MANILA (TIP): A strong magnitude 6.7 earthquake shook the southern Philippines on November 14, the US Geological Survey said, sending people fleeing buildings and causing part of a ceiling inside a shopping mall to collapse. No tsunami threat was issued after the quake struck off Sarangani province on the main southern island of Mindanao at a depth of 78 kilometres (48 miles) at 0814 GMT, the USGS said in a statement.
There were no immediate reports of casualties but the quake was felt across a wide area of the mountainous island. “I think it was the strongest earthquake I’ve ever experienced,” Keeshia Leyran, 27, told AFP from Davao City, about 200 kilometres (124 miles) from the epicentre, where she was attending a conference.
“People around me were panicking and running to go outside. There are hundreds of people here at the event, so I was more scared of a stampede happening to be honest.”
A photo shared on Facebook and verified by AFP showed a collapsed ceiling inside a shopping mall in General Santos City, less than 100 kilometres from the epicentre.
About 30 students at a high school in the city were treated for breathing difficulties due to panic following the quake, said Adrian Imbong, an emergency medical services worker.
The 58-year-old Raquel Balabawas was with her grandchildren at a primary school in General Santos City when they felt the ground move.
“We were in an open field but the earthquake was so strong that the children got really scared and started crying,” Balaba told AFP.
Some schools in Jose Abad Santos municipality in Davao Occidental province reported cracks in their buildings, said Jason Sioco, a member of the local disaster agency. But he said there had been no reports of injuries or “substantial damage”.
“Power and telephone signals were cut off for a while but electricity is back on,” he said.
Quakes are a daily occurrence in the Philippines, which sits along the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, an arc of intense seismic as well as volcanic activity that stretches from Japan through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin. (AFP)
Year: 2023
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Magnitude 6.7 quake shakes southern Philippines
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China ready to be ‘partner and friend’ of US: Xi
SAN FRANCISCO (TIP): China is “ready to be a partner and friend of the United States,” President Xi Jinping told US business leaders on November 16, as concerns mount over the country’s slowing economy. If one country sees the other as a main competitor and most consequential geopolitical challenge, “this will only lead to wrong policymaking, misguided actions and unwanted results,” he told a dinner on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.
Xi’s remarks in San Francisco came hours after his highly anticipated talks with US President Joe Biden, where both men pledged to reduce tensions as they met for the first time in a year.
The two sides announced a host of agreements after talks at the luxury Filoli Estate, starting with the reactivation of a high-level military hotline. “We should build more bridges and pave more roads for people-to-people interactions,” Xi told an audience of around 400 business leaders, government officials and academics. (AFP) -
Croatia cracks down on migrants as Europe beefs up border checks
BREGANA, CROATIA (TIP): It took Croatia years to finally enter into Europe’s passport-free travel zone that promised to ease access for other European nationals travelling to the country and boost its tourism-driven economy. But less than a year since its border crossings with European Union peers were dismantled, temporary checks have been reintroduced amid a surge in illegal migration across the region. Neighbouring Slovenia re-introduced checks along its borders last month, following similar moves by Italy and other EU countries.
“People ask themselves what kind of fence could stop these people who passed so many frontiers and countries,” said Perica Matijevic, the head of the Krnjak municipality near Croatia’s border with Bosnia that has been a hot-spot for crossings. Matijevic, who referred to a registration camp for incoming migrants that is being prepared in the area, is not alone in his weariness.
Locals in the scarcely populated area complain that groups of migrants — almost all of whom are young men — moving through the area have only increased anxieties.
“One should feel safe in his own house but migrants pass through our yards … there were thefts, it’s not pleasant,” said economics student Sara Matijevic from the village of Dugi Dol, close to where the camp will open.
Croatia, which guards one of EU’s longest external land borders, has long been a magnet for illegal migrants hoping to enter the bloc. Over the years, the country gained an infamous reputation for fiercely patrolling its borders, leading to accusations that its authorities used violence to push back EU-bound refugees.
In 2021, Zagreb was forced to admit as much following the publication of an investigation by major European media outlets that uncovered alleged systematic targeting of refugees by special units in Croatia, Greece and Romania. Atefa, a 29-year-old Afghan refugee who did not provide her surname for security reasons, said Croatian police treated her and eight fellow migrants “like animals”.
Along with forcing them to collect garbage and pouring water in their shoes, officers groped women and made obscene noises, she told AFP. (AFP) -
24 die at Al Shifa hospital, Israel allows only 2 fuel trucks a day into Gaza
Gaza City (TIP): The Hamas-controlled health ministry said on November 17 that 24 patients at a hospital in war-torn Gaza had died within 48 hours due to power outages, as Israeli forces searched the complex for Hamas hideouts. The announcement came shortly after Israel agreed to a US request to allow two fuel trucks a day into Gaza, following a UN warning that the shortages had halted aid deliveries and put people at risk of starvation. The situation was dire at the Al-Shifa hospital, the largest in Gaza, which Israel’s army said it was searching for a third day for suspected hideouts of fighters from the Islamist movement’s armed wing.
“Twenty-four patients… have died over the last 48 hours” at Al-Shifa hospital “as vital medical equipment has stopped functioning because of the power outage”, Gaza health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said.
Israel’s national security adviser says the country’s war cabinet has agreed to allow two tanker trucks of fuel to enter the Gaza Strip each day – a quantity he described as “very minimal”.
Speaking at a news conference on Friday, Tzachi Hanegbi said the fuel would be allowed for Gaza’s communications system and water and sewage services.
He said the aim is to prevent the spread of disease without disrupting Israel’s ability to continue its war against the Hamas militant group.
Hanegbi said the fuel amounted to roughly 2% to 4% of the normal quantities of fuel that entered Gaza before the war erupted on 7 October.
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) earlier said its aid trucks were unable to enter Gaza from Egypt for a second straight day due to the lack of fuel and a near-total communications blackout.
UNRWA said it would be unable to “manage or coordinate humanitarian convoys” from Friday because of the telecommunications outage.
“The situation in Al-Shifa is catastrophic” for patients, displaced people and health workers who are crammed inside without electricity, water and food, the hospital’s director, Mohammed Abu Salmiya, told AFP on the phone later during a brief restoration of communications.
Israel earlier said it found the body of another hostage in a building adjacent to Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital. The hospital has been the focus of clashing narratives over who is to blame for the widespread suffering of Palestinian civilians during the war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP) -
Russian artist who swapped supermarket price tags with antiwar messages gets 7 years in prison in latest crackdown on free speech
TALLINN, Estonia (TIP): A Russian court on Thursday convicted an artist and musician for swapping supermarket price tags with antiwar messages, sentencing her to seven years in prison in one of the highest-profile cases involving the recent crackdown on free speech.
Sasha Skochilenko was arrested in her native St. Petersburg in April 2022 and charged with spreading false information about the military after replacing price tags with ones that decried Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“The Russian army bombed an arts schools in Mariupol. Some 400 people were hiding in it from the shelling,” one read. Another said, “Russian conscripts are being sent to Ukraine. Lives of our children are the price of this war.”
A customer at the supermarket who found the slogans reported them to authorities.
Skochilenko’s arrest came about a month after authorities adopted a law effectively criminalizing any public expression about the war that deviates from the official Kremlin line. The legislation has been used in a widespread crackdown on opposition politicians, human rights activists and ordinary citizens critical of the Kremlin, with many receiving lengthy prison terms. Skochilenko, 33, has not denied replacing the price tags but rejected the accusation of spreading knowingly false information.
She did not intend to disparage the military, but rather wanted to stop the fighting, her lawyer Yana Nepovinnova told The Associated Press last week.
“She is a very empathetic, peace-loving person. To her, in general, the word ‘war’ is the most terrible thing imaginable, as is the suffering of people,” Nepovinnova said.
Russian independent news site Mediazona quoted Skochilenko as saying in her final statement in court Thursday that the case against her was “weird and ridiculous” — so much so that officials in the facility where she is detained “open their eyes widely and exclaim: ‘Is this really what people are being imprisoned for now?’”
She also alleged that an investigator working on her case even quit his job, telling one of her lawyers that he “didn’t join the Investigative Committee to work on cases like (the one) against Sasha Skochilenko.”
Addressing the judge in a courtroom full of supporters, Skochilenko said: “Everyone sees and knows that it’s not a terrorist you’re trying. You’re not trying an extremist. You’re not trying an political activist, either. You’re trying a pacifist.”
Her supporters applauded, Mediazona reported, adding that after the verdict was announced and Skochilenko was led away, they gathered in a hallway, chanting her name.
Skochilenko has been held for nearly 19 months before her trial, meaning that her overall term will be reduced by more than two years, since every day served in a pre-trial detention center counts as 1.5 days of time served in a regular penal colony.
But she has struggled while in custody due to health problems, including a congenital heart defect, bipolar disorder and celiac disease, requiring a gluten-free diet, her lawyers and her partner have said. (AP) -
Blaze in north China coal mine company claims 25 live
TAIYUAN (TIP): Twenty-five people have died and dozens sent to hospital after a fire tore through a building in northern China’s Shanxi province on November 16, AFP reported quoting state media. The fire broke out Thursday morning at a building of a coal mine company in north China’s Shanxi Province, the Shanxi branch of the National Mine Safety Administration was cited as saying by the Chinese news agency Xinhua.
The fire broke out at 6:50 a.m. at the four-story Yongju Coal Industry Joint Building in China’s top coal-producing hub of Shanxi, Reuters quoted the state broadcaster China Central Television as reporting. The cause of the fire was still under investigation, it added.
The fire ripped through the second floor of the five-story building located in Lishi District of Lyuliang City. Rescue efforts are underway, according to local authorities Xinhua said
The building belongs to the private Yongju coal mine company, which has a production capacity of 120 tonnes a year, the report added. (AFP) -
Indo-Canadian Sikh man, his 11-year-old son shot dead by rival gangsters outside gas station
EDMONTON (TIP): An Indian-origin Sikh man, described as a “higher-level figure” in the organized crime scene in Canada, and his 11-year-old son were shot and killed in what police have called a “sick and twisted” escalation of gang violence in the city of Edmonton. Harpreet Singh Uppal, 41, and his son were gunned down outside a gas station on Thursday afternoon in a brazen, daytime shooting, Edmonton Police Service acting superintendent Colin Derksen told the media on Friday. The boy’s young friend, who was in Uppal’s car at the time, survived with no physical injuries. Derksen said police do not know whether the shooter or shooters knew children were in the car when they began following Uppal. “But what we do know, sadly, is that once the shooter or the shooters learned that the son was there, they intentionally shot and killed him,” the Edmonton Journal quoted Derksen as saying.
He said killing children was once a “line in the sand” gang members refused to cross, but that is changing.
“That is sick and twisted,” Derksen said. “I think most gang members would agree.”
Police have not released the name of the boy, pending autopsy.
Derksen said a suspect vehicle—a stolen 2012 BMW X6—was located on fire north of Beaumont. No one was located inside the vehicle and no injuries were reported because of the fire.
As of Friday morning, police had made no arrests and identified no suspects.
Derksen said Uppal was a “higher-level figure” in Edmonton’s organized crime scene but declined to say if he was affiliated with any specific groups, the report said.
Uppal was facing charges related to cocaine possession and trafficking, as well as illegal possession of body armor. A trial was set to start in April 2024, media reported.
He was also charged with assault with a weapon and unauthorized possession of a firearm in relation to a case from March 2021. The Crown continued those proceedings in February, it said.
Derksen also declined to say whether police believe the shooting was retaliation for other violence, or whether retaliation for Uppal’s killing is expected.
Sources have told the media that Uppal was a prominent Brothers Keepers associate.
His murder is believed to be part of a war between the UN gang and the BK.
While originating in the Vancouver area, the tit-for-tat slayings are now happening across the country. The day before Uppal was killed, BC UN gangster Parmvir Chahil was shot to death in Toronto. Media reports said the killings may be linked. Derksen said it was too early to say, “if there’s a connection” to violence in other cities, “or if there is, how far-reaching it is”.
Police said the details of the shooting were immediately posted to social media and detectives are hoping to speak with anyone with information. Anyone with security or dash camera footage that was active in the area at the time is also encouraged to contact police.
Derksen confirmed Uppal and his family were the targets of a 2021 shooting in which a gunman fired through the window of a restaurant where they were having dinner.
The lone man charged in the case—Harsh Jindal, who police claimed was the getaway driver—had his charges dropped last month, court records show.
The Alberta Crown Prosecution Service said the charges were stayed after a preliminary inquiry led prosecutors to conclude there was “no longer a reasonable likelihood of conviction”.
“With a heavy heart, I contemplate how it’s conceivable for a child to be killed in such a tragic manner like this,” Alberta’s premier, Danielle Smith, said in a statement. “Like many of you, I am concerned with the rise in gun violence in our neighborhoods.”
Edmonton, like other metropolitan areas across Canada, is grappling with an increase in shootings and gang-related crimes. But the death of a child has intensified police efforts to solve Thursday’s daylight shooting.
“We’re going to give it everything we got,” said Derksen. “We’re pulling out all the stops. We lost a child here. -
Indian American Sikh Jag Bains creates history with ‘Big Brother’ win
LOS ANGELES (TIP): Jag Bains, an entrepreneur and truck company owner from Washington, created history by becoming the first Sikh-American to win the reality show “Big Brother”. The 25-year-old TV personality defeated Matt Klotz, a professional swimmer, and DJ Bowie Jane to take the top spot at the 100-day-long season.
Bains was the first Sikh-American to enter the “Big Brother” house in the US and is now the first Sikh-American houseguest to win the US version of the international reality series in its 25th season.
“Big Brother” announced the results of the finale on its official handle on microblogging site X. Bains will be taking home a prize money of USD 750,000. “And that’s our season!! Congrats and thank you to our #BB25 houseguests!” “To be able to win this with integrity and loyalty the whole time is exactly what I wanted to do,” Bains told host Julie Chen-Moonves at the end of the episode. Bains is now the third straight winner to make history on the US version of “Big Brother”. In 2021, Xavier Prather became the first Black individual to win the game, while last year Taylor Hale was announced as the first Black woman to win. “Big Brother” season 25 aired in the US on CBS. -
Indian-origin five family members die in London house fire
LONDON (TIP): Five members of a family, including three children, have died in a house fire in west London, the Metropolitan Police said on Monday, November 13, as it announced an investigation into the tragic incident.
While the victims are yet to be named by the police, local reports suggest the family was of Indian heritage and had been celebrating Diwali before the fire broke out on Sunday night.
A sixth victim remains unaccounted for in the fire and one male remains in hospital with injuries that are not thought to be life-threatening.
“My thoughts are with the loved ones of those who very sadly lost their lives in this tragic incident,” said Met Police Chief Superintendent Sean Wilson, responsible for policing in Hounslow where the fire occurred.
“I don’t underestimate the impact that this will have on the wider community and beyond. I understand that there will be a demand for answers and my officers are working to establish exactly what has happened,” he said.
Police said they were called at about 2230 local time on Sunday to reports of a fire at a residential address in Channel Close, Hounslow, where its officers attended alongside several London Fire Brigade firefighters and the London Ambulance Service (LAS). The bodies of five victims were found inside the property and a sixth person is currently unaccounted for. “It is believed that all five are members of the same family. One man left the house prior to the arrival of emergency services. He was taken to hospital by LAS. His injuries are not believed to be life-threatening,” reads the Met Police statement.
The police said nearby properties of the area were evacuated as a precaution and enquiries into the cause of the fire are ongoing. At this early stage in the investigation there have been no arrests, the Met Police said.
“We sent a number of resources including five ambulance crews, an advanced paramedic, two clinical team managers, two incident response officers and members of our Hazardous Area Response Team,” LAS said in a statement. Dileep Singh, 54, from Manchester, told reporters that his brother-in-law was at the property with his wife, three children and two adult guests. Singh told the ‘Evening Standard’ newspaper: “I received a call and came as soon as I could with my wife. We are desperate for information. My brother-in-law is alive, but I don’t know what has happened to everyone else. “We are desperate. I was told the fire came from outside from a bin. We are going to the hospital to try to get more information.”
It is reported that the family had moved to the house in London relatively recently from Belgium. -
Indian American Niraj Antani running for US Congress in Ohio
COLUMBUS, OH (TIP): Ohio’s first Hindu and Indian American State Senator Niraj Antani (R-6) Tuesday, November 14, announced a campaign for Congress in Ohio’s 2nd Congressional District “to be a warrior for our community’s values.”
The youngest Hindu and Indian American state or federal elected official in the United States would be contesting the Republican primary on March 19, 2024, for the seat currently held by Congressman Brad Wenstrup. Wenstrup announced Thursday that he will not seek re-election and will retire from Congress.
Antani thanked Wenstrup “for his many years of dedicated service to our nation, both in Congress and as an American hero serving as a combat surgeon in the Army.” Antani would become the youngest Hindu and Indian American Member of Congress in the nation’s history and the first Republican Hindu Member of Congress in the country’s history, according to a statement from his campaign.
“As the 1st Hindu and Indian American State Senator in Ohio history, I’ve worked hard every day to ensure every Ohioan has an opportunity to achieve their American Dream,” he stated. “Now, I am running for Congress to be a warrior for our community’s values and fight against those who seek to wreak havoc on us.”
Antani also vowed to “stand steel-spined for the policies that benefit our community and strongly oppose those who kowtow to those against us.”
Ohio’s 2nd Congressional District spans 16 counties across about 150 miles in southern Ohio. The district’s partisan voter index leans significantly Republican.
Born and raised in southern Ohio, Antani is serving his first term in the Ohio Senate, having previously served three terms as State Representative in the Ohio House of Representatives.
He has received numerous awards from organizations for veterans, community college, small businesses, and more. Antani is a graduate of Ohio State University. -
Four Indian Americans among 32 Rhodes Scholars win Rhodes Scholarships
Mrinalini S Wadhwa, Suhaas Bhat, Nayantara K Arora and Aishani Aatresh are the four Indian Americans among 32 to win the Rhodes Scholarship. WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): Four Indian Americans are among 32 Rhodes Scholars chosen from the United States who will go to Oxford University in England in October 2024 to pursue graduate degrees with scholars from over 70 countries. The four Indian American students among 32 selected from 862 candidates endorsed by 249 different colleges and universities in 16 US districts are Mrinalini S Wadhwa, Suhaas Bhat, Nayantara K Arora and Aishani Aatresh. “They inspire us already with their accomplishments, but even more by their values-based leadership and selfless ambitions to improve their communities and the world,” said Ramona L. Doyle, American Secretary of the Rhodes Trust, announcing their names.
Rhodes Scholarships provide all expenses for two or three years of study at the University of Oxford—ranked the #1 university in the world in some global rankings—and may allow funding in some instances for four years, according to a press release. Dr. Doyle called the Rhodes Scholarships, “the oldest and best-known award for international study, and arguably the most famous academic award available to American college graduates.”
Wadhwa from New York City is a senior at Columbia University where she majors in History and Mathematics. She is co-editor-in-chief of multiple student journals, including the Columbia Journal of Asia, which she co-founded. She has won fellowships to support research in archives around the world, including in India, France, and the United Kingdom, and is current chair of the Columbia History Association. Mrinalini also co-founded a program providing a three-year English curriculum for low-income Indian students in New Delhi.
At Oxford, Mrinalini will pursue an MPhil in Modern European History.
Suhaas Bhat from Marshfield, Wisconsin, is a senior at Harvard University majoring in Social Studies and Physics. He co-founded an organization at Harvard that provides peer-facilitated group psychotherapy to students.
He has developed machine learning models for designing novel drugs. He helped organize Fossil Fuel Divest Harvard, resulting in the university divesting its endowment from the fossil fuel industry.
He has eight peer-reviewed publications and was selected as part of the Junior 24 cohort for Phi Beta Kappa. He has worked as a machine learning researcher at DE Shaw Research, American Family Insurance, UbiquiTx, and the Church and Chatterjee labs at Harvard and Duke, respectively.
At Oxford, he will pursue an MSc in Mathematical Modeling and Scientific Computing and an MSc in International Health and Tropical Medicine.
Nayantara K. Arora from Portland, Oregon, is a senior at the University of Oregon, Clark Honors College, where she majors in Neuroscience, with minors in Global Health and Chemistry.
She conducts research in two areas: global health biomarkers in Tunisia and the relationship between the vasculature and Alzheimer’s disease. She is a Stamps Scholar, Phi Beta Kappa Public Service Scholar, and has traveled to Israel, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Ghana, and the UK to pursue interests in global health.
Nayantara is currently an intern with the State Department, and produces a podcast dedicated to uplifting immigrant youth stories, plays the violin, and loves learning new languages.
At Oxford, Nayantara will pursue an MSc in Modelling for Global Health and MSc in International Health and Tropical Medicine. Aishani Aatresh from Saratoga, California, is a senior at Harvard College where she is majoring in complex biosocial systems. Aishani is also a fellow at the Program on Science, Technology & Society at the Kennedy School of Government, where she balances research in preventing infectious diseases with a commitment to global public health. During the global pandemic, she worked with the New York City health and hospital system emergency response and then undertook studies to understand the dynamics of COVID-19 with the global Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations.
She worked as a computational immuno-engineer with companies to develop monoclonal antibody therapies against human disease targets. Aishani tutors at the Harvard College Writing Center.
At Oxford, she plans to complete an MPhil degree in Nature, Society and Environmental Governance.
With the latest selections, 3,642 Americans have won Rhodes Scholarships, representing 327 colleges and universities. Since 1976, women have been eligible to apply, and 663 American women have now won the coveted scholarship.
The total value of the Scholarship averages approximately $75,000 per year, and up to as much as approximately $250,000 for Scholars who remain at Oxford for four years in certain departments.
The Scholarships were created in 1902 by the Will of Cecil Rhodes and are provided in partnership with the Second Century Founders, John McCall MacBain OC and The Atlantic Philanthropies. -
Indian American Shakuntla L. Bhaya is appointed to the Council of Administrative Conference
WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): President Biden has named Indian American lawyer Shakuntla L. Bhaya to the Council of the Administrative Conference of the United States. The independent federal agency is charged with convening expert representatives from the public and private sectors to recommend improvements to administrative processes and procedures.
The first South Asian Indian to be admitted to the Delaware Bar Association, she has been working towards “diversity, equity, and inclusion in the legal profession and in politics,” the White House said in a press release announcing the appointment. Co-owner of a statewide law firm, her “practice focuses on representing individuals who are seriously injured as a result of businesses and people making unsafe decisions.” She has been a member of Governor Carney’s Judicial Nominating Commission for the past seven years. In addition to practicing law, she is involved in Delaware politics and is currently a member of the Delaware Democratic Party’s State Executive Committee. She is past president of the Delaware Trial Lawyers Association, and “continues to be involved in protecting consumers’ 7th Amendment Right to a jury trial and access to courts,” the White House said. A member of the American Association for Justice and American Civil Liberties Union, she is involved in helping pro-choice democratic women become elected to office, as well as fighting for rights for the LGBTQ+ community and helping members of her community to adopt children, seek legal redress when discriminated in the workplace, and permit people to marry. Bhaya is a graduate of Northeastern University School of Law.
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Five Indian Americans named to Time Magazine’s Inaugural List of Influential Leaders Driving Business to Real Climate Action
NEW YORK (TIP): The list, which draws attention to the people who are shaping and leading climate action, comes at a critical moment, ahead of the 2023 U.N. Climate Change Conference. Five Indian Americans are named in ‘TIME100 Climate,’ the magazine’s inaugural list of “the world’s most influential leaders driving business to real climate action,” released today (Nov. 16). While “climate leadership is embedded across all of our coverage today,” Time believes that “more could be done to draw attention to the people who are shaping and leading climate action.” The list, which the magazine calls “a community,” comes at a critical moment, ahead of the 2023 U.N. Climate Change Conference. Apart from being a community, the list is also “an argument for how we see the future,” Time says, “because we believe progress for the planet will come from the engagement with and leadership with the business world.”
Geeta Aiyer, founder and president of Boston Common Asset Management, Rajiv J. Shah, president of The Rockefeller Foundation, Ajay Banga, who began his five-year term as World Bank Group president in June, Jigar Shah, the director of the U.S. Department of Energy Loan Programs Office, and Manoj Sinha, CEO and co-founder of Husk Power Systems (HPS) are the five Indian Americans named to Time Magazine’s Inaugural List of Influential Leaders Driving Business to Real Climate Action.
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Mom to daughter rules
By Rishi Singh RULES TO TEACH YOUR DAUGHTER
1. Make your bed every day, even if it’s right before you get in it.
2. Don’t wear holey underwear…in case you’re in an accident and they cut your clothes off.
3. Travel light through life. Keep only what you need.
4. It’s okay to cry when you’re hurt. It’s also okay to smash (some) things; but, wash your face, clean your mess, and get up off the floor when you’re done. You don’t belong down there.
5. If you’re going to curse, be clever. If you’re going to curse in public, know your audience.
6. Seek out the people and places that resonate with your soul.
7. Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.
8. 5-second rule. Only if it’s just dirt. There are worse things in a fast-food cheeseburger.
9. Happiness is not a permanent state. Wholeness is. Don’t confuse these.
10. If you’re staying more than one night, unpack your bag.
11. Never walk through an alley alone.
12. Be less sugar, more spice, and only as nice as you’re able to without compromising yourself.
13. Can’t is a cop-out.
14. Hold your heroes to a high standard. Be your own hero.
15. If you can’t smile with your eyes, don’t smile. Insincerity is nothing to aspire to.
16. Never lie to yourself.
17. Your body, your rules.
18. If you have an opinion, you better know why.
19. Practice your passions.
20. Ask for what you want. The worst thing they can say is ‘no’ badly.
21. Wish on stars and dandelions, then get to work to make them happen.
22. Stay as sweet as you are.
23. Fall in love often. Particularly with ideas, art, music, literature, food and far-off places.
24. Fall hard and forever in love with nothing but yourself.
25. Say Please, Thank You, and Pardon Me, whenever the situation warrants it.
26. Reserve “I’m sorry” for when you truly are.
27. Naps are for grown-ups, too.
28. Question everything, except your own intuition.
29. You have enough. You are enough.
30. You are amazing! Don’t let anyone ever make you feel you are not. If someone does….walk away. You deserve better.
31. No matter where you are, you can always come home.
32. Be happy and remember your roots, family is EVERYTHING.
33. Say what you mean and mean what you say.
34. No one will ever love you more than I do. That’s what good moms do.
35. Be kind; treat others how you would like them to treat you.
36. If in doubt, remember whose daughter you are and straighten your crown👑
(Rishi Singh is a retired Air India official)
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Dr. Jagdish Gupta bestowed President Gold Medal by the Brooklyn Medical Society in a Bicentennial Year Honor
BROOKLYN, NY (TIP): The Medical Society of the County of Kings (MSCK), Brooklyn’s oldest scientific organization, honored Dr. Jagdish K. Gupta with the President Gold Medal, inducting him into its Prestigious President-Club. The County Society was celebrating its 174th President’s Dinner at Dyker Beach Golf Club, culminating in a grand finale to its Bicentennial Year Celebrations. MSCK President Dr. Madhu Gudavalli introduced the guest of honor, Dr. Gupta, President of the Association of Indians in America – (AIA-NY chapter), and invited 14 past presidents of the society, along with Dr. Parag Mehta, past President of the Medical Society of the State, to honor Dr Gupta with the 174th President Gold Medal. Dr. Robert Frankle, Chairman of the Board of the Medical Society of the State of New York, presented the plaque-award to Dr. Gupta. Additional citations from NYS Senator Andrew Gounardes and Assemblyman Lester Chang were presented to Dr Gupta by Dr. Lance Austein, past President, and Dr. Donald Moore, past President and Vice Chairman of MSCK. Mrs. Meena Gupta was presented with the Golden Charm as the 174th First Lady. While accepting the honor with humility, Dr. Gupta reflected on the highlights of the MSCK’s Bicentennial Year Celebrations that started last year marking 200 years of its advocacy, dedication, and patient care. Proclamations at the state Assembly and City Council had declared May 25, 2022 as the “Bicentennial Celebration Day for MSCK.” Another notable achievement of MSCK involved a collaborative session with other New York counties and MSSNY at the iconic Brooklyn Borough Hall. A video message from NYS Senate Majority Leader Hon. Andrea Stewart-Cousins and a personal session with NYS Health Committee Chairman, Hon. Gustav Rivera, and six other Assembly members emphasized opposition to the Wrongful Death Liability Expansion Bill. The successful veto of the bill by Governor Kathy Hochul marked a rare achievement against the trial lawyers’ association.
The prestigious event was chaired by Dr. Neeraj Acharya, Past President and Treasurer of MSCK, and unfolded under the guidance of Dr. Sherman Dunn, Chairman of the MSCK Board, and Dr. Gudavalli, the current President. The keynote address by Dr. Sanjiv Chopra on “Reflections on Lasting Happiness and Living with Purpose” received a standing ovation. An exhibition curated by County Historian, Dr. Moore, displayed historical artifacts, The dinner event concluded with a cake-cutting ceremony, where the past Presidents of the MSCK and other prominent guests joined Dr. Jagdish Gupta to celebrate his induction into the Board of Trustees of the Academy of Medicine of Brooklyn.
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Legislator Drucker Celebrates Success of New York State Governor’s Cup 2023 Cricket Championships
EAST MEADOW, N.Y. (TIP): Nasau County Legislator Arnold W. Drucker (D – Plainview) congratulated Imran Pasha, Ali Zar, and ZAR Sports for the success of the New York State Governor’s Cup 2023 Cricket Tournament, which was played at Eisenhower Park on Sunday, Oct. 22. The event came at a time when cricket is growing in popularity and importance in Nassau County – earlier this fall, Nassau County won a bid to host the 2024 International Cricket Council (ICC)’s Men’s T20 World Cup at Eisenhower Park.
“Cricket is one of the world’s most popular sports, and it is wonderful to see that Nassau County is leading the way as interest in it grows across America,” Legislator Drucker said. “Thank you to everyone who worked so diligently to make this event a tremendous success.”
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Senator Liu inducts Flushing resident, Michael Louis Vulcano , into New York Senate Veterans Hall of Fame
FLUSHING, NY (TIP): State Senator John Liu inducted Flushing resident Michael Louis Vulcano into the New York State Senate Veterans Hall of Fame on Sunday, November 12. The Hall of Fame was established in 2005 to honor and recognize outstanding veterans from the Empire State who have distinguished themselves in both military and civilian life. State Senator John Liu stated, “Corporal Michael Louis Vulcano is a testament to the resilience, sacrifice and indomitable spirit of the Greatest Generation. He nobly answered the call of our country at a time of tremendous uncertainty and worldwide conflict, and he served honorably alongside his brothers in arms. His induction into the Veterans Hall of Fame is just one small way we can thank him and his family for his tremendous service to our nation.”
Michael Louis Vulcano stated, “I extend my sincere thanks to Senator John Liu for the honor of being inducted into the Veterans Hall of Fame. It was a privilege to serve my country, and I would like to thank my family for always being there for me, and my fellow servicemen and women in the military who served alongside me in our country’s greatest hour.”
Michael Louis Vulcano served in the United States Marines and achieved the rank of Corporal. Mr. Vulcano is a native New Yorker and the son of Italian immigrant parents from Calabria Italy, who settled in Brooklyn with himself and his eight siblings. A proud family man, he is a son, brother, father, grandfather, and a great-grandfather. A member of the Greatest Generation, Mr. Vulcano is also a proud World War II veteran. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Mr. Vulcano answered his Nation’s call at the age of 19. From Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, as a member of the 2nd Marine Battalion Company B, he boarded a ship that would take him and his fellow soldiers to islands he had never heard of in the Pacific. He fought in two of the fiercest battles of WWII, the Battle of Okinawa, and the Battle of Tarawa Island. The number of souls lost in these two battles is staggering. Mr. Vulcano achieved the rank of Corporal before being honorably discharged and returning to his home in Brooklyn to once again join his parents and eight other siblings.
He never talks about the war, or of his journey on ships that were tossed and turned in tumultuous storms at sea. Recently his usual happy-go-lucky attitude turned somber, saying that often he awakes in the middle of the night to memories of the horror of war and the faces of friends that he lost. He goes back to sleep hoping that those thoughts and the sadness they bring will disappear. And when they do, they are replaced by the happiness that his family gives him. Mr. Vulcano married Phyllis Russo to whom he was happily married for 64 years. They had two daughters, Denise and Michele, and he is the proud grandfather of Ashley, and great-grandfather of Kalani and Keanu. The family grew up in Bayside, Queens in their 3-family home surrounded by extended family.
On April 23, 2023, Mr. Vulcano hit a major milestone when he turned 100 years old and achieved centenarian status. Today, he lives in Flushing, Queens with his daughter, Denise. Michael Louis Vulcano was selected as a 2023 Veterans Hall of Fame inductee by Senator John C. Liu.
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Eric Adams axes $547 million from NYC Education Department budget, more cuts on the way
NEW YORK CITY (TIP): New York City’s Education Department will cut nearly $550 million from its budget this year as part of a sweeping round of citywide reductions ordered by Mayor Eric Adams.
Many of the cuts are expected to take effect immediately. They will touch a wide range of programs and positions that directly affect students, from the city’s massive free preschool program, to community schools that support families with out-of-school needs, to the popular pandemic-era Summer Rising program.
A big chunk of this year’s savings will come through a hiring slowdown and the elimination of 432 vacant non-classroom positions, which officials said on Thursday will lead to a combined $157 million in savings.
Budget officials didn’t specify which roles would be eliminated but emphasized cuts to central offices and other roles that support schools. A hiring freeze has been in place since earlier this fall, but has not applied to teaching positions. Education Department officials didn’t immediately say whether the agency would continue to spare teaching positions from the freeze.
A mandate to rein in spending on “supplemental pay for administrative staff” is expected to save another $86 million this year, but officials didn’t immediately provide details on what that means.
In September, Adams directed all city agencies to find cuts equal to at least 5% of the city’s contribution to their annual budgets by November, in response to what he described as unsustainable levels of spending on the ongoing influx of asylum seekers. Additional cuts of 5% are expected in January and again in spring 2024.
In all, that means the Education Department could face up to $2.1 billion in cuts. The department’s overall budget is roughly $37.5 billion this school year. Starting next fiscal year, the department will cut $120 million from the Universal Pre-K program, which enrolled about 100,000 3- and 4-year-old this year and is the signature legacy of former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration. The program has been beset by payment delays to childcare operators and enrollment declines during the pandemic.
Officials said they’re reducing the size of the program because there are about 37,000 vacant seats, but did not specify how many of those slots they plan to eliminate. “While we don’t know many details yet, there is no way a cut this large would not hurt the services available to children and families,” said Gregory Brender, the chief of policy and innovation at the Day Care Council of New York, a membership organization of childcare providers.
A range of longstanding programs with a direct presence in schools are also facing small cuts.
An initiative to expand the teaching of computer science is losing $3.5 million this year, while the budget for community schools will be cut by $10 million this year. Community schools were another major educational priority of de Blasio’s administration, and have continued to grow under Adams.
Separately, nearly $20 million in funding for Summer Rising, the pandemic-era free summer school program that served roughly 110,000 students last year, is being slashed from the budget of the city’s Youth and Community Development Department, which jointly operates the program with the Education Department. The cuts will mean reduced hours and no Friday programs for some middle-schoolers, officials said.
The program has proved immensely popular with families and had about 45,000 more applicants than slots last year.
“For months, we have warned New Yorkers about the challenging fiscal situation our city faces,” Adams said in a Thursday statement. “To balance the budget as the law requires, every city agency dug into their own budget to find savings, with minimal disruption to services. And while we pulled it off this time, make no mistake: Migrant costs are going up, tax revenue growth is slowing, and COVID stimulus funding is drying up.”
Budget analysts have pointed out that the cuts ordered by Adams are far greater than the expected costs of serving the asylum seekers. The city also collected nearly $8 billion more in revenue last fiscal year than anticipated, according to a recent analysis from Comptroller Brad Lander. Michael Mulgrew, the president of the United Federation of Teachers, called the cuts “unnecessary” and “driven by City Hall’s false political narrative that New York City is about to fall off a fiscal cliff.” “Revenues are higher than expected, investment from Albany is up, and reserves are at a near-record high,” he added. Other groups warned that the city’s hiring and budget freeze is already affecting services for vulnerable children, and that further cuts could threaten their legal rights.
Advocates for Children, a nonprofit group, said the city has been unable to hire 15 additional staffers to help families living in shelters navigate the education system, an urgent concern given the influx of migrant families.
The organization also said short staffing appeared to be causing delays in providing preschool special education evaluations and services in the Bronx. “We are particularly concerned that these budget plans will result in even more egregious violations of the rights of students with disabilities, English Language Learners, and students in temporary housing or foster care,” Advocates for Children executive director Kim Sweet said in a statement.
More cuts ahead for NYC schools
The city-directed budget cuts are part of a perfect storm of fiscal trouble facing city schools. About $7.7 billion in one-time pandemic aid from the federal government has padded the Education Department’s budget in recent years and funded critical initiatives, including expanded preschool and summer enrichment programs. That money will dry up next September, and the looming expiration of that aid has already prompted some painful cuts. For the first time in four years, the Education Department clawed back money this week from schools where enrollment numbers fell short of projections.Because enrollment went up overall across the city, the majority of schools didn’t have to return money, and instead got extra funding because of higher-than projected enrollment. But there were still more than 650 schools that saw a total of $109 million in midyear cuts, according to a United Federation of Teachers analysis.
(Source: Chalkbeat) -
Tax season rapidly approaching: Get ready now to file 2023 federal income tax returns in early 2024
WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): With the nation’s tax season rapidly approaching, the Internal Revenue Service reminds taxpayers there are important steps they can take now to help “get ready” to file their 2023 federal tax return. This is the first in a series of special IRS “Get Ready” reminders to help taxpayers prepare for the upcoming tax filing season in early 2024. A little advance work now can help people have the paperwork and information ready to file their tax returns quickly and accurately. As part of this education effort, the IRS has a special page outlining items taxpayers can look into now to get ready to file their 2023 tax returns.
Get helpful information to file through IRS Online Account
Taxpayers can create or access their Online Account at IRS.gov/account. New users should have their photo identification ready.
With an Online Account taxpayers can access a variety of helpful information to help them during the 2024 filing season, including:
View key data from the most recently filed tax return, including adjusted gross income.
Get account transcripts.
Sign power of attorney and tax information authorizations.
Receive notices electronically.
Get email notifications for new account information or activity.
Make and view payments.
View, create or change payment plans.
See the amount owed by year.
Gather, organize and update tax records
Organizing tax records makes it easier to prepare a complete and accurate tax return. It helps avoid errors that can slow down refunds and may also help find overlooked deductions or tax credits.
Most income is taxable, including unemployment compensation, refund interest and income from the gig economy and digital assets. Taxpayers should gather Forms W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, Forms 1099-MISC, Miscellaneous Income, and other income documents before filing their return.
Don’t forget to notify the IRS of an address change and be sure to notify the Social Security Administration of any legal name changes as soon as possible.
Be sure paychecks have enough tax withheld; time running out to make 2023 changes
The Tax Withholding Estimator is a tool on IRS.gov that can help taxpayers determine the right amount of tax to have withheld from their paychecks. This tool can be helpful if an earlier tax return resulted in tax owed or a large refund. And for those that have life changes or events such as getting married or divorced or welcoming a child, or for those taking on a second job or managing self-employment income, it can help calculate estimated tax payments. To change federal tax withholding, taxpayers will need to update their withholding with their employer, either online or by submitting a new Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate.
But to make adjustments in time to affect 2023 tax withholding, taxpayers need to act quickly. Only a few pay periods remain in the year, and payroll systems need time to make withholding changes.
Speed refunds with direct deposit
Direct deposit is the fastest and safest way to get a tax refund. Taxpayers can make direct deposits to bank accounts, banking apps and reloadable debit cards, but will need to provide the routing and account information associated with the account. If the routing and account number cannot be located, taxpayers should contact their bank, financial institution or app provider.
Taxpayers requesting a paper check are much more likely to report an issue getting their refund because of non-receipt, forgery, theft or checks returned for a bad address, compared to taxpayers using direct deposit.
Need a bank account? Taxpayers without a bank account can learn how to open an account at an FDIC-Insured bank or with a credit union through the National Credit Union Locator tool. Veterans can use the Veterans Benefits Banking Program to find participating banks and credit unions that offer free accounts.
Volunteer to help eligible taxpayers file their tax returns
The IRS and its community partners are looking for people around the country interested in becoming IRS-certified volunteers. Join the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) programs and help eligible taxpayers with free tax preparation. Visit IRS.gov/volunteers to learn more and sign up. After signing up, volunteers will receive more information about attending a virtual orientation.
Bookmark IRS.gov resources and online tools
Everyone should make IRS.gov their first stop. Here they’ll find online tools to help get them the information they need. The tools are easy-to-use and available 24 hours a day. Millions of people use them to help file and pay taxes, track their refunds, find information about their accounts and get answers to tax questions.
Tips for choosing a tax pro
Tax professionals play an essential role for taxpayers and the nation’s tax system. There are many types of tax return preparers, including certified public accountants, enrolled agents, attorneys and many others who don’t have a professional credential. Preparers should be skilled in tax preparation and accurately filing income tax returns. Taxpayers trust them with their most personal information.
Most tax return preparers provide outstanding and professional tax service. However, choosing the wrong tax return preparer hurts taxpayers financially every year. Be sure to check tips for choosing a tax preparer and how to avoid unethical “ghost” return preparers.
People can use the IRS Directory of Federal Tax Return Preparers with Credentials and Select Qualifications.
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IRS highlights International Fraud Awareness Week; taxpayers urged to protect against scams, schemes
WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): As part of ongoing efforts to protect taxpayers, the Internal Revenue Service reminds people that International Fraud Awareness Week serves as an important time to protect personal and financial information from scam artists and tax schemes.
International Fraud Awareness Week, which runs through Nov. 18, is an effort to minimize the impact of fraud through awareness and education. During the special week, the IRS – including the agency’s Office of Fraud Enforcement and IRS Criminal Investigation – continue working to raise awareness of fraud and scams affecting taxpayers across the country.
The IRS continues to encourage individuals, businesses and tax professionals to take time now to know the red flags of a scam, and to ensure defenses are in place to stop scammers and those who promote unscrupulous tax schemes. Although this special week highlights international fraud, the IRS works throughout the year to raise awareness about tax scams and schemes. These efforts range from the annual Dirty Dozen list of tax scams to other tax schemes, including aggressive marketing involving Employee Retention Credit claims. In addition, the IRS, state tax agencies and the nation’s tax industry work together in the Security Summit initiative to protect taxpayers, businesses and the tax system from identity thieves and related scams.
“During this special week, the IRS reminds taxpayers that we are on their side and looking out for them,” said IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel. “Our work on tax scams and schemes reflects this commitment. IRS employees are working to protect honest taxpayers from scam artists, raising awareness about emerging issues and rooting out the nefarious actors that perpetrate them. With modernization funding in place, the IRS is well positioned to disrupt scams as part of our transformation efforts.”
IRS Office of Fraud Enforcement: Shining a light on fraud
The IRS Office of Fraud Enforcement (OFE) promotes compliance with tax laws by strengthening the IRS response to fraud and mitigating emerging threats. This includes improving fraud detection, identifying areas of high risk, enhancing enforcement and helping develop and submit fraud referrals to IRS Criminal Investigation where appropriate. During International Fraud Awareness Week, the IRS reminds taxpayers to be especially wary of scammers and promoters of bogus tax schemes aimed at reducing taxes or avoiding them altogether.
Many of these tax avoidance schemes are included in the 2023 IRS Dirty Dozen list and often involve unscrupulous asset protection professionals or promoters who lure people into placing their assets in offshore accounts and structures.
These promoters often sell their scams by promising that assets are out of the government’s reach. They may also suggest that digital assets are untraceable and undiscoverable by the IRS and that the transactions are anonymous. In fact, the IRS has a vast array of tools to combat offshore tax evasion, including working with its international treaty partners to identify and track assets, transactions and evidence.
Improper Employee Retention Credit claims
The IRS has seen a high volume of incorrect and improper Employee Retention Credit claims and continues warning taxpayers about them. The ERC, sometimes also called the Employee Retention Tax Credit or ERTC, is a pandemic-related credit for which only certain employers qualify. Credit is not available to individual employees.
Scam promoters are luring people to incorrectly claim the ERC with “offers” online, in social media, on the radio or through unsolicited phone calls, emails and even mailings that look like official government letters but have fake agency names and usually urge immediate action.
These unscrupulous promoters make false claims about their company’s legitimacy and often don’t discuss some key eligibility factors, limitations and income tax implications that affect an employer’s tax return.
It’s important to watch for warning signs such as promoters who say they can quickly determine someone’s eligibility without details, and those who charge up-front fees or a fee based on a percentage of the ERC claimed.
Anyone who incorrectly claims the ERC must pay it back, possibly with penalties and interest.
The only way to claim the ERC is on a federal employment tax return. The IRS continues to warn employers to not fall for aggressive marketing or scams related to the ERC. Employers should first check with their trusted tax professional before submitting an ERC claim, and the IRS has developed a special Employee Retention Credit Eligibility Checklist and Frequently Asked Questions to help people quickly determine if they might be eligible.
As part of a larger effort to protect small businesses and organizations from scams, the Internal Revenue Service created a special withdrawal process to help those who filed an ERC claim and now want to withdraw it. This new withdrawal option allows certain employers that filed an ERC claim but have not yet received, cashed or deposited a refund to withdraw their submission to avoid future repayment, interest and penalties.
The new withdrawal process follows an immediate moratorium, announced by the IRS on Sept. 14, 2023, on processing new ERC claims. The moratorium, which will last until at least the end of this year, follows concerns about ineligible ERC claims.
Know the red flags
IRS impersonation scams involve fake text messages, social media accounts, e-mail and phone calls. Knowing what to watch out for can help keep taxpayers safe.
Remember, the IRS does not:
Initiate unexpected contact with taxpayers by email, text messages or social media channels to request personal or financial information. Scammers attempt to use these methods of contact to con individuals, businesses, payroll and tax professionals into providing personal information, PINs, passwords and other data.
If a taxpayer receives an unsolicited SMS/text that appears to be from either the IRS or a program closely linked to the IRS, the taxpayer should copy the entire message and send it as an attachment to phishing@irs.gov.
Call to demand immediate payment using a specific payment method such as a prepaid debit card, gift card or wire transfer. The IRS does not use these methods for tax payments. Threaten to immediately bring in local police or other law-enforcement groups to have the taxpayer arrested for not paying.
Demand that taxes be paid without giving the taxpayer the opportunity to question or appeal the amount owed.
Ask for credit or debit card numbers over the phone.
Leave pre-recorded, urgent or threatening phone messages.
In many variations of the phone scam, victims are told if they do not call back, a warrant will be issued for their arrest. Other verbal threats include law-enforcement agency intervention, deportation or revocation of licenses.
Criminals can fake or “spoof” caller ID numbers to appear to be anywhere in the country, including from an IRS office, which makes it difficult for taxpayers to verify the actual caller’s number.
Fraudsters have spoofed local sheriff’s offices, state departments of motor vehicles, federal agencies and others to convince taxpayers the call is legitimate. Any taxpayer receiving a scam phone call should hang up immediately and not give out any information.
Contact the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration to report the call at IRS Impersonation Scam Reporting. Report the caller ID and/or callback number to the IRS by sending it to phishing@irs.gov with the subject “IRS Phone Scam.”
Watching for these common scams can keep people from becoming victims of identity theft. Individuals should protect their sensitive personal information that can be used to file fraudulent tax returns and steal refunds.
Small businesses are big targets
Businesses of all types and sizes, especially small businesses, need to be aware cybercriminals could target their businesses with scams to steal passwords, divert funds or steal employee information. The IRS continues to see instances where small businesses, including tax professionals, face a variety of identity-theft related schemes that try to obtain information to file a business tax return or use customer data for identity theft.
Businesses, including tax professionals, are encouraged to follow best practices from the Federal Trade Commission, including to:
Use multi-factor authentication.
Set security software to update automatically.
Back up important files.
Require strong passwords for all devices.
Encrypt devices.
In partnership with the IRS, the Security Summit initiative is at the forefront of protecting taxpayers, businesses and the tax system from identity thieves. Working together as the Security Summit, the IRS, state tax agencies and the nation’s tax industry have taken numerous steps to warn people to watch out for common scams and schemes.
Report fraud
To report an abusive tax scheme or a tax return preparer, people should mail or fax a completed Form 14242, Report Suspected Abusive Tax Promotions or Preparers, and any supporting materials to the IRS Lead Development Center.
Mail:
Internal Revenue Service Lead Development Center
Stop MS5040
24000 Avila Road
Laguna Niguel, California 92677-3405
Fax: 877-477-9135
Alternatively, taxpayers and tax practitioners may send the information to the IRS Whistleblower Office for possible monetary reward.
For more information, see Abusive Tax Schemes and Abusive Tax Return Preparers.
Resources
Tax Scams and Consumer Alerts on IRS.gov.
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George Santos faces new motion to expel him from Congress
WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): Rep. George Santos will face a third vote to oust him from Congress the week after Thanksgiving as a growing number of lawmakers say they will back a new expulsion motion filed Friday, November 17, a day after the release of a scathing House Ethics Committee report, Newsday reported.
Santos (R-Nassau/Queens), in an interview with Newsday Friday, November 17, defended some of the expenses cited in the report — such as payments for Botox treatments — accusing his former campaign treasurer of telling him the purchases were considered campaign expenses. His assertions came hours after House Ethics Committee Chairman Mike Guest (R-Miss.) on Friday filed a motion to expel Santos that is expected to start the process to require a vote within two legislative days when the House reconvenes on Nov. 28.
Santos survived one expulsion vote on May 16, initiated by Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) and another on Nov. 1 on a measure sponsored by Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (R-Island Park), but he may not dodge the third try after the release Thursday of a detailed and damning Ethics Committee report.
A growing number of lawmakers who voted previously against expelling him say Santos no longer should be a member of the House after release of the 55-page report that laid out the case that Santos exploited his position for personal gain. Only five House members have been expelled — three for disloyalty in the Civil War era and two after being convicted of criminal activity. It takes two-thirds of those voting to approve a motion to expel, a high hurdle considering that Santos would be the first to be expelled while indicted but before conclusion of a trial.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who had raised concerns about ousting Santos because of the slim Republican House majority and Santos’ due process rights, issued a statement Thursday night that did not discourage his Republican conference from ousting Santos.
“As members from both parties, members of the Ethics Committee and Representative Santos return to Congress after the Thanksgiving break, Speaker Johnson encourages all involved to consider the best interests of the institution as this matter is addressed further,” Johnson spokesman Raj Shah said.
At least three of the House Ethics Committee members — Guest (R-Miss.), Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-Bayport) and Rep. Susan Wild (D-Pa.), the ranking member — said they would vote to expel Santos.
“I think the fact that the Republican Ethics Committee chairman not only supports expulsion, but is leading the resolution to do it, is a good indicator that for some of my more senior colleagues following suit,” said Rep. Nick LaLota (R-Amityville). Also, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) and Rep. Jeff Jackson (D-N.C.), who were among the 31 Democrats who voted against expelling Santos earlier this month, said Thursday they would now vote to force him out of the House. Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) said Thursday on MSNBC he would vote to expel Santos after having voted against expulsion earlier this month. Possibly easing concern over losing a Republican vote by expelling Santos is the special election on Tuesday to fill the House’s only current vacant seat in a majority Republican district in Utah, which could maintain the Republicans’ current eight-vote majority. After the report came out, Santos said he would not run for reelection.
Santos, who faces trial in U.S. District Court in Central Islip in September on a 23-count federal criminal indictment, complained in a social media post Thursday about allegations in the Ethics Committee report about issues such as misuse of campaign funds. Santos has denied all the federal charges. “What the ‘ethics committee’ did today was not part of due process, what they did was poison a the (sic) jury pool on my ongoing investigation with the DOJ. This was a dirty biased act and one that tramples all over my rights,” Santos wrote.
Santos told Newsday on Friday that several of the charges were campaign related, but never reported to the Federal Elections Commission by his former campaign treasurer, Nancy Marks of Shirley.
Asked about the $1,500 in charges for Botox cited in the ethics panel’s report, Santos said he was advised by Marks the cosmetic procedure was considered a campaign expense because it was “to keep fresh because of a campaign.” “I’ve always gotten my Botox on myself, I’ve always paid it out of my pocket, but then during the campaign, she told us it was covered,” Santos said.
Marks’ attorney, Ray Perini, did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment on Friday.
Asked about a $12 expense for the OnlyFans adult website, Santos said the charge was made on his business credit card, not his campaign credit card. He denied making the charge and said he was looking into who was behind it.
“It wasn’t put there because it was significant, it was put there to smear me,” Santos said.
He said he would respond in further detail to the report at a Nov. 30 news conference on the U.S. Capitol steps — which could coincide with the vote to expel him.
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600 Laid Off US H-1Bs Find Alternative
WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): Canada is increasingly becoming a sought-after destination for H-1B visa holders affected by layoffs in the US tech sector. The Canadian government launched a three-year open work permit scheme on July 16th, providing a path to employment for up to 10,000 US-based H-1B visa holders. Over 6,000 have already taken advantage of this opportunity, prompting the closure of the application process. The H-1B visa, highly sought by international students for post-education work in the US, suffered setbacks due to tech layoffs. Major companies like Amazon, Microsoft, and Google announced significant staff reductions, giving H-1B holders a 60-day ultimatum to leave, transfer visas, or find new sponsors. In response, Canada’s three-year work permit scheme, launched in July, provided with a timely alternative, offering them the opportunity to move to Canada for employment. As of October, more than 6,000 laid-off H-1B visa holders have been granted permits, contributing to Canada’s flourishing tech industry, which has outpaced the US in talent growth by over 11% between 2020 and 2022. Meanwhile, the US Department of Homeland Security is considering changes to the H-1B visa scheme.
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IOCUSA establishes Southwest Chapter and appoints Mr. Gurdev Singh Hehar as President
DALLAS, TX (TIP): In a significant show of solidarity and commitment, the Indian Overseas Congress, USA (IOCUSA) conducted a landmark membership drive at the ‘Our Place Indian Cuisine’ in Dallas, Texas. The event, characterized by spirited discussions, united prominent community leaders and political figures in their vision for a stronger, more inclusive Indian community.
The drive was kick-started with a stirring address by Mr. Mohinder Singh Gilzian, President of the IOCUSA. Mr. Gilzian’s message resonated deeply with the attendees, emphasizing the crucial need for active political participation in the upcoming elections in India. He said, “Our engagement in the democratic process is essential to safeguarding the unity and progress of our motherland. Let us unite to ensure a future where diversity and harmony would triumph.”
Mr. Sam Pitroda, the Chairman of IOC, and a renowned innovator, joined the meeting through Zoom. He touched upon his connections to Dallas and the broader role of the Indian diaspora. “Our roots here in Dallas are just as important as our ties to India. By harnessing our collective strengths, we can significantly contribute to India’s journey towards modernization and inclusivity,” Pitroda said. He then reminded the audience of the pivotal role of the diaspora in shaping India’s future.
In his address, Mr. Gurdev Singh emphasized the significance of unity and collective efforts. He said, “Our strength lies in our diversity and ability to work together, transcending religious and cultural differences, towards a common goal – a thriving and united India, reaffirming the ethos of the IOC.”
Avi Dandiya, the Global Social Media Chief for the IOC, played a key role in the local coordination and setup of the event. His efforts in leveraging social media platforms greatly enhanced the membership drive and brought many community leaders to the event.
The membership drive by the Indian Overseas Congress in Dallas marks a new chapter in the annals of Indian diasporic engagement. It was an event that echoed the sentiments of unity, attention, and proactive participation, critical tenets in shaping a future that the Indian community across the globe aspires for.
Ms. Sophia Sharma, General Secretary of the IOCUSA, moderated the event.
The Indian Overseas Congress is a platform for Non-Resident Indians to participate actively India’s growth and development. It seeks to bridge the gap between the Indian diaspora and their homeland, fostering democratic principles and inclusive development. (www.iocusa.org) -
Sikhs take out an Impressive Parade in celebration of Guru Nanak Dev’s 554th Birth Anniversary
Guru Granth Sahib in a motorized vehicle is followed by thousands in a parade on 11 November, 2023 in celebration of the forthcoming 554th Birth Anniversary of Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji. I.S. Saluja
RICHMOND HILL, NY (TIP): An impressive Parade (Nagar Kirtan) was taken out by the Sikh community of the Tri-State area of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut on November 11 in celebration of the 554th Birth anniversary of Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the First Master of the Sikhs.
Thousands followed the Guru Granth Sahib, the Holy Book revered as the Living Master atop a motorized vehicle, with the priests attending and singing hymns (shabad kirtan). All along the 3-mile route of the parade, a number of organizations and individuals served food and beverages, called langar (free food) to each and everyone. Langar (free food) is a unique feature of Sikhism.
Sikhism is the youngest and the fifth most followed religion of the world. The Sikhs, known for their enterprise, are present in every part of the world, and contribute richly to their nations of adoption. The U.S. Canada, UK, account for a larger percentage of the Sikh population. The annual Guru Nanak parade is organized by Gurdwara Baba Makhan Shah Lobana Sikh Center in Richmond Hill in cooperation with the Sikh Gurdwaras and the Sikh organizations in the Tri-State area. The 2023 parade was in its 23rd year.
Young boys performed Gatka which is a Sikh martial art. 
Free food and beverages were served all along the route of the parade. 
A group of bards, called Dhadhi, sings praises of Guru Nanak at Gurdwara Sikh Cultural Society on 118 Street in Richmond Hill from where the parade passed on way back to Gurdwara Baba Makhan Shah Lobana Sikh Center.