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WASHINGTON -- This week, the Senate Judiciary Committee will question Neil Gorsuch about the judiciary's role. Herewith some pertinent questions:

-- Lincoln's greatness began with his recoil from the 1854 Kansas-Nebraska Act, which empowered residents of those territories to decide whether to have slavery. The act's premise was that "popular sovereignty" -- majorities' rights -- is the essence of the American project. Is it, or is liberty?

-- Justice Robert Jackson wrote, "The very purpose of a Bill of Rights was to ... place [certain subjects] beyond the reach of majorities." Was that not also the purpose of the 14th Amendment's Privileges and Immunities Clause? It says: "No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States." Was this amendment's purpose to ensure that the natural rights of all citizens would be protected from abridgement by their states?

-- If so, was the court wrong in the 1873 Slaughterhouse Cases? It essentially erased the Privileges and Immunities Clause, holding that it did not secure natural rights (e.g., the right to enter contracts and earn a living), for the protection of which, the Declaration of Independence says, governments are instituted.

-- Chief Justice John Roberts says the doctrine of stare decisis -- previous court decisions are owed respect -- is not an "inexorable command." The ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), upholding racial segregation in separate but equal facilities, has been undone. Should the Slaughterhouse Cases ruling be revisited?

-- The court, without warrant from the Constitution's text or history, has divided Americans' liberties between those it deems "fundamental," such as speech and association, and others, many pertaining to economic activity and the right to earn a living, that are inferior. Abridgements of the latter have been given less exacting judicial scrutiny. The court calls this "rational basis" scrutiny; it should be called "conceivable basis" scrutiny. If a legislature asserts, or the court can imagine, a rational basis for the abridgement, it stands. Do you think judges should decide which liberties to protect or neglect? Should courts examine evidence of whether economic regulations are related to public health and safety or merely reflect rent seeking by economic interests?

-- The Ninth Amendment says: "The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people." Robert Bork said this is akin to an "inkblot" on the Constitution that judges should ignore. Do you agree? How can judges be faithful to this amendment? Was Madison correct that it should dispose us against a latitudinarian interpretation of Congress' powers? Is the Ninth Amendment pertinent to, say, the right to earn a living free from unreasonable licensure requirements or other barriers to entry into an occupation?

-- Other than a law that abridges a liberty enumerated in the Bill of Rights, are there limits to Congress' power over interstate commerce?

-- The Fifth Amendment says no property shall be taken "for public use" without just compensation. In the 2005 Kelo case, the court upheld a city's seizure of private property not to facilitate construction of a public structure or to cure blight, but for the "public use" of transferring it to a wealthier private interest that would pay more taxes. Did the court err?

-- Madison worried that Congress would draw "all power into its impetuous vortex." For many decades, however, our centrifugal Congress has been spinning off essentially legislative powers, delegating them to presidents and executive agencies. The Constitution says "All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress." Should the court enforce limits to Congress' power to delegate its powers?

-- Citizens United held that unions and corporations, particularly incorporated nonprofit advocacy groups, can engage in unregulated spending that is not coordinated with candidates or campaigns. Was the court correct that Americans do not forfeit their First Amendment rights when they come together in incorporated entities to speak collectively?

-- Is it constitutional for Congress, by regulating political spending, to control the quantity and timing of political speech?

-- You commendably believe that judges should adhere to the "original public meaning" of the Constitution's text. Would you feel bound to follow a previous court decision that did not evaluate evidence of original meaning and was, in your view, in conflict with it? If not, would you be elevating the views of judges over those of the Framers?

-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, a deferential, majoritarian jurist, said: "If my fellow citizens want to go to Hell I will help them. It's my job." Discuss.

George F. Will is a columnist for The Washington Post.

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Questions for Judge Gorsuch - Helena Independent Record

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Top eurocrats delivered a withering assessment of those attacking the pact, accusing them of being keyboard warriors who had no serious solutions to Europes refugee crisis.

The unusually pointed rebuke came amid speculation that the deal could be close to collapse, with the increasingly authoritarian and erratic Turkish president Recep Erdogan having repeatedly threatened to ditch it.

Ankaras actions have alarmed senior EU officials in recent weeks and months, especially in terms of its crackdowns on free speech and human rights, but they are still determined to keep the agreement in place.

That is because it has been a resounding success in terms of reducing the numbers of new arrivals entering struggling Greece by a whopping 98 per cent in the space of a year.

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Statistics from the UNCHR show that in the first three months of 2016 a massive 151,452 people made it to Greece on rafts from Turkey, but by the same period this year that number had dropped to just 2,813.

And today, despite all its trials and tribulations, top eurocrats continued to hail the pact as a game-changer and said it had saved countless lives by dissuading millions from making the dangerous sea crossing.

EU Commission chief spokesman Margaritis Chinas told a briefing in Brussels: The EU-Turkey statement was a game-changer which allowed us to break the cruel business model of smugglers exploiting human misery and putting peoples lives in danger.

We hear many voices criticising the agreement, but we hear none providing viable alternatives that would have saved as many lives.

EU Commission chief spokesman Margaritis Schinas

He added: We hear many voices criticising the agreement, but we hear none providing viable alternatives that would have saved as many lives.

Yes, implementation continues to be challenging. But whilst others are running social media campaigns, we together with our member states are busy working day in and day out improving the situation on the ground.

Senior EU figures have become increasingly defensive of the accord in recent weeks in light of a series of ever more provocative statements from Turkey over its future.

Last week Ankaras interior minister threatened to scrap the deal and allow 15,000 refugees through to Europe every month if European countries did not back down over a ban on pro-Erdogan rallies.

AFP/Getty Images

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A young boy cries at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni

Under the terms of the agreement, all economic migrants arriving in Greece are sent back across the Aegean, with the EU taking one Syrian refugee from a camp in Turkey for every person returned.

And EU Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker warned: It is not in Turkeys interests to have smuggling rings and bandits in charge along its coast.

Operating in cahoots with bandits is not in the travel guide of a candidate country.

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Put up or shut up! Brussels blasts 'keyboard warrior critics' of EU-Turkey migrant deal - Express.co.uk

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attended the thirteenth summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), held in Islamabad, Pakistan on the first of March. One of the topics Erdogan spoke about in his speech was the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, which he called the mountainous Karabakh problem.

Nagorno-Karabakh, historically known as Artsakh, is a small, diplomatically unrecognized Armenian republic in the southeastern part of Caucasus Minor. Following the constitutional referendum in the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic on February 20, the country was renamed Artsakh Republic.

Artsakh has for millennia been an integral part of historic Armenia. Even when Artsakh fell under the rule of foreign conquerors at different periods in history, the population and culture of the land remained predominantly Armenian. However, the Soviet regime established the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast in 1923 within the borders of the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic although the area was mostly inhabited by ethnic Armenians.

The 1988 Karabakh File by the Zoryan Institute states that Karabakh, the historic Artsakh province, is central to Armenian cultural and historical identify and statehood...

[It is also] one of the few remaining districts of historic Armenia still inhabited by a majority Armenian population.

For Azerbaijan, the fact that the majority of the Mountainous Karabakh population is Armenian is incidental and secondary to facts: Karabakh is theirs now and it has been part of the development of Azerbaijani national consciousness, largely a post-Sovietization phenomenon... Any change in the status of the territory would be considered at the present time an unacceptable blow to Azerbaijani national pride.

Azerbaijan, which Turkey calls the real owner of mountainous Karabakh, has conducted several violent attacks against the Armenian population, such as the racially motivated pogroms in the cities of Sumgait (February 27-29, 1988), Kirovabad (November 21-27, 1988) and Baku (January 13-19, 1990).

In the face of continued persecution, Nagorno-Karabakh finally declared independence in 1991, to which Azerbaijan, supported by Turkey, responded with military aggression that continued until the 1994 cease-fire. The war had a devastating effect on Nagorno-Karabakh. According to the official website of the Office of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) in the US, the countrys health care system, entire road system, water supply systems as well as many social, economic and educational facilities, private homes and residential buildings were completely or partially destroyed.

In his speech in Islamabad, Erdogan announced: Azerbaijan has been suffering from problems for years... We especially cannot ignore the Nagorno-Karabakh problem.

The talks, which have gone on for more than 20 years, have reached no conclusion. The Minsk Group has not been able to resolve this matter. Therefore, we have to take care of ourselves. We have to take these steps in solidarity with the ECO and the OIC [Organization of Islamic Cooperation] in a determined manner. We must express Armenias occupation at all kinds of international meetings together. I believe if we do this together, it will be easier to get results.

Erdogan has often expressed Turkeys desire to give mountainous Karabakh to Azerbaijan. For example, during a meeting of the Turkish Red Crescent General Assembly in Ankara last year, Erdogan recited a poem about Karabakh written by the Turkish poet Abdurrahim Karakoc, and added, The persecution will not continue forever.

Karabakh will certainly return to its real owner and belong to Azerbaijan one day.

What would happen if Artsakh Republic were given to Azerbaijan? The answer lies in what happened during the April 2016 Four Day War Azerbaijans Islamic Statelike treatment of the people of Artsakh that included but was not limited to the murder of elderly civilians in their home, who had their ears cut off, and the mutilation or torture of Armenian soldiers from April 2 to April 5 which was well-documented with photographs, video and testimony surrounding several news reports and human rights reports.

During the same war, uniformed Azerbaijani soldiers even posed with the severed head of Yezidi-Armenian soldier Kyaram Sloyan in photos and videos. The soldier who held Sloyans head up by the ears in one of the photos was later reportedly decorated with a medal by the president of Azerbaijan.

Erdogan also mentioned the Cyprus issue in his speech in Islamabad, saying that solidarity with the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, which is unfairly subjected to isolation, should be enhanced.

Erdogan continued: In this sense, it will be beneficial to make the Turkish Republic of Northern Cypruss temporary observer status in the Economic Cooperation Organization permanent and encourage holding activities of the Economic Cooperation Organization in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

The northern part of the Republic of Cyprus has been under the occupation of Turkish military since 1974. The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is recognized only by Turkey.

Cyprus has been a part of the Greek world as far back as can be attested by recorded history, wrote the author Constantine Tzanos.

After the collapse of the Byzantine Empire and the defeat of the Venetians it fell to Ottoman rule from 1571 to 1878. In 1878 it was placed under British administration, was annexed by Britain in 1914, and in 1925 became a British colony.

On 20 July 1974, Turkey, a UN member state, in violation of the UN charter, claiming a right (which is also questionable) under the Treaty of Guarantee to intervene, invaded Cyprus and defying the UN Security Council quickly occupied 37% of the island, and forced the separation of Greek and Turkish Cypriots into two communities.

Never until the Turkish invasion in 1974 was the northern part of the island majority- Turkish. Turkey has forcibly changed the demographic character of the northern part of Cyprus by driving out Greek Cypriots to the southern part and bringing in thousands of settlers from Turkey as well as some 40,000 Turkish soldiers. Turkey continues to Turkify and Islamize northern Cyprus and wipe out its historic Hellenic and Christian identity through destruction of cultural heritage.

Turkeys extremely different stance toward the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and mountainous Karabakh speaks volumes about Turkeys worldview, hostile to its non-Turkish neighbors. Turkey may try to convince the world that as a NATO member it has largely adopted democratic values and is ready to enter the European Union. But its foreign policy demonstrates that Turkey still carries Islams flag of conquest.

Unfortunately, this world view shaped by Turkish-Islamic supremacism prevents Turkish governments from respecting the sovereignty of non-Turkish and non-Islamic nations, which causes a continued lack of justice, security and stability in the region.

The author is a Turkish journalist based in Washington DC.

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Erdogan condemns Armenian 'occupation,' but says Northern Cyprus 'unfairly isolated - Jerusalem Post Israel News

Although the contemporary people tend to use SEO and internet marketing interchangeably, they do not denote the same thing. While internet marketing is a comprehensive procedure, which involves the promotion of varied products and services on the online platforms through the digital technologies, SEO stands to be an integral part of this entire endeavor.

If we try to delve more, SEO or Search Engine Optimization is a competent tactic focused on enhancing a website so that it can have better ranks in the organic search engine result pages (SERPs). This means that the particular site would receive positive response from the potential customers, who are proactively searching for a product or service. It is performed through a methodical approach that includes keyword research, onsite optimization, content creation as well as publication and link building.

In the following discussion, let us explore some of the beneficial aspects of SEO that have effectually made this technique a widely adopted internet marketing strategy.

Advantages of SEO

Although Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is advantageous for most of the businesses, it is an extensive, tedious, and time-consuming procedure. Rather than indulging in the process all on their own, entrepreneurs must seek help from reputed organizations. As a business owner, are you skeptical about hiring SEO services? Well, the below-mentioned discussion would certainly change your mind.

Is it Important to Hire an SEO Service?

Many of you often want to know whether SEO can be performed all by your own or not. Though there are endless SEO strategies, the learning curve is not much steep hence anyone can easily understand the basic and somehow implement them too. However, always keep it in mind that SEO is an ongoing process, depending on your willingness to learn, time commitment you need to decide whether you want to hire an SEO service or not. Besides, you need to create and publish content regularly as search engines love fresh content, the more engaging, well-optimized content you can publish the better chance you would attain to be in a rewarding position in the SERPs. If you are competent to create unique, engaging content that resonates with the potential clients then you can carry on.

It is always important to stay abreast of the evolutions and changes taking place in the search engine arena. Although easy to grasp, it takes years to be adroit in every nooks and cranny.Assortingthe important keywords is the cornerstone of achieving success in the search engine land. Though there are several tools out there to help you but it needs exhaustive competitor analysis, in-depth study on the target audience to delineate out the keywords essential for your niche. Secondly, an onsite optimization that is a staple to SEO includes URL structure, page title, and Meta description creation. The content must be optimized for both search engines and human traffic. You need to maintain ideal keyword density as with superfluous keyword usage, you will be convicted for keyword spamming that leads to penalty. Well, not only through normal blogs and articles, the competent SEO professionals intend to make use of guest blogging services in India for enhancing the ranks of a website.

Considering these aforementioned factors, it can be fairly concluded that hiringa top-notch SEO servicewill be truly instrumental for your business.

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A Beginner's Guide to Search Engine Optimization | TrainingZone - TrainingZone.co.uk (blog)

Birds are chirping, bees are buzzing, and baseballs are flying over fences. That can only mean one thing: spring has arrived.

And crops arent the only things budding. According to Chisult Insight Co. Ltd.s Global and U.S. HVAC Market Research Report, the U.S. HVAC market is estimated to achieve 5 percent growth in 2017.

Much like gardens need fertilization to bear fruit, HVAC companies require constant investments to flourish.

The NEWS asked contractors how they were concentrating their investments in 2017. Their answers may surprise you.

From social media, pay-to-play click advertising, email marketing, and more, HVAC contractors have multiple opportunities to elevate their online visibility.

Social media remains a hot commodity, and its not going away any time soon. According to estimates from eMarketer, spending on digital ads in the U.S. will likely grow this year to the point where more money is spent online than is spent on television, the former Goliath of the industry.

Only behind Google, Facebook is the lead contender when it comes to digital advertising. According to Facebook, 16 million local business pages have been created since May 2013, which is a 100 percent increase from 8 million in June 2012. With statistics like these, its easy to see why more and more contractors are advertising their services on social media sites.

John Aliano, general manager, American Residential Services, Omaha, Nebraska, has delved deeply into social media to increase visibility.

We are heavy on social media and constantly doing what we can to increase our SEO [search engine optimization] strength, he said.

With the abundance of social media platforms available, its important to select the proper channel for your business, which isnt always an easy feat.

And, while it may seem antiquated, email marketing is still viable.

Our online reputation is working quite well, said Paul Sammataro, owner of Samms Heating and Cooling, Plano, Texas, who utilizes email marketing along with social media advertising.

While were going to continue our email marketing and online pay-per-click advertising, were aiming to get away from direct mail marketing a little more this year.

Many contractors are aligning with Sammataro and giving pay-per-click (PPC) advertising a try. PPC is a model of internet marketing in which advertisers pay a fee each time one of their ads is clicked. Essentially, its a way of buying visits to your site, rather than attempting to earn those visits organically. This is yet another step for a company to get its company in front of customers seeking HVAC services online. While you have to pay to play, it is an effective way to increase online traffic and has become an attractive option for contractors nationwide.

The most successful HVAC contractors in the country understand that winning online is about cost-effectively maximizing your real estate starting with search engines, said Ben Landers, president of Blue Corona, a web marketing, analytics, and optimization company. Consumers using Google demonstrate their interest and intent with the keyword phrases they use. Not everyone on Facebook is in the market for a new furnace, but virtually everyone searching cost of furnace replacement [city, state] is.

To maximize your search engine real estate, you must intelligently invest in SEO and PPC, Landers continued. And, while recent Google changes are largely overlooked by some business owners and marketers, they make PPC advertising even more important for local HVAC contractors.

Many HVAC contractors have reported great returns by encouraging customers to leave reviews. Reviews give contractors a chance to spotlight why their businesses are superior, connect with customers, heap praise, and learn how and where they need to improve.

Will Merritt, managing partner, Effective Media Solutions, asks customers to rate their service experience on a regular basis.

If they had a great customer service experience, we send them a link directly to the contractors Google reviews page. The link takes them exactly where they can leave a review, no extra steps or clicks; its that easy. If there was a problem, we offer them a link to a hidden landing page on the contractors website. The customers comments then go directly to the HVAC company and are not seen by the general public. Reviews are also a key component Google looks at for organic rankings for your website.

We listen to our customers on how they review us on our survey sheets, said Aliano. We pull good ideas from other service industries and insert them into our business.

Consumers are frequently turning to review sites to learn more about businesses prior to enlisting their services. This has become an integral part of the modern-day shopping experience. Presenting superior service via positive online reviews can take a business to new heights.

Positive reviews can be further strengthened with referrals. Referral programs are popping up left and right in the HVAC industry. They help customers see the value of doing business with you. If they are rewarded for doing business with your company, they are more inclined to stick with you for the long haul.

For Rob Minnick, CEO and president of Minnicks Inc., Laurel, Maryland, his referral program is beneficial to new and repeat customers.

Our referral program is tied into our VIP rewards program. We give customers who give referrals 100 points, which is valued at $100. These points can be used toward any service Minnicks provides. We also do the same for new customers, though new customers need to have a service done before the points are activated.

Merritt says a few simple things can drive referrals: Offer a coupon for future services, a gift card for their favorite restaurant, or a donation to their charity of choice. Referrals are a must for heating and air conditioning companies. Heating and air conditioning services are out of sight and out of mind to consumers except when they need you. So, capitalize on the opportunity when you come out and fix their problems because, at that moment in time, you are their hero. So, its time to use that to your advantage.

In order to grow this year, many HVAC technicians are making an effort to recruit and train technicians. With a known shortage of technicians, new efforts are being made in the recruiting process.

Weve reached out to high school seniors and have talked to them via roundtable meetings, said Hank Bloom, owner, Environmental Conditioning Systems, Mentor, Ohio. We just hired one of them who went to the local trade school. Some of our top leaders are on boards of different trade schools. We have hired directly out of trade schools with a one out of three success rating.

Reaching out to trade schools is inevitably still a huge recruiting method, but contractors are now taking it a step further in order to reach new demographics.

Goettl Air Conditioning is hiring new technicians, said Ken Goodrich, CEO, Goettl Air Conditioning, Tempe, Arizona. We seek prospects from many sources, including trade schools, competitors, out-of-state recruits, and veterans.

Some contractors offer their employees significant spiffs anytime they successfully recruit new hires.

We have increased our employees referral program to $5,000 when they refer a new employee, said Minnick.

Recruiting is a constant for many contractors, especially with there being a shortage. Therefore, many contractors are recruiting nonstop in order to grow their businesses for the 2017 year.

I have not stopped recruiting in the last six months, and I have no plans to slow down, said Steve Moon, owner, Moon Services Inc., Elkton, Maryland. I am targeting smart people with great attitudes.

Furthermore, many contractors are seeking out women for all positions.

Travis Smith, owner, Sky Heating and Cooling, Portland, Oregon, is always willing to consider female candidates.

Were always encouraging women to join our company, he said. I think there is a huge opportunity for women to join this industry. I know many stay-at-home wives have said they would feel more comfortable with a female technician.

Bloom is also recruiting women and has several working for him already.

We have always encouraged women to join our company, he said. Theyre perfect for our industry but are hard to find.

Once contractors find technicians, its key to their success to train them continuously as technology and policies are always changing. Whether conducted in-house or through a manufacturer, contractors are making sure technicians are properly and continuously trained. Trained and skilled technicians ensure customer satisfaction and retention.

Having the most well-trained technicians will reduce callbacks, increase the customer experience, and bring us referrals, said Smith.

Contractors are tasked with much more than just training technicians on new technologies and the technical aspects of their jobs.

Goettl Air Conditioning holds training for our technicians every day, Goodrich said. We train our technicians on new skills, technologies, communication, new services, and more. We also cross-train technicians with exceptional skills in areas to help train their colleagues, which helps raise the team to new standards. We also engage outside sources, such as industry specialists, to provide training.

Training is critical to Moons business. This year, he plans on expanding on that training even more.

We now not only pay for our technicians training but we pay them to go to training. We also are bringing in trainers in-house. Were encouraging our managers to be more hands-on in the field. This ensures we are all doing things the same way and have a consistent product across our markets and install crews.

So, if youre an owner looking to make 2017 your best year yet, with ample amounts of growth, focus on your online presence, reviews, referrals, training, and recruiting. Once youve mastered these facets of your business, youve set yourself up for great returns.

Publication date: 3/20/2017

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