2019年6月22日
Trump's story on why he stopped a military strike against Iran at the last minute doesn't add up
President Donald Trump on Friday tweeted that he made a game-time decision to halt a military strike against Iran over last-minute information about civilian casualties, leading to questions over whether Trump was properly briefed on the operation based on standard White House and military protocol.
But experts are raising concerns about Trump’s recounting, saying that typically, a concept of operations, or CONOPs, for any type of military action would include discussion of casualty estimates early in the process. This assessment up front can highlight legal concerns and the possibility it could provoke a retaliation.
Ned Price, the former spokesperson for the National Security Council under Obama, said that Trump’s tweet indicates a process that is “about as far from normal as you can get.” Trump’s Iran strategy has been unpredictable, particularly since the attacks on a Japanese tanker and a Norwegian tanker in the Gulf of Oman on June 13. But while Trump’s decision not to go through with the strike was arguably a good one, the volatility of his process is still cause for concern.
On Friday afternoon, Trump clarified his account of the aborted strike, telling NBC’s Chuck Todd that he hadn’t given final approval to the strikes and that planes were not in the air, “but they would have been pretty soon” when he made the decision to back down. Trump told Todd that he asked for a casualty estimate at that point.
Boeing made an unexpected success of the world's biggest airshow, avoiding a humiliation by arch-rival Airbus
Boeing managed to hold back its European rival Airbus at the Paris Air Show this year, announcing unexpected successes and avoiding the prospect of a public face plant during one of its worst-ever years. The world’s two largest plane makers battle for sales and buzz at every major air show.
Boeing entered the Paris Air Show with its top-selling plane model grounded around the world over two fatal plane crashes which killed almost 350 people, putting the company at the center of one of the most damaging news cycles imaginable. The aftermath is still being strongly felt. Boeing faces pressure from regulators, lawsuits from around the world, and demands for compensations from the airlines that are its biggest customers. But Boeing managed to get out from under the issue as the show progressed, and attention turned to its sales and future products.
Boeing even announced that one of the world’s largest airline groups will buy a new fleet of 200 737 Max planes. The a $US24 billion order is both a much-needed vote of confidence, and the first public order for the planes since the second 737 Max crashed in March. The order from International Airlines Group (IAG) – which owns British Airways, Aer Lingus, and Iberia – visibly riled Airbus, which was left complaining that had not had a fair chance to compete for the order.
Airbus kicked off the Paris Air Show by announcing the order of 100 planes. That day, Boeing only announced an order for 10 converted freighters. On Thursday morning, Airbus announced that its firm orders and commitments added up to 363 commercial planes. The public total for Boeing at time of writing stands at 268. Airbus announced a new plane on the first day of the air show: the A321XLR. It announced the long-range, single-aisle airliner – a smaller plane that can do long-haul flights – along with the news that it had already sold 27 of them.
In contrast, Boeing had nothing new to announce, and was left answering questions about how it would counter the A321XLR, plus ongoing scrutiny of the issues with its current planes.
Both Airbus and Boeing also showed off conceptual designs and military products, and they both also made a point of repeatedly saying that the future of their companies would be more environmentally sustainable.
A woman created a 'health resume' to bring to her doctor's appointments, and doctors think it's genius
A North Carolina writer and mum of six named Shannon Dingle recently reimagined the resume as a health document that could make your next trip to the doctor less stressful. On Tuesday, Dingle, shared a tweet with an image of her “health resume,” a document she created to outline her medical history (including previous surgeries and diagnoses), health and treatment goals, and a bit about her family and personal life. Dingle created the document using a standard Microsoft Word resume template.
“This is a new thing I’m doing with medical appointments: organising all my info in one place and demanding to be seen as a full person. I’ll let you know how it goes,” Dingle wrote in the tweet. Later that day, Dingle shared an update that her doctor appreciated her health resume. Other doctors chimed in too, tweeting to Dingle that they though her concept was smart and helpful for patients and health care providers alike.
“That’s one of the reasons it works so well for me. I have PTSD, and having this all presented like this makes me feel safer about seeing doctors,” Dingle wrote. She added that the document prevents her from accidentally forgetting crucial or detailed information she wants to share during her appointments. Others told Dingle that as patients, they would be using her health resume idea themselves to have better and more productive visits to the doctor.
“I like the idea. My ‘history’ folder looks like War & Peace. The resume version might be more useful for new or not often visited providers,” one woman wrote.
