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Updated | It’s that time of year again, when Girl Scout cookies appear in time to taunt Americans all over the country as they embark on New Year’s resolutions to be healthy. Girl Scouts of the USA officially announced the start of the organization’s 101st cookie season on Wednesday morning, marking the start of another century of delicious treats for sale. But it's also the annual return of a program meant to impart valuable leadership skills in girls from a young age and prepare them to take on important roles at school and in their future careers. “It’s my most favorite time of year,” Stewart Goodbody, senior director of communications and external affairs at GSUSA, told Newsweek in a phone interview on Tuesday. “It’s funny because not everyone gets it. They see the cookies, they know they’re delicious, they think it’s adorable the girls are selling them, but there are so many other levels cookie season could and should be appreciated on.” Keep up with this story and more by subscribing now Girl Scouts of the USA Yes, the cookies really are delicious, (who knows a Girl Scout around here?) but the program is fundamentally about teaching participants five skills—goal setting, decision making, money management, people skills, and business ethics. Three cookie seasons ago, GSUSA also launched the long-awaited Digital Cookie, allowing Girl Scouts to set up an online store and sell cookies over the web. Related: Training Future Digital Entrepreneurs With Girl Scout Cookie Sales “For girls who are basically living their lives online, it gives them a way to sell cookies and experience what it’s like to run an online business,” Goodbody said. It’s not meant to replace the in-person experience, but to complement it. The exact end date for cookie season varies depending on the local council, but sales generally wrap up in March. The money raised goes to the local councils to fund programming for the girls and troops can decide where their portion of the earnings goes. As Goodbody explained, it might fund anything from helping a local animal shelter to taking an educational field trip or volunteering abroad. This year’s cookie season started as Donald Trump finished his first year in office, after beating out what could have been the first female president of the United States. More recently, it follows months of sexual misconduct, harassment and assault allegations against men in Hollywood, politics, journalism, food and other industries, which have put a renewed focus on the unequal ranks of leadership in most of these areas. “The idea that we have this point in time where there’s such a spotlight on female leadership or lack of female leadership, girls are tuned into that,” said Goodbody, though she emphasized that GSUSA is non-partisan. “Investing in female leadership from the beginning is really what the Girl Scout cookies is about,” she added. It’s about talking to “our littlest leaders” and giving them skills that will “help them, their families and our country succeed.” So, without further ado, here’s this year’s full lineup of Girl Scout cookies. Note that GSUSA works with two different bakers (ABC Bakers and Little Brownie Bakers), which sometimes make different variations on the same cookie and give them different names. Some cookies are only available from select councils. Search selling locations online or with the free Girl Scout Cookie Finder app for iOS or Android. Find a list of local councils participating in the Digital Cookie program here. Girl Scouts of the USA Thin MintsThis is the most popular cookie every year, Goodbody told Newsweek, always claiming the top spot in sales. Caramel deLites or SamoasThese varieties generally come in second in sales each year, Goodbody said. Girl Scouts S’moresThe Girl Scouts introduced two quite different varieties of S’mores cookies last year—one is a “crispy graham cookie double dipped in yummy crème icing and finished with a scrumptious chocolatey coating” and the other is a “crunchy graham sandwich cookies with creamy chocolate and marshmallowy filling.” It was the most successful launch in the cookie program’s history, Goodbody said, and so there was little question about bringing both S'mores varieties back for another year. Peanut Butter Patties or TagalongsThis old favorite features peanut butter, milk chocolate and a little bit of a crunch. Shortbread or TrefoilsThese are perhaps the most classic and simple of the bunch. Do-si-dos or Peanut Butter SandwichTwo thin oatmeal cookie rounds are held together with a layer of peanut butter. Thanks-A-LotThese shortbread cookies have a layer of fudge on the bottom. LemonadesThese brighter treats are “tangy lemon-icing-topped shortbread cookies.” Savannah SmilesFor those who want the lemon without the icing, these cookies are coated in powdered sugar instead. Toffee-tasticThese gluten-free cookies have little bits of toffee embedded in them. TriosAnother gluten-free variety, these peanut butter oatmeal cookies feature chocolate chips. This post has been corrected to reflect the fact that Digital Cookie launched three cookie seasons ago, not two, and to clarify how the money raised by the cookie program is spent. |
Yemen's Ex-Leader Ali Abdullah Saleh Killed in Battle After Gaining Saudi Support. What Is Happening in Yemen? |
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Yemen’s former leader Ali Abdullah Saleh was killed Monday as fighting broke out in the capital city Sana'a, according to government officials and members of his party. Saleh was once allied with the rebel Houthis, a Shiite group linked with Iran, but had recently switched his alliance to Saudi Arabia, which has led a three-year bombing campaign against the Houthis in Yemen and implemented a blockade of Yemeni ports. The news that Saleh had been killed came just hours after Saudi Arabia decided to back Saleh, calling his fight against the Houthis a “popular uprising.” Yemen's then-President Ali Abdullah Saleh on February 20, 2011. Reuters Keep up with this story and more by subscribing now Yemen’s Houthi-run Interior Ministry said Saleh was killed in the fighting that broke out between Houthi rebels and forces loyal to Saleh last week. Members of Saleh's General Peoples Congress later said he had been killed by sniper bullets. Footage on social media appeared to show the former leader’s body wrapped in a blanket, a large wound on the side of his head. In other footage, armed militiamen appear to unfurl a blanket with the corpse while shouting "Praise God!" The fighting that led to Saleh's death also apparently allowed the Houthis to gain control of the majority of Sana'a. Saleh ruled Yemen for more than three decades until he was forced to resign following the Arab Spring uprising of 2011. He remained in the country, however, and continued to wield political power from behind the scenes. The death of a leader who played a significant role in Yemeni politics is stunning, but experts said Saleh’s death will not change the face of the conflict significantly. “Saleh's actions in Yemen, in working with his former opponents the Houthis, were complicating many of the efforts at resolving the conflict," Harrison Akins, a researcher with the Howard Baker Center, told Newsweek. "However, I don't feel that his death will greatly impact the war, as he had recently split with the Houthi forces as he tried to end the Saudi blockade, which undermines any argument that he held sway with the Houthi leadership. “In addition, the fault lines of the conflict predate Saleh's involvement with the Houthis and many of the foreign powers involved in the Yemeni conflict are driven by their own strategic interests in the region," Akins continued. Yemen has been decimated by nearly three years of fighting and a Saudi-led bombing campaign backed by the United States. This week’s fighting reportedly left aid workers trapped inside a building and unable to administer support to civilians. Witnesses said that dead bodies of civilians and rebel fighters alike littered the streets of Yemen’s capital. Saudi Arabia views the Houthis as an Iranian proxy located just next door. The rivalry between Riyadh and Tehran, which has increased significantly in recent months, has exacerbated the conflict in Yemen. The fighting and bombing have killed over 10,000 civilians, displaced around 3 million people and led to one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. Yemen is now facing the most significant cholera epidemic in recent history, an outbreak that is especially dangerous for children. “Fighting is restricting the movement of people and life-saving services within Sana'a city. Ambulances and medical teams cannot access the injured and people cannot go outside to buy food and other necessities,” Stéphane Dujarric, a UN spokesman in Yemen, said in a statement on Sunday. “This latest outbreak of violence could not come at a worse time for the Yemeni people, who are already caught up in the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.” Iran supports the Houthis politically but denies helping to arm the rebel group. Tags: Industrial router, cellular router, 4g router, LTE router, 3g router, M2M router, wireless router, wireless m2m router, wireless m2m, Industrial Wireless M2M |