K-pop star gives speech at the United Nations General Assembly; reveals how he overcome his own insecurities and depression
CRIMSON TAZVINZWA//Kim Nam-joon of the K-pop group BTS, has given a speech to the United Nations.
In an intro to one of our albums; there is a line that says: “My heart stopped when I was nine or ten”
Looking back; I think that’s when I started thinking what other people thought about me. I started seeing myself through their eyes. I stopped looking up at the night skies, and the stars.
I stopped daydreaming. Instead I just tried to jam myself into the molds that other people had made. There was a small voice inside of me that said; “Wake up man and start listening to yourself.” But it took me quite a long time to hear music calling my real name. Even after making the decision to join BTS, there were a lot of hurdles. Some people may not believe that. Some thought we were hopeless. And sometimes I just wanted to quit. But I think I was very lucky that I did all give it up.
I’m Kim Nam – joon and also a member of BTS. I’m an idol and an artist from a small town in Korea. Like many people; I have made many and plenty mistakes in my life. I have many more thoughts and many more fears. And I’m gonna embrace myself as hard as I can. And I’m starting to love myself gradually; and little by little.
What is your name? Speak yourself!
The artist, that goes by the name RM, spoke about how he overcome his own insecurities and urged other young people to do the same.
It’s the first time that a Korean pop music group have addressed the UN.
In May this year, BTS became the first K-pop band to top US album charts.
A participant communicates in sign language at a special event “Breaking Barriers, Opening Doors” on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. UN Photo/Amanda Voisard
AIWA! NO!//According to the World Federation of the Deaf, there are approximately 72 million deaf people worldwide. More than 80% of them live in developing countries. Collectively, they use more than 300 different sign languages.
Sign languages are fully fledged natural languages, structurally distinct from the spoken languages. There is also an international sign language, which is used by deaf people in international meetings and informally when travelling and socializing. It is considered a pidgin form of sign language that is not as complex as natural sign languages and has a limited lexicon.
The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities recognizes and promotes the use of sign languages. It makes clear that sign languages are equal in status to spoken languages and obligates states parties to facilitate the learning of sign language and promote the linguistic identity of the deaf community.
The resolution establishing the day acknowledges that early access to sign language and services in sign language, including quality education available in sign language, is vital to the growth and development of the deaf individual and critical to the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals. It recognizes the importance of preserving sign languages as part of linguistic and cultural diversity. It also emphasizes the principle of “nothing about us without us” in terms of working with deaf communities.
There are many ways of speaking. Many ways to communicate. Everyone has the right to be heard & respected. On Int’l #SignLanguageDay & everyday, stand up for the #humanrights of the roughly 72 million people worldwide who are deaf. #StandUp4HumanRights
The EU will be at the 73rd #UNGA this week Multilateralism is essential for peace, security and human development @UN #EUintheWorld
A historic handshake 34 years ago strengthened French-German friendship and the European Communities (as they then were). Where there is a will, there is a way to find – even between former ennemies – common solutions which make Europe stronger and more united.
Africa is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. Picture: AFP/Getty Images
TOM PETERKI (THE SCOTSMAN)AIWA! NO!//Scotland’s North Sea sector can take advantage of the “vast opportunities” offered by oil and gas exploration in Africa, one of Theresa May’s trade commissioners has said.
Scotland’s North Sea sector can take advantage of the “vast opportunities” offered by oil and gas exploration in Africa, one of Theresa May’s trade commissioners has said.
Emma Wade-Smith, newly appointed HM Trade Commissioner for Africa, says exporting Scottish energy expertise will be key trade strategy in the post-Brexit era.
HM Trade Commissioner for Africa, Emma Wade-Smith
On a visit to Scotland to promote trade links, Wade-Smith said the industry developed in Aberdeen should capitalise on the burgeoning oil and gas development in Africa which is creating a market worth billions of pounds.
Wade-Smith’s trip to Scotland follows May’s recent trade mission to South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria to promote global trade after Brexit.
British Prime Minister Theresa May and Kenya President Uhuru Kenyatta, Nairobi – KENYA
Speaking to Scotland on Sunday, Wade-Smith said Africa was one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, creating opportunities for Scottish business.
She said Scottish expertise should be harnessed to help countries like Senegal and Mauritania, who are starting out on oil and gas oil production.
It could also be used in countries like Angola and Nigeria where oil exploration is well-established.
Emma Wade-Smith Retweeted Department for International Trade
As Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for Africa I know Africa is alive with business opportunities. My Africa Trade is here to help UK companies interested in doing business in Africa. DM me or email DITAfricaTrade@mobile.trade.gov.uk for more #UKAfricatrade
Emma Wade-Smith added,
Department for International TradeVerified account@tradegovuk
Today @LiamFox appoints @EWadeSmith as the new HM Trade Commissioner for Africa where she will champion British trade & investment across the continent. Here’s what she has to say about the role
2:42 AM – 20 Jun 2018
“There is a huge amount of expertise and experience clearly in the oil and gas industry in Aberdeen,” she said. “So it is how do we take that to support countries across Africa in their own efforts to build an oil and gas capability? Also how do we use that experience and technological innovation to help African countries avoid some of the potential pitfalls of creating that domestic capability?”
She added: “There are vast opportunities for Scottish companies across the entire industry and supply chain to grow their businesses.”
Scottish expertise includes drillers, fitters and those involved with training. It also includes a host of supply chain enterprises which provide items such as equipment and clothing for an industry that has been hit by the falling oil price in recent years.”
Oil & Gas UK upstream policy director Mike Tholen said: “Embracing the opportunities available in the international export market could unlock an additional £150 million in the revenue of supply chain companies. It shows why industry, government and the regulator must put their shoulder to the wheel in pursuit of Vision 2035.”
Daniel Zuma; A poacher’s son protecting Kenya’s wildlife from the skies
By Bill Gates//The first time Melinda and I traveled to Africa more than 25 years ago, we went to see the wildlife. The elephants, giraffes, and one of my favorites—bonobos—are among the continent’s greatest treasures. Sadly, many African animals are at risk from poachers and threats to their habitats.
Thanks to Daniel Zuma, a young pilot, many of Kenya’s elephants and other wildlife are getting the protection they need. Daniel, 28, is a wildlife conservation pilot for Wildlife Works, a conservation organization in Kasigau, Kenya.
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To view the virtual reality film below, click here to open in YouTube.
NOTE: This is a virtual reality film that you can view using a VR headset, or in your browser as a 360° video. Learn more →
For many years, Daniel’s community, located between Kenya’s Tsavo East and Tsavo West National Parks, was at odds with the wildlife that that moved between the parks. Poachers roamed freely and families clear cut trees for charcoal, putting wildlife at risk. One person working as a poacher was Daniel’s father, who depended on killing wildlife to support his family.
Then in 1998, Wildlife Works and the local community established a wildlife sanctuary that helps members of the community find alternative sources of income. In the years since, residents have been trained as rangers to protect the wildlife. Others got involved in eco-tourism projects. The community also launched a workshop to make handicrafts to sell to visitors.
As a boy growing up in Kasigau, Daniel always dreamed of being a pilot. His friends told him his dream was silly. He was too poor to become a pilot. But when Wildlife Works heard about his passion for flying he earned a scholarship to high school and college. Later, he was sent to the United Kingdom for flight lessons. He recently earned his license to pilot an ultralight gyrocopter.
Each morning, Daniel patrols the wildlife sanctuary doing wildlife counts and keeping an eye out for poachers. Poaching in the region has fallen dramatically in recent years thanks to the improved monitoring by Daniel and other conservation partners in the area.
Daniel’s achievements have made him a celebrity in his community. Many children in his village now want to follow in his footsteps and help protect Africa’s wildlife for generations to come.
It’s about the deadly Hurricane Florence; but the graphics in the Weather Channel demonstration are amazing. On one level, yes, the visualization literally just shows what three, six, and nine feet of water looks like. But it’s showing that in a context most people have never experienced. It fills in the gaps of your imagination, and hopefully underscores for anyone in a flood zone all the reasons they should not be.
A year ago, this wouldn’t have been possible. In fact, this specific demonstration wouldn’t have been possible a month ago.
AT A CERTAIN point, you think you have a good grasp of what to expect from weather graphics. A color-coded map, a five-day forecast with a sassy cloud. Which might be why the Weather Channel’s 3-D, room-encompassing depiction of the Hurricane Florence storm surge took so many by surprise. It doesn’t tell, it shows, more bracingly than you’d think would be possible on a meteorological update. Here’s how they did it.If you haven’t seen the graphic yet, take a moment to watch the segment below. It starts normally enough, with a top-side view of the Eastern seaboard, showing the “reasonable worst-case scenario” of water levels. (The data comes from the National Hurricane Center.) But about 45 seconds in, a shift occurs. Meteorologist Erika Navarro stands not in a studio, but on a neighborhood street corner. And then the waters around her start to rise.
On one level, yes, the visualization literally just shows what three, six, and nine feet of water looks like. But it’s showing that in a context most people have never experienced. It fills in the gaps of your imagination, and hopefully underscores for anyone in a flood zone all the reasons they should not be.
A year ago, this wouldn’t have been possible. In fact, this specific demonstration wouldn’t have been possible a month ago. The Weather Channel only finished the new “green screen immersive studio” at its Atlanta headquarters this week. With peak hurricane season coming, it wanted to be prepared. “It was all hands on deck,” says Michael Potts, TWC’s vice president of design.
Fortunately, they’ve already had some practice with this sort of thing. About 18 months ago, Potts says, the broadcast industry at large started getting serious about the quality of graphics it could offer, thanks in part to the rising popularity of egaming. Seeing potential for weather coverage, TWC invested in the use of Unreal Engine, the same suite of tools that powers countless video games (yes, including Fortnite.
Working with The Future Group, a company that specializes in “interactive mixed reality,” TWC began building out the various elements it would need to make extreme—or mundane, if there were ever cause for it—weather events feel like they were happening in-studio. In June, they buzzed anchor Jim Cantore with a tornado. In late July, they blasted lightning.
But as impressive as those previous demonstrations were, they lacked the immersiveness and fidelity that Thursday’s Hurricane Florence display provided. That’s both because of the wrap-around green screen, which helps completely surround Navarro, and the immediacy of the data the graphic is based on.
“The National Hurricane Center puts out a live feed of their inundation data, telling at specific points where they identify how high the water level will be. We ingest that data, and that allows us to paint pictures, if you will,” says Potts. “Prior to that, we imagined what the different environments could be. You see the typical American street corner; we have others that we’re working on. We rapidly operationalized this one so that we could get this out and make sure we had the right safety messages out for this storm.”
TWC had also previously worked with The Future Group to prep a water animation that they could place at different heights as needed. Having those elements ready to go ahead of time made the actual execution surprisingly seamless.
“All the graphic elements are loaded up into the system. Then each one of the scenarios is called upon by the data from the National Hurricane Center, so the map that’s displayed is live and in real time. And that’s informing what the environment’s going to be,” says Potts. “The operator has a tool that lets him choose the right scenario.”
For this specific clip, it took only 90 minutes from the time NHC data came in to broadcast the final product.
‘The entire goal is to try to paint and recreate a reality that’s in the future.’
MICHAEL POTTS, THE WEATHER CHANNEL
That short window of time belies how much tech underpins the rest of the operation, though. The studio is outfitted with a Mo-Sys camera tracking system, a physical box that attaches to a camera, and uses sensors and an IR signal to triangulate the camera’s position in a virtual space. TWC also needed specialized software to translate the Unreal Engine graphics into a broadcast-ready format.
Now that much of the groundwork is laid, expect to see more of these immersive demonstrations—and keep an eye out for the surprising amount of detail they can have. “We can control any number of scenarios, from how high the water needs to be, the wave height, the speed of the waves on top, and then the rain density and the clouds, how dark and overcast it’s going to be,” says Potts. “The entire goal is to try to paint and recreate a reality that’s in the future. This is what to expect. This is really honestly what it could look like if you looked out your window and weren’t prepared.”
Bringing extreme weather to life obviously isn’t an entirely altruistic goal; it’s compelling television, too. Potts contends, though, that videos like this one also contain a valuable safety message. You know what nine feet is, and you know what water looks like. But the two rarely go together, outside of swimming pools and disaster movies. Seeing what it looks like on a street corner that resembles your own might be enough to get someone to evacuate if they’d had any hesitation. At the very least, it lets the rest of the world know just how bad it could get.
While only one studio at TWC supports the full suite of technology needed to create an animated storm surge, the company hopes to build out more. You can expect to see more demonstrations like this one, says Potts, as well new animations for wildfires and extreme weather events.
“We’ve talked about transforming the way that we present weather, evolving it into something that’s a visceral kind of experience, where you just want to watch the presentation because it’s amazing, because it’s beautiful,” says Potts. “Because you’re learning something, and you may not even know you’re learning something.”
“It truly is really about the whole size of this storm,” NHC Director Ken Graham says. “The larger and the slower the storm is, the greater the threat and the impact — and we have that.” About 5.25 million people live in areas under hurricane warnings or watches, and 4.9 million more live in places covered by tropical storm warnings or watches, National Weather Service (NWS) says
AIWA! NO!//US President Donald Trump has disputed the official death toll of 3,000 from hurricanes in Puerto Rico last year, falsely claiming Democrats in Congress had fabricated the fake figure.
“3000 people did not die in the two hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico. When I left the Island, AFTER the storm had hit, they had anywhere from 6 to 18 deaths. As time went by it did not go up by much. Then, a long time later, they started to report really large numbers, like 3000,” Trump tweeted on Thursday.
In September 2017, Hurricanes Irma and Maria hit Puerto Rico.Fatalities from the storms had been officially recorded at 11 and 64, respectively. However, earlier this month, the island’s governor formally raised the death toll from hurricane-related deaths to an estimated 2,975.
Carmen Yulin Cruz, the mayor of Puerto Rico’s capital, San Juan, once again strongly criticized both the president and his administration for their poor response to hurricanes.”This is what denial following neglect looks like: Mr Pres in the real world people died on your watch,” she wrote on Twitter.”YOUR LACK OF RESPECT IS APPALLING!” she added before calling Trump delusional and unhinged from reality.
“This was done by the Democrats in order to make me look as bad as possible when I was successfully raising Billions of Dollars to help rebuild Puerto Rico… I love Puerto Rico!” he added.
Trump has praise the handling of Hurricane Maria, saying earlier this week that it was “an incredible, unsung success.”
His tweets come as his administration prepares for Hurricane Florence – a category two storm – whose high winds have already begun to batter the US East Coast.
Hurricanes typically provide a platform for elected officials to display leadership and strength. And a poor response, such as the government’s during Hurricane Katrina in 2005, can do significant damage to approval ratings.
The emergency response to Maria became highly politicized as the Trump administration was criticized as being slow in providing disaster relief to Puerto Rico.
Pointless dispute
Republicans parted ways with Trump in the dispute over the death toll.
House Speaker Paul Ryan told reporters he has “no reason to dispute those numbers.” “Casualties don’t make a person look bad, so I have no reason to dispute these numbers,” he said on Thursday.
“I disagree with @POTUS,” Florida’s Republican Governor Rick Scott wrote on Twitter.
Representative Carlos Curbelo, another Republican from South Florida said he could not understand why Trump would dispute the official death toll, inaccurately claiming the number of people who died was lower that announced.
“We should all be focused on what is about to happen in the Carolinas and not politicize hurricanes and hurricane relief,” Mr. Curbelo said.
Also Carmen Yulin Cruz, the mayor of Puerto Rico’s capital, San Juan, once again strongly criticized both the president and his administration for their poor response to hurricanes.
Scott’s appointee, Levine, did not want to discuss the politics of it. But, when asked about the potential political damage, Levine said via text message that “I can’t imagine it helps. Rick Scott genuinely earned their trust and faith through his work I helping Puerto Rico … The President’s crass statements about himself are so disgraceful and hurtful to people who did die.”
Focus groups show that Trump’s association with a Republican drags down a candidate’s support among Puerto Ricans. | Win McNamee/Getty Images
Exploding on Twitter two months before Election Day, Trump’s comments have the potential to intensify Boricua voter registration efforts and perhaps election turnout. And that, Republicans and Democrats say, could prove crucial in Florida’s hotly contested races for U.S. Senate and governor, which are essentially tied races.
“3000 people did not die in the two hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico. When I left the Island, AFTER the storm had hit, they had anywhere from 6 to 18 deaths. As time went by it did not go up by much,” Trump wrote on Twitter, ignoring the fact that the island’s government paid for independent research to determine the death toll, which was impossible to measure after last year’s storm because it crippled every aspect of Puerto Rico’s government.
Trump also blamed Democrats for releasing the casualty numbers to make him look bad.
“I disagree with @POTUS– an independent study said thousands were lost and Gov. Rosselló agreed. I’ve been to Puerto Rico 7 times & saw devastation firsthand,” Scott, the Republican nominee for Senate, wrote hours later on Twitter. “The loss of any life is tragic; the extent of lives lost as a result of Maria is heart wrenching. I’ll continue to help PR.”
Facing Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), Scott has increasingly put some distance between himself and Trump. But DeSantis, who owes his Aug. 28 gubernatorial primary win to Trump, hadn’t criticized the president publicly. That changed Thursday.
“Ron DeSantis is committed to standing with the Puerto Rican community, especially after such a tragic loss of life. He doesn’t believe any loss of life has been inflated,” DeSantis’ campaign said.
Scott, whose Senate bid was encouraged by Trump and who raised money for Trump’s 2016 super PAC, had no comment through his office or Senate campaign. Both Scott and DeSantis have campaigned for Boricua votes in Florida and traveled to the island.
But Alan Levine, a Republican appointed Scott to Florida’s university governing board, couldn’t keep quiet.
“Mr. President. SHUT UP,” Levine replied to Trump on Twitter. “Any death, whether one or 3,000 is a tragedy. That doesn’t mean you caused it, and its not about you. Show compassion for the families,” Levine wrote. “Learn what we can so future response can improve. Honestly….”
Levine told POLITICO he was shocked the president was focusing on this rather than Hurricane Florence as it takes aim at the Carolinas. Levine is one of the top government experts in hurricane response. He was hospital agency director under Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, a Republican, when eight hurricanes damaged the state in 2004 and 2005. And he led Louisiana’s hospital agency under Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal when hurricanes Gustav and Ike damaged that state.
Florida state Rep. Bob Cortes, a Republican of Puerto Rican descent who heads DeSantis’ Boricua outreach, fretted at the comments from Trump.
“Every morning there is something new that the president tweets,” Cortes told WFTV. “I have no reason to doubt the number of 2,975 deaths in Puerto Rico.”
Earlier in the week, Trump reignited a feud with Puerto Rican officials over what he felt was a lack of credit for his administration’s storm response, which was widely panned.
Florida has more than 1.1 million Puerto Rican residents, and as many as 500,000 could be registered to vote among the 13 million active registered voters. Thousands flocked to Florida after the hurricane. While as many as eight in 10 Puerto Ricans often vote Democratic, a higher number register as independents, and polls suggest Republicans can make big inroads this year.
But Trump might be an impediment.
A recent poll of 1,000 Florida Puerto Ricans found only 18 percent approve of the president, and 72 percent disapprove. His net rating is a negative 53 percent. By contrast, Scott’s net approval rating is a positive 57 percent — so he’s running 104 percentage points better than the president. Scott has held his own with Puerto Rican voters in a head-to-head poll against Nelson, whose campaign got off to a late start in reaching out to Puerto Ricans while Scott figuratively opened Florida’s doors to them.
Nelson today called Trump‘s comments “shameful.”
Focus groups show, however, that Trump’s association with a Republican drags down a candidate’s support among Puerto Ricans.
To that end, Nelson’s campaign the day before began running a new Spanish-language ad called “amigos” that links Scott with Nelson.
“Dime con quien andas y te diré quiten eres,” the ad says, meaning “tell me who you are with and I’ll tell you what you are.”
Democratic state Rep. Amy Mercado, who’s also of Puerto Rican descent and who has deep roots in the Central Florida Boricua community, said she took little pleasure out of the “disgusting” comments made by Trump. She called the Republicans who support Trump “enablers.”
“As for outreach,” she said via text message, “the Prez and his supporters have shown their true colors, so what they are doing is actually empowering the people on the ground especially evacuees to pay attention and organize.”
Scott’s appointee, Levine, did not want to discuss the politics of it. But, when asked about the potential political damage, Levine said via text message that “I can’t imagine it helps. Rick Scott genuinely earned their trust and faith through his work I helping Puerto Rico … The President’s crass statements about himself are so disgraceful and hurtful to people who did die.”
sembly; reveals how he overcome his own insecurities and depression
AIWA! NO!
Multilateralism is essential for peace, security and human development 
AIWA! NO!
