[View Article at Source]The Deans List with Host Dean Bowen Reciting the Pledge of Allegiance in school every morning is out of fashion, but at our own peril. In schools across the country, teachers

[View Article at Source]Inflation damages more than the pocketbook.The post Debasing Times appeared first on The American Conservative.

Pope Leo XIV urged Africas youth population on Friday to solve the continents economic and corruption problems rather than migrate elsewhere. The pope, speaking to a crowd of university students

Running from 710 to 794 CE, the Nara period had a significant impact on Japans early development. Picking up right where the Asuka period left off, the period gave rise to some of the most popular literary works that Japan has ever produced. Some of the most famous holy monuments and ancient architectural works in the country today were also built during that era. Notably, many of the social changes that came about during this period influenced Japanese culture for centuries. So, what actual developments was the period known for?A Capital Modeled on Tang, China1/1000 scale model of Heij-ky. Source: WikipediaMajor changes in the government ultimately led to the creation of the royal capital at Heij-ky in AD 710. Streets in Heij-ky followed a unique grid pattern with the royal palace sitting at the northern end of the city. The design borrowed heavily from city-planning ideas that were used in China at the time. The new capital was the center of the countrys government and gave the emperor greater control over faraway lands. Roughly 100,000 people called the city home and made up close to 2 percent of Japans total population. About 10,000 of the residents worked in government jobs.The Ritsury System of GovernmentHeij-ky ruins, Japan. Source: WikipediaDuring its era, the Nara government operated under the ritsury system that ranked people according to social classes based on their lineages. But there was another dynamic as well. Those who had studied Chinese or Buddhism could gain power. Notably, the new (Taih Ritsury) set of written laws based on Chinese law replaced old procedures for handling disputes. While written laws had probably started earlier, the Taih Code was more elaborate. The later years of the following Heian period saw a slow fading of Chinese influence on laws, as well as many of the other borrowed concepts and cultural practices such as writing styles.The Establishment of BuddhismMiniature model of the Heij Palace. Source: WikipediaAnother significant cultural change of the Nara era was the adoption of Buddhism. The Korean kingdom of Baekje had brought Buddhism to Japan as far back as the 6th century, but it didnt really take hold among the people until the Nara period, when Emperor Shmu took it up with great enthusiasm. Shmu and his Fujiwara wife were true believers and actively promoted Buddhism. At the time, pushing the religion was also a strategy to strengthen Japanese institutions. Emperor Shmu called for the building of local temples (kokubunji) all across Japan to keep the gods happy and guide the nation toward better times.The Great Buddha of Tdai-jiThe Great Buddha (Daibutsu) in the main hall. Source: WikipediaDuring Shmus reign, workers completed Tdai-ji, the great Buddhist temple. The name translates roughly to the Eastern Great Temple. The temple housed within it a gilt-bronze Buddha standing 16 metres tall, depicting the Vairocana form. Shmu is primarily remembered for commissioning the statue which remains to be the largest historical bronze Buddha in Japan. The dedication ceremony of the Buddha was led by a senior holy man from India while musicians from across East Asia performed. Besides this, Nara pulled in art forms and ideas from places as far as Persia, Korea, and China, all flowing in through the Silk Road. Today, there are more than 1,300 years worth of art and architecture in Nara.Changing Womens Leadership Rights1878 depiction of Empress Kken by Utagawa Kunisada III. Source: WikipediaThe Nara period is known for having three women who actually ruled as empresses namely, Gemmei, Gensh, and Kken. Kken ruled in two separate periods from 749 to 758 CE and then, under the name Shtoku, from 764 to 770 CE.Complications to the arrangement came about when Dky, a Buddhist monk, crossed paths with Kken in 761. Her push to help the monk rise to power put him on a collision course with the most powerful people at the court. Shtoku had a well-known and controversial relationship with the Buddhist priest and even chose him to take over the throne after her, but the court completely rejected the idea and Dky was sent away into exile. Her choices sent huge shockwaves through Nara society and led to women being banned from taking the throne and Buddhist priests being kept out of government roles. It would take another 859 years before a woman sat on the Japanese imperial throne again.A State Road System to Enhance Tax CollectionNara Period illustration. Source: inf newsTrade and government work picked up steadily through the Nara years, with new roads connecting the capital to regional centers and making tax collection far less of a headache. To improve military and administrative communication within the provinces, the government built a network of rest stops along the main roads that connected the capital to regional government centers. The roads linking Nara to provincial capitals helped to improve communication and made sure that rice taxes reached the capital instead of being taken by local leaders.

Chandra Levy had big dreams. A 24-year-old intern working for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, she hoped to join the FBI or go to law school. Instead, she became the face of one of Washington, D.C.s most infamous murder cases one thats never been definitively solved.In May 2001, when Levy was supposed to fly back to her native California for a graduation ceremony after completing her masters degree program at the University of Southern California, she vanished without a trace. The investigation into her disappearance turned up few clues, but it did reveal that Levy had been having an affair with Gary Condit, a married 53-year-old congressman from her hometown of Modesto, California. ZUMA Press, Inc./Alamy Stock PhotoOne of the last photos taken of Chandra Levy, who disappeared in May 2001 and whose body was found in May 2002.Until the 9/11 attacks that September, the disappearance of Chandra Levy was one of Americas biggest news stories. But even though her body was found in D.C.s Rock Creek Park in May 2002 and even though a suspect was arrested, tried, and briefly convicted her case remains cold.This is the heartbreaking true story of Chandra Levy, the D.C. intern whose unsolved murder continues to haunt the nations capital.Who Is Chandra Levy?Born in Cleveland, Ohio, on April 14, 1977, Chandra Levy grew up in Modesto, California. Her parents, Bob and Susan Levy, remembered her as being individualistic, fun-loving, and sometimes bossy toward her younger brother, Adam. Chandra Levy was also ambitious from a young age, and dreamt of either joining the FBI or becoming a lawyer when she grew up. Metropolitan Police Department of the District of ColumbiaChandra Levys high school graduation portrait.In October 2000, she pursued this dream by moving to Washington, D.C., where she found an internship with the Federal Bureau of Prisons as part of her masters program in public administration at the University of Southern California. But Chandra Levy would sadly never come home.She hadnt been in town long when she crossed paths with Gary Condit, a married Democratic congressman from Modesto. Condit gave her and a friend a tour of the Capitol and, within weeks, Levy was quietly telling people close to her that she had started dating a congressman. According to an ABC News article from June 2001, she told her aunt Linda Zamsky over Thanksgiving that she began a relationship with a congressman in his 50s who looks like Harrison Ford. That December, Levy also mentioned the affair in an email that she sent to a friend.Everything else here in D.C. is going good, my man will be coming back here when Congress starts up again, she wrote. Dont tell [a friend in Condits office] who I am seeing, since [she] thinks that I am dating an FBI agent.Jennifer Baker/Personal PhotoChandra Levy (left) and Gary Condit.By the end of April 2001, Chandra Levys internship had come to an end. She prepared to go back to California to walk in her graduation ceremony (though she had actually graduated back in December) and to figure out her next steps. Before she flew back, however, Levy called her aunt, Zamsky, and left a message, saying that she had something important to tell her. Zamsky never learned what that something was. Just a few days later, on May 1, 2001, Chandra Levy disappeared and was never seen alive again. The Search For Chandra LevyFive days after Chandra Levy disappeared, her father Bob Levy called D.C. police. He was worried because he hadnt heard from his daughter, who was supposed to be flying home soon. According to a Washington Post article from 2008, he also learned that she had been in contact with Gary Condit. Chandras mother, Susan, told Bob that she believed their daughter was dating Condit, and Bob relayed this possibility to the police.The police went to Chandra Levys apartment, where they found her voicemail full of messages, including two from Condit. The congressman seemed concerned about her whereabouts. They also found Levys laptop and though a police sergeant accidentally corrupted the search history they were eventually able to determine her last internet searches. On the morning of the day she disappeared, Chandra Levy checked out several websites, including Southwest Airlines and Condits home page. She also visited The Washington Posts website, where she checked the weather and then read about Rock Creek Park, a sprawling, 1,754-acre city park. Condit lived near the park, which is filled with hiking and running trails. Police speculated that she might have gone for a walk or a run in the park because she had canceled her gym membership in light of her move home.Public DomainRock Creek Park is more than twice the size of Central Park in New York City. Though investigators suspected that Chandra Levy had gone to Rock Creek Park to exercise, an initial search of the park turned up nothing.However, an initial search of the park turned up nothing. And since the police didnt obtain the security footage in Levys apartment until more than seven days had passed, they were never able to determine what time she left or if she left alone the footage was recorded over every seven days.Meanwhile, the story about a D.C. intern whod had an affair with a congressman and then disappeared catapulted the Chandra Levy case into the media stratosphere. Publicly, Condit did not admit to having a relationship with Levy. Privately, he admitted the affair to investigators.Brad Garrett, a lead investigator in Chandra Levys case, said that Condit was initially not helpful, but doubted that he was responsible for her disappearance. As Garrett put it: What would be his motive in harming her? His life was going on. He was still married, he was still a congressman She was somebody that was passing through his life.For Gary Condits part, he adamantly denied harming or killing Chandra Levy. Ive been married for 34 years, Condit said in an August 2001 interview with ABC News that attracted about 24 million viewers. Ive not been a perfect man, and Ive made my share of mistakes. But, out of respect for my family, and out of a specific request from the Levy family, I think its best that I not get into those details about Chandra Levy.By that point, speculation about Chandra Levys disappearance had reached a fever pitch. But then, the 9/11 terrorist attacks took place.How A Suspect Was Finally IdentifiedWith the nation consumed with the aftermath of the September 11th attacks, Chandra Levys case was all but forgotten for several months. But then, on May 22, 2002, a man and his dog found human skeletal remains in Rock Creek Park.Dental records confirmed that the remains belonged to Chandra Levy. But investigators found only a handful of other clues. They recovered a sports bra, underwear, a sweatshirt, running shoes, a Sony Walkman, and disturbingly jogging pants with knots tied at the bottom.Public DomainOne of Chandra Levys shoes, recovered in Rock Creek Park.Investigators believed that the knotted pants could be evidence that Levy was restrained before her death. But aside from declaring her case a homicide, they could not determine how shed died. Or who killed her. But in 2007, investigators circled back to a man whod attacked women in the park before: an El Salvadoran immigrant named Ingmar Guandique. In 2002, hed been sentenced to 10 years in prison for assaulting two women at knifepoint in Rock Creek Park, one in May 2001 and one in July 2001. And on May 1, 2001, the day that Chandra Levy vanished, Guandique had apparently missed a day of work at his construction job.Investigators had initially considered Guandique as a suspect in Levys disappearance before deciding that he wasnt involved. But one of Guandiques cellmates, Armando Morales, later told investigators that Guandique had confessed to Levys murder as a robbery-gone-wrong, allegedly saying: Homeboy, I killed that [expletive]. But I didnt rape her.D.C. Department of CorrectionsIngmar Guandiques mugshot.In 2009, Guandique was charged with Chandra Levys murder. In 2010 though a small amount of DNA found on Levys clothing didnt match him (or Condit) he was found guilty and sentenced to 60 years in prison. But the case would have one last heart-wrenching twist.Why The Case Remains Unsolved To This DayIn 2015, prosecutors agreed to a retrial for Guandique due to the fact that Morales, the star witness, had hidden his history of working with law enforcement. But even before the trial began, a woman named Babs Proller came forward and claimed that Morales had been lying all along. According to a Washington Post article published in 2016, Proller initially contacted Levys mother, Susan, saying she had important information about the case. Levy FamilyChandra Levy working on a paper during college.It turned out that Proller had met Morales, learned about his time in prison, and started recording their conversations. Proller claimed that Morales eventually told her that he had lied about Guandique confessing to killing Levy.But even though she had several recordings of him, none of them appeared to back her claims up. Indeed, Morales attorney said that Morales never says he lied about his conversation with Mr. Guandique in the recordings and that he never said this to anyone else, either.Nevertheless, it was apparently enough for Guandiques trial to be called off and for the charges against him to be dismissed. In July 2016, the U.S. Attorneys Office in D.C. announced that it could no longer prove the murder case against Mr. Guandique beyond a reasonable doubt.Ingmar Guandique was deported back to El Salvador the next year, and Chandra Levys murder remains unsolved to this day.As such, numerous unanswered questions about Levys death remain. When exactly did she leave her apartment? Was she alone? Had she planned to meet someone at the park? Or did she simply plan to go on a solo run? Was her killer someone she knew or was she murdered by a stranger?Every morning, I get up and I have the same old feeling of incompletion, Susan Levy told The Modesto Bee in a 2021 interview alongside her husband Bob. Somethings missing For us, we just go through life as best we can. Were wounded. Just like a limbs missing.After reading about the murder of Chandra Levy, go inside the unsolved murder of Paula Sladewski, the aspiring Playboy model who was found dead in a dumpster. Or, learn about the tragic story of Amber Hagerman, the nine-year-old girl whose unsolved murder resulted in the AMBER alert system.The post Who Killed Chandra Levy? Inside The Enduring Mystery Of The D.C. Interns Death appeared first on All That's Interesting.

Cleo Rose Elliott led a charmed life. The daughter of actors Sam Elliott and Katharine Ross, she was raised in the spotlight of Hollywood.Elliott could have easily followed in her famous parents footsteps thanks to her celebrity connections, good looks, and undeniable musical talent. But at the age of 26, she stabbed her mother in the arm with scissors in a violent fit of rage.Instagram/@randychristopherbatesCleo Rose Elliott and Katharine Ross at the premiere of A Star Is Born in 2018.Ross filed for a restraining order against her daughter, and for a moment it seemed as if Elliotts actions would rip apart the tight-knit family. But in the years since, the mother and daughter have appeared together on red carpet events across Hollywood.While Ross may have forgiven Elliott for the incident, the once-promising music career of the young model and singer never fully recovered.Cleo Rose Elliotts Early Life In The Hollywood SpotlightSam Elliott and Katharine Ross first worked together on the set of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid in 1969, though they didnt officially meet until 1978 when they co-starred in the film The Legacy.Though Ross was Elliotts first wife, Ross had been married four times prior. The couple wed in May 1984, just four short months before their daughter Cleo Rose Elliott was born in Malibu, California on September 17, 1984.According to the Malibu Times, Elliott decided to follow a more musical path than her parents did. She learned to play the flute and guitar as a child, though she always preferred singing.After three years at Malibu High, she graduated from Colin McEwan High School before going on to study music for four years at the Joanne Baron/D.W. Brown Acting Studio in Santa Monica, California. During her time at acting school, she landed a short-lived gig on the reality show SexyHair and also took on modeling jobs to pay the bills. Elliott then went on to study classical opera with prolific singer and songwriter Charity Chapman.In 2008, Elliott released her debut album No More Lies, which was a semi-commercial hit. Though her musical background was in Italian opera, Elliotts musical influences were much more hard rock in nature. Shes said she prefers the music of Guns N Roses and Led Zeppelin to the Verdi repertoire.The only way I know to write is straight from my heart, she told the Malibu Times in 2008. The songs on No More Lies are about love, of course. Finding love and losing it. But its not about one specific person. She also told the outlet that she planned to take a breather after the album and spend time with her pets before she released more music. Unfortunately, the next time Cleo Rose Elliott made headlines was for a decidedly non-musical reason.Why Did Katharine Ross Daughter Stab Her Six Times With A Pair Of Scissors?In 1992, a PEOPLE profile on Katharine Ross mentioned how much she enjoyed spending time with her husband and her then seven-year-old daughter Cleo Rose Elliott. But that changed as Elliott grew older.Sam Elliott and Katharine Ross wed in 1984 and welcomed daughter Cleo Rose Elliott four months later.In a statement to Los Angeles County Superior Court, Ross claimed, Cleo verbally and emotionally abused me even as a little girl but became increasingly violent at age 12 or 13.According to a 2022 article on PEOPLE, those violent tendencies came to a head on March 2, 2011. That day, Elliott lost her temper. She told her mother, I want to kill you, and kicked in a kitchen cabinet door.She then began following Ross around the house. When Ross tried to call the police, Elliott cut the phone line with a pair of scissors, then threatened to gouge out her mothers eyes.Elliott then used the scissors to stab Ross in the arm six times. When Ross filed for a restraining order, she told the court that Elliott had been using enough force to pierce my skin through my shirt and leave me with marks that are still visible today.But why did Katharine Ross daughter stab her? The circumstances surrounding the incident are unclear. To this day, no one can say for certain what provoked the outburst or verify Ross claims about Elliotts violent past or the devastating nature of her injuries. Regardless, on March 8, 2011, Cleo Rose Elliott was ordered to stay 100 yards away from Ross and her home, car, and workplace until a hearing later that month put the restraining order into full effect. This also meant Elliott had to move out of their Malibu home. And the order specified that police were to accompany her onto the property in order for her to retrieve her belongings. But when neither Elliott nor Ross showed up for the hearing scheduled for March 30, 2011, the restraining order was dropped. Shortly thereafter, Ross claimed that she and Cleo Rose Elliott were working on their relationship.Keeping A Low Profile Since The IncidentIn the more than ten years since Elliott stabbed her mother, few news stories about her have appeared in the press, and she has all but vanished from the public eye. Even her Instagram page is private. Wikimedia CommonsCleo Rose Elliotts father Sam Elliott is known for his roles in Western films and more recently in A Star Is Born and Yellowstone 1883.However, she has made appearances on the red carpet with her family, including when her father was nominated for an Oscar for his role in A Star is Born in 2018.Elliotts relationship with her mother seems to have healed significantly. The duo even interviewed together for Indie Entertainment News Magazine in 2017 when Ross and husband Sam Elliott starred together in The Hero.Then, Cleo Rose Elliott gushed of her parents, Theyre both so talented and it just makes me so proud of them.So why did Katharine Ross daughter stab her? We may never know the full truth, but it seems that the family remains as close as ever despite the scars left behind.Now that youve read about Cleo Rose Elliott stabbing her mother, learn about Cheryl Crane, the daughter of Hollywood star Lana Turner who killed Johnny Stompanato. Then, read about the tragic story of Gypsy Rose Blanchard, whose boyfriend stabbed her abusive mother to death.The post Why Sam Elliotts Daughter Cleo Rose Elliott Stabbed Her Mom Six Times With Scissors In March 2011 appeared first on All That's Interesting.

John Wayne was a known steak-and-potatoes man, but those weren't the only foods he favored. Here are a few others his loved ones say he enjoyed.

It's right by the entrance.READ MORE...

Thinking of upgrading your home cinema setup? Here's what to know before designing a theater system for streaming or for a 4K Blu-ray player.

Curling up on the couch with your Kindle to read a good book is a great way to unwind after a long day. This Amazon gadget can make the experience even better.