Taiwan’s EVA AIR has been presented with the coveted Skytrax Five Star Airline Award today, making them the 8th airline in total bearing this title.

You can expect promotional campaigns and materials being updated with this certification as it has been the case with previous airlines.

EVA AIR worked hard over the years to create a very well rounded product, especially in Business Class (Royal Laurel Class) which now includes comfortable lie flat seats of the latest generation, Rimowa amenity kits and the last two times I traveled with them even Dom Perignon champagne.

China Aviation Daily (access here) reported today about the ceremony in Taipei.

EVA Air has been Certified as a 5-Star Airline by Skytrax, the world’s leading airline and airport rating agency. In an Award ceremony at the Taipei Marriot Hotel on June 15, 2016, Skytrax presented the 5-star Airline Certification to EVA Air.

Speaking at the 5-Star Airline Certification, Mr Steve Lin, Chairman of EVA Air said: “All of us at EVA Air are deeply humbled by this important award. Skytrax 5-Star Rating is a great honor and also a great responsibility. It is extremely gratifying that all of our hard work to keep quality service and safety as our top priorities is recognized. The Skytrax 5-Star Rating is truly an award shared by every single EVA staff member and employee. At the same time, this prestigious rating reminds us all that we must never lose sight of our commitment to being the best or falter in our quest to continually improve and innovate.”

The group of airlines which have previously received this award is relatively small:

The current Certified 5-Star Airlines are ANA All Nippon Airways, Asiana Airlines, Cathay Pacific Airways, EVA Air Garuda Indonesia, Hainan Airlines, Qatar Airways and Singapore Airlines.

While most of these airlines certainly provide a very high standard of service and product quality you find a few outliers such as Garuda Indonesia and Hainan Airlines in the group. I flew Garuda First and Hainan Business Class before – they were alright but not in the same class as Cathay, ANA or Singapore Airlines.

The other rationale behind these awards is the background of Skytrax itself. They are a consulting company. On their website (see here) the profile says:

Skytrax, established in 1989, are specialist Research Advisors to the air transport industry, based in London, UK. Skytrax undertake qualitative Product, Service and Passenger audits and research studies for airlines, airline alliances, airports and related air transport suppliers across the globe. Skytrax provide a unique depth of experience and knowledge of this specialist market

One of the questions that inevitably comes up in terms of rankings and awards is which of the winners were clients of Skytrax in the past and how big were the projects assigned by them. I can see a conflict of interest here when a company on one hand does consulting projects for clients in an industry which is being rated and awarded.

Conclusion

I’m happy for EVA AIR and as I said above they have a very solid if not to say great Business Class product based on my personal experience. As far as these Skytrax Awards go though I take it with a grain of salt as I’m having a problem in the integrity of their rating and award process.

KUALA LUMPUR: Book lovers are in for a treat – BookFest@Malaysia, the country’s largest book exposition, returns next month for its milestone 11th year.

Weeknight meals can be tricky. You want to put something interesting and healthy on the table, but when time is short, takeout or a frozen meal is sometimes the more appealing option. These 16 meals will help you stick to your plans of actually fixing dinner. After all, when it only takes 30 minutes, you might have dinner on the table before that delivery even arrives.

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ORLANDO: Early reports on the background of the gunman who slaughtered at least 50 people at a Florida nightclub paint a picture of a violent and prejudiced young man.

The suspect, 29-year-old Omar Mateen, is a Muslim American of Afghan descent and police are investigating whether he may have had a terrorist motive.

US law enforcement is investigating whether he had links to — or was inspired by — Islamist terrorism.

And US media, citing law enforcement sources, reported that he called police during the massacre to claim allegiance to the Islamic State group.

But relatives interviewed by US media say Mateen, who worked as a security officer, was not overly religious but had anti-gay views and had regularly assaulted his ex-wife.

Mateen’s shocked father, Mir Seddique, said his son had recently been offended to see two gay men expressing affection on a Miami street.

“We were in downtown Miami, Bayside, people were playing music,” the father told NBC News in the immediate aftermath if the shooting.

“And he saw two men kissing each other in front of his wife and kid and he got very angry,” Seddique said.

The attack, which became the worst mass shooting in modern US history, was carried out in the Pulse nightclub, a well-known gay hangout.

“We are in shock like the whole country,” Seddique added. “This had nothing to do with religion.”

In a separate interview, a former wife of the suspect who left him in 2011 fearing for her life, said he was violently abusive.

“He was not a stable person,” the ex-wife told the Washington Post, which did not identify her because she fears for her safety.

“He beat me. He would just come home and start beating me up because the laundry wasn’t finished or something like that,” she told the Post.

According to the wife’s account the pair had met in New York but in March 2009 had moved in together in Fort Pierce, Florida.

The woman’s parents later rescued her from the relationship and the pair were later divorced, according to a court document seen by AFP.

She described him a “private person” but not especially expressive about his Muslim faith.

He owned a small caliber handgun and worked as a guard at a secure facility for juvenile delinquents.

According to a report by the Daily Beast website, citing FBI sources, Mateen was investigated twice for possible extremist links in 2013 and 2014 but never prosecuted.

According to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services website, he had a gun license set to expire in September of next year.

– AFP

If you’ve never been to a Korean BBQ restaurant before where they bring you plate after plate of food and you cook it all yourself, it can be a bit intimidating. These tips will help you get an optimal dining experience and keep you from looking lost.

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Here are six of the best photos that readers added to the Consumerist Flickr Pool in the last week, picked for usability in a Consumerist post or for just plain neatness.

Want to see your pictures on our site? Our Flickr pool is the place where Consumerist readers upload photos for possible use in future Consumerist posts. Just be a registered Flickr user, go here, and click “Join Group?” up on the top right. Choose your best photos, then click “send to group” on the individual images you want to add to the pool.

TOKYO: Japan’s first “naked restaurant” opens in Tokyo next month with draconian rules of entry — podgy prospective diners will be weighed and ejected if found to be too fat.

Following the lead of establishments in London and Melbourne, “The Amrita” — Sanskrit for ‘immortality’ — also has strict age restrictions, with only patrons between 18 and 60 allowed in, after they check in their clothes and put on paper underwear provided by the restaurant.

“If you are more than 15 kilos (33 pounds) above the average weight for your height, we ask you refrain from making a reservation,” a list of rules posted on the restaurant’s website states, explaining that patrons could be weighed if they do not appear to be within the correct weight range.

Guests found to be “overweight” will be refused entry to the restaurant, which opens on July 29, and will not be entitled to a refund, its website points out. All payments must be made in advance on an online booking page.

The list of rules asks visitors not to “cause a nuisance to other guests” by touching or talking to fellow diners. Tattooed customers are barred from entry.

Those who meet the restaurant’s entry requirements will be asked to lock away mobile phones and cameras in a table-top box.

The restaurant owners were not immediately available for comment when contacted by AFP.

Guests will fork out up to 80,000 yen ($750) for tickets entitling them to eat food served by muscle-bound men wearing g-strings and watch a dance show featuring male models.

Meal tickets, not including a show, will cost from 14,000 to 28,000 yen depending on choice of menu.

– AFP

JOHOR BAHRU: Umno president Najib Razak and his deputy Muhyiddin Yassin attended a breaking of the fast with about 1,000 Johor Umno members at Saujana, near here, on Friday night.

Najib was at the event with his wife Rosmah Mansor.

Also present at the event, at the official residence of Johor Menteri Besar Mohamed Khaled Nordin, were deputy Umno president Muhyiddin Yassin and Umno vice-president Hishammuddin Tun Hussein.

Others present were Abdul Aziz Kaprawi, Hamim Samuri and Razali Ibrahim, all of whom are also deputy ministers.

Umno members from 26 Johor divisions took part in the Tadarus and Khatam Al-Quran organised by Johor Umno.

- BERNAMA

 

KOTA BHARU: Wanita Islam yang tidak bertudung atau berpakaian ketat dan menjolok mata sepanjang Ramadan di Kelantan akan diberi amaran dan dihantar ke sesi kaunseling.

Sehingga kini 24 wanita diberi amaran sementara tujuh lagi diberi kaunseling menerusi ‘Ops Ramadan dan Aurat, kata Jabatan Hal Ehwal Agama Islam Kelantan (JHEAIK)

Pengarah JHEAIK Datuk Che Mohd Rahim Jusoh berkata operasi itu bertujuan untuk memberi kesedaran tentang kewajipan menutup aurat mengikut hukum Islam.

“Untuk permulaan Ramadan, fasa pertama bagi operasi cegah aurat serta perbuatan tidak sopan ialah peringkat didikan serta nasihat manakala untuk operasi puasa, kita lebih ke arah fasa penguatkuasaan,” katanya dipetik daripada Berita Harian.

Katanya, operasi berkuatkuasa bermula 11 pagi sehingga 5 petang dan akan disambung pada waktu malam jika mendapat sebarang maklumat.

Enakmen Kanun Jenayah Syariah Negeri Kelantan berkaitan Seksyen 5 (1) iaitu perbuatan tidak sopan boleh membawa hukuman denda RM1,000 atau penjara enam bulan.

Manakala bagi yang tidak berpuasa, peruntukan mengikut Seksyen 26 mengenakan denda RM500 serta penjara tiga bulan atau RM1,000.

“Seramai 89 anggota di seluruh negeri ini akan dikerahkan dan kita mendapat kerjasama Majlis Perbandaran Kota Bharu-Bandaraya Islam serta polis dalam memastikan operasi ini berjalan lancar.

“Kaunseling dan amaran diberikan bertujuan untuk mendidik masyarakat supaya menghormati Ramadan,” katanya.

If you're lucky enough to have a halal grocery store near you, stop what you're doing and go there right this second. Well, actually, read this post first and then make the trip. Like other specialty food stores, a halal market is home to a slew of ingredients that are worthy of a spot in your kitchen.

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KUALA LUMPUR: Footages of a closed circuit television (CCTV) recording that was screened in the High Court here today showed images of six men gathering at a restaurant and a hotel two days before Deputy Public Prosecutor Anthony Kevin Morais was found dead last Sept 4.

Analyst at the Audio-Video Investigation Unit, Forensic Laboratory of the Royal Malaysia Police in Cheras, Inspector Mior Samsul Abdul Rahman said the images of the six men were recorded through the CCTV at Restoran Syed Bistro and Hotel New Town, Petaling Jaya.

He said the footage of the CCTV recording was obtained to identify the suspects.

Questioned by Deputy Public Prosecutor Masri Mohd Daud during examination-in-chief, Mior Samsul confirmed that the six men had gathered at the restaurant between Sept 3 and 4.

Masri: Where is the location?

Mior Samsul: At Restoran Syed Bistro, Petaling Jaya.

Masri: What was the focus of the image that was paused and printed?

Mior Samsul: I focussed on a few individuals who entered the restaurant.

Masri: Seen man with sparse hair talking to a few men on the right side of
the restaurant.

Mior Samsul: Yes, right.

Masri: In the 18th minute, six men are seen getting up and leaving the restaurant together.

Mior Samsul: Right.

Mior Samsul, 32, who is the 26th witness, said the six men were also seen at Hotel New Town, Petaling Jaya, on the same day.

Two of them were recorded while they were at the reception counter and four others while they were leaving a room at the hotel.

Six men – G Gunasekaran, 48; R Dinishwaran, 24; A K Thinesh Kumar, 23; M Vishwanath, 26; S Nimalan, 23; and S Ravi Chandaran, 45; pleaded not guilty to murdering Kevin Morais between 7am and 8pm on Sept 4, 2015, somewhere between Jalan Dutamas Raya Sentul and No 1 Jalan USJ1/6D, Subang Jaya.

Colonel Dr R Kunaseegaran, 53, who is the first accused in the trial, pleaded not guilty to a charge of conspiring with the six men in the killing of Kevin Morais at the same place, date and time.

The hearing before Judge Azman Abdullah continues on June 27 and 28.

– BERNAMA

KUALA LUMPUR: A premier financial magazine in the United States says Malaysia would have been one of Asia’s most vibrant economies if not for the ruling party putting its own interest above that of the people.

The Barron’s report highlighted this was because Malaysia’s vast resources and proximity to China and India was a boost that could raise the country’s economic standing.

On the contrary, the report added, Malaysia’s economy is now facing the threat of being dragged under following the mess created by the 1MDB scandal.

As the Government dismantles the debt-ridden 1MDB that was established in 2009, it may have to assume some liabilities, Barron’s reported.

The US financial news site quoted Sian Fenner of Oxford Economics in Singapore as saying that such action would increase Government debt.

“We find that it would have a material effect on asset prices and pressure on the exchange rate could see Bank Negara raising interest rates to support the currency despite weaker domestic activity,” she said.

In March, Fitch warned a downgrade was “more than 50 per cent likely” as 1MDB struggled to meet obligations and the trade balance darkened. Last month, 1MDB defaulted, adding to what traders call “headline risk”.

At the same time, the report also said, corruption probes in at least seven countries were intensifying. Such actions do not boost investor confidence.

According to Barrons, last week, Credit Suisse became the latest investment bank – joining JP Morgan and others – in downgrading Malaysian shares.

Along with “considerable political and governance risks”, Credit Suisse cited oil-price trends and an economy that “remains subject to negative growth revisions and a weak consumer” for its move to downgrade Malaysian shares.

Since late 2009, the share of debt held by foreigners has more than doubled, and amounted to more than a third of total debt at the end of the first quarter. “The drip, drip, drip of bad news” since then only increased Malaysia’s vulnerability to shifts in investor sentiment, the report said.

“While at these levels debt is still manageable, there are several factors that have increased Malaysia’s vulnerability,” Fenner was quoted as saying by Barrons.

One of the key factors was on how a Government in full survival mode was still not restructuring the economy, which seems to be falling further behind. Another factor, according to Barrons, was how the ruling coalition was neutering Government institutions to extend its reign.

The more Malaysia obfuscated on 1MDB, the more outside parties would pounce, the report said, adding that US law enforcement officials planning to talk with Goldman Sachs executives were looking at 1MDB’s transactions.

Over on the battlestations subreddit, Sarne shared this beautiful setup with a side-by-side computers in a custom desk with an open top and LEDs so you can see the inside. The whole thing is just beautiful.

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I have a weakness for ice cream that reaches its peak in the summertime, but the ice cream itself is only the half of it: I am a sucker for great toppings. Even as an adult, I insist on chocolate sprinkles when I visit my local ice cream shop because I am convinced they make the ice cream better.

But what if you have outgrown sprinkles, and are hungry for something new and a little crazy to dress your ice cream sundae? Your humble grocery store is a treasure trove of delightful toppings, and I am not talking about hot fudge sauce and maraschino cherries.

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Stuffing yourself with berries is easily one of summer's greatest pleasures. I mean, it's pretty much your duty to fill up until you're tired of them because you'll have to wait a whole year until you're able to get your hands on fresh summer berries again.

That means it's pretty important to buy the best berries you can find — especially since they usually don't come cheap, even when they're at the peak of season.

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Life’s too short to vacuum every other day, but luckily, you can pawn that tedious chore off to a Roomba, and the entry level 650 model is marked down to $300 today on Amazon, matching the best price they’ve ever listed.

Read more...

Here's the dilemma: Those summer berries from the farmers market are drop-dead gorgeous, but your colander, by comparison, is looking utilitarian and drab. Not to worry, though — the solution is easy. Add a bit of style with strainers that do double duty, serving as both a functional dish for rinsing fruit as well as a beautiful serving piece. You're berry welcome.

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JEDDAH: Saudi authorities are still reviewing a deadly stampede which struck last year’s hajj pilgrimage, the minister of hajj and umra said on Tuesday.

It was a rare comment by a senior Saudi official about the tragedy.

More than 2,000 pilgrims died in the stampede, the worst disaster to ever strike the annual ritual.

“We already studied that and we are continuing to study this and, God willing, we’ll have many preventive measures and procedures that…will not repeat what happened last time,” Minister of Hajj and Umra Mohammed Bentin told AFP on the sidelines of a press conference in the Red Sea city of Jeddah.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, the interior minister who also chairs the hajj committee, ordered a probe immediately after the September 24 disaster but there has still been no word on its findings.

According to data from foreign officials, at least 2,297 pilgrims died. Saudi Arabia issued a death toll of 769.

The tragedy happened as pilgrims made their way in searing temperatures to the Jamarat, the place where they ritually stone the devil in the Mina tent city in western Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam.

The hajj and lesser umra pilgrimage bring millions of Muslims from around the world to Saudi Arabia every year.

Bentin spoke to AFP after joining other cabinet ministers at a press conference to discuss the National Transformation Programme (NTP) for bolstering the kingdom’s non-oil economy.

As part of that programme, Saudi Arabia wants to increase the number of umra visitors to 15 million annually by 2020, up from six million.

Bentin said his ministry, like others, will have to meet targets to show how the NTP is being implemented.

This will help promote safety, he said, because under the NTP officials are “ready to evaluate each stage of hajj, and each service, and whenever something goes wrong, God willing we’ll at least be able to act before anything serious can happen.”

Bentin said the ministry wants to use technology to better monitor service provided to pilgrims.

It is also working towards an “international standard of hospitality” in partnership with the private sector, so the flow of pilgrims continues throughout the year, not just during the traditional pilgrimage seasons.

– AFP

MUMBAI: Kaikobad Rustomfram always thought that when he died vultures would feast on his corpse, as is Zoroastrian tradition. But then the scavenging birds disappeared from India’s skies.

The 90-year-old was cremated last month instead of receiving a sky burial, one of a growing number of Parsis opting to use a new prayer hall in Mumbai that is changing the ancient community’s funeral customs.

Rustomfram’s wife, Khorshed, who died in January aged 82, also chose cremation at the ten-month-old facility, which conservative Zoroastrians oppose, in the centre of India’s bustling financial capital.

“They wanted to be cremated ever since they learnt that the traditional way of disposing of the dead wasn’t working because there were no vultures,” their daughter, Hutokshi Rustomfram, told AFP.

Zoroastrians believe in the god Ahura Mazda and follow the teachings of the ancient Prophet Zoroaster. They worship in ‘fire temples’, believing fire to be a symbol of god’s purity.

Known as Parsis, Zoroastrians first arrived in India more than 1,000 years ago after fleeing persecution in Persia.

They became one of India’s wealthiest communities, boasting a number of famed industrialists including the Tata family synonymous with the financial rise of Mumbai.

For centuries the community, which is dwindling at such a rapid rate that its future existence is now under threat, have laid their dead out at the city’s Towers of Silence.

Ravenous vultures would devour the flesh of the body within an hour, leaving the bones to dry in the sun before being placed in a well, an efficient disposal system believed to purify the deceased.

But India’s vulture population began to drastically decline in the early 1990s and was virtually wiped out by the mid noughties owing to Diclofenac, an anti-inflammatory drug used to treat cattle.

Birds which gorged on dead animals that had recently been administered the medicine died of kidney failure, resulting in the disappearance of around 99 percent of India’s total vulture population.

Toxic drug

India banned the veterinary painkiller in 2006 but the damage to Zoroastrian sky burials had already been done, with claims that bodies were piling up at the tower in Mumbai’s plush Malabar Hill district.

“Kites and crows just pecked at the bodies. Those birds did nothing at all,” Dinshaw Tamboly, a former trustee of Mumbai’s leading Parsi organisation the Bombay Parsi Punchayet, told AFP.

“They would lie rotting in the heat for six to eight months. The pallbearers were complaining about the stench,” added the 71-year-old.

Two Parsis a day die on average in Mumbai. Across India, where most Zoroastrians live, their numbers have halved since 1940 to around 60,000.

With numbers dwindling, the community is split over how best to preserve their religion and culture, including the most appropriate way to dispose of the dead.

Tamboly was one of several reformists to advocate that Parsi priests should be allowed to officiate at cremations.

After several years, space at an existing crematorium was granted by Mumbai’s civic local authority and a large private donation was received, allowing the hall to open in September last year.

Tamboly says the number of cremations at the centre, situated in the Worli area, are “steadily increasing” from four in the first month to an average of between eight and ten currently.

At Kaikobad Rustomfram’s funeral service two Parsi priests, clad entirely in white chant prayers from the sacred Zoroastrian text Avesta for an hour as around 80 mourners look on in the spotless hall.

“My father got a great sense of satisfaction that the prayers were performed in a suitably dignified and reverential manner here for my mother,” Rustomfram, 59, explained.

“It’s not a nice thought to think that your loved one’s body is lying there like that in a heap. My parents felt they should adapt to the times,” she added.

The strength of feeling runs equally deep amongst traditionalists.

Cremations ‘wrong’

Khojeste Mistree, an orthodox scholar, insists the sky burials still “work effectively, although slightly slower” without the vultures, and denies that there’s a stench emanating from the Towers of Silence.

He also points out that a “massive majority” still favour traditional decomposition. The numbers being cremated are rising significantly but it’s still a fraction of the small but influential community.

Jehangir Patel, editor of community magazine “Parsiana”, told AFP that cremations now accounted for around 15 percent of funerals in Mumbai’s community of an estimated 45,000 Parsis — up from 6 percent before the prayer hall opened.

Mistree says that leaving corpses open to the skies is the only option because Zoroastrians believe dead bodies to be impure.

“Zoroastrians are extremely eco-conscious so the body cannot be burnt because that’s desecrating fire,” he told AFP.

“It cannot be buried because that’s polluting the earth and it cannot be drowned because that’s sullying the waters.

“Those who want to take the cremation route can certainly do it. But from a religious point of view clearly it’s wrong,” Mistree added.

For reformists such as 71-year-old Naval Surty and his wife, who have already told their two children that they wish to be cremated, they are merely being practical.

“If the vultures were still here then things would be different, but now this is the best way to let the body pass,” he told AFP.

– AFP

BUTTERWORTH: Two cousins who owned a recycle products factory were electrocuted and died in a fire, which occurred at their Jalan Bagan Lalang premises, here Monday night.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia risks a credit rating downgrade due to higher public debt and fiscal slippage, according to UK-based Oxford Economics.

It said apart from the 1MDB scandal, foreign investors’ interest in the stock market was dwindling.
Fitch Ratings and S&P Global Ratings currently have an “A-” rating for Malaysia while Moody’s Investor Services has given an “A3” rating.

A downgrade, according to Oxford Economics, could trigger a sell-off in Malaysia’s equity and bond market and add pressure on the ringgit. However, it says, such knee-jerk reactions would be short-term, given the ample liquidity from domestic institutional funds.

Malaysian public debt stood at 54.5 per cent of its gross domestic product last year, up from 40 per cent in 2008. It stands perilously close to the Government’s own ceiling of 55 per cent.

The report said this rate was the highest since 1992. In comparison, it said, Thailand’s public debt was 31 per cent of GDP and Indonesia’s was 29 per cent.

The Nikkei Asian Review quoted Sian Fenner, Oxford Economic’s Asia economist, as saying: “The Government has in excess of 15 per cent of GDP of debt not currently on the balance sheet in the form of contingent liabilities due to commitments to state-owned companies, including 1MDB.”

The Nikkei report said 1Malaysia Development Bhd was saddled with debts, and that Oxford Economics estimated that the Government’s guarantee on part of 1MDB’s debts could add USD7.5 billion, or 2.5 per cent of GDP, to its balance sheet.

It quoted Fenner as saying: “Higher public debt and the prospect of fiscal slippage could be just the catalyst for one or more credit agencies to respond by downgrading Malaysia’s credit rating.”

Even without the downgrade, the report said, the ringgit and stock market have been under pressure from an outflow of funds.

According to MIDF Research, foreign selling from Bursa Malaysia continued for the sixth consecutive week through June 3. Foreign net inflows have been reduced by half to RM1.28 billion so far this year.

Last week, according to MIDF Research, foreigners offloaded USD289 million, the highest weekly sell-off since last October. This contrasts with USD2.21 billion in inflow of liquidity into six other markets, including Indonesia and the Philippines.

The Nikkei report said that in a report on Asean in May, Moody’s observed that “current account deteriorating, capital flow volatility is most apparent in Malaysia”.

A Sydney scientist has discovered seven new species of the tiny Australian peacock spider – a spectacularly colored, three-millimetre arachnid that dances to attract a female mate. Jurgen Otto, with the help of colleague David Knowles, made the two latest discoveries of the miniature...

Today’s comic by Tom Tomorrow is The real threat

What’s you may have missed on Sunday Kos …

• Why we have a progressive income tax, by David Akadjian
• Power, pride and kente cloth, by Denise Oliver Velez
• Of mice and men—and microwaves, by DarkSyde
• All politics must begin locally, by Egberto Willies
• So Trump fans say they want a businessman as president, by Jon Perr
• Kenneth Starr, or how I learned to stop worrying about Republican attacks on the Clintons, by Susan Grigsby
• Yes, Hillary must attack Trump. But every Democrat should run against the GOP meltdown in Kansas, by Ian Reifowitz
• The continuities of the right-wing and the color line: From the KKK to the GOP, and now Donald Trump, by Chauncey DeVega

• Bill Clinton will deliver eulogy for Muhammad Ali:

Former President Bill Clinton will give the eulogy at Muhammad Ali’s funeral, which will take place next Friday in the boxing champion’s hometown of Louisville, Ky. [...]

His funeral is scheduled to be held at 2 p.m. at the KFC Yum! Center and will be open to the public. It will also be translated and streamed live online.

Comedian Billy Crystal and news anchor Bryant Gumbel will also deliver eulogies. Hours before Ali died on Friday, Crystal posted a video tribute to him, calling him “the greatest man I have ever known.”

• Guy named Dave announces he won’t be a presidential candidate.

• Black Democrats want to see a bigger, earlier effort directed at building voter turnout:

There is some, but not a ton of movement in the states to mobilize black votes this election cycle. Groups like Priorities USA have put resources in strategy, but lots of black Democrats want to see more from the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee.

• First multi-gigawatt concentrating solar plant being built in … Dubai:

The Dubai Water and Electricity Authority (DEWA) has announced the second phase of a massive solar project located in the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park. According to a press release, the park is the largest single-site project to generate electricity from solar energy in the world, based on an independent power producer model.

The 13-megawatt first phase of the project has been operational since October 2013 and the 200-megawatt second phase will be operational by April 2017. The facility will ultimately produce 1,000 megawatts by 2020 and 5,000 megawatts by 2030, which will provide power for 800,000 homes. The solar park will help reduce 6.5 million tonnes of carbon emissions annually, the release said.

• Another weighs in on why GDP is a lousy measure of economic health.

• Luxembourg sets its sights on becoming asteroid mining capital of the world:

In February of this year, the Luxembourg government announced its intention to turn the country into the space mining capital of the world through their Space Resources initiative.

On Friday, the country came a step closer to realizing this vision by announcing the drafting of a new comprehensive framework that will ensure asteroid mining companies have rights to the materials they harvest in space. The law is expected to go into effect in 2017, but in the meantime the government is opening up a €200 million (about $226 million) line of credit for R&D by asteroid mining companies that are headquartered in the country.

• Public gets access to hundreds of videos documenting Chicago Police shootings.

• On today’s Kagro in the Morning show, Armando gave us some insider scoop on the Puerto Rico primary fiasco. We catch up on weekend news: Muhammad Ali, Trump’s loss of control over the news cycle, upcoming primaries & more. Cyber thieves give new hope to Operation Privateers of the Caribbean.

     On iTunes | On Stitcher | Support the show: Patreon; PayPal; PayPal Subscription

After spending a few days exploring Hanoi and learning how to cook my favorite Vietnamese dish, it was time to leave the bustling city behind and explore Vietnam’s natural side.

Located about a four-hour drive from Hanoi, Ha Long Bay is a beautiful coastal area consisting of roughly 2,000 islands that’s been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1994. I was excited to embark on an overnight cruise and spend two days checking out the sights and getting to know the locals. Watch the latest episode of TPGtv below to see how it went!

Never miss an episode: Click here to subscribe to The Points Guy on YouTube!

Getting from Hanoi to Ha Long Bay was pretty easy thanks to a $385 one-way flight on a seaplane run by Hai Au Aviation, which I booked with my Platinum Card from American Express. I only earned 1 Amex Membership Rewards point per dollar for this one, but chose to use this card because of all the travel protection I’d receive from American Express.

I used my Chase Sapphire Preferred card to book a two-day cruise package with Indochina Sails on a luxurious junk ship — the $558 total ended up earning me 1,116 Chase Ultimate Rewards points since the card gives you 2x points on travel, including cruises. My cruise package included an overnight stay in a suite onboard the ship, complete with a full-sized bathroom, jacuzzi tub, floor-to-ceiling mirrors and a private balcony.

I had so much fun sailing around Ha Long Bay and getting a chance to see some of the islands — most had cool names, too, like The Finger, Incense Burning Island and Fighting Cock Island just to name a few. We also had a unique opportunity during an afternoon excursion to visit the Cua Van Floating Fishing Village, a local Vietnamese community that lives in houseboats and runs a fish farm in Ha Long Bay. I spoke to some people there who told us about the area and recommended we also check out Surprise Cave, Tree Cave and Jungle Cave, three hidden caves on three of the islands, all popular stops on the Ha Long Bay tourist trail.

Despite a brief tumble as we exited the boat and stepped onto the slippery dock — which I wasn’t too worried about since I knew my nifty $249 annual trip insurance policy from Allianz had my back just in case! — I had a great time on this overnight cruise! I’d definitely recommend a trip to Ha Long Bay if you’re ever thinking of visiting Vietnam, and I hope to travel here again soon.

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TOKYO: The US Navy slapped a drinking ban on sailors stationed in Japan on Monday and halted off base liberty after police arrested a US sailor on the southern island of Okinawa on suspicion of drunk driving following a car crash that injured two people.

“For decades we have enjoyed a strong relationship with the people of Japan. It is imperative that each sailor understand how our actions affect that relationship and the US Japan alliance as a whole,” Rear Admiral Matthew Carter, commander of US naval forces in Japan said in a press release on Monday.

The United States has 18,600 sailors stationed in Japan.

The latest incident came as the US military observes a 30-day mourning period at bases on Okinawa after an American civilian working for the US military there was arrested on suspicion of dumping the body of a 20-year-old Japanese woman.

Renewed anger among residents in Okinawa at the US military presence threatens a plan to relocate the US Marines’ Futenma air base to a less populous part of Okinawa, which was agreed in 1995 after the rape of a Japanese schoolgirl by US military personnel sparked huge anti-base demonstrations.

Okinawa’s governor and many residents want the marines off the island.

All US Navy sailors in Japan will be kept on base and banned from drinking until “all personnel understand the impact of responsible behavior on the US-Japan alliance,” the press release said. “Sailors living off base will be allowed to travel to and from base and conduct only “essential activities.”

The restrictions do not apply to family members and civilian US contractors, which brings the total number of people to 35,000, but they are being encouraged to observe the rules “in a spirit of solidarity,” a spokesman for the US Navy said.

– Reuters

It’s Ramadan again and during the holy month it has been common that airlines of Muslim nations (especially the ME3 carriers) restrict the serving of alcohol for the entire month.

While previously alcohol continued to be served on board (except on the Middle East/North Africa routes) some airlines restrict the consumption of alcohol within the airport entirely.

Usually there are some advance announcements in the media but this year I couldn’t find any news article or website announcement regarding the airlines policy yet.

We have reached out to the ME3 Airlines Etihad, Emirates and Qatar Airways via Twitter/Email and so far only Etihad has replied to us what their policy will be during the coming month:

In regards to their policies we can so far repeat their information from last year (see here) and update accordingly should the carriers notify us with different information.

Etihad:

Etihad will continue serving alcohol in its international lounges including in Sydney, London and Paris, but this “will not be displayed in the bar area in the usual manner during daylight fasting hours”, an Etihad spokesperson told Australian Business Traveller.

However, the airline’s lounges at its Abu Dhabi hub will not serve alcohol during daylight fasting times “out of respect for local customs,” with the lounge’s bars open only from 7pm to 3am daily until Ramadan concludes.

Emirates:

A spokesperson for Qantas partner Emirates told Australian Business Traveller that “Emirates will continue to offer alcohol in all lounges and on flights during Ramadan.”

The airline which has been most restrictive in this regard is Qatar Airways. None of their lounges at Doha’s Hamad International Airport will serve any alcohol, not even on request.

Alcohol will still be served on flights during Ramadan – including from Doha to Australia and Europe, and in the airline’s London Heathrow lounge.

However, a Qatar Airways spokesperson advised that “in respect of the Holy month of Ramadan, alcohol will not be served in (Doha’s) Hamad International Airport during Ramadan.” This means that, in effect, Qatar lounges at Doha will be an around-the-clock ‘dry zone’ until Ramadan’s end in July.

Qatar is famous for their premium champagnes and other alcoholic beverages so if you are booked on QR during the next month I suggest you make use of the bar/selection on board because the lounge will be dry.

Conclusion

I don’t like the fact that the airlines are not stating their policy publicly on their website considering the vast majority of the ME3 customers are only connecting through their hubs and are likely not fasting during that time.

There are obviously many other airlines of Muslim countries and if you’re concerned about their beverage policy I suggest you contact their reservation offices for advance information.

LARUT: The Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry will be announcing the Price Control Scheme for Ramadan in Kuala Kangsar next week.

Its minister Hamzah Zainuddin said announcing the list of items under the scheme was a norm each year to ensure stable prices.

He said that he hoped after the announcement was made, it would ensure prices of Ramadan essentials would not be hiked in order not to burden the people.

“The list of items and ceiling prices will be announced in Kuala Kangsar,” he told a press conference after handing over Ramadan aid to mosques and surau in the Larut parliamentary constituency, here today.

A total of 108 mosques and surau received the aid, RM500 for mosques and RM300 for surau.

– BERNAMA

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KUALA LUMPUR: The Magistrate’s Court here was told yesterday that the actions of a woman in tossing and dropping yellow balloons from the fifth floor of a shopping complex during an event attended by the prime minister and his wife, was rude.

Investigating officer Inspector Izwan Paijan, 35, said the rude act by Bilqis Hijjas, 37, was also an insult to the country, as well as the organiser of the event.

“The rude act by Bilqis in tossing the balloons during the event was an insult to the country because it was attended by Najib Razak and wife, Rosmah Mansor, as well as ambassadors from 24 countries,” he added.

Izwan, who is the eighth prosecution witness, said Bilqis’s act drew the ire of the master of ceremony of the ‘DiverseCity 2015: Kuala Lumpur International Arts Festival’, R Sunita Mei-Lin, 47, as it diverted the public’s attention away from the event.

He was testifying on the sixth day of the trial involving Bilqis, a dancer and the daughter of prominent architect Hijjas Kasturi, who has been charged with insulting behaviour at the Pavilion shopping mall in Jalan Bukit Bintang at 3.15pm on Aug 31 last year.

She is charged under Section 14 of the Minor Offences Act 1955 and faces a maximum RM100 fine if found guilty.

Izwan said footage from the closed-circuit television camera (CCTV) at the shopping complex showed Bilqis blowing and tossing the yellow balloons, with the words ‘Democracy’, ‘Free media’ and ‘Justice’ written in black on them, from the fifth floor of a shopping mall to the back of a screen on the second floor.

“Apart from the CCTV, recordings of statements of seven witnesses, including an auxiliary policeman, the organiser and a special officer to the prime minister also found Bilqis doing the act which could have disrupted peace in the country.

“We were also afraid and worried that the balloons that were tossed by Bilqis could contain hazardous materials, like poison or (could cause an) explosion,” he added.

During examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Fadhly Mohd Zamry, Izwan said the balloons tossed and dropped by Bilqis had connection with the Bersih 4 rally that was held in the Bukit Bintang area a day earlier.

He said that on Aug 28, 2015, the government issued a ban on the wearing of yellow shirts with the word ‘Bersih 4′ on it and other printed materials and pamphlets linked to the assembly.

Cross-examined by Bilqis’ lawyer, Eric Paulsen, Izwan agreed with him that the words ‘Democracy’, ‘Free media’ and ‘Justice’ which were written in black , were not insulting words and the event was not disrupted by the balloons.

Magistrate Mohd Faizal Ismail set June 24 to decide on the case and June 17 for both parties to submit their written submission.

– BERNAMA