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The theme of following the Partys command dominated Chinas massive military parade held on July 30.

By Charlotte Gao for The Diplomat

August 01, 2017

On July 30, China held a massive military parade to commemorate Chinas Army Day marking the day the Communist Party of China (CPC) founded the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) in 1927 for the first time, in celebration of the PLAs 90th anniversary. Although China has conducted multiple military parades for various days, this parade is undoubtedly an unprecedented one to reaffirm the CPCs absolute control over the army. The theme of following the Partys command dominated the whole event.

During the parade, as Xi Jinping, Chinese president, the current general secretary of the CPC, and chairman of the Central Military Commission, was driven past ranks of troops, the troops shouted out loudly: [We] follow the Partys command; [we] can win the battle; [we] have excellent behavior! This is actually the newest goal and slogan for all the military to memorize and following the Partys command is obviously the priority.

The most striking and iconic signal on the day was that as shown in the picture the banner team held the flags sothat the Partys flag went right in the front of Chinese national flag, and the national flag was in front of the armys flag.

As if the scene itself was not clear enough, the host of China Central Television (CCTV) , which live-broadcasted the parade, made a further elaboration to the whole world:

Following the Partys command is the soul of the military The Partys banner is the armys banner; the Partys will is the armys will; the direction the Party leads is the direction the army advances Wherever the Party points, the army will attack

The next day, the picture depicting that the Partys flag leading the way was also widely publishedon the front page of most Chinese national media websites.

In addition to the theme of following the Partys command, following Chairman Xi was another significant agenda of the parade.

As The Diplomat notedregardingthe Hong Kongs military parade, held on June 30, the previous tradition insuch military parades was that the CMC chairmanwouldshout Greetings, comrades! to the troops and the troops would shout Greetings, leader! in return. Yetat the Hong Kong military parade, the protocol was slightly changed, rather unprecedentedly. Instead of shouting Greetings, leader! the comrades shouted Greetings, chairman! to Xi.

At that time, it was still unclear if the unusual change of wording was specifically designed for the Hong Kong parade or not. Now we know thatits a more long-term change, as the troops in the Army Day Parade also shouted Greetings, chairman! to Xi.

In this case, the Hong Kong commentator Ma Dingshengs analysis during the Hong Kongs military parade is proved right: Chairman demonstrated Xis paramount status, since there are many leaders, but only one chairman.

In other words, according to a Chinese national media commentator,[Greetings, chairman] embodies that the chairman of the Central Military Commission takes full responsibility [of the army] it highlights the important identity of the chairman of the Central Military Commission.

Charlotte Gao holds a MA degree in Asian Studies. Her research interests center around East Asian topics. She has worked in the past as a news editor, reporter, and writer for multiple traditional, online, and new media outlets.

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China's Military Parade Reaffirms Communist Party's Absolute Control Over Army - The Diplomat

Yesterday it was Hamburg. Today or tomorrow it could be anywhere else in Germany.

As I chronicle below, there have been a dozen terror-related incidents in Germany since January 2016, indicating that the problem may be at a tipping point as the number of fatal terror attacks in Western Europe has exploded in just the past few years.

And many of the recent problems are refugee-driven.

The attacker who killed one and injured seven at a supermarket in Hamburg Friday while shouting "Allah akbar" was a Palestinian born in the UAE who was in the country illegally and was scheduled for deportation.

He entered the country in 2015 during the massive rush of Syrian migrants, during which 900,000 entered the country.

Video taken at the scene of yesterday's attack shows him being taken under arrest and fending off the bystanders who subdued him:

Local media reported that the attacker was an Islamist already known to German authorities:

Link:
Germany's Refugee-Driven Terror Problem Out of Control After a Dozen Incidents Since Jan 2016 - PJ Media

Silicon Valley Business Journal

Laurene Powell Jobs' group buys control of The Atlantic Silicon Valley Business Journal Laurene Powell Jobs' Emerson Collective has agreed to buy control of The Atlantic, the magazine that her group's namesake, Ralph Waldo Emerson, helped to create 160 years ago. David G. Bradley, chairman of Atlantic Media, plans to keep a minority stake ... Laurene Powell Jobs, Steve Jobs' widow, makes splashy media dealNew York Post David Bradley is selling the Atlantic magazine to Laurene Powell Jobs's nonprofitWashington Post Laurene Powell Jobs, Philanthropist and Widow of Steve Jobs, Just Took Over The AtlanticGizmodo The Atlantic -Axios -Emerson Collective all 137 news articles »

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Laurene Powell Jobs' group buys control of The Atlantic - Silicon Valley Business Journal

Dave Sullivan places his ballot in a ballot box outside of the downtown Spokane Library on Monday, Nov. 7, 2016. COLIN MULVANY colinm@spokesman.com (Colin Mulvany / The Spokesman-Review)

If you havent voted yet and I dont have to be Carnac the Magnificent to know most of you havent it might be because you dont know enough about those unfamiliar names on the primary ballot.

An off-year election like Tuesdays primary is the kind that frequently draws new blood to the body politic. If Congress and the White House campaigns represent the Major Leagues of politics, city council and school board primaries might be like the Spokane Indians.

Most of these candidates will never make an appearance in the political equivalent of Safeco Field, but that doesnt mean they arent worth checking out now.

That can be more difficult than last year, when newspapers, airwaves and social media were overflowing with election coverage. But there is a website that will give Spokane-area voters some useful background information on candidates for municipal office.

CandidateVerification.org is a nonprofit with a bipartisan board, many of them veterans of different political battles. It asks candidates to submit to the kind of background checks that any employer might do on a potential employee a multi-state criminal check going back 10 years, a nationwide check of sex offender registries, plus county and federal civil records. It also verifies any education and employment history a candidate lists on a resume.

When the checks come back, the candidate is asked to give permission for the group to post the results online.

Lots of organizations ask candidates to supply information or fill out questionnaires, and the response is often spotty. Republican candidates dont respond to left-leaning groups and Democrats ignore right-leaning ones. And some candidates get so many questionnaires they refuse to do any.

By itself, CandidateVerification has no clout, Executive Director David Doud said. But a diverse array of groups rely on its background checks enough that candidates seeking support are either required or encouraged to sign up.

Its the pressure of our partners that really drives the process, Doud said.

That includes groups as different as the Spokane Home Builders and Spokane Realtors, faith-based We Believe We Vote, and Amplify, the new name for Progressive Majority of Washington.

Arthur Whitten, of the Home Builders, said the group requires a background check before it will endorse a candidate, and finds them especially helpful this year.

There are so many of these first-time candidates, he said. Its like endorsement insurance for our members.

Penny Lancaster, of We Believe We Vote, said the organization doesnt require it, but does recommend candidates get the background check. Those who do get extra credit in its rundown of where they stand on key issues. We appreciate what they are doing, she said.

E.J. Juarez, of Amplify, said they encourage candidates, especially new ones, to get the background checks so they know whats out there. The checks can reveal small mistakes in their resume, like a date thats off for an education certificate or job they held. It can also let a candidate know that information about a bankruptcy or that they dropped out of college could come up in a campaign.

Its not a game of gotcha, Juarez said. Its about helping people put their best foot forward and be honest with voters.

CandidateVerification has been concentrating on Spokane races lately, so its 2017 database currently has many of the primary candidates for local municipal offices as well as a smattering of other Eastern Washington candidates. They have to draw the line there, Doud said, because at $100 to $200 per background check, they dont have the money for school board or fire commissioner candidates. All their money comes from donations.

Doud hopes to grow the database in the period between the primary and the November general election.

The Spokesman-Review has compiled all of its coverage of the primary races in its Election Center. Go to http://www.spokesman.com and click on Election 2017 in the box just a little way down from the top of the page.

Spokane County Elections also has an online voter guide for primary candidates.

How did I know that most people reading this column havent cast their primary ballot?

Well, it mightve been an educated guess based on the fact primary elections in off years always have more people who dont vote than people who do. I could have gone with that under the not my first rodeo rule of political science.

But being a responsible journalist, I checked with the Spokane County Elections Office on Friday afternoon. It was reporting less than 14 percent of the ballots it sent out have come back.

Blaming the low numbers on a lack of information may be overly charitable. But it sounds better than saying voters are too lazy to put down their chilled beverage, get out of the hammock and mark the ballot.

Ballots must either be postmarked or deposited in a drop box by 8 p.m. Tuesday.

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Spin Control: Washington group checks candidate backgrounds for voters - The Spokesman-Review

MECCA: Malaysian haj pilgrims need not worry about moving around the Masjidil Haram (Grand Mosque) to perform religious rituals and acts of worship as the situation in the holy city is safe and under control.

Deputy Head of Malaysian Haj Delegation (Welfare) 2017, Nurrin Anuwar Shamsuddin said Tabung Haji (TH) had been working closely with the Malaysian Embassy in Riyadh and Consulate General in Jeddah to keep tabs of the situation and so far, no warning notice was issued to the pilgrims.

"The situation in Mecca is still under control, pilgrims are free to move around the Masjidil Haram ... no restriction so far.

"To all their families (in Malaysia), don't worry. InsyaAllah, everything is alright and under control," he told the Malaysian media at the Mecca TH headquarters at the Abraj AlJanadriyah Hotel here, Saturday.

Malaysia has condemned the attempted missile attack aimed at the holy city of Mecca and hope that the perpetrators would be brought to justice.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement on Friday said the abhorrent act, reportedly launched by Yemen's Houthi rebels, could threaten the safety of pilgrims.

The Saudi Defence Forces on Thursday (July 27) intercepted a ballistic missile, known as 'Burkan-1', 69km away from Mecca at Al-Wasliya area of Yaif Province.

According to international media reports, the Houthis on Friday confirmed the launch of a Burkan-1 ballistic missile into Saudi Arabia but said it targeted King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, the kingdom's busiest airport. No casualties were reported as a result of the attack.

Meanwhile, Nurrin Anuwar also advised the Malaysian pilgrims to follow the schedules set by the TH and to be on high alert of their surroundings.

"Alhamdulilah, TH is proud to say that Malaysian pilgrims are among the best in terms of discipline, knowledge and following instructions as long as they adhere to all instructions, they will be fine.

"If there is an incident or rally, stay away! We are here to perform religious obligation, so let's just focus on doing that," he said.

Nurrin Anuwar said the TH also had its own patrol team to monitor security of Malaysian haj pilgrims in the holy city.

"Our patrol team members have experience working with security forces and they know how to assess the situation out there," he added. Bernama

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Security in Mecca under control: TH - The Sun Daily