Society's ChildS


Syringe

'CIA-backed' mercenaries spread HIV in South Africa, according to new documentary 'Cold Case Hammarskjöld'


RT
Mon, 28 Jan 2019 17:33 UTC
syringes
© File photo/REUTERS/Siphiwe SibekoNames of HIV patients are seen on syringes at Nkosi's Haven, south of Johannesburg November 28, 2014.
A Sundance documentary ostensibly about the 1961 plane crash which killed then UN Secretary-General, Dag Hammarskjöld, contains explosive claims of a conspiracy to spread HIV among South Africa's black population.

Directed by controversial Danish journalist, filmmaker, and provocateur Mads Brügger, Cold Case Hammarskjöld, debuted Saturday at the Sundance Film Festival.

It details an investigation into the largely unsolved death of Swedish diplomat and former UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld, whose DC-6 plane crashed near Ndola, Northern Rhodesia (modern Zambia). Initial investigations identified the cause as pilot error or mere mechanical fault, though doubts have persisted in the 50+ years since the crash.
Dag Hammarskjöld
© UNFormer UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld
Throughout the course of the new documentary, Brügger and his team investigate a white militia, the South African Institute for Maritime Research (SAIMR). According to documents the filmmakers uncovered, the group operated with support from the CIA and British Intelligence and orchestrated the 1961 plane crash which killed Hammarskjöld. The documentarians eventually encounter and interview a man named Alexander Jones who is allegedly a former member of the group.

Comment: The AIDs experimentation in Africa theory has surfaced many times without conclusion. Conspiracy or truth? Anything is possible. Everything can be denied.

For a detailed investigation of the Hammarskjöld crash, see also:

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Attention

Duke University professor to students: Don't speak Chinese


Daily Beast
Sun, 27 Jan 2019 00:00 UTC
Duke University
© History.comDuke University
A Duke University Professor sent an email to students on Friday asking them to refrain from speaking Chinese in school buildings in order to prevent "unintended consequences." Megan Lee Neely, an Assistant Professor of Biostatistics & Bioinformatics and Director of Graduate Studies of the department, sent the email in response to two faculty members allegedly coming to her in order to find out the names of students they heard speaking loudly in Chinese in the student lounge and study areas.

Neely provided the faculty members with photos of the students taken during orientation. According to her email, Neely was told by the faculty that they "wanted to write down the names so they could remember them if the students ever interviewed for an internship or asked to work with them for a master's project." Neely went on to relay that the two unnamed faculty members were disappointed that the students "were not taking the opportunity to improve their English." Neely then urged international students to "PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE keep these unintended consequences in mind when you chose to speak Chinese in the building."

Comment: We have become a society of heightened sensitivities, polarization and persecution - not unlike certain times in the past that resulted in dire circumstances for the unsuspecting 'offender'.

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Bad Guys

Political catchwords disable debate and demonize opposition

Thomas Sowell
The American Spectator
Mon, 28 Jan 2019 18:58 UTC
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., speaks during the Women's Unity Rally at Foley Square on Jan. 19, 2019 in New York City.
Empty catchwords reveal a mind that's unwilling to analyze and debate.

In this era when there has been more information available to more people than at any time in the past, it is also true that there has been more misinformation from more different sources than ever. We are not talking about differences of opinion or inadequate verification, but about statements and catchwords in utter defiance of facts.

Among the most popular current catchwords are "climate change deniers." Stop and think. Have you ever - even once in your entire life - seen, heard or read even one human being who denied that climates change?
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Pills

Laura Plummer free to go home after 14 months of 'hell' in an Egyptian prison for possessing painkillers

Chris Graham
Yahoo News
Mon, 28 Jan 2019 18:49 UTC
Laura Plummer
Laura Plummer, from Hull, was sentenced in December 2017 for possessing Tramadol tablets in her suitcase -
A British woman who spent 14 months of "hell" in an Egyptian prison for taking banned painkillers into the country is expected to return home after reportedly being freed early.

Laura Plummer, 34, was sentenced to three years in prison on Boxing Day 2017 after she was found with Tramadol tablets in her suitcase, which she claimed were for her Egyptian partner's severe back pain."

Retail worker Ms Plummer had served a third of her sentence when she applied for early release, The Telegraph understands.

Having been in jail for 13 months, the Egyptian authorities agreed to set her free, according to sources. She was reportedly moved to a police station on Sunday and is expected to return home to Hull on Monday.

Comment: See also: Alleged British 'drug smuggler' escapes death penalty in Egypt for banned narcotic

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Bacon

Denmark hopes 43-mile fence along German frontier will save its bacon, prevent African swine fever

Justin Huggler
The Telegraph
Mon, 28 Jan 2019 03:11 UTC
Wild boar
Denmark began constructing a 43-mile fence along its border with Germany on Monday - but the new barrier is not the latest bulwark in Fortress Europe's defenses against migrants.

The metal fence, which will be only five feet high, is intended to keep out wild boar.

Denmark and Germany are both members of the Schengen Area, and there are no border formalities between the two countries. But the right to border-free travel does not extend to wild boar.

The Danish government says it is building the fence to prevent African swine fever ever crossing the border and decimating the country's bacon industry.
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Cell Phone

Halal internet: New browser offers Muslim friendly web experience

Yudith Ho
Bloomberg
Sun, 27 Jan 2019 17:36 UTC
Halal internet
© Justin Chin/BloombergSalamWeb mobile browser
A Malaysian startup is betting that there's plenty of pent-up demand for a new browser that's compliant with Islamic values, at a time of mounting concerns over privacy, bias and online abuse over the internet.

SalamWeb, a mobile and desktop browser, is designed to deliver a Muslim-friendly web experience. The app, which includes messaging, news and other features, has users from mainly Malaysia and Indonesia, according to Hasni Zarina Mohamed Khan, managing director at Salam Web Technologies MY Sdn.

Her goal is to eventually capture 10 percent of the 1.8 billion global Muslim population. She pointed to some of challenges facing the web, as the world's largest technology companies from Google to Facebook Inc. face criticism for doing too little to address harmful content and false information. Human rights group Amnesty International looked at abusive interactions and concluded that Twitter is a "toxic place for women."
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Russian Flag

77% of Russians opposed to handing over Kuril Islands to Japan, new poll finds


RT
Mon, 28 Jan 2019 13:06 UTC
Flags
© REUTERS / Yuri MaltsevA national flag of Russia and a flag of Russia's Sakhalin region flutter on the island of Shikotan.
Russians are overwhelmingly against handing the four Kuril Islands over to Japan, while a sizeable number of people also oppose making concessions for the sake of signing a peace treaty with Tokyo, a new poll show.

Over three-quarters of Russian citizens gave a clear 'no' to the feared giveaway, according to a survey by VCIOM, Russia's leading pollster. Only 14 percent support the handover, arguing that the unprecedented concession will pave the way to a long-awaited Russia-Japan peace treaty and help improve ties between the two neighbors.

The poll comes as Moscow and Tokyo are stuck in the middle of renewed talks over the fate of the islands. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met last year to seek a solution to the territorial dispute, but to no avail.

Earlier this week, the Kremlin signaled that it will focus its efforts on reaching a peace deal with Japan. "Our major objective is not to give or get anything, but to sign a peace treaty [with Japan]," presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Rossiya-1 on Sunday.
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Oscar

The Twitterverse is not impressed that recipients of the UAE's gender equality awards are all men


RT
Mon, 28 Jan 2019 17:18 UTC
UAE gender equality awards
© Twitter / Dubai Media Office
The United Arab Emirates has showcased its profound commitment to female empowerment, awarding a group of men for their contributions to gender equality in the workplace... and twitter exploded with sarcasm.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, the vice-president of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Dubai, presented certificates and medals in the categories of "best government entity supporting gender balance", "best federal authority supporting gender balance" and "best gender balance initiative" at a ceremony held on Sunday.

"We are proud of the success of Emirati women and their role is central to shaping the future of the country. Gender balance has become a pillar in our governmental institutions," Sheik boasted, as he passed out medals to the finance ministry, the federal competitiveness and statistics authority and ministry of human resources respectively - all of which were represented by men.
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Marijuana

The scent of London has changed: all I can smell now is cannabis

Mary Wakefield
The Spectator
Sat, 26 Jan 2019 09:00 UTC
Union Jack Marijuana
© Illustration: Carla Millar
Fewer people are smoking cannabis these days, down to 1.4 million from two million, they say. I say, if you believe that, you're high.

Arrests, prosecutions and the issuing of 'cannabis warnings' might be down - but then, I've seen the police quite deliberately look away from dope smokers on the street.

Weed is everywhere. I'm sure of this, because the smell of the city has changed. A decade ago, as I cycled across town, the dominant scent was diesel. There were also wafts of tobacco from the fag-break gang and the odd drift of ground coffee.

Comment: Is there a cost to the increasing liberalization of marijuana? While the drug has much-touted medicinal benefits, is it as harmless as its portrayed when used recreationally? It's a contentious topic, quite prone to biased opinions, so the question often doesn't get a fair analysis - if you're pro, you're just a stoner, if you're against, you're an uptight conservative. A solid, unbiased analysis of the data is what's really needed so that people can make informed choices about their recreational habits. Otherwise, this could be doing more harm than good.

See also:

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Gift 3

Arabic, gay, transexual, LGBT activist, teenager chosen to represent France at Eurovision 2019 in Israel

Josh Jackman
Pink News
Mon, 28 Jan 2019 15:03 UTC

Comment: Whoa. The intersectionality is strong with this one.


Bilal Hassani
© Destination Eurovision/youtubeBilal Hassani has won the right to represent France at the Eurovision Song Contest
Gay singer Bilal Hassani has won the right to represent France in the Eurovision Song Contest.

The 19-year-old singer, who has faced a wave of homophobic hatred online in recent weeks, lost the judges' vote during Saturday's (January 26) French selection show Destination Eurovision, but won the public vote by a huge margin.

This was enough to catapult the singer from fifth place to first in the standings, going from 44 points behind one of his seven competitors, Seemone, to 44 points ahead of her, according to the Eurovision site.

Comment: Free. The perfect individual. Liberated from all 'oppressive bonds of society' - including biological ones.

'King' is a good name for his (er, her? xer?) song actually. The logical terminus of the Enlightenment is the worship of self as king, polar opposite to the pre-Enlightenment norm of recognizing a higher power outside of the self, then symbolized by the monarchy.

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