Facebook pics put Nevada poaching ring in game warden's crosshairs

A Nevada poaching ring put itself in the crosshairs of game officials when one member posted a photo on Facebook of a mule deer killed out of season.

It was a tip in June, 2013, that alerted authorities to the photo of a man posing with the animal slung over his shoulder near Hiko, Nev., and it launched a 16-month state and federal probe that ended in the arrests of four men on a raft of charges, including poaching, weapons and illegal immigration offenses. Nevada Department of Wildlife spokesman Edwin Lyngar said it only happened because officials could tell by the background that the mule deer carried by a man they identified as Jose Manuel Ortega-Torres was not taken during the fall hunting season.

“Things didn’t look right,” Lyngar said. “We got a search warrant [for Ortega-Torres' home], and from there, it was a long and complicated investigation.”

The search of Ortega-Torres’ home led to evidence of illegally killed deer and migratory birds as well as butchering tools and weapons, authorities said. It also turned up evidence that led them to Las Vegas, where they identified Adrian Acevedo-Hernandez, 36, Jose Luis Montufar-Canales, 31, and J. Nemias Reyes Marin, 31, as part of an alleged ring involved in a wide range of wildlife crimes.

In addition to the illegally killed deer in Hiko, authorities found evidence of illegal deer killing in Elko County, Nev., and fraudulently obtained hunting licenses and tags. Perhaps most disturbing, Lyngar said, is that it is not possible to know how long the ring operated or how many animals it killed.

"When you do something like this, you’re 100 percent criminal."

- Rob Wallin, Nevada Outfitters

“We had a systematic killing, illegal killing, of wildlife,” he said. “We will never know the total amount that they killed.”

Evidence that the men allegedly poached protected migratory birds and broke federal gun laws prompted the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Department of Homeland Security to join the investigation, authorities said.

Nevada sportsmen praised the state investigators.

“We’ve very proud that the Nevada Department of Wildlife caught them after a long investigation,” said Rob Wallin of Nevada Outfitters, a Fallon-based group that hunts elk, deer, mountain lion and sheep. "When you do something like this, you’re 100 percent criminal. We just don’t know why they do it.”

Lyngar said that although meat was recovered during one search, the motive is likely sinister.

"They were taking some of the meat, but that doesn’t seem to be the motivating factor," he said. "People do not poach to feed their families. In the vast majority of cases, the meat is left behind. We call these thrill killings, where people do it for their ego.”

According to authorities, Acevedo-Hernandez, Montufar-Canales and Marin are suspected to be in the United States illegally. It is a felony for people in the U.S. illegally to possess firearms. The three men are currently in federal custody.

The men face more charges, but the Nevada Department of Wildlife said they have already been convicted of several:

• Montufar-Canales was convicted in Churchill County, Nev., of using false information to obtain a hunting license

• Acevedo-Hernandez was convicted in Lincoln County, Nev., of unlawful possession of two mule deer and ordered to pay $5,000 in fines and civil penalties and to forfeit six firearms

• Acevedo-Hernandez also was convicted in Elko County for another incident of illegal possession of a deer and ordered to forfeit a rifle and his truck

Tony Reviglio of the Mason Valley Hunt Club in Yerington, was glad to see the poachers bagged.

"It’s very sad that people do this," Reviglio said. "There's never a good reason for anyone to poach. And it takes away from the rest of the hunters."

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How and when you’ll be able to get Lollipop for your current Android device

Google is trying to get the newest Android software pushed out to more devices faster than ever before, although it could still be a while before your device can get Android 5.0 Lollipop over the air. For those anxious to know when they’ll get Lollipop and its gorgeous Material Design on their phones, we’ve published a quick outline for how and when different vendors will be pushing out the update.

• Google Nexus devices: It’s not surprising that Google’s Nexus phones and tablets will be among the first to get Lollipop since they aren’t weighed down by complications arising from OEM and carrier software. Google announced earlier this week that it’s starting to push out an over-the-air update to the Nexus 4,Nexus 5, Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 this week. If you are really anxious to get Lollipop and don’t feel like waiting for the OTA update to roll out, you should readCNET’s terrific guide for rooting your phone and installing Lollipop on it.
• Motorola devices: Motorola was quick to announce this week that the Pure Edition of the 2014 Moto X along with the unlocked versions of the Moto G are both getting the new update rolled out to them right now. The company has also very helpfully set up a terrific website where you can check for updates on when your device will be getting the upgrade. Devices set to get upgrade include the recently released Droid Turbo as well as the first-generation Moto X and Moto G, and the carrier-locked versions of the Moto X and Moto G, so definitely bookmark this site and check it regularly.
• LG devices: LG began rolling out Lollipop to its G3 over the air this week starting in Poland and it plans to bring the OTA update to other markets “in the near future.” We still don’t know when Lollipop will roll out to the G2 and other LG smartphones but the company promises that it will announce that information shortly.
• HTC devices: 10 days ago, HTC announced that both the HTC One (M7) and the HTC One (M8) would be getting Lollipop updates within 90 days. Using the magic of arithmetic, we can now calculate that you’ll have at the very most 80 more days to wait before getting Lollipop on either of these two phones. But that’s not all — 9to5Google says that the Google Play Editions of both devices could receive the upgrade as soon as next week, so it looks like you’ll have a much shorter wait if your One (M7) or One (M8) runs on stock Android.
• Samsung devices: These are still something of a mystery. Although we’re certain that the Galaxy S4, the Galaxy S5, the Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy Note 4 will all get Lollipop, although the latest speculation is that at least the Galaxy S5 and Galaxy Note 4 will get the new software by the end of the year.

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Bill Gates hoopt op meer geld voor hulp

Bill Gates hoopt dat het Nederlandse kabinet meer aan ontwikkelingssamenwerking gaat uitgeven als het economisch tij weer meezit. Dat zei hij in een besloten gesprek donderdag met de vaste Kamercommissie voor Buitenlandse Handel en Ontwikkelingssamenwerking.

Volgens aanwezige Kamerleden hoopt de Amerikaanse filantroop en oud-topman van Microsoft dat het kabinet dan weer 0,7 procent van het bruto binnenlands product aan ontwikkelingshulp gaat uitgeven. Door bezuinigingen is het kabinet van VVD en PvdA onder dit percentage gezakt.

Gates sprak eerder op de dag met minister-president Mark Rutte (VVD) en PvdA-leider Diederik Samsom. Ook staat nog een ontmoeting met minister van Buitenlandse Zaken Bert Koenders (PvdA) op de agenda van Gates. Hij is bezig met een rondgang langs Europese partners van zijn Bill en Melinda Gates Foundation.

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Obama vs. the Internet

So much for the will of the voters. Before last Tuesday’s elections, President Obama said that while he wasn’t on the ballot, his policies were. Now that the American people have rebuked those policies, Mr. Obama is attempting another federal power grab over an innovative U.S. industry.

On Monday he urged the Federal Communications Commission to apply to the Internet century-old telephone regulations designed for public utilities. In a video posted on Youtube, Mr. Obama endorsed the regulation of Internet access providers under Title II of the Communications Act of 1934.

These rules weren’t at the cutting edge of innovation even in the 1930s. As former FCC attorney Randolph May notes, this regulatory framework was written into the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 to oversee monopoly railroads. The Communications Act drafters then copied the 1887 law, replaced the references to railroads and clarified that the new regulations would apply to telephones as well as telegraphs. Eighty years later Mr. Obama has decided, in his market wisdom, that these rules should apply to the Internet.

When the FCC floated this idea in May, we called it “ObamaCare for the Web,” but that was too kind. The Obama Internet plan would treat cable, telephone and wireless broadband networks as common carriers subject to federal price controls and myriad other regulatory restrictions.

Like the telephone companies of old, broadband providers would be required to “file a tariff” at the commission, meaning they would submit mountains of paperwork and ask the government to approve the prices they intend to charge for services. The bureaucrats would then consider whether the prices are fair. FCC bureaucrats would also hold sway over plans to expand or build digital networks. Under such conditions, who would invest to build the next generation of broadband technologies?

In his breezy video, Mr. Obama said he is promoting such regulation to preserve “the idea of Net neutrality,” which he claimed has “unleashed the power of the Internet and given innovators the chance to thrive.” This is upside down logic. The Internet has thrived in large part because policy makers and judges have rejected nearly every attempt to enforce “Net neutrality.” That is the hazy concept generally defined as preventing network operators from discriminating against particular online content but—for its most zealous advocates—amounting to a ban on differentiated services, such as express delivery of information.

Instead, a bipartisan consensus has allowed the Internet to grow relatively unmolested by Washington. The result has been intense competition among phone, cable and wireless companies to provide consumers with ever faster speeds, which in turn has allowed the U.S. to lead the world in digital innovations.

Mr. Obama played the demagogic card that “cable companies can’t decide which online stores you can shop at,” without naming any companies that are doing so, and without saying that the Federal Trade Commission already has the legal authority to combat such practices. Comcast and other Internet service providers have already agreed to abide by Net-neutrality rules as part of merger agreements.

The President also had the nerve to assert, amid his public lobbying, that “the FCC is an independent agency and ultimately this decision is theirs alone.” But Mr. Obama might as well have painted a bull’s-eye on FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, who will now have to acquiesce or face a deluge of liberal abuse.

Mr. Wheeler thanked Mr. Obama for his comments but noted potential problems with forcing broadband companies into Title II. “The more deeply we examined the issues around the various legal options, the more it has become plain that there is more work to do,” said Mr. Wheeler, who we hope resists his patron’s bullying.

Mr. Obama is trying to exert in his final two years in office the same political control over the Internet that he has already imposed on health care and banking. If he succeeds he’ll set a terrible precedent for despots around the world who also want to assert political control over cyberspace. The Obama Administration is already ceding greater control over the Internet registry ICANN to foreign outfits that could easily become fronts for repressive regimes.

If the FCC caves under White House pressure, Congress has every right to defund this regulatory overreach before it becomes a clear and present danger to the U.S. economy and global freedom.

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Microsoft's first non-Nokia Windows Phone is the £90 Lumia 535

MICROSOFT HAS ANNOUNCED the Lumia 535, a £90 Windows Phone handset that is the first to ditch the Nokia branding.

We knew it was coming, and Microsoft took the wraps off its first own-brand smartphone on Tuesday. 

Microsoft is calling the Lumia 535 a phone of 'fives'. The budget device sports a 5in 960x540 qHD screen, a 5MP rear-facing camera and a 5MP front-facing camera, as Microsoft looks to offer a cheap alternative to the likes of the Lumia 735 and HTC Desire Eye.

"Lumia 535 comes with our '5x5x5' proposition," said Jo Harlow, corporate vice president for phones at Microsoft.

"Innovation should be available to everyone, and we are doing this through the very best integrated Microsoft services free and out-of-the-box - a 5MP wide-angle front-facing camera and a spacious 5in qHD screen - all at an affordable price."

The Lumia 535 comes with a 1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 processor and 1GB RAM under the hood, paired with Microsoft's Windows Phone 8.1 operating system, complete with the Lumia Denim update. 

There's 8GB onboard storage, expandable up to 128GB via microSD, and a 1,905mAh battery which Microsoft promises will offer 13 hours of talk time.

The Lumia 535 will be available in single and dual-SIM variants, and in six colours: black, white, blue, orange, grey and green. 

The handset will launch this month priced at €110 (around £90), but Microsoft has told us that there will not be a UK release until the first quarter of 2015.

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Exclusive: Margot Robbie to Play Harley Quinn in SUICIDE SQUAD

A few weeks ago, we reported that Will Smith, Tom Hardy, and Margot Robbie (The Wolf of Wall Street) was close to signing on to Suicide Squad, a film director David Ayer describes as “The Dirty Dozen with supervillains.”  Hot on the heels of learning that Jared Leto is being courted to play The Joker, we have now learned from sources that Robbie will play Harley Quinn.  For those who don’t know the character, she was introduced in Batman: The Animated Series as the Joker’s girlfriend/henchwoman, and has gone on to become a popular rogue/anti-hero in her own right.  This will be the first time the character has ever been portrayed on the big screen.

Hit the jump for more.  Suicide Squad opens in 2016.

Comic book fans know Harley Quinn by name, but the average moviegoer might look at her and wonder, “Why did they create a female Joker?”  Her origin is tied in with the Clown Prince of Crime, and while I don’t know how far Suicide Squad will delve into their history, it’s necessary to have the two together.

I’m a big fan of Harley Quinn, and I’ll be the first to admit that’s kind of fucked up since she relishes her an abusive relationship.  She’s another one of the Joker’s sick jokes since she was a psychiatrist at Arkham Asylum (her real name is “Harleen Quinzel”) who tried analyzing the Joker, and he psychologically manipulated her into being infatuated with him.  The best Harley Quinn stories have managed to balance both the tragedy of her situation with the character’s lighthearted nature.

As for Robbie, I don’t know if she’s a good fit because I don’t know how they’re writing the character for the movie.  Is she supposed to be “grounded”?  How do you re-dress a character who first appeared wearing a jester’s hood, white pancake makeup, and a black-and-red leotard?  I’m sure it’s possible; I’m just curious to see how they’ll handle it.

No matter the depiction (and I assume it will be reasonable and not this), casting Robbie is a smart move on the production’s part.  She got people’s attention with Wolf of Wall Street, and with upcoming roles in Focus, Tarzan, Z for Zachariah, and The Taliban Shuffle, she should be a bigger name by the time Suicide Squad rolls around.

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Obama's net neutrality push cheers some, riles others

President Obama's call for net neutrality could drive the Federal Communications Commission to regulate broadband service like a utility as a way to protect consumers' ability to access all content without a threat of connectivity being throttled.

That could mean a new set of regulations for Internet service providers that oppose such a development, saying it could stifle innovation.

By walking into the fray after the midterm elections, the president is seeking more clarity on a hot-button issue and his unequivocal support for reclassification could add fervor to a fight that has already gone on for years.

His support for the Federal Communications Commission to reclassify consumer broadband Internet service and regulate it as if it's a utility – like electricity and water – rallied many consumer advocacy groups that have asked for a similar strategy to protect unfettered access.

"This is the critical infrastructure of our 21st century," said Michael Copps, a former FCC commissioner and special adviser to Common Cause. "This is how we communicate with each other. This is our news and our information, our journalism, our innovation and entrepreneurship. This really demonstrates that the president understands how important this issue is."

However, industry groups that represent Internet service providers criticized the plan. "Such a move would set the industry back decades, and threaten the private sector investment that is critically needed to ensure that the network can meet surging demand," the Telecommunications Industry Association in a statement.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R- Tex., compared the plan to Obamacare on Twitter, saying that "the Internet should not operate at the speed of government."

The FCC has been recasting new net neutrality rules because the previous set were tossed out by a federal court in January. The court agreed that the agency could regulate the Internet, but first must enact rules that establish its authority. The agency got nearly 4 million responses during its public comment period on potential rules.

While the FCC had been expected to vote on new rules by the end of the year, that is unlikely. "The more deeply we examined the issues around the various legal options, the more it has become plain that there is more work to do," FCC chairman Tom Wheeler said in a statement after the president's was made public.

Net neutrality supporters have criticized early drafts of the rules saying they could allow ISPs to create "fast lanes" that would cost consumers more. Meanwhile, ISPs have told the FCC that they would abide by open Internet rules, to not prioritize certain content, without such a utility-based regulatory approach.

"This would be a radical reversal that would harm investment and innovation, as today's immediate stock market reaction demonstrates," said Comcast Corp. executive vice president David Cohen in a statement.

Shares of Internet service providers fell Monday morning following the announcement. Comcast fell 3.75% to $53.07.

Cohen argued that Congress should be the body to enact new net neutrality rules. "The internet has not just appeared by accident or gift – it has been built by companies like ours investing and building networks and infrastructure. The policy the White House is encouraging would jeopardize this engine for job creation and investment as well as the innovation cycle that the Internet has generated," he said.

During his initial campaign, the president promised to fight for an open Internet, in which free speech was protected and content flowed equally. Still, his public statement today "is a dramatic move. It's unprecedented for the Oval Office to issue a statement so forcefully and clearly," said Richard Doherty of industry consulting firm The Envisioneering Group.

With the midterm elections behind him, Obama wants clarity on the agency's direction, he says. Still, Doherty expects any regulation to allow some market forces to work organically allowing competition and prioritization for critical functions such as remote health care monitoring. "I think we will see what America is best at .. (a) competitive marketplace at work."

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