Obituaries

[pbrower2a]

John David McAfee (/ˈmækəfiː/ MAK-ə-fee;[2][3] September 18, 1945 – June 23, 2021)[4][5] was a British-American computer programmer, businessman, and perennial political candidate. He founded the software company McAfee Associates in 1987 and ran it until 1994, when he resigned from the company.[6] McAfee Associates achieved early success as the creator of McAfee's first commercial antivirus software, and the business now produces a range of enterprise security software. The company was purchased by Intel in 2011, though it still bears the McAfee brand name. McAfee's wealth peaked in 2007 at $100 million, before his investments plummeted in the financial crisis of 2007–2008.


After leaving McAfee Associates, he founded the companies Tribal Voice (makers of the PowWow chat program), QuorumEx, and Future Tense Central, among others, and was involved in leadership positions in the companies Everykey, MGT Capital Investments, and Luxcore, among others. His personal and business interests included smartphone apps, cryptocurrency, yoga, and herbal antibiotics. He resided for a number of years in Belize, but returned to the United States in 2013 while wanted in Belize for questioning on suspicion of murder.[7]
McAfee was also a political activist. He unsuccessfully sought the Libertarian Party nomination for president of the United States in 2016 and 2020.

In October 2020, McAfee was arrested in Spain over U.S. tax evasion charges.[8] U.S. Federal prosecutors brought criminal and civil charges alleging McAfee failed to pay income taxes over a four-year period.[9][10]
On June 23, 2021, McAfee was found dead due to an apparent suicide by hanging in a prison cell near Barcelona shortly after his extradition to the U.S. was authorized by Spain.[11]




Legitimate career


McAfee was employed as a programmer by NASA's Institute for Space Studies in New York City from 1968 to 1970. From there, he went to Univac as a software designer, and later to Xerox as an operating system architect. In 1978, he joined Computer Sciences Corporation as a software consultant. He worked for consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton from 1980 to 1982.[16] In the 1980s, while employed by Lockheed, McAfee received a copy of the Brain computer virus, and began developing software to combat viruses.[citation needed]

In 1987, McAfee founded McAfee Associates, an anti computer virus company.[15] The company was incorporated in Delaware in 1992, and had its initial public offering the same year. In 1994, two years after McAfee Associates went public, McAfee sold his remaining stake in the company.[17] He had no further involvement in its operations.[6]
After various mergers and ownership changes, Intel acquired McAfee in August 2010.[18] In January 2014, Intel announced that McAfee-related products would be marketed as Intel Security. McAfee expressed his pleasure at the name change, saying, "I am now everlastingly grateful to Intel for freeing me from this terrible association with the worst software on the planet."[19]

Other business ventures that were founded by McAfee include Tribal Voice, which developed one of the first instant messaging programs,[20] PowWow. In 2000, he invested in and joined the board of directors of Zone Labs, makers of firewall software, prior to its acquisition by Check Point Software in 2003.[21]
In August 2009, The New York Times reported that McAfee's personal fortune had declined to $4 million from a peak of $100 million due to the effect of the financial crisis of 2007–2008 on his investments.[17]
In 2009, McAfee was interviewed in Belize for the CNBC special "The Bubble Decade," in which it was reported that he had invested in and/or built many mansions in the USA that went unsold when the 2007 global recession hit. The report also discussed his quest to produce plants for possible medicinal uses on his land in Belize.[22]
In February 2010, McAfee started the company QuorumEx,[23] headquartered in Belize, which aimed to produce herbal antibiotics that disrupt quorum sensing in bacteria.[24][25]

In June 2013, McAfee uploaded a parody video titled How to Uninstall McAfee Antivirus onto his YouTube channel. In the video, McAfee criticized McAfee's antivirus software while snorting white powder, and being stroked and undressed by scantily clad women. The video has garnered over 10 million views. McAfee told Reuters that he made the video to ridicule the media's negative coverage of him. A spokesman for McAfee Inc. called the video's statements "ludicrous."[26]

Also in 2013, McAfee started the company Future Tense Central, which aimed to produce a secure computer network device called the D-Central.[27] By 2016, it was also serving as an incubator.[28]
In February 2014, McAfee announced Cognizant, an application for smartphones, which displays information about the permissions of other installed applications.[29] In April 2014, Cognizant was renamed DCentral 1, and an Android version of it was released for free on Google Play.[30][31]

[/url]
McAfee at [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DEF_CON]DEF CON 2015

At the DEF CON conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, in August 2014, he warned Americans not to use smartphones, suggesting apps are used to spy on clueless consumers who do not read privacy user agreements.[32]
In January 2016, he became the chief evangelist for security startup Everykey.[28]

In February 2016, McAfee received media attention by publicly volunteering to decrypt the iPhone used by the San Bernardino shooters, avoiding the need for Apple to build a backdoor.[33] McAfee later admitted that his claims of how simple cracking the phone would be were a publicity stunt, though he still claimed he could pull it off.[34]
In May 2016, McAfee was appointed chief executive chairman and CEO of MGT Capital Investments, a technology holding company. The company initially stated that it would rename itself John McAfee Global Technologies,[35] although this plan was abandoned due to a dispute with Intel over rights to the "McAfee" name.[36] McAfee changed MGT's focus from social gaming to cybersecurity, stating in an interview that "anti-virus software is dead, it no longer works," and that "the new paradigm has to stop the hacker getting in" before they can do damage.[37]

Soon after joining MGT, McAfee claimed that he and his team had exploited a flaw in the Android operating system that allowed him to read encrypted messages from WhatsApp.[38] Gizmodo investigated these claims, and reported that McAfee had sent reporters malware-infected phones to make this hack work. McAfee responded to these accusations, writing: "Of course the phones had malware on them. How that malware got there is the story, which we will release after speaking with Google. It involves a serious flaw in the Android architecture."[39]
McAfee also moved MGT into the mining of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, saying that it was intended both to make money for the company, and to increase MGT's expertise in dealing with blockchains, which he thought was important for cybersecurity.[40]

In August 2017, McAfee stepped down as CEO, instead serving as MGT's "chief cybersecurity visionary." In January 2018, he left the company altogether. Both sides stated that the decision was amicable, with McAfee saying that he wanted to spend all of his time on cryptocurrencies, while the company stated that they were getting pressured by potential investors to disassociate themselves from McAfee.[41]

On August 13, 2018, McAfee took a position of CEO with Luxcore, a cryptocurrency company focused on enterprise solutions.[42]

Questionable activities: 


On November 12, 2012, Belize police started a search for McAfee as a "person of interest" in connection to the murder of American expatriate Gregory Viant Faull. Faull was found dead of a gunshot wound on November 11, 2012, at his home on the island of Ambergris Caye, the largest island in Belize.[80][81] Faull was a neighbor of McAfee's.[82] In a November 2012 interview with Wired,[83] McAfee said that he has always been afraid police would kill him, and thus refused their routine questions; he has since evaded the Belizean authorities.[82] Belize's prime minister, Dean Barrow, called McAfee "extremely paranoid, even bonkers."[84] McAfee fled Belize when he was sought for questioning concerning the murder.[85][86][87]

The magazine Vice accidentally gave away McAfee's location at a Guatemalan resort in early December 2012, when a photo taken by one of its journalists accompanying McAfee was posted with the EXIF geolocation metadata still attached.[88] While in Guatemala, McAfee asked Chad Essley, an American cartoonist and animator, to set up a blog so that McAfee could write about his experience while on the run.[89] McAfee then appeared publicly in Guatemala City, where he unsuccessfully sought political asylum.[90]

On December 5, 2012, McAfee was arrested for illegally entering Guatemala. Shortly afterward, he was placed under arrest, and a board to review McAfee's plea for asylum was formed. The committee denied his asylum, so he was taken from his holding facility to a detention center in order to await deportation to Belize.[91]
On December 6, 2012, Reuters and ABC News reported that McAfee had two minor heart attacks in a Guatemalan detention center and was hospitalized.[92][93] McAfee's lawyer stated that his client had not suffered heart attacks, but had instead suffered from high blood pressure and anxiety attacks.[94][95][96] McAfee later said he had faked the heart attacks while being held in Guatemala, to buy time for his attorney to file a series of appeals that ultimately prevented his deportation to Belize, thus hastening the government's decision to send him back to the United States.[97]

On December 12, 2012, McAfee was released from detention in Guatemala, and deported to the United States.[98]
On November 14, 2018, the Circuit Court in Orlando, Florida, refused to dismiss a wrongful death lawsuit against McAfee for Faull's death.[99][100]

U.S. finance charges, arrest in Spain, and planned extradition[edit]
In January 2019, McAfee announced that he was on the run from U.S. authorities, and living internationally on a boat following the convening of a Grand Jury to indict him, his wife, and four of his 2020 Presidential campaign workers on tax-related charges.[101] The IRS has not independently confirmed the existence of these charges.[101]

On October 5, 2020, McAfee was arrested in Spain at the request of the U.S. Department of Justice for tax evasion. The indictment alleges he earned millions of dollars from 2014–18, but has failed to file income tax returns.[102]
On October 6, 2020, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed a complaint alleging that McAfee had fraudulently promoted certain ICOs.[103] According to the SEC, McAfee presented himself as an impartial investor when he promoted the ICOs, despite the fact that he was allegedly paid $23 million in digital assets in exchange for the promotions.[103]

On March 5, 2021, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced that they had formally indicted McAfee and an executive adviser for allegedly fraudulently promoting certain cryptocurrencies and performing pump and dump schemes. McAfee was incarcerated in Spain, pending extradition to the United States.[104][105]

On June 23, 2021, the Spanish National Court authorized the extradition of McAfee to the United States, for criminal charges in Tennessee.[6] McAfee died a few hours later.[106] The New York extradition case was still pending in a lower Spanish court.[6]

The night after McAfee arrived in the United States after being deported from Guatemala in December 2012, he was solicited by Janice Dyson, then a prostitute in South Beach (Miami Beach).[107] The two spent the night together. Despite Dyson being more than 30 years McAfee's junior, McAfee and Dyson subsequently began a relationship, and married in 2013.[108]

In 2013, McAfee claimed that the former cocaine baron "Boston" George Jung was writing his official biography, No Domain.

mostly from Wikipedia

[Eric the Green]

Maurice Robert "Mike" Gravel (/ɡrəˈvɛl/ grə-VEL; May 13, 1930 – June 26, 2021) was an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Alaska from 1969 to 1981 as a member of the Democratic Party and who ran for presidential nomination of that party in 2008 and 2020.

Born and raised in Springfield, Massachusetts, by French-Canadian immigrant parents, Gravel moved to Alaska in the late 1950s, becoming a real estate developer and entering politics. He served in the Alaska House of Representatives from 1963 to 1967 and also became Speaker of the Alaska House. Gravel was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1968.

As a senator, Gravel became nationally known for his forceful but unsuccessful attempts to end the draft during the War in Vietnam and for putting the Pentagon Papers into the public record in 1971. He conducted a campaign for the Democratic nomination in 1972 for Vice President of the United States, and then played a crucial role in obtaining Congressional approval for the Trans-Alaska pipeline in 1973. He was reelected to the Senate in 1974, but his bid for a third term was defeated in a primary election in 1980.

An advocate of direct democracy and the National Initiative, Gravel staged a run for the 2008 Democratic nomination for President of the United States. His campaign failed to gain support, and in March 2008 he left the Democratic Party and joined the Libertarian Party to compete unsuccessfully for its presidential nomination and the inclusion of the National Initiative into the Libertarian Platform. He ran for president as a Democrat again in the 2020 election in a campaign that ended four months after it began. His campaign staff then founded the progressive think tank The Gravel Institute.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Gravel

[Eric the Green]

Jon Hassell (March 22, 1937 – June 26, 2021) was an American trumpet player and composer active since the 1960s. He was best known for developing the concept of "Fourth World" music, which describes a "unified primitive/futurist sound" combining elements of various world ethnic traditions with modern electronic techniques. The concept was first articulated on Fourth World, Vol. 1: Possible Musics, his 1980 collaboration with Brian Eno. He had also worked with artists such as the Theatre of Eternal Music, Talking Heads, Farafina, Peter Gabriel, Tears for Fears, Ani DiFranco, Techno Animal, Ry Cooder, Moritz von Oswald, and Carl Craig.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jon_Hassell

[Captain Genet]

(06-18-2021, 12:49 PM)Eric the Green Wrote: Myself, I don't think of post-modern as a fad, or even a philosophy, but a condition of our times for which the word is used. Modern progress as our most important product has lost its lustre for many people, because it threatens the environment and impairs the spirit by turning us into machines. 

You yourself believe in this philosophy, so you don'r recognize it as a specific set of ideas.

Quote:But, I think there will always be technology and new developments. The question is for how much longer will it be seen as the definition of "progress"? In the post-modern view, real progress means greater freedom from authoritarian conformity. That has been part of the idea of "progress" since its beginning in the 18th century, anyway. Social progress and spiritual or artistic development are more important than tech progress, and toward the end of this century I predict this will dawn on more people. So in that sense, post-modernism is just a gateway to increased awareness of the limits of tech progress. But tech has its needed uses as well, so it's not going away.

I believe there are three ideas of progress, each flourishing in a specific period:

Enlightenment Idea of Progress - late 18th century. Challenged monarchy and organized Christian Churches, which worked together in what I call the Constantinian system, and fought for social freedoms and free markets (classical liberalism). Voltaire would be the most outspoken proponent of this kind of progress, which lost currency after the French Revolution horrified European public opinion.

Victorian Idea of Progress - 1870-1914. Focused on spreading civilization throughout the world and eliminating barbarism and superstition. Compared with the Enlightenment idea of progress, it was less interested in social freedom, and saw some behaviours like overusing alcohol, using illegal drugs and having extramarital sex as typical for uncivilized peoples and the underclass. Lost currency after the world wars, through some supporters like Prince Phillip remained until recently.

Millennial Idea of Progress - since the late 2000s, with forerunners since the 1980s. Unites enthusiasm for technology (especially microchips) with high social freedom. In a way it is similar to the Enlightenment idea, though it's less likely to involve support for the free market.

It looks like Dionysian saeculums produce an idea of progress involving high social freedom, while Apollonian ones produce an idea of progress involving eradication of uncivilized behaviours.

Quote:Humanities did not go away because of Leftist/Inclusivist stuff, and such stuff is perfectly rational. It's the best area on your diagram, and most academics these days are predominantly progressive because the alternative out in red rural America is so horrific. In any case, the reason humanities has declined is precisely the tech obsession, so you got that backwards. Politicians and pundits no longer view higher education as a place to develop the ability to express, create and debate ideas or to learn to read, write, speak, understand society, investigate or draw, etc., but to get a good tech job or get a business and finance career going.

In a way tech companies today are like drug dealers, making people addicted to the Internet and digital gadgets to make money on them. Being a drug dealer, or a tech dealer, is a fast way to get rich.

Quote:I think space travel will definitely become a tourist adventure for those who can afford it. It will never be cheap, and probably never fully safe, but many more people will afford it than can do so today. But fun, thrilling and spectacular as it is, is this really what makes the Apollo program the greatest thing since the invention of agriculture and writing, as you suggest? Without ET contact and knowledge of The Other Side, space travel and exploration yields few other benefits.

The route to a sustainable and prosperous future on Earth lies here on Earth-- in progressive politics, conservation, innovative eco-tech, human and civil rights, urban planning, reform of agriculture, support for culture, and lifestyle arrangements here on Earth, and those who study humanities and general higher education grasp this fact much better than those who don't, as election polls and returns clearly show.

It is possible space colonization will prove unfeasible. In this case, we might expect some thousands of years of the millennial saeculum, increasing stagnation until a natural catastrophe destroys us. It can be the fate of all intelligent species in the Cosmos. But I like the perspective of interstellar adventures better. If we colonize a few solar systems, we are practically immortal as a species. This is what makes space travel such a breakthrough.

Of course space travel requires elimination of some uncivilized behaviours. You cannot make a crew out of junkies or porn addicts.

[pbrower2a]

Donald Rumsfeld died.

[Eric the Green]

(06-30-2021, 05:20 AM)Captain Genet Wrote:

(06-18-2021, 12:49 PM)Eric the Green Wrote: Myself, I don't think of post-modern as a fad, or even a philosophy, but a condition of our times for which the word is used. Modern progress as our most important product has lost its lustre for many people, because it threatens the environment and impairs the spirit by turning us into machines. 

You yourself believe in this philosophy, so you don'r recognize it as a specific set of ideas.

Quote:But, I think there will always be technology and new developments. The question is for how much longer will it be seen as the definition of "progress"? In the post-modern view, real progress means greater freedom from authoritarian conformity. That has been part of the idea of "progress" since its beginning in the 18th century, anyway. Social progress and spiritual or artistic development are more important than tech progress, and toward the end of this century I predict this will dawn on more people. So in that sense, post-modernism is just a gateway to increased awareness of the limits of tech progress. But tech has its needed uses as well, so it's not going away.

I believe there are three ideas of progress, each flourishing in a specific period:

Enlightenment Idea of Progress - late 18th century. Challenged monarchy and organized Christian Churches, which worked together in what I call the Constantinian system, and fought for social freedoms and free markets (classical liberalism). Voltaire would be the most outspoken proponent of this kind of progress, which lost currency after the French Revolution horrified European public opinion.

Victorian Idea of Progress - 1870-1914. Focused on spreading civilization throughout the world and eliminating barbarism and superstition. Compared with the Enlightenment idea of progress, it was less interested in social freedom, and saw some behaviours like overusing alcohol, using illegal drugs and having extramarital sex as typical for uncivilized peoples and the underclass.  Lost currency after the world wars, through some supporters like Prince Phillip remained until recently.

Millennial Idea of Progress - since the late 2000s, with forerunners since the 1980s. Unites enthusiasm for technology (especially microchips) with high social freedom. In a way it is similar to the Enlightenment idea, though it's less likely to involve support for the free market.

It looks like Dionysian saeculums produce an idea of progress involving high social freedom, while Apollonian ones produce an idea of progress involving eradication of uncivilized behaviours.

Quote:Humanities did not go away because of Leftist/Inclusivist stuff, and such stuff is perfectly rational. It's the best area on your diagram, and most academics these days are predominantly progressive because the alternative out in red rural America is so horrific. In any case, the reason humanities has declined is precisely the tech obsession, so you got that backwards. Politicians and pundits no longer view higher education as a place to develop the ability to express, create and debate ideas or to learn to read, write, speak, understand society, investigate or draw, etc., but to get a good tech job or get a business and finance career going.

In a way tech companies today are like drug dealers, making people addicted to the Internet and digital gadgets to make money on them. Being a drug dealer, or a tech dealer, is a fast way to get rich.

Quote:I think space travel will definitely become a tourist adventure for those who can afford it. It will never be cheap, and probably never fully safe, but many more people will afford it than can do so today. But fun, thrilling and spectacular as it is, is this really what makes the Apollo program the greatest thing since the invention of agriculture and writing, as you suggest? Without ET contact and knowledge of The Other Side, space travel and exploration yields few other benefits.

The route to a sustainable and prosperous future on Earth lies here on Earth-- in progressive politics, conservation, innovative eco-tech, human and civil rights, urban planning, reform of agriculture, support for culture, and lifestyle arrangements here on Earth, and those who study humanities and general higher education grasp this fact much better than those who don't, as election polls and returns clearly show.

It is possible space colonization will prove unfeasible. In this case, we might expect some thousands of years of the millennial saeculum, increasing stagnation until a natural catastrophe destroys us. It can be the fate of all intelligent species in the Cosmos. But I like the perspective of interstellar adventures better. If we colonize a few solar systems, we are practically immortal as a species. This is what makes space travel such a breakthrough.

Of course space travel requires elimination of some uncivilized behaviours. You cannot make a crew out of junkies or porn addicts.

I moved continuation of this topic to the Society and Culture forum under modernism and post-modernism

[pbrower2a]

As the Opening Ceremonies of the 2020 2021 Summer Olympics approach, one of the Gold Medalists from 1952 passes away:


Janet Teresa Moreau Stone (October 26, 1927 – June 30, 2021) was an American track and field athlete who competed mainly in the 100 meters.

Moreau was born in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. She competed for the United States in the 1952 Summer Olympics held in Helsinki, Finland in the 4 x 100 meters where she won the Gold medal with her teammates Mae Faggs, Barbara Jones, and Catherine Hardy.[1] Moreau was a national champion in the 50- yard dash, 220-yard dash, and was a 5-time national champion of the standing long jump. Prior to her Olympic win, she competed in the 1951 Pan American Games on the winning 4x100-relay team,[2] while a senior at Boston University. At the time of the 1952 Olympics she was a P.E. teacher at Pawtucket West High School, now known as Shea High School in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.[3]

Stone's dream of joining the priesthood was blocked by gender restrictions.[2] When she returned from the Olympics, she married Ray Stone.[3] She was inducted into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame in 1968. The couple moved to Barrington, where Stone taught physical education at Barrington Middle School for 36 years and served as an interfaith minister. In 2010, Stone was selected as chaplain for the U.S. Olympic Team.[2]
Stone died in Barrington on June 30, 2021, at age 93.[4]

.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Janet_Moreau

[pbrower2a]

Matīss Edmunds Kivlenieks (26 August 1996 – 4 July 2021) was a Latvian professional ice hockey goaltender who played for Prizma Riga of the Latvian Hockey Higher League (LHL), the Cleveland Monsters of the American Hockey League (AHL), and the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL) between 2012 and 2021. He died on 4 July 2021 after being accidentally struck with fireworks.

Kivlenieks played for Prizma Riga in the season of 2011–12.[3] That was his only season with the team, and he only played 1 game with a 9.52 goals against average (GAA).[3] They decided not to keep him, and he went to the Prizma U18 team, where he played as a third-in-line goaltender playing only 12 games, but had a 2.6 GAA.[3]


Kivlenieks opted to leave Latvia in 2013 at age 16 and continue his development in the North American junior leagues in order to pursue his goal of joining the NHL. Kivlenieks was encouraged to try and join the North American Hockey League by Kārlis Zirnis, a coach for the Latvian national team and a scout for the NAHL. Kivleniek's first team in North America was the Edina Lakers, which played in the Tier III Minnesota Junior Hockey League.[1][2] After the 2013-14 season, he unsuccessfully tried out for the Janesville Jets of the NAHL, and again played for the Lakers, now the Forest Lake Lakers. In February 2015, Kivlenieks was called up to the Coulee Region Chill of the NAHL as an emergency backup, losing 5-3 to the Janesville Jets.[1] In 2015, Kivlenieks was named to the MJHL's second all star team.[4]


In the 2015-16 season, Kivlenieks joined the Coulee Region Chill as a permanent player.[5] Kivlenieks reached Tier I junior hockey in the 2016–17 USHL season, leading the Sioux City Musketeers to win the Anderson Cup as the league's regular season champions.[1][5] He had a 1.85 goals-against average and .932 save percentage, with both stats being the second best in league history. In the playoffs, his team reached the final, but lost the Clark Cup in overtime of Game 5 of the Best of Five final.[5] Kivlenieks was named to the First All-Star team, and won the league's Goaltender and Player of the Year awards.[5][6]


Despite going undrafted after his final season with the Sioux City Musketeers, Kivlenieks signed a three-year, entry-level contract in May 2017 with the Columbus Blue Jackets worth $2,497,500.[5] The following season, he was assigned to the juniors, joining the Blue Jackets American Hockey League affiliate team, the Cleveland Monsters.[7]

During the 2019–20 season, Kivlenieks was recalled on multiple occasions to the Blue Jackets before starting in his NHL debut, earning his first NHL win in a 2–1 victory against the New York Rangers on 19 January 2020. He stopped 31 of the 32 shots he faced and finished the night with a .969 save percentage.[8] After the end of the 2020-21 Blue Jackets season, Kivlenieks was considered a contender for the backup goalie position in Columbus.[9]

On 4 July 2021, Kivlenieks was fatally injured during a fireworks malfunction while at the home of Blue Jackets' goaltending coach Manny Legace in Novi, Michigan.[11] According to Novi Police Lt. Jason Meier, a mortar tube accidentally tilted toward the hot tub Kivlenieks and others were sitting in and fired, striking Kivlenieks directly in the chest. Kivlenieks was taken to Ascension Providence Hospital with extensive internal injuries, where he later died.[12][13][14]


An autopsy performed on 5 July ruled Kivlenieks' death as accidental, due to chest trauma caused by a fireworks mortar.[11][12][13] Prior to the autopsy, police said Kivlenieks was believed to have slipped and hit his head on concrete while running from the malfunctioning firework.[11][13] According to Novi Police Lt. Jason Meier, the autopsy showed no signs of head trauma or external injuries to his chest.[12] In a statement, team president John Davidson said Kivlenieks "was an outstanding young man who greeted every day and everyone with a smile and the impact he had during his four years with our organization will not be forgotten."[13][14] Former Blue Jackets captain Nick Foligno said "Kivlenieks didn't take one day for granted which makes this tragedy even more hard to bear!"[14]


More at Wikipedia.

With this sort of early history as a hockey player he might have become one of the greatest at his position had it not been for the freak accident that killed him. 

[pbrower2a]

geneticist Richard Lewontin


Richard Charles Lewontin (March 29, 1929 – July 4, 2021) was an American evolutionary biologist, mathematician, geneticist, and social commentator. A leader in developing the mathematical basis of population genetics and evolutionary theory, he pioneered the application of techniques from molecular biology, such as gel electrophoresis, to questions of genetic variation and evolution.
In a pair of seminal 1966 papers co-authored with J. L. Hubby in the journal Genetics,[3][4] Lewontin helped set the stage for the modern field of molecular evolution. In 1979 he and Stephen Jay Gould introduced the term "spandrel" into evolutionary theory. From 1973 to 1998, he held an endowed chair in zoology and biology at Harvard University, and from 2003 until his death in 2021 had been a research professor there.
Lewontin opposed genetic determinism.[5]


Lewontin worked in both theoretical and experimental population genetics. A hallmark of his work was an interest in new technology. He was the first person to do a computer simulation of the behavior of a single gene locus (previous simulation work having been of models with multiple loci).[citation needed] In 1960 he and Ken-Ichi Kojima were the first population geneticists to give the equations for change of haplotype frequencies with interacting natural selection at two loci.[7] This set off a wave of theoretical work on two-locus selection in the 1960s and 1970s. Their paper gave a theoretical derivation of the equilibria expected, and also investigated the dynamics of the model by computer iteration. Lewontin later introduced the D' measure of linkage disequilibrium.[8] (He also introduced the term "linkage disequilibrium", about which many population geneticists have been unenthusiastic.[9])



In 1966, he and J. L. Hubby published a paper that revolutionized population genetics.[3] They used protein gel electrophoresis to survey dozens of loci in the fruit fly Drosophila pseudoobscura, and reported that a large fraction of the loci were polymorphic, and that at the average locus there was about a 15% chance that the individual was heterozygous. (Harry Harris reported similar results for humans at about the same time.)[10] Previous work with gel electrophoresis had been reports of variation in single loci and did not give any sense of how common variation was.

Lewontin and Hubby's paper also discussed the possible explanation of the high levels of variability by either balancing selection or neutral mutation. Although they did not commit themselves to advocating neutrality, this was the first clear statement of the neutral theory for levels of variability within species. Lewontin and Hubby's paper had great impact—the discovery of high levels of molecular variability gave population geneticists ample material to work on, and gave them access to variation at single loci. The possible theoretical explanations of this rampant polymorphism became the focus of most population genetics work thereafter. Martin Kreitman was later to do a pioneering survey of population-level variability in DNA sequences while a Ph.D. student in Lewontin's lab.[11]



In a landmark paper, in 1972 Lewontin identified that most of the variation (80–85%) within human populations is found within local geographic groups and differences attributable to traditional "race" groups are a minor part of human genetic variability (1–15%).[12] In a 2003 paper, A.W.F. Edwards criticized Lewontin's conclusion that race is an invalid taxonomic construct, terming it Lewontin's fallacy. He argued that the probability of racial misclassification of an individual based on variation in a single genetic locus is approximately 30% and the misclassification probability becomes close to zero if enough loci are studied.[13] Edwards' criticism in turn garnered its own criticism from biologists such as Jonathan Marks, who argued that "the point of the theory of race was to discover large clusters of people that are principally homogeneous within and heterogeneous between, contrasting groups. Lewontin's analysis shows that such groups do not exist in the human species, and Edwards' critique does not contradict that interpretation."[14]



In 1975, when E. O. Wilson's book Sociobiology proposed evolutionary explanations for human social behaviors, biologists including Lewontin, his Harvard colleagues Stephen Jay Gouldand Ruth Hubbard responded negatively.[15]

Lewontin and Gould introduced the term spandrel to evolutionary biology, inspired by the architectural term "spandrel", in an influential 1979 paper, "The Spandrels of San Marco and the Panglossian Paradigm: A Critique of the Adaptationist Programme." "Spandrels" were described as features of an organism that exist as a necessary consequence of other (perhaps adaptive) features, but do not directly improve fitness (and thus are not necessarily adaptive).[16] The relative frequency of spandrels versus adaptations continues to stir controversy in evolutionary biology.



Lewontin was an early proponent of a hierarchy of levels of selection in his article, "The Units of Selection". He has been a major influence on philosophers of biology, notably William C. Wimsatt (who taught with Lewontin and Richard Levins at the University of Chicago), Robert Brandon and Elisabeth Lloyd (who studied with Lewontin as graduate students), Philip Kitcher, Elliott Sober, and Sahotra Sarkar. Lewontin briefly argued for the historical nature of biological causality in "Is Nature Probable or Capricious?".[17]



In "Organism and Environment" in Scientia, and in more popular form in the last chapter of Biology as Ideology, Lewontin argued that while traditional Darwinism has portrayed the organism as a passive recipient of environmental influences, a correct understanding should emphasize the organism as an active constructor of its own environment. Niches are not pre-formed, empty receptacles into which organisms are inserted, but are defined and created by organisms. The organism-environment relationship is reciprocal and dialectical. M. W. Feldman and others[18] have developed Lewontin's conception in more detailed models under the term niche construction.



In the adaptationist view of evolution, the organism is a function of both the organism and environment, while the environment is only a function of itself. The environment is seen as autonomous and unshaped by the organism. Lewontin instead believed in a constructivist view, in which the organism is a function of the organism and environment, with the environment being a function of the organism and environment as well. This means that the organism shapes the environment as the environment shapes the organism. The organism shapes the environment for future generations.[19]

Lewontin has long been a critic of traditional neo-Darwinian approaches to adaptation. In his article "Adaptation" in the Italian Enciclopedia Einaudi, and in a modified version for Scientific American, he emphasized the need to give an engineering characterization of adaptation separate from measurement of number of offspring, rather than simply assuming organs or organisms are at adaptive optima.[20] Lewontin has said that his more general, technical criticism of adaptationism grew out of his recognition that the fallacies of sociobiology reflect fundamentally flawed assumptions of adaptiveness of all traits in much of the modern evolutionary synthesis.



Lewontin accused neo-Darwinists of telling Just-So Stories when they try to show how natural selection explains such novelties as long-necked giraffes.[21]



Along with others, such as Gould, Lewontin has been a persistent critic of some themes in neo-Darwinism. Specifically, he has criticized proponents of sociobiology and evolutionary psychology such as Edward O. Wilson and Richard Dawkins, who attempt to explain animal behaviour and social structures in terms of evolutionary advantage or strategy. He and others criticize this approach when applied to humans, as he sees it as genetic determinism. In his writing, Lewontin suggests a more nuanced view of evolution is needed, which requires a more careful understanding of the context of the whole organism as well as the environment.[22]



Such concerns about what he views as the oversimplification of genetics has led Lewontin to be a frequent participant in debates, and an active life as a public intellectual. He has lectured widely to promote his views on evolutionary biology and science. In books such as Not in Our Genes (co-authored with Steven Rose and Leon J. Kamin) and numerous articles, Lewontin has questioned much of the claimed heritability of human behavioral traits, such as intelligence as measured by IQ tests.[citation needed]



Some academics have criticized him for rejecting sociobiology for non-scientific reasons. Edward Wilson (1995) suggested that Lewontin's political beliefs affected his scientific view. Robert Trivers described Lewontin as "...a man with great talents who often wasted them on foolishness, on preening and showing off, on shallow political thinking and on useless philosophical rumination while limiting his genetic work by assumptions congenial to his politics."[23] Others such as Kitcher (1985) have countered that Lewontin's criticisms of sociobiology are genuine scientific concerns about the discipline. He wrote that attacking Lewontin's motives amounts to an ad hominem argument.[citation needed] Lewontin has at times identified himself as Marxist, and asserted that his philosophical views have bolstered his scientific work (Levins and Lewontin 1985).



Lewontin has written on the economics of agribusiness. He has contended that hybrid corn was developed and propagated not because of its superior quality, but because it allowed agribusiness corporations to force farmers to buy new seed each year rather than plant seed produced by their previous crop of corn (Lewontin 1982). Lewontin testified in an unsuccessful suit in California challenging the state's financing of research to develop automatic tomato pickers. This favored the profits of agribusiness over the employment of farm workers (Lewontin 2000).



As of 2003, Lewontin was the Alexander Agassiz Research Professor at Harvard. He has worked with and had great influence on many philosophers of biology, including William C. Wimsatt, Elliott Sober, Philip Kitcher, Elisabeth Lloyd, Peter Godfrey-Smith, Sahotra Sarkar, and Robert Brandon, often inviting them to work in his lab.

Since 2013, Lewontin has been listed on the Advisory Council of the National Center for Science Education.[24]

As of mid-2015, Lewontin and his wife Mary Jane lived on a farm in Brattleboro, Vermont. He was an atheist.[25]

Lewontin died on July 5, 2021, at the age of 92.[26]

[pbrower2a]

director of Superman (1978)


Richard Donner (born Richard Donald Schwartzberg; April 24, 1930 – July 5, 2021) was an American director and producer of film and television, and occasional comic-book writer. After directing the horror film The Omen (1976), he directed the superhero film Superman (1978), starring Christopher Reeve.
Donner later went on to direct movies such as The Goonies (1985) and Scrooged (1988), while reinvigorating the buddy film genre with the Lethal Weapon film series. He and his wife, producer Lauren Shuler Donner, owned the production company The Donners' Company (formerly Donner/Shuler Donner Productions), best known for producing the Free Willy and X-Men franchises. In 2000, he received the President's Award from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films. Film historian Michael Barson writes that Donner was "one of Hollywood's most reliable makers of action blockbusters".[1]


Initially, Donner wanted to develop a career as an actor. He gained a bit part in a television program directed by Martin Ritt, who encouraged Donner to become a director instead. Ritt hired Donner as his assistant. Later, Donner was on the staff of Desilu, where he directed commercials. He transitioned into television dramas in the late 1950s, directing some episodes of the Steve McQueen western serial Wanted Dead or Alive and the Chuck Connors western The Rifleman.[5] During his early career as a director he worked on over twenty-five television series, including Have Gun – Will Travel, The Fugitive, Combat!, Get Smart, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Wild Wild West, Gilligan's Island, Kojak, Tales from the Crypt, and The Twilight Zone (such as the episodes "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" starring William Shatner and "From Agnes—With Love" starring Wally Cox), as well as the serial Danger Island from the children's program The Banana Splits.[5]

Donner's first feature film was X-15 (1961), which starred Charles Bronson and Mary Tyler Moore. Seven years passed before he directed his next, Salt and Pepper (1968), with Sammy Davis Jr., and Peter Lawford. His breakthrough film was The Omen (1976).[5] A supernatural horror made in the wake of the success of The Exorcist, the film stars Gregory Peck, David Warner, and Lee Remick. It was the fifth-highest-grossing movie of 1976.



In 1978, Donner directed Superman: The Movie, starring Christopher Reeve in the title role. It was a hit worldwide, projecting Reeve to international fame.[6] The film co-starred Margot Kidder as Lois Lane, Marlon Brando as Jor-El, and Gene Hackman as archvillain Lex Luthor. At the box office, it grossed $134 million domestically.[1]



Principal photography of Superman included filming of its first sequel, Superman II. Donner filmed most of Superman II with the expectation he would complete the sequel after the release of Superman. Despite the first film's success, Donner was fired from Superman II. Throughout the filming of Superman and Superman II, Donner had a difficult relationship with executive producers Alexander Salkind and Ilya Salkind and producer Pierre Spengler. The Salkinds refused Donner's demand that Spengler be fired; instead, the Salkinds replaced Donner as director of Superman II with Richard Lester, who had worked with the Salkinds on The Three Musketeers and The Four Musketeers and as an uncredited producer on Superman. Following Donner's dismissal, Marlon Brando's scenes were removed from Superman II and much of the film was re-shot under Lester's direction. Gene Hackman refused to return for re-shoots; consequently, all the Lex Luthor scenes that appear in Superman II were filmed by Donner, although Donner refused to be credited.



Rotten Tomatoes' summary states that "Superman II meets, if not exceeds, the standard set by its predecessor."[7] Donner continued to promote the view that his contribution was superior to the rest of the series. Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut was released on November 28, 2006, the same date as the DVD release of the summer film Superman Returns.[citation needed] This version of the film features the re-insertion of Marlon Brando's scenes as Jor-El, and relies on a minimum of footage shot by Richard Lester.



Donner had mixed commercial flops (Inside Moves, Radio Flyer) and successes (The Goonies, the Lethal Weapon series, Scrooged and Conspiracy Theory). In the case of Superman, it was Donner who insisted the subject of the comic book superhero should be treated "straight", that is, portrayed with respect to the fantasy genre's particular conventions and tone, rather than "camp"; this approach strongly influenced later genre directors such as Tim Burton (Batman, Batman Returns), Bryan Singer (X-Men, X2, X-Men: Days of Future Past), Christopher Nolan (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises), and Zack Snyder (Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Zack Snyder's Justice League), who have made successful superhero films of their own.



Donner's next blockbuster film was the action comedy Lethal Weapon, written by Shane Black. It starred Mel Gibson as a widowed narcotics detective with a suicidal bent "who breaks every rule for the sheer joy of it". It co-starred Danny Glover as a calm homicide detective with a loving family and consideration for retirement. The film's action sequences were considered "truly spectacular" and made the film one of the year's biggest hits.[1]

Donner directed six films starring Mel Gibson in total, creating a Lethal Weapon franchise with three sequels; the last of these was Lethal Weapon 4, released in 1998. In an interview in 2000, Gibson described his impressions of Donner:

Quote:Uncle Dick. He's a great guy, just terrific. Extremely professional. He's an old veteran and has an understanding of film that is the culmination of years of experience. He's got his technical stuff down, his vision down. No matter what you say about Dick, it underrates him. He really loves what he's doing, loves working with actors, and he allows you freedom to explore all kinds of areas. "All right, kid," he'll say, and slap you on the back and let you try something, because even he doesn't know sometimes. He's just an extremely charming, talented, great fuckin' guy. I love him.[8]

Richard Donner's cousin is actor Steve Kahan, who played a policeman tracking Otis in Superman: The Movie, and played Captain Ed Murphy in the Lethal Weapon movie franchise. Donner had also cast Kahan in some of his other films.



He became the executive producer for the 2000 Marvel Comics film X-Men, then also an executive producer for the 2009 X-Men prequel, X-Men Origins: Wolverine. In addition, Donner's wife has produced all of the films in the X-Men film series under their Donners' Company brand.

On October 16, 2008, Donner and Lauren Shuler Donner received stars in a double ceremony on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for their achievements in motion pictures, located at 6712 Hollywood Boulevard.[9][10][11]
C

[Eric the Green]

"This means that the organism shapes the environment as the environment shapes the organism." Sounds like our generations and turning theory. Good for Lewontin. "Lewontin argued that while traditional Darwinism has portrayed the organism as a passive recipient of environmental influences, a correct understanding should emphasize the organism as an active constructor of its own environment"

[pbrower2a]

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Gunmen assassinated Haitian President Jovenel Moïse and wounded his wife in their home early Wednesday, inflicting more chaos on the unstable Caribbean country that was already enduring an escalation of gang violence, anti-government protests and a recent surge in coronavirus infections.

Claude Joseph, the interim prime minister, confirmed the killing and said the police and military were in control of security in Haiti, where a history of dictatorship and political upheaval have long stymied the consolidation of democratic rule.

While the streets of the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, were quiet Wednesday morning, some people ransacked businesses in one area. Authorities closed the international airport and declared a “state of siege.” The country appeared to be heading for fresh volatility ahead of planned general elections later this year. Moïse, 53, had been ruling by decree for more than a year after the country failed to hold elections and the opposition demanded he step down in recent months.

MORE ON THE ASSASSINATION
– EXPLAINER: Assassination threatens more chaos for Haiti
– Jovenel Moïse, Haiti's embattled president, killed at 53
– Haitian leader's killing draws condemnation, calls for calm
Joseph is likely to lead Haiti for now, though that could change in a nation where constitutional provisions have been erratically observed, said Alex Dupuy, a Haiti-born sociologist who teaches at Wesleyan University in the United States.

The best scenario would be for the acting prime minister and opposition parties to come together and hold elections, Dupuy said.

“But, in Haiti, nothing can be taken for granted. It depends how the current balance of forces in Haiti plays out,” said the academic, who described the situation as dangerous and volatile. Haiti’s police force is already grappling with a recent spike in violence in Port-au-Prince that has displaced more than 14,700 people, he said.

Former President Michel Martelly, whom Moïse succeeded, said he was praying for first lady Martine Moïse, calling the assassination “a hard blow for our country and for Haitian democracy, which is struggling to find its way.”

Joseph said Martine Moïse, 47, was shot and in a hospital. He condemned the president’s killing as a “hateful, inhumane and barbaric act.”

“The country’s security situation is under the control of the National Police of Haiti and the Armed Forces of Haiti,” Joseph said in a statement from his office. “Democracy and the republic will win.”

In the statement, Joseph said some of the attackers spoke in Spanish but offered no further explanation. In later statements, he said that they spoke Spanish or English and were highly trained and heavily armed.

A resident who lives near the president’s home said she heard the attack.

“I thought there was an earthquake, there was so much shooting,” said the woman who spoke on condition of anonymity because she fears for her life. “The president had problems with many people, but this is not how we expected him to die. This is something I wouldn’t wish on any Haitian.”

The U.S. Embassy in Haiti said it was restricting U.S. staff to its compounds and that the embassy would be closed Wednesday because of ’’an ongoing security situation.″

The White House described the attack as “horrific” and “tragic” and said it was still gathering information on what happened. U.S. President Joe Biden will be briefed later Wednesday by his national security team, spokesperson Jen Psaki said during an interview on MSNBC.

“The message to the people of Haiti is this is a tragic tragedy,” she during a previously scheduled interview on CNN. “And we stand ready and stand by them to provide any assistance that’s needed.”

President Luis Abinader of the Dominican Republic met his top military and police commanders to discuss plans to reinforce security along the border with Haiti following the assassination.

Moïse was killed a day after he nominated Ariel Henry, a neurosurgeon, as Haiti’s new prime minister. Joseph took over the job of interim prime minister in April following the resignation of the previous premier, Joseph Jouthe.

Haiti’s economic, political and social woes have deepened recently, with gang violence spiking heavily in Port-au-Prince, inflation spiraling and food and fuel becoming scarcer at times in a country where 60% of the population makes less than $2 a day. These troubles come as Haiti still tries to recover from the devastating 2010 earthquake and Hurricane Matthew that struck in 2016.

Opposition leaders accused Moïse of seeking to increase his power, including by approving a decree that limited the powers of a court that audits government contracts and another that created an intelligence agency that answers only to the president.

The president faced large protests in recent months that turned violent as opposition leaders and their supporters rejected his plans to hold a constitutional referendum with proposals that would strengthen the presidency.

In recent months, opposition leaders demanded that he step down, arguing that his term legally ended in February 2021. Moïse and supporters maintained that his term began when he took office in early 2017, following a chaotic election that forced the appointment of a provisional president to serve during a year-long gap.

___

This story has been updated to correct that Moïse ruled by decree for more than a year, not more than two years.

___

Coto reported from San Juan, Puerto Rico.

https://apnews.com/article/haiti-preside...e8d59c6af2

[pbrower2a]

(07-06-2021, 10:39 AM)Eric the Green Wrote: "This means that the organism shapes the environment as the environment shapes the organism." Sounds like our generations and turning theory. Good for Lewontin. "Lewontin argued that while traditional Darwinism has portrayed the organism as a passive recipient of environmental influences, a correct understanding should emphasize the organism as an active constructor of its own environment"

Also... Lewontin debunked the elitist theories behind eugenics and social Darwinism. 

It is often believed that science can operate in a political vacuum, but history has shown this tragically wrong. Ideally the politicians leave science alone except to provide generous funding with few strings attached other than those that good science always has at disposal. The Hard Right may act as if eugenics and social Darwinism are the optimal ways of organizing economic and political life... but we are seeing that assumption implode.  

Prime examples of  living things shaping their environments include the Gaia hypothesis in which living things create a safe haven for Life itself. One astronomic calculation has shown that the Earth would go rapidly into Venus-like conditions, or even more severe, were it not for plants taking in carbon dioxide and using solar energy in breaking up water molecules in photosynthesis. (More severe? Water vapor is an even-stronger greenhouse gas than is carbon dioxide). Beavers do their own sort of management of water basins, and elephants are the difference between jungles and savannas. (Savannas are actually more productive of animal life than are rainforests). During the ice age, mammoths turned what might have been marginal forest without them into a rich biome for the megafauna that flourished in a steppe-tundra.

[sbarrera]

Robert Downey Sr. (June 24, 1936 - July 7, 2021)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Downey_Sr.

American actor, director, producer, writer, cinematographer, and the father of actor Robert Downey Jr. He is known for having written and directed the underground film Putney Swope, a satire on the New York Madison Avenue advertising world. According to film scholar Wheeler Winston Dixon, Downey Sr.'s films during the 1960s were "strictly take-no-prisoners affairs, with minimal budgets and outrageous satire, effectively pushing forward the countercultural agenda of the day."

https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/07/entertain...index.html



I saw Putney Swope and thought it was a very odd film; would love to watch more of his stuff. He definitely represents an underground style of film from the Awakening Era that is not done any more. Reminds me of Zappa's 300 Motels or of the animated film Fritz the Cat. Anything like that would get cancelled today for too many racial stereotypes or blatant sexism.

[pbrower2a]

Evil dies, too.


Giovanni Tegano (Italian pronunciation: [dʒoˈvanni teˈɡaːno]; 8 November 1939 – 7 July 2021) was an Italian criminal and a member of the 'Ndrangheta, the Calabrian mafia. He was a fugitive since 1993 and included in the list of most wanted fugitives in Italy, until his arrest in April 2010.[1] He was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for murder, arms trafficking, and mafia association.


He was considered to be the boss of the De Stefano-Tegano 'ndrina. The clan hails from the Archi neighbourhood in the city of Reggio Calabria, and also includes his brothers Pasquale and Giuseppe. At time of his arrest in April 2010, Tegano was regarded as one of the few remaining bosses of the 'Ndrangheta's old guard.[2]

The Tegano clan sided with the De Stefano clan in the Second 'Ndrangheta war, which raged from 1985 to 1991. The alliance was sealed by the marriage between Orazio De Stefano and Antonietta Benestare, a niece of Giovanni Tegano on 2 December 1985.[3] The bloody six-year war between the Condello-Imerti clan and De Stefano allied with the Tegano clan left 621 deaths.[4][5][6]
While the main leaders of De Stefano clan were killed it fell upon the Teganos to wage the war. The Teganos were the key negotiators for the 'pax mafiosa' in Reggio Calabria in the 1990s between the Tegano, De Stefano, Libri, and Latella clans on one side and the Imerti, Serraino, Condello and Rosmini clans on the other, in which they divided their spheres of influence in Reggio Calabria.[7][8] He became a member of Camera di Controllo, a provincial commission of the 'Ndrangheta, formed at the end of the war in September 1991 to avoid further internal conflicts.[9]

He became a fugitive in 1993. His brother Pasquale Tegano, wanted since 1994, was arrested on 6 August 2004.[8] At that time, differences between the Tegano clan and the De Stefanos emerged over the division of extortion rackets. The Teganos secured the neutrality of their old enemy Pasquale Condello.[10]
After being on the run for 17 years, he was arrested in Reggio Calabria on 26 April 2010. Tegano did not resist arrest, though he had a loaded gun with him.[1][2] The next day, a group of friends, relatives and supporters applauded when he left the Reggio Calabria court house on his way to jail. "Giovanni is a man of peace!" one woman shouted. The Italian Minister of the Interior, Roberto Maroni, commented that "his capture is the hardest blow that we could inflict today to the 'Ndrangheta as he was the number one Calabrian fugitive."[11] "Given his role, seniority and the importance of events he knew, he had risen to the ranks of one of the 'Ndrangheta's most important figures," according to a top police official, Renato Cortese.[2]

Giovanni Tegano died on 7 July 2021 in the prison of Opera, Lombardy, at the age of 81. Until his death, Tegano was detained at 41 bis regime because he was still considered the leader of the powerful De Stefano-Tegano 'ndrina.[12]

[pbrower2a]

As the 2020/2021 Summer Olympic Games approach, a champion dies:

Gillian Mary Donaldson MBE (née Sheen; 21 August 1928 – 5 July 2021) was a British fencer and Olympic champion in foil competition. She won a gold medal in the women's individual foil event at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne.[2][3] She also competed at the 1952 and 1960 Summer Olympics.[3]


Sheen first took up the sport while studying at North Forland School in Kent, and won the schoolgirls title in 1945. In 1947, she took the Junior Championships and went to University College Hospital in London to become a dental surgeon. In 1949, she won her first senior national title and took the British Universities title for five consecutive years. In 1951, she won a gold medal at the World Universities Championships.[4]

Sheen participated in the 1952 Summer Olympics but was eliminated in the second round. She went back to the Olympics in 1956 and took the gold medal for Great Britain.[5] She won with a classic technique in a period when advancing athleticism was changing the sport.[6] The press hailed her as a middle-class figure and emphasized her age (28) and gender so that she was seen as a "dark horse" competitor.[7]

She participated at the 1950 World Fencing Championships in Monte Carlo, where she won a bronze medal in Team Foil with the British team.[8] She represented England and won a silver medal in the individual foil at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Vancouver, Canada.[9][10] Four years later she won the gold medal in the same event at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff. She competed until 1963, winning her tenth and final British Championship in 1960.[11]

Sheen was born in Willesden in London on 21 August 1928.[4] In 1962 she married Bob Donaldson, an American orthodontist,[12] and she moved to New York City. There, she set up a dental and orthodontic practice with her husband.[5] She was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2019 Birthday Honours for services to UK sport.[13]

She died in Auburn, New York, on 5 July 2021.[4][12]

Books:

• Sheen, Gillian (1958). Instructions to Young Fencers. Museum Press. OCLC 1577370.
  

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Former First Lady of Egypt, Jehan Sadat


Jehan Sadat[1] (Arabic: جيهان السادات‎ Jihān as-Sadāt,[2] [ʒeˈhæn es.sæˈdæːt]; née Safwat Raouf; 29 August 1933 – 9 July 2021[3]) was an Egyptian human rights activist the widow of Anwar Sadat, and the First Lady of Egypt from 1970 until her husband's assassination in 1981. As Egypt's first lady, she greatly influenced the reform of the country's civil rights legislation. Advance laws, referred to as the "Jihan Laws", have given women in Egypt a range of new rights, such as the right to child support and custody in the event of divorce.

Jehan Sadat, also spelled Jihan, was born Jehan Safwat Raouf (Arabic: جيهان صفوت رؤوف‎ Jīhān Ṣafwat Raʼūf [ʒeˈhæːn ˈsˤɑfwɑt ɾɑˈʔuːf]) in Cairo, Egypt, as the first girl and third child of an upper-middle-class family of an Egyptian surgeon father, Safwat Raouf, and English music teacher mother, Gladys Cotterill. Her mother was the daughter of Charles Henry Cotterill, a Sheffield City police superintendent. She was raised as a Muslim, according to her father's wishes, but also attended a Christian secondary school for girls in Cairo.
As a teenage schoolgirl, she was intrigued by Anwar Sadat as a local hero, through following reports in the media about his adventures, in addition to his courage, loyalty, and determination in resisting the British occupation of Egypt. She heard many stories about him from her cousin, whose husband was his colleague in resistance, and later in prison.

It was at her 15th birthday party that she first met her future husband Sadat, shortly after his release from prison,[4] where he had served two and a half years for his political activities.
The couple married on 29 May 1949, after some hesitation, and objections from her parents to the idea of their daughter marrying a jobless revolutionary. He was 30, while she was 15. Anwar Sadat was subsequently part of the core members of the Free Officers Movement that led the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, which overthrew the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan.
]

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The Sadats with US president Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalyn in 1977

Over the course of 32 years, Sadat was a supportive wife for her husband, who, in his rising political career, who would go on to become President of Egypt. The couple had three daughters, Noha, Jihan, Lobna, and a son, Gamal.
Sadat became First Lady of Egypt in 1970, and used her platform to touch the lives of millions inside her country, serving as a role model for women everywhere. She helped change the world's image of Arab women during the 1970s, while undertaking volunteer work, and participating in non-governmental service to the less fortunate.[citation needed]

Sadat played a key role in reforming Egypt's civil rights laws during the late 1970s. Often called "Jehan's Laws", new statutes advanced by her granted women a variety of new rights, including those to alimony and custody of children in the event of divorce.
After visiting wounded soldiers at the Suez front during the Six-Day War in 1967, she founded al Wafa' Wa Amal (Faith and Hope) Rehabilitation Center, which offers disabled war veterans medical and rehabilitation services and vocational training. The center is supported by donations from around the world and now serves visually impaired children and has a worldwide known music and choir band.
She also played crucial roles in the formation of the Talla Society, a cooperative in the Nile Delta region which assists local women in becoming self-sufficient , the Egyptian Society for Cancer Patients, the Egyptian Blood Bank, and SOS Children's Villages in Egypt, an organization that provides orphans new homes in a family environment.
She headed the Egyptian delegation to the UN International Women's Conferences in Mexico City and Copenhagen. She founded the Arab-African Women's League. As an activist, she hosted and participated in numerous conferences throughout the world concerning women's issues, children's welfare, and peace in Africa, Asia, Europe, and North and South America.
On 6 October 1981, Sadat's husband was assassinated by members of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad during the annual victory parade held in Cairo to celebrate Operation Badr. This ended both his presidency and her period as First Lady, which had endured for nearly 11 years.
Education[edit]
Sadat gained a BA in Arabic Literature at Cairo University in 1977. This was followed by a MA in Comparative Literature in 1980, and PhD in Comparative Literature in 1986, both at the same university.
After completing her education, Sadat became a teacher at the Cairo Artist and Performance Center.

Jehan Sadat speaks at the Dean Lesher Regional Center for the Arts in [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walnut_Creek,_California]Walnut Creek, California, on 11 April 2006

Sadat was a Senior fellow at the University of Maryland, College Park (where The Anwar Sadat Chair for Peace and Development has also been endowed).
She also wrote an autobiography, A Woman of Egypt (ISBN 0-7432-3708-0), published by Simon & Schuster in 1987, as well as poetry in Arabic, under a pseudonym. Her second memoir, My Hope for Peace, was released in March 2009.
Jehan Sadat died on July 9. 2021 at the age of 87. Prior to her death she had reportedly been battling cancer.[5]

Sadat was the recipient of several national and international awards for public service and humanitarian efforts for women and children. She also received more than 20 honorary doctorate degrees from national and international colleges and universities around the world. In 1993, she received the Community of Christ International Peace Award, whilst in 2001, she was the winner of the Pearl S. Buck Award. After her death, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi issued a decree awarding her the Order of Perfection.[6] It was also announced that the Al-Firdous axis (Axis of Paradise) in Cairo will be named after her.[6]

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I have little familiarity with the world's largest movie industry, but this fellow sounds like the Maurice Chevalier, Humphrey Bogart, Cary Grant, Henry Fonda, Jimmy Stewart, Lawrence Olivier, Alec Guinness, or Paul Newman of his country according to this Wikipedia article:


 Mohammed Yusuf Khan (11 December 1922 – 7 July 2021), known professionally by his stage name Dilip Kumar, was an Indian actor and film producer who worked in Hindi cinema. Referred to as the "Tragedy King" for his portrayal of serious roles and retrospectively as "The First Khan" of Bollywood, he has been described as one of the most successful film stars in the industry and is credited with bringing a distinct form of method acting to cinema. Kumar holds the record for most wins for the Filmfare Award for Best Actor (eight, which was later equalled by Shah Rukh Khan), and was also the inaugural recipient of the award.


In a career spanning over five decades, Kumar worked in over 65 films. He debuted as an actor in the film Jwar Bhata (1944), produced by Bombay Talkies. Following a series of unsuccessful ventures, he had his first box office hit in Jugnu (1947). Kumar found further success with the romantic Andaz (1949), the swashbuckling Aan (1952), the social drama Daag (1952), the dramatic Devdas (1955), the comical Azaad (1955), the epic historical Mughal-e-Azam (1960), the social dacoit crime drama Gunga Jamuna (1961), and the comedy Ram Aur Shyam (1967). Both Andaz and Aan briefly became the highest-grossing Indian film up to that point, a feat later achieved by Mughal-e-Azam, which sustained the record for 11 years. As of 2021, the latter remains the highest-grossing film in India when adjusted for inflation.

The 1970s saw Kumar's career take a downturn, marked by a string of commercial failures. In 1976, he went on a five-year hiatus from film performances and returned with the revolutionary drama Kranti, which was the highest-grossing Indian film of the year. He continued to play leading roles in films such as Shakti (1982), Karma (1986), and Saudagar (1991). His last on-screen appearance was in the commercially unsuccessful Qila (1998), which saw him in a dual role. Kumar later served as a member of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of India's parliament, from 2000 to 2006.

Kumar's personal life was the subject of much media attention. He was in a long-term relationship with actress and frequent co-star Madhubala that ended after the Naya Daur court case in 1957. He married actress Saira Banu in 1966 and resided in Bandra, a suburb of Mumbai, until his death in 2021. For his contributions to film, the Government of India awarded him with the Padma Bhushan in 1991 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2015, the country's third and second-highest civilian awards respectively. He was also awarded India's highest accolade in the field of cinema, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1994. In 1998, the Government of Pakistan conferred Kumar with Nishan-e-Imtiaz, the highest civilian decoration, making him the only Indian to have received the honor.

That's simply the introduction. 

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And, yes, the surviving relics of one of the most infamous assaults on the assumption of human dignity and decency are themselves vanishing:

Esther Béjarano , (née Löwy; 15 December 1924 – 10 July 2021) was one of the last survivors of the Auschwitz concentration camp. Along with Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, she played in the Women's Orchestra of Auschwitz.

Béjarano was born Esther Löwy, a daughter of the head cantor of a Jewish municipality, in Saarlouis.[1] Her father encouraged his daughter to get interested in music and Esther learned to play the piano. At the age of 15 she had to leave her parents' home in order to make an attempt to emigrate to Palestine; the attempt was unsuccessful. She served two years of hard labour at a camp in Landwerk Neuendorf [de], near Fürstenwalde/Spree.[citation needed]


On 20 April 1943, everyone in the camp was deported to the Auschwitz concentration camp. There she had to drag stones until she joined the Women's Orchestra of Auschwitz, where she played the accordion. The orchestra had the task of playing for the daily march of the gangs by the camp gate. After the war, she emigrated to Palestine on 15 September 1945 and in 1960 returned to Germany with her husband and two children.[2]
At the beginning of the 1980s, with her daughter Edna and son Joram, she created the musical group Coincidence. They sang songs from the ghetto and in Hebrew as well as anti-fascist songs.[citation needed]

Béjarano lived in Hamburg. She was a co-founder and chairman of the International Auschwitz Committee and honorary chairperson of the Union of Persecutees of the Nazi Regime.[citation needed]

Béjarano died on 10 July 2021 aged 96 in Hamburg.[3][4][5] She was one of the last surviving orchestra members.[6]
A

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Hockey star Bryan Watson

Bryan Joseph Watson (November 14, 1942 – July 8, 2021) was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). He played for the Montreal Canadiens, Detroit Red Wings, Oakland Seals, Pittsburgh Penguins, St. Louis Blues, and Washington Capitals from 1963 to 1979, and briefly in the World Hockey Association with the Cincinnati Stingers. He later served as head coach of the Edmonton Oilers during the 1980–81 NHL season.

Watson was born in Bancroft, Ontario, on November 14, 1942.[1][2] His father was employed by the county; his mother was a housewife.[2] In order to expand his sporting opportunities, Watson moved to Peterborough, Ontario, when he was 13 to live with his grandparents.[3] There, he played junior hockey with the Peterborough Petes of the Ontario Hockey Association from 1960 to 1963,[4][3] under the tutelege of head coach Scotty Bowman.[2]

Montreal Canadiens (1963–65)
Watson signed with the Montreal Canadiens and made his NHL debut during the 1963–64 NHL season. He played in 39 games in the regular season and six games in the opening round of the Stanley Cup playoffs against the Toronto Maple Leafs.[1] In Watson's second year, he appeared in only five games with Montreal and spent the bulk of the season with the AHL's Quebec Aces,[4] where he played with Doug Harvey.[5] Watson was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks for Don Johns on June 8, 1965. He was then claimed the next day by the Detroit Red Wings in the NHL Intra-League Draft.[1]

Detroit Red Wings (1965–67)
During his first year with the Red Wings in 1965–66, Watson played all 70 games in the regular season, during which he scored his first NHL goal and led the team in penalty minutes. He also appeared in all twelve playoff games for Detroit, scoring two goals – the only playoff goals he scored in his whole career – and helping the Red Wings advance to the Stanley Cup Finals against his former team the Canadiens.[1] In 1966–67 Watson split his time between the Red Wings and the Memphis Wings, Detroit's farm team in the CPHL.[4]

Montreal Canadiens (1967–68)
Watson was left unprotected by the Red Wings in the 1967 NHL Expansion Draft. The Minnesota North Stars consequently selected him as their fifteenth pick. That same day the North Stars traded Watson to Montreal for three young prospects, Bill Plager, Leo Thiffault and Barrie Meissner. Watson appeared in only a dozen games with the Canadiens in the 1967–68 season, registering just one assist and nine penalty minutes.[1] He played the rest of the season in the minors, first for the Cleveland Barons in the AHL (12 games) and then the majority of the season with the Houston Apollos in the CPHL.[4]

Oakland Seals and the Pittsburgh Penguins (1968–74)
Watson was traded to the Oakland Seals on June 28, 1968, in exchange for Tom Thurlby and a first round draft pick in 1972. After playing fifty games for the Seals in the 1968–69 season Watson was sent to the Pittsburgh Penguins in a trade involving six players. Watson spent most of the next six seasons with the Penguins. He had the best offensive season of his career in 1971–72, when he scored three goals and twenty points.[1] He also led the Penguins in penalty minutes in three of his four full seasons with the club, and led the NHL in that statistic with 215 in 1971–72.[1][5]

Detroit Red Wings (1974–76)
Watson started the 1973–74 season with the Penguins, before being traded to the St. Louis Blues on January 17, 1974. He played just 11 games with the team before returning to Detroit in a six-player trade less than a month later on February 14. He accumulated a career-high of 322 penalty minutes in 1975–76,[1] second only to Steve Durbano with 370.[6] He was also suspended for 10 games that season after fighting with Keith Magnuson of the Chicago Blackhawks on October 30, 1976.[7]

Washington Capitals (1976–79)
Watson was traded to the Washington Capitals for Greg Joly several weeks into the 1976–77 regular season. In three seasons with the Capitals, he played 155 games and served 294 minutes in penalties. Watson received the Charlie Conacher Humanitarian Award in 1978 for his contributions to the Special Olympics.[8] He sustained a serious cut to his right arm from a chainsaw in July 1978, while assisting his neighbour in chopping down a tree. However, he avoided long-term injury due to the uncommon nerve structure in his arm.[9] During the 1978–79 regular season, he left the NHL to join the Cincinnati Stingers of the World Hockey Association, with whom he ended his playing career.[1]

Watson was appointed head coach of the Edmonton Oilers in 1980, at the start of the franchise's second season in the NHL. However, the team posted a record of four wins, nine losses and five ties to start the season, and Watson was replaced by general manager Glen Sather.[2][5]