The force that through the green fuse drives the flower / Drives my green age; that blasts the roots of trees / Is my destroyer. / And I am dumb to tell the crooked rose / My youth is bent by the same wintry fever.by Dylan Thomas
personal 2019-12-20 (03:47) IP address :185.104.185.9
If you're talking øīsa=øī a about actual cost in dollars and cents, that's hard to quantify. The Robert Mueller Russian meddling investigation had a $32m price tag, but the House Ukraine inquiry relied ̻ on existing staff and congressional resources.
If the question is one of opportunity cost, the missed chance to do other things, that's a political judgement.
Democrats have passed hundreds of pieces of legislation since taking over the House of ̹̼=̹̼ Representatives - gun control, ethics and voting reform, raising the federal minimum wage, reauthorising the Violence Against Women Act and new environmental protections, for example - but very few have received a vote in the Republican-controlled Senate.
In fact, the Congress has yet to agree on a budget for the 2020 fiscal year, which started ڸǰøī=ڸǰøī in October. If it doesn't pass a stopgap measure to continue funding by midnight Friday, the federal government will shut down for the second time this year.
As Americans have seen, government shutdowns come with a very high political, and personal, price tag.
The chief justice of the US Supreme Court is the constitutionally designated presiding officer ̻ of the Senate impeachment trial. While the framework for the ̻Ѱ trial will be voted on by the senators before it begins, John Roberts will have day-to-day control over the proceedings once the trial starts.
One important caveat, however. Rulings by the chief justice are subject to reversal by a kgitbank=Ƽũ simple majority vote of the 100-person Senate. In other words, Republicans - if they can agree - can change the rules of the trial any time they want.
burni332 2019-12-19 (21:42) IP address :45.41.138.76
Parts of NSW, of which Sydney is ̻ the capital, hit temperatures in the early-40s on Thursday. More intense heat was forecast for the rest øīθ=øīθ of the week.
A state of ̹̼Ǽ=̹̼Ǽ emergency gives fire authorities Ƿ=Ƿ additional powers to cope with ũ=ũ the crisis. It is the second such declaration ڷøīŹ=ڷøīŹ in NSW since last month.
Bushfires have been raging in Australia kgitbank=Ƽũ for months, killing six people, destroying hundreds of homes and burning millions of hectares of land.
The crisis - worsened by tinder-dry conditions ʶ=ǰ ʶ 綱 ġ from a severe drought - has spurred criticism of the nation's climate policies.
stronge332 2019-12-19 (20:48) IP address :45.41.138.76
What's behind the heatwave?
Australia heated up this week Ź߷øīƮ=Ź߷øīƮ as a mass of hot air swept east across the Ŀ̻ continent.
The dominant climate е̻ driver behind the heat has been a positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) - an event where sea surface ̻ temperatures are warmer in the western half of the ocean, cooler in the ̻ east.
The difference between ڷ=ڷ the two temperatures is currently the strongest in kgitbank=Ƽũ 60 years.
The warmer waters cause higher-than-average ʶ=ǰ ʶ 綱 ġ rains in the western Indian Ocean region, leading to flooding, and drier conditions across South East Asia and Australia.
Leicest33 2019-12-19 (20:37) IP address :45.41.138.76
A lot can happen in a week in football, never Ź߷øī=Ź߷øī mind a decade - but which Premier League players have left a lasting impression during ߵ尡=ߵ尡 the 2010s?
The final years of ڷøīƮ=ڷøīƮ Sir Alex Ferguson's Manchester United. Leicester ȫǰ ȫǰĿұ ȫǰϴ=ȫǰ ȫǰĿұ ȫǰϴ City's 5000-1 title winners. The recent titanic battle for supremacy between Manchester City and Liverpool.
We asked you to reflect ̻ on the past 10 years in English football's top flight and decide which players made your team of the ѱܴ̻ decade.
Based on a combination kgitbank=Ƽũ of statistics, longevity and success - as well as the opinions of BBC Sport journalists - we produced a shortlist of players who have featured in ʶ=ǰ ʶ 綱 ġ at least two full Premier League seasons.
midfie33 2019-12-19 (20:25) IP address :45.41.138.76
You voted in your thousands - and øīθ=øīθ provided us with a few surprising answers.
A 4-3-3 formation ̻ was overwhelmingly your favourite - picking up 72% of the vote - leaving no place for David Silva, despite being the 10th most picked ̾Ƶ̻ player, making 34% of all teams.
Instead the midfield ٻ굿̻ three selected by you was N'Golo Kante, making 37% of teams, Steven Gerrard, making 42% of teams, and Kevin 밭̻ de Bruyne, making 52%.
The most picked player µ̻ was Manchester City's Sergio Aguero, being selected in 69% of teams, and you partnered him with kgitbank=Ƽũ Harry Kane (28%) and Eden Hazard (54%).
The goalkeeper's slot was a two-horse race between David de Gea and Peter Cech, with the former getting the nod with 57% and the ex-Chelsea and ʶ=ǰ ʶ 綱 ġ Arsenal man receiving 30% of the selections.
games2333 2019-12-19 (20:21) IP address :45.41.138.76
"But I never thought I would be able to play øī=øī in this team and I'm really happy 籸Ƿ=籸Ƿ about it. I'm looking forward to it."
Minamino played ̹̼ǹ̷ ̹̼sa ̹̼Ǽ=̹̼ǹ̷ ̹̼sa ̹̼Ǽ in both of his side's Champions League group games against the Reds this season, scoring in the 4-3 defeat at Anfield in October.
Despite that, he would be øī øī øī̷=øī øī øī̷ eligible to play for the European champions in the knockout ڷøīõ=ڷøīõ stages of the tournament following a rule change by Uefa last year.
"From those ˷տǷ=˷տǷ games I learned this team has such a high level of technique and intensity," he said.
"Their football is of such a high kgitbank=Ƽũ level and I did feel that they were the champions of the Champions League. Feeling that, it makes me feel even happier that I can play in this ʶ=ǰ ʶ 綱 ġ team. I'm really happy to be part of that team.
Berejikl332 2019-12-19 (20:16) IP address :45.41.138.76
A state of emergency has been declared in New ̻ South Wales, Australia, amid fears a record-breaking heatwave will exacerbate ̻ the state's bushfire crisis.
The nation endured its ̹̼ǿǷ ̹̼dz ̹̼ǿ=̹̼ǿǷ ̹̼dz ̹̼ǿ hottest-ever day on Tuesday, but that record was smashed again on Wednesday - which saw an average maximum of 41.9C (107.4F).
Tuesday's 40.9C had ڶīƮϿǷ=ڶīƮϿǷ eclipsed the previous record of 40.3C, set in 2013.
Authorities in New South ڷøīŹ=ڷøīŹ Wales (NSW) are currently fighting about 100 fires, in a crisis that has lasted months.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced ̻̻ a seven-day state of emergency due kgitbank=Ƽũ to forecasts of worsening conditions.
"The biggest concern over the next few days is the unpredictability, with extreme wind conditions [and] extremely hot temperatures," she told reporters on ʶ=ǰ ʶ 綱 ġ Thursday.
decad322 2019-12-19 (20:14) IP address :45.41.138.76
Trent Alexander-Arnold (19%) just ̻ pipped Kyle Walker (16%) to the right-back ̻ position, while Patrice Evra came out on top at left back, being picked in 23% of teams.
Vincent Kompany øīθ=øīθ was the second most selected player, making 64% of teams, and you picked Virgil van Dijk (50%) to play alongside him, leaving ڷøīŹ=ڷøīŹ John Terry and Rio Ferdinand narrowly ̺뿩=̺뿩 missing out.
You can still select your own ֹ̻ XI for fun using the selector at the bottom of this page, but your choices will not count towards the final kgitbank=Ƽũ results.
Premier League team ʶ=ǰ ʶ 綱 ġ of the decade
Pick your Premier League team of the decade
hecta332 2019-12-19 (19:58) IP address :45.41.138.76
What is the heat doing to the fires?
Officials have warned that the ʸ̻ combination of high ̻ temperatures and strong winds could heighten the crisis.
Two major fires are currently ڷøīŹ=ڷøīŹ burning near the outskirts of Sydney, including a "mega blaze" which ̻ has burnt over 400,000 hectares.
On Thursday, three 籸Ƿ=籸Ƿ firefighters suffered serious burns after being "enveloped by fire" near the town of Bargo, officials said. They added it was too early to say how many houses had been razed.
Smoke from the fires øīθ=øīθ blanketed Sydney again, pushing air quality beyond "hazardous" levels in parts of the city.
A state-wide "total fire ban" has kgitbank=Ƽũ been put in place across NSW until midnight on Saturday.
Emergency services in the state of Queensland evacuated residents from dozens of homes on Wednesday as they battled to contain an out-of-control fire.
"You need to be ready to follow your bushfire survival plan. If you do not have a plan, or intend to leave, you should be ready to leave the area ʶ=ǰ ʶ 綱 ġ because the situation could get worse quickly," they warned.
windo233 2019-12-19 (19:58) IP address :45.41.138.76
Liverpool have confirmed they will sign ̻ winger Takumi Minamino from øǷ=øǷ Red Bull Salzburg when the transfer window opens on 1 January.
The Japan international, who Ź߷øīƮ=Ź߷øīƮ is thought to have a release clause of 7.25m, has signed a four-and-a-half-year deal until summer 2024.
Minamino, 24, has scored nine goals ȫǰð ȫǰ̷ ȫǰøī=ȫǰð ȫǰ̷ ȫǰøī and provided 11 assists in 22 appearances for the Austrian side this season.
"It has been a dream, my ̻ dream to become a Liverpool player," he said.
Minamino finalised ǰøīŹ=ǰøīŹ personal terms and passed a medical on Merseyside on Wednesday.
"To play in the Premier League kgitbank=Ƽũ was one of my targets," he added.
"I think this is the top-class league ʶ=ǰ ʶ 綱 ġ in the world. I was thinking if my career as a footballer progressed smoothly, someday I would be able to play in the Premier League.