A contractor for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet plans to restrict southbound traffic to one lane on the U.S. 41 Twin Bridges on Wednesday and Thursday.

The lane closure is to allow the replacement of two rocker bearings on a southbound pier on the Henderson side of the river. The work will require a lane restriction on the entire length of the southbound bridge.

The contractor will use four 100-ton jacks to raise bridge support beams about 1/4th of an inch to allow the old rocker bearings to be removed and new bearings to be placed on top of the pier. Preliminary work on this project started several weeks ago, but completion of the project had to be delayed to allow some additional fabrication of required materials.

The work will require one lane on the southbound bridge to be closed from approximately 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesday and possibly Thursday. The contractor can also place lane restrictions on the bridge between 7 p.m. Wednesday and 5 a.m. Thursday, if necessary.

In case of rain, the lane restriction will automatically move to the next working day until complete.

The contractor is restricted to working during specific off-peak travel periods, with substantial penalties for keeping the work zone up outside of allowable working hours.

All southbound traffic in this work zone will move to the left-hand or passing lane. Southbound motorists should be prepared to encounter slowing and merging traffic near the entrance to the Trocadero Convenience Store. The work zone will have a 45-mile-per-hour speed limit along the entire length of the southbound bridge.

No northbound lane restrictions will be required for this project.

Original post:
Lane to close on southbound bridge

Even empowered groups bank on Cabinet power as ministers play safe Jyoti Mukul & Surajeet Dasgupta / New Delhi Oct 21, 2012, 00:47 IST

Until a year back, if the Manmohan Singh Cabinet could not resolve an issue, it would create a group of ministers. But, now, if the ministers do not want to take a final call, they go back to the Cabinet even if they are empowered.

The aftermath of A Raja serving a jail sentence is that no single minister wants to decide on an issue that could bring investigators to his door. So, on Thursday, an empowered group of ministers (EGoM) on telecom headed by Finance Minister P Chidambaram sent all its decisions to the Cabinet for final clearance though it did not have to do so.

Chidambarams name, too, was dragged into the controversy by Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy, who filed a court case seeking a probe into the finance ministers alleged role in the 2G scam. The Supreme Court in August dismissed the case on grounds of lack of evidence.

Union minister Jaipal Reddy, who himself got the tricky issue of fuel price changes cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs in September, said it depended on the sensitivity of a matter. There are a lot of experienced people in the Cabinet and their advice is important. In case of telecom, the matter has monumental monetary implications, with a lot of corporate interests involved, Reddy told Business Standard. He said it was the Prime Ministers decision to discontinue with the EGoM on fuel. Asked if there was need for a larger political consensus, he said, Perhaps.

R S Pandey, a retired bureaucrat, who had seen one of the most controversial times as secretary in the ministry of petroleum and natural gas, said whether a decision should be referred to Cabinet or not depended on the terms of reference of the EGoM. The terms of reference of the telecom EGoM empowered it to look into various issues related to the grant of licences and allocation of spectrum in the 2G band in 22 services areas. This included the setting of a reserve price for the auction and spectrum usage charges. After deliberations, the EGoM gave two alternatives: a base price of Rs 14,000 crore and another of Rs 16,000 crore for five MHz of spectrum to the Cabinet. The Cabinet decided to go for Rs 14,000 crore.

Sometimes, even when decisions can be resolved within a ministry or by an inter-ministerial group of officials, they are still referred to the Cabinet or its committees. Perturbed by controversies, Murli Deora became one of the first ministers to do so when in 2007 he pushed for the formation of an EGoM for fixing a price for natural gas produced from the KG-D6 block of Reliance Industries. The decision could have been taken by the minister himself but for the fight between Ambani brothers. Similarly, for granting clearance to the $6-billion Cairn-Vedanta deal, Deora went to the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) though the norms did not require it. Safeguarding the interests of the government-controlled Oil and Natural Gas Corporation was said to be the reason why Deora went to the CCEA. The deal was later cleared with preconditions by a group of ministers that had Reddy as Deoras replacement.

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Even empowered groups bank on Cabinet power as ministers play safe

PRAGUE (Reuters) - Czech Prime Minister Petr Necas said on Wednesday he was not sure he would be able to put down a rebellion by several backbenchers that is threatening to bring down the center-right cabinet as early as next week.

The central European government lacks a safe parliamentary majority and without a deal with a group of deputies in his Civic Democrats (ODS), Necas will lose a confidence vote tied to tax laws due to be debated in parliament from next Tuesday.

The government has proposed to hike the country's two sales tax rates by 1 percentage point each and to raise taxes for top earners to squeeze the budget gap to 2.9 percent of gross domestic product next year from 3.2 percent this year.

Necas said there could be no deal if the dissenters aimed to oust him, which some observers see as the real motive, rather than their stated aim of avoiding tax hikes at a time the economy suffers from a recession.

"If the heart of the matter is factual content of policy, then certainly it is moving towards some kind of an agreement," Necas told reporters. "If something else is at the core of this, for example replacement of the ODS chairman or the prime minister, then clearly there can be no agreement."

The tax plan was criticized by ODS founder, President Vaclav Klaus, in what became a rallying cry for a group of seven deputies to challenge Necas, although they had backed the tax hikes in several previous votes.

Klaus also undermined Necas ahead of a party congress on Nov 2-4 by vetoing a bill needed to start pension reforms next year.

Necas needs every single vote to win, given that his coalition's strength has shrunk through defections and a split within a junior coalition party to 100 seats in the 200-seat lower house from 118 it won in the 2010 election.

The rebels have been gaining strength, with some regional ODS officials joining the criticism of tax hikes after the party widely lost regional polls last weekend, following years of austerity and exposure of past graft dealings.

Necas offered a concession this week, which would raise only one of the tax rates. But the rebels said that was not enough.

Continued here:
Czech PM uncertain he can survive tax vote as deadline nears

A former Windsor cabinet minister said she's being flooded by calls to run for the leadership of Ontario Liberal Party.

Sandra Pupatello was the MPP for Windsor-West for 16 years and served as Minister of Economic Development and Trade.

She told CBC News the idea of being leader didn't occur to her until McGuinty resigned on Monday night.

"The opportunity was certainly not there, so no one would have been thinking about it," she said.

McGuinty will continue to serve as premier until a new leader is chosen by the party.

Windsor-West MPP Teresa Piruzza said that process might take a while. She told CBC Windsor that it might take until February or March of next year for the party to find a replacement.

The other prominent Liberal in Windsor is current Finance Minister Dwight Duncan.

University of Windsor political science professor Lydia Miljan said if Duncan was interested in eventually becoming leader then McGuinty's timing wasn't helpful.

"It's almost as if Dalton McGuinty's choice and decision to resign the way he has really undercut any aspirations for Dwight Duncan. This isn't the way you promote your minister of finance," Miljan said.

Running for the leadership is a "huge and weighty decision," said Pupatello.

Originally posted here:
Former Windsor MPP considering a run for Liberal party leader

Moscow (dpa) - Russian President Vladimir Putin sacked a cabinet minister on Wednesday - the first such sacking since he returned to the Kremlin five months ago.

Oleg Govorun, 43, minister for regional development, was the man leaving his job, the Kremlin said. He had been appointed to the job by Putins predecessor Dmitry Medvedev, who is now Russias prime minister.

Putin criticized Govorun on live television in September, after which the official went on sick leave.

The Kremlin in recent days repeatedly denied that the snubbed Govorun had resigned.

Putin has named Igor Slyunyayev as a replacement.

Slyunyayev will pay special attention to deteriorating government-owned buildings, particularly apartment buildings, Putin said, according to an Interfax news agency report.

Russias Ministry of Regional Development is responsible for improving infrastructure in the 83 provinces and regions of the worlds largest country.

Commentators have accused Medvedev of failing to protect Govorun, in the latest development in the convoluted relationship between the prime minister and president. dpa wj um sbk mat Authors: Wolfgang Jung und Ulf Mauder

More here:
Russia's Putin sacks cabinet member appointed by Medvedev

Iraq's cabinet on Tuesday named an interim replacement for the country's central bank chief, who was suspended amid an inquiry over currency manipulation, the premier's spokesman told AFP.

"The cabinet decided to authorise Abdelbassit Turki, the head of the Board of Supreme Audit, to run the central bank indefinitely," Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's spokesman Ali Mussawi said, adding that Sinan al-Shabibi had been suspended from his post by the country's anti-corruption watchdog.

The watchdog, known as the Integrity Commission, confirmed on Tuesday that it had opened an inquiry into the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) tied to alleged manipulation of the Iraqi dinar's value against the US dollar.

"I can confirm that we received the Central Bank dossier from the integrity committee in parliament," said Hassan Aati, spokesman for the Integrity Commission.

"It is currently under investigation. The investigation has just started."

Baha al-Araji, the chairman of parliament's anti-corruption committee, said earlier that the investigation was "not about money, but about procedures that led to the weakening of the dinar against the dollar."

Shabibi, who had been in Tokyo to attend a meeting of the International Monetary Fund, was now in Europe, Deputy Governor Mudher Saleh told AFP. He did not provide details of which country or when precisely Shabibi was due to return.

Read more from the original source:
Iraq cabinet names interim central bank governor: spokesman

The minister put forward France Maude, the Cabinet Office minister, as a possible replacement for Mr Mitchell in a clear sign that many of his senior colleagues now see his time in office as fast running out.

Another cabinet minister said: It is true that many of us cannot see any other solution than Andrew going and it would be better done sooner rather than later. The PM, however, appears to be digging his heels in.

A friend of Mr Mitchell, while acknowledging many senior colleagues opposed his carrying on as Chief Whip, said there were many more who had been extremely supportive.

Asked in an interview for this newspaper whether Mr Mitchell should stay on, Philip Hammond, the Defence Secretary, said: That must be an issue between him and the Prime Minister.

Whenever something like this happens, there is misconduct of this kind, it reflects on the organisation. But we have to draw a line under this. He has apologised. His apology has been accepted. We have to move on.

A Downing Street source said: The PMs view is that he has apologised and has been admonished publicly on several occasions. This is not a zero sum game just because somebody does something wrong it does not follow automatically that they should always lose their job.

With the Commons returning on Monday, the focus will be on Mr Mitchells role in enforcing party discipline including ordering MPs to turn out and vote in divisions.

One Tory backbencher said: Dont get me going [on Mr Mitchell] or I shall say something I regret.

After Friday nights meeting, the Police Federation said it would try to get a Metropolitan Police investigation into the affair. Ken Mackaill, chairman of the West Mercia Police Federation who was at the meeting with two colleagues, said the politician had no option but to resign after refusing to give details of exactly what he said in his tirade.

Mr Mitchells version of events as told by friends is that is that after asking officers to open the main gates to Downing Street for his bicycle, and being refused, he said: You guys are supposed to f------ help us. He adamantly denies using the words plebs or morons.

See the original post:
Andrew Mitchell faces cabinet pressure to quit in pleb row

The tradtional style replacement walkway has been chosen as a replacement NPS Graphics

Anthony Carroll Friday, October 12, 2012 2:41 PM

The hazardous and closed off Ladies Walk pathway on Southwold cliffs is set to be replaced with a 200,000 traditional style walkway next year.

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Today Mike Barnard, Waveney District Council cabinet member for resources, chose the traditional concrete footpath and a retaining wall option for a replacement pathway instead a second option involving a steel walkway elevated above the cliff on stilts.

The delegated cabinet member meeting followed a public consultation which saw residents raise their concerns over the second steel walkway option for Ladies Walk at Kilcock Cliff.

One said included Option two would look hideous from the prom. It will disturb the viewing line between the road and prom, will provide less stability to the bank and will make bank maintenance very difficult.

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UPDATE: Traditional pathway option is chosen for Southwold’s Ladies Walk replacement work

Libya's parliament on Sunday ousted the country's newly elected prime minister in a no-confidence vote, the latest blow to hopes that the country's factions could agree on a government charged with restoring stability after last year's civil war.

Mustafa Abushagur was Libya's first elected prime minister after last year's overthrow of dictator Moammar Gadhafi. He represented an offshoot of the country's oldest anti-Gadhafi opposition movement, and was considered a compromise candidate acceptable to both liberals and Islamists.

But his proposed Cabinet was struck down by a legislature representing dozens of divided tribes, towns, and regions across the country, many of whom feel they are owed the spoils of victory over Col. Gadhafi.

He had 25 days from his Sep. 12 appointment by parliament to form a Cabinet and win the legislature's approval, but that deadline expired on Sunday. The General National Congress voted 125 to 44 in favor of removing him as prime minister, with 17 abstaining from voting. He had just put forth 10 names for key ministerial posts Sunday when the no-confidence vote was held.

Until a replacement can be elected by the parliament, management of Libya's government is in the hands of the legislature.

The Congress will have to vote on a new prime minister in the coming weeks. The incoming leader will be responsible for rebuilding Libya's army and police force and removing major pockets of support for the former regime.

On Sunday, around 1,000 people protested in the capital Tripoli outside the congressional headquarters to demand that militias operating alongside the army end a partial siege of the town of Bani Walid, considered a major stronghold of former regime loyalists. They protested for a peaceful solution to the standoff that has already sent families fleeing from the town in anticipation of a strike following the death of a former rebel after his abduction and ill treatment by Bani Walid captors last month.

Perhaps the single greatest challenge facing any new Libyan leader is the proliferation of ex-rebel militias. One radical Islamist militia has been linked to the attack last month on the U.S. Consulate in the eastern city of Benghazi that killed the American ambassador and three others.

There has been a widespread popular backlash against militias since that attack, and the Libyan government has taken advantage to try to put some of them under the authority of military officers. But some militias have resisted any attempt to fully control them or disarm them.

Any prime minister who wants to impose his authority on the militias will need broad national support for his government but such support is hard to get.

The rest is here:
Libya’s newly elected PM cast out by legislature

Q: This fan is mostly made from mother-of-pearl and lace. It was a wedding present to my aunt from her husband in 1910. The plate was hers, too. It is dated and marked on the back. Will you please provide information on these two pieces?

A: These are two items that I am sure have been prized over the past century or so, and the fan with its mother-of-pearl sticks covered with white lace is the epitome of turn-of-the-century femininity.

I can just imagine your aunt flirting with her beau using this lovely piece, which seems to have endured the years rather well. My only concern is the dark area I see at the top near the center is this truly discoloration, or is it just my imagination?

If it is discoloration, the fan needs to be shown to a textile conservator, who may be able to fix the problem - but it probably will not be cheap. I fear that the lace may be degraded - and if this is the case, care needs to be taken to preserve this family heirloom for future generations.

There is little question in my mind that this fan is Continental European - perhaps French, Belgian, or Italian. It is hard to tell for sure without seeing a tag that would list the country of origin.

If the condition of this fan is not seriously compromised by broken sticks or discolored fabric that cannot be brightened, the insurance replacement value is probably in the $250 to $300 range. More expensive fans tend to be older and decorated with rather elaborate hand painting.

The plate is very interesting. It is entitled "Hector's Abschied" or "Hector's Goodbye." In Greek mythology, Hector was the son of King Priam and Queen Hecuba of Troy, and brother of Paris. He was married to Andromache to whom I presume he is bidding farewell.

Hector was considered to be the greatest fighter Troy possessed, and when he is killed in battle by Achilles, the Greeks refused to return his body for burial, abusing it for 12 days until the gods intervened and allowed Hector's body to be buried. Hector was considered by Medieval Europeans to be one of the "Nine Worthies" of the ancient world who were known for their courage, nobility and courtly nature.

This is a so-called "cabinet plate," meaning that it was designed to be displayed in a cabinet and not used for any sort of food service (they were also sometimes hung on walls). The mark on the back is called by many a "beehive," but it is really part of the Austrian Coat of Arms and is more properly called a "Bindenschild."

This mark was used by the Vienna or "Royal Vienna" factory, which opened in 1718 and closed 1864. However, many other companies have used this mark over the years, and I do not believe this piece was made either in Vienna or by Royal Vienna.

Link:
Joe Rosson: Valuable cabinet plate features art of Greek mythology