITY (April 11,2019)—The Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) today announced that they have entered into an agreement with Ancestry under which the company will have an opportunity to expand its operations in Utah, adding up to 506 jobs, $12.2 million in new state revenue and up to $10.5 million in capital investment over the next nine years.
Ancestry is a leading provider of family history and consumer genetics services. These two complementary services share a brand and a mission to empower journeys of personal discovery to enrich lives. Ancestry has more than 3 million paying subscribers across its core Ancestry websites with an extensive collection of over 10 billion digitized historical records and nearly 15 million participants in the AncestryDNA database. Since 1996, users have created over 100 million family trees and 12 billion ancestor profiles on the Ancestry flagship site and its affiliated international websites.
“Ancestry is an international company with homegrown roots that enhance Utah’s Silicon Slopes,” said Val Hale, executive director of the Utah Office of Economic Development. “This innovative company is leveraging their insights and information to improve lives in family history. We are pleased that this new agreement will allow Ancestry to continue a long history as a business leader in the Utah community and continue to expand its operations in the state.”
“For more than 30 years, Ancestry has been a proud member of the Utah business community,” said Howard Hochhauser, chief financial officer and chief operating officer at Ancestry. “We are pleased to enter into this new agreement with the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, which will allow us to expand our headquarters presence to support the strong growth in our business. In addition, we are excited to have the opportunity to benefit from Utah’s talented workforce as we focus on delivering innovative products for our consumers that will fuel their personal discovery journeys as they seek to learn more about themselves and their families.”
Under the new agreement, Ancestry has the opportunity to create up to 506 jobs in Utah over the next nine years. The total wages in aggregate are required to exceed 110 percent of the average county wage. Projected new state wages over the life of the agreement may be up to $316,971,619 which includes wages, salaries, bonuses and other taxable compensation. Projected new state tax revenues as a result of corporate, payroll and sales taxes are estimated to be $12,228,599 over nine years.
“Ancestry epitomizes the ‘DNA’ of Utah’s tech industry,” said Theresa Foxley, president and CEO of the Utah Economic Development Corporation of Utah. “Ancestry is an entrepreneurial business that has grown to become an industry leader in genealogy and genetics. Technology has always been at the company’s core and has fueled its expansion into new fields. We’re thrilled by Ancestry’s decision to expand in Silicon Slopes.”
Ancestry may earn up to 20 percent of the new state taxes they will pay over the nine-year life of the agreement in the form of a post-performance Economic Development Tax Increment Finance (EDTIF) tax credit rebate. As part of the contract with Ancestry, the GOED Board of Directors has approved a post-performance tax credit rebate not to exceed $2,445,720. Each year Ancestry meets the criteria in its contract with the state, it will earn a portion of the total tax credit rebate.
The Utah Legislature has authorized economic development incentives in the form of post-performance tax rebates. Eligible companies work with the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development to outline specific performance criteria. Once GOED confirms those criteria have been met.
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Join KSL's Lori Prichard, Gail Miller, State Treasurer David Damschen, and experts on issues of personal and family finance, fraud, debt management, investing, retirement, educational savings, career readiness, entrepreneurship, and so much more.
8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Conference admission ($25) includes light breakfast, lunch, parking, and invaluable information and resources. Don't miss out on:
Scholarships are available for those in need. Contact Brittany Griffin for more information: bngriffin@utah.gov.
See program at: womeninthemoney.org
