Society's ChildS


Gavel

Supreme court allows Idaho to enforce law blocking sex-change procedures for minors

Idaho Gov. Brad Little speaks at the White House in Washington on July 16, 2020.
© Jim Watson/AFP via Getty ImagesIdaho Gov. Brad Little speaks at the White House in Washington on July 16, 2020.
The court allowed the Vulnerable Child Protection Act, a state law forbidding so-called gender-affirming care for minors, to take effect pending appeals.

The U.S. Supreme Court issued an emergency order late on April 15 allowing Idaho to resume enforcing a state ban on sex-change-related procedures for minors after the law was blocked by lower courts.

At least five of the six conservative justices voted to restore the state law, while all three liberals voted against doing so.

It was unclear at press time how Chief Justice John Roberts, a moderate conservative, voted, if he voted at all.

U.S. District Court Judge Lynn Winmill, who was appointed by President Bill Clinton, found in December 2023 that Idaho could not enforce the statute while the litigation remained pending. Idaho appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, which affirmed Judge Winmill's temporary injunction blocking the law, but has yet to issue a final ruling in the case.

Although the decision took the form of an unsigned order, there were multiple opinions (pdf) issued by various justices.

Comment: See also:


Yellow Vest

Norway's farmers join protests over poverty wages and net zero tyranny

farmer protest norway
© Peter ImanuelsenTractors lined up after the convoy finished
Farmers are now protesting for fairer wages. No farmers = No food.

As you will have heard if you follow my reporting, there has been massive farmers protests all over Europe. I recently reported from Germany where the farmers were protesting.

Now the Norwegian farmers are protesting as well, and I met with them.

Comment: See also: Poland's farmers intensify protests against 'executioner' EU, demand end to 'Green Deal' restrictions


MIB

France: Cyberattack shuts down medical procedures at Cannes hospital

cannes hospital
© CopyrightCannes Hospital Centre - Simone Veil  cancels medical procedures after shutting down systems in response to a cyberattack.
Cannes Hospital Centre - Simone Veil (CHC-SV) shut down its systems in response to a cyberattack it fell victim to last week.

Also known as the Broussailles Hospital, the healthcare organization decided to completely cut off computer access to contain the attack, which forced employees to turn to pen and paper to continue providing services to patients.

"These procedures are more time-consuming and the examination delivery times are extended," an automatic translation of the hospital's incident notice reads.

Comment: With all the cyberattacks on emergency and governmental services, one could be forgiven for thinking that these are trial runs for something much more significant - below is just a selection of attacks in the last year or so:


Question

World's first inquiry into excess deaths established by Australian Parliament

Babet
© UnknownAustralian Senator Ralph Babet
The Australian Senate voted to establish a parliamentary inquiry into the nation's excess deaths today, giving the green light to what is possibly the first inquiry of this nature in the world.

One year and five motions is what it took for Senator Ralph Babet, of the United Australia Party, to finally get the go-ahead on the inquiry.

Senator Babet tabled two unsuccessful motions calling for an inquiry into Australia's excess mortality last March, followed by another unsuccessful motion in February of this year.

Several weeks later, his fourth motion calling for the Senate to acknowledge the need for an inquiry scraped through with a win, marking a shift in attitude within the Senate and paving the way for today's vote to finally establish an inquiry.

Senator Babet, in a statement after his motion passed successfully, said:
"Fifth time's the charm! This appears to be a world-first inquiry for what is a global issue. May this committee process give a voice to the family members of the deceased and deliver the answers that our nation so desperately needs."

Comment:
World's first inquiry into excess deaths established by Australian Parliament
26 Mar 2024


Oil Well

Europe's largest gas field shuts down

oil site
© Cris Toala Olivares/Stringer/Getty ImagesOnshore site operated by NAM in Kommerzijl, the province of Groningen, the Netherlands.
The Dutch government has halted drilling in Groningen over earthquake fears...

The Netherlands officially shut down the Groningen gas field on Friday after the authorities approved a permanent halt to drilling operations at the site to limit seismic risks in the northern region.

Since October 2023, the gas field has been producing only a fraction of its full capacity following years of production cuts aimed at reducing the risk of earthquakes that the process causes in the region, which have damaged thousands of buildings over the years. However, its 11 wells remain open in case of a severe winter and due to the uncertain international situation with regard to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Earlier this week, the Dutch Senate approved a law to close the gas field for good after the government pledged that production would never be resumed in order to limit seismic risks in the region. Senators had originally planned to pass the law two weeks ago, but postponed the final vote after several parties raised concerns over the country's supply.

Quenelle

'The Canaries have a limit!': Thousands protest in Tenerife over mass tourism in Spain's Canary Islands

canary islands protest bad tourists
© X/GettyTens of thousands marched through streets in popular hotspot Tenerife today in protest against the impacts of mass tourism
Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets in Tenerife to protest today in a demonstration against mass tourism - which they say is "killing the Canary Islands."

Around 50,000 people have assembled in Tenerife's capital Santa Cruz to march under the banner "Canarias tiene un límite (The Canaries have a limit)", with demonstrators chanting against the effects of the islands' tourist industry like the pricing-out of residents and damage to the environment.

The protests have been backed by a range of environmental campaign groups including Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth; as well as the Canary Islands, Spaniards have also protested in Madrid, and are set to rally in London, in an attempt to raise awareness in the Spanish government and among prospective British tourists.

Comment: Another example of locals being priced out of their own homes:

I News expands:
It seems living in paradise can be hell as a tide of protests against "overtourism" has hit Spain in the run-up to the holiday season.

Demonstrations are planned on Saturday across the Canary Islands by campaigners who claim Britons' favourite Spanish destination is a victim of over-development, as well as rallies in support in Madrid, Malaga and even Berlin and London.

A hunger strike has been staged by campaigners from Canarias Se Agota (Canary Islands Sold Out) since last week against two large hotel developments.

Hoteliers in the Canary Islands have promised to build homes for tourism employees to help deal with the lack of accommodation for workers.

In Barcelona and the Balearic Islands, activists have put up fake signs at popular beaches in English warning of falling rocks or dangerous jellyfish.

The Spanish government said it was committed to sustainable tourism but claimed this key sector of the economy brought 2.7 million jobs, with holidaymaker numbers set to reach record highs.

Spain's tourism minister Jordi Hereu said a record 9.8 million international visitors came to Spain this year.

"The tourist employment data for March is at the level of a country that is a world power and that is committed to a more sustainable model," he said in a video statement posted on social media platform X.

Spain's housing minister Isabel Rodriguez promised the government would crack down on tourist flats in cities where locals struggle to afford housing. "We will have to intervene and limit tourist apartments. We cannot look the other way," she told El País newspaper last week.

Jet2holidays this week became the first UK operator to sign Mallorca's "responsible tourism pledge".

However, Spanish airlines expect a record summer season and are adding 13 per cent seats compared with 2023, the Spanish Airlines Association said last week.

Fernando Clavijo, the president of the Canary Islands, said protests on the archipelago were motivated by "tourismphobia" and called for common sense because tourism is the engine of the islands' economy, providing an estimated 35 per cent of GDP.

Sharon Backhouse, the British founder of a sustainable tourism company GeoTenerife, said paying lip-service to "sustainable tourism" was not good enough
. "Sustainable tourism means paying fair wages, letting local people have their own businesses alongside [tourist companies]," she told i.

"If you have record numbers of tourists on the island but you have a third of the population at risk of poverty, it is not working. I have written to Clavijo to say we need root and branch change.

"But this is not to say investors should not make a profit because I am an investor, too. We need to empower locals to benefit from this galloping tourism, not just investors."
Ms Backhouse insisted Canarians do not dislike British tourists. "It is not a war on tourists, they are just asking to be beneficiaries of this as well, not to live in poverty, not just to change sheets in hotels," she said.

Marcelo Sanchez-Oro, author of the book The Relationship Between Hosts and Tourists: From Colonisation to Tourismophobia, said the synergy between residents and tourists depended on balance.

"What is important is that their respective needs are fulfilled. When this breaks down, the problems start," he told i.

"There is a contagion effect, with more protests in Barcelona, Malaga and elsewhere. Local people feel they are not getting much back despite the invasion of large numbers of tourists."



Attention

I pledge allegiance . . . to Keeeeeeeeeeeev

US Allegiance
© EricPetersAutos.com
At one time, American schoolchildren were made to pledge allegiance to the American flag - a curious thing, when you think about it a bit.

But it was at least the American flag.

How about this business of the people who supposedly represent Americans - in Congress - holding and waving the flag of Keeeeeeeeeeeev? We can see where their allegiance lies.

As has been observed by many - and you can observe it yourself by going to the downtown area of any major city -
Israel Too
© EricPetersAutos.com
America is disintegrating. But there is always money for Keeeeeeeeeeeeeev.

And Israel, too.

Who runs Bartertown? (per Mad Max in the Thunderdome.) And isn't "Bartertown" exactly apt? It is the place where things of value are traded. Washington, DC having long been the epicenter of that. But it used to be more discreet, which at least gave Americans the psychological latitude to pretend they were being represented. Now it is clear who is represented - and by both political parties, which have always represented themselves.

We are told by these representatives that America is a "democracy." Well, how about let's seeing?

Why not put further "aid" to Keeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeev to the vote - ours - and let the people decide? Everyone knows why this will never be allowed in "our democracy." It is because they will never permit any matter they know the people overwhelmingly oppose to be put to a vote . . . of the people.

Bad Guys

Paris protest turns violent as migrants blame police for murder-suicide case

France paris eiffel
The international media is reporting about the riots that had taken place in Paris. Hundreds of Afghan migrants started violent protests on the streets of Paris after three Afghan migrants were found dead a few days ago in what seems to be a murder-suicide case. For some reason, the Afghans are blaming the French police for the death of these three migrants.

These riots created pandemonium in Paris. As the videos show, the Afghan Asylum Seekers wreak havoc in the streets. The videos show groups of Afghan asylum seekers causing, smashing trash cans, throwing tables, and attacking vehicles.

Comment: RFI has more detail on the original protest:
A crowd of around 2,000 people protested in Paris against racism, Islamophobia and violence against children on Sunday after a court allowed their demonstration to go ahead.

Demonstrators gathered in Paris were holding banners including one reading "long live the resistance of the Palestinian people" during a protest "against racism, against Islamophobia" at the call of various organisations in Paris on 21 April 2024.
paris protest palestine gaza
© AFP - ALAIN JOCARDDemonstrators hold a banner reading "long live the resistance of the Palestinian people" during a protest "against racism, against Islamophobia" at the call of various organisations in Paris on 21 April 2024.
Bans on protests have been more frequent in France in recent months amid tensions stirred by Israel's war on Hamas in Gaza.

In a country that is home to large Muslim and Jewish communities, authorities have banned many pro-Palestinian demonstrations and public gatherings, citing the risk of antisemitic hate crimes and violence.


Perhaps that's why rather than just an hold an anti-genocide rally, they instead marched under the banner of 'anti-islamophobia/racism', etc..


On Sunday, the protesters marched peacefully in Paris from the multi-ethnic Barbes neighbourhood towards Place de la Republique.

Many chanted slogans remembering Nahel, a 17-year-old of North African descent who was fatally shot during a police traffic stop last year.


Paris police chief Laurent Nunez told broadcaster BFM TV he initially chose to ban the march because in announcing the protest the organisers had likened French police violence to the war in Gaza, and he felt the event could cause a threat to public order.


The violence meted out by France's police against the Yellow Vest protesters was unprecedented in Europe; 11 people reportedly were killed and over 100 suffered serious injuries, from the loss of an eye to a limb.


That argument was rejected by Paris's administrative court in a fast-track decision.

"Fighting and mobilising for the protection of all children is normal, it should be," said Yessa Belkgodja, one of the organisers of the march, welcoming the court's decision.

"If we are banned from protesting, it means we don't have the right to express ourselves in France. We are being monitored on social media.

That's enough, leave us alone", said Yamina Ayad, a retiree who was wrapped in Palestine flag.
As migrants continue to flood into Western countries from the US to Australia, and as living standards crash, it seems that it will only be a matter of time before tensions really boil over - which was at least part of the establishment's intention behind weaponised mass migration: See also: Feb 2024: Migrant attacks multiple women on Barcelona subway, man is a 'known criminal with history of drug use'


Binoculars

Two Japanese navy helicopters crash in the Pacific Ocean during training, 1 dead and 7 missing

U.S. Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ships
© U.S. Navy / ReutersFILE: U.S. Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ships.
Two Japanese navy helicopters carrying eight crew members crashed in the Pacific Ocean south of Tokyo during nighttime training in a possible collision, leaving one dead while rescuers on Sunday searched for seven others missing, the defense minister said.

The two SH-60K choppers from the Maritime Self-Defense Force were carrying four crew each and lost contact late Saturday near Torishima island, about 600 kilometers (370 miles) south of Tokyo, Defense Minister Minoru Kihara told reporters.

The cause of the crash was not immediately known, but officials believe the two helicopters "highly likely" collided before crashing into the water, Kihara said.

Comment: It's not that accidents don't happen, but the West and its allies certainly aren't having much luck these past few months: Denmark fires defence chief, withdraws frigate from Red Sea operation, over ship's dangerous 'technical issues'

See also: Jan 2024: Japan sees another 'rare' airport incident when 2 planes collide on Hokkaido runway, 2nd incident in just 2 weeks


Cow Skull

EU elites promised a prosperous green future: This could be their undoing

Farmers' protest in Brussels
© Benoit Doppagne / BELGA / AFPFarmers' protest in Brussels, on February 26, 2024
Technocrats have staked their legitimacy not so much on a carbon-neutral future as on a vision of prosperity that is rapidly receding

Lenin famously defined communism as Soviet power plus electrification of the whole country. In other words, the ideological project of building communism was supplemented by the technocratic project of electrification, the latter being an important source of legitimacy for the new regime.

The present-day European Union is engaged in its own expansive electrification project - the energy transition - that similarly inhabits ground where ideology meets technocracy and underpins legitimacy.

Yet in the past year or so, something has gone badly wrong, and a backlash against the climate agenda and its technocratic enforcers has been spreading across Europe. The energy crisis - far from catapulting the continent further along the path toward a carbon-neutral future as it should have - has exposed just how elusive the goal is, as Europe has scrambled to sign expensive LNG deals and even restart coal-fired plants. Farmers dissatisfied with EU policies that they regard as devastating to their livelihoods have been grumbling for years, but recently their protests have reached a crescendo, and built up political weight. Right-leaning and far-right parties, meanwhile, are gaining ground by the day. Standards of living are dropping and industry is shutting down or moving elsewhere.

Comment: Many saw through the green farce from the very beginning: And its deeper, darker goals: