Society's ChildS


Dollars

Financing your own distraction - It's expensive to keep you distracted

Annabelle Bamforth
The Free Thought Project
Wed, 05 Apr 2017 23:28 UTC
"Heavy physical work, the care of home and children, petty quarrels with neighbors, films, football, beer, and above all, gambling filled up the horizon of their minds. To keep them in control was not difficult...."

― George Orwell, 1984
Football Stadiums
© The Free Thought Project
It's no secret that the federal government has little restraint about using taxpayer dollars for non-essential initiatives and projects. One venture, in particular, continuously shouldered by taxpayers is the building, maintaining, and renovating of sports stadiums. These stadiums are often built with the help of federal subsidies as well as funding through state and local taxes. This issue is not new, as study of subsidized stadiums by the Department of Economics at the College of the Holy Cross noted that "construction costs alone for major league professional sports facilities have totaled in excess of $30 billion in nominal terms over the past two decades with over half of the cost being paid by the public."

Of course, there is absolutely nothing wrong with watching sports. However, it has become far more than just a game in this country. It is used to promote militarism, divide, and serve as bread and circus while the empire spreads across the globe. As the study mentions above, all of this comes with a hefty price tag too. Americans are quite literally financing their own distraction.
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2 + 2 = 4

Russian court turns down Jehovah's Witnesses' bid for 'victim of repression' status


TASS
Wed, 05 Apr 2017 21:20 UTC
The Supreme Court decided that the counterclaim could not be reviewed at the moment, as it was filed in an inappropriate court

Russian administrative centre of Jehovah's Witnesses
© Alexander Demianchuk/TASS
Russian administrative centre of Jehovah's Witnesses
The Russian Supreme Court refused to adjudicate a claim by Jehovah's Witnesses on recognizing the organization as a victim of political repression by the Russian Justice Ministry, a TASS correspondent reports.

Earlier in the day, the Russian Supreme Court began hearings on the Justice Ministry's appeal to ban the activities of the Jehovah's Witnesses Managerial Center in Russia as extremist.
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No Entry

There's a new Sheriff in town: Joe Arpaio 's Tent City to be shut down


RT
Wed, 05 Apr 2017 20:42 UTC
tent city
© Joshua Lott / Reuters
The newly elected sheriff of Maricopa County in Arizona will be shutting down the Tent City prison facility, where inmates were forced to wear pink uniforms. Former Sheriff Joe Arpaio called the decision "the wrong move."

On Tuesday, Sheriff Paul Penzone held a press conference to announce the Tent City facility will be shutting down to save on costs and help with efficiency.

Sheriff Penzone stated that the facility does not deter criminals, is not cost efficient, and is not tough on criminals.

"That may have been the intent when it was first opened and there was a need, but this facility became more of a circus atmosphere for the general public," Penzone said. "Starting today, that circus ends and these tents come down."

This decision to close Tent City was based on the recommendations of a comprehensive review by the Sheriff Penzone's Executive Advisory Review (SPEAR), an advisory committee that was appointed by Penzone after he took office in January.

The committee's decision was unanimous.

Comment: Psychopathic, Long and Lawless Ride of Sheriff Joe Arpaio

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Evil Rays

'Blockrats' military banter site claims it had noble motive for posting pictures of soldiers' 'conquests'


RT
Wed, 05 Apr 2017 20:38 UTC
British army Big Ben
© Reuters
A military site named Blockrats has denied that it posted illicit pictures of women who visited soldiers in the barracks for sex, despite claims in the media. The site says it was merely trying to draw attention to the plight of soldiers.

First spotted by the Daily Star, the images were apparently posted on the Armed Forces website named after a military slang term for women who frequent barracks. Following news reports, the Blockrats owners denied that any such exploitation had taken place.

A statement on the website reads: "You have no doubt found this website after it was falsely reported in four mainstream newspapers that British soldiers had been sending in photos of their conquests to this website and I had been posting them up here for us all to look at and have a laugh."
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Sheriff

Police beat a man to a pulp, threaten to shoot him in the head and kill his dog for not opening the door

Jack Burns
The Free Thought Project
Wed, 05 Apr 2017 20:07 UTC
cop says shoot man in head
Portland Police Officer Matt Bigoni is under internal investigation today, following death threats, threats to kill an animal, and physical abuse/destruction of property allegations from the man he was attempting to apprehend. Christopher Lee Fish, 27, was holed up in his motor home when officers arrived. Fish grabbed his cell phone camera and began recording. What he captured on his video camera was enough to open a possible criminal investigation.

After first attempting to deny his identity, potentially misleading the arresting officers, who claimed to have a warrant, Fish asked for 10 minutes to smoke his last cigarette and put on his clothes before coming out. Bigoni responded by declaring they were going to come in immediately if he didn't open up the door to his recreational vehicle. "Stop moving your fucking hands or I'm going to shoot you in the head," threatened Bigoni.

But the warnings and threats didn't stop with just Fish. He said he'd kill his dog as well. "That dog is going to get shot if it comes out here. Do you understand," stated Bigoni. After threatening him again by saying, "Listen to the the bell Chris it tolls for thee," Officer Bigoni then made Fish a promise that he and his fellow officers eventually kept. "Bad things are going to happen when we come in, Chris," he warned.
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Pistol

Newly released bodycam footing show police shooting and killing an unarmed man

Jack Burns
The Free Thought Project
Wed, 05 Apr 2017 20:20 UTC
okc police scene
Ordering a deceased man to get his hands up is just about as futile as convincing some law enforcement officers it is not justified to shoot unarmed civilians. But that's precisely what the Oklahoma Law Enforcement officers commanded 38-year-old George Lee Seeton to do, immediately after they fatally shot the fleeing suspect on March 4th. Now, with the release this week of the patrolman's body camera footage, the public can know precisely just how he died.

Seeton, who's a convicted felon, reportedly stole the brown truck and was attempting to make his getaway. Trooper Mike Moler, and OKC Police Officer Jarrod Jackson pursued the truck, eventually exiting their squad cars when Seeton ran off the road and into someone's yard. The suspect then put his truck in reverse, apparently attempting to back into the street to continue his getaway. That's when both officers opened fire, killing him. The shouts for him to get his hands up fell on deaf ears as it seems Mr. Seeton had already succumbed to his gunshot wounds.

Oklahoma officials released the body camera footage this week revealing Seeton's final moments on this earth. The shooting, accompanied by the various camera angles, will undoubtedly lead to a deeper discussion as to whether or not officers can claim a suspect was trying to kill them by putting their car in reverse in an attempt to get away.
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Heart - Black

Mosul father shares horrors of US-led coalition bombing that killed his wife and disfigured his 4yo daughter


RT
Wed, 05 Apr 2017 19:45 UTC
4-year-old Hawraa
The father of the 4-year-old Hawraa, who is slowly recovering from severe wounds she suffered in a coalition airstrike on her home in Mosul that killed her mother and most of the family, told RT about the horrors and desperation he went through during the raid.

Hawraa miraculously survived the US-led coalition airstrike on al-Jadida neighborhood in Mosul on March 16 that claimed the lives of her mother and two other relatives.
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Books

Ireland shakes-up primary school curriculum to focus on 'play-led' learning

Carl O'Brien
Irish Times
Wed, 29 Mar 2017 19:34 UTC
irish education minister
© Alan Betson/The Irish TimesMinister for Education Richard Bruton: Proposed reforms to primary schools are based loosely on some of the features of top-performing education systems in countries such as Finland, as well as new research on how children learn.
Children would not study traditional subjects until aged 10, under new proposals

Children at primary schools would not study traditional subjects until as late as 10 years of age, under proposals being considered by policymakers. Instead, there would be a much greater emphasis on creative play during the early years of primary school, and broader areas of learning in later years.

The reforms are based loosely on some of the features of top-performing education systems in countries such as Finland, as well as new research on how children learn.

The proposals, drafted by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA), represent some of the biggest proposed changes to teaching and learning at primary level in more than two decades. They also seek to give teachers more flexibility and autonomy over the amount of time dedicated to key areas of learning.

Educators, policymakers and parents discussed the proposals at a conference in Dublin Castle on Tuesday as part of a consultation phase which continues until the end of April.

Comment:

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SOTT Logo

US court rules LGBT workers are protected from discrimination under Civil Rights Act


RT
Wed, 05 Apr 2017 19:34 UTC
pride flag
© Darren Ornitz / Reuters
For the first time, a federal court has extended civil rights protections to LGBT employees under the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

In an 8-3 decision, the full US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ruled that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination based on "race, color, religion, sex or national origin," also covers discrimination based on sexual orientation.

The case revolved around the meaning of the word "sex" in Title VII, which the court found to be inseparable from "sexual orientation."

"It is actually impossible to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation without discriminating on the basis of sex," Chief Judge Diane Wood wrote for the majority. "It would require considerable calisthenics to remove the 'sex' from 'sexual orientation.'"
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People 2

German government to crack down on immigrant child brides, underage marriages


RT
Wed, 05 Apr 2017 19:29 UTC
girl ocean sunset
© Cyndi Monaghan / Getty Images
Germany's government has moved to stamp out child marriages by drafting a law that will raise the age of consent to 18 and give authorities the ability to break up unions involving minors.

The law is an effort to tackle underage marriages prevalent in some immigrant communities, according to local reports, after the Federal Ministry of the Interior released statistics showing 1,475 foreign children had been documented as married last year.
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