Society's ChildS


Dreamsicle

Putin's gift to Xi causes Russian ice cream craze to reach new heights in China


RT
Wed, 28 Sep 2016 14:40 UTC
people eating ice cream
© Wang Zhao / AFP
The popularity of Russian ice cream is on the rise in China with more than 270 tons worth $863,000 imported in the first eight months of the year, China Daily reported.

According to the Manzhouli Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau it is 267 percent increase from last year.

A staff member with the bureau, Xie Jinyong said the import of top quality Russian ice cream has also risen this year.

"A cup of Russian ice cream usually sells at 15 yuan ($2.24), 25 yuan or 30 yuan, and the top quality one sells for up to 50 yuan ($7.49)," Xie said.

An affordable price, partly due to the fall of the Russian ruble, along with the quality and taste has improved the marketability of Russian ice cream in the Chinese market, according to newspaper.

Ice cream from Russia is generally less expensive than many premium brands available in China. A 100 grams package of Russian ice cream is typically priced at 10 yuan, while a small cup of Haagen-Dazs ice cream weighing about 80 grams costs 33 yuan.

Comment: What a sweet surprise for the Russian ice cream industry!

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Attention

Sex crime in Scotland increased 50% in last decade


RT
Wed, 28 Sep 2016 14:36 UTC
sex crime
© Mario Anzuoni / Reuters
Sex crime in Scotland has increased by 53 percent in the last nine years - hitting a 45-year high - according to newly released government figures.

While total crime fell to its lowest rate since 1974, sex crime, violent crime and vandalism were found to be on the rise.

Despite an overall 4 percent drop in recorded crime, the figures indicate sex crimes increased by 7 percent in the last year, the Scottish government's annual report on recorded crime reveals.
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Laptop

Russian man was unaware of his leased servers being used for DNC hack


Sputnik
Wed, 28 Sep 2016 14:28 UTC
Matrix graphic
© Pixabay
The Russian national whose servers were used for the alleged cyberattack on the US Democratic National Committee immediately blocked them after learning the truth.

A Russian in southern Siberia has denied any knowledge of a hack that was carried out against US Democratic National Committee using the servers he leased, a police source told RIA Novosti on Wednesday.

"Vladimir Fomenko, a 26-year-old resident of Biysk in the Altai region, founded a web hosting service, King Servers, that leases server space, mostly to anonymous clients," the source in the law enforcement said. "He rented out servers that were used in the hack, there was no criminal intent. His business is absolutely legal and he blocked the servers immediately."
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Sherlock

Pentagon searching for 7 Afghan military students who fled training bases in September


RT
Wed, 28 Sep 2016 14:24 UTC
US soldiers marching
© Ahmad Masood / Reuters
The Pentagon is reportedly missing at least seven Afghan soldiers, some of whom disappeared over the weekend which saw double bombings in New Jersey and New York. Officials, however, see no connection between the attacks and the missing Afghanis.

"During the month of September, seven Afghan students were considered absent without leave (AWOL) during international military student programs," Pentagon spokesman Cmdr. Patrick L. Evans has said, according to the Washington Free Beacon. Later, Evans also confirmed his statement to Fox News.

Three soldiers from Afghanistan have been missing from their bases in different parts of the US since September 17-18, when two states - New Jersey and New York - were struck by two bombings. Both were linked to Ahmad Rahami, a radicalized Afghan-born US citizen.

Two of the missing Afghans had been undergoing training at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri, and one was at Fort Gordon in Georgia. To be considered AWOL, a student needs to be absent from scheduled training for more than 24 hours.

According to the Beacon, in those cases, their fleeing was coordinated, and the three are being probed for possible connections to Rahami.

However, as an unnamed Army source told the newspaper, officials see no connection between the students disappearing and the timing of the two bombings.

The "initial assessment is that there is no relation and the timing is coincidental," the source said, while Evans refused to comment on whether the Pentagon has any security concerns.

Besides the three students, there are another four Afghan trainees who also disappeared earlier in September.
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Bomb

Noor Tagouri playboy posing for muslim rights?

Jason Martin
Sott.net
Wed, 28 Sep 2016 12:39 UTC
Noor Tagouri playboy
© Noor TagouriMirth pose before bridge, in Hijab.
CNN, in an article today, presented Noor Tagouri as an iconoclastic "Muslim" American, which is curious because posing even for post-full-nude-Playboy seems a rather irreligious thing to do. Nevertheless, Tagouri plans to 'bear' it all, and by 'bear' we mean wear, and by 'it all' we mean the hijab, for an upcoming Renegade photo shoot series for Playboy Magazine alongside a 'sex activist' (whatever that means) and a comedian.
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Quenelle

Iraqis seeking ways to sue US for war crimes


Sputnik
Wed, 28 Sep 2016 05:49 UTC
american torture
As Congress attempts to override a presidential veto of legislation that would allow US citizens to sue foreign governments over terror attacks, an organization representing Iraqis killed or wounded by the US military is threatening to sue the American government for war crimes.

The Iraqi National Project has stated that the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act, which would allow 9/11 victims and families to sue Saudi Arabia over the nation's role in the attacks, has opened a pathway for lawsuits against foreign governments.

The White House claims that the bill was vetoed because it would open the floodgates for other nations and organizations to sue the US, which is exactly what the Iraqi group wants to do.
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Stormtrooper

California cops shoot unarmed, mentally ill man, then confiscate phones from witnesses who recorded incident


Photography is Not a Crime
Wed, 28 Sep 2016 02:17 UTC
california cops
© Unknown
California cops responded to a call of a man acting "erratically" this afternoon, only for him not to "comply," which was when they shot him several times.

El Cajon police then confiscated phones from witnesses who may have recorded the shooting.

The 30-year-old man, who was unarmed, was apparently having a seizure, which was when his sister called police for help, according to witnesses.

"I called you to help me but you killed my brother," the woman says in a video that can be seen here as well as below.

"Why couldn't you guys tase him? Why why why why?"
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Quenelle

RT takes home 7 European Lovie awards for outstanding achievement in digital media


RT
Tue, 27 Sep 2016 19:04 UTC
Lovie award
© thelovieawards via Instagram

Comment: Congratulations to RT! In the war for information, they do stand out above the rest.


RT has taken home seven Lovie Awards, the European counterpart to the Webbys, which is dedicated to outstanding achievement in digital media.

The professional jury - with representatives from Google, Twitter and the Huffington Post among them - awarded RT prizes in four categories. RT also received three more awards in 'The People's Lovie' audience vote.

"To receive seven prizes in such a prestigious and high-profile digital media competition - that's incredibly cool! But to win the People's Lovie in almost all the categories where we contested means even more. It proves that RT enjoys a highly engaged audience, and when your real fans vote for you to win, it means more than any gold," said Kirill Karnovich-Valua, RT's head of online projects.

"We thank the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences for this honor, and we thank everyone who voted for us - it is our joint victory!"

"Chernobyl: Fallout 30", RT's special project dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the nuclear disaster, grabbed the jury's awards in two categories: silver in 'Web: Best Practices' and bronze in 'Web: Best Use of Animation/Motion Graphics'.

RT.com received an award in the 'Web: News' category, having competed against RFE/RL, VICE News, and the Guardian.

Comment: See also:

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Bandaid

New California law decriminalizes classification of 'prostitution' for children

Ellen Wulfhorst
Thomson Reuters Foundation News
Tue, 27 Sep 2016 16:52 UTC
Making an arrest
© Reuters/FBI/Handout via ReutersLaw enforcement officers make an arrest in this still file image taken from video in New Jersey, provided by the FBI July 29, 2013. The federal agency arrested 150 people across the United States in 76 cities, for holding children against their will for prostitution, during a three-day weekend sweep.
Children will no longer be classified as prostitutes in the U.S. state of California after a new law decriminalized prostitution for minors in a move praised by child rights campaigners. Coming on the back of a public campaign coined "There is No Such Thing" as a child prostitute, crimes of solicitation and prostitution will no longer apply to anyone aged under 18.

Under-age victims of sex trafficking are to be referred to child welfare agencies.


Comment: Child welfare agencies may not be very helpful to the victims:

The law was among several signed by Governor Jerry Brown this week to boost protections for children forced into sex trafficking. "The passage of these critical laws marks a clear shift in the public perception of sexually exploited children as victims rather than criminals," said Yasmin Vafa, executive director of Rights4Girls that launched the "No Such Thing" campaign.

"We are thrilled that media and lawmakers alike are beginning to understand that there is no such thing as a child prostitute," she said in a statement.

Other new measures include allowing prior convictions by trafficking victims to be eliminated and the records sealed, and allowing children under age 16 to testify remotely by closed-circuit television rather than open court in some cases, according to the Los Angeles Times.
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Bizarro Earth

Young Muslim leader: 'Disillusion with political order' is fueling extremism


RT
Tue, 27 Sep 2016 16:47 UTC
Young extremists
© Reuters/WikipediaIslamic state fighters (L), The English Defence League demonstrators.
Extremism among young people is fueled by discontent and social fragmentation, a young east Londoner working for the Kofi Annan Foundation claims.

Speaking to the Press Association ahead of her address at the One Young World Summit, 23-year-old Fatima Zaman shared her views on the causes of extremism in young people.

"Across the entire spectrum, from the far right, the far left and Islamist-inspired extremism, there exist certain commonalities," she argued.

"Irrespective of the type of terrorist organization, extremist ideology is fueled by discontent, social fragmentation and a disillusion with the political order of the day."

Society and the media should "drown out extremism by amplifying the voices of reason, using positive stories to defeat extremism and by offering a better alternative narrative."

Comment: Another example of how a Western government manages to fix a problem with "solutions" seemingly designed only to make matters worse.

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