https://twitter.com/ALT_uscis/status/920123695372398593

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When one legislator at the confirmation hearing asked Wilbur Ross how he would ensure that his official actions did not create conflicts of interest, given his vast personal holdings, Ross left little room for criticism. “I intend to be quite scrupulous about recusal and any topic where there is the slightest scintilla of doubt,” he said.

What he left unsaid, however, was that between the November election and January inauguration, he had quietly moved a chunk of assets into trusts for his family members, leaving more than $2 billion off of his financial disclosure report—and therefore out of the public eye. Ross revealed the existence of those assets, and the timing of the transfer, when Forbes asked why his financial disclosure form listed fewer assets than he had previously told the magazine he owned.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/danalexander/2017/10/16/the-mystery-of-wilbur-ross-missing-billions/#6b9107fd1c90

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/10/severe-flaw-in-wpa2-protocol-leaves-wi-fi-traffic-open-to-eavesdropping/

WASHINGTON
Florida has a U.S. senator who once flew aboard the Space Shuttle.

A congressional candidate from Miami can go one better: Bettina Rodriguez Aguilera says she’s been aboard a spaceship too. But this one was crewed by aliens. As in extraterrestrials.

Three blond, big-bodied beings — two females, one male — visited her when she was 7 years old and have communicated telepathically with her several times in her life, she says. (Sen. Bill Nelson served as payload officer aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia in 1986. All seven people aboard were from Earth. As far as is known.)

Rodriguez Aguilera, 59, a Republican who is running to replace retiring Miami Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, recounted her experience with the ETs during a 2009 television interview.

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article178813586.html

An ambitious plan by Jared Kushner’s family to recast its indebted Fifth Avenue office building as a luxury architectural trophy is collapsing, setting off a chain of events that may imperil the Kushners’ ownership of a property central to their real estate empire.

Their partner, Vornado Realty Trust, is telling brokers to plan for a much more mundane renovation that would leave the property as an office building, according to three people familiar with the matter. Vornado Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Steve Roth was never enthusiastic about the Kushner plan although until now he hadn’t stood in its way.

Putting an end to the Kushner effort -- to salvage their overpriced investment by turning it into a Midtown jewel with expensive condos, a hotel and five-floor mall -- could have profound ramifications for the family. Vornado, which owns 49.5 percent of 666 Fifth Ave., is unlikely to invest further in the property without first being reassured of its future, said three people familiar with Roth’s thinking. That means returning to the negotiating table with lenders -- a battle that could result in Kushner Cos.’ losing control of the building, said the people, who asked not to be named discussing private deals.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-16/kushner-plan-for-fifth-avenue-tower-is-being-blocked-by-partner

Oh boy

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security professionals predict changes are in store both for destination hotels and major music festivals.

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multiple security consultants and professionals said festival promoters would likely think twice before hosting events in the shadow of large buildings again.

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"What you could consider, which I think would not go very far, is that maybe you could have snipers on other buildings,"

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He predicted that hotel staff would receive increased training in identifying suspicious people, and warned travelers that they should begin to expect increased, airport-style security at hotels in destination cities.

"My opinion is that they need to get used to it very quickly, because it's coming, not only bag checks, but magnetometers as well," Yachmetz said.

https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/las-vegas-shooting/security-experts-predict-changes-wake-las-vegas-massacre-n809431?cid=sm_npd_nn_tw_ma

https://twitter.com/MargaretMenefee/status/918957645997985798

Saying the actions of the Republican incumbents have put their seats in danger, the nonpartisan Cook Political Report shifted its ratings of the election contests in two Southern California districts toward Democrats on Friday.

Though the general election is 13 months away, potential challengers and donors take a long look at such ratings when they are deciding where to spend their money.

Nine California Republican-held congressional districts are being closely watched as Democrats try to secure the seats they need to win back the House in the 2018 midterms.

http://www.latimes.com/politics/essential/la-pol-ca-essential-politics-updates-political-analysts-shift-two-california-1507908967-htmlstory.html

President Donald Trump’s decision to place Chad on his revised travel ban shocked experts and former U.S. officials who warned it could have major consequences for the fight against terrorism in Africa.

And it appears Trump’s controversial decision may have already damaged alliances on the continent—which is threatened by a range of militants, including affiliates of Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State militant group.

Chad has pulled hundreds of troops from neighboring Niger, where they had been stationed to assist in a regional fight against Boko Haram, the Nigerian militant Islamist group, Reuters reported.

http://www.newsweek.com/trump-travel-ban-chad-boko-haram-684078?amp=1



Good job you fucking moron

A Swedish university has discovered Arabic characters for “Allah” and “Ali” woven into Viking burial clothes. Researchers at Uppsala University describe the finding of the geometric Kufic characters in silver on woven bands of silk as “staggering”.

The researchers at Uppsala, Sweden’s oldest university, were re-examining clothes that had been in storage for some time. They had originally been found at Viking burial sites in Birka and Gamla Uppsala in Sweden. Textile archaeology researcher Annika Larsson told the BBC that at first she could not make sense of the symbols, but then, “I remembered where I had seen similar designs: in Spain, on Moorish textiles.”

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/oct/13/viking-burial-clothes-woven-with-allah-unveiled-by-swedish-university?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other