Society's ChildS


Heart - Black

Jihadists kill pastor, four others in Burkina Faso church attack


France 24
Mon, 29 Apr 2019 17:30 UTC
Church attack burkina faso
© Agence France-PresseIt was the first attack on a church in Burkina Faso since the jihadist violence began
Gunmen killed four worshippers and a pastor in the first jihadist attack on a church in Burkina Faso, security and local sources said Monday, in the latest violence to rock the formerly peaceful west African nation.

Sunday's raid took place in the small northern town of Silgadji near Djibo, the capital of Soum province.

"Unidentified armed individuals have attacked the Protestant church in Silgadji, killing four members of the congregation and the main pastor," a security source told AFP.

"At least two other people are missing," the source added.

It was the first attack on a church since jihadist violence erupted in Burkina Faso in 2015.

Comment: 37 killed in gunmen attack on Army HQ in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

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Quenelle - Golden

Yellow Vests mutilated by 'sublethal' police weapons organize anti-brutality association


RT
Mon, 29 Apr 2019 17:07 UTC
yellow vest injury protest
© Agence France-Presse / Fred TanneauA Yellow Vest with a fake eye injury worn to protest police brutality at demonstrations, February 2, 2019
Yellow Vest protesters who have suffered life-changing injuries at the hands of French police have launched their own association, promising fresh actions against police brutality.

Called "the mutilated for the edification of others," the collective aims to accurately calculate the number of people who have been injured nationally by police during Yellow Vest protests. It also called for an end to the use of the non-lethal weapons deployed by French police - namely tear gas canisters and Flash Balls - and a large national demonstration is scheduled in Paris on May 26.

Comment: Why are Western leaders not taking Macron to task for his heavy-handedness? Is it because they fear that if the government doesn't put down the rebellion it will spread to their own countries?

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Light Saber

Assange's father rightly claims Ecuadorian protection was traded in for a US bank loan

Liz Little
9 News
Sun, 28 Apr 2019 23:43 UTC
Assange father John Shipton
© 60 MinutesJulian Assange's father John Shipton.
The father of controversial Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has spoken out in a world exclusive interview, claiming his son was traded by the Ecuadorian embassy for a US bank loan.

"Ecuador doesn't have its own currency," John Shipton explained.

"It uses the United States dollar... You can't get an IMF loan unless the United States approves it - upon agreement to remove Julian from the Embassy."

Speaking with 60 Minutes reporter Tara Brown, Shipton was eager to defend his son following his very public arrest and eviction from the Ecuadorian embassy in London just two weeks ago.

Comment: The 60 Minutes segment in full. Try not to be nauseated by smirking interviewer Tara Brown when faced with a father's pain, or the outrageous claim from the warmonger Senator Jim Molan that exposing war crimes is endangering "sources and methods".



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No Entry

Sri Lanka to ban the burqa in the wake of Easter Sunday attacks


Sputnik
Mon, 29 Apr 2019 16:31 UTC
burqa women
© AFP 2019 / Ishara S.KODIKARA
According to a statement issued by a media division of the Sri Lankan president, the country will put a ban on clothing covering face starting tomorrow.

Earlier in the day, the Justice Ministry and All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama, religious body representing country's Muslim clerics, discussed draft legislation to ban the burqa in Sri Lanka.

The move comes amid an acute emergency situation in the country, following a series of deadly blasts on Easter Sunday that left 359 people killed and 520 injured nationwide.
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Chess

Building bridges: Russia and North Korea consider building cross-border automobile bridge


RT
Mon, 29 Apr 2019 16:15 UTC
Russian and North Korean flags Vladivostok
© Sputnik / Tatyana MeelRussian and North Korean flags in Vladivostok, Russia
Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered a study to examine a car bridge project that would connect Russia's Primorsky Region with North Korea, the president's envoy to the Far Eastern federal district has said.

"This question was discussed during Vladimir Putin's meeting with the North Korean leader. The head of the state tasked the Far Eastern Development Ministry with analyzing this project," Yuri Trutnev said on Monday.

The ministry said earlier that North Korea will provide workforce and construction materials for the project while Russia will "give the necessary equipment."

The automobile bridge is planned to be built in accordance with Russian standards. The neighboring countries have long-contemplated a bridge that could allow more vehicles to move across the border without a lengthy by-pass through China.

Comment: More on the recent meeting between Putin and Kim Jong-un:

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Eye 1

Massachusetts prosecutors to sue ICE over courthouse arrests


ABC News
Mon, 29 Apr 2019 09:25 UTC
ICE badge
Prosecutors, public defenders and community groups in Massachusetts plan to file a federal lawsuit against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement over its policy of arresting people at courthouses on civil immigration matters.

Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins are among the people scheduled to attend a news conference Monday to announce the lawsuit.

Comment: See also: Massachusetts judge and court officer charged with helping man evade immigration agent

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Fire

Fountain catches fire in Moscow after $18mn restoration works


RT
Mon, 29 Apr 2019 11:15 UTC
Flower fountain
© Sputnik / Vladimir PesnyaThe Stone Flower fountain in Moscow.
It may sound like a bad joke, but Russian firefighters were actually called to put out a fire at one of Moscow's iconic fountains, which has recently undergone a multi-million-dollar makeover.

Photographs of smoke coming from the Stone Flower fountain at the All-Russia Exhibition Center (VDNKh) have emerged on Facebook.
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Light Sabers

'We will not bow to the giant': Indian farmers sued by PepsiCo reject any settlement


RT
Mon, 29 Apr 2019 13:15 UTC
Potato farmer
© REUTERS/Amit Dave
Farmers in India, who were sued by PepsiCo for planting patented potatoes, have rejected an out-of-court settlement. Supported by officials and fellow farmers, they have the national law on their side, activists say.

The food giant targeted nine farmers in the western Indian state of Gujarat with lawsuits demanding they pay damages for using a variety of potatoes protected by copyright. The court action, PepsiCo said, is meant to protect other farmers, who buy the seeds directly from the company and sell the produce back at a price determined by the company. One of the lawsuits filed by the multinational against four farmers was heard in the city of Ahmedabad on Friday.

The company offered two options to settle the dispute out of court. One would be to sign an agreement to stop planting the seed variety. The other one would be to come into the fold and sign a standard farming contract with the giant. The latter would give the defendants "access to higher yields, enhanced quality, training in best-in-class practices and better prices,"the company stated.

But the four farmers rejected the proposed settlement.
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Cow

Vegan gentrification: When vegans moved in and tried to take over, Toronto's Parkdale residents got angry

Alex McClintock
ABC News
Sat, 27 Apr 2019 10:00 UTC
Parkdale Toronto
© ABC News: Alex McClintockMore than a third of south Parkdale residents live in poverty, but hipsters have been changing the neighbourhood.
The anger permeating Parkdale in inner-city Toronto - rooted in worries about housing affordability, disputes over development and questions regarding access to services - isn't unique.

From Brunswick to the Bronx, the gentrification of working-class and disadvantaged inner-city areas, and the subway-tiled cafes that inevitably follow, is a regular feature of 21st-century urban life.

But in Parkdale, the most visible symbol of change is different. A group of vegan restaurants has moved in - and the backlash has been fierce.

Parkdale's vegan-vs-locals clash began in earnest when Vegandale Brewery, whose signage bears the slogan "morality on tap", opened last year.

Comment: There's something supremely arrogant and narcissistic about moving in to a neighborhood, particularly one with as rich a history as Parkdale in Toronto, and assuming you can subvert it to your own ideological framework. New immigrants and low-income families, who comprise a good percentage of the residents of Parkdale, likely have little-to-no interest in veganism. It's the ultimate in corporate hubris to try to pull a stunt like this.

See also:

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Black Cat 2

Australia to air drop poison sausages in effort to kill two million cats by 2020

Ed McConnell
Mirror
Sat, 27 Apr 2019 16:13 UTC
cat bird
© AFP/Getty ImagesAs part of efforts to become predator free by 2050 the Australian government is trying to wipe out the feral cat population already blamed for 20 extinctions.
The Australian government is air dropping poisonous sausages across thousands of acres of land in an attempt to kill feral cats.

The country is trying to cull two million felines by 2020 in order to save native species which the animals are preying on.

Officials are already trapping and shooting cats but now the authorities are turning to a less conventional weapon - sausages.

Chunks of kangaroo meat are combined with chicken fat, herbs, spices and 1080, a poison predominantly used in New Zealand to kill invasive species like rats, the New York Times reports.

The cats that eat the treats meet their maker within 15 minutes.

Comment: While pest control and mitigating the effects of human activity on local ecosystems are understandable, mass culls and even rewilding efforts can have disastrous unforeseen consequences:

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