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New rules: Beijing to 'defend China's honor' with new morality guidelines for citizens

Lily Kuo
The Guardian
Tue, 29 Oct 2019 02:58 UTC
Chinese schoolgirls
© IC
China has released new "morality" guidelines for its citizens on everything from civic education and how parents should teach their children to rubbish sorting and the appropriate etiquette for raising the national flag.

The "Outline for the Implementation of the Moral Construction of Citizens in the New Era" calls on Chinese citizens to be honest and polite, to be "civilised" when dining, travelling, or watching a sports competition, and "defend China's honour" while abroad.

The guidelines, focusing heavily on promoting patriotism, also called for the formulation of "national etiquette" for things such as singing the national anthem, raising the national flag, or ceremonies for when one joins the ruling Chinese communist party (CCP).

Such etiquette should "enhance people's attitude toward the party and country and organise a collective sense of identity and belonging", according to the document, released by the party's central committee and the state council. It also called for citizens to "carry forward the spirit of Lei Feng", a former soldier who has been heavily used in party propaganda campaigns since the 1960s.

Comment: From Sixth Tone: China Issues Guideline for 'Building Citizens' Morality'
Wondering how to be a civilized citizen in the eyes of the Chinese government? Now there's a guideline for that. The updated version also includes a section on "cyberspace ethics" that instructs individuals and businesses to "promote positive content and provide moral education, as well as strengthen supervision of social media platforms and public accounts."

Attaching a definition to civic morality has been a priority for the Chinese authorities in recent years, as evidenced by the introduction of a social credit system aimed at reinforcing desired behaviors. Individuals can now be blacklisted for a wide range of offences — including drunk driving, tax fraud, and defaulting on loans — and temporarily barred from air or high-speed rail travel, or from taking the national civil service exam.


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Airplane

More bad news: Dozens of Boeing 737NG jetliners grounded worldwide due to cracks


CBS News
Thu, 31 Oct 2019 04:09 UTC
Boeing 737NG
© Boeing
Boeing 737NG
Boeing announced Thursday up to 50 of its popular 737NG planes had been grounded after cracks were detected in them, in another blow to the U.S. aircraft maker following two deadly crashes.

Australian national carrier Qantas became the latest airline to take one of the planes out of the air, as it said it would urgently inspect 32 others but insisted passengers had nothing to fear. The announcement by Qantas came after authorities in Seoul said nine of the planes were grounded in South Korea in early October, including five operated by Korean Air.

Boeing had previously reported a problem with the model's "pickle fork" -- a part that helps bind the wing to the fuselage. This prompted U.S. regulators to early this month order immediate inspections of aircraft, which had seen heavy use.

Following the Qantas announcement, a Boeing spokesperson on Thursday told AFP in Sydney that less than five percent of 1,000 planes had cracks detected and were grounded for repair.

The spokesperson did not give an exact figure, though five percent equates to 50 planes of 1,000 inspected.

Comment: See also:

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Dollars

A mouse bridge, river surf, gigantic spy HQ: How the German govt. blows taxpayer cash


RT
Thu, 31 Oct 2019 14:17 UTC
MouseRiverSpyHQ
© Wikipedia/vilshofen-atmet-auf.de/Hans Braxmeier/Pixabay
What Germans got for their money...
The German taxpayers union has revealed how the authorities built a rodent bridge, paid for a gold nest, and blew public funds on other extravagant purchases.

The 'Black Book' of government spending is published every year by the German Taxpayers Federation (BdSt). It lists 100 examples of what the authors say are the most outrageous and ridiculous ways in which officials spend the taxpayers' money.

Road bridge for... MICE (which they don't even know how to use)

A highway in Thuringia runs right through a hazel dormouse habitat. Fearing that the critters will not be able to cross the road safely, authorities spent about €93,000 ($103,740) on building a separate bridge for them. The constructions require mice to climb up 7-meter (23 feet) wooden rungs and run down a narrow 20-meter (66 feet) passage above the road.

The officials are now wondering whether the mice actually use the bridge or not.
Mousebridge goldnest
© Staatliches Bauamt Passau/vilshofen-atmet-auf.de/Thorsten Goldberg/thorstengoldberg.de
Mouse Bridge • Gold Nest
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Arrow Up

Damascus: Syrian army ready to accept Kurdish fighters, urged to join forces


Sputnik
Wed, 30 Oct 2019 20:42 UTC
SDF fighter
© AFP 2019/Delil Souleiman
SDF fighter
The Syrian government on Wednesday called on Kurdish fighters in the northeast to join the Syrian army and security forces to stave off "common enemy" Turkey, the SANA news agency said.
"The Army and Armed Forces General Command are ready to receive the members and the units who are willing to join it from these groups and to settle the status of those who haven't joined the compulsory and the reserve military service and the wanted."
The Defence Ministry said the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces should join its ranks after their backer, the United States, started pulling forces this year.

For its part, the Interior Ministry invited Kurdish internal security units, known as Asayish, to join and promised to provide services to residents in the country's northeast.
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Take 2

Kanye enters the culture war with 'Jesus is King' - and it's a rebellion

John Lee Reed
RT
Thu, 31 Oct 2019 17:32 UTC
kanye
© REUTERS/Allison Joyce
With his latest release, 'Jesus is King,' Kanye West has obviously and aggressively entered the culture war. He declared the most divisive and dangerous truth imaginable.

The title of the album alone is THE culture war from a Christian perspective. During Jesus' trial, Pilate said that he could find no fault with him because he saw his kingship as philosophical and not practical. His flippant response to Jesus' explanation of his kingship as being "not of this world" in the Gospel of John is the sarcastic "What is truth?" Pilate was worried about actual zealots, not philosophers.

But to declare 'Jesus is King' is an epic middle finger to the decadence and cynicism of the modern West. This isn't Bob Dylan's 'Slow Train Coming,' it's much more like Dylan going electric or maybe even Jon Lennon's death. This declaration is a shock to the system that Kanye has been a part of for a long time. The old Kanye is dead and the new Kanye is gonna be just as crazy as the old one but in a totally different direction.

This was the most rock 'n' roll thing he could do. He is being truly rebellious for the first time. It's the exact same attitude that caused him to snatch that mic away in defense of Beyonce.
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NPC

Female comedians & their defenders, triggered by study finding men funnier than women, squirm out of science


RT
Thu, 31 Oct 2019 17:06 UTC
women
© Getty Images / Roo Lewis
A study confirming the stereotype that men are funnier than women has kicked off a wokeness tantrum of epic proportions, with comedians, media, and Twitter warriors all piling on (and misinterpreting) the research.

Some 63 percent of men are funnier than the average woman, researchers analyzing 28 studies comparing men and women's humor-producing abilities found in a study published earlier this week - and the PC police are demanding their heads. The researchers, from Aberystwyth University and the University of North Carolina, reviewed studies from all over the world in which subjects' humor was assessed without knowledge of their sex, minimizing the opportunity for their detractors to blame any sort of bias, but that hasn't stopped the screams of indignation.

Professional offense-takers have come out of the woodwork to criticize the study - many of whom have misconstrued its conclusions, perhaps not having actually read it.
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NPC

'Totally demon possessed': Drag queen's SHOCKING 'abortion' act in bar stuns social media


RT
Thu, 31 Oct 2019 16:54 UTC
knife
© GlobalLookPress.com
A video showing a drag queen staging a gruesome self-performed abortion using fake blood, guts, and a plastic fetus has invoked 'God's wrath' in the comments section and defensive replies from supporters.

Footage of the performance, uploaded to Facebook on Monday, has already amassed over 318,000 views, 5,000 shares, and 6,100 comments. Many claimed the simulated act was a satanic abomination, while others tried to allay their fears with remarks like: "Satan isn't real. Neither is God. Calm down."

The New York-based drag queen in question, Blair Back, said it was a performance from a cannibal-themed drag show at an unspecified location (Ke$ha's song 'cannibal' provides the musical accompaniment to the performance) and called on people to "Stop over thinking about it!!!!"

Comment: Western society is headed down a road towards a reality more like Sodom and Gomorrah than anything considered "Enlightened" with disgusting acts like this.

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Black Magic

Cultural enrichment: Swedish police alarmed by Nigerian 'death cult' gang kidnapping victims with help of 'voodoo magic'


RT
Thu, 31 Oct 2019 16:46 UTC

Comment: The Swedish experiment's going great...


African voodoo dolls
© Global Look Press / Impact Photos / Janet Wishnetsky
African voodoo dolls.
A criminal gang notorious for its brutality is gaining a foothold in major Swedish cities, police have warned. The drug-traffickers and people-smugglers from Nigeria are known for using "black magic" to coerce people into crime.

The 'Black Axe' - a group described as nothing but a 'death cult' that kills, kidnaps, resolves internal conflicts with machete fights and uses voodoo as an instrument of blackmail - has firmly established itself in Sweden and is now coming to the city of Uppsala in the latest concerning development, local police have said.

"Unfortunately, we see signs of that," Jale Poljarevius, a local police spokesman told the Swedish SVT broadcaster. So far, it is mostly about drug trafficking and prostitution - yet, the "black magic" footprint of the gang is already clearly visible.

"They are holding women hostage and are tricking them [into believing] through the use of voodoo that it will end up badly for them if they quit the job," Poljarevius said. "Yet, it is also about selling cocaine and heroin."

Now, the police fear that the group's rise in the city would lead to a wave of gang violence, as it will have to fight for its place in the sun in an already extremely crowded criminal environment. "There is a lot of cocaine but not so many users so the market is quite saturated. It would lead to violence rather than cooperation," the police spokesman said.

Comment: Diversity is our strength? This is what happens when you don't have immigration standards. Diversity doesn't need to mean accepting everyone (e.g., psychopaths, rapists, and other criminals). But because of the completely insane immigration policies of recent years, there will probably come a push-back from locals who reject ANY form of diversity. At that point, everyone loses. And the people responsible for the migrant crisis and its mismanagement will be fully responsible.

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Arrow Up

Baghdad: Iraqi protesters pack Tahrir Square; anti-gov movement gains momentum UPDATES


Aljazeera
Tue, 29 Oct 2019 00:00 UTC
Protesters Tahrir Square Baghdad
© AFP or licensors
Iraqi protest in Tahrir Square, Central Baghdad
Tens of thousands of Iraqis have marched on Baghdad's central Tahrir Square as protests calling for economic reform and removal of the country's political elite continued for a fifth successive day.

Tuesday's gathering in the Iraqi capital came after an overnight curfew and was the largest of its kind since the eruption last week of a second wave of mass demonstrations this month against official corruption, mass unemployment and failing public services.

Security forces stationed on the nearby Jumhuriya bridge lobbed tear gas at protesters who tried to break through to the heavily fortified Green Zone, which houses government buildings and foreign missions, Reuters news agency reported. Surrounding streets brimmed with cars, taxis, and motorcycles while protesters, mostly young men - many of whom were draped in Iraqi flags - chanted "with life and blood we defend you Iraq".

Comment: UPDATE: RT, 30/10/2019: Rocket hits checkpoint 'meters' from US embassy in Baghdad, 1 dead
A rocket has struck a checkpoint inside Baghdad's Green Zone, killing one Iraqi soldier and injuring another. It struck some 50 meters from the gates to the US Embassy.

Two rockets were reportedly fired into the heavily fortified Green Zone area of Baghdad on Wednesday night. Iraqi military sources confirmed one soldier was killed and another wounded, but did not elaborate. Some media reports indicated, however, that the area was targeted by mortar fire.

The Green Zone is a walled-off district in the heart of the Iraqi capital where government buildings and foreign missions operate.


Earlier this week, several rockets hit Camp Taji, a US military base 27km north of Baghdad, where US troops are stationed. No casualties were reported.
UPDATE: Sputnik, 30/10/2019: Mortar shells strike near US Embassy
Baghdad's Green Zone, which is also known as the International Zone, is an area within the city where both government offices and foreign diplomatic missions are located. It has been the center of diplomatic missions since the US' 2003 invasion and occupation of Iraq.


​In light of the mass demonstrations, the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service released a statement earlier this week announcing that Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi had ordered the country's elite forces to deploy to Baghdad's districts in an effort to squash protests.
See also: Another sign to US troops in Iraq? Two mortars land on base near Baghdad

UPDATE: Sputnik, 31/10/2019: Death toll to 100, 5,500 injured
"Violence as a result of clashes against security forces ... and demonstrators with the use of excessive power, tear gas, batons and stones over the recent days led to 100 people killed and 5,500 demonstrators and security forces [members] injured."






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Stop

Child abuse: Swedish preschool conducts mandatory vegan diet 'experiment'


RT
Thu, 31 Oct 2019 16:30 UTC
veggies
© Global Look Press / STELLA
A Swedish municipal child care center hosting toddlers and children between one and six years old is about to remove all meat dishes from its menu as part of an 'experiment' - all to supposedly make our planet a better place.

In less than two weeks, the Gitarren preschool located in the north-eastern Swedish city of Umea will become the first local municipal child care center to go completely meat-free. The decision to start a 'trial period' for a 'vegan-only' menu has been part of a large-scale environmental project the facility has been working on for more than a year.

"The more we thought about it, the better it seemed," preschool teacher Markus Sandström told the local Folkbladet newspaper. "Sustainable development is [our] starting point and the meat has a great impact on climate."
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