Thursday, May 10, 2012

Bank of Canada Unveils New $20 Note Design -

 

OTTAWA , May 2, 2012 /CNW/ - Minister of Finance Jim Flaherty and Governor Mark Carney today unveiled the new and more secure $20 polymer bank note at the Bank of Canada's head office, on Wellington Street in Ottawa . To raise public awareness about the new note, the building's north-east corner now features seven-storey high images of both sides of the polymer $20 . As with the previously issued $50 and $100 polymer bank notes, the main reason for issuing a new $20 is to stay ahead of counterfeiting threats.  The new polymer notes are also more economical and have a smaller environmental footprint. "The Bank's goal is to maintain Canadians' confidence in our money as a secure means of payment," said Governor Carney after the unveiling ceremony. "This new $20 note fits the bill." The front of the polymer $20 features a new portrait of HM Queen Elizabeth II, who is celebrating her Diamond Jubilee this year. The back of the note pays tribute to the contributions and sacrifices of Canadian men and women in all military conflicts, and features the Canadian National Vimy Memorial - an iconic monument located in Vimy, France that commemorates the Battle of Vimy Ridge and honours those who fought and gave their lives in the First World War in France and have no known grave. On 9 April 1917 , all four divisions of the Canadian Expeditionary Force united for the first time to take Vimy Ridge in France - a strategically important position that had eluded previous attempts by allied forces between 1914 and 1916. "The Canadian Corps' victory at Vimy is often described as Canada's 'coming of age' as a nation," said Minister Flaherty, "This third note in the Frontier series commemorates the combination of technical innovation, tactical planning and meticulous execution with which Canada breached more than just a military frontier at Vimy Ridge." "The Bank is proud to memorialize this pivotal moment in Canadian history and to feature the inspiring Canadian National Vimy Memorial on the new $20 bank note," said Governor Carney. The $20 bill, which accounts for over 50 per cent of all bank notes in circulation and is the main note dispensed by automated banking machines (ABMs), will begin circulating in November of this year. To prepare for the new notes, the Bank is working closely with financial institutions and manufacturers of bank note equipment to ensure a smooth transition to polymer. The Bank is also providing authentication training and support materials to law enforcement officers and to cash handlers in retail and financial institutions. The remaining bank notes in the series - the $5 and $10 - will be issued by the end of 2013. The specific designs and detailed images of these notes will not be released until their official unveiling dates. The themes of all the polymer denominations are:
 Yahoo! Finance

 

In a controversial decision that is already sparking debate around the country, the New York Court of Appeals ruled on Tuesday that viewing child pornography online is not a crime. "The purposeful viewing of child pornography on the internet is now legal in New York," Senior Judge Carmen Beauchamp Ciparick wrote in a majority decision for the court. The decision came after Marist College professor James D. Kent was sentenced to prison in August 2009 after more than 100 images of child pornography were found on his computer's cache. Whenever someone views an image online, a copy of the image's data is saved in the computer's memory cache. The ruling attempts to distinguish between individuals who see an image of child pornography online versus those who actively download and store such images, MSNBC reports. And in this case, it was ruled that a computer's image cache is not the same as actively choosing to download and save an image. "Merely viewing Web images of child pornography does not, absent other proof, constitute either possession or procurement within the meaning of our Penal Law," Ciparick wrote in the decision. See a copy of the court's full ruling on the child pornography decision. The court said it must be up to the legislature, not the courts, to determine what the appropriate response should be to those viewing images of child pornography without actually storing them. Currently, New York's legislature has no laws deeming such action criminal. As The Atlantic Wire notes, under current New York law, "it is illegal to create, possess, distribute, promote or facilitate child pornography." But that leaves out one critical distinction, as Judge Ciparick stated in the court's decision. "[S]ome affirmative act is required (printing, saving, downloading, etc.) to show that defendant in fact exercised dominion and control over the images that were on his screen," Ciparick wrote. "To hold otherwise, would extend the reach of (state law) to conduct—viewing—that our Legislature has not deemed criminal." The case originated when Kent brought his computer in to be checked for viruses, complaining that it was running slowly. He has subsequently denied downloading the images himself. More popular Yahoo! News stories: • 12 sets of twins graduating from just one high-school class • Maurice Sendak's 'Where The Wild Things Are,' as read by Christopher Walken (VIDEO) • Star Wars attraction creates personalized figurine 'frozen in carbonite'

Viewing child pornography online not a crime: New York court ruling | The Sideshow - Yahoo! News

In a controversial decision that is already sparking debate around the country, the New York Court of Appeals ruled on Tuesday that viewing child pornography online is not a crime. "The purposeful viewing of child pornography on the internet is now legal in New York," Senior Judge Carmen Beauchamp Ciparick wrote in a majority decision for the court. The decision came after Marist College professor James D. Kent was sentenced to prison in August 2009 after more than 100 images of child pornography were found on his computer's cache. Whenever someone views an image online, a copy of the image's data is saved in the computer's memory cache. The ruling attempts to distinguish between individuals who see an image of child pornography online versus those who actively download and store such images, MSNBC reports. And in this case, it was ruled that a computer's image cache is not the same as actively choosing to download and save an image. "Merely viewing Web images of child pornography does not, absent other proof, constitute either possession or procurement within the meaning of our Penal Law," Ciparick wrote in the decision. See a copy of the court's full ruling on the child pornography decision. The court said it must be up to the legislature, not the courts, to determine what the appropriate response should be to those viewing images of child pornography without actually storing them. Currently, New York's legislature has no laws deeming such action criminal. As The Atlantic Wire notes, under current New York law, "it is illegal to create, possess, distribute, promote or facilitate child pornography." But that leaves out one critical distinction, as Judge Ciparick stated in the court's decision. "[S]ome affirmative act is required (printing, saving, downloading, etc.) to show that defendant in fact exercised dominion and control over the images that were on his screen," Ciparick wrote. "To hold otherwise, would extend the reach of (state law) to conduct—viewing—that our Legislature has not deemed criminal." The case originated when Kent brought his computer in to be checked for viruses, complaining that it was running slowly. He has subsequently denied downloading the images himself. More popular Yahoo! News stories: • 12 sets of twins graduating from just one high-school class • Maurice Sendak's 'Where The Wild Things Are,' as read by Christopher Walken (VIDEO) • Star Wars attraction creates personalized figurine 'frozen in carbonite'

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