Nungesser parents criticize ‘public witch-hunt’
Nungesser’s parents make a statement about their son’s graduation.
Our son’s graduation should have been a joyous moment for our whole family. We are extremely proud of Paul for graduating, even more so because of the harassment campaign he was subjected to. For over two years, he had to fight false accusations and a public witch-hunt, even though Columbia and the NYPD exonerated him. At graduation, Columbia University again broke its own rules and afforded Emma Sulkowicz a special exception. It was the second devastating experience in just a few days: Last week, Columbia exhibited Emma Sulkowicz’s highly disturbing and extremely graphic drawings of our son publicly on campus…A university that bows to a public witch-hunt no longer deserves to be called a place of enlightenment, of intellectual and academic freedom. By failing to intervene in this injustice, Columbia ceases to be a place where critical thinking, courage and democratic practice are taught, learned and lived.
Removes wage negotiations
In an attempt to reduce the possibility of a wage gap existing within Reddit, Interim CEO Pao removes the ability of employees to negotiate for their wages at reddit. Instead employees are offered a salary on a take it or leave it basis. This is due to findings that men are better at negotiating their salaries and as such usually end up with a slightly better salary than their female counterparts. Pao urges other companies to do the same, claiming that it is an important step in gender equality.
When somebody comes in we figure out what role they’re applying for, what band they’re in and we give them what we think is a fair salary in that band. It takes a lot of tension out of the process, we’ve had people apply to Reddit just because of that policy.
Recommends breaking up big banks
Sanders wants to require the Financial Stability Oversight Council to make up a list of banks considered ‘too big to fail’ due to the devastating potential consequences, and then break up those banks.
If an institution is too big to fail, it is too big to exist.
‘Pretty Little Liar’ poster campaign
Posters go up around the Columbia campus accusing Sulkowicz of lying. Related posters also criticize Lena Dunham.
Apparently posters calling Emma Sulkowicz a "Pretty Little Liar" such as this one went up overnight around campus. pic.twitter.com/2YlgFsKoOS
— Teo Armus (@teoarmus) May 20, 2015
Patriot Act filibuster
Paul speaks for more than 10 hours on the Senate floor to filibuster a Patriot Act provision used to legally justify the bulk collection of telephone data. Congress must reauthorize or change the law by June 1, and its Memorial Day recess starting at week’s end.
I will not let the Patriot Act, the most unpatriotic of acts, go unchallenged. At the very least, we should debate. We should debate whether or not we are going to relinquish our rights, or whether or not we are going to have a full and able debate over whether or not we can live within the Constitution, or whether or not we have to go around the Constitution.
I think we’ve made the [collection] haystack so big, no one’s ever getting through the haystack to find the needle. What we really need to do is isolate the haystack into a group of suspicious people and spend enormous resources looking at suspicious people, people who we have probable cause.
You don’t know who the next group is that’s unpopular. The Bill of Rights isn’t for the prom queen. The Bill of Rights isn’t for the high school quarterback. The Bill of Rights is for the least among us. The bill of rights is for minorities. The bill of rights is for those who have minority opinions
https://youtu.be/JcBe3cwOH0c
Only 10 candidates for GOP’s first debate
Fox News says only ten Republican candidates will make the cut for the first GOP presidential primary debate of the 2016 campaign. The debate, which will be held August 6, 2015 in Cleveland, Ohio, is being organized by Fox and Facebook along with the Ohio Republican Party. According to Fox, the top ten candidates will be selected by their average in the five most recent national polls, as recognized by FOX News leading up to August 4th at 5 PM/ET. Candidates must also meet the constitutional requirements, file papers with the Federal Election Commission paperwork, and pay the necessary federal and state filing fees to qualify. Fox News’ Bret Baier, Megyn Kelly, and Chris Wallace will moderate.
‘Special announcement’ coming
On Twitter and in a Snapchat video O’Malley’s hints that his presidential launch will occur on the morning of May 30 at 10:00 a.m. in Baltimore’s Federal Hill Park. The short video, which does not have any audio, shows various scenes of downtown Baltimore and ends with a sign at Federal Hill Park.
Join me on May 30th at 10am on Federal Hill in Baltimore, MD for a special announcement. http://t.co/fX2b4u0hok pic.twitter.com/kUYSB8Bh3D
— Martin O'Malley (@MartinOMalley) May 19, 2015
Defends gay marriage views, criticizes Clinton
While meeting with local leaders Cruz defends his views on same-sex marriage, saying he does not think his opposition to gay marriage will hurt his chances with moderate voters.
Is there something about the left — and I am going to put the media in this category — that is obsessed with sex? ISIS is executing homosexuals — you want to talk about gay rights? This week was a very bad week for gay rights because the expansion of ISIS, the expansion of radical, theocratic, Islamic zealots that crucify Christians, that behead children and that murder homosexuals — that ought to be concerning you far more than asking six questions all on the same topic.
On Hillary Clinton’s use of a personal e-mail while she was the secretary of state.
Unfortunately this pattern of deception is what we’ve come to expect from the Clintons. I think what’s most surprising is how unsurprising this is.
Cruz again declined to say whether he would participate in the Iowa Straw Poll.
I am spending a great deal of time in Iowa, and I intend to spend a great deal of time in Iowa and participate vigorously in the Iowa caucus. A number of candidates and a number of campaigns are making decisions on the straw poll right now and we’re certainly making those decisions at the same time.
Breaks silence, wants emails released
After a campaign event at a bike shop in Iowa, where she was discussing small businesses and entrepreneurship, Clinton breaks her 28-day streak not talking to the press by answering six questions from reporters. On the release of State Department emails.
I want those emails out. Nobody has a bigger interest in getting [the emails] released than I do. They are not mine; they belong to the State Department. But as much as they can expedite that process. That’s what I’m asking: please move as quickly as they possibly can.
On her wealth:
Well, obviously Bill and I have been blessed and we’re very grateful for the opportunities that we had. But we’ve never forgotten where we came from, and we’ve never forgotten the kind of country that we want to see for our granddaughter. … So I think that most Americans understand that the deck is stacked for those at the top, and I am running a campaign that is very clearly stating that we want to shuffle that deck.
On the Clinton Foundation:
I am so proud of the foundation. I’m proud of the work that it has done and that it is doing. … And I’ll let the American people make their own judgments about that.
During the event, Clinton told the local businesses owners that she wants to roll back regulations on small businesses and small banks and spur business creation across the country.
I want to be a small business president.
Iraq war vote ‘a mistake’
On the subject of her vote in favor of the Iraq war Clinton states:
I made it very clear that I made a mistake, plain and simple. And I have written about it in my book, I have talked about it in the past. What we now see is a very different and very dangerous situation.
Reddit AMA
Sanders answers questions on Reddit.
My first effort would be to rally the American people to demand that Congress pass a progressive agenda which reverses the decline of our middle class. We have got to create millions of decent-paying jobs rebuilding our infrastructure, we’ve got to raise the minimum wage to a living wage, we’ve got to overturn this disastrous Citizens United Supreme Court decision and we have to transform our energy system in order to protect us from climate change. If the American people are politically active and demand that Congress act on their behalf, we can accomplish those goals and much more.
Nissan on track for 2020
Ghosn says the Company will be ready with a self-driving car by 2020. Vehicles will be equipped with autonomous driving technology, however, self-driving features would be used to enhance the driving experience, not necessarily replace the driver.
Our cars will be ready
Bloomberg West interview
Gouw and Cassidy discuss gender bias in the VC industry with Bloomberg’s Chang on Bloomberg West. Cassidy:
At the end of the day, our own data shows that women face discrimination and bias. 67% of women tech founders said they encounter that. When you try to change any ecosystem — particularly ones in The Valley — you start with what’s possible. In fact, entrepreneurship thrives on the idea of possibility. Have we faced bias? Yes. Have men faced bias, who are older than the young 22-year-old founder? They have too. The point is if we want to make progress on this issue, we do actually need to showcase what is possible. The return to possibility is one of the ways, in fact, to enable change. It is important to amplify what’s possible in the women entrepreneurs who are succeeding in The Valley every day.
Guow:
Culture is actually important in people’s ability to succeed or not succeed in a particular environment. What Sukindar wrote in Choose Possibility is important for two reasons. One, the fastest way to make a change is to start something new, and the second is it brings a positive narrative of people who are succeeding and killing and starting things in Silicon Valley.
Diversity more important than funding females
In an interview with Silicon Valley Business Journal Gouw talks about deal flow:
About 40 percent of our companies have female founders. About 60 percent are all men. Exabeam, for instance, isn’t just an all-male founding team. It’s an all-male company. That’s very representative of the deal flow that we get. We definitely get great early first looks at female-led companies…about 20 percent of founding teams in technology have a female founder or co-founder on it. We are clearly seeing deal flow that’s about double that.
Will Aspect remain a female-only firm?
Definitely not. We’ve seen all the data that says that having diversity in a board room and in a founding team leads to increased success in financial outcomes. That is partially gender diversity, but it’s also other things. It also means having some tech and product people as well as sales and go-to-market expertise, and having a mix of investors and operators. Our goal with Aspect Ventures, just as with our portfolio, is to simply build the best early stage- and Series A-focused venture capital firm.
On positioning:
We think that there is a real opportunity to bridge from the seed stage to the larger later stage. So that’s been a focus. And we collaborate, trying to bring syndication to Series A deals. Bringing syndication to Series A investments has been very well received both by the seed and investor community which have provided us with many, many leads. We have also been well-received by larger venture firms, who appreciate partnering with someone who is more flexible on writing potentially a $2 million to $5 million check, and not necessarily needing to be a $10 million investor. That is actually welcome by a lot of larger firms.
Not Constitutional gay marriage right
Bush opposes same sex marriage in an interview to The Brody File. He also adds that hat he does not believe the U.S. Constitution grants a right to gay marriage.
It’s at the core of the Catholic faith and to imagine how we are going to succeed in our country unless we have committed family life, (a) committed child-centered family system, is hard to imagine…So, irrespective of the Supreme Court ruling because they are going to decide whatever they decide – I don’t know what they are going to do – we need to be stalwart supporters of traditional marriage.
Wants 10,000 more troops in Iraq
Graham says that Syria remains a threat to the U.S. and if he is elected President he plans to send 10,000 more troops to Iraq. Graham:
Syria is the mostly likely launching pad for an attack on the United States. it’s going to take reengagement by the U.S. military in the region to end ISIS. I think that 10,000 troops will allow us to train the Iraqi army at a faster pace and give them the capability they don’t have. I am sorry it’s going to take reengagement by the American people. There no way to win the war without some of us being over there doing the fighting so they don’t hit us here at home.
Blames Obama for current Iraq problems
Graham says that he does not think the Iraq war was a mistake, but blames Obama for the current difficulties in Iraq due to leaving too soon without a strategy to further help Iraqi development.
At the end of the day I blame President Obama for the mess in Iraq and Syria not President Bush. . . The Iraqi people were making progress on the security front, the economic front and the political front, that is an undeniable fact. Leaving Iraq too soon, not leaving a residual force has resulted in what you see today.
‘More soldiers will die’
Graham says he believes that due to the destabilization in the middle east more American soldiers will be killed while protecting the interests of the U.S.
The destabilization of Iraq, continued strife in Syria, Iranian influence in the region and the proliferation of the Islamic State militant group combine to pose a grave threat to Americans. . . More American soldiers will die in Iraq and eventually in Syria to protect our homeland.
Lorraine interview
Black appears on the Lorraine show, where she reveals that her last job before becoming an MP was at the local chip shop. On finishing her politics degree:
It was hectic because I was studying – I had a really bizarre moment because I finally had time just to sit and (be) quiet in the library that is in the Commons, and I was sitting going, ‘ I’m studying for a politics exam in the House of Commons library ‘. It’s nuts but it’s good. Things have almost been timed to perfection because I’ve got one exam left and then that’s me done (with) uni and then we can start throwing ourselves into it and start delivering things.
On Westminster:
One of the things that we’ve constantly argued is the problem with Westminster, it has become a boys’ club and it has become out of touch and it’s filled with people who are quite often self interested rather than interested in people. So Parliament should be reflecting ordinary folk and it should have a wide variety of people in it and I think it’s great that we’re kind of seeing that happening…When you’re sitting there across the room from people who are wanting to potentially put another million folk in poverty, you’re thinking, ‘I’m not the one who should be worried, it’s you, you’re the ones that need to answer for things, you’re the ones that are forcing people to struggle’.
Arrest report: mental health issues
Apperson’s arrest record says he has been dealing with mental health issues, with a police officer saying:
During the investigation, I learned that Apperson has exhibited unusual behavior in which he had recently been admitted to a mental institution. It appears that Apperson has a fixation on Zimmerman and has displayed some signs of paranoia, anxiety, and bipolar disorder.
Zimmerman’s attorney:
There wasn’t much explanation of Mr. Apperson’s conduct that made sense, the way that Mr. Zimmerman described. If he [Apperson] does have some mental issues I think that might very well go a long way in explaining what was otherwise very bizarre yet very violent behavior.