RIP Peter O'Toole, Lowell Thomas, AM Soto

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Many rememner Peter O'Toole as Lawrence of Arabia, the major motion picture role he perfected. The real person, Thomas Edward Lawrence (16 August 1888 – 19 May 1935) was a British archaeologist, military officer, and diplomat. He was renowned for his liaison role during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign and the Arab.
Lawrence of Arabia (8/8) Movie CLIP - No Prisoners (1962) HD https://youtu.be/aARaYjgm_rA

Peter Seamus O'Toole died this week (2 August 1932 – 14 December 2013) He was a brilliant British-Irish stage and film actor, who studied at The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

Top Countries

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The United Nations lists Norway, Australia, Switzerland, Denmark and Netherlands as the top five counties to live. Not America, but Scandinavia’s reputation is still going strong.

Norway maintains the top spot of the Human Development Index rankings in a report released by the UN. The index was designed in 1990 to give a fuller picture of livability by combining income data with health and education statistics instead of ranking countries on economic achievement alone.

As noted, Australia and Switzerland took second and third place. The U.S. ranked number eight. The bottom five countries in rank order of HDI are: Niger, Central African Republic, Eritrea, Chad and Burundi. There is twice as wide a range in HDI values among the bottom five countries compared to the top five, which indicates that countries with the highest HDIs have similar human development while countries at the bottom vary much
more.

The Human Development Report is an editorially independent publication of the United Nations Development Program. For free downloads of the 2015 Human Development Report, plus additional reference materials on its indices and specific regional implications, please visit: http://hdr.undp.org

City Island Temporary Bridge?

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How do you get in and out of City Island? Hopefully, by crossing a temporary bridge, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there. We will also continue to report on this boondoggle which has experienced multiple problems.
The project has been on and off several times and by the looks of all the political buck passing, there's more.

City Island's temporary bridge now open | News 12 Bronx http://bronx.news12.com/news/city-island-s-temporary-bridge-now-open-1… via @News12BX

City Island Temporary Bridge Undergoes Load Test « CBS New York http://cbsloc.al/1UKYM6J

Santa Teresa

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My late and great father used to say that he loved and admired three women, my grandmother, my mom and Mother Teresa.

One of them will soon become a canonized saint. In Rome, Pope Francis signs off on the miracle needed to make Mother Teresa a saint at The Vatican, elevating a holy woman, who made the poor her life's mission one of the Roman Catholic Church's highest honors.

Mother Teresa is going to be canonized http://bit.ly/1PcLEqU

Mother Teresa is set to be canonised as a saint http://dailym.ai/1Rt3mb4

College Capping Course

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Another semester has ended and over a dozen of my MARIST College students presented their final projects to their colleagues and distinguished faculty members today.

The following senior class Capping Projects represent topics, which our students are personally interested in and are extremely passionate about. They have been told to submit them within a Total Running Time of 10 minutes.

This eclectic mix of multimedia projects include, an ode to mom, an assortment of social issues, video games, comedy skits and music videos, just to name a few.

Cuban Candidates Clash

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US Senators Ted Cruz, Texas and Marco Rubio, Florida and both Cuban immigrants found plenty of opportunities to draw attention to themselves and add to their opponents camp pains contrasts.

Rubio: “We will have to work around the world with less than ideal governments. The government in Saudi Arabia is not a democracy, but we will have to work with them … But anti-American dictators like Assad. If they go I will not shed a tear.”

Bill of Rights

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On this, the 224th anniversary of the Bill of Rights, students from across the country discussed and debated issues related to the 1st amendment.

This anniversary marks the date, Dec. 15, 1791, when the required number of states approved the first ten amendments to the Constitution.

Do The Right Thing

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Nearly six-in-10 Americans say the United States should not temporarily bar Muslims from other countries from entering the U.S., and two-thirds say such a ban would go against the founding principles of this country, a CBS News poll shows.

Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump sparked a firestorm when he proposed keeping Muslims from coming in.

Donald Trump stands by Muslim ban despite backlash
There are sharp differences by political party. Just over half of Republicans responding -- 54 percent -- support such a ban, while most Democrats and independents do not.

Good & Bad News

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The good news is that City Island's new bridge will not have a toll. but, NY state officials have announced that Metropolitan Transportation Authority Bridges and Tunnels is set to strengthen toll evasion enforcement at its seven bridges and two tunnels in New York City. This plan aligns with a proposed New York State regulation to suspend the registrations of vehicles that repeatedly evade payment on toll crossings.

City Island Detour?

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City Island traffic may soon be increased by new status of a Yacht Club that has been an institution for decades. The Stuyvesant Yacht Club may soon be leased, or sold, yo NYC Parks Department. This local yacht hub has been on the eastern end of Centre St. for almost a century.

Among the concerns is t he need for onsite parking. Concerns that a full-time concessionaire might compete with local businesses and bring much traffic or recreational nightlife like Dyckman Marina in Manhattan.