Society's ChildS


Megaphone

Gaza Calling: All out on Saturday August 9 Day of Rage

children of Gaza
As we face the full might of Israel's military arsenal, funded and supplied by the United States and European Union, we call on civil society and people of conscience throughout the world to pressure governments to sanction Israel and implement a comprehensive arms embargo immediately.

Take to the streets on Saturday 9 August with a united demand for sanctions on Israel.

From Gaza under invasion, bombardment, and continuing siege, the horror is beyond words. Medical supplies are exhausted. The death toll has reached 1813 killed (398 children, 207 women, 74 elderly) and 9370 injured (2744 children, 1750 women, 343 elderly). Our hospitals, ambulances, and medical staff are all under attack while on duty. Doctors and paramedics are being killed while evacuating the dead. Our dead are not numbers and statistics to be recounted; they are loved ones, family and friends.

While we have to survive this onslaught, you certainly have the power to help end it the same way you helped overcome Apartheid and other crimes against humanity. Israel is only able to carry out this attack with the unwavering support of governments - this support must end.

Snakes in Suits

Hiding the truth: Wall Street regulators denying public records requests to media and Congress

wall street bull
Getting what should already be public domain information from Wall Street's regulators using the public records law known as the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) has become next to impossible; and it's fueling contempt for the Obama administration.

Yesterday, a new NBC/Wall Street Journal poll found that a majority of Americans, 54 percent, now believe the President is unable to "lead the country and get the job done." That poll follows another one from NBC and the Wall Street Journal that was released on September 13 of last year which found that only 14 percent of Americans held a favorable view of Wall Street. Another Gallup poll released in May found that stock ownership among U.S. adults is at a 16-year low, reflecting a growing distrust of a level playing field on Wall Street after bestselling author of "Flash Boys," Michael Lewis, appeared on 60 Minutes on March 30 to detail how high frequency traders and Wall Street banks had rigged the market against the small investor.

Against that backdrop, one would think that Wall Street regulators would be going out of their way to court public trust by courteously responding to public records requests with meaningful, responsive documents. But just the opposite is happening.

Bizarro Earth

Real bad idea: Ebola victims dumped on streets of Monrovia by relatives

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The lifeless body of a man lies unattended on the street in Liberia.
Relatives of Ebola victims in Liberia defied government orders and dumped infected bodies in the streets as West African governments struggled to enforce tough measures to curb an outbreak of the virus that has killed 887 people.

In Nigeria, which recorded its first death from Ebola in late July, authorities in Lagos said eight people who came in contact with the deceased US citizen Patrick Sawyer were showing signs of the deadly disease.

The outbreak was detected in March in the remote forest regions of Guinea, where the death toll is rising. In neighbouring Sierra Leone and Liberia, where the outbreak is now spreading fastest, authorities deployed troops to quarantine the border areas where 70 per cent of cases have been detected.

Those three countries announced a raft of tough measures last week to contain the disease, shutting schools and imposing quarantines on victim's homes, amid fears the incurable virus would overrun healthcare systems in one of the world's poorest regions.

Comment: Should go without saying that exposing diseased dead bodies, especially ebola stricken ones, to the public space is an extremely bad idea. The oversight is even worse if the virus really is airborne: Ebola - What you're not being told.

For a dietary approach to strengthening the immune system, consider the Ketogenic Diet and its many benefits, as well as the relaxation program Éiriú Eolas, which includes simple breathing exercises to ease life's stresses.


Ambulance

Ebola outbreak madness! Armed Liberians poison wells killing villagers under pretext of epidemic

unicef liberia
© reutersA UNICEF worker speaks with drivers of motorcycle taxis about the symptoms of Ebola virus disease (EVD) and best practices to help prevent its spread, in the city of Voinjama, in Lofa County, Liberia
Armed men have allegedly poisoned wells in Liberia's New Georgia in order to kill the residents under the pretext of Ebola outbreak.

The water from the wells and pumps has been used by thousands of people in the area.

At least 16 people are suspected to be dead because of well-poisoning in the Margibi community.

It is still unclear what the exact motive of the culprits was. Witnesses have reported sighting armed men introducing suspected poisonous substances using syringes.

The villagers reported the incident to the police and investigators are said to be looking into the matter.

Quenelle

People Power! Michigan community rebels against expansion, militarization of police

michigan police
© Bill Pugliano / Getty Images / AFPMichigan State Police
After acquiring some military hardware, one local Michigan police chief's plan to also add more than 30 non-certified officers to the force has residents in Barry Township clamoring for an investigation - and, in some cases, his job.

According to the Detroit Free Press, the township's police chief Victor Pierce is under fire for what some in the area characterize as increased use of force by law enforcement, as well as for a proposal that would add more officers than are necessary to keep track of a population of 3,900.

Pierce is looking to add 34 individuals to the police reserve force in Barry Township - a significant increase over the four full-time officers currently employed. What's more, these reserve officers are not certified - the department has already been warned that the officers need training and only deployed for special events.

Comment: To those who hold the illusionary belief that the militarization of police forces is for their own protection... think again!


Water

Toledo area, Ohio on third day of drink and swim water ban

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Toxic algae bloom in Lake Erie, 2011.
The aquapocalypse in Toledo, Ohio is now entering its third day after citizens in the greater Toledo area woke up to a stark reality on Saturday morning when city officials had issued an unprecedented, region wide water advisory warning people not to drink or boil local tap water due to toxic contamination. It is further recommended that young children and the elderly not bathe in the water. Samples at the Collins Park treatment plant, that services nearly 500,000 residents in NW Ohio and SE Michigan, have tested above safe drinking standards for microcystin and test results continue to show dangerous levels. A state of emergency has been declared by the state of Ohio.

A giant Toxic Algae bloom, of the type that has been plaguing Lake Erie for a decade, has for the first time overwhelmed the local water treatment plant at Collins Park and forced city officials to take this step to protect the health and safety of citizens. Years of hand wringing, millions of dollars in research grants, and lip service by the inept political caste on the causes and intensification of the blooms has done nothing to improve the situation.

The massive and recurring Toxic Algae Blooms on Lake Erie are a man made disaster. A combination of factory/industrial farming, sewage, storm water runoff and industrial pollution are to blame. The massive coal burners, nuke plants and tar sands refineries along the lake use millions of gallons of lake water and create large heat zones from thermal pollution where water temperatures are much warmer. The heat zone created by the thermal pollution along the lake, which includes the Monroe Power plant, the second largest coal burner in North America, was pinpointed in satellite imagery taken in 2011 as the spawning zone of that years algae bloom.

Comment: An element which both Environmentalists at large and Environmental Services don't take into account, is the radical electric component in climate change. How our Sun's reduced activity probably has a profound effect on Earth's surface-core E-field, 'loosening' the core's usual adherence to the surface, causing Earth to open up. Explaining for example the last decades rise in seismic activity, like with; quakes, volcanoes, sinkholes and Subterranean out-gassing events, likely to also be connected here.

Of course it seems industrial pollution plays a key role in this story, yet current earth changes indicates something much larger than any anthropocentric environmental effort can fix. For clues, read:

Earth Changes and the Human Cosmic Connection: The Secret History of the World - Book 3


Megaphone

Cornel West: Obama is 'war criminal' for supporting Israel's attack on Gaza

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© Reuters / Suhaib SalemA Palestinian woman sits on the remains of her destroyed house after returning to Beit Hanoun town, which witnesses said was heavily hit by Israeli shelling and air strikes during the Israeli offensive, in the northern Gaza Strip August 5, 2014.
Professor and political activist Cornel West declared President Barack Obama a "war criminal," arguing that his support of Israel and his drone policy make him complicit in the deaths of innocent people.

The controversial activist made the comments at a pro-Palestinian rally in Washington, DC on Saturday, according to Talking Points Memo. West began his speech by pointing to the deteriorating situation in Gaza, where more than 1,800 Palestinians and more than 60 Israelis have been killed, criticizing Israel's offensive in the region in front of a "Free Palestine" banner.

His comments regarding President Obama begin at around the three-minute mark in the video below.

"There's an intimate connection between mendacity and criminality, between lies and crimes against humanity," West said. "And what I want to say to my Black brother in the White House: Barack Obama is a war criminal - not because he's Black, or half-African and white - but because his drones have killed 233 innocent children, and because he facilitates the killing of innocent Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, and it would be true anywhere else."

Comment: Notice how carefully West has chosen his words here. Though no doubt sincere and truthful about the fact that these are "human affairs" and that the rally he spoke at is "anti-Jewish-hatred," West also has to say these things to try and off-set any probable accusations of being anti-semitic.


Star of David

IDF's failure and Jewish ethics

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Alimuddin Usmani interviews Gilad Atzmon:

Alimuddin Usmani: Israeli intelligence apparently underestimated the extent of the tunnels built by Hamas. Emerging from the tunnels, Palestinian fighters made some daring attacks that killed a number of Israeli soldiers inside Israel. Does this represent a major failure of the Israeli army?

Gilad Atzmon: The failure of the Israeli military is far greater than just the tunnels. The tunnels are not, in themselves, resistance but are, instead, a means of resistance. The tunnels did not lead Israel into this war they were a secondary military objective. The Israeli cabinet and the IDF made the tunnels an issue as soon as they realized that they were not able to articulate any other attainable objectives. In a desperate move, they made a secondary objective into a primary one so that they could depict an image of victory.

I was probably the first to predict an Israel defeat in this round of violence. I could read the map, I could see that Israel could not present its military objectives. This means that Israel's days are numbered. Living on someone else's land demands a willingness to sacrifice. But the Israelis are not willing to pay the ultimate price anymore. Israel is a spoiled western hedonist society. Yet Israelis are engaged in a fierce battle with Gazans - people who have been living for decades in an open air prison, are fighting for their dignity and have nothing to lose.

Comment: The virtue & necessity of deconstructing 'anti-semitism'


Attention

Migrants clash in Calais, France as camp tensions soar

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© AP Photo/Thibault Vandermersch/FileMay 28, 2014 file photo of migrants and activists scuffle with police officers after French authorities started to clear out makeshift camps in the English Channel port city of Calais, northern France, housing hundreds of illegal migrants from Syria, Afghanistan and Africa.
Migrants flowing into Europe in unprecedented numbers are causing a tense summer in France, as clashes break out among asylum-seekers in overcrowded camps and police fire tear gas to quell the chaos.

Sudanese and Eritreans battled in the heat in France's port city of Calais, frustrations rising as the Africans jockey for space while trying to sneak into Britain - the dream destination some 30 kilometers (20 miles) away.

British police were on site in Calais trying to make sure they don't cross over. Their French counterparts fired tear gas Tuesday to break up the latest of three battles that left 51 injured, one seriously, the Calais prefecture said.

Migrants fleeing poverty and war in Africa and the Middle East arrive in Calais with hopes of crossing the channel on a ferry or on trucks laden with cargo. Their numbers in the city at the edge of the English Channel have swelled to up to 1,300, overwhelming the city, aid agencies and police.

Comment: Finanacial Times reported from Calais on July 2nd:




TV

Reality too painful to hear? American media refuse to meet with Ukrainian servicemen who asked for asylum in Russia

Ukrainian soldiers in refugee camps in russia
© AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko
American journalists accredited in Russia declined the invitation of Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs to visit the Russian-Ukrainian border and meet the Ukrainian servicemen that passed to the territory of Russia. Deputy Head of the ministry's Department of Information and Press Maria Zakharova wrote this on her Facebook page on Wednesday.

"This story happened the day before yesterday... In the morning, news agencies reported that over 400 Ukrainian servicemen addressed Russian border guards asking for asylum. Understanding the importance for journalists, especially the foreign ones, of the opportunity to communicate with the representatives of Ukrainian armed forces, to find out straight from the source about the real combat situation, about the motivation of Ukrainian soldiers, the real causes of their act, we decided on the same day to invite a group of foreign correspondents to the Rostov region. Luckily, a plane of Russia's Defense Ministry was heading there and was able to take 30 to 40 journalists. We started to call everyone immediately. About forty people gathered within an hour," Zakharova wrote.