News on Youtube Jul 7 2018

President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday, July 6, in Monguno, Borno, reiterated his determination to fish out and punish politicians who were instigating violence in some states for cheap political goals.

The president's senior special assistant on media and publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, said Buhari stated this at the closing events of the 2018 Army Day celebrations which was staged at the one-time stronghold of Boko Haram terrorists, Monguno, 136 kilometres from the state capital, Maiduguri.

According to the president, solution is being found to the deadly clashes between farmers and herdsmen, and whosoever is found culpable will be brought to justice.

While thanking the armed forces for keeping the country safe, President Buhari acknowledged that there were still challenges faced by the nation. He said: "This does not mean there are no challenges. There are pockets of violence in several states.

"Some deliberately instigated by disgruntled politicians who have lost all arguments and are desperate to cause mayhem as a way of seeking relevance. "We shall fish them out and punish them according to the provisions of the law.

The president noted that his administration had worked tirelessly to ensure and preserve the dignity and sanctity of life.

"When I was sworn in as the president and commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I promised that this administration would tackle the challenges of insecurity, poor economy and fight corruption.

"We are all witnesses to the fact that our once battered economy as a nation has exited recession and is once again vibrant. "Our nation is safe again, thanks to the efforts of our security agencies,'' he said.

President Buhari used the opportunity to reassure the world, Nigerians and the families of the remaining kidnapped Chibok girls and Leah Sharibu of the Dapchi girls' School that his administration would not relent in its efforts to see that "they are all released.

He also reassured all Nigerians that the issue of Farmers and Herdsmen clashes was being tackled and all those found culpable would be brought to justice.

He, however, enjoined all citizens to always be tolerant, loving and ready to give peace a chance.

President Buhari reiterated what he said to the Christian Association of Nigeria, Northern Chapter, on Thursday in Abuja, that none of our religions or cultures permitted the killing of one person by another.

Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno, who spoke at the occasion, said triumphantly that: "We have cut the rubicon of insurgency in the northeast.

The Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan Ali, commended the army for establishing a Motorcycle Battalion meant to enhance quick mobility and security in areas of unfavourable vehicular movements.

He also lauded the Air Force for setting up Rapid Response groups in the six geopolitical zones of the country. He assured that appropriate measures were being put in place to address security challenges across the country.

"The Armed Forces are currently handling Operation Delta Safe in the South-South; Operation Safe Haven in the north central and Operation Awatse to combat militant activities in the Arepo general area and other parts of the South-West.

"Recently, the Nigerian Army established Operation Whirl Stroke to tackle insecurity in the north central states,'' he added.

For more infomation >> I will fish out, punish sponsors of violence in states - Buhari - Duration: 4:20.

-------------------------------------------

First endangered bee in the United States named - Duration: 3:33.

 The bee could be disappearing for a number of reasons, according to Serina Jepson, Director of Endangered Species and Aquatic Programs for the Xerces Society

    "Disease and pesticides are the two biggest threats to the existence of the rusty patched bumblebee, compounded by loss of habitat," Jepson said

"Of additional concern is the widespread use of persistent, long-lasting, highly toxic insecticides within the range of the rusty patched bumblebee, which pose a threat to its continued existence

"  Colonies of the rusty patched bumblebee have decreased by at least 87 percent since the 1990s

The bee once thrived in 31 states across the eastern U.S. and the upper Midwest. They also flourished in parts of southern Canada

 Now, the bee occupies only 13 states: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and Wisconsin, along with one Canadian province

    Eric Lee-Mäder, the pollinator program co-director at the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, said the dwindling bee population could have a major impact on the fruits and vegetables produced for Americans to eat

 "Bumblebees are among the most widely recognized and well-understood group of native pollinators in North America and contribute to the pollination of food crops such as squash, melon, blueberry, cranberry, clover, greenhouse tomato and greenhouse pepper, as well as numerous wildflowers," Lee-Mäder said

 He also feels without the rusty patched bumblebee pollinating the various crops, the financial impact could be devastating

 "Native pollinators in the U.S. provide essential pollination services to agriculture which are valued at more than $9 billion annually," said Lee-Mäder

 There have been efforts to try to preserve the bee's habitat all over the country

 "We have already seen incredible leadership from the agricultural community in restoring and protecting hundreds of thousands of acres of habitat for the rusty patched bumblebee and other native pollinators," Lee-Mäder said

 Source: Fox News

For more infomation >> First endangered bee in the United States named - Duration: 3:33.

-------------------------------------------

Liberal states impose new individual mandate ahead of ObamaCare rollback - Duration: 4:41.

Liberal states impose new individual mandate ahead of ObamaCare rollback

Last year's sweeping Republican tax bill killed the federal tax penalty for individuals who refuse to get health insurance as mandated under ObamaCare.

But as that penalty disappears for Americans in January, a growing number of liberal states are moving to enact their own individual mandates requiring residents to purchase health insurance – a last-ditch effort to preserve a critical part of former President Barack Obama's 2010 health care law.

Since Republicans passed the tax bill in December, New Jersey, Vermont and Washington, D. , have passed laws enacting an individual mandate, joining Massachusetts, which famously enacted an individual mandate while Mitt Romney was governor in 2006.

Conservatives are railing against the moves.

"Just when you think the move for government control of health care couldn't get any worse, somehow it manages to," Christopher Jacobs, a conservative health policy expert, said when the D.C. Council passed its individual mandate requirement in June.

Under Obama's health care law, the individual mandate required most people to have health insurance meeting specific standards. The law imposed tax penalties for violations.

But under last year's final tax-reform bill, people no longer face a penalty for noncompliance as of January 2019.

"We eliminated the individual mandate that said that people had to buy government-approved insurance," Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., told Fox News in a recent interview. "In a sense, it blew a big hole in ObamaCare.".

The idea behind the mandate was to make sure young and healthy customers are buying into the system, to offset the cost of taking on more sick and elderly customers. The looming rollback has triggered warnings of more disruptions to the market. .

"The ACA was about standardizing, and now we are going back to more divergence," Heather Howard of Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs told the Washington Post. "It is much more of a patchwork quilt.".

Earlier this year, New Jersey Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy signed a bill enacting an individual mandate. It goes into effect Jan.

"Protecting the viability of the individual mandate is needed to maintain a foundation for the insurance market and to allow the success of the (Affordable Care Act) to continue," New Jersey state Sen. Joe Vitale, D-Middlesex, a champion of the bill, said.

Vermont passed legislation enacting an individual mandate in May, though the details are still being worked out and it won't take effect until 2020.

"We are committed to maintaining Vermont's low uninsured rate," a spokesman for Republican Gov. Phil Scott said at the time. Council in June passed its own individual mandate, which would require city residents to have health insurance coverage.

"Establishing an individual mandate here in the city will ensure that people will continue to have insurance," D.C. Council member Vincent Gray said.

It comes as Democrats are embracing protecting ObamaCare – specifically the requirement to provide coverage to people with pre-existing conditions -- as an issue in the 2018 elections.

Democratic leaders are also signaling that they will use it an issue in the upcoming battle over President Trump's next Supreme Court nominee, though Republicans blame the law for rising premiums. .