Sherman A1
Sherman A1's JournalThe fate of Amtrak's train line along Mississippi's coast will be decided by these key issues
Amtrak is making its final pitch to federal regulators for a new passenger line connecting New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama.
But the private companies that own the tracks Amtrak’s trains would use are opposing the deal, arguing that the extra trains would cause significant harm to their freight business. The two sides have been battling it out for weeks, presenting their own witnesses and cross-examining their opponents in front of the federal regulators who will make the final decision to either greenlight or kill Amtrak’s plan.
There isn’t a clear deadline for a decision from the Surface Transportation Board, but Amtrak should have an answer soon on whether or not its trains can return to the Gulf Coast.
This marks the biggest decision yet in a quarrel over returning passenger service to the railroad for the first time since Hurricane Katrina, though the ruling could be appealed in court. The judgment here will also potentially set a precedent, with Amtrak’s national expansion ambitions hinging on what happens with these roughly 150 miles of railroad.
https://www.mpbonline.org/blogs/news/the-fate-of-amtraks-train-line-along-mississippis-coast-will-be-decided-by-these-key-issues/
Ukrainians can exchange driving licence for Irish one
Ukrainian arrivals will be allowed to exchange their driving licence for an Irish one, the Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan has said.
This will "make it easier for them to move around and access work, school or other vital public services".
Minister Ryan said he had signed an order today that will allow Ukrainians temporarily resident (under the Temporary Protection Directive) in Ireland because of the conflict to drive their cars here if they exchange their Ukrainian driving licence for an Irish licence.
He added: "It operates much like renting a car if we are in another country, for example, and comes with the same warnings that users must be acutely aware of the rules of the road in that country.
https://www.rte.ie/news/ukraine/2022/0422/1293784-ukraine-driving-ireland/
School network aims to 'revolutionise' climate change and nature education
As schools prepare to reopen after the Easter break, a Co Waterford teacher has sounded a clarion call for more people to join a network that aims to "revolutionise" climate change education in the classroom.
Patrick Kirwan, a teacher at Ardscoil Na Mara in Tramore, set up the Irish Schools Sustainability Network (ISSN) last year to bring schools together to tackle what he sees as a "culture of apathy and acceptance" with regards to climate change.
He said: "We are deeply within a climate and nature emergency, but the problem is the public are unaware of the magnitude and scale of it and the urgency at which we need to take action. Our students and teachers are part of that public.
"When you do talk about it, people have an allergic reaction. In fact, if you have someone pestering you for your time, start talking about climate and it will clear the room very quickly!
https://www.rte.ie/news/2022/0422/1293714-school-network-climate-change/
UK supermarkets limit cooking oil in supply-chain issue
Supermarkets across the UK have placed limits on how much cooking oil customers can buy due to supply-chain problems caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Tesco is allowing three items per customer while Waitrose and Morrisons have placed limits of just two items each, according to the BBC.
A spokesperson for British Retail Consortium, Tom Holder, said the move was a temporary measure "to ensure availability for everyone".
Most of the UK's sunflower oil comes from Ukraine, with the restrictions applying to that product as well as olive and rapeseed oils at some supermarkets.
https://www.rte.ie/news/uk/2022/0423/1293892-uk-supermarkets-cooking-oil/
Brazil holds first carnival since pandemic
Rio de Janeiro's carnival, a glittering, sequin-studded festival of the flesh, exploded back to life yesterday with the first famed samba school parades since Covid-19 started devastating Brazil.
After two long years, a flood of dancers and drummers reclaimed the iconic beach city's "Sambadrome," its dedicated carnival parade venue, which had been turned into a drive-through vaccination center at the height of the health crisis.
The all-night parades by the city's top samba schools are the first since February 2020, marking a turning point for hard-hit Brazil, where Covid-19 has claimed more than 660,000 lives, second only to the United States.
"I'm just so happy. I think a lot of people are going to cry when the parades start, including me," said Ana Vieira, a 48-year-old geography teacher, who was dressed in a giant, sparkling white costume awaiting her turn to parade for the Imperatriz samba school.
https://www.rte.ie/news/world/2022/0423/1293852-rio-de-janeiro-carnival/
Employment and Training to Hold Open House and Ribbon Cutting for Jersey and Calhoun Counties New Of
JERSEYVILLE — Jersey/Calhoun Employment and Training are hosting an open house and ribbon cutting next month in celebration of their office’s new location.
The new location at 120 West Pearl Street in Jerseyville will serve job seekers and businesses in Jersey and Calhoun counties
“We are excited about our new office and look forward to working with people on the tools and skills they need to prepare or move up in the world of work,” Jersey County Career Services Coordinator Carolyn Taviner said.
To celebrate the new location the open house will be held from 3 to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, May 3.
https://www.riverbender.com/articles/details/employment-and-training-to-hold-open-house-and-ribbon-cutting-for-jersey-and-calhoun-counties-new-offices---58271.cfm
New institute announced in hopes of making St. Louis a geospatial technology center
ST. LOUIS (AP) — St. Louis leaders on Thursday announced plans for a new institute designed to make the region a major player in geospatial technology.
Andy Taylor, executive chairman of the rental car company Enterprise Holdings, is providing financing for the Taylor Geospatial Institute, along with eight St. Louis-are research institutions.
Organizers say the institute will provide funding for research and program development and expects to attract leading scientists to St. Louis.
Taylor said in a statement he hopes the institute "will cement St. Louis as the world's true center for geospatial excellence."
https://krcgtv.com/news/local/new-institute-announced-in-hopes-of-making-st-louis-a-geospatial-technology-center
'What do I still hear, once it's quiet again?'
Moroccan-born French artist Latifa Echakhch is representing Switzerland at the Biennale art exhibition in Venice. For her, memories are never just personal and there is a richness in not being tied to a particular identity.
This content was published on April 23, 2022 - 10:30 April 23, 2022 - 10:30
The story begins with a piano. “I wanted to learn to play it,” she says. A friend replied: “For that you need a piano, and for the piano a home, and for the home a country.” She decided on Switzerland.
Echakhch, 47, has lived for ten years in Vevey, overlooking Lake Geneva, with her children. It does not matter if it was for love of the piano or some other reason – it is a nice story. And it brings us directly to the Swiss Pavilion in Venice, where she has trodden a new path, a musical one.
“I felt the strong need to regenerate my work and to understand how I have been working,” Echakhch says.
There have been few breaks in her career so far. Not long after she completed her art studies in France in 2000 – she studied in Grenoble, Cergy (Paris) and Lyon – she found success with her large-scale installations. Every year she was in numerous group exhibitions, and solo exhibitions too. In 2013 she won the Prix Marcel Duchamp, the main French art award, and in 2015 the Zurich Art Prize. Most recently she has joined the Pace Gallery, one of the most powerful players in the global art market. Her solo show at the Venice Biennale is being regarded as a dive into the deeper waters of international art.
https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/-what-do-i-still-hear--once-it-s-quiet-again--/47536102?utm_campaign=teaser-in-channel&utm_source=swissinfoch&utm_medium=display&utm_content=o
First in Middle East: Aramco's Survey Vessel Gets ABS' Infectious Disease Mitigation Notation
Aramco’s hydrographic survey vessel, KARAN 8, has become the first in the Middle East region and second worldwide to be awarded an ABS Infectious Disease Mitigation (IDM) notation.
ABS' IDM-A notation is offered to vessels that meet the arrangement requirements addressing the configuration of spaces that can be used for the isolation and segregation of crew, passengers, and onshore visitors, as well as the ventilation onboard and the interior surfaces of certain accommodation or working spaces.
The ABS-classed KARAN 8 has met the requirements outlined in the ABS “Guide for Mitigation of Infectious Disease Transmission on Board Marine and Offshore Assets,” which was developed from a range of independent governmental and commercial guidance, including the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
"The notation allows owners and operators to clearly demonstrate that the risks of infectious outbreaks have been considered. Helping marine and offshore assets become operationally resilient to the impacts of infectious diseases is vital today and will continue to be for the foreseeable future,” said Christopher Greenwood, ABS Director, Middle East Business Development.
https://www.marinelink.com/news/first-middle-east-aramcos-survey-vessel-496005
Ukraine Selling 'Russian Warship, Go F*** Yourself' Stamp
Ukraine's national postal service Ukrposhta said it had been hit by a cyberattack on Friday after sales of a postage stamp depicting a Ukrainian soldier making a crude gesture to a Russian warship went online.
Queues formed to buy the stamp when it went on sale at the postal headquarters in Kyiv last week following the sinking of the flagship of Russia's Black Sea fleet. Kyiv said it had hit the cruiser Moskva with missiles. Russia said the ship sank while being towed in stormy seas after a fire caused by an explosion of ammunition.
Ihor Smilianskyi, Ukrposhta's director general, issued an apology to customers for what he said was a DDoS (distributed denial-of-service) attack but did not say who might be behind it.
"We are really doing everything, together with internet providers, to restore both the online store and other Ukrposhta systems that are also temporarily not working due to a DDos attack on our systems," he wrote on Facebook.
https://www.marinelink.com/news/ukraine-selling-russian-warship-go-f-496012
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