Happy Friday, yall. I hope you all made it through the brutal stretch of the week that comes after you have a national holiday on a Tuesday. The short week is nice, the kick in the ass on Wednesday is not.

To the links...

Tim Hardaway Jr.s contract is pure insanity

Story with @Ianbegley: Restricted free agent Tim Hardaway Jr., has signed a 4-year, $71M offer sheet with New York.

With @wojespn, Knicks' offer sheet to Tim Hardaway Jr. contains a 15% trade kicker, league sources told ESPN. 4th year is a player option.

There were a few eyebrow-raising contracts handed out so far, but this is easily the leader in the clubhouse. What was the market for Tim Hardaway Jr. outside of New York? How do you reach this price point? What is Hardaway doing for you that is worth that amount of money.

Phil Jackson provided easy punchlines, but the problems are higher up than the GM. Until James Dolan gets run out of town, good luck to the Knicks fans out there. Youre going to need it.

Meanwhile, in Miami...

Free agent Kelly Olynyk has agreed to a four-year, $50M-plus deal with the Miami Heat, agent Greg Lawrence tells ESPN.

James Johnson get $60 million over four years to Miami, I'm told

I like Johnson, but hell be 34 by the end of his deal, and the Miami Heat are now paying Dion Waiters, Kelly Olynyk, and James Johnson $162 million over the next four years. Thats, uh, a lot.

Milos Teodosic in the NBA is going to be super dope

Obligatory Hes not going to defend anyone note, but this guy is going to be so fun to watch. The drop-off from Chris Paul is real in Los Angeles, but theyre going to be a lot of fun still.

The Grizzlies are retiring Zach Randolphs number, and its well-deserved

Its always about basketball but sometimes its about more than basketball. Thats when its special. The eight years Zach spent in the mud, in Memphis, are special. They are filled with franchise-defining basketball success, but they are so clearly about more than that. Every Memphian felt it and all of us believe it.

Zach helped establish what it means to play for the Grizzlies on the court and in the community, and in doing so helped forge an identity for our City. His numerous on the court accomplishments speak for themselves. He is our all-time leader in field goals, rebounds and of course, takedowns.

He is a proud civic leader and an extraordinary hands-on community benefactor. It is no coincidence that our collective dedication to service in our communities and our pride in Memphis surged during his time here.

No arguments here. Z-Bo was productive and instrumental in the franchises first real period of success, but he means a lot more to the city than his stats could ever indicate. They were the perfect match for one another, and its nice to see that recognized.

Giannis is already shutting down those pesky departure rumors

I got loyalty inside my DNA

I look forward to this being RTd ironically eventually.

Melo to Houston???

Its still Warriors in five, but I appreciate the effort.

What football will look like in the futureJon Bois, SB Nation

I am still not entirely sure what in the absolute fuck this is about or how Jon Bois put this together/came up with it, but if you have some time on your hands, it is an experience.

Excerpt from:

Liberty Links: It turns out Phil Jackson wasn't the Knicks' only problem - Liberty Ballers

Liberty Interactive Corp (QVCA.O) said it would buy the remaining 62 percent of HSN Inc (HSNI.O) it does not already own in a deal that values the TV shopping network at $2.1 billion.

The deal allows U.S. cable TV mogul John Malone to fully merge HSN with Liberty Interactive's QVC network.

The all-stock offer is worth $40.36 per HSN share, a premium of 29 percent to the stock's Wednesday close. HSN's shares jumped 33.9 percent to $41.90 in early trading on Thursday. Liberty Interactive's shares were up 4.1 percent at $25.45.

The deal, which gives HSN an enterprise value of $2.6 billion, will help Liberty develop its e-commerce and mobile shopping platforms and improve its programming content across its networks, the company said.

The HSN group consists of HSN, its home shopping business, and Cornerstone, which includes home and apparel lifestyle brands including Ballard Designs, Frontgate and Garnet Hill.

HSN shareholders will receive 1.65 shares of Series A QVC Group stock for every share held, Liberty Interactive said.

HSN will be overseen by QVC Chief Executive Mike George and will remain headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Allen & Co is the financial adviser to Liberty Interactive, while Baker Botts LLP is the legal adviser.

Centerview Partners and Goldman Sachs Group are the financial advisers for HSN. Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP is the legal adviser.

(Reporting by Narottam Medhora in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)

Kind LLC has hired investment banks to advise on a minority stake sale it hopes will value the maker of the eponymous snack bars at more than $3 billion, including debt, according to people familiar with the matter.

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc said on Friday it would pay $9 billion to pick up the parent of Texas power transmission company Oncor Electric Delivery Co from bankruptcy, stepping up its pursuit of steady returns in utilities.

Continue reading here:

Liberty Interactive to buy rest of HSN - Reuters

Our Founding Fathers declared our independence based on the pursuit of life, liberty, property and happiness.

Fast forward to today, technology and entrepreneurship are making us face unintended consequences of housing shortages, unemployment and economic unfairness.

We must consider how these new business activities are stressing the middle and working classes of America. Those classes revolted last Election Day; many thought they were being left behind.

Some elements, however, benefit very few.

Lately, I have been alarmed about the home sharing movement, home sharing that acts like hotels minus the employees, benefits, regulations all required for hotels. I am generally for a free market but I also believe in transparency, equity and economic growth.

As an example, home sharing giant AirBnBwith its $31 billion dollar valuation claims it brought $1.2 billion dollars into the Los Angeles area economy and $420 million to greater San Diego.

But the reality is short term rentals suppress hotel occupancy, restaurant receipts and in turn sales taxes.

The AirBnB statistics do not take into account the thousands of businesses and jobs that suffer because those dollars are going to an underground economy rather than to the regular labor intensive tourism industry.

Sit-down for a fast food restaurant meal, in California for example, and you are taxed while groceries and kitchen meals are not.

Local leaders around the country are faced with entire neighborhoods overrun by short-term renters and party houses.

In toney Del Mar, California, locals battle short term rentals in front of a befuddled city council. And in Los Angeles, the battle revolves around an existing housing shortage, property rights and a continuous contraction of rental housing.

Landlords push people out of apartments/condos and houses in order to rent the units out for short-terms. The aforementioned millions are the allure.

Los Angeles, incubator of the new America, now is Ground Zero for the battle of short-term rentals vs. the poor and low income renter.

Among the poor and low income renter of Los Angeles is the largest immigrant population in the country and one of the largest college student populations in the country.

There are thousands of short-term rental properties in Los Angeles. Returning that number to the housing stock would not erase the existing housing crunch, but it would help.

Another major issue is that Latinos and blacks are heavily employed in hotels and restaurants. They are suffering consequences of a surge in short-term rentals. Add to that mix smaller minority homeownership rates and it is easy to see who is experiencing financial benefits of short-term rentals, and who suffers.

Today, unregulated short-term rentals are bringing hotel-like businesses into residential neighborhoods, adding more outside traffic and people to otherwise tranquil residential neighborhoods.

Professional landlords and investors are moving people out so they can cash-in on those claimed millions of the short-term industry.

In some areas, like the beach-front Venice neighborhood of Los Angeles, entire multi-family apartment buildings have been emptied of permanent residents so they can be rented for double or triple normal rents.

There are limits to property rights. You can no more yell fire in a crowded theater than you can turn a neighborhood house or apartment into a full-time hotel-like party rental.

What happened to inexpensive rental units for college students and seniors in entire neighborhoods?

What happens to neighborhoods overrun by transient populations?

Through creative zoning and capping of short term rentals, there are ways of accommodating the new short-term industry without compromising neighborhoods and communities and, the pursuit of happiness.

By capping the number of days a residence, condo or apartment can be rented, we can assure common sense and protection of our neighborhoods from the inching danger of blight and inequity.

In addition to caps and creative zoning, business licenses for short-term rentals might help as well. For example, per-unit fees would allow single landlords to continue renting and at the same time, require multiple-unit landlords to pay multiple fees, which would help level the playing field.

At the epicenter of this debate, Los Angeles can create a model short-term policy that every community from beach towns like Del Mar and Miami Beach to Mississippi/Missouri and Ohio river-front towns and many cities across the nation can model their rules after.

If nothing changes, the spread of unchecked triple-digit growth in short-term rentals will continue and more units will be unavailable to full-time residents. Unemployment will plague the vulnerable. Regular rents will increase as fewer units will be available to full-time residents. In this, we see a looming disaster. But it can be tempered with limits, caps and licensing. Some problems caused by short-term rentals will be solved.

Technology and innovation have benefits, however there are unintended consequences that we must face, now, before we are overwhelmed.

As it stands today, this short-term rental economy is benefitting a very few at the expense of many.

Raoul Lowery Contreras is the author of The Armenian Lobby & American Foreign Policyand The Mexican Border: Immigration, War and a Trillion Dollars in Trade. His work has appeared in the New American News Service of the New York Times Syndicate.

The views expressed by contributors are their own and are not the views of The Hill.

See the article here:

Life, liberty and property the real shared economy - The Hill (blog)

VOL. 132 | NO. 134 | Friday, July 07, 2017

There is no specific plan for an overall redevelopment of the Fairgrounds, but there is some movement toward that on several fronts. And one of the tenants of the Liberty Bowl says it is important to keep in mind the need for parking in all of the talk about changes. (Daily News File/Andrew J. Breig)

For a prime piece of real estate that is supposed to be in a holding pattern, there is a lot of recent activity on and about the Mid-South Fairgrounds. And even when Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium isnt the immediate topic, it is an undeniable presence.

The most visible indication of activity prior to the start of University of Memphis football next month is the construction of the new home for the Grand Carousel at the Childrens Museum of Memphis.

The Liberty Bowl is being prepped for another season of Tigers football with season ticket sales more than healthy given the momentum behind the U of M program.

Meanwhile, the Memphis City Council approved $100,000 in the citys new budget to look at a possible expansion of the Liberty Bowl to do something it hasnt done in 20 years host a concert.

And last month, the group Friends of the Fairgrounds met with the city administration presenting what Friends co-founder Marvin Stockwell described as a draft memorandum of understanding that said we would like to be the planning organization for the Fairgrounds in conjunction with the city.

The administration of Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland has not made any decision on the draft.

But the three tenants of the Liberty Bowl stadium the University of Memphis, the AutoZone Liberty Bowl and the Southern Heritage Classic were all aware of the meeting either before or immediately after it happened.

Southern Heritage Classic founder Fred Jones Jr. said the tenants concerns about parking for their events are rarely taken into account.

Nobody talks about what happens to these football games, he said. The contention is thats only nine times a year. Whats going to be any bigger out at that Fairgrounds than a football game? All of the ideas that theyve had out there have been disruptive of the football game.

Stockwell said the city needs a long-term, good-faith partner to develop the Fairgrounds in accordance with the stakeholder wishes.

The stakeholders Stockwell refers to are the area residents, businesses and homeowners the Friends group has been meeting with regularly for the last year and a half.

We think we have a pretty good read on what the community wants, he said. And we think the city should aim for something that truly lifts all boats. I think this is a unique time in Memphis. I think the Fairgrounds presents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to do something transformative.

To Stockwell and other proponents of what could be a Fairgrounds conservancy, that translates into a move toward other uses on the 175 acres 365 days a year.

Jones says creating space for those year-round activities reduces parking for the football games and creates traffic problems all around the Fairgrounds even for games that fill up only a third of the stadium.

If you impact parking you impact people coming to the stadium, he said. If they cant park and we have no transit ability to move people around, you are going to impact the number of people who are going to come to the stadium. Thats not a threatening thing. Thats just a reality.

He says Ole Miss and the University of Tennessee at Knoxville are able to handle similar capacity and more because they have transportation systems in place like shuttle buses and other options without having to have as much parking as the Liberty Bowl requires.

What do we have? Once you get past 30,000 to 40,000 people, youve got an issue, Jones said. And youve got a bigger issue if it rains.

Stockwell says there is room to carve out some other uses on the property for both locals and tourists.

There is a broader wind in our civic sails. This is a time of renaissance in Memphis. Stockwell said, talking specifically about the momentum from the opening of Crosstown Concourse. Nothing is impossible for Memphis anymore and Memphis is starting to wake up to that.

Jones says he has seen plans come and go specific and general including a very general Wharton administration plan that prompted the city to take up the asphalt for parking between the Mid-South Coliseum and the eastern side of the Libertyland amusement park.

Well guess what? If you go out there today, whatever that plan was it hasnt happened, Jones said. Why disrupt whatever is going on until you have a plan that you are going to be able to execute that you are able to support whats going on mainly at that stadium. That is why Im kind of perturbed about this. We are having the same conversation. Everybody brings a deal to the table and they will compromise parking like its not even necessary.

In addition to the stadium tenants, Childrens Museum of Memphis CEO Dick Hackett has talked about a parking problem on football game days that he too has said would be exacerbated by additional attractions at the Fairgrounds.

At times during the football season, CMOM closes and uses its parking lot to park football fans because patrons of the museum cant get near the museum on game day.

Council member Frank Colvett called for the study, which could take the Liberty Bowls seating from 61,000 to 80,000 seats in the process.

I want Beyonce to come play Memphis, Colvett said in June of a tentative expansion that would be built around meeting the load-in requirements of concert tours of that size.

Back in my day, it was 10 tractor-trailers and that was a huge show, he said of stadium tours into the 1990s and demands now for bigger stages and staging areas to build those platforms.

They cant make money if they cant get the tractor-trailers right there, he said.

Jones says it is premature.

Theres a lot of conversation, he said. But if you are talking about expanding, theres a whole bunch of things that need to happen and we are not doing things to accommodate, not even at this level. Its just not there.

See the original post here:

Fairgrounds Movement Triggers Liberty Bowl Questions - Memphis Daily News

Each season, Liberty baseball coach Andy Pitsilos picks a player as the point person for team communication.

Pitsilos texts that player a message about the Hurricanes' plans and schedule for the day. The player then relays the information to teammates.

Jared Burcin was a natural choice as the liaison between Pitsilos and the Hurricanes this season.

"He handled it real well," Pitsilos said last week. "He's just a mature kid. Gradewise, schoolwise, he's never in trouble. He's just a great kid off the field, and was that kind of leader for me."

Burcin handled every job given to him in 2017. The Morning Call's baseball player of the year commanded Liberty's pitching staff behind the plate. He shut down the opposition's running game with his arm and burned opposing pitchers with his bat.

The affable Burcin enjoyed it all. Playing with a bunch of teammates he had known since elementary school, he wanted to lead Liberty to a championship before heading to Bloomsburg University. He succeeded as the Hurricanes came back from losing to Parkland in the EPC final to beat the Trojans in the District 11 Class 6A title game.

Liberty went on to reach the PIAA 6A semifinals, its best state-tournament run since it lost in the 2002 PIAA 4A final. Burcin played a lead part in many of Liberty's rallies along the way. He hit .384 with a .482 on-base percentage, eight doubles, one home run, nine runs and 28 RBIs.

Even when Burcin made outs, they tended to come on hard contact. Pitsilos didn't recall his catcher slumping once during the season.

Burcin also excelled behind the plate. He didn't commit an error and often pounced on bunts to cut down baserunners.

"He made plays that other catchers I've had wouldn't have made," Pitsilos said. "He was pretty special defensively. He basically stopped the running game. Teams were reluctant to steal on him. When they did, he threw that first guy out. There went the running game."

Burcin landed at catcher thanks to a nudge from his dad, who told him he wouldn't stick at shortstop as he grew through Little League. Burcin decided to try catching because of the constant involvement in play.

That involvement could have taken a toll on him as Liberty crammed in 15 games April 3-29. He stayed as consistent as any hitter during a regular season where the Hurricanes ripped off 18 wins in 19 games during one stretch.

Liberty's run through the District 11 playoffs after falling short in the EPC tournament will stick with Burcin the longest. The Hurricanes beat Emmaus in 11 innings to reach the District 11 6A final before outlasting Parkland 2-1 in nine innings to win the program's first district title since a 4A championship in 2007.

"I set my expectations high," Burcin said. "I always like to push myself and do better than I did last year. For our team, the goal was to win districts and be the best we could be and have fun.

"The enjoyment, the excitement of that was the best."

samiller@mcall.com

Twitter @mcall_smiller

610-820-6750

Year, Player, School

See more here:

Morning Call all-area baseball: Liberty's Jared Burcin is player of the year - Allentown Morning Call

The National Constitution Center announced on Thursday thatSen. John McCainJohn McCainMcCain to receive Liberty Medal Feinstein downplays talk of Kamala Harris White House bid: She just got here US soldier killed by 'indirect fire' in Afghanistan MORE (R-Ariz.) will beits 2017 Liberty Medal recipient.

The institution, which awards the prestigious medal annually, said in a statement that the Senate Armed Services Committee chairman and former GOP presidential nomineewas chosen to receive the honor "for his lifetime of sacrifice and service."

Former Vice President Joe BidenJoe BidenMcCain to receive Liberty Medal OPINION: CNN's reaction to 'wrestling' tweet plays right into Trump's hands Amazon primed for merger battle MORE, who serves as the chair of the Constitution Center's Board of Trustees, will present the medal to McCain in October.

John epitomizes statesmanship, Biden said. In our over two decades serving together in the United States Senate, there were few others I could count on to be as honest, respectful, and decent as John. His heroic sacrifice for his country and dedicated service to his constituents are unquestionable and unmatched."

The Liberty Medal is awarded to "men and women of courage and conviction who strive to secure the blessings of liberty to people around the globe," according to the National Constitution Center.

McCain, 80, has served in Congress for nearly 35 years, first as a member of the House and then in the Senate. Before that, he served for22 years in the Navy, during which time he spentseveral years as a prisoner of war in Vietnam.

Past recipients of the Liberty Medal include the Dalai Lama, Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary ClintonHillary Rodham ClintonMcCain to receive Liberty Medal Dems get top challenger for Nevada Senate fight Trump in Poland: Our values will prevail MORE and Pakistani human rights activist Malala Yousafzai.

The rest is here:

McCain to receive Liberty Medal - The Hill

The New York Liberty are currently on a West Coast road trip and focused on breaking a three-game losing streak. June 29, the Liberty were defeated by the Washington Mystics 67-54, and then July 2 lost 81-72 to the Atlanta Dream.

The Liberty continue to put out solid defensive efforts, but falter offensively. After the Washington game, coach Bill Laimbeer noted there were sloppy passes, a few calls for traveling and an overall struggle to score. Ive got to do a better job of getting players more movement and getting players in positions where they can take advantage of their skills, he said.

Guard Sugar Rodgers missed the Washington game because of a back injury suffered in the June 23 game. She was back in the rotation in Atlanta, contributing 11 points. Tina Charles and Kia Vaughn were also in double figures, but there was too much of a deficit to overcome in the second half.

We dug a hole for ourselves with turning the ball over and letting them get to the free throw line, said Vaughn. Overall, our effort was much better in the third quarter heading into the fourth quarter. We didnt pull it out this time.

The effort that we put into the second half, we have to start playing that way [all game], said Charles. We know each others strengths. Try to maximize that and get that out of one another and well be fine.

The team flew to Seattle after the Atlanta game and celebrated July 4 there before focusing on preparations for the Seattle Storm tonight. The road trip continues with the Phoenix Mercury Sunday. New York has already defeated Phoenix twice this season, so expect Diana Taurasi and Brittney Griner to come on strong on their home court.

We just have to buckle down, Vaughn said. We have to have some urgency. Were all professionals. We have a system and we need to run it well.

Off the court, the Liberty were recognized for their community outreach efforts, winning the WNBA Cares Community Assist Award. Charles headlined an event in Atlanta the day before the Dream game in which her Hopeys Heart Foundation partnered with SafeKids Worldwide and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta to host a sports safety clinic for Atlanta youth.

Link:

Liberty head west badly in need of a win - Amsterdam News

On Thursday, July 6, Liberty Hall will be showing the award-winning documentary, Hands on a Hardbody. The film will be part of Liberty Halls East Texas Movies month, featuring four films, each with a tie to East Texas.

Shot entirely in the city of Longview, Texas, this documentary captures the 1995 contest in which 24 participants stood with their hands firmly planted on a pickup truck in an attempt to be the last person standing and winner of a brand new vehicle. The film was directed by S. R. Bindler, who directed the 2008 comedy, Surfer Dude, starring Matthew McConaughey, one of the Hardbody producers.

The film was awarded Best Documentary by the Boston Society of Film Critics at the 1997 AFI Film Festival. In 2012, it was adapted into a Tony -ominated musical, featuring music by Trey Anastasio of the band Phish. There were also plans to adapt the film into a scripted feature by director Robert Altman, who passed away before the project could begin production.

Tickets are available at http://www.libertytyler.com . The prices for this film are $5 online and $7 at the door. For more information about upcoming events, sponsoring an event or renting The City of Tylers Liberty Hall, go to http://www.LibertyTyler.com , or call Interim Manager John Baggett at 903-595-7274.

Originally posted here:

Liberty Hall kicks Off East Texas Movies Month with Hands on a Hardbody - Tyler Morning Telegraph

Bob White, Republican candidate for Florida governor, explains why he is running for Florida Governor Read more / comment

Liberty First Network

In the wake of the tragic Pulse Nightclub shooting and the Ft. Lauderdale Airport shooting, Senator Greg Steube filed several gun bills repealing state mandated gun free zones such as airports and college campuses for the 2017 session. The Orlando and Ft. Lauderdale shootings had something in common: They both occurred in places where private citizens were banned from carrying permitted concealed handguns. Our Colleges and Universities are Gun Free Zones and there is no one entry point with metal detectors and armed guards performing pat-downs and bag inspections. Colleges cannot guarantee safety and should not deprive people of the ability to protect themselves. Read more / comment

Melbourne, Florida Monday, July 3, 2017 Adam Putnam, Republican candidate for Florida governor, was purposefully misleading potential voters on Thursday when he hit the airwaves in the greater Tampa market claiming to be the only Republican in the race for Floridas governor. Read more / comment

Liberty Lobbyist, John Hallman of Liberty First has issued the following Action Alert regarding Senate Bill 130. SB 130 would weaken Floridas Stand Your Ground Law and threaten the Second Amendment rights of Florida citizens. We should not compromise on our Constitutional rights and allow the Florida Senate to legislate them away. Please use the action tools below to take action now and express your opposition to SB 130. Read more / comment

The other day someone asked Mark Bircher (candidate for US Congressional District 13) why military men have such a hard time adjusting to life in Washington. Mr. Bircher fairly rejected the premise, saying he did not see that military men did have difficulty, citing those such as Washington, Eisenhower, and Grant. There are others. Jackson, Taylor, Eisenhower, Truman, Kennedy, Carter, and both Bushs. In fact 31 out of 44 Presidents served (70%).

Read more / comment

As we are all well aware, the passing of Congressman C.W. Bill Young has left a void in Congress and Pinellas County. What you may not be aware of is the special election that is taking place on January 14th for his now vacant seat. You can visit the Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections website at https://www.votepinellas.com/ for information about voting locations and times.

Read more / comment

The rest is here:

Liberty Tampa Bay Because life is too short to vote for ...

At a time when some worry about where America is going, its wise to learn more about where weve been. If you want a beautifully filmed look at the social and military origins of the United States, then binge-watch PBSs Liberty!

Title: Liberty!

Year it began: 1997

Where it can be seen: PBS, DVD

Whos in it: Philip Bosco, Peter Donaldson, Victor Garber, Edward Herrmann, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Mel Johnson, Jr., Terrence Mann, Jefferson Mays, Donna Murphy, Forrest Sawyer and Francie Swift

Typical episode length: 60 minutes

Number of episodes: 6

Brief plot description: Mixing dramatization of historical people and events with interviews with experts, Liberty! tells the social and political story of the American Revolution and the early United States.

Why its worth watching: This is an epic historical documentary that is both beautifully filmed and deeply informative. Liberty! is thorough in its presentation and family-friendly in its approach. Directed by Ellen Hovde and Muffie Meyer, Liberty! features well-paced and intelligently written episodes that are each introduced by Sawyer and narrated by Herrmann. The greatest strength of Liberty! is that it offers a balanced account of the revolutionary American history, giving us insight into the social and political background of a war that it very thoroughly narrates.

An excellent cast of actors brings historical individuals to vivid life, helping us feel the significance of events to both major players and ordinary folk. Particularly strong performances include Boscos wise and worldly Benjamin Franklin; Murphys engaging and insightful Abigail Adams; Donaldsons shrewd and pugnacious John Adams; and Manns delightfully pompous General Burgoyne. While Liberty! teaches us much about the most famous Founding Fathers, its fine actors also explore less commonly covered perspectives. Garbers John Dickinson makes clear how difficult declaring independence could be; Johnson conveys the experience of an African-American escaping slavery and joining the revolutionary fight; and Swifts Baroness von Riedesel helps us feel what it was like for those accompanying Hessian mercenaries. Of special note is Hoffmans fine performance as Joseph Plumb Martin, a soldier whose diaries reveal the experiences of regular soldiers throughout most of the war.

The dramatic interludes are enriched by illuminating interviews with noteworthy scholars of American history, including Jeremy Black, Pauline Maier, Margaret Washington and Gordon Wood. Liberty! includes an excellent score, along with historical folk melodies played by Yo-Yo Ma and Wynton Marsalis, among others.

Read more here:

You Should Be Watching: 'Liberty' - Buffalo News

The town of Liberty underwent the largest percentage increase of new construction throughout Vernon County.

The 5.5 percent increase, measured between 2015 and 2016, was largely due to residential construction, said Martin Chapin, Libertys property assessor. The assessments are reported by the Department of Revenue and are used to determine appropriate tax rates.

Chapin said several homes were built during that time frame, adding to Libertys more than $1.6 million in new construction from 2015 to 2016. The towns overall property value was assessed at more than $29.4 million for 2015.

We have a couple areas where there are some new homes going in there, Chapin said, adding that more people are settling down year-round in Liberty, which tends to add property value as compared to seasonal residents.

Mostly it used to be summer cabins that were lower value.

Town Supervisor Adrian Amelse said he used to be a part-time resident but became a permanent resident several years ago.

Liberty is growing its residential numbers, Chapin said, in part because the municipalitys school districts Viroqua and Kickapoo are strong educational establishments, and that the townships Board of Supervisors works to keep the budgets tax rate low.

Access to employment, Chapin said, might also play into Libertys residential growth.

Its a short commute to Viroqua or to any other place, Chapin said.

Each year, individual properties in towns are assessed by real-estate professionals like Chapin to determine the towns new net construction value, which is then incorporated into an overall property-tax assessment for the county. These tax values are affected by new construction projects and by demolitions.

Viroqua came below the average of Vernons 33 municipalities with 0.75 percent increase.

The countys average was 1.38 percent growth.

Not all Vernon Countys 33 municipalities grew their overall value three municipalities lost some value and Chaseburg saw the biggest dip at -0.18 percent.

Continued here:

Vernon County sees positive growth for construction: Town of Liberty sees biggest change - La Crosse Tribune

ROCHESTER, NY - The Empire 8 Athletic Conference and the Liberty League Athletic Conference are proud to announce that they are partnering for a postseason football game between member institutions. The Inaugural New York State Bowl Game will involve the top team from each conference that is not selected for the NCAA Division III championship tournament.

On an annual basis, the top Liberty League team, which did not make NCAAs, will play the top E8 team, which did not make NCAAs. The host institution would alternate by year. In year one, the Liberty League rep will serve as host. The bowl game for 2017 is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 18.

This collaborative effort between the Empire 8 and Liberty League athletic conferences is yet another way for us to support the development of our scholar athletes, said Hartwick College President and outgoing Empire 8 President Margaret Drugovich. On behalf of the Presidents of the Empire 8 member colleges and universities, I applaud this initiative and thank Empire 8 Conference Commissioner Chuck Mitrano for taking the initiative to create this new platform for DIII football competition."

Respective conference by-laws would be used to determine which participant earns the bid into the NYS Bowl Game. For example, if two or more teams are tied to serve as the league representative, the normal tie-breaking procedures of that league will determine which team earns the bid.

The New York State Bowl Game will be an exceptional event for institutions, student-athletes, football fans and our campus communities, said Commissioner Mitrano. Its the beginning of what will be an unrivaled football tradition between two of the best football conferences in the country.

There are many benefits to this relationship for both leagues with the biggest being a quality game on a member campus that will be well attended and provide a culminating experience for student-athletes and institutions.

"The Liberty League is pleased to partner with the Empire 8 to provide a postseason championship opportunity for our student-athletes, said Liberty League Commissioner Tracy King. This unique experience will provide our football student-athletes with a postseason experience that many of our student-athletes in other sports receive through conference tournament participation. We look forward to this great competitive opportunity.

NCAA rules permit a conference-sponsored postseason tournament one between teams that are not identified until the end of the preceding regular season not to exceed one contest for any one institution.

The Empire 8 football league consists of Cortland, Alfred, Brockport, Buffalo State, Hartwick, Morrisville State, St. John Fisher, and Alfred University. The Liberty League football schools are Hobart, Ithaca, Rochester, RPI, St. Lawrence, and Union. Ithaca moved from the Empire 8 to the Liberty League after last season.

See the article here:

Empire 8, Liberty League create football 'New York State Bowl Game' - ithaca.com

Howland Police and the Trumbull County Coroner's Office are investigating after a body was found in an East Market Street motel Wednesday morning. The body found in one of the rooms inside the Capri Motel was in an advanced state of decomposition, according to investigators. Due to the odor and the presence of an unknown white substance in the room, Detectives used oxygen masks and tanks to allow them to breathe. Police believe they have identified the man, who they say was renting...

Howland Police and the Trumbull County Coroner's Office are investigating after a body was found in an East Market Street motel Wednesday morning. The body found in one of the rooms inside the Capri Motel was in an advanced state of decomposition, according to investigators. Due to the odor and the presence of an unknown white substance in the room, Detectives used oxygen masks and tanks to allow them to breathe. Police believe they have identified the man, who they say was renting...

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Huntington Bank closing one Liberty branch - WFMJ.com News weather sports for Youngstown-Warren Ohio - WFMJ

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Rockstar and its parent company Take-Two have been embroiled in controversy among Grand Theft Auto V players recently when they attempted to shut down a popular modding tool for the open-world title. While the two companies have since eased up on their initial crackdown, their strict modding policy has resulted in another upcoming mod being shut down.

The group behind the popular Grand Theft Auto modding tool OpenIV announced in a post on the GTA forums that it has had to cease work on its "Liberty City in GTA V" mod. The project would have allowed players to import the GTA IV setting, Liberty City, into the series' most recent title. However, the group explained that the project was in violation of Rockstar's modding policy and as a result had to be shut down. While the group didn't elaborate what the mod specifically violated, it may be due to the fact Rockstar's policy expressly forbids the "importation of other IP (including Rockstar IP) in the project."

OpenIV suffered a similar fate last month when Take-Two issued a cease and desist order against the modding tool. According to the company, the reason the tool was targeted was because it "enables recent malicious mods that allow harassment of players and interfere with the GTA Online experience for everybody." Soon after, however, Rockstar intervened on the mod's behalf and convinced Take-Two to back off on its decision, allowing development on OpenIV to continue with a focus on single-player mods. The publisher had previously suggested one of its main issues entailed mods that could impact GTA Online.

Take-Two's recent crackdown on mods has not been popular among fans. Following the initial shutdown of OpenIV, players flooded the GTA V's Steam page with a stream of negative reviews, tanking the game's review average, while a petition to save the tool garnered over 80,000 signatures. But while the Liberty City mod may be no more, the group behind the project has announced it intends to continue working on OpenIV "within the Rockstar modding policy."

Read more:

GTA 5 Liberty City Mod Shuts Down - GameSpot

A LEAP IN THE DARK: Liberty London has been exploring its dark side as part of a five week, in-store exhibition of contemporary art.

The Dark Side of Liberty, which officially opens July 6, takes inspiration from Londons subcultures and Pink Floyds exploration of the conflict and turbulence of the Seventies, to create an immersive experience complete with mixed media art installations and live music performances. It opens to the public later this week.

This year has been about reinstating Liberty London as the home of the artistic shopper, so we wanted to revisit our cultural roots and celebrate art and culture today. Liberty London has always had a dark side, a gothic English intelligence; we look for the unique, the weird and the wonderful in everything we do, said Liz Silvester, the stores head of creative, who worked on the project alongside curator Victor Benady.

Benady and Silvester recruited five creatives to interpret the theme through a range of installations featured across the department store, from its windows to the main atrium and its new mens department. Artists Jared Madere, Alex Morrison, Joris Van de Moortel and Julie Verhoeven, as well as the architect Satyajit Das have taken part in the project.

Van de Moortel, an artist and musician from Belgium, created his version of a recording studio as part of his installation, which is displayed in the stores windows. On July 5 for the preview, de Moortels recording studio will be taken over by experimental musicians Mauro Pawlowski and Carlo Adriani, who will put on a live psychedelic music performance for passersby.

Another store window will be transformed by the Canadian artist Morrison, who created a sculptural installation using Liberty prints.

Inside, the stores main atrium will feature a 12-meter comet sculpture by Madere, as well as a metallic pig sculpture by Das, which was designed to give the illusion that its breathing and references Pink Floyds Animals.

Benadysaid these installations aimed to celebrate the physical and the experiential, which are becoming more and more crucial for the future of retail.

In a post-digital world of drones and artificial intelligence, of social media and fake news, where the virtual is copied and commoditized, we believe that experience, physicality and materiality are the new currency.

The launch of the exhibition coincides with the opening of Libertys new mens department which will fully embrace the new projects eccentric spirit. Julie Verhoeven, who created an installation incorporating illustration and animation for the store, will also add her psychedelic drawings on murals in the new department.

The campaign is quite tech, geeky cool and the Liberty London man is very smart I needed to blow his mind a little, said Silvester, adding that her aim for the new space was to uncover its heritage and offer a mix of old and new. We have reintroduced that mix of antiques, print and tapestries to create a modern Liberty London home, where you can shop T-shirts, accessories and magazines all at the same time.

The new space will introduce 20 new mens ready-to-wearand accessories collections, as well as a T-shirt gallery which will offer opportunities for exclusive collaborations.

Originally posted here:

Liberty London Explores Its Dark Side With In-Store Summer Exhibition - WWD

This editorial first appeared in the Daily News 10 years ago on July 4th.

If the United States is, as British author G.K. Chesterton put it in 1922, a nation with the soul of a church, then Independence Day is the highest of our high holy days. We celebrate today not only the first step a bloody war would follow on Americas road to independence, but also the enduring ideas on which our country was founded.

If America itself is a kind of religion, then its creed is to be found in the Declaration of Independence. It is a celebration of liberty, of the unalienable rights of individual people, a declaration that the highest calling of government is to secure these rights.

We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its Foundation on such Principles, and organizing its Powers in such Form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

These words, whose elegance can be attributed largely to Thomas Jefferson, still have the capacity to inspire us, whether our roots in America are generations deep or date to last week. As Americans, we believe in freedom and independence. That belief, rather than ethnic commonality, generations on the same piece of soil or tribal loyalties, is what binds us together.

Do some Americans mean different things when they talk about freedom and liberty? Do politicians and blackguards exploit the terms, sometimes to promote a different agenda, sometimes to subvert liberty itself? Do Americans themselves sometimes exhibit confusion or partial understanding of what liberty means or should mean?

Yes to all. It took more than 80 years for slavery, a glaring contradiction of all the noble sentiments in the Declaration, to be abolished in the United States. Freedom has been invoked to sustain wars of aggression as well as wars of defense. Both friends and foes of freedom sometimes confuse liberty with license rather than responsibility.

Yet this land remains a magnet for people all over the world who dream of living in liberty and achieving prosperity not because of who they are but because of what they do. Despite the best or worst efforts of politicians and demagogues, liberty yet lives and holds out the promise of a better life to those who will accept the responsibilities that come with it.

As long as that sense of discovery and anticipation remains a part of our culture, and as long as we understand that liberty is a journey and not a final state, liberty will not die in this country.

Excerpt from:

EDITORIAL: Liberty is a long journey for Americans - The Northwest Florida Daily News

On the eve of July 4, which is an obviously appropriate time, the D.C. Council announced a search to find the citys missing Liberty Bell.

It is only a replica of the original Liberty Bell, which is an icon of American independence and is on display in Philadelphia.

But it is a big bell, it is or at least it was our bell, and it is lost. It is equal in size to the original, the council said, and it weighs a ton. Literally.

According to the council, the 2,000-pound bell was given to the city by the federal government on July 20, 67 years ago.

It was presented in recognition of exceeding the sales goals for U.S. savings bonds. Apparently every state, every U.S. territory and the U.S. Treasury Department were given one of the bells.

At first, the D.C. bell was on display at the top of the steps of what was then the District Building, now the Wilson Building.

Later it was moved to a small park in front of the building.

Then, as beautification work on Pennsylvania Avenue got underway, it became necessary to move the bell. Several other small monuments also required temporary relocation.

The other monuments were all eventually returned to their original sites, according to the council.

But not the bell. On Monday, atop its announcement, the council urged: Help Us Find the Liberty Bell.

The bell was at its site on April2, 1979. But, the council said, by July 30, 1981, it had been declared missing.

Meanwhile, it can not be concluded that the bell was hidden in plain sight. The council said the Liberty Bell it seeks is NOT the double-sized replica in front of Union Station. Nor is it the replica between the Treasury Building and the White House.

No tip is too small, the council said. Those with information can contact Josh Gibson at 202-741-0897 or jgibson@dccouncil.us.

As to where the bell might be, the value of the metal in it probably ought not to be ignored. Current prices for scrap brass or bronze are about a dollar per pound. At such prices, the bell, at least in theory, could bring about $2,000 in cash.

However, melting away the inscription on the bell would seem almost sacrelegious. The words come from the book of Leviticus, and read:

Proclaim Liberty throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants thereof.

Excerpt from:

Missing: The District's Liberty Bell, lost since the early 1980s - The ... - Washington Post

Peggy Garner had a deeper and different understanding of liberty than Patrick Henry he who famously shouted Give me liberty or give me death. Peggy Garner had no liberty. She was a slave.

Patrick Henry detested taxation without representation by a distant British Parliament. Peggy Garner paid no taxes and had no liberty. Imprisoned on a plantation and a black female, she had perhaps the least liberty of all.

But when Peggy Garner escaped across a frozen river to Ohio with her four children perhaps she faintly heard Patrick Henry when hunted down by slave catchers. Give me liberty or give me death? Peggy chose death, wanting to kill her children and herself rather than be returned to slavery. She had killed just one child, slitting her throat, before being restrained.

Opposites help define each other, much as the meaning of light resides in total darkness. Peggy Garners act of desperation tells us what liberty means in a deeper and different way than even Jeffersons majestic claim that we are endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

We get a deeper sense of the gradual, grinding progression of actualizing Jeffersons bold claim for all Americans when two centuries elapsed between a colonial editors shutting down his paper rather than pay the Stamp Act tax of 1764 and Martin Luther King, Jr.s soaring words on the national mall in 1963. Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!

And while black females were perhaps last in line for liberty and white males, particularly wealthy ones, first in line our liberty largely started with wealthy white males claiming those rights and then, with commoner whites and free blacks and some courageous women, fighting with guns, guts, and French help to secure freedom from British rule.

Two people illustrate the gradual trickle down progression of liberty over the next several centuries.

David Acheson immigrated to America from northern Ireland in 1788 with the clothes on his back and a letter of introduction from his minister. Nine years later, he was a successful banker, businessman, and politician who was invited to dine with President George Washington. The vast expanse of our new country soon from sea to shining sea opened up opportunities for those with ambition and talent to pursue their dreams, the American dream.

No one really wanted war. But Lincoln knew it was coming, perhaps unavoidable due to historical circumstance and economic pressures. Julia Ward Howe awakened around dawn at her Washington hotel and peered out the window. Having watched Union troops parade the day before, new words came to her for the rhythmic music of John Browns Body.

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord, He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored; He hath loosed the fateful lightning of his terrible swift sword; His truth is marching on.

David Achesons grandson of like name marched to those stirring words on his way to Gettysburg. He fell in battle a few hours later, giving his life that others might be free to live theirs more fully. His blood sacrifice and that of thousands more fulfilled the last verse of The Battle Hymn of the Republic As he died to make men holy, let us die to make men free.

A fighting feminist

Julia Ward Howe fought for womens rights and emancipation from a paternalistic culture her own husband was something of a tyrant for the next 50 years, being a fighting feminist before the phrase existed. Deep in her heart, she knew that one eternal truth that was marching on was that none of us are truly free until we all are free free to fully develop our God-given talents as both an act of self-fulfillment and a contribution to our national welfare.

For, as Peggy Garner, David Acheson, Julia Ward Howe, and many others knew, the freedom we celebrate on the Fourth of July must be for all people and for as long as we are willing to sacrifice blood and treasure to preserve it. God bless America and let us not let our liberty slip away. Many paid a high price for us to have it.

James F. Burns is a retired professor at the University of Florida.

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Liberty: Its pursuit burns ever more intensely for some - Herald and News

Half of Americans in a new Rasmussen poll said they believe the lines found in the Pledge of Allegiance, that the United States is a nation where there is liberty and justice for all. But the poll showed a sharp partisan split.

Three-quarters of Republicans said they think the U.S. has liberty and justice for all, 76 percent, while fewer than one-third of Democrats 30 percent said they believethat statement to be true.

Of those who said they have no party affiliation, 46 percent said they think the U.S. has liberty and justice for all.

The national poll of 1,000 adults was conducted June 28-29 and has a margin of error of plus or minus3 percentage points with a 95 percent confidence level.

While 49 percent of all those polled said they thought the U.S. has liberty and justice for all, men were somewhat more likely to say this 52 percent with 46 percent of women saying so.

Most black Americans told the pollsters that they do not think the U.S. has liberty and justice for all.

But the greatest difference by far was in the divide between Republicans and Democrats: 76 versus 30 percent.

On what is Democrats' low number based?

One Twitter user noted that Rasmussen didn't ask people how they would define "liberty" and "justice," with another musing that justice to some might mean free stuff, like "being given a phone."

The "Freedom in the World 2017" report by Freedom House gave the U.S. an 89 out of 100 rating for freedom, and rated the country's status as "free." The U.S. got a perfect score from Freedom House for freedom of expression and belief combining First Amendment freedoms of speech and of religion.

The 49 percent who think the country has liberty and justice for all is down from last year, when 53 percent said it does, but it is higher than in 2014, when just 46 percent affirmed that statement.

The same poll asked Americans if they would still live in the U.S. if they had a choice to live anywhere in the world. Seventy-five percent said they would, and 15 percent said they would choose to live elsewhere. But among those who said they disagree that the U.S. is a place with liberty and justice for all, just 57 percent said they would still live here if given the choice, with 43 percent saying they weren't sure or would live in another country if they could.

It's a strikingly high number, and seems to show many Americans, most of them Democrats, losing a feeling of attachment to the country, or love for the country.

On the first day of the Democratic National Convention a year ago, Donald Trump tweeted there was "not one American flag" on the "massive stage" in the convention hall until people started complaining.

An American flag was displayed on the video screen behind the stage, but as Polifact noted, there was no physical American flag on the stage the first day of the convention. An American flag was brought onto the stage for the Pledge of Allegiance, but was carried off afterward.

A May 31 Rasmussen poll showed only 68 percent of American adults said they think Americans should be proud of the history of the United States, while 16 percent said Americans should be ashamed of U.S. history and another 15 percent were undecided.

Only 56 percent of blacks said U.S. history is something of which to be proud.

Americans over age 40 were more likely than younger people to think Americans should be proud of their history. Just 61 percent of those under 40 agreed, while 39 percent either disagreed or were undecided.

A Gallup survey released in July of 2016 showed that only 36 percent of liberals said they are extremely proud to be American. The number for all Americans in the survey was 52 percent, a big drop from the 70 percent recorded in 2003.

A Gallup poll from June 2017 showed that 4 percent of the world's population, 147 million people, would move to the U.S. if they could. More people said they would move to the U.S. than the next four countries of choice combined.

Originally posted here:

Just 30 Percent of Democrats Say US Has Liberty and Justice for All - LifeZette

The Liberty Bell replica was in place at least up until April 2, 1979, according to press reports; it was declared missing July 30, 1981. (Courtesy D.C. Council)

WASHINGTON It weighs 2,000 pounds, looks like the real thing (minus the crack) and has been missing for more than 35 years.

Now, the public is being asked to polish up their magnifying glasses and fuel up their mystery machines to help crack the case of D.C.s missing liberty bell.

It will be a real challenge to track it down, said Josh Gibson, director of communications for the D.C. Council. Gibson has made a name for himself solving historical mysteries at the Wilson Building.

Monday he released pictures he found of the commemorative bell during a news conference at the Wilson Building. He is appealing to the public in hopes of uncovering more images, memories or even information that could uncover its location.

The bell is one of three versions of the iconic symbol located in D.C. A replica thats twice the size of the real Liberty Bell sits in front of Union Station. Another replica lies between the White House and the Treasury Building. The atrium inside the Wilson Building also boasts a colorful bell that Gibson described as the Thai Grievance Bell.

Last year, Gibson solved the mystery of a plaque found in a broom closet at the Wilson Building. The plaque without a title turned out to list the names of D.C. government employees who served during World War II.

Gibsons next challenge is now locating the missing bell.

The story of the D.C. liberty bell begins in 1950, when the nation saw a good year for savings bonds. To celebrate, Gibson said the federal government had a foundry in France make replicas of the Liberty Bell the original still resides in Philadelphia. One replica was given to each state and U.S. territory plus the Treasury Department.

Soon, a glistening, crack-free bell was gifted to the District and was placed outside the Wilson Building. It greeted visitors atop the steps of the government building before it was moved to a nearby, triangular park, according to Gibson. It remained in that park until at least April 1979. But by July 1981, the bell had disappeared.

During that time, the Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation was in charge of monuments and statues along Pennsylvania Avenue. The PADC was established by Congress and was made up of oversight committees, city government and other civic groups.

It was like a bureaucracy made up of bureaucracies, Gibson said.

In 1980, the PADC decided to improve Pennsylvania Avenue and the project required that several statues, small monuments and the liberty bell be moved.

Gibson said that over the years, the statues of D.C.s first mayor, Alexander Boss Shepherd, eventually reappeared in front of the Wilson Building; the statue of Ben Franklin was placed in front of the Old Post Office Pavilion; and the Temperance Fountain moved back to the National Archives.

But D.C.s version of the liberty bell did not re-emerge.

Its still, I would assume, somewhere where it got stashed, Gibson said.

It could be in storage, sitting in a small park with little foot traffic, or in a backyard the possibilities are endless, he said.

Gibson said hed like to speak with anyone who knows anything about a company called G & C Construction, a contractor based out of Merrifield, Virginia, which held the PADC subcontract to rebuild the sidewalks outside the Wilson Building. The company, or anyone once affiliated with the business, might know something about the temporary relocation of the bell.

Hes also hoping to collect more photos of the bell. He knows of roughly a half dozen images that exist of the bell and more images could help fill out the historical record.

Additionally, Gibson wants to hear from anyone who remembers the bell. He said the bell was a common landmark and a frequent meeting spot downtown from the 1950s to the 1970s.

He said extensive communication with staff of the PADC and District staff who would have been involved in relocating the bell have yielded no clues about its whereabouts.

WTOPs Amanda Iacone contributed to this report.

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Can you crack the case of DC's missing liberty bell? - WTOP