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'Crucified Putin': Latvian artist nails Russian president's effigy to cross


RT.com
Fri, 15 May 2015 14:40 UTC
Putin on a Cross
© TB5
The statue of a crucified Russian President Vladimir Putin has appeared at an art exhibition in the center of Latvia's capital, Riga, local media report. Visitors are allowed to put nails into the installation, but not everyone is keen to do so.

The statue is part of a 10-exhibit art display which can be visited free of charge. It is located near the building which in Soviet times housed the Latvian headquarters of the KGB security service.

It depicts Putin on a red cross, with nails driven through his hands and head, complete with a crown of barbed wire. Unlike the creators of the other exhibits, the author of this piece has preferred to remain anonymous, reports Latvian channel TV5.
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House

Medicine Hat is the first Canadian city to eliminate homelessness

Carol Off and Jeff Douglas
CBC Radio
Thu, 14 May 2015 13:32 UTC
homeless vancouver
© Andy Clark/ReutersA homeless woman lies on a sidewalk in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Medicine Hat, a city in southern Alberta, pledged in 2009 to put an end to homelessness. Now they say they've fulfilled their promise.

No one in the city spends more than 10 days in an emergency shelter or on the streets. If you've got no place to go, they'll simply provide you with housing.

"We're pretty much able to meet that standard today. Even quicker, actually, sometimes," Mayor Ted Clugston tells As It Happens host Carol Off.

Comment: It's amazing what treating human beings like human beings can accomplish.

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Eye 1

Ukrainian nationalist thugs assault women and elderly on Victory Day


RT
Thu, 14 May 2015 18:36 UTC
ukraine
"Glory to Ukraine's Nazis!"
As the world marked the 70th anniversary of Nazi Germany's defeat in WWII, Ukraine has seen a wave of attacks against Victory Day symbols associated with May 9 celebrations in Russia and the former Soviet Union.

On May 9, activists from the nationalist Ukrainian Svoboda ("Freedom") party were seen attacking people for wearing the traditional black-and-orange St. George ribbons or carrying red Victory Day banners in several cities across the country.

Among those assaulted was the head of the Antifascist Committee in the western Ukrainian city of Lvov, pensioner and member of the Communist party Aleksandr Kalinyuk. He was sprayed with kefir (a fermented milk drink), and prevented from leaving his home to attend unofficial Victory Day celebrations.

The video of the incident was posted on YouTube by Svoboda members, who later wrote on Facebook that "Kalinyuk and his Colorado ribbons and Soviet flags won't be attending," saying he was "grounded." "Colorado" is the derogatory term used in Ukraine for the St. George ribbon, referring to its resemblance to the color of the Colorado potato beetle.


Comment: We have to thank these Ukrainian 'nationalists' for being so over the top, such caricatures of brutish thugs, and such obvious examples of everything wrong with Ukraine today. Their actions do speak much louder than their pathetic, laughable slogans. To anyone who watches, it's perfectly clear: these people are the scum of the earth, and seemingly proud of it. If only other, decent people would not suffer as a result...

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Star of David

Best of the Web: Roger Waters to Dionne Warwick: "You are showing yourself to be profoundly ignorant of what has happened in Palestine since 1947″

Roger Waters
Salon
Thu, 14 May 2015 17:46 UTC
Image
© AP/Vadim GhirdaRoger Waters
Singer and U.N. global ambassador Dionne Warwick recently released an interesting if puzzling statement asserting that she would, and I quote, "never fall victim to the hard pressures of Roger Waters, from Pink Floyd, or other political people who have their views on politics in Israel."

"Waters' political views are of no concern," I assume she means to her, the statement read. "Art," she added, "has no boundaries."

Until today, I have not publicly commented on Ms. Warwick's Tel Aviv concert or reached out to her privately. But given her implicit invitation, I will comment now.

First, in my view, Dionne Warwick is a truly great singer. Secondly, I doubt not that she is deeply committed to her family and her fans.

But, ultimately, this whole conversation is not about her, her gig in Tel Aviv, or even her conception of boundaries and art, though I will touch on that conception later. This is about human rights and, more specifically, this is about the dystopia that can develop, as it has in Israel, when society lacks basic belief in equal human value, when it strays from the ability to feel empathy for our brothers and sisters of different faiths, nationalities, creeds or colors.
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Quenelle

Catholic school fires unmarried, pregnant teacher -- denies her right to sue

Joan Shipps
Raw Story
Thu, 14 May 2015 17:59 UTC
pregnant woman
© Shutterstock
Attorneys for a Catholic school in Montana claimed this week that a woman who was fired for being unmarried and pregnant has no right to sue for discrimination, the Associated Press reported.

Former Butte Central teacher Shaela Evenson got pregnant through in vitro fertilization. Her bosses found out in January of 2014, when an anonymous letter arrived for then superintendent of schools for the diocese, Patrick Haggarty, alleging that Evenson "was pregnant and not married." On January 12, Evenson received an official termination letter from Butte Central, stating that Evenson was out of compliance with her employment contract.

Evenson sued the school and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Helena for pregnancy discrimination, sex discrimination and breach of contract in 2014.

Comment: Apparently, to the Catholic Church, a pregnancy is just too obvious a breach of their high moral standards. Meanwhile, pedophile priests are charged with sodomizing children and they are merely transferred to another diocese. If it's easier to hide, it's okay?

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Handcuffs

Six arrested over suspected IRA plot to kill Prince Charles and his wife


RT
Thu, 14 May 2015 14:23 UTC
Image
© Reuters / Suzanne Plunkett
Six men have been arrested in the Republic of Ireland over a plot to assassinate Prince Charles and his wife the Duchess of Cornwall, who are due to visit next week.

It is understood the men all have links with the Continuity and Real IRA, both of which are illegal in Ireland and designated terrorist organizations in the UK.

Two of the suspects were arrested in the Glenfarne areas of Leitrim, roughly one hour away from Mullaghmore, where Charles is due to visit as part of a four-day tour of the Republic.

The Prince will pay his respects to his late great uncle Lord Mountbatten, who was killed there in 1979 in a terrorist attack claimed by the IRA.

The six men arrested, aged between 21 and 62, are being held at Garda stations across Ireland.
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Books

Asia dominates global school rankings while the US drops to 28th place


RT
Thu, 14 May 2015 01:24 UTC
Asian schools
© Reuters
The OECD has published the biggest ever global school rankings with Asian countries coming in the top five, in the first truly global survey of education standards.

Singapore is in the lead again followed by Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan.

Finland, well known for its high quality education, was the top European country coming in sixth, while Sweden fell to 35th place, following warnings from the OECD that it had serious problems in its education system. The US was well down in 28th place.

African countries dominated the bottom rankings with South Africa and Ghana coming in last.

In the last similar study, the 2012 Pisa tests, Singapore was in second place with China in first and Hong Kong third.

The OECD's education director, Andreas Schleicher, said that many high performing Asian countries are excellent at attracting the most talented teachers.
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Attention

Factory in Manila consumed by chemical explosion fire

Sarah Lazare
Common Dreams
Wed, 13 May 2015 00:00 UTC
factory fire manila
© STR/AFP/Getty Images"We were all confused because almost everybody was panicking," said worker Jun Panalo.
At least 65 people have been reported missing or dead after a fire consumed a rubber slipper factory in a suburb of the Philippine capital of Manila on Wednesday.

Rex Gatchalian, mayor of the suburb of Valenzuela where the disaster took place, reportedly said that it took fire fighters four hours to quell the blaze and bodies were found inside the building.

According to the mayor's account, the explosion occurred when welding sparks near the factory entrance caused an explosion of the chemicals used in the manufacturing process.
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Arrow Down

Adding insult to injury: New drilling project approved in same reservoir near Deepwater Horizon site

Nadia Prupis
Common Dreams
Wed, 13 May 2015 00:00 UTC
Oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill
© AP Photo/Charlie RiedelOil from the Deepwater Horizon spill pools against the Louisiana coast along Barataria Bay Tuesday, June 8, 2010.
A new offshore drilling project in the Gulf of Mexico has gotten federal approval and is set to begin near the site of the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster that killed 11 workers and sent millions of gallons of oil pouring into the Atlantic Ocean in 2010.

According to Harper's Magazine, which first reported the news late Tuesday, the Bureau of Safety and Environment Enforcement approved a drilling permit on April 13 for the Louisiana-based LLOG Exploration Offshore LLC, which will drill for oil and gas in the deep-water Macondo reservoir, the site of the 2010 explosion. The agency previously approved the company's exploration plans in October after the Bureau of Ocean Management conducted an environmental review of the project.

LLOG will be the first company to attempt tapping those same reserves since BP's catastrophic effort.

Comment: It is appalling that the industry was given approval to drill near this site, but rather unsurprising given the power wielded by the oil industry. The Gulf of Mexico and the coastal communities that were impacted by the Deepwater Horizon spill are still suffering from this disaster and the effects are expected to last for decades. Worse, the footprint of BP's disaster has been shown to extend well beyond the Gulf of Mexico, and in fact reaches into other parts of the Atlantic Ocean and the North American continent.

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Eye 1

Iowa landowner says he was offered teenage prostitute by oil company

Travis Gettys
Raw Story
Wed, 13 May 2015 23:37 UTC
man cigar oil
© Shutterstock
A southeast Iowa man claims an oil company offered him a "$1,200 teenage prostitute" if he would allow a crude oil pipeline to cross his property.

Hughie Tweedy said he recorded a senior pipeline representative from Dakota Access LLC offer him three times the "sexual services of a woman," including a final offer of an 18-year-old prostitute.

"If an old junkyard dog like me was offered the sexual services of little girls to get my hackles down, I wonder what was offered to the powerbrokers of this state to gain their support for silence," said Tweedy, a self-described libertarian. "Shame, shame, shame."

Dakota Access, a subsidiary of Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners, wants to build the 1,134-mile, $3.8-billion Bakken Pipeline to carry crude oil from North Dakota to Illinois.

Tweedy doesn't want the pipeline on his land in Montrose, and he doesn't think the government should force him to allow the oil company access to his property through eminent domain.
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