Senators visit the Kings following Gaudette's 2-goal performanceThe Vietnam Coast Guard Ship CSB 8005 departed Kochi on Friday, after a successful visit strengthening the partnership between the Vietnam Coast Guard (VCG) and Indian Coast Guard (ICG), according to ICG officials. The four-day visit was aimed to enhance maritime cooperation and interoperability between the two maritime forces, they added. The centerpiece of the visit was a comprehensive sea exercise code named Sahayog Hop Tac off Kochi, a press release issued by Coast Guard said. This exercise was focused on critical maritime security issues and included a variety of scenarios, including Pollution Response Demonstration, in which Indian Coast Guard ships and aircraft showcased their expertise in responding to oil spills and other environmental hazards at sea, it stated. The exercise also simulated Visit Board Search and Seizure (VBSS) Operations for inspecting vessels suspected of illegal activity and for counter drugs interdiction, it added. During this exercise, Indian Coast Guard helicopter and Dornier aircraft conducted Search and Rescue drills, Pollution Response demonstrations, External Fire Fighting simulation and Medical Evacuation by helicopter, showcasing ICG ability to undertake various missions, the release said. 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During the exercise, members from both the maritime agencies, embarked other country ship as observers. This provided the crews with the opportunity to observe operations from a varied perspective and imbibe best practice, the release said. The joint exercises proved valuable for both the Coast Guards allowing them to hone their skills and enhance their professional outlook, it added. The visit of the VCG CSB 8005 to Kochi serves as a powerful symbol of the growing partnership between the VCG and Indian Coast Guard through collaborative efforts, both nations are working towards a safer and secure maritime environment, the release said. "On 19 Dec 24, @IndiaCoastGuard warmly welcomed the crew of #VietnamCoastGuard Ship #CSB 8005 onboard #ICG Ship Saksham at #Kochi," Coast Guard PRO posted on 'X'. "Inspector General Bhisham Sharma, PTM, TM, #COMCG (West) hosted #VCG Senior Colonel Nguyen Minh Khanh, Chief of Staff, Coast Guard Region 3. Further, #ICG & #VCG conducted the joint exercise SAHYOG HOP TAC off #Kochi today, strengthening professional exchanges in MPR, MSAR & Law Enforcement," the post added. The VCG Ship CSB 8005 arrived Kochi on December 16 as a part of its ongoing overseas deployment to India. The four-day visit was marked by a series of engaging harbour activities to foster collaboration, the release said. The activities included cross-visits, where crew members from both the VCG and ICG had the opportunity to embark ships, gaining valuable insights into their capabilities and procedures, the release said. A beach cleanship drive at Fort Kochi and friendly volleyball match were also organised, which provided a lighthearted opportunity for crews to interact and build camaraderie, outside the professional setting, it added. On completion of the sea exercise, the Indian Coast Guard bid ceremonial farewell as per the Maritime Customs and traditions to the visiting VCG ship and escorted the vessel till territorial waters, the release added. (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel )
Stormont minister Maurice Morrow told an official he would not raise the issue with the Northern Ireland Executive, despite similar measures being considered in England and Wales. A file on planning arrangements for the jubilee celebrations reveals a series of civil service correspondences on how Northern Ireland would mark the occasion. It includes a letter sent on January 11 2001 from an official in the Office of the First Minister/Deputy First Minister (OFMDFM) to the Department of Social Development, advising that a committee had been set up in London to consider a programme of celebrations. The correspondence says: “One of the issues the committee is currently considering is the possibility of deregulating liquor licensing laws during the golden jubilee celebrations on the same lines as the arrangements made for the millennium. “It is felt that the golden jubilee bank holiday on Monday 3 June 2002 is likely to be an occasion on which many public houses and similar licensed premises would wish to stay open beyond normal closing time.” The letter said a paper had been prepared on the issue of extending opening hours. It adds: “You will note that paragraph seven of the paper indicates that the devolved administrations ‘would need to consider deregulation separately within their own jurisdictions’. “I thought that you would wish to be aware that this issue is receiving active consideration for England and Wales and to consider whether anything needs to be done for Northern Ireland.” Some months later a “progress report” was sent between officials in OFMDFM, which again raised the issue of licensing laws. It says: “I spoke to Gordon Gibson, DSD, about Terry Smith’s letter of 12 January 2001 about licensing laws: the matter was put to their minister Maurice Morrow (DUP) who indicated that he would not be asking the NIE (Northern Ireland Executive) to approve any change to current licensing laws in NI to allow for either 24 hour opening (as at the millennium) nor a blanket approval for extended opening hours as is being considered in GB. “In both cases, primary legislation would be required here and would necessitate consultation and the minister has ruled out any consultation process.” The correspondence says individual licensees could still apply for an extension to opening hours on an ad hoc basis, adding “there the matter rests”. It goes on: “DSD await further pronouncements from the Home Office and Gibson and I have agreed to notify each other of any developments we become aware of and he will copy me to any (existing) relevant papers. “Ministers may well come under pressure in due course for a relaxation and/or parity with GB.” The document concludes “That’s it so far...making haste slowly?” Emails sent between officials in the department the same month said that lord lieutenants in Northern Ireland had been approached about local events to mark the jubilee. One message says: “Lord lieutenants have not shown any enthusiasm for encouraging GJ celebrations at a local level. “Lady Carswell in particular believes that it would be difficult for LLs to encourage such activities without appearing political.”
The military's tradition of tracking Santa Claus on his gravity-defying sweep across the globe will carry on this Christmas Eve, even if the U.S. government shuts down , officials said Friday. Each year, at least 100,000 kids call into the North American Aerospace Defense Command to inquire about Santa’s location. Millions more follow online . “We fully expect for Santa to take flight on Dec. 24 and NORAD will track him," the U.S.-Canadian agency said in a statement. On any other night, NORAD is scanning the heavens for potential threats , such as last year's Chinese spy balloon . But on Christmas Eve, volunteers in Colorado Springs, Colorado, are fielding questions like, “When is Santa coming to my house?” and, “Am I on the naughty or nice list?” The endeavor is supported by local and corporate sponsors, who also help shield the tradition from Washington dysfunction. Bob Sommers, 63, a civilian contractor and NORAD volunteer, told The Associated Press that there are "screams and giggles and laughter” when families call in, usually on speakerphone. Sommers often says on the call that everyone must be asleep before Santa arrives, prompting parents to say, "Do you hear what he said? We got to go to bed early." NORAD's annual tracking of Santa has endured since the Cold War , predating ugly sweater parties and Mariah Carey classics . Here's how it began and why the phones keep ringing. It started with a child's accidental phone call in 1955. The Colorado Springs newspaper printed a Sears advertisement that encouraged children to call Santa, listing a phone number. A boy called. But he reached the Continental Air Defense Command, now NORAD, a joint U.S. and Canadian effort to spot potential enemy attacks. Tensions were growing with the Soviet Union, along with anxieties about nuclear war. Air Force Col. Harry W. Shoup picked up an emergency-only “red phone” and was greeted by a tiny voice that began to recite a Christmas wish list. “He went on a little bit, and he takes a breath, then says, ‘Hey, you’re not Santa,’” Shoup told The Associated Press in 1999. Realizing an explanation would be lost on the youngster, Shoup summoned a deep, jolly voice and replied, “Ho, ho, ho! Yes, I am Santa Claus. Have you been a good boy?” Shoup said he learned from the boy's mother that Sears mistakenly printed the top-secret number. He hung up, but the phone soon rang again with a young girl reciting her Christmas list. Fifty calls a day followed, he said. In the pre-digital age, the agency used a 60-by-80-foot (18-by-24-meter) plexiglass map of North America to track unidentified objects. A staff member jokingly drew Santa and his sleigh over the North Pole. The tradition was born. “Note to the kiddies,” began an AP story from Colorado Springs on Dec. 23, 1955. “Santa Claus Friday was assured safe passage into the United States by the Continental Air Defense Command.” In a likely reference to the Soviets, the article noted that Santa was guarded against possible attack from "those who do not believe in Christmas.” Some grinchy journalists have nitpicked Shoup's story, questioning whether a misprint or a misdial prompted the boy's call. In 2014, tech news site Gizmodo cited an International News Service story from Dec. 1, 1955, about a child's call to Shoup. Published in the Pasadena Independent, the article said the child reversed two digits in the Sears number. "When a childish voice asked COC commander Col. Harry Shoup, if there was a Santa Claus at the North Pole, he answered much more roughly than he should — considering the season: ‘There may be a guy called Santa Claus at the North Pole, but he’s not the one I worry about coming from that direction,'" Shoup said in the brief piece. In 2015, The Atlantic magazine doubted the flood of calls to the secret line, while noting that Shoup had a flair for public relations. Phone calls aside, Shoup was indeed media savvy. In 1986, he told the Scripps Howard News Service that he recognized an opportunity when a staff member drew Santa on the glass map in 1955. A lieutenant colonel promised to have it erased. But Shoup said, “You leave it right there,” and summoned public affairs. Shoup wanted to boost morale for the troops and public alike. “Why, it made the military look good — like we’re not all a bunch of snobs who don’t care about Santa Claus,” he said. Shoup died in 2009. His children told the StoryCorps podcast in 2014 that it was a misprinted Sears ad that prompted the phone calls. “And later in life he got letters from all over the world,” said Terri Van Keuren, a daughter. "People saying ‘Thank you, Colonel, for having, you know, this sense of humor.’” NORAD's tradition is one of the few modern additions to the centuries-old Santa story that have endured, according to Gerry Bowler, a Canadian historian who spoke to the AP in 2010. Ad campaigns or movies try to “kidnap” Santa for commercial purposes, said Bowler, who wrote “Santa Claus: A Biography.” NORAD, by contrast, takes an essential element of Santa's story and views it through a technological lens. In a recent interview with the AP, Air Force Lt. Gen. Case Cunningham explained that NORAD radars in Alaska and Canada — known as the northern warning system — are the first to detect Santa. He leaves the North Pole and typically heads for the international dateline in the Pacific Ocean. From there he moves west, following the night. “That's when the satellite systems we use to track and identify targets of interest every single day start to kick in,” Cunningham said. “A probably little-known fact is that Rudolph’s nose that glows red emanates a lot of heat. And so those satellites track (Santa) through that heat source.” NORAD has an app and website, www.noradsanta.org , that will track Santa on Christmas Eve from 4 a.m. to midnight, mountain standard time. People can call 1-877-HI-NORAD to ask live operators about Santa’s location from 6 a.m. to midnight, mountain time.
L'économiste Dodji Nettey-Koumou, membre de l'Association 'Veille Économique', a critiqué vendredi le projet de loi de finances 2025, qui consacre 50% du budget au secteur social. Selon lui, cette orientation budgétaire serait inadaptée à la croissance économique du Togo, assimilant cette approche à une gestion « d'ONG ». Pourtant, les solutions qu'il propose semblent tout aussi déconnectées des réalités économiques et sociales actuelles. M. Nettey-Koumou affirme qu'un budget doit prioritairement « créer de la richesse » et « stimuler la production économique ». Si cet objectif est noble, il oublie que la création de richesse passe également par des investissements dans les domaines sociaux essentiels tels que la santé, l'éducation et la protection sociale. Un pays où les citoyens n'ont pas accès à ces services de base voit sa main-d'oeuvre affaiblie, son niveau de productivité réduit et, in fine, sa croissance compromise. Réduire les dépenses sociales pour maximiser les investissements productifs peut sembler logique sur le papier, mais en pratique, cela risque d'aggraver les inégalités, de fragiliser le tissu social et de freiner le développement humain. Ignorer ces effets revient à adopter une vision à court terme qui sous-estime le rôle central des dépenses sociales dans la croissance inclusive. L'économiste propose de réduire le train de vie de l'État, notamment en diminuant le nombre de ministres et en luttant contre la corruption pour mobiliser des ressources. Bien que ces mesures puissent être pertinentes dans une certaine mesure, elles ne suffisent pas à résoudre les défis budgétaires d'un pays. La réduction du nombre de ministres, par exemple, aurait un impact financier marginal par rapport aux enjeux macroéconomiques. De plus, la lutte contre la corruption, bien qu'essentielle, nécessite des réformes profondes et de long terme qui ne génèrent pas de revenus immédiats. Présenter ces solutions comme des remèdes miraculeux ignore la complexité des mécanismes budgétaires et les contraintes économiques auxquelles le Togo est confronté. M. Nettey-Koumou critique également la « politique fiscale agressive » du gouvernement, qui pénaliserait le pouvoir d'achat des citoyens et affaiblirait le secteur privé. Cependant, il semble oublier que cette pression fiscale est souvent le résultat de l'insuffisance des recettes de l'État. En rejetant les dépenses sociales, il omet de reconnaître que ces dernières jouent un rôle crucial dans le soutien aux populations vulnérables, qui forment une grande partie de la base fiscale. Opposer dépenses sociales et croissance économique est un raisonnement simpliste. De nombreux pays ont démontré que les investissements sociaux, loin d'être un frein, sont un levier puissant pour la croissance. Un accès accru à la santé et à l'éducation, une meilleure sécurité alimentaire, ou encore des filets sociaux pour protéger les populations en difficulté favorisent une économie plus résiliente et une société plus stable. En d'autres termes, l'idée que le budget social « entretient » les populations plutôt qu'il ne les « autonomise » repose sur une méconnaissance des dynamiques de développement humain. Une société affaiblie ne peut pas produire de richesse durable, peu importe l'ambition des politiques économiques. Si les inquiétudes de M. Nettey-Koumou sur certains aspects de la gestion budgétaire sont valides, ses recommandations manquent de profondeur et ne tiennent pas compte des réalités sociales et économiques. Plutôt que de réduire les dépenses sociales, il serait plus pertinent de réfléchir à des politiques équilibrées qui favorisent à la fois les investissements productifs et le soutien aux populations vulnérables. La croissance économique ne peut être durable sans un investissement conséquent dans le capital humain. Plutôt que de caricaturer les dépenses sociales comme une gestion d'ONG, il serait temps de reconnaître leur rôle central dans la construction d'une économie inclusive et prospère. Lire l'article original sur Togonews .Austin Tice’s family says long-missing journalist is alive as war resurges in Syria
The P.E.I. Green Party's energy critic says Maritime Electric's plan to expand its power generation on the Island through the use of fossil-fuel technology is shortsighted. Peter Bevan-Baker said he was "very disappointed and not entirely shocked" to learn that the energy utility is applying to spend $427 million on a combustion turbine, a battery for energy storage systems, and internal combustion engines. "Maritime Electric is not necessarily known for being a progressive company when it comes to looking to... the energy future," Bevan-Baker told host Mitch Cormier on Friday. "We see other jurisdictions around the world embracing new clean energy when it comes to generation and storage. And yet we are considering investing half a billion dollars in some diesel generators." Maritime Electric pulls around 75 per cent of its power from other provinces, primarily New Brunswick. Last year, P.E.I.'s grid recorded a new peak load of 359 megawatts. The utility said buying the equipment it's seeking approval for should be cheaper in the long run than continuing to buy power off-Island. What's the point in plugging my electric car into the socket if the energy that's coming to feed my battery is by burning diesel? We may as well just put a diesel engine in the car. The provincial Crown corporation has submitted an application to the Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission to make the purchase. Bevan-Baker said he's in favour of P.E.I. producing more of its own energy rather than relying on its neighbours, but he said there's a cleaner way to do it in both the short and long term. Green Party energy critic Peter Bevan-Baker says he'll be requesting a meeting with Gilles Arsenault, the province's new environment minister, to discuss Maritime Electric's proposal. (CBC) "I have no issue with us trying to create more energy independence here on Prince Edward Island. But to do that in one fell swoop by spending half a billion dollars on technology which was being outlawed and abandoned 20, 30 years ago is not the way to go," he said. "What's the point in plugging my electric car into the socket if the energy that's coming to feed my battery is [generated] by burning diesel? We may as well just put a diesel engine in the car." The cost of the new equipment will be passed on to customers eventually, but the utility said it's too early to tell what that could mean for an average monthly bill. In with host Louise Martin, P.E.I. Premier Dennis King said the province will be an intervenor in the IRAC hearings on Maritime Electric's application, "to make sure ratepayers are represented at the hearings and in the discussion and to make sure that we're doing everything we possibly can do to keep rates as low as we can possibly keep them, as well as making sure we meet our targets for climate reduction." While the province hopes to eventually reach net zero when it comes to carbon output, the grid is being challenged by the number of people swapping from oil to electric heat pumps. Maritime Electric CEO Jason Roberts told CBC News this week that the effects could be dire if the upgrades don't happen, especially if there is another cold snap as there was in February 2023 and wind farms in the province are too cold to operate. That's where Bevan-Baker said the provincial government needs to step in and help Islanders and communities store more of the renewable energy they generate from solar and wind in battery reserves. Bevan-Baker said he'll be requesting a meeting with Gilles Arsenault, the province's new environment minister, to discuss Maritime Electric's proposal. "Ultimately government has the ability — and I would say the responsibility — to make sure that we have a modern utility that's providing clean, green, affordable, reliable energy for Islanders, and Maritime Electric is really falling down on that, so government has to take the lead here," he said. "We could make gradual, sensible investments now so that we have a reliable, clean, green, affordable energy future for Prince Edward Island, long into the future, rather than doing something which takes us backwards and indebts future generations for decades to come." Timelines vary on when the new equipment would arrive once its purchase is approved, but the utility hopes to have everything up and running by 2030.
IND vs AUS 4th Test: Rohit Sharma Registers THIS Unwanted Record After Melbourne Failure Against AustraliaHilgers, other GOP AGs sue BlackRock, other investment firms over ‘woke’ climate action effortsWhen Katja Vogt considers a Jaguar, she pictures a British-made car purring confidently along the Italian coastline — a vision of familiarity that conveys “that dreaming, longing feeling we all love.” She’s not sure what to think about Jaguar now after the 89-year-old company announced a radical rebranding that featured loud colors and androgynous people — but no cars. Jaguar, the company says, will now be JaGUar. It will produce only electric vehicles beginning in 2026. Say goodbye to British racing green, Cotswold Blue and black. Its colors are henceforth electric pink, red and yellow, according to a video that sparked backlash online. Its mission statement: “Create exuberance. Live vivid. Delete ordinary. Break moulds.” “Intrigued?” @Jaguar posted on social media. “Weird and unsettled” is more like it, Vogt wrote on Instagram. “Especially now, with the world feeling so dystopian,” the Cyprus-based brand designer wrote, “a heritage brand like Jaguar should be conveying feelings of safety, stability, and maybe a hint of rebellion — the kind that shakes things up in a good way, not in a way that unsettles.” Jaguar was one of several iconic companies that announced significant rebrandings in recent weeks, upending a series of commercial — and cultural — landmarks by which many modern human beings sort one another, carve out identities and recognize the world around them. Campbell’s, the 155-year-old American icon that artist Andy Warhol immortalized in pop culture decades ago, is ready for a new, soupless name. Comcast’s corporate reorganization means there will soon be two television networks with “NBC” in their name — CNBC and MSNBC — that will no longer have any corporate connection to NBC News, a U.S. legacy news outlet. One could even argue the United States itself is rebranding with the election of former President Donald Trump and Republican majorities in the House and Senate. Unlike Trump’s first election in 2016, he won the popular vote in what many called a national referendum on American identity. Are we, then, the sum total of our consumer decisions — what we buy, where we travel and whom we elect? Certainly, it’s a question for those privileged enough to be able to afford such choices. Volumes of research in the art and science of branding — from “brandr,” an old Norse word for burning symbols into the hides of livestock — say those factors do contribute to the modern sense of identity. So rebranding, especially of heritage names, can be a deeply felt affront to consumers. “It can feel like the brand is turning its back on everything that it stood for — and therefore it feels like it’s turning its back on us, the people who subscribe to that idea or ideology,” said Ali Marmaduke, strategy director with the Amsterdam-based Brand Potential. He said cultural tension — polarization — is surging over politics, wars in Russia and the Mideast, the environment, public health and more, creating what he said is known as a “polycrisis”: the idea that there are several massive crises converging that feel scary and complex. “People are understandably freaked out by that,” he said. “So we are looking for something that will help us navigate this changing, threatening world that we face.” Trump’s “Make America Great Again” qualifies. So did President Joe Biden’s “Build Back Better” slogan. Campbell’s soup itself — “Mmm Mmm Good” — isn’t going anywhere, CEO Mark Clouse said. The company’s new name, Campbell’s Co., will reflect “the full breadth of our portfolio,” which includes brands like Prego pasta sauce and Goldfish crackers. None of the recent activity around heritage brands sparked a backlash as ferocious as Jaguar’s. The company stood as a pillar of tradition-loving British identity since World War II. Jaguar said its approach to the rebrand was rooted in the philosophy of its founder, Sir William Lyons, to “copy nothing.” What it’s calling “the new Jaguar” will overhaul everything from the font of its name to the positioning of its famous “leaper” cat. “Exuberant modernism” will “define all aspects of the new Jaguar world,” according to the company. The approach is thought to be aimed at selling fewer cars at a six-figure price point to a more diverse customer base. The reaction ranged from bewilderment to hostility. Memes sprouted up likening the video to the Teletubbies, a Benetton ad and — perhaps predictably — a bow to “woke” culture as the blowback intersected with politics. Get local news delivered to your inbox!Elon Musk Spent $270 Millions To Help Donald Trump Win US Presidency
Why Is Your Heater Not Working? Get Expert Help Now.Sinn Fein was accused of “ignoring” the role 3,000 Troubles deaths had in damaging community relations in Northern Ireland in a memo sent to a direct rule minister in 2003. Declassified files show the note to former MP John Spellar also said the republican party had ignored the “visceral component of sectarianism” in responding to a new government good relations strategy. Mr Spellar, then a Northern Ireland Office minister, had launched a consultation on the “A Shared Future” document, an attempt to address community divisions, segregation and sectarianism in the region at a time when the devolved powersharing institutions were suspended. A file at the Public Record Office in Belfast shows that OFMDFM official Chris Stewart wrote to the minister in July about a response to the document from Sinn Fein representative Bairbre de Brun. Mr Stewart told Mr Spellar that Ms de Brun’s letter had been critical of the document and was clearly intended to “mark your card”. He said among a number of points raised by de Brun was that “the promotion of equality is the key to improving community relations”. His memo adds: “Sinn Fein is clearly seeking to position or align the issue of community relations within its equality and human rights agenda. “This general Sinn Fein position has resulted in a simplistic analysis of community relations, which is flawed in its description of the causes and necessary policy response. “There is of course, no doubt that a lack of equality has been a contributing factor to poor community relations. “However, Sinn Fein ignores the many other factors, not least the violent conflict that resulted in over 3,000 deaths. “Sinn Fein also portrays poor community relations (for nationalists) as being a purely rational response to the political situation. “This ignores the more visceral component of sectarianism, which is all too prevalent in both communities.” Mr Stewart continues: “To suggest, as Sinn Fein does, that the promotion of equality should be the key component of good relations policy is to ignore the key message in A Shared Future, that indirect approaches alone are insufficient to deal with sectarianism and the abnormal relationship between sections of the Northern Ireland community.” The official recommended the minister invite representatives of Sinn Fein to a meeting to discuss the policy. The file also contains a note about Mr Spellar’s meeting with DUP representatives Maurice Morrow and Peter Weir the following month to discuss the document. The note says: “Morrow said he had no problem with sharing the future and suggested that the first step to that would be an election to decide who spoke for whom – though he was quick to say he didn’t want politics to dominate the meeting.” It adds: “Weir said that the biggest step towards improving community relations would be the creation of a political environment that had the broad support of both unionism and nationalism, and the GFA (Good Friday Agreement) could not create that environment.”The Christmas tradition has become nearly global in scope: Children from around the world track Santa Claus as he sweeps across the earth, delivering presents and defying time. Each year, at least 100,000 kids call into the North American Aerospace Defense Command to inquire about Santa's location. Millions more follow online in nine languages, from English to Japanese. Download the CTV News App for breaking news alerts and video on all the top stories On any other night, Norad is scanning the heavens for potential threats, such as last year's Chinese spy balloon. But on Christmas Eve, volunteers in Colorado Springs are fielding questions like, "When is Santa coming to my house?" and, "Am I on the naughty or nice list?" "There are screams and giggles and laughter," said Bob Sommers, 63, a civilian contractor and Norad volunteer. Sommers often says on the call that everyone must be asleep before Santa arrives, prompting parents to say, "Do you hear what he said? We got to go to bed early." Norad's annual tracking of Santa has endured since the Cold War, predating ugly sweater parties and Mariah Carey classics. Here's how it began and why the phones keep ringing. The origin story is Hollywood-esque It started with a child's accidental phone call in 1955. The Colorado Springs newspaper printed a Sears advertisement that encouraged children to call Santa, listing a phone number. A boy called. But he reached the Continental Air Defense Command, now Norad, a joint U.S. and Canadian effort to spot potential enemy attacks. Tensions were growing with the Soviet Union, along with anxieties about nuclear war. Follow the CTV News channel on WhatsApp U.S. air force Col. Harry W. Shoup picked up an emergency-only "red phone" and was greeted by a tiny voice that began to recite a Christmas wish list. "He went on a little bit, and he takes a breath, then says, 'Hey, you're not Santa,"' Shoup told The Associated Press in 1999. Realizing an explanation would be lost on the youngster, Shoup summoned a deep, jolly voice and replied, "Ho, ho, ho! Yes, I am Santa Claus. Have you been a good boy?" Shoup said he learned from the boy's mother that Sears mistakenly printed the top-secret number. He hung up, but the phone soon rang again with a young girl reciting her Christmas list. Fifty calls a day followed, he said. In the pre-digital age, the agency used a 60-by-80 foot (18-by-24 metre) Plexiglas map of North America to track unidentified objects. A staff member jokingly drew Santa and his sleigh over the North Pole. The tradition was born. "Note to the kiddies," began an AP story from Colorado Springs on Dec. 23, 1955. "Santa Claus Friday was assured safe passage into the United States by the Continental Air Defense Command." In a likely reference to the Soviets, the article noted that Santa was guarded against possible attack from "those who do not believe in Christmas." Is the origin story humbug? Some grinchy journalists have nitpicked Shoup's story, questioning whether a misprint or a misdial prompted the boy's call. In 2014, tech news site Gizmodo cited an International News Service story from Dec. 1, 1955, about a child's call to Shoup. Published in the Pasadena Independent, the article said the child reversed two digits in the Sears number. "When a childish voice asked COC commander Col. Harry Shoup, if there was a Santa Claus at the North Pole, he answered much more roughly than he should -- considering the season: 'There may be a guy called Santa Claus at the North Pole, but he's not the one I worry about coming from that direction,"' Shoup said in the brief piece. In 2015, The Atlantic magazine doubted the flood of calls to the secret line, while noting that Shoup had a flair for public relations. Phone calls aside, Shoup was indeed media savvy. In 1986, he told the Scripps Howard News Service that he recognized an opportunity when a staff member drew Santa on the glass map in 1955. A lieutenant colonel promised to have it erased. But Shoup said, "You leave it right there," and summoned public affairs. Shoup wanted to boost morale for the troops and public alike. "Why, it made the military look good -- like we're not all a bunch of snobs who don't care about Santa Claus," he said. Shoup died in 2009. His children told the StoryCorps podcast in 2014 that it was a misprinted Sears ad that prompted the phone calls. "And later in life he got letters from all over the world," said Terri Van Keuren, a daughter. "People saying 'Thank you, Colonel, for having, you know, this sense of humour."' A rare addition to Santa's story Norad's tradition is one of the few modern additions to the centuries-old Santa story that have endured, according to Gerry Bowler, a Canadian historian who spoke to the AP in 2010. Ad campaigns or movies try to "kidnap" Santa for commercial purposes, said Bowler, who wrote "Santa Claus: A Biography." Norad, by contrast, takes an essential element of Santa's story and views it through a technological lens. In a recent interview with the AP, Air Force Lt. Gen. Case Cunningham explained that Norad radars in Alaska and Canada -- known as the northern warning system -- are the first to detect Santa. Sign up for breaking news alerts from CTV News, right at your fingertips He leaves the North Pole and typically heads for the international dateline in the Pacific Ocean. From there he moves west, following the night. "That's when the satellite systems we use to track and identify targets of interest every single day start to kick in," Cunningham said. "A probably little-known fact is that Rudolph's nose that glows red emanates a lot of heat. And so those satellites track (Santa) through that heat source." Norad has an app and website, www.noradsanta.org , that will track Santa on Christmas Eve from 4 a.m. to midnight, mountain standard time. People can call 1-877-HI-NORAD to ask live operators about Santa’s location from 6 a.m. to midnight, mountain time.Britain’s POSHEST migrant hotel revealed as £150-a-night palatial manor house hosts migrants for three years