Latest news with #Luffman
Calgary Herald
02-06-2025
- Politics
- Calgary Herald
‘Jim Crow Jewish supremacists': Union leader faces complaint over anti-Israel posts
Article content 'Oh and people don't find your racial supremacy cute or inspiring, you Jim Crow hacks,' he responds to one user a minute later. Article content Prier argues against the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism. The non-legally binding definition deems comparing Jews or Israel to the Nazis and classic tropes of Jewish control of finance as antisemitic. Article content 'Gaza is like the Warsaw Ghetto (there I've violated IHRA),' he writes, taking aim at the definition adopted by dozens of countries, the federal government and several provinces. Article content Asked for comment, Prier wrote a short statement to the Post acknowledging the now-deleted account was operated by him. Article content 'What's happening in Israel and Palestine is a deeply emotional issue for many people, including me,' Prier wrote, adding he's 'always been clear that I believe in justice for Palestinians and fighting antisemitism. I support a peaceful resolution to the war in Gaza.' Article content Article content Article content Laura Gauthier, the senior communications adviser of CAPE, said the union would not comment on internal matters involving members or staff. Article content 'All complaints are handled in accordance with applicable laws and internal policies, which are designed to ensure confidentiality and fairness,' she said in a note to the Post. Article content Luffman's complaint argues that Prier's conduct violated CAPE's Code of Ethics for Elected or Appointed Officers, specifically bylaws pertaining to harassment and slander. She is calling for Prier's resignation, because his 'statements exemplify a distorted and racist view of Jews and the national movement with which the vast majority of them in Canada identify.' Article content Article content She denounced Prier's language as 'horribly vile,' writing he 'denies legitimacy to the Jewish people, uses derogatory language to depict Jews as supremacists, echoes tropes of Jewish control or dominance, makes comparisons of Jews confined in the Warsaw Ghetto to Israeli policy, and crosses the line from critique to vilification.' Article content The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) echoed Luffman's call, telling the Post the organization lacked confidence in Prier's leadership to represent CAPE's diverse constituency fairly. Article content 'The use of antisemitic tropes and hostile language by Nathan Prier raises serious questions about fitness to represent a diverse union membership and alignment with the Public Service Code of Values and Ethics,' CIJA general counsel Richard Marceau wrote the Post. Article content 'The fact that he is using a hidden identity speaks to (a) lack of transparency at a minimum, but also to a completely unacceptable level of dishonesty for someone in such an important position. In brief, if accountability has any meaning, Nathan Prier should resign from his position.' Article content Luffman remains hopeful her complaint will trigger an external investigation, but sees Prier's behaviour as part of a troubling pattern within CAPE, the country's third-largest federal public service union representing over 20,000 members. In November 2023, Prier's predecessor, Camille Awada, resigned after anti-Israel social media posts he allegedly made years earlier began circulating among union members. Article content Article content 'The European Zionists are the true Aryan race. They look down at the world as if we are cattle. Israel is the illegitimate Zionist terrorist apartheid state that is the root of all evil!' Awada reportedly wrote on Facebook in January 2019. A few days earlier, he reportedly referred to Israel as that 'illegitimate Zionist lunatic terrorist apartheid state.' Article content Luffman received confirmation that her complaint was registered on Wednesday, but said in a brief written comment she did not wish to weigh in on the story as the investigation unfolds. Article content 'I have faith in the process and look forward to receiving the report from the third-party investigator,' she maintained.
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Southern Appalachia waterways ranked #3 on ‘America's Most Endangered Rivers' list
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL) – A national non-profit organization that tracks rivers all over the country has announced the rivers of Southern Appalachia are now among the most endangered in the nation, according to their analysis. The report by American Rivers cited five problems that 'need to be addressed' in Southern Appalachia waterways, including unsafe dams, environmentally damaging debris, the prevalence of infrastructure on floodplains, erosion and economic development. The report found that 44 dams in the Southern Appalachian portion of America 'failed or were severely damaged', and that storm debris is compromising the water quality throughout the region. 'That's why we're shining a light on the rivers of Southern Appalachia,' Erin McCombs, director of the southeast conservation division for American Rivers, said. 'To make sure that we have the federal resources to remove storm debris, to make sure that we can remove unsafe dams that were damaged during the storm and that people can be ready for when the next storm comes.' TVA spokesperson Scott Brooks said, luckily, the Nolichucky Dam was not one of those 44. 'The Nolichucky Dam had a record amount of water go over that dam, and the dam performed as expected. It's still standing. No major damage to the dam itself.' In fact, Brooks told News Channel 11 that the entire integrated river system his area did exactly what it was supposed to do during Helene's flooding. 'We started the week or two before the storm when we saw it was coming,' Brooks said. 'We reduced some of those reservoirs even further to maximize the storage. So it's an integrated river system that we manage so that no one reservoir has to take more of the brunt of a storm, like Helene, than others.' 'Overall, I think we can certainly tell the public that the integrated system performed as it was supposed to and we were able to alleviate, if not mitigate, a lot of the damage. The damage could have been much worse, had we not had this system in place.' The report also mentioned compromised water quality as a result of debris. ETSU Associate Professor of Geosciences Ingrid Luffman said that's a real concern, considering how much infrastructure has been built along the rivers. 'The concern [is], there is pathogens, particularly E. coli in the water,' Luffman said. 'Some of it can stay resident on the soil. It can absorb into the soil. When the stream floods, then all that sediment deposited on the floodplain can retain some of those chemicals or some of those pathogens.' Luffman told News Channel 11 that her concern moving forward lies with the cleanup process itself. 'The woody debris that's been trapped on the stream banks is important to remove,' Luffman said. 'But what they're observing is the trees that are still alive are also being cut down. And worse yet, the root balls are being removed. So now the banks have become even more destabilized in those areas. And I yeah, I don't know if that's a need to, you know, a need for education, that this is not the right way to clean up from the flood, really.' McCombs said the organization she serves hopes the report will continue to raise awareness for flood relief, not just in our area, but for all of Southern Appalachia. 'We all need clean, safe water for our families, no matter where we live or what we look like,' McCombs said. 'And most of our water comes from rivers, which also provides crucial habitat for fish and wildlife. You know, our economy, farms, and cities all depend on rivers for growth, and rivers give us ways to connect with nature and each other.' The full report can be found below: RiversofSouthernAppalachiaMER2025Download Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The National
13-02-2025
- Sport
- The National
High praise for ILT20 find Khuzaima: ‘If there's a better fast bowler in the country, I'd like to see them'
A former teacher, who spent the first season of the DP World International League T20 trying to get his students to attend matches, was to thank for discovering one of the outstanding new players of Season 3. Khuzaima Tanveer grabbed the attention of cricket lovers midway through the latest campaign of the UAE's franchise tournament. He was unknown ahead of his debut for Desert Vipers against Sharjah Warriorz. By the end of that match, he had four wickets, a player of the match trophy, and had conducted three TV interviews, including with the great Pakistan fast bowler Waqar Younis. By the end of the tournament, he had a runner-up medal, and the endorsement of one of the world's leading fast bowlers. Lockie Ferguson, the Vipers captain, said he envied Khuzaima's bowling action. The Pakistan-born newcomer's emergence came about by chance, when he was bowling in a low-key domestic tournament. The opposing batter happened to be Jack Luffman, the development lead for the Vipers. 'I was opening the batting against him and I thought, 'Oh dear, I might be getting a bit too old for this,'' Luffman said. Luffman played minor counties cricket in the UK before moving to Dubai to take up a teaching job. It was in his role as the head of sixth form at a GEMS school that he was asked to help spread the word about the new franchise league in 2023. That included giving out Desert Vipers shirts and hats, as well as tickets to their matches. He stayed in close contact with the franchise, and, as a Level 3 qualified cricket coach, was offered a role as part of their plan to lay down roots. He left his teaching job last year to work full time with the Vipers' schools and development programme. 'Getting a full-time role in cricket was too good an offer to turn down,' Luffman said. 'It has its risks because we are in professional sport, and I was going from a fairly stable job within education. 'We want to be a franchise that is here for 12 months of the year, not just for four or five weeks. That is not a criticism [of the other teams]. It is just the nature of the T20 merry-go-round.' Luffman also plays amateur cricket for the club he helped found, Dubai Wanderers. It was while playing for them that he first encountered Khuzaima, who was newly arrived from Pakistan. With the endorsement of his Wanderers teammates, Arron Lilley and Jordan Clark, who both have experience of county cricket, he closely monitored Khuzaima's progress. 'It is not just about ability,' Luffman said. '[The Vipers] are really big on the environment we create. You have to be a certain type of player. 'What struck us about Khuzaima was, other than the fact he bowls quick, is strong, can field and hold the bat, is that he is a really, really nice kid. 'He wants to ask questions and learn. He looks after himself, does extra stretches before warm ups, and does cool downs afterwards, even between innings. 'It became obvious he was someone we needed to go for in the main draft [ahead of ILT20 Season 3]. We were delighted to get him. We are really excited about what he can bring to the Vipers and UAE cricket. 'Like Tom Moody [Vipers' director of cricket] said, if there is a better fast bowler in the country than him, I would like to see them.' Ferguson, the New Zealand fast bowler, echoed that sentiment. 'Khuzaima has been a real stand out,' Ferguson said. 'The way he has gone about his training from the very beginning of the tournament shows he is constantly trying to get better. 'I love his bowling action. I wish mine looked as pretty as that. He is very young in terms of a fast-bowling career, but his skill set is exceptional. 'Even in the short time he has been in this tournament we have seen him grow and grow, including in the [qualifier play-off against the Warriorz] when he bowled a beautiful last over. 'He is an exciting prospect for UAE in terms of international cricket and I think he is going to have a lot of success in the future.' Khuzaima had to bide his time until he got his chance in the tournament. The game against the Warriorz in which he debuted was the Vipers' sixth of the season. Luffman said he was thrilled for the 25-year-old quick, who will have to wait for around a year and a half to be eligible for selection for the UAE via the ICC's residency criteria. 'I saw him that morning at breakfast, and he thanked me,' Luffman said. 'He calls everybody 'sir'. To see him doing so well in that first game and beyond, it shows he has pace, he is a fit, strong boy, he has skills, and he has bottle, which goes a long way at this level. 'We are really excited by what he can do. He seemed to rush everybody, even some of the world's best players. Now they know who he is, which is his next challenge when he plays against them. 'But that day in Sharjah, I was absolutely delighted for him, a little like a proud dad.'
