Society's ChildS


Airplane

British-born joiner ordered to leave UK - Home Office apologizes after petition, says it was an accident

Sophie Norris
UK Mirror
Wed, 30 Aug 2017 15:11 UTC
Shane Ridge
© Mercury Press and Media LtdShane Ridge received a letter from the Home Office ordering him to leave the UK
A petition has been launched for a British-born joiner to remain in Britain after he was ordered to leave the country by the Home Office.

Shane Ridge, 21, has lived in the UK since he was born and his parents and grandparents are British citizens but immigration officials said he 'no lawful basis to be in the UK'.

Shane said he feared he may have to leave Britain where his family and girlfriend live as he was warned he faces a £5,000 fine or prison unless he left immediately.

Almost 2,000 people have now backed calls for Shane to remain in Britain after it was set up yesterday.

The online petition, entitled 'Let this lad stay!!', reads: "British joiner Shane ridge 21 from colne Lancashire, was born in England has lived here all his life, he has payed tax! Rented a house, opened a bank account and also passed his driving test in England!

"He is now being ordered to leave the UK by the home office because they say he isnt a British citizen! His dad and mum are both British citizen.

Comment: The devil of bureaucracy. According to the Home Office this was just a clerical error:
The Home Office has apologised after a 21-year-old man who was born and raised in Britain was wrongly told to leave the UK because he was not a British citizen.
...
After extensive media coverage, the Home Office on Wednesday said it had established that Ridge was "automatically a British citizen".

A spokesperson added: "We have spoken with Mr Ridge to apologise for this error and the distress caused. When Mr Ridge applied for right of abode, we did not identify that his maternal grandmother was British and that as a result his mother had settled status in the UK at the time of his birth."

But Ridge expressed anger at only receiving a "quick apology" via email from the Home Office for the mistake, which he said had upset his family and friends.

"It was a blunder on their part. They don't even sound bothered, really. The amount of stress and stuff I've been through, it's horrible," he said. "I can't believe they are just brushing it under the carpet. Fair enough they have sorted it now, which I'm really happy about, but it's a bit poor on their side."
...
"I'm annoyed that after all this stress and lack of sleep and panic, all it took was someone to ring me and say 'sorry we missed something out' and I'm suddenly a British citizen.

"I hadn't actually made any plans to leave my job or say goodbye to friends and family because it was all too surreal. I was just in denial, hoping it wouldn't happen. I didn't want to face the reality of it if it did.

"I genuinely wouldn't have known what to do. It would have truly broken me. I haven't eaten or slept properly for the past week since I received the letter. It has been horrible."


Read More...
Info

LA City Council changes Columbus Day to 'Indigenous Peoples Day' as statues continue to be destroyed


RT
Thu, 31 Aug 2017 15:20 UTC
A statue of explorer Christopher Columbus
© SPENCER PLATT / AFPA statue of explorer Christopher Columbus.
Los Angeles has voted to rename the holiday named after Christopher Columbus to commemorate Native Americans. The measure was passed as statues of the 15th-century explorer have been destroyed in recent weeks.

Members of the Los Angeles City Council voted 14-1 to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day on Wednesday. The day will remain a paid holiday for all city employees, but will not be officially renamed until 2019.

Councilman Mitch O'Farrell, a member of the Wyandotte Nation tribe who introduced the motion two years ago, said that by changing the name of the day, the city has established a "fitting holiday that we can all be proud of."

"Today is a moment where we took a step that is righteous, that is just, that is healing, and that is historically clear," O'Farrell said.
Read More...
Candle

Timeline: Remembering the death of Diana, Princess of Wales

Jason Rodrigues
The Guardian
Wed, 30 Aug 2017 23:15 UTC
Diana CCTV image
© Handout / PACCTV images of Diana, Princess of Wales with Dodi Fayed inside the lift of the Ritz Hotel, Paris, 30 August 1997.

A fatal car crash 20 years ago led to an intense period of mourning for the former wife of Prince Charles

7 August 1997 Following her divorce from Prince Charles in 1996, Diana is reported to be in a relationship with Dodi Fayed, son of Harrods boss Mohamed Al Fayed.

30 August Returning from their holiday on Dodi's yacht in the Mediterranean, the couple land in Paris to rumors that they are soon to be married.

30 August, 23:30 With their every move watched by photographers, the couple check out of the Ritz hotel in Paris for an apartment off the Champs Elysées.

Comment: Unlawful Killing - The Murder of Princess Diana and Why it Matters

Read More...
Arrow Up

Southern Poverty Law Center backs down, removes innocent historic Iowa town from 'hate map'

Tyler O'Neill
PJ Media
Tue, 29 Aug 2017 00:00 UTC
SPLCC hate map
Twitter screenshot of CNN endorsing the SPLC "hate map."
On Monday, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) removed the historic Iowa town Amana Colonies from its "hate map" that inspired a terrorist attack in 2012. The SPLC had targeted Amana Colonies as a refuge of "hate" because of an alleged link to the neo-Nazi website Daily Stormer. The Amana Colonies is a historic landmark, the site of seven German Pietist villages that produced a self-sustaining local economy for eighty years.

"We're thrilled for them changing the map and correcting it to what it should be, and not having the Amanas as a hate group," David Rettig, executive director of the Amana Colonies Convention and Visitors Bureau, told the Iowa City Press-Bulletin

The SPLC "had previously designated the historic settlement as the home of the Daily Stormer, a neo-Nazi and white supremacy news and commentary organization," the Press-Bulletin reported. On Monday, one of the Amanas leaders received word that the SPLC had changed Daily Stormer's designation to "statewide."

Comment: Christian group DJKM sues SPLC and Amazon over 'hate group' label

Read More...
Candle

William and Harry pay tribute to mother Diana at new memorial White Garden at Kensington Palace

Caroline Davies
The Guardian
Wed, 30 Aug 2017 21:43 UTC
Prince Harry Duke Cambridge Diana memorial garden
© WPA Pool /GettyThe Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry visit the new garden at Kensington Palace.
The Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry have paid tribute to their mother on the eve of the 20th anniversary of her death, amid scented roses and other favourite flowers in a memorial White Garden at Kensington Palace, planted earlier this year for the landmark milestone.

Alongside the Duchess of Cambridge, the two princes sheltered under umbrellas as they toured the garden designed in memory of Diana, Princess of Wales, for about an hour.

Examining the floral tributes, photographs and candles left on the gates of Kensington Palace, her former home and the scene of a sea of bouquets immediately following her death, they read messages left by well-wishers.

Harry told representatives from charities supported by the late princess: "All of us lost somebody."

Kensington Palace said the visit allowed the princes "to pay tribute to the life and work of their mother the day before the 20th anniversary of her death".

Comment: Remembering Princess Diana: William and Harry share their memories and regrets

Read More...
Snowflake

The march from Charlottesville to DC lost nearly all of the participants in just one day

Phillip Stucky
The Daily Caller
Tue, 29 Aug 2017 14:24 UTC
march to DC charlottesville
© Cville 2 DC March/Twitter
The March to DC from Charlottesville, Va., started with nearly 200 marchers Monday, but by Tuesday morning there were only 35 marchers.

"Over 200 people came together today to take a stand against bigotry and hate," march organizers said on Twitter. "We're marching from #Cville2DC. Join us: cville2dc.us."

The overnight rains were enough to keep all but "about 35" from marching Monday morning, the day after the pep talk when police escorted the group from Emancipation Park downtown Sunday.

"We have started the day!" the group tweeted shortly after 10:00am. "We have about 35 folks marching against white supremacy."

Despite the drastic decrease in numbers, the group still declared a victory, saying "not rain nor sleet nor snow nor hail will stop us from marching from #Cville2DC.
Read More...
Attention

Arkema CEO claims chemicals at plant near Houston degrading, explosion 'inevitable'


RT
Wed, 30 Aug 2017 20:09 UTC
houston flooding
© Melissa Phillip A man walks from his flooded SVU after getting stranded along Stancliff near 59 and West Bellfort Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2017.
Volatile chemicals at a plant northeast of Houston, Texas are degrading and are expected to result in a fire or explosion within the next six days, the company's CEO told reporters.

There is no way to prevent an explosion or a fire at the Arkema plant in Crosby, CEO Richard Rowe said during a conference call on Wednesday.

The refrigeration system at the plant, which produces organic peroxides for the plastics and rubber industries, has failed due to the massive flooding from Hurricane Harvey, the company said.
Read More...
Bad Guys

'Gates of Hell': Battle against ISIS in Tal Afar is 'many times worse' than Mosul


RT
Wed, 30 Aug 2017 19:46 UTC
Tal Afar, Iraq
© Thaier Al-Sudani / ReutersNorthwest of Tal Afar, Iraq August 28, 2017
The Iraqi military is engaged in fierce fighting against Islamic State militants in the Tal Afar district, where terrorists have fled from the city itself and remain holed up in the town of al-Ayadiya. As the operation enters its final stage, RT looks at what is making it so difficult.

"The gates of hell" is what Iraqi Colonel Kareem al-Lami calls the battle now facing Iraqi troops near Tal Afar, according to Reuters.

US-backed Iraqi troops lauded the almost complete liberation of the strategic town of Tal Afar, held for three years by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), on August 27 after a week-long operation. However, the forces are currently struggling to defeat the terrorists in the small town of al-Ayadiya a few miles north of Tal Afar, where the remaining militants continue to resist.
Read More...
Hearts

Houston bakers shut in by hurricane provide hundreds of loaves of bread to storm victims

Warner Todd Huston
Breitbart
Wed, 30 Aug 2017 19:46 UTC
Hurricane Harvey bakers
© Facebook
A group of Houston bakery employees stuck at work for two days due to flood waters in their area spent their time wisely by baking hundreds of loaves of pan dulce bread to ease the hunger of fellow victims, a report says.

The owner and employees of El Bolillo Bakery in Houston shared a Facebook post to alert customers that the shop is closed due to the storm of the century. But, the post also notes that they haven't been idle, ABC's KSAT reported.

The owner of El Bolillo told friends that the bakery is "closed until further notice, but our bakers cooked all night long and we will be prepared to help as soon as we can with bread."
Read More...
Bad Guys

Daesh prison full of torture devices and drugs uncovered in Iraqi Tal Afar


Sputnik
Wed, 30 Aug 2017 19:53 UTC
PMF in Iraq
© REUTERS/ Stringer
The Iraqi federal police discovered a Daesh prison full of torture devices and narcotic substances in a suburb of the liberated city of Tal Afar on August 28.

Iraqi forces have found a Daesh facility where terrorists tortured innocent civilians and imprisoned servicemen, the chief of the police, General Rayad Shaker Jawdat, said during a press conference.

According to Jawdat, "There are cells and torture rooms inside the prison where civilians were held hostage and tortured. There were also a large number of medicines and narcotic substances found there."

Media representatives received from the Iraqi federal police a video depicting the prison with huge iron locks, handcuffs, hooks, drugs and video cameras for monitoring prisoners.
Read More...