News Release Federal Bureau of Investigation

The FBI, working with its state
and local partners during two weeks in Aug., identified and located 84 minor
victims of child sex trafficking and child sexual exploitation offenses and
located 37 actively missing children during a nationwide enforcement campaign,
dubbed “Operation Cross Country.” The
FBI-led nationwide initiative focused on identifying and locating victims of
sex trafficking and investigating and arresting individuals and criminal enterprises involved in both child sex trafficking and human trafficking.

In addition to the identification
and location of adolescent victims, the FBI and its partners located 141 adult
victims of human trafficking. Agents
and investigators also identified or arrested 85 suspects with child sexual
exploitation and human trafficking offenses. Those suspects identified will be subject
to additional investigation for potential charges.
The average age of victims located
during this year’s Operation Cross
Country was 15.5, while the youngest
victim discovered was 11 years old.

Locally, FBI Omaha agents, working
with law enforcement partners from the Omaha Police Department, Douglas County
Sheriff, Sarpy County Sheriff, Council Bluffs Police Department, Lincoln Police
Department, and the Nebraska State Patrol located and identified 6 adolescent
victims who were identified as high risk for exploitation, during operations that ran from August
11 – 14.

“The Justice Department is committed to doing everything in our power to combat
the insidious crimes of human
trafficking that devastate survivors and their families,” said Attorney General
Merrick B. Garland. “I am grateful to the dedicated professionals of the FBI
and our law enforcement partners across the country for their tireless work to
rescue trafficking survivors, including exploited children, to investigate and
prosecute the perpetrators of trafficking crimes, and to provide the services
and support that survivors need and deserve.”

"Human trafficking is among
the most heinous crimes the FBI encounters,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “Unfortunately, such crimes—against both adults and children—are far more
common than most people realize. As
we did in this operation, the FBI and our partners will continue to find and
arrest traffickers, identify and help victims, and raise awareness of the
exploitation our most vulnerable populations.”

As part of Operation Cross Country
XII, FBI special agents, intelligence analysts, victim specialists, and child adolescent forensic Interviewers working
in conjunction with over 200 state, local, and federal
partners and the National Center
for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) conducted 391 operations
over the two-week period.

“The success
of Operation Cross
County reinforces what NCMEC sees every day. Children are being bought and sold for sex in communities across the country
by traffickers, gangs
and even family members,”
said Michelle DeLaune, President and CEO National Center for Missing &amp;

Exploited
Children. “We’re proud to support the FBI’s efforts to prioritize the
safety of children. This national operation highlights the need for all child serving
professionals to continue
to focus on the wellbeing of
children and youth to prevent them being targeted in the first place.”

“Sadly, the sexual exploitation
of children is a continuing problem,” said FBI Omaha Special Agent in Charge Eugene
Kowel. “The work of the FBI Omaha Child Exploitation and Human
Trafficking Task Force sends the message that we remain vigilant on those who
prey on our country’s most innocent population.”

Victim specialists provide a
“bridge” for victims who are wary of the system, help the victim establish
positive relationships with law enforcement, and ensure the human trafficking
victim population receives any appropriate resources
available to them. Victim specialists also provide services
based on the individual needs of human trafficking victims, to include crisis
intervention, emergency food and clothing, transportation to receive emergency
services, and locating shelter or housing. The task forces in the recent
operation included federal, state, local and tribal partners, with efforts in
every state and even a few U.S. territories.

•&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.fbi.gov/resources/victim-services">Victim Services
Division</a>

•&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.fbi.gov/investigate/violent-crime/vcac">Crimes Against
Children</a>

•&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.justice.gov/criminal-ceos">Department of Justice Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section</a>

•&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.fbi.gov/news/press-releases/press-releases/fbi-announces-results-of-nationwide-sex-trafficking-operation">Operation Cross
Country 2022</a>

<a href="https://northplattepost.com/posts/2ddcec21-000f-4ace-b19e-4250120d6629">&nbsp;&nbsp;Download The Post app for iOs or Android</a>

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/8/1660602398367.jpg" alt="Image courtesy of Pixabay" />
 <figcaption>Image courtesy of Pixabay</figcaption>
 </figure>News Release Federal Bureau of InvestigationThe FBI, working with its state
and local partners during two weeks in Aug., identified and located 84 minor
victims of child sex trafficking and child sexual exploitation offenses and
located 37 actively missing children during a nationwide enforcement campaign,
dubbed “Operation Cross Country.” The
FBI-led nationwide initiative focused on identifying and locating victims of
sex trafficking and investigating and arresting individuals and criminal enterprises involved in both child sex trafficking and human trafficking.In addition to the identification
and location of adolescent victims, the FBI and its partners located 141 adult
victims of human trafficking. Agents
and investigators also identified or arrested 85 suspects with child sexual
exploitation and human trafficking offenses. Those suspects identified will be subject
to additional investigation for potential charges.
The average age of victims located
during this year’s Operation Cross
Country was 15.5, while the youngest
victim discovered was 11 years old.Locally, FBI Omaha agents, working
with law enforcement partners from the Omaha Police Department, Douglas County
Sheriff, Sarpy County Sheriff, Council Bluffs Police Department, Lincoln Police
Department, and the Nebraska State Patrol located and identified 6 adolescent
victims who were identified as high risk for exploitation, during operations that ran from August
11 – 14.“The Justice Department is committed to doing everything in our power to combat
the insidious crimes of human
trafficking that devastate survivors and their families,” said Attorney General
Merrick B. Garland. “I am grateful to the dedicated professionals of the FBI
and our law enforcement partners across the country for their tireless work to
rescue trafficking survivors, including exploited children, to investigate and
prosecute the perpetrators of trafficking crimes, and to provide the services
and support that survivors need and deserve.”"Human trafficking is among
the most heinous crimes the FBI encounters,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “Unfortunately, such crimes—against both adults and children—are far more
common than most people realize. As
we did in this operation, the FBI and our partners will continue to find and
arrest traffickers, identify and help victims, and raise awareness of the
exploitation our most vulnerable populations.”As part of Operation Cross Country
XII, FBI special agents, intelligence analysts, victim specialists, and child adolescent forensic Interviewers working
in conjunction with over 200 state, local, and federal
partners and the National Center
for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) conducted 391 operations
over the two-week period.“The success
of Operation Cross
County reinforces what NCMEC sees every day. Children are being bought and sold for sex in communities across the country
by traffickers, gangs
and even family members,”
said Michelle DeLaune, President and CEO National Center for Missing &amp;Exploited
Children. “We’re proud to support the FBI’s efforts to prioritize the
safety of children. This national operation highlights the need for all child serving
professionals to continue
to focus on the wellbeing of
children and youth to prevent them being targeted in the first place.”“Sadly, the sexual exploitation
of children is a continuing problem,” said FBI Omaha Special Agent in Charge Eugene
Kowel. “The work of the FBI Omaha Child Exploitation and Human
Trafficking Task Force sends the message that we remain vigilant on those who
prey on our country’s most innocent population.”Victim specialists provide a
“bridge” for victims who are wary of the system, help the victim establish
positive relationships with law enforcement, and ensure the human trafficking
victim population receives any appropriate resources
available to them. Victim specialists also provide services
based on the individual needs of human trafficking victims, to include crisis
intervention, emergency food and clothing, transportation to receive emergency
services, and locating shelter or housing. The task forces in the recent
operation included federal, state, local and tribal partners, with efforts in
every state and even a few U.S. territories.Resources:•&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.fbi.gov/resources/victim-services">Victim Services
Division</a>•&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.fbi.gov/investigate/violent-crime/vcac">Crimes Against
Children</a>•&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.justice.gov/criminal-ceos">Department of Justice Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section</a>•&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.fbi.gov/news/press-releases/press-releases/fbi-announces-results-of-nationwide-sex-trafficking-operation">Operation Cross
Country 2022</a><a href="https://northplattepost.com/posts/2ddcec21-000f-4ace-b19e-4250120d6629">&nbsp;&nbsp;Download The Post app for iOs or Android</a><figure>
 <img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/YRik0g8IrUMROogeTfK4wgve7FIcG_3F4x4x-ngGtA2olTTYFJDkoHOD1aFaZUSWOgmCSb81edwbnnpm-AKxQ0DD-VvTrOpHvwE29ng1MlEZ3bGewtoi5tU0B8-pLTMvoorYa4DIJ0zaRyRPxx4Y_w" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>

FBI locates 84 minor victims of sex trafficking in August

By SCOTT CARLSON North Platte Post

The Seward County Sheriff's Office said one person is dead after two semis collided on Interstate 80 in eastern Nebraska.

Authorities said the crash happened at around 3:15 a.m. on Sunday near mile marker 379.

A preliminary investigation showed that a semi was westbound when it struck the rear of a tractor-trailer that we disabled on the shoulder.

The collision caused the westbound semi to burst into flames, entrapping the driver.

Authorities said the driver of the westbound semi was pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver and occupant of the disabled vehicle were transported to Seward Memorial Hospital, where there were treated and released.&nbsp;

The accident remains under investigation, and the deceased driver's name was not released.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2019/6/1559744286393.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>By SCOTT CARLSON North Platte PostThe Seward County Sheriff's Office said one person is dead after two semis collided on Interstate 80 in eastern Nebraska.Authorities said the crash happened at around 3:15 a.m. on Sunday near mile marker 379.A preliminary investigation showed that a semi was westbound when it struck the rear of a tractor-trailer that we disabled on the shoulder.The collision caused the westbound semi to burst into flames, entrapping the driver.Authorities said the driver of the westbound semi was pronounced dead at the scene.The driver and occupant of the disabled vehicle were transported to Seward Memorial Hospital, where there were treated and released.&nbsp;The accident remains under investigation, and the deceased driver's name was not released.&nbsp;

Crash involving 2 semis claims 1 life in Seward County

Pittsburg (AP) —Kraft Heinz is recalling<a href="https://news.kraftheinzcompany.com/press-releases-details/2022/Kraft-Heinz-voluntary-recall-of-select-Capri-Sun-Wild-Cherry-Flavored-Juice-Drink/default.aspx"> thousands of pouches</a> of Capri Sun after some cleaning solution accidentally mixed with the juice on a production line.

The company said it’s recalling about 5,760 cases of Capri Sun Wild Cherry flavored juice blend. The “Best When Used By” date on the packages is June 25, 2023.

<a href="https://news.kraftheinzcompany.com/press-releases-details/2022/Kraft-Heinz-voluntary-recall-of-select-Capri-Sun-Wild-Cherry-Flavored-Juice-Drink/default.aspx">Kraft Heinz said</a> the diluted cleaning solution is used on its food processing equipment. The company said it discovered that the solution had accidentally mixed with the juice after getting consumer complaints about the juice’s taste.

Kraft Heinz, which is co-headquartered in Pittsburgh and Chicago, said in a statement Friday it is working with retailers to remove the product from circulation. Consumers who bought the affected Capri Sun should not consume it and should return it to the story where it was purchased to receive a refund.

By DEE-ANN DURBINPittsburg (AP) —Kraft Heinz is recalling<a href="https://news.kraftheinzcompany.com/press-releases-details/2022/Kraft-Heinz-voluntary-recall-of-select-Capri-Sun-Wild-Cherry-Flavored-Juice-Drink/default.aspx"> thousands of pouches</a> of Capri Sun after some cleaning solution accidentally mixed with the juice on a production line.The company said it’s recalling about 5,760 cases of Capri Sun Wild Cherry flavored juice blend. The “Best When Used By” date on the packages is June 25, 2023.<a href="https://news.kraftheinzcompany.com/press-releases-details/2022/Kraft-Heinz-voluntary-recall-of-select-Capri-Sun-Wild-Cherry-Flavored-Juice-Drink/default.aspx">Kraft Heinz said</a> the diluted cleaning solution is used on its food processing equipment. The company said it discovered that the solution had accidentally mixed with the juice after getting consumer complaints about the juice’s taste.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/8/1660601047005.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Kraft Heinz, which is co-headquartered in Pittsburgh and Chicago, said in a statement Friday it is working with retailers to remove the product from circulation. Consumers who bought the affected Capri Sun should not consume it and should return it to the story where it was purchased to receive a refund.

Recalled Capri Sun may contain cleaning solution

Jeff Bohnert had all but given up on seeing his poodle-hound mix again after she went missing in early June. Two months later, he got a text from a neighbor: People exploring a nearby cave found a dog. Could it be Abby?

Bohnert doubted it, but still curious, he went to the cave site near his rural Missouri home. That's when he saw the picture one of the rescuers took.

“I said, ‘that’s my dog,'” Bohnert recalled Monday.

Making Abby's tale even more amazing is the fact that she's just weeks shy of turning 14. Yet somehow, she managed to survive nearly 60 days out on her own, apparently much or all of it in a barren, pitch-dark, 58-degree Fahrenheit cave.

Abby and Bohnert's other dog, Summer, do everything together, including misbehave.

On June 9, the pair ran away from home, Bohnert recalled. It had happened before, and in the rural area near Perryville in eastern Missouri, it was generally no big deal. The dogs would scamper through the fields, maybe chase something, then head home.

When Bohnert awoke the next morning, Summer was back home but Abby was not.

“They never separate,” he said. “I figured something bad had happened. I mean, she's old. She could just get overcome by the heat.”

Bohnert posted about his missing dog on Facebook, reached out to neighbors and contacted police, but no one had seen Abby.

On Aug. 6, Gerry Keene and five other adults, along with five children, had just entered the Berome Moore Cave, planning a day of exploring. One of the kids ran ahead of the group and yelled back to his dad, “There's a dog in here.”

“Their dad was like, no there’s not,” Keene said.

“She was just lying there curled up in a ball,” Keene recalled. "She lifted her head and looked at us but she didn’t respond to verbal commands. She looked like she was pretty close to being done.”

Keene enlisted the help of another caver who happened to be there, Rick Haley. They knew Abby couldn't make the estimated 500-foot walk back to the entrance, especially since it was through tight passageways and up a steep incline.

Haley was trained in cave rescues, and he retrieved a duffel bag and a blanket from his truck. They put the blanket inside the bag, then the dog, who immediately took to the warm blanket after weeks laying in the cold mud.

Still, getting Abby out was tricky given her fragility.

“It was critical that we not give her any rough handling,” Haley said. In the rocky areas through small passageways, “We would carry her short distance, set her down, then kind of move in front of her, reach back, pick her up, and put her in front of us." He described it as "kind of a leap-frog kind of thing.”

Soon after initially finding Abby, Keene briefly went to a few homes nearby to see if anyone was missing a dog. One neighbor reached out to Bohnert, who lives close enough to the cave site that he can see it from his home.

He went there assuming it couldn't be Abby — how could a 13-year-old dog have survived such an ordeal?

To his amazement, she did, and roughly an hour-and-a-half after the rescue began, she was out. One of the rescuers gave Abby a bite of beef.

“She almost ate his finger off," Keene said. Almost immediately, she began to perk up.

Bohnert figures Abby ended up in the cave after falling into a sinkhole or a hidden entrance. Haley said there were paw prints everywhere, indicating she initially tried to get out.

After that, Haley and Bohnert believe she hunkered down, able to essentially live off her own body fat.

“I think she was just in a preservation mode," Bohnert said.

Abby normally weighs about 50 pounds (23 kilograms), Bohnert said, but he guessed she lost half her body weight in the cave. Since her rescue, she has regained weight and started to get back the voice she likely lost barking for help.

She's also wagging her tail again, showing she's putting the trauma behind her.

“It’s amazing how she’s springing back already,” Bohnert said. “She’s acting like herself again.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/8/1660593286430.png" alt="On Aug. 6, Gerry Keene and five other adults, along with five children, had just entered the Berome Moore Cave, planning a day of exploring. One of the kids ran ahead of the group and yelled back to his dad, “There's a dog in here.”photo courtesy WSVN TV" />
 <figcaption>On Aug. 6, Gerry Keene and five other adults, along with five children, had just entered the Berome Moore Cave, planning a day of exploring. One of the kids ran ahead of the group and yelled back to his dad, “There's a dog in here.”photo courtesy WSVN TV</figcaption>
 </figure>By JIM SALTER,&nbsp; Associated PressJeff Bohnert had all but given up on seeing his poodle-hound mix again after she went missing in early June. Two months later, he got a text from a neighbor: People exploring a nearby cave found a dog. Could it be Abby?Bohnert doubted it, but still curious, he went to the cave site near his rural Missouri home. That's when he saw the picture one of the rescuers took.“I said, ‘that’s my dog,'” Bohnert recalled Monday.Making Abby's tale even more amazing is the fact that she's just weeks shy of turning 14. Yet somehow, she managed to survive nearly 60 days out on her own, apparently much or all of it in a barren, pitch-dark, 58-degree Fahrenheit cave.Abby and Bohnert's other dog, Summer, do everything together, including misbehave.On June 9, the pair ran away from home, Bohnert recalled. It had happened before, and in the rural area near Perryville in eastern Missouri, it was generally no big deal. The dogs would scamper through the fields, maybe chase something, then head home.When Bohnert awoke the next morning, Summer was back home but Abby was not.“They never separate,” he said. “I figured something bad had happened. I mean, she's old. She could just get overcome by the heat.”Bohnert posted about his missing dog on Facebook, reached out to neighbors and contacted police, but no one had seen Abby.On Aug. 6, Gerry Keene and five other adults, along with five children, had just entered the Berome Moore Cave, planning a day of exploring. One of the kids ran ahead of the group and yelled back to his dad, “There's a dog in here.”“Their dad was like, no there’s not,” Keene said.Yes, there was.“She was just lying there curled up in a ball,” Keene recalled. "She lifted her head and looked at us but she didn’t respond to verbal commands. She looked like she was pretty close to being done.”Keene enlisted the help of another caver who happened to be there, Rick Haley. They knew Abby couldn't make the estimated 500-foot walk back to the entrance, especially since it was through tight passageways and up a steep incline.Haley was trained in cave rescues, and he retrieved a duffel bag and a blanket from his truck. They put the blanket inside the bag, then the dog, who immediately took to the warm blanket after weeks laying in the cold mud.Still, getting Abby out was tricky given her fragility.“It was critical that we not give her any rough handling,” Haley said. In the rocky areas through small passageways, “We would carry her short distance, set her down, then kind of move in front of her, reach back, pick her up, and put her in front of us." He described it as "kind of a leap-frog kind of thing.”<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/8/1660593231098.png" alt="Abby is wagging her tail again, showing she's putting the trauma behind her.-photo courtesy WSVN TV" />
 <figcaption>Abby is wagging her tail again, showing she's putting the trauma behind her.-photo courtesy WSVN TV</figcaption>
 </figure>Soon after initially finding Abby, Keene briefly went to a few homes nearby to see if anyone was missing a dog. One neighbor reached out to Bohnert, who lives close enough to the cave site that he can see it from his home.He went there assuming it couldn't be Abby — how could a 13-year-old dog have survived such an ordeal?To his amazement, she did, and roughly an hour-and-a-half after the rescue began, she was out. One of the rescuers gave Abby a bite of beef.“She almost ate his finger off," Keene said. Almost immediately, she began to perk up.Bohnert figures Abby ended up in the cave after falling into a sinkhole or a hidden entrance. Haley said there were paw prints everywhere, indicating she initially tried to get out.After that, Haley and Bohnert believe she hunkered down, able to essentially live off her own body fat.“I think she was just in a preservation mode," Bohnert said.Abby normally weighs about 50 pounds (23 kilograms), Bohnert said, but he guessed she lost half her body weight in the cave. Since her rescue, she has regained weight and started to get back the voice she likely lost barking for help.She's also wagging her tail again, showing she's putting the trauma behind her.“It’s amazing how she’s springing back already,” Bohnert said. “She’s acting like herself again.”

Dog, missing 2 months, found alive inside Missouri cave

LINCOLN, Neb.-Nebraska State Troopers have recovered a stolen semi-trailer full of Amazon items during a traffic stop on I-80. The incident occurred Friday near Waverly.

Friday morning, NSP was notified by a trucking company that a trailer they had reported stolen was believed to be traveling in Nebraska. The trailer had been reported stolen from Maryland in early August.

Approximately 12 minutes after receiving the report, a trooper located the semi as it was traveling eastbound on Interstate 80 near Waverly. The trooper performed a traffic stop and took the driver and co-driver into custody without incident.

The subjects, Regine Dieudonne, 37, of Lake Worth, Florida, and Anne Mascary, 38, of Deerfield Beach, Florida, were both arrested for theft by receiving stolen property over $5,000. Both were lodged in Lancaster County Jail.

The truck and its contents are being released to the transport company.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/8/1660582094467.png" alt="Dieudonne (Photo: Lancaster County Sheriff)" />
 <figcaption>Dieudonne (Photo: Lancaster County Sheriff)</figcaption>
 </figure>By NEBRASKA STATE PATROLLINCOLN, Neb.-Nebraska State Troopers have recovered a stolen semi-trailer full of Amazon items during a traffic stop on I-80. The incident occurred Friday near Waverly.Friday morning, NSP was notified by a trucking company that a trailer they had reported stolen was believed to be traveling in Nebraska. The trailer had been reported stolen from Maryland in early August.Approximately 12 minutes after receiving the report, a trooper located the semi as it was traveling eastbound on Interstate 80 near Waverly. The trooper performed a traffic stop and took the driver and co-driver into custody without incident.The subjects, Regine Dieudonne, 37, of Lake Worth, Florida, and Anne Mascary, 38, of Deerfield Beach, Florida, were both arrested for theft by receiving stolen property over $5,000. Both were lodged in Lancaster County Jail.The truck and its contents are being released to the transport company.&nbsp;<a href="https://northplattepost.com/posts/2ddcec21-000f-4ace-b19e-4250120d6629">&nbsp;&nbsp;Download The Post app for iOs or Android</a><figure>
 <img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/YRik0g8IrUMROogeTfK4wgve7FIcG_3F4x4x-ngGtA2olTTYFJDkoHOD1aFaZUSWOgmCSb81edwbnnpm-AKxQ0DD-VvTrOpHvwE29ng1MlEZ3bGewtoi5tU0B8-pLTMvoorYa4DIJ0zaRyRPxx4Y_w" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>

Neb. troopers recover stolen semi-trailer filled with Amazon products

By MIRIAM RENAUD <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-salman-rushdies-the-satanic-verses-remains-so-controversial-decades-after-its-publication-102321">The Conversation</a>

Author Salman Rushdie is in the hospital with serious injuries after being <a href="https://apnews.com/article/salman-rushdie-attacked-9eae99aea82cb0d39628851ecd42227a">stabbed by a man at an arts festival</a>
 in New York State on Aug. 12, 2022. The following article was published
 on the 30th anniversary of the release of The Satanic Verses.

One of the most controversial books in recent literary history, <a href="http://www.salmanrushdie.com">Salman Rushdie’s</a> <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Satanic_Verses.html?id=CSVwPG1Kdl8C">“The Satanic Verses,”</a> was published three decades ago this month and almost immediately set off <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/4308642?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents">angry demonstrations</a> all over the world, some of them violent.

A year later, in 1989, Iran’s supreme leader, the <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/khomeini_ayatollah.shtml">Ayatollah Khomeini</a>, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1989/02/16/world/iranians-protest-over-banned-book.html">issued a fatwa</a>,
 or religious ruling, ordering Muslims to kill the author. Born in India
 to a Muslim family, but by then a British citizen living in the U.K., 
Rushdie <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1990/11/04/magazine/rushdie-in-hiding.html">was forced to go into protective hiding</a> for the greater part of a decade.

The book, “Satanic Verses,” goes to the heart of Muslim religious 
beliefs when Rushdie, in dream sequences, challenges and sometimes seems
 to mock some of its most sensitive tenets.

Muslims believe that the <a href="http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t125/e1577">Prophet Muhammed</a>
 was visited by the angel Gibreel – Gabriel in English – who, over a 22 
year period, recited God’s words to him. In turn, Muhammed repeated the
 words to his followers. These words were eventually written down and 
became the <a href="https://universalistfriends.org/sells.html">verses</a> and chapters of the <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Qur_an.html?id=2LmsCiv8waEC">Quran</a>.

Rushdie’s novel takes up these core beliefs. One of the main 
characters, Gibreel Farishta, has a series of dreams in which he becomes
 his namesake, the angel <a href="https://www.thoughtco.com/angel-jibreel-gabriel-in-islam-2004031">Gibreel</a>.
 In these dreams, Gibreel encounters another central character in ways 
that echo Islam’s traditional account of the angel’s encounters with 
Muhammed.

Rushdie chooses a provocative name for Muhammed. The novel’s version 
of the Prophet is called Mahound – an alternative name for Muhammed 
sometimes used during the Middle Ages by Christians who considered him <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/9523983/The-Satanic-Verses-and-me.html">a devil</a>.

In addition, Rushdie’s Mahound puts his own words into the angel 
Gibreel’s mouth and delivers edicts to his followers that conveniently 
bolster his self-serving purposes. Even though, in the book, Mahound’s 
fictional scribe, Salman the Persian, rejects the authenticity of his 
master’s recitations, he records them as if they were God’s. 

In Rushdie’s book, Salman, for example, attributes certain actual passages in the Quran that place men “in charge of women” and <a href="https://quran.com/4/34">give men the right</a> to strike wives from whom they “fear arrogance,” to Mahound’s sexist views.

Through Mahound, Rushdie appears to cast doubt on the divine nature of the Quran. 

For many Muslims, Rushdie, in his fictional retelling of the birth of
 Islam’s key events, implies that, rather than God, the Prophet Muhammed
 is himself the source of revealed truths.

In Rushdie’s defense, some scholars have argued that his <a href="https://journals.openedition.org/erea/493">“irreverent mockery”</a> is intended to explore whether it is possible to separate fact from fiction. Literature expert <a href="http://wp.ucla.edu/person/greg-rubinson/">Greg Rubinson</a> points out that Gibreel is unable to decide what is real and what is a dream.

Since the publication of “The Satanic Verses,” Rushdie has argued that religious texts should be <a href="https://journals.openedition.org/erea/493">open to challenge</a>. “Why can’t we debate Islam?” <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jul/23/salman-rushdie-on-islam-we-have-learned-the-wrong-lessons">Rushdie said in a 2015 interview</a>.
 “It is possible to respect individuals, to protect them from 
intolerance, while being skeptical about their ideas, even criticising 
them ferociously.”

This view, however, clashes with the view of those for whom the Quran is the literal word of God. 

After Khomeini’s death, <a href="https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/99/04/18/specials/rushdie-free.html">Iran’s government announced</a> in 1998 that it would <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-15949285">not carry out his fatwa</a> or encourage others to do so. Rushdie now lives in the United States and makes regular public appearances.

Still, 30 years later, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/23/world/middleeast/irans-hard-line-press-adds-to-bounty-on-salman-rushdie.html">threats against his life persist</a>. Although mass protests have stopped, the themes and questions raised in his novel remain hotly debated.

Myriam Renaud, Affiliated Faculty of Contemporary World Religions, Union Institute &amp; University.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/8/1660580329709.png" alt="Rushdie / <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Salman_Rushdie_2012_Shankbone-2.jpg">Photo by David Shankbone, Creative Commons license</a>" />
 <figcaption>Rushdie / <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Salman_Rushdie_2012_Shankbone-2.jpg">Photo by David Shankbone, Creative Commons license</a></figcaption>
 </figure>By MIRIAM RENAUD <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-salman-rushdies-the-satanic-verses-remains-so-controversial-decades-after-its-publication-102321">The Conversation</a>Author Salman Rushdie is in the hospital with serious injuries after being <a href="https://apnews.com/article/salman-rushdie-attacked-9eae99aea82cb0d39628851ecd42227a">stabbed by a man at an arts festival</a>
 in New York State on Aug. 12, 2022. The following article was published
 on the 30th anniversary of the release of The Satanic Verses.One of the most controversial books in recent literary history, <a href="http://www.salmanrushdie.com">Salman Rushdie’s</a> <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Satanic_Verses.html?id=CSVwPG1Kdl8C">“The Satanic Verses,”</a> was published three decades ago this month and almost immediately set off <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/4308642?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents">angry demonstrations</a> all over the world, some of them violent. A year later, in 1989, Iran’s supreme leader, the <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/khomeini_ayatollah.shtml">Ayatollah Khomeini</a>, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1989/02/16/world/iranians-protest-over-banned-book.html">issued a fatwa</a>,
 or religious ruling, ordering Muslims to kill the author. Born in India
 to a Muslim family, but by then a British citizen living in the U.K., 
Rushdie <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1990/11/04/magazine/rushdie-in-hiding.html">was forced to go into protective hiding</a> for the greater part of a decade. <h2>The controversy</h2>The book, “Satanic Verses,” goes to the heart of Muslim religious 
beliefs when Rushdie, in dream sequences, challenges and sometimes seems
 to mock some of its most sensitive tenets.Muslims believe that the <a href="http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t125/e1577">Prophet Muhammed</a>
 was visited by the angel Gibreel – Gabriel in English – who, over a 22 
year period, recited God’s words to him. In turn, Muhammed repeated the
 words to his followers. These words were eventually written down and 
became the <a href="https://universalistfriends.org/sells.html">verses</a> and chapters of the <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Qur_an.html?id=2LmsCiv8waEC">Quran</a>. Rushdie’s novel takes up these core beliefs. One of the main 
characters, Gibreel Farishta, has a series of dreams in which he becomes
 his namesake, the angel <a href="https://www.thoughtco.com/angel-jibreel-gabriel-in-islam-2004031">Gibreel</a>.
 In these dreams, Gibreel encounters another central character in ways 
that echo Islam’s traditional account of the angel’s encounters with 
Muhammed.Rushdie chooses a provocative name for Muhammed. The novel’s version 
of the Prophet is called Mahound – an alternative name for Muhammed 
sometimes used during the Middle Ages by Christians who considered him <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/9523983/The-Satanic-Verses-and-me.html">a devil</a>.In addition, Rushdie’s Mahound puts his own words into the angel 
Gibreel’s mouth and delivers edicts to his followers that conveniently 
bolster his self-serving purposes. Even though, in the book, Mahound’s 
fictional scribe, Salman the Persian, rejects the authenticity of his 
master’s recitations, he records them as if they were God’s. In Rushdie’s book, Salman, for example, attributes certain actual passages in the Quran that place men “in charge of women” and <a href="https://quran.com/4/34">give men the right</a> to strike wives from whom they “fear arrogance,” to Mahound’s sexist views. Through Mahound, Rushdie appears to cast doubt on the divine nature of the Quran. <h2>Challenging religious texts?</h2>For many Muslims, Rushdie, in his fictional retelling of the birth of
 Islam’s key events, implies that, rather than God, the Prophet Muhammed
 is himself the source of revealed truths.In Rushdie’s defense, some scholars have argued that his <a href="https://journals.openedition.org/erea/493">“irreverent mockery”</a> is intended to explore whether it is possible to separate fact from fiction. Literature expert <a href="http://wp.ucla.edu/person/greg-rubinson/">Greg Rubinson</a> points out that Gibreel is unable to decide what is real and what is a dream. Since the publication of “The Satanic Verses,” Rushdie has argued that religious texts should be <a href="https://journals.openedition.org/erea/493">open to challenge</a>. “Why can’t we debate Islam?” <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jul/23/salman-rushdie-on-islam-we-have-learned-the-wrong-lessons">Rushdie said in a 2015 interview</a>.
 “It is possible to respect individuals, to protect them from 
intolerance, while being skeptical about their ideas, even criticising 
them ferociously.”This view, however, clashes with the view of those for whom the Quran is the literal word of God. After Khomeini’s death, <a href="https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/99/04/18/specials/rushdie-free.html">Iran’s government announced</a> in 1998 that it would <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-15949285">not carry out his fatwa</a> or encourage others to do so. Rushdie now lives in the United States and makes regular public appearances.Still, 30 years later, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/23/world/middleeast/irans-hard-line-press-adds-to-bounty-on-salman-rushdie.html">threats against his life persist</a>. Although mass protests have stopped, the themes and questions raised in his novel remain hotly debated.Myriam Renaud, Affiliated Faculty of Contemporary World Religions, Union Institute &amp; University.<div><iframe src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/102321/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-advanced" width="1" height="1"></iframe></div>

Why Rushdie's ‘The Satanic Verses’ remains so controversial

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today announced that 
interest rates will increase for the calendar quarter beginning October 
1, 2022.

For individuals, the rate for overpayments and underpayments will be 
6% per year, compounded daily, up from 5% for the quarter that began on 
July 1. Here is a complete list of the new rates:

Under the Internal Revenue Code, the rate of interest is 
determined on a quarterly basis. For taxpayers other than corporations, 
the overpayment and underpayment rate is the federal short-term rate 
plus 3 percentage points.

Generally, for a corporation, the underpayment rate is the federal 
short-term rate plus 3 percentage points, and the overpayment rate is 
the federal short-term rate plus 2 percentage points. The rate for large
 corporate underpayments is the federal short-term rate plus 5 
percentage points. The rate on the portion of a corporate overpayment of
 tax exceeding $10,000 for a taxable period is the federal short-term 
rate plus one-half (0.5) of a percentage point.

The interest rates announced today are computed from the federal short-term rate determined during July 2022.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1599869632873.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>IRSWASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today announced that 
interest rates will increase for the calendar quarter beginning October 
1, 2022.For individuals, the rate for overpayments and underpayments will be 
6% per year, compounded daily, up from 5% for the quarter that began on 
July 1. Here is a complete list of the new rates:<ul>
 <li>6% for overpayments (3.5% for corporations). (payments made in excess of the amount owed)</li><li>3.5% for the portion of a corporate overpayment exceeding $10,000.</li><li>6% for underpayments. (taxes owed but not fully paid)</li><li>8% for large corporate underpayments.&nbsp;</li>
 </ul>Under the Internal Revenue Code, the rate of interest is 
determined on a quarterly basis. For taxpayers other than corporations, 
the overpayment and underpayment rate is the federal short-term rate 
plus 3 percentage points.Generally, for a corporation, the underpayment rate is the federal 
short-term rate plus 3 percentage points, and the overpayment rate is 
the federal short-term rate plus 2 percentage points. The rate for large
 corporate underpayments is the federal short-term rate plus 5 
percentage points. The rate on the portion of a corporate overpayment of
 tax exceeding $10,000 for a taxable period is the federal short-term 
rate plus one-half (0.5) of a percentage point.The interest rates announced today are computed from the federal short-term rate determined during July 2022.&nbsp;

IRS announces interest rate hikes for fourth quarter of 2022

Washington, D.C.—The U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Mark Warner and Vice Chairman Marco Rubio have requested in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines information relating to the FBI’s search of former President Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate.

U.S. Senator Susan Collins, a member of the committee, is one of the few who has spoken out on the request. In a statement from her office Collins said, "The American people deserve a full accounting of the extraordinary action taken by the FBI last week."

"It’s imperative that the Committee receive all classified documents found during the search as well as the FBI affidavit, which would describe in detail any justification for the search. I look forward to the AG and the DNI’s swift compliance with the Committee’s request, which is essential to promoting transparency and securing a full accounting of the FBI’s unprecedented search of a former President’s personal residence.”

Missouri Senator Josh Hawley said, Attorney General Garland "Must Resign or Be Impeached," over the FBI Mar-a-Lago raid."

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/8/1660337904040.jpeg" alt="The receipt for property that was seized during the execution of a search warrant by the FBI at former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla., is photographed Friday, Aug. 12, 2022. (AP Photo/Jon Elswick)" />
 <figcaption>The receipt for property that was seized during the execution of a search warrant by the FBI at former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla., is photographed Friday, Aug. 12, 2022. (AP Photo/Jon Elswick)</figcaption>
 </figure>Washington, D.C.—The U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Mark Warner and Vice Chairman Marco Rubio have requested in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines information relating to the FBI’s search of former President Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate.U.S. Senator Susan Collins, a member of the committee, is one of the few who has spoken out on the request. In a statement from her office Collins said, "The American people deserve a full accounting of the extraordinary action taken by the FBI last week.""It’s imperative that the Committee receive all classified documents found during the search as well as the FBI affidavit, which would describe in detail any justification for the search. I look forward to the AG and the DNI’s swift compliance with the Committee’s request, which is essential to promoting transparency and securing a full accounting of the FBI’s unprecedented search of a former President’s personal residence.”<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">The raid by Joe Biden’s FBI on the home of a former president who is also Biden’s chief political opponent is an unprecedented assault on democratic norms and the rule of law. Biden has taken our republic into dangerous waters&mdash; Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) <a href="https://twitter.com/HawleyMO/status/1557009986336817153?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 9, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Missouri Senator Josh Hawley said, Attorney General Garland "Must Resign or Be Impeached," over the FBI Mar-a-Lago raid."

Senators demand  information on search of Trump estate

By RODRIC J. HURDLE-BRADFORD <a href="https://www.nevadacurrent.com/2022/08/15/tackling-turnover-hospitality-sector-confronts-an-old-problem-the-pandemic-made-worse/">Nevada Current</a>

The
 COVID-19 pandemic threw cold water on Nevada’s longtime hospitality 
industry turnover issue from Lake Tahoe to Lake Las Vegas, forcing the 
entire state’s industry to reexamine the quality of its human resources 
departments, personnel recruiting and onboarding strategies, and high 
personnel turnover rate.

High turnover traditionally has been 
viewed as a necessary evil within the state’s hospitality industry, but 
the pandemic has made strategists and executives alike rethink their 
expectations of recruiting, retaining and managing personnel.&nbsp;

“Learning and development roles are 
finally coming back,” said Las Vegas-based Kline Hospitality Consulting 
CEO Michele Kline, who hosts a podcast focused on hospitality training 
using real-life stories. “As organizations see how much of a revolving 
door there is now, learning and development becomes a key play so new 
hires are ready to take on their roles successfully.”&nbsp;

“The pandemic did not just change 
businesses, it also changed workers,” said SW HR Consulting CEO Shermana
 Walker, also based in Las Vegas. “Turnover rates in the hospitality 
industry are staggering and these rates continue to climb, and the 
COVID-19 pandemic has played a huge role in this.”

Walker cites the Bureau of Labor 
Statistics reporting a staggering 130% turnover rate for the hospitality
 industry in 2020. The turnover rate measures total annual separations 
between employees and hospitality venues across the country.&nbsp;

“This number is extremely high, but 
even before the pandemic, the rate was 79%,” said Walker. “With this 
issue of high employee turnover, there will be more burnout within 
employees, lack of coordination, frustration and working long hours 
without enough compensation.”&nbsp;

<a target="_blank" href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/jolts.t16.htm">The 2021 hospitality turnover rate climbed even higher to its pre-pandemic level to 85%</a>,
 continuing the ongoing trend as newly identified pandemic turnover 
solutions like more efficient recruitment and retention have yet to take
 hold throughout the industry. To tackle the turnover issue, the state’s
 hospitality industry is now focusing on effective recruiting for the 
impending post-pandemic era.&nbsp;

“One of the most exciting changes 
that the pandemic has brought to the recruiting process is the immersive
 expansion of the talent pool,” Walker said. “Thanks to telecommuting, 
so many businesses have transitioned internal positions to include 
remote or hybrid environments. Nowadays, the whole world is your talent 
pool.”

Remote positions have helped tackle 
some of the turnover problems for Nevada’s hospitality industry, but for
 those vast majority of positions that require in-person attendance and a
 base in the Silver State, personnel recruitment is now receiving more 
attention than ever.&nbsp;

“As a process improvement expert, I 
see that the inefficiencies in the recruiting process are now more 
exposed than they ever have been,” Kline said. “Candidates who apply for
 a job are not wanting to hear back [from a single employer] any longer,
 they jump on the first opportunity that knocks on their door. Making 
sure the process is flawless and that your brand stands out is the 
secret sauce.”

Personnel recruitment in the new 
pandemic world has been a long arduous journey back, one that Nevada 
Resorts Association President Virginia Valentine says is hitting its 
summit.&nbsp;

“For the past two years, Nevada’s 
resort industry has been tireless in its work to bring back employees 
and recruit top talent to fill open positions,” Valentine said. “The 
recent resumption of international travel and a normalization of the 
tradeshow and convention business will drive business volumes during the
 midweek period, creating more job opportunities that move the industry 
closer to pre-pandemic employment leads.”

This increase leads to the more intense focus on retention from all sectors within the hospitality industry.&nbsp;

After successfully recruiting a new 
employee, more attention is being paid to the onboarding process for 
that new employee than ever before.&nbsp;

“The way you bring people on board 
goes a long way toward keeping employees engaged and effective in your 
organization,” Walker said. “This is true in any industry, but in the 
hospitality industry, with its notoriously high turnover rate, it is 
even more vital.”&nbsp;

Walker says the days of anonymous 
hires in the hospitality industry should be over. New hires, regardless 
of position, title or location, should be shared well in advance with 
close co-workers. If that cannot occur, that puts even more emphasis on 
the orientation and training session on the first day, with an 
introduction by name to relevant team members.&nbsp;

“There is now a shift from a focus on
 employee experience, to employee life experience,” Walker said. “It has
 brought more radical flexibility and more emphasis on when employees do
 their work, and how much of it they do, not where people work.”&nbsp;

Both Kline and Walker agree that 
effective employee retention begins with a reset of corporate culture 
and often traditional tactics are now outdated and ineffective.

“The employee appreciation party is 
one popular retention strategy I believe is a thing of the past,” Kline 
said. “Team members want to feel part of the bigger picture. 2020 
allowed people to stop and think, now they see value in understanding 
that they have a purpose in the overall objective of the organization 
and see the value in understanding the role they play in it.”

Human resources and personnel management has changed across the entire hospitality industry, not just Nevada.&nbsp;

“I believe what mainly has changed 
forever in the hospitality industry is the timing to turnaround a 
candidate’s journey, keeping the candidate warm and engaged throughout 
that process,” Kline said.&nbsp; “Also the new emphasis needs to be on 
training, we must invest in developing our people. Not only the 
candidates who come in from other industries or organizations, but also 
the hiring managers, the recruiters and human resource personnel.”&nbsp;

According to Walker, Nevada’s new 
trends in hospitality human resources center around training programs 
for new employees, management and sales. Combined with new and refreshed
 mentoring programs and innovative ways to measure performance results, 
the state’s hospitality industry finally has a blueprint to tackle the 
long-time turnover issues, Walker said.&nbsp;

Working life before COVID-19 feels 
like a distant memory, so much has changed and so much water has flowed 
under the bridge,” Walker said. “Employee expectations have evolved 
beyond pay, benefits, and perks — a sense of shared identity, 
interactions, and a fulfilling employee experience are crucial for a 
successful post-pandemic business.”

The Culinary Workers Union got the Nevada Legislature to pass <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nevadacurrent.com/2021/06/25/right-to-return-law-far-from-a-guarantee-workers-will-get-their-jobs-back/">a “Right to Return” law</a> which gave certain
 laid-off workers the right to be offered back their former or similar 
jobs, as those positions become available. The law went into effect July
 1, 2021. At that time, according to the Culinary, about half the 
union’s 60,000 members had returned to work. By January 2022, that 
number was up to 40,000, and the union <a target="_blank" href="https://www.fox5vegas.com/2022/01/28/right-return-law-has-been-success-culinary-union-president-says/">declared the law a success</a>.

Culinary officials did not respond to requests for comment for this story.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/8/1660572698731.jpg" alt="Image courtesy of Pixabay" />
 <figcaption>Image courtesy of Pixabay</figcaption>
 </figure>By RODRIC J. HURDLE-BRADFORD <a href="https://www.nevadacurrent.com/2022/08/15/tackling-turnover-hospitality-sector-confronts-an-old-problem-the-pandemic-made-worse/">Nevada Current</a>The
 COVID-19 pandemic threw cold water on Nevada’s longtime hospitality 
industry turnover issue from Lake Tahoe to Lake Las Vegas, forcing the 
entire state’s industry to reexamine the quality of its human resources 
departments, personnel recruiting and onboarding strategies, and high 
personnel turnover rate.High turnover traditionally has been 
viewed as a necessary evil within the state’s hospitality industry, but 
the pandemic has made strategists and executives alike rethink their 
expectations of recruiting, retaining and managing personnel.&nbsp;“Learning and development roles are 
finally coming back,” said Las Vegas-based Kline Hospitality Consulting 
CEO Michele Kline, who hosts a podcast focused on hospitality training 
using real-life stories. “As organizations see how much of a revolving 
door there is now, learning and development becomes a key play so new 
hires are ready to take on their roles successfully.”&nbsp;<h2>Tackling turnover</h2>“The pandemic did not just change 
businesses, it also changed workers,” said SW HR Consulting CEO Shermana
 Walker, also based in Las Vegas. “Turnover rates in the hospitality 
industry are staggering and these rates continue to climb, and the 
COVID-19 pandemic has played a huge role in this.”Walker cites the Bureau of Labor 
Statistics reporting a staggering 130% turnover rate for the hospitality
 industry in 2020. The turnover rate measures total annual separations 
between employees and hospitality venues across the country.&nbsp;“This number is extremely high, but 
even before the pandemic, the rate was 79%,” said Walker. “With this 
issue of high employee turnover, there will be more burnout within 
employees, lack of coordination, frustration and working long hours 
without enough compensation.”&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/jolts.t16.htm">The 2021 hospitality turnover rate climbed even higher to its pre-pandemic level to 85%</a>,
 continuing the ongoing trend as newly identified pandemic turnover 
solutions like more efficient recruitment and retention have yet to take
 hold throughout the industry. To tackle the turnover issue, the state’s
 hospitality industry is now focusing on effective recruiting for the 
impending post-pandemic era.&nbsp;“One of the most exciting changes 
that the pandemic has brought to the recruiting process is the immersive
 expansion of the talent pool,” Walker said. “Thanks to telecommuting, 
so many businesses have transitioned internal positions to include 
remote or hybrid environments. Nowadays, the whole world is your talent 
pool.”<h2>Relying on recruitment</h2>Remote positions have helped tackle 
some of the turnover problems for Nevada’s hospitality industry, but for
 those vast majority of positions that require in-person attendance and a
 base in the Silver State, personnel recruitment is now receiving more 
attention than ever.&nbsp;“As a process improvement expert, I 
see that the inefficiencies in the recruiting process are now more 
exposed than they ever have been,” Kline said. “Candidates who apply for
 a job are not wanting to hear back [from a single employer] any longer,
 they jump on the first opportunity that knocks on their door. Making 
sure the process is flawless and that your brand stands out is the 
secret sauce.”Personnel recruitment in the new 
pandemic world has been a long arduous journey back, one that Nevada 
Resorts Association President Virginia Valentine says is hitting its 
summit.&nbsp;“For the past two years, Nevada’s 
resort industry has been tireless in its work to bring back employees 
and recruit top talent to fill open positions,” Valentine said. “The 
recent resumption of international travel and a normalization of the 
tradeshow and convention business will drive business volumes during the
 midweek period, creating more job opportunities that move the industry 
closer to pre-pandemic employment leads.”This increase leads to the more intense focus on retention from all sectors within the hospitality industry.&nbsp;<h2>Rethinking retention</h2>After successfully recruiting a new 
employee, more attention is being paid to the onboarding process for 
that new employee than ever before.&nbsp;“The way you bring people on board 
goes a long way toward keeping employees engaged and effective in your 
organization,” Walker said. “This is true in any industry, but in the 
hospitality industry, with its notoriously high turnover rate, it is 
even more vital.”&nbsp;Walker says the days of anonymous 
hires in the hospitality industry should be over. New hires, regardless 
of position, title or location, should be shared well in advance with 
close co-workers. If that cannot occur, that puts even more emphasis on 
the orientation and training session on the first day, with an 
introduction by name to relevant team members.&nbsp;“There is now a shift from a focus on
 employee experience, to employee life experience,” Walker said. “It has
 brought more radical flexibility and more emphasis on when employees do
 their work, and how much of it they do, not where people work.”&nbsp;Both Kline and Walker agree that 
effective employee retention begins with a reset of corporate culture 
and often traditional tactics are now outdated and ineffective.“The employee appreciation party is 
one popular retention strategy I believe is a thing of the past,” Kline 
said. “Team members want to feel part of the bigger picture. 2020 
allowed people to stop and think, now they see value in understanding 
that they have a purpose in the overall objective of the organization 
and see the value in understanding the role they play in it.”<h2>How hospitality HR has changed forever</h2>Human resources and personnel management has changed across the entire hospitality industry, not just Nevada.&nbsp;“I believe what mainly has changed 
forever in the hospitality industry is the timing to turnaround a 
candidate’s journey, keeping the candidate warm and engaged throughout 
that process,” Kline said.&nbsp; “Also the new emphasis needs to be on 
training, we must invest in developing our people. Not only the 
candidates who come in from other industries or organizations, but also 
the hiring managers, the recruiters and human resource personnel.”&nbsp;According to Walker, Nevada’s new 
trends in hospitality human resources center around training programs 
for new employees, management and sales. Combined with new and refreshed
 mentoring programs and innovative ways to measure performance results, 
the state’s hospitality industry finally has a blueprint to tackle the 
long-time turnover issues, Walker said.&nbsp;Working life before COVID-19 feels 
like a distant memory, so much has changed and so much water has flowed 
under the bridge,” Walker said. “Employee expectations have evolved 
beyond pay, benefits, and perks — a sense of shared identity, 
interactions, and a fulfilling employee experience are crucial for a 
successful post-pandemic business.”The Culinary Workers Union got the Nevada Legislature to pass <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nevadacurrent.com/2021/06/25/right-to-return-law-far-from-a-guarantee-workers-will-get-their-jobs-back/">a “Right to Return” law</a> which gave certain
 laid-off workers the right to be offered back their former or similar 
jobs, as those positions become available. The law went into effect July
 1, 2021. At that time, according to the Culinary, about half the 
union’s 60,000 members had returned to work. By January 2022, that 
number was up to 40,000, and the union <a target="_blank" href="https://www.fox5vegas.com/2022/01/28/right-return-law-has-been-success-culinary-union-president-says/">declared the law a success</a>.Culinary officials did not respond to requests for comment for this story.

Hospitality sector confronts old problem the pandemic made worse

By PAUL HAMMEL <a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2022/08/15/nebraska-infectious-disease-authority-predicts-rough-fall-ahead-living-with-covid/">Nebraska Examiner</a>

LINCOLN – Americans could be in for a
 pandemic jolt this fall when it comes to COVID-19, with the nation less
 willing and less prepared to repel the highly contagious virus, 
according to a national authority on pandemics.

By mid-August, fewer than 15% of U.S.
 citizens will have gotten a vaccination in the last six months, said 
Dr. James Lawler of the Global Center for Health Security at the 
University of Nebraska Medical Center. That figure was about 55% a year 
ago.

The general abandonment of 
precautionary measures like wearing face masks and avoiding big crowds, 
plus the lack of vaccine protection, will make the nation more 
vulnerable to another surge of infections this fall, Lawler said.

“Living with covid? Maybe that’s a strategy, but it’s like living with your house on fire,” he said.

“We’ve kind of adopted the ‘let ‘er rip’ strategy, and that’s probably not going to serve us well,” he said.

The Nebraska Examiner recently 
interviewed the infectious disease authority to learn more about where 
we stand with the COVID-19 pandemic, and what we’ve learned in the 
nearly 2 ½ years since it arrived in the state.

The interview comes as schools – 
considered prime breeding ground for transmission of the coronavirus – 
reopen for fall classes, and the football-loving Cornhusker State gets 
ready to crowd into Memorial Stadium for games.

COVID-19 was the third-leading cause 
of death in the U.S. in 2021, which Lawler labeled “incredible.” The 
average life expectancy in the country has fallen the past two years, 
from 78.8 years in 2019 to 76.6 years in 2021.

With about 480 people a day dying 
from COVID-19 right now, that would translate into 175,000 deaths in 
2022. That, Lawler said, is five times as many deaths caused yearly by 
the flu, which is between 33,000 and 35,000.&nbsp;

The ever-changing variants of COVID-19 make it difficult to combat.

We’ve seen the Alpha, Beta, Delta, 
and Omicron variants since the first COVID-19 cases arrived. Lawler said
 that once science gets good data on one variant, the virus changes. 
Now, the nation is dealing with the BA.5, an even more contagious 
variant.

“It’s still a pretty new disease,” he
 said. “We’ve had the luxury of studying other diseases for decades or 
centuries … you have to make decisions before you have perfect 
information.”

Data shows that vaccines, when they’re up to date, prevent severe illness and hospitalizations.

Vaccines, Lawler said, have saved an estimated 20 million lives worldwide, and 2 million in the U.S.

“But you need to stay up to date, you need to be boosted to keep your immunization at an adequate level,” he said.

A recent Centers for Disease Control 
report on more than 100,000 vaccinated and unvaccinated people in 10 
states showed that those with three shots, with the latest shot within 
120 days, had 84% protection from the BA.1 Omicron variant against 
hospitalization or visits to the emergency room. The rate of protection 
was lower, 56%, against serious illness from the BA.2/BA.2.12.1 variant.
 Data for the BA.5 variant is not yet available.

The rate of protection is “not as high as we’d like it to be,” Lawler said, but it still makes a big impact.&nbsp;

The study showed that protection 
starts to wane after four or five months, he said, so it’s vital that 
people are “up to date” on their vaccinations, including getting 
recommended booster shots.&nbsp;

We’re not just talking about avoiding death and hospitalization.

Studies indicated that between 5% and 35% of those infected get “long COVID” symptoms, Lawler said.&nbsp;

But beyond that, there’s evidence 
that getting COVID, even milder cases, can lead to other long-standing 
health issues later, such as new onset diabetes, heart disease, blood 
clots, kidney disease and even mental health disorders.

“We have potentially overemphasized 
hospitalization and death as the only significant consequences and 
that’s not true,” Lawler said.&nbsp;

“We are saddling society and our 
health system with all of these additional burdens, and we’re doing very
 little right now to prevent it,” Lawler said.

Masking, distancing, and avoiding crowds works.

The death rate from COVID-19 is 12 
times lower in Japan than in the U.S., Lawler said. That’s because the 
Japanese pushed a “Three Cs” public health campaign – avoid close 
contact, closed spaces and crowds. The success in Japan came even though
 the country had later access to vaccines, he said.

“They had buy-in,” Lawler said.&nbsp;

“We know what works. We just have to commit to doing it.”

So, can we go to a Husker football game?

Outdoor events are safer than indoor 
events, especially indoor events in confined spaces or with poor 
ventilation, Lawler said. But your risks rise when you’re talking with 
someone face-to-face, or singing or shouting together – thus 
transmitting the droplets that carry the virus.

“Honestly, I would recommend that 
people going to the game wear face masks. You’re going to have people 
yelling, hooting and hollering,” he said. “But it’s a lot lower risk 
than going to the bar afterwards.”

“If you’re going to have a party, have it outdoors,” Lawler said.&nbsp;

Classrooms are prime locations for 
transmission of the virus – with 25 kids sitting together in a room for 
seven hours, he said.&nbsp;

“The myth that kids don’t get 
infected by COVID has thankfully been disproven,” Lawler said. He added 
that “just about” every kid in the country was infected during the past 
school year.

Masking all kids in a classroom would dramatically reduce transmission, he said.

We kind of threw all of our hopes on 
the vaccine, and hoping that enough people got vaccinated and enough 
people got infected that you’d create immunity, Lawler said. But that 
hasn’t happened.

As of Aug. 3, 64.8% of Nebraskans 
were considered “fully vaccinated” by the Centers for Disease Control, 
with at least two shots of vaccine (a definition that Lawler believes is
 too lenient). That compares to a national rate of 67.8%.

Fewer people are wearing masks and 
avoiding crowds than a year ago, Lawler said. Meanwhile, he said, the 
state is seeing the highest rate of infections since the first Omicron 
variants peaked in January.

The low vaccination rates and lack of
 other precautions have created a “Maginot Line,” according to Lawler, 
in which the virus, like the Nazi army in World War II, simply went 
around the protective barrier.

Nebraska, he said, has done a pretty 
good job of getting the most vulnerable populations vaccinated. But with
 the rates of serious disease and deaths rising in those under 50 and 
among children, getting the necessary shots is even more important now 
for those groups.

Lawler said that, above all, 
Nebraskans need to make sure their vaccinations are up to date – 
protection begins to wane after four or five months.

In addition, he said, reduce risks by
 taking preventive measures like wearing face masks in public and 
avoiding crowds, close contact and confined spaces.

“If we can do those four things and 
get everyone up to date with the vaccinations, we can do a lot to reduce
 transmission,” Lawler said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/8/1660569985774.png" alt="Dr. James Lawler, co-executive director of the Global Center for Health Security at the University of Nebraska Medical Center with an illustration of the SARS Coronavirus. (Kent Sievers/UNMC)" />
 <figcaption>Dr. James Lawler, co-executive director of the Global Center for Health Security at the University of Nebraska Medical Center with an illustration of the SARS Coronavirus. (Kent Sievers/UNMC)</figcaption>
 </figure>By PAUL HAMMEL <a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2022/08/15/nebraska-infectious-disease-authority-predicts-rough-fall-ahead-living-with-covid/">Nebraska Examiner</a>LINCOLN – Americans could be in for a
 pandemic jolt this fall when it comes to COVID-19, with the nation less
 willing and less prepared to repel the highly contagious virus, 
according to a national authority on pandemics.By mid-August, fewer than 15% of U.S.
 citizens will have gotten a vaccination in the last six months, said 
Dr. James Lawler of the Global Center for Health Security at the 
University of Nebraska Medical Center. That figure was about 55% a year 
ago.The general abandonment of 
precautionary measures like wearing face masks and avoiding big crowds, 
plus the lack of vaccine protection, will make the nation more 
vulnerable to another surge of infections this fall, Lawler said.<h2>‘Let ‘er rip’</h2>“Living with covid? Maybe that’s a strategy, but it’s like living with your house on fire,” he said.“We’ve kind of adopted the ‘let ‘er rip’ strategy, and that’s probably not going to serve us well,” he said.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/8/1660570022837.jpeg" alt="Dr. James Lawler (Kent Sievers/UNMC)" />
 <figcaption>Dr. James Lawler (Kent Sievers/UNMC)</figcaption>
 </figure>The Nebraska Examiner recently 
interviewed the infectious disease authority to learn more about where 
we stand with the COVID-19 pandemic, and what we’ve learned in the 
nearly 2 ½ years since it arrived in the state.The interview comes as schools – 
considered prime breeding ground for transmission of the coronavirus – 
reopen for fall classes, and the football-loving Cornhusker State gets 
ready to crowd into Memorial Stadium for games.<h2>What have we learned?</h2> This is not the flu.COVID-19 was the third-leading cause 
of death in the U.S. in 2021, which Lawler labeled “incredible.” The 
average life expectancy in the country has fallen the past two years, 
from 78.8 years in 2019 to 76.6 years in 2021.With about 480 people a day dying 
from COVID-19 right now, that would translate into 175,000 deaths in 
2022. That, Lawler said, is five times as many deaths caused yearly by 
the flu, which is between 33,000 and 35,000.&nbsp; The ever-changing variants of COVID-19 make it difficult to combat.We’ve seen the Alpha, Beta, Delta, 
and Omicron variants since the first COVID-19 cases arrived. Lawler said
 that once science gets good data on one variant, the virus changes. 
Now, the nation is dealing with the BA.5, an even more contagious 
variant.“It’s still a pretty new disease,” he
 said. “We’ve had the luxury of studying other diseases for decades or 
centuries … you have to make decisions before you have perfect 
information.” Data shows that vaccines, when they’re up to date, prevent severe illness and hospitalizations.Vaccines, Lawler said, have saved an estimated 20 million lives worldwide, and 2 million in the U.S.“But you need to stay up to date, you need to be boosted to keep your immunization at an adequate level,” he said.A recent Centers for Disease Control 
report on more than 100,000 vaccinated and unvaccinated people in 10 
states showed that those with three shots, with the latest shot within 
120 days, had 84% protection from the BA.1 Omicron variant against 
hospitalization or visits to the emergency room. The rate of protection 
was lower, 56%, against serious illness from the BA.2/BA.2.12.1 variant.
 Data for the BA.5 variant is not yet available.The rate of protection is “not as high as we’d like it to be,” Lawler said, but it still makes a big impact.&nbsp;The study showed that protection 
starts to wane after four or five months, he said, so it’s vital that 
people are “up to date” on their vaccinations, including getting 
recommended booster shots.&nbsp; We’re not just talking about avoiding death and hospitalization.Studies indicated that between 5% and 35% of those infected get “long COVID” symptoms, Lawler said.&nbsp;But beyond that, there’s evidence 
that getting COVID, even milder cases, can lead to other long-standing 
health issues later, such as new onset diabetes, heart disease, blood 
clots, kidney disease and even mental health disorders.“We have potentially overemphasized 
hospitalization and death as the only significant consequences and 
that’s not true,” Lawler said.&nbsp;Hospitals are already full, he said.“We are saddling society and our 
health system with all of these additional burdens, and we’re doing very
 little right now to prevent it,” Lawler said. Masking, distancing, and avoiding crowds works.The death rate from COVID-19 is 12 
times lower in Japan than in the U.S., Lawler said. That’s because the 
Japanese pushed a “Three Cs” public health campaign – avoid close 
contact, closed spaces and crowds. The success in Japan came even though
 the country had later access to vaccines, he said.“They had buy-in,” Lawler said.&nbsp;“We know what works. We just have to commit to doing it.” So, can we go to a Husker football game?Outdoor events are safer than indoor 
events, especially indoor events in confined spaces or with poor 
ventilation, Lawler said. But your risks rise when you’re talking with 
someone face-to-face, or singing or shouting together – thus 
transmitting the droplets that carry the virus.“Honestly, I would recommend that 
people going to the game wear face masks. You’re going to have people 
yelling, hooting and hollering,” he said. “But it’s a lot lower risk 
than going to the bar afterwards.”“If you’re going to have a party, have it outdoors,” Lawler said.&nbsp; What about schools?Classrooms are prime locations for 
transmission of the virus – with 25 kids sitting together in a room for 
seven hours, he said.&nbsp;“The myth that kids don’t get 
infected by COVID has thankfully been disproven,” Lawler said. He added 
that “just about” every kid in the country was infected during the past 
school year.Masking all kids in a classroom would dramatically reduce transmission, he said.So what’s the bottom line?We kind of threw all of our hopes on 
the vaccine, and hoping that enough people got vaccinated and enough 
people got infected that you’d create immunity, Lawler said. But that 
hasn’t happened.As of Aug. 3, 64.8% of Nebraskans 
were considered “fully vaccinated” by the Centers for Disease Control, 
with at least two shots of vaccine (a definition that Lawler believes is
 too lenient). That compares to a national rate of 67.8%.Fewer people are wearing masks and 
avoiding crowds than a year ago, Lawler said. Meanwhile, he said, the 
state is seeing the highest rate of infections since the first Omicron 
variants peaked in January.The low vaccination rates and lack of
 other precautions have created a “Maginot Line,” according to Lawler, 
in which the virus, like the Nazi army in World War II, simply went 
around the protective barrier.Nebraska, he said, has done a pretty 
good job of getting the most vulnerable populations vaccinated. But with
 the rates of serious disease and deaths rising in those under 50 and 
among children, getting the necessary shots is even more important now 
for those groups.Lawler said that, above all, 
Nebraskans need to make sure their vaccinations are up to date – 
protection begins to wane after four or five months.In addition, he said, reduce risks by
 taking preventive measures like wearing face masks in public and 
avoiding crowds, close contact and confined spaces.“If we can do those four things and 
get everyone up to date with the vaccinations, we can do a lot to reduce
 transmission,” Lawler said.

Neb. doctor predicts rough fall ahead ‘living with COVID’

New car buyers likely care more now than ever about the overall cost of a new vehicle, and that goes beyond just the sticker price. Since things have become more expensive this year, consumers are paying closer attention to the cost of things like fuel, maintenance, and insurance.

“High gas prices are not only changing American’s driving habits – they’re also changing the way Americans are thinking about future car purchases, “ said Brian Ortner, spokesman, AAA Nebraska. “Recent research tells us that one of the main factors fueling an increased interest in electric vehicles is the potential to save on fuel costs, which adds a little bit more wiggle room in the budget when considering the total cost of vehicle ownership.”

For over 70 years,&nbsp;AAA's&nbsp;Your Driving Costs&nbsp;research has provided members, consumers and the media with information on the average costs of owning and operating a new automobile.

In the most recent analysis, AAA evaluated nine categories of vehicles&nbsp;– consisting of 45 models – to determine a new vehicle's average annual operating and ownership costs. AAA selects top-selling, mid-priced models and compares them across six categories: fuel, maintenance/repair/tire costs, insurance, license/registration/taxes, depreciation, and finance charges. The study assumes a five-year ownership period, with the vehicle being driven 15,000 miles/annually (or a total of 75,000 miles).

Gas prices saw a dramatic climb in the first half of 2022, raising the cost of vehicle ownership, since the Your Driving Costs evaluation was completed. For this year's study, fuel costs were projected based on a weighted average of the first five months of 2022. During that time, fuel prices averaged 17.99 cents per mile or $3.999 per gallon.

Comparing Fuel Costs of Electric Vehicles vs. Gas-powered Vehicles

An electric vehicle owner will spend about 4.0 cents per mile to charge their vehicle at home, while the owner of a gas-powered vehicle will spend an average of 18.4 cents per mile to gas up. Assuming both drive 15,000 miles/year, it would cost approximately $2,700/year to fuel the gas-powered vehicle and $600/year to charge the electric vehicle. A difference of $2,100 annually.

Beyond fuel savings, electric vehicles have the lowest maintenance, repair, and tire costs. This is because gas-powered vehicles require additional maintenance such as oil changes, air filter replacements and inspection of mechanical components not present in electric vehicles. Additionally, electric vehicles have the lowest fees due to federal and state rebates offered to buyers of new electric vehicles as a purchase incentive.

New this year, AAA launched an online&nbsp;<a href="https://u7061146.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=4tNED-2FM8iDZJQyQ53jATUS3VVDyr1H4PkBIQlUsKgmTdmWyKRINxmK3zRsI1lTfeJICGo-2B8PABDyI-2BfrpZ-2F4tQ-3D-3DhUDY_f5CCQS0N95iO0XGkG5jjbwFPcyVdNsE7ynqorsRVxhOi2A2KVJqJgpwSdOopdwB9il1EQT-2FBBs2nAu1yZVaDjVwYVT29pYlc6fjzk4I7Vi36m-2FVvQW6IhWDwdRNUAPAbYDTfRjCPq2FED0nlow3jC0yxRbBfeGl8Ro82NVoCK3k-2FM3zMV-2B5m1PSyRohHwF6G-2BoIHI3UpAcFGy6IYYcQniTpw7KNQxfgFSX0uPOSRfh2DZGgeCUT6mmjK4kq-2F48ngajz99cvVDvttrCXaoMwn7PsOk4xuBOcQMopprE06oZeRUwzzdRCOED-2Be35i4X2pblx8IY6Gedc4-2Fh2TUKDKA3Fcvzm4air7cv6JaMwXBpHw-3D" target="_blank">Your Driving Costs Calculator</a>. This tool enables consumers to determine the overall driving costs of a specific vehicle. When visiting the site, consumers can select their desired state, annual mileage and driving ratio that represents their normal driving habits, and vehicle year/make/model/trim.

This online tool employs the same methodology as AAA's annual analysis of new car ownership. Data is available for new and used vehicles (five model years back), and consumers may customize the results based on location, fuel price, and other personal driving tendencies.

AAA Recommends Car Buyers Follow These Steps Before Purchasing:

Other resources consumers can use while car shopping:

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/8/1660583766900.jpg" alt="Image courtesy of Pixabay" />
 <figcaption>Image courtesy of Pixabay</figcaption>
 </figure>News Release AAANew car buyers likely care more now than ever about the overall cost of a new vehicle, and that goes beyond just the sticker price. Since things have become more expensive this year, consumers are paying closer attention to the cost of things like fuel, maintenance, and insurance.“High gas prices are not only changing American’s driving habits – they’re also changing the way Americans are thinking about future car purchases, “ said Brian Ortner, spokesman, AAA Nebraska. “Recent research tells us that one of the main factors fueling an increased interest in electric vehicles is the potential to save on fuel costs, which adds a little bit more wiggle room in the budget when considering the total cost of vehicle ownership.”For over 70 years,&nbsp;AAA's&nbsp;Your Driving Costs&nbsp;research has provided members, consumers and the media with information on the average costs of owning and operating a new automobile.According to this year’s report:<ul>
 <li>The average yearly cost&nbsp;to own and operate a new vehicle in 2022&nbsp;is&nbsp;$10,728, or $894 per month.</li><li>That’s an 11% increase from 2021, when the average yearly cost was $9,666 or $805.50 per month. .&nbsp;</li><li>In&nbsp;Nebraska,&nbsp;the average yearly cost to own and operate a new vehicle in 2022 is&nbsp;$10,921 – 2% higher than the national average.</li><li>Not surprisingly, fuel prices are the most significant factor pushing this year's average annual price tag.</li>
 </ul>In the most recent analysis, AAA evaluated nine categories of vehicles&nbsp;– consisting of 45 models – to determine a new vehicle's average annual operating and ownership costs. AAA selects top-selling, mid-priced models and compares them across six categories: fuel, maintenance/repair/tire costs, insurance, license/registration/taxes, depreciation, and finance charges. The study assumes a five-year ownership period, with the vehicle being driven 15,000 miles/annually (or a total of 75,000 miles).Calculating Fuel CostsGas prices saw a dramatic climb in the first half of 2022, raising the cost of vehicle ownership, since the Your Driving Costs evaluation was completed. For this year's study, fuel costs were projected based on a weighted average of the first five months of 2022. During that time, fuel prices averaged 17.99 cents per mile or $3.999 per gallon.Comparing Fuel Costs of Electric Vehicles vs. Gas-powered VehiclesAn electric vehicle owner will spend about 4.0 cents per mile to charge their vehicle at home, while the owner of a gas-powered vehicle will spend an average of 18.4 cents per mile to gas up. Assuming both drive 15,000 miles/year, it would cost approximately $2,700/year to fuel the gas-powered vehicle and $600/year to charge the electric vehicle. A difference of $2,100 annually.Beyond fuel savings, electric vehicles have the lowest maintenance, repair, and tire costs. This is because gas-powered vehicles require additional maintenance such as oil changes, air filter replacements and inspection of mechanical components not present in electric vehicles. Additionally, electric vehicles have the lowest fees due to federal and state rebates offered to buyers of new electric vehicles as a purchase incentive.AAA Launches New Online CalculatorNew this year, AAA launched an online&nbsp;<a href="https://u7061146.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=4tNED-2FM8iDZJQyQ53jATUS3VVDyr1H4PkBIQlUsKgmTdmWyKRINxmK3zRsI1lTfeJICGo-2B8PABDyI-2BfrpZ-2F4tQ-3D-3DhUDY_f5CCQS0N95iO0XGkG5jjbwFPcyVdNsE7ynqorsRVxhOi2A2KVJqJgpwSdOopdwB9il1EQT-2FBBs2nAu1yZVaDjVwYVT29pYlc6fjzk4I7Vi36m-2FVvQW6IhWDwdRNUAPAbYDTfRjCPq2FED0nlow3jC0yxRbBfeGl8Ro82NVoCK3k-2FM3zMV-2B5m1PSyRohHwF6G-2BoIHI3UpAcFGy6IYYcQniTpw7KNQxfgFSX0uPOSRfh2DZGgeCUT6mmjK4kq-2F48ngajz99cvVDvttrCXaoMwn7PsOk4xuBOcQMopprE06oZeRUwzzdRCOED-2Be35i4X2pblx8IY6Gedc4-2Fh2TUKDKA3Fcvzm4air7cv6JaMwXBpHw-3D" target="_blank">Your Driving Costs Calculator</a>. This tool enables consumers to determine the overall driving costs of a specific vehicle. When visiting the site, consumers can select their desired state, annual mileage and driving ratio that represents their normal driving habits, and vehicle year/make/model/trim.This online tool employs the same methodology as AAA's annual analysis of new car ownership. Data is available for new and used vehicles (five model years back), and consumers may customize the results based on location, fuel price, and other personal driving tendencies.AAA Recommends Car Buyers Follow These Steps Before Purchasing:<ul>
 <li>Start early!&nbsp;Due to limited inventory, consumers may have fewer choices regarding a specific vehicle model. They may have to wait for delivery or even pre-order the vehicle of their choice.</li><li>Obtain pre-approval from their financial institution&nbsp;(e.g., Bank, Credit Union, AAA, etc.) before discussing finance rates with the car dealer. By getting pre-approval, they will have a threshold of the best lending rate they'll pay. Buyers can use their pre-approval to negotiate if the dealer offers a higher rate.</li><li>Create a budget and factor in the different elements of ownership&nbsp;– not just monthly payments. Other factors to consider when making the budget include insurance, gas, routine maintenance, etc.</li><li>Call your insurance agent&nbsp;to compare potential rates for your top choices&nbsp;and how they compare to your current vehicle.</li><li>Typically, three negotiations occur when purchasing a vehicle&nbsp;– the cost of the car, the finance rate and the trade-in value. Keep each transaction/negotiation separate from the other.</li>
 </ul>Other resources consumers can use while car shopping:<ul>
 <li><a href="https://u7061146.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=4tNED-2FM8iDZJQyQ53jATUdHgfR0y-2FHnVjug5ieQYVXJTill5FWJJpjeGXahLHrQvjXAtfUoZg1n0sn3j0mo7orj400ekKzanERUEALOwjtfj-2BeiKjC2o-2FiZeesc6h9KSzsusGOK4GTS-2Fahqb43iKrQ-3D-3D_M6D_f5CCQS0N95iO0XGkG5jjbwFPcyVdNsE7ynqorsRVxhOi2A2KVJqJgpwSdOopdwB9il1EQT-2FBBs2nAu1yZVaDjVwYVT29pYlc6fjzk4I7Vi36m-2FVvQW6IhWDwdRNUAPAbYDTfRjCPq2FED0nlow3jC0yxRbBfeGl8Ro82NVoCK3k-2FM3zMV-2B5m1PSyRohHwF6G-2BoIHI3UpAcFGy6IYYcQnic-2BXkjIDeWqUR0mNpZ1PhxGyZtH4A8Y5aUcpgxW2HUgwSf0BvVPgdBTw-2FcKPOvBF8ss8Gn0FvFfZZAxGlptxBv6L9RKTq5OrM9Uarelv0gYHd2nofOP1Ma4h-2FtG31khIk0-2FyA8uGzseP-2FImq5sLKkOc-3D" target="_blank">AAA Car Guide</a>&nbsp;- easy-to-understand resource that can help improve consumers' decision-making when it comes to buying a car.</li><li><a href="https://u7061146.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=4tNED-2FM8iDZJQyQ53jATUdr7qW-2B3ZK9lMPUN-2Fa5vWEB-2BbskVNb1EEPOc5uqguvLlfajz_f5CCQS0N95iO0XGkG5jjbwFPcyVdNsE7ynqorsRVxhOi2A2KVJqJgpwSdOopdwB9il1EQT-2FBBs2nAu1yZVaDjVwYVT29pYlc6fjzk4I7Vi36m-2FVvQW6IhWDwdRNUAPAbYDTfRjCPq2FED0nlow3jC0yxRbBfeGl8Ro82NVoCK3k-2FM3zMV-2B5m1PSyRohHwF6G-2BoIHI3UpAcFGy6IYYcQniVCFG7ErpJMkAZ4-2FxVfdYiKIen30-2FF59nhnBBp18f6iWPiiloVHS4InU-2FmOY-2BfjLBu3rBtLgGXBZxFkEmrlO6Ics744fk5gG-2FINmaUTO2XfWUmicvwpKZjEkz3YbUaziovRqnt5eDEwMWQQzj2OmBL4-3D" target="_blank">AAA's Car Buying Program</a>&nbsp;– helps consumers shop for new or used vehicles and compare vehicle pricing online.</li>
 </ul><a href="https://northplattepost.com/posts/2ddcec21-000f-4ace-b19e-4250120d6629">&nbsp;&nbsp;Download The Post app for iOs or Android</a><figure>
 <img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/YRik0g8IrUMROogeTfK4wgve7FIcG_3F4x4x-ngGtA2olTTYFJDkoHOD1aFaZUSWOgmCSb81edwbnnpm-AKxQ0DD-VvTrOpHvwE29ng1MlEZ3bGewtoi5tU0B8-pLTMvoorYa4DIJ0zaRyRPxx4Y_w" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>

AAA: Annual cost of new car ownership crosses $10K mark

BERWICK, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania state police say a man who was upset about an argument with his mother drove through a crowd at a fundraiser for victims of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fires-pennsylvania-7bda761e6c6930b5681e32095725e3b0">a recent deadly house fire,</a>&nbsp;killing one person at the event and injuring 17 others, then returned home and beat his mother to death.

Police identified the driver as 24-year-old Adrian Oswaldo Sura Reyes of Nescopeck, who was arraigned early Sunday on two counts of criminal homicide.

Police allege in a criminal complaint that Sura Reyes said he argued with his mother at their Nescopeck home Saturday evening and while driving through nearby Berwick was “extremely frustrated” and was “tired of fighting with his mother, including about money, and wanted to be done with it.”

At the time, police said, a crowd of about 75 people, including adults and small children, had gathered in a blocked-off parking lot in Berwick outside the Intoxicology Department bar, which was holding an all-day fundraising event to benefit victims of the Aug. 5 blaze in Nescopeck that killed seven adults and three children.

Police say Sura Reyes told them he drove past the gathering, then turned around and headed back to the bar “to drive through the crowd of people." Investigators asked how fast he drove into the crowd and Sura Reyes replied “speeding up.”

“Video surveillance gathered by the Pennsylvania State Police corroborates Sura Reyes's statement that he sped up into the crowd purposefully,” according to the criminal complaint.

Geisinger Medical Center said it received 15 patients after the crash, and five remained in critical condition while three were listed in fair condition, a hospital spokesperson said Sunday morning. Seven patients had been treated at hospitals and released.

Trooper Anthony Petroski III told reporters late Saturday that Sura Reyes was not currently a suspect in the fire, the cause of which remains under investigation.

“This is a complete tragedy in a community where there’s already been tragedy,” Petroski said.

Shortly after the crash was reported, troopers were called about a man “physically assaulting" a woman less than two miles away in Nescopeck. Troopers arrived to find local police had arrested Sura Reyes and a woman was dead.

Luzerne County Coroner Francis Hacken confirmed Sunday that the victim, Rosa D. Reyes, 56, of Nescopeck, was the mother of Sura Reyes and had died of multiple traumatic injuries after being hit by a vehicle and assaulted with a hammer.

In the criminal complaint, police say Sura Reyes told investigators he saw his mother in the street upon returning home and struck her with his vehicle, then hit her with a hammer several times.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2019/8/1565275830792.jpeg" alt="" />
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 </figure>By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSBERWICK, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania state police say a man who was upset about an argument with his mother drove through a crowd at a fundraiser for victims of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fires-pennsylvania-7bda761e6c6930b5681e32095725e3b0">a recent deadly house fire,</a>&nbsp;killing one person at the event and injuring 17 others, then returned home and beat his mother to death.Police identified the driver as 24-year-old Adrian Oswaldo Sura Reyes of Nescopeck, who was arraigned early Sunday on two counts of criminal homicide.Police allege in a criminal complaint that Sura Reyes said he argued with his mother at their Nescopeck home Saturday evening and while driving through nearby Berwick was “extremely frustrated” and was “tired of fighting with his mother, including about money, and wanted to be done with it.”At the time, police said, a crowd of about 75 people, including adults and small children, had gathered in a blocked-off parking lot in Berwick outside the Intoxicology Department bar, which was holding an all-day fundraising event to benefit victims of the Aug. 5 blaze in Nescopeck that killed seven adults and three children.Police say Sura Reyes told them he drove past the gathering, then turned around and headed back to the bar “to drive through the crowd of people." Investigators asked how fast he drove into the crowd and Sura Reyes replied “speeding up.”“Video surveillance gathered by the Pennsylvania State Police corroborates Sura Reyes's statement that he sped up into the crowd purposefully,” according to the criminal complaint.Geisinger Medical Center said it received 15 patients after the crash, and five remained in critical condition while three were listed in fair condition, a hospital spokesperson said Sunday morning. Seven patients had been treated at hospitals and released.Trooper Anthony Petroski III told reporters late Saturday that Sura Reyes was not currently a suspect in the fire, the cause of which remains under investigation.“This is a complete tragedy in a community where there’s already been tragedy,” Petroski said.Shortly after the crash was reported, troopers were called about a man “physically assaulting" a woman less than two miles away in Nescopeck. Troopers arrived to find local police had arrested Sura Reyes and a woman was dead.Luzerne County Coroner Francis Hacken confirmed Sunday that the victim, Rosa D. Reyes, 56, of Nescopeck, was the mother of Sura Reyes and had died of multiple traumatic injuries after being hit by a vehicle and assaulted with a hammer.In the criminal complaint, police say Sura Reyes told investigators he saw his mother in the street upon returning home and struck her with his vehicle, then hit her with a hammer several times.Sura Reyes was denied bail and remained in Columbia County prison pending an Aug. 29 preliminary hearing. News outlets reported that he said “Sorry" in response to reporters' questions as he was taken from Shickshinny police station. It wasn’t immediately clear whether he had a lawyer to comment on his behalf.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fires-pennsylvania-8e0ccb10158a4d599a6eb71679b7ffcc">The first funerals for victims of the fire were held Friday</a>, and more were scheduled for Sunday and Monday.The bar called the events an “absolute tragedy” and said on its Facebook page that they will be closed until further notice and would like privacy “while we grieve add try to process the events that occurred.”