Society's ChildS


TV

Vietnam vets' group demands PBS documentary correct its 'inaccuracies'

Cortney O'Brien
Townhall
Wed, 08 Nov 2017 16:34 UTC
The Vietnam War film
Ken Burns's and Lynn Novick's popular The Vietnam War documentary has received plenty of praise since the 10-part series started airing in September. Yet, some authors, historians and veterans groups are not joining the chorus.

The Intercept's Nick Turse charges that Burns's documentary largely ignores the staggering toll the war had on innocent civilians.

Other critics like author Jeffrey P. Kimball say the producers have certainly provided some compelling TV, but "their treatment of diplomatic, political, international, and other important facets of the war leave something to be desired."
In particular, Burns and Novick mischaracterize Nixon's and Ford's policy goals, Nixon's and Henry Kissinger's diplomatic and military strategies, the fundamental issues at stake in the Paris negotiations, the purposes and consequences of the 1972 "Christmas bombings," and the causes of the fall of South Vietnam in 1975. In addition, they omit the baneful political legacy that Nixon fostered by blaming others for the US defeat in Vietnam.

Comment: A few more details the producers may have missed:

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Eye 2

Hamburg knife attacker wanted to kill as many Christians as possible to avenge Muslim injustices - prosecutors


RT
Fri, 10 Nov 2017 10:32 UTC
Knife attacker
© Morris Mac Matzen / ReutersPolice investigators work at the crime scene after a knife attack in a supermarket in Hamburg, Germany, July 28, 2017.
A Palestinian man who fatally stabbed one person and wounded six others at a supermarket in Hamburg, Germany, in July wanted to kill as many Christians as possible to avenge what he believes are injustices against Muslims worldwide, prosecutors say.

According to prosecutors cited by AP, the suspect - identified only as Ahmad A. - considered his actions to be a "contribution to a worldwide jihad." However, they said there is currently no evidence to suggest he had the support of any extremist group.

Prosecutors said in a Friday statement that they were formally indicting Ahmad A., a failed asylum seeker of Palestinian origin who was born in the United Arab Emirates. He is being charged with one count of murder, six counts of attempted murder and six counts of serious bodily harm.

Comment: See also:

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Health

Tourists visited San Diego for Metallica, came home with hepatitis A

Lauryn Schroeder
The San Diego Union-Tribune
Thu, 09 Nov 2017 05:00 UTC
Tourists hepatitis

Three friends from Salt Lake City visited San Diego in early August for the Metallica concert at Petco Park. Two of them unknowingly brought home an unwelcome souvenir.

Mike Johnson, 43, was diagnosed with hepatitis A on Sept. 14, a little more than a month after his trip to San Diego. By that time, his eyes and skin had turned a shade of yellow and doctors told him he was nearing liver failure.

"It was a nightmare. I was sleeping 14 to 16 hours a night," Johnson said. "I couldn't walk more than 100 feet without getting tired."

Johnson's friend, Josh Oviatt, 44, spent four days in the hospital.

"It was a phenomenal weekend, but we're paying for it now," Johnson said. "I essentially sacrificed six months of my life for that one weekend of fun."

Comment: See also:

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Arrow Down

LAPD drops investigation into Corey Feldman's 'out of statute' sexual abuse claims

Francesca Bacardi
Page Six
Thu, 09 Nov 2017 16:19 UTC
corey feldman
The Los Angeles Police Department won't be pursuing the investigation it launched into Corey Feldman's childhood sexual abuse claims.

LAPD officials confirmed to Page Six on Thursday that the alleged incident is "out of statute," according to California law, and the robbery-homicide detectives have "no other avenues" to follow with the case.

Feldman later responded to the news on Twitter, writing, "MAYBE NOW U WILL #BELIEVE ME WHEN I SAY I NEED 2 DO IT MY WAY."

Comment: There is a mountain of allegations coming out of Hollywood right now. Hopefully the LAPD will do something to help those whose cases aren't beyond the statute of limitations.

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People 2

'Here to Stay': Over a thousand DREAMers take over Senate building, demand immigration reform


RT
Fri, 10 Nov 2017 10:49 UTC
Dreamers take over Senate building
More than a dozen people were arrested after hundreds of illegal immigrant students walked out of classes to march on Capitol Hill. Protesters urged Congress to pass permanent DACA protections for 'DREAMers' brought to the US illegally as children.

Over 1,000 DREAMers filled the Hart Senate Office Building Thursday to demand Congress pass a "clean Dream Act,"two months after President Donald Trump announced the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program was being scrapped.

Protesters gathered in the main atrium of the Senate building, chanting "Clean Dream Act!" and unfurling massive banners that said "GOP we need a clean dream act by December."

Comment: See also:

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Attention

Monsanto's monster-herbicide blamed for wiping out millions of crop acres across the US Midwest


RT
Fri, 10 Nov 2017 10:13 UTC
Monsanto
© Karen Pulfer Focht / ReutersFarmer inspects damaged soybean crop following Monsanto dicamba spraying.
Agro-chemical giant Monsanto's new version of an herbicide called dicamba is allegedly wiping out millions of acres of farmland across the US Midwest, according to farmers from 25 states litigating with the company and calling for stiffer rules.

According to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the farmers have submitted more than 2,700 claims to state agricultural agencies that neighbors' dicamba spraying destroyed 3.6 million acres of soybeans. About 900,000 acres of crops were reportedly damaged in Arkansas alone, more than in any other state. The herbicide is also blamed for destroying other crops, such as cantaloupe and pumpkins.

This week the sides gathered for a hearing in Little Rock, Arkansas. The proposed restrictions are subject to the approval of a subcommittee of state legislators.

Last month Monsanto sued the Arkansas State Plant Board following the decision to bar the new herbicide and propose tougher restrictions on similar weed killers ahead of the 2018 growing season.

Comment: See also: With Roundup on the rocks, Monsanto hatches plan for replacement with drift-prone crop destroying dicamba

Dicamba is not a benign pesticide - in addition to posing posing serious threats to non-target crops, the herbicide can be highly mobile in soil and easily contaminate water. While only tentative links to cancer have so far been found - there are other health risks as well. From a report by the Center for Food Safety:
Potential health impacts from dicamba

Epidemiology studies have tentatively linked exposure to dicamba to increased incidence of colon, lung and immune system cancers in pesticide applicators. Other pesticide applicators exposed to dicamba exhibited a 20% inhibition of an enzyme critical to brain function. Children who ingest residues of other pesticides that have this effect exhibit higher rates of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Pregnant mice that ingested water spiked with low doses of a commercial herbicide mix that includes dicamba had smaller litters, suggesting developmental toxicity. Dicamba has been found to damage DNA at high rates, and to be transformed by sprayed plants into forms that are mutagenic in standard assays. Vastly increased use of dicamba in the context of MON 87708 can only exacerbate any adverse impacts it may have on human health.
More on Dicamba:

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Eye 2

Austerity Britain: Anorexic mother-of-four stripped of benefits found dead in freezing house


RT
Thu, 09 Nov 2017 10:52 UTC
Universal Credit: Anorexic mother-of-four found dead in freezing house after being stripped of benefits
© FacebookElaine Morral
A mother of four with anorexia died alone in her freezing house after being stripped of benefits because she failed to attend a universal credit meeting. Her distraught family claims she was penalized for being in intensive care at the time of the assessment.

Elaine Morrall, 38, who struggled with eating disorders and mental-health issues, was found dead earlier this month at her flat in Runcorn, Cheshire, while wrapped up in a coat and a scarf.

In a "broken-hearted" letter, her mother Linda Morrall claims her daughter had been stripped of benefits and housing subsidies because she failed to attend an Employment and Support Assessment (ESA) meeting while in intensive care.

Despite being hospitalized, her mother said that Elaine was deemed not ill enough for ESA. "[She] had her benefits stopped numerous times, which in turn stopped her housing benefit. No income but expected to be able to pay full rent. [She] was told being in intensive care was not sufficient reason for failing to attend a universal credit interview," said Linda.


Comment: This inhumane treatment at the hands of the UK government is sadly one story of thousands and, even with condemnation from the UN that the rights of the disabled are being systematically violated, the death count is rising. From paraplegic fire-fighters to cancer patients in between chemotherapy treatments, they receive no sympathy from unqualified staff who, because of ridiculously arbitrary assessments and coercion with work related targets, assess them as 'fit for work'; the UK government knows no shame and in the meantime is making a profit.

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Red Flag

Chris Hedges and Pankaj Mishra discuss the global shift to Authoritarianism

Chris Hedges
Truthdig
Thu, 09 Nov 2017 00:01 UTC
Pankaj Mishra
In the year since the election of Donald Trump, many have attempted to answer why modern societies are increasingly turning to "strongmen" and explain why authoritarian movements are increasing in popularity. Author Pankaj Mishra examines this problem in depth in his latest book, "Age of Anger: A History of the Present," and shares his theories with Truthdig columnist Chris Hedges.

Mishra explains that resentment is taking many different forms around the world, from jihadism in the Middle East to the rise of white supremacist movements in America. "We have to look at the underlying sources of [this resentment], which is this enormous process of dispossession, of dislocation, and psychological and spiritual disorientation," Mishra says. "People who, now desperate for meaning, bond together in these forms of negative solidarity."

Comment: For more on Pankaj Mishra's Age of Anger, see: Age of Anger by Pankaj Mishra.

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Propaganda

Fake News: NYT op-ed whitewashes history of US meddling in Ukraine

Andrew J. Bacevich
The American Conservative
Wed, 08 Nov 2017 00:01 UTC
Paul Manafort
© Mark Reinstein/Shutterstock
Disregarding President Trump's insistent claim that the establishment press propagates "fake news" requires a constant effort - especially when a prestigious outlet like the New York Times allows itself to be used for blatantly fraudulent purposes.

I cherish the First Amendment. Mark me down as favoring journalism that is loud, lively, and confrontational. When members of the media snooze - falling for fictitious claims about Saddam's WMD program or Gaddafi's genocidal intentions, for example - we all lose.

So the recent decision by Times editors to publish an op-ed regarding Paul Manafort's involvement in Ukraine is disturbing. That the Times is keen to bring down Donald Trump is no doubt the case. Yet if efforts to do so entail grotesque distortions of U.S. policy before Trump, then we are courting real trouble. Put simply, ousting Trump should not come at the cost of whitewashing the follies that contributed to Trump's rise in the first place.

Comment:

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Easter Egg

Birth rate crisis: Polish government encourages citizens to breed like rabbits

Christine Rousselle
Townhall
Wed, 08 Nov 2017 12:42 UTC
rabbit, kaninchen
© Flickr/Robobobobo
Poland is facing a birth rate crisis, and the government has stepped in with some advice about how to fix the issue: citizens, please begin breeding like rabbits.

Poland's health ministry produced a short video featuring some rabbits having happy lives as a narrator describes that exercise and eating right are the "secret" behind their large families. A (human) couple is shown at the end of the video.

The Health Ministry defended the video as attempting to encourage people to have a healthier lifestyle that would result in better reproductive health. The use of rabbits was an effort to avoid being vulgar.
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