Latest news with #Beatty
Wales Online
6 days ago
- Wales Online
Former school teaching assistant caught with the most serious child abuse images
Former school teaching assistant caught with the most serious child abuse images The judge said the defendant posed a high risk to male children Daniel Beatty, who had been subject to a sexual harm prevention order when he breached his terms (Image: western mail ) A Welsh former teaching assistant caught with child abuse images has been jailed. On Wednesday Cardiff Crown Court heard Daniel Beatty, of Capel Crescent in Newport, had been caught with images of boys being sexually abused. Beatty, 33, had been subject to a sexual harm prevention order dating back to 2015 when he was jailed for three years for sexually touching an 11-year-old boy and showing him pornography, the court heard. Kathryn Lane, prosecuting, said Beatty was referred to Gwent Police by children's charity the NSPCC in March last year after the charity was informed the defendant had been contacting a 15-year-old boy while gaming online. Following a police investigation the defendant was arrested in January of this year and his devices were seized. Ms Lane said while the conversation was not sexual it was a clear breach of the terms of the order he should have been abiding by. On Beatty's devices a small number of child sex abuse images were also discovered and they were in the worst category for harm - category A. The defendant answered no comment to all questions at police interview but pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity. Solomon Hartley, defending, stressed his client was owed credit for his early guilty plea and said a very small number of images were found on his devices. Mr Hartley submitted there was a clear prospect of rehabilitation and said Beatty was not aware the teenager he was talking to online about gaming was 15. Judge Simon Mills agreed the number of images was small in volume, but said the offending - given it happened with the backdrop of a previous jail term for offences against children - justifies an immediate jail term. He told Beatty in the dock: 'This is not the case of a first time offender coming before court with a relatively small number of images. It is a small number of images but they're category A images and you did it against a backdrop which you knew perfectly well. 'You knew the consequences but decided to do it anyway. You pose a high risk to young male children. A high risk in fact given the sting of being subject to these provisions has lessened as time has passed. 'This case not only crosses the custody threshold but is also a case in which adequate punishment can only be achieved by a sentence of immediate custody. Indecent pictures of children are real children being abused by real adults.' Judge Mills sentenced Beatty to 12 months custody, half of which he'll serve behind bars and the remainder on licence. He also continues to be subject of a sexual harm prevention order for life. Article continues below
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
U.S. House Republican cuts to Medicaid, food assistance would impact hundreds of thousands in Ohio
U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., speaks to reporters as he leaves a news conference following a House Republican Conference meeting at the U.S. Capitol on April 8, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by) The U.S. House Republican budget bill could spell significant losses for low-income families in Ohio, specifically those in need of food assistance and those on Medicaid. Advocates for Medicaid and anti-hunger leaders have said reductions and eliminations connected to the two programs would negatively affect Ohioans as a whole, and the state's economy and spending power as well. Only one Republican U.S. representative from Ohio voted against the congressional budget bill, passed early Thursday with a vote of 215-214. U.S. Rep. Warren Davidson, posted on X, formerly Twitter, Thursday morning that he supported 'many things in the bill,' but that 'deficits do matter and this bill grows them now.' 'The only Congress we can control is the one we're in,' he wrote, alongside a bar graph showing the Congressional Budget Office's analysis of the bill's deficit effect. 'Consequently, I cannot support this big deficit plan.' U.S. House Republicans push through massive tax and spending bill slashing Medicaid U.S. Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, stood with the rest of Democrats in voting against the bill, saying in a statement after the vote that the bill is 'a cruel and catastrophic budget that rips health care, food and opportunity from Ohioans and millions of other Americans just to bankroll bigger and better tax breaks for billionaires.' Beatty's statement said the bill, which now moves to the U.S. Senate, includes 'the largest cut to Medicaid in American history,' at $698 billion, and $267 billion from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) over the next decade. 'In Ohio, that means potentially substantial new costs shifted onto our state, and fewer hospitals, fewer nursing homes, fewer services for our most vulnerable neighbors,' according to Beatty. 'It's not just bad math – it's moral failure.' Ohio would see direct impact from the bill in its own state operating budget, currently being drafted by the General Assembly. The Ohio House's version of the bill kept a provision proposed by Republican Gov. Mike DeWine in his executive budget to eliminate the state's Medicaid expansion group if the federal government reduced the contribution it makes to the program. Currently, the federal government pays 90% of the Medicaid funding in Ohio, with the state covering the other 10%. In the Ohio House's version of the budget bill, Ohio would eliminate Group VIII — another name for the Medicaid expansion group that covers more than 700,000 Ohioans who live above the income requirements for traditional Medicaid but are still in need of assistance — if the federal government's share of the funding dips below 90%. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Medicaid advocates and experts have said losing this expansion group would cause Ohio's uninsured rate to go up, and those dropped from the program to seek self-pay medical options, or skip care all together, causing the health of the state to suffer. According to Ohio child advocates Groundwork Ohio, nearly 48% of Ohio children younger than six rely on Medicaid for health coverage, and the program covers about 50% of all births in the state. The Center for Community Solutions found in a recent study that Medicaid covers 2 in 5 children in the state, as well as 1 in 5 working-age adults, and 1 in 10 adults aged 65 and older. The largest group covered in Ohio's Medicaid program, 53.2% of cases, is families and children. The national Food Research & Action Center said the cuts would represent a nearly 30% reduction in SNAP funding, and would increase each state's share of spending for the food assistance. 'The bottom line is this bill would end up costing America,' wrote Crystal FitzSimons, president of FRAC, in a statement. 'Rural communities would be disproportionately impacted. We would see higher rates of hunger and poverty, increased health care costs, reduced academic outcomes, less productivity and an economy that will be hit hard.' The Congressional Budget Office said the cuts, particularly to Medicaid and SNAP, would create a 2% decrease in household income nationwide in 2027 for the 10% of Americans in the lowest income brackets, going to to 4% by 2033. Households in the highest income brackets, however, could see raises. The loss of SNAP funding, along with Medicaid, would reduce access to services that 'are vital for everyday Ohioans in every Congressional district,' according to Joree Novotny, executive director of the Ohio Association of Foodbanks. Novotny said the current proposal would shift nearly $500 million in SNAP costs per year onto the state of Ohio. 'That's about the same as all the state general revenue spent to operate the entire Ohio Department of Job and Family Services each year,' Novotny said. The food banks and other anti-hunger advocates are already asking the state to support bipartisan legislation that would create supplemental benefits for SNAP participants in Ohio. Ohio House Bill 178, which has received two hearings the Ohio House Community Revitalization Committee, would require the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services to provide 'supplemental benefits to households receiving (SNAP) benefits if the household includes a member who is 60 years of age or older and receives a monthly SNAP benefit that is less than $50. The supplements would cost the state $12.5 million in fiscal year 2026, and $21.4 million in 2027, according to a fiscal analysis of the bill. In supporting the bill, Hope Lane-Gavin, director of nutrition policy and programs for the state association of food banks said the average SNAP benefit in Ohio is $171 per month per person, or less than $6 per person per day. The federal minimum SNAP benefit is $23 per month, according to Lane-Gavin. There are about 70,000 households with adults 60 or older as the head of them in which the household receives less than $50 per month. 'Access to SNAP benefits can reduce food insecurity, increase medication adherence and contribute to health care savings,' she told the committee. If SNAP funding changes drastically, food banks will not be able to fill the gap, even as they served more than 230 million meals in 2024, according to Novotny. The language in the budget would force state governments including Ohio's to 'make impossible choices.' 'This cost shift wouldn't just hurt families, it would impact local grocery stores, farmers and food suppliers, threatening jobs and access to fresh food in communities across Ohio,' Novotny said. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
New Indian Express
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New Indian Express
Robert Benton, Oscar-winning filmmaker of 'Kramer vs. Kramer,' passes away at 92
Their project took years to complete as Francois Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard were among the directors who turned them down before Warren Beatty agreed to produce and star in the movie. "Bonnie and Clyde," directed by Arthur Penn and starring Beatty and Faye Dunaway, overcame initial critical resistance in 1967 to the film's shocking violence and became one of the touchstones of 1960s culture and the start of a more open and creative era in Hollywood. The original story by Benton and Newman was even more daring: they had made Clyde Barrow bisexual and involved in a 3-way relationship with Bonnie and their male getaway driver. Beatty and Penn both resisted, and Barrow instead was portrayed as impotent, with an uncredited Robert Towne making numerous other changes to the script. 'I honestly don't know who the 'auteur' of 'Bonnie and Clyde' was,' Benton later told Mark Harris, author of 'Pictures at a Revolution," a book about 'Bonnie and Clyde' and four other movies from 1967. Oscar-winning triumphs Over the following decade, none of Benton's films approached the impact of "Bonnie and Clyde,' although he continued to have critical and commercial success. His writing credits included "Superman" and "What's Up, Doc?" He directed and co-wrote such well-reviewed works as "Bad Company," a revisionist Western featuring Jeff Bridges, and "The Late Show," a melancholy comedy for which his screenplay received an Oscar nomination. His career soared in 1979 with his adaptation of the Avery Corman novel "Kramer vs. Kramer," about a self-absorbed advertising executive who becomes a loving parent to his young son after his wife walks out, only to have her return and ask for custody. Starring Hoffman and Streep, the movie was praised as a perceptive, emotional portrait of changing family roles and expectations and received five Academy Awards, including best picture. Hoffman, disenchanted at the time with the film business, would cite 'Kramer vs. Kramer' and Benson's direction for reviving his love for movie acting. Five years later, Benton was back in the Oscars race with a more personal film, "Places in the Heart," in which he drew upon family stories and childhood memories for his 1930s-set drama starring Fields as a mother of two in Texas who fights to hold on to her land after her husband is killed. 'I think that when I saw it all strung together, I was surprised at what a romantic view I had of the past,' Benton told The Associated Press in 1984, adding that the movie was in part a tribute to his mother, who had died shortly before the release of 'Kramer vs. Kramer.' A lifelong movie fan Benton was born in Waxahachie, Texas, outside of Dallas. He owed his early love for movies to his father, telephone company employee Ellery Douglass Benton, who, instead of asking about homework, would take his family to the picture shows. The elder Benton would also share memories of attending the funerals of outlaws Barrow and Parker, Texas natives who grew up in the Dallas area. Robert Benton studied at the University of Texas and Columbia University, then served in the U.S. Army from 1954 until 1956. While at Esquire, Benton helped start the magazine's long-standing Dubious Achievement Award and dated Gloria Steinem, then on staff at the humor magazine Help! He married artist Sallie Rendigs in 1964. They had one son. Between hits, Benton often endured long dry spells. His latter films included such disappointments as the thrillers "Billy Bathgate," "The Human Stain" and "Twilight." He had much more success with "Nobody's Fool," a wry comedy released in 1994 and starring Paul Newman, in his last Oscar-nominated performance, as a small-town troublemaker in upstate New York. Benton, whose film was based on Russo's novel, was nominated for best adapted screenplay. 'Somebody asked me once when the Academy Award nominations came out and I'd been nominated, 'What's the great thing about the Academy Awards?'' Benton told Venice magazine in 1998. 'I said 'When you go to the awards and you see people, some of whom you've had bitter fights with, some of whom you're close friends with, some people you haven't seen in ten years, some people you just saw two days before — it's your family.' It's home. And home is what I've spent my life looking for.'
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
DPP combats coconut rhinoceros beetles in urban Honolulu
Damage linked to the palm tree-killing coconut rhinoceros beetle has become more obvious in urban Hono lulu, according to city officials. Recent plantings at new privately owned building developments in Kakaako and Ala Moana show the telltale signs of CRB infestations—boreholes 2 inches or bigger in palm trunks, V-shaped or scallop-edged palm fronds and generally unhealthy-looking trees overall. CRB breeding populations also are being discovered along the palm-rich corridor extending from Iolani Palace to Diamond Head Crater, the city Department of Planning and Permitting asserts. To combat the problem, DPP says it's strengthening efforts to preserve the health of the island's urban landscapes. 'The DPP is concerned about CRB for many reasons, but primarily we are concerned about the potential rapid loss of palms in our community forest and the related safety hazards that result from damaged or dead palms falling unexpectedly, ' Alexander Beatty of DPP's Urban Design Branch, told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. The department's main focus is on new development and replacement of landscapes, he said. 'The DPP has limited authority over private landscape ; therefore, we are focusing our efforts in street trees, which require DPP approval, and in the special districts, which often require approved landscape plans, ' Beatty added. In March 2024 the department implemented a policy aimed at slowing the spread of CRB until effective treatments are available. The policy is focused on areas under DPP's direct authority and includes the following measures :—Prohibiting palms from fulfilling street tree requirements.—Discouraging the use of palms to meet landscaping requirements.—Limiting the use of compost, wood, tree chips and mulch that may harbor CRB.—Requiring compliance with the state Department of Agriculture's interim rule restricting the movement of CRB host materials.—Mandating an invasive species management plan for affected developments.—Ensuring damaged palms are replaced with tree species that are not susceptible to CRB. Despite efforts, DPP continues to see new urban landscapes dominated by palms, such as coconut and loulu. The department encourages residents and developers to consider alternative tree species. Native and Polynesian-introduced species featured on the city's Street Tree List offer a range of sizes and benefits. Those plants include alahee, ohia, hau, milo, kou, kukui, lonomea, manele, variegated hau and kamani. Canopy trees favored Areas in urban Honolulu—including those with special districts—continue to have spots where coconut palms are common. The Hawaii Capital Special District, the Punchbowl Special District, the Thomas Square Special District, the future Transit Oriented Development Special Districts and the Waikiki Special District are among the locations, according to Beatty. 'These areas rely heavily on palm plantings, and that reliance poses a real threat to our urban forest, ' he said. 'It also creates an elevated hazard since these are more pedestrian-oriented and highly trafficked areas. Kakaako is also in this area but is not under the jurisdiction of the DPP for landscaping.' He noted coconut trees themselves are not effective canopy trees either. 'Canopy trees offer exceptional public benefits relative to their cost—providing shade, mitigating the urban heat island effect, managing storm water and enhancing the pedestrian experience, especially when diverse species are planted, ' he said. A result of this effort has been a renewed focus on incorporating Hawaiian canopy trees, according to Beatty. 'Several projects in Waikiki have already replaced palms in their landscape plans with more canopy trees, ' he said. 'For example, Hilton Hawaiian Village plans to significantly increase canopy coverage around the edges of their campus, particularly near the lagoon.' Another hope is tree growers will increase availability of these species so they can be used more often and at larger scales, he said. 'We also hope that other projects, including those in Ala Moana and Kakaako, will see the wisdom of diversifying the planting to make a more resilient community forest and take action on their own, ' he said. 'Damaged trees that have been treated are still a hazard, and should be replaced. 'We understand that this will require a shift in thinking from the community, including developers and landscape architects, ' he said. 'However, planting shade trees and replacing damaged palms with shade trees will help create a more resilient community forest.' As far as DPP's efforts, no city funds have been spent to quash the CRB threat. 'We are operating within the existing regulatory framework of zoning and street trees, ' Beatty said. Jeanne Rice, an Ala Moana-Kakaako Neighborhood Board member, said the CRB problem is a threat to all of Oahu, not just in the vicinity of her longtime residence near Ala Moana Regional Park. 'I think everyone needs to be vigilant regarding these beetles. I've seen the damage they can do personally ; it's such a shame, and I know the state has been trying for many years to eradicate them too, ' she added. Few success stories First detected in Hawaii in 2013 after being discovered at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, the ravenous beetles have spread to different parts of Oahu where coconut palms and other palm varieties have become their main source of food. The insects are native to Africa, China, Myanmar, India and Southeast Asia. Adult beetles are black, 2 inches long and have a visible horn. They typically take wing at night and can fly up to 2 miles if looking for a food source. Female beetles might lay 50 to 140 eggs in their lifetime, which is four to nine months. And although the insects don't bite, they can carry disease and should not be handled with bare hands, if possible. CRBs create bore holes in palm trees that can lead to an individual tree's untimely demise. They then eat palm fronds to the point where the foliage is unable to photosynthesize, or turn sunlight into chemical energy for the tree to grow or survive. As insecticides and other bug-stopping methods have proved only moderately effective in controlling the spread of CRBs, the City and County of Honolulu has worked to identify and remove dead or dying coconut palms at city-owned parks, as such trees can become CRB breeding grounds. Many of those parks are located along the Leeward Coast and the North Shore. 'Really, the unfortunate truth is it's going to get worse before it gets better, ' said city Department of Parks and Recreation spokesperson Nate Serota, during an October news conference at Haleiwa's Bill and Peggy Paty Kaiaka Bay Beach Park, where many palms needed to be cut down due to CRB infestations. 'We're going to have to start removing more and more of these palms, really out of concern for public safety.' But, according to Serota, CRBs don't stop at just palm trees. He said the destructive insects threaten 'heritage plants ' as well, including taro and other staples brought by the Polynesian voyagers who first populated the Hawaiian Islands centuries ago. The Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle Response Team, administered through the University of Hawaii and funded by the U.S. departments of Agriculture and Defense, is also part of the effort to control the beetle. At the same news conference in October, Keith Weiser, a CRB Response Team member, said 'success stories ' in fighting these insects are few and far between and mainly occur only in urbanized areas. He noted that a combination of netting and insecticides—typically with the use of plant-based pyrethrins—can be used to control CRB infestations. For more information on DPP's program, visit.
Time of India
11-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
'Do you even want this job': HR expert reveals the common interview mistake that can cost you the job before you know it
In the high-stakes world of job interviews, most candidates worry about saying the wrong thing. But according to Angela Beatty, Accenture 's Chief Leadership and Human Resources Officer, it's what you don't say — or more precisely, what you don't know — that could cost you the role before you even realize it. #Operation Sindoor India responds to Pak's ceasefire violation; All that happened India-Pakistan ceasefire reactions: Who said what Punjab's hopes for normalcy dimmed by fresh violations According to report from CNBC Make it, Bratty revealed that there's one red flag that continues to stand out: candidates who show up without a clear understanding of the role they've applied for. 'It seems basic,' Beatty admits, 'but it happens more often than you'd think.' The result? It makes the applicant look like they're 'blanketly applying' to any open job without a moment's pause to reflect on whether it's a good fit — for them or the employer. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Join new Free to Play WWII MMO War Thunder War Thunder Play Now Undo More Than Just a Resume In today's competitive job market, showing up unprepared can no longer be brushed off as a casual oversight. When Beatty asks candidates what they can bring to a role, she expects more than generic answers. A failure to connect personal experience to the role's expectations signals a deeper issue: lack of genuine interest. 'If they haven't thought about how they'll contribute, it becomes hard to believe they'll care once they're in the job,' she says. And it's not just about securing a paycheck — hiring managers want to see candidates who are as invested in the mission as they are in the money. You Might Also Like: Boss says Yes, HR says No: In this battle, employee loses his paid leaves in strange WFH struggle This applies to resumes, too. Beatty advises avoiding unexplained short stints in your employment history, which can raise doubts about your ability to stay long enough to make a difference. Instead, she recommends highlighting how you've grown and learned over time — whether through professional roles or outside projects. It's Not the 90s — Do Your Homework In an era where company websites, Glassdoor reviews, LinkedIn profiles, and even employee blogs are just a click away, showing up uninformed is no longer excusable. Beatty calls it 'an easy pitfall to avoid,' especially when the tools are literally at your fingertips. It's not about memorizing a company's founding date or CEO's name. It's about making the connection between who you are and what they need . Read the job description closely. Look up your interviewers. Think critically about how your experience can meet — or even exceed — the demands of the role. 'Spending a little time doing some homework in advance really will pay off,' Beatty insists. You Might Also Like: 100% attendance? How a HR manager fooled a tech company of Rs 20 crore More Than Just a Job — It's a Match Ultimately, Beatty isn't alone in her thinking. Jolen Anderson, Chief People and Community Officer at BetterUp , agrees that a lack of research suggests the company is a 'backup or second choice.' And no one wants to be someone's plan B — especially when they're looking for long-term commitment. So next time you're prepping for an interview, ask yourself the real question: Why do I want this job? Because if you don't know — or worse, haven't even thought about it — chances are the interviewer will figure that out before you open your mouth. And when that happens, your dream role might just slip away before it ever had a chance to begin.
