It all started with a personal donation of $500 from Azizi, but the Allstate insurance office owner soon realized lots of people in his community needed financial aid. Azizi called on others to help those in the service industry who have found themselves out of work due to the closure of on-site dining at restaurants and other non-essential businesses. Donations came in from businesses and the local community. “A mortgage company joined hands and donated an additional $500, a nonprofit in town donated another $500 and a local grocery store helped and gave us 15% more for our money that we put together....

On Aug. 16, Blinken conferred with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi about Afghanistan. The State Department readout from the call was a single sentence that made oblique references to “developments” and “the security situation.” China’s summary of the call, by contrast, was 22 paragraphs long. According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry account of the conversation, Blinken expressed “hope that China will also play an important role” in stabilizing Afghanistan....

Like so many, I lost family members to assassinations, in my case my father and brother. Despite the oppression of women in my country, my family always supported my education, and I was motivated to study law to try to bring about justice. Even with tremendous obstacles and judgement, I succeeded in becoming the first female judge in my home province of Parwan. Yet I was still forced to make rulings that I didn’t agree with, due to local law....

The comment adds to those from other observers who have zeroed in on the role of military contractors. Saqib Qureshi, a visiting fellow at the London School of Economics, wrote a recent Newsweek op-ed entitled “Taliban Didn’t Win in Afghanistan, the Defense Contractors Did.” On Twitter, many responded to Taleb’s post by noting that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange said years ago the goal in Afghanistan “is to have an endless war not a successful war,” in order to “wash money out of the tax bases of the United States…into the hands of the transnational security elite....

At the epicenter of the world’s most lethal pandemic, South Africa’s hottest new business is hustling for corpses. President Thabo Mbeki may want to deny the extent of the AIDS crisis in his country–he has questioned even whether HIV causes the disease. But it is getting increasingly difficult for Mbeki to avert his face from the social turmoil that the AIDS epidemic is causing. So fast are AIDS victims piling up that often-unscrupulous entrepreneurs are offering cut-rate funerals faster than the government can keep tabs on them....

The grievous injury suffered by Earl Thomas Sunday in Arizona reaffirmed every player’s worst fears of playing while waiting for a contract, whether an extension or through a franchise-tag year. Khalil Mack held out during the preseason because of it, and Le’Veon Bell is holding out now because of it. This has been repeated constantly throughout all three players’ money fights. It caught Thomas. The “just get out there and play, you’re already making millions" crowd is shrugging through this....

Tomorrow morning–after 16 months of stumping and speechifying, of dissing and debating, of Budweiser and Crown Royal and Change You Can either Believe In or Work For–the neverending battle for the Democratic nomination might finally, well, end. Over Hillary Clinton’s dead body, that is. In the two weeks since last they clashed in Pennsylvania, Clinton and rival Barack Obama have flooded Indiana and North Carolina with a flurry of spending and sparring that underscores the stakes in today’s twin primaries: for Clinton, it’s a matter of staying alive; for Obama, it’s all about sealing the deal....

Lawyering today is an awkward blend of a business and a profession. Even conscientious private attorneys experience the tension between their economic obligations to their firms (to maximize revenues and profits) and their ethical obligations to their clients (to settle problems quickly and cheaply). Similar conflicts afflict many professions. Doctors often practice more medicine than their patients need, because it’s financially advantageous. Journalists, who are supposedly truth seekers, often take a selective and sensationalized view of the truth, because that’s what sells....

According to multiple reports - the first was on Comcast Sports Network Bay Area on Thursday night - the veteran Jones-Drew, an Oakland native, has agreed to a three-year contract with the Raiders. He is scheduled to undergo a physical with the team on Friday, reports have said. Jones-Drew's signing comes right on the heels of another premier free-agent running back, former Bronco Knowshon Moreno , signing a one-year, $3 million deal with the Miami Dolphins....

The service outage has reportedly affected 911 access and non-emergency lines, hospital systems, and other systems including ATM’s and card readers in the Nashville area and Middle Tennessee. On Saturday, a Walmart spokesperson confirmed to Newsweek that some of its stores in the area were affected by the internet outage. “Due to an AT&T outage in the area, some of our stores are experiencing temporary internet outages. We are actively working with local personnel to get our stores back online and apologize for any inconvenience this may cause” a Walmart spokesperson said on Saturday....

This is the latter. According to Pornhub, site traffic from Cleveland dropped nearly 50 percent at the end of Game 7. Of course it did; Cavs fans were occupied. MORE: The 13 worst choke jobs in Finals history Let’s focus on the positive: Not long after the game, traffic jumped 20 percent above the norm. Cavs fans returned with a vengeance. Congratulations to Cleveland fans of basketball and pornography alike....

But, in truth, the absence of the Dalai Lama would not altogether be a bad thing for Tibetan politics. Yes, His Holiness is the draw for much of the international publicity showered on the Tibetan cause, but this attention does little to advance Tibetan national interests. Most leaders in the developed world assuage their consciences by praising the man and his noble mission, all the while ignoring the Tibetan question in their policies....

“Notice, there are no post-election riots because the media have declared Biden the next president, and Biden declares himself president,” tweeted conservative commentator Mark Levin. “So, most of the looters, arsonists, rioters were, in fact, pro-Biden voters.” Comments like these reflect a widespread misunderstanding about Antifa. Antifa is not made up of supporters of the Democratic Party, even if it shares a hatred of the Donald Trump administration. It is a movement of anarchist-communist individuals, organizations and networks that seek the abolishment of the United States itself....

Attorney Robert Ray was involved in Trump’s defense during the Senate trial, which ended Wednesday with the president’s acquittal. Trump was impeached by the House on December 18, having allegedly attempted to pressure Ukraine into launching an investigation of former Vice President Joe Biden. In an interview on The Dan Abrams Show on SiriusXM, Ray agreed with host Abrams’s assertion that “putting Giuliani in charge of foreign policy” was a mistake....

Often these differences are mild enough or unobtrusive enough that they do not cause problems. Sometimes, however, age-inappropriate interests and behaviors can interfere with the person’s ability to fulfill their goals. When that happens, it’s possible to take constructive action. There are a number of interrelated reasons why people with autism are often intrigued by “childish” activities, TV shows, and behaviors—even as teenagers and adults. These stem from and include aspects of autism itself, but may also include socialization, education, and therapies that are commonly experienced by children with autism....

Toure has started just one competitive match under the former Bayern Munich coach, and was left out of City’s squad for the Champions League group stage. Seluk triggered something of a war of words with Guardiola when he accused the 45-year-old of “humiliating” his client, prompting the City manager to demand an apology from Toure. But Seluk has now stressed that there is no animosity between Guardiola and the Ivorian and says he is likely to stay at the Etihad Stadium until the end of the season....

Pandemics are just one example of a global shock that can cause massive hardship and loss in real time while unleashing long-term repercussions for people and economies. We saw this with the 2008 global food price crisis, which was triggered by trade barriers and high energy prices. As farming costs rose and food crops were diverted to biofuels, progress toward food security, health and prosperity all over the world was reversed....