Society's ChildS


Bizarro Earth

Fracking gets go ahead, as govt overrules locals in 'denial of democracy'


RT
Thu, 06 Oct 2016 14:38 UTC
Antri-fracking protesters in Preston, Britain
© Andrew Yates / ReutersAntri-fracking protesters in Preston, Britain
Fracking will go ahead in the UK despite objections after ministers overruled a local government ban on the controversial drilling method.

The landmark ruling for Britain's budding shale gas industry steamrolled over a decision by Lancashire County Council to block fracking at the Preston New Road site in Little Plumpton, Lancashire.

Local activists reacted angrily to the decision, which found in favor of fracking company Cuadrilla, describing it as "a total denial of democracy."
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Airplane

Southwest airlines flight evacuated after Samsung's replacement for exploding phone catches fire


RT
Thu, 06 Oct 2016 11:49 UTC
samsung phone burns
A Southwest Airlines flight from Louisville to Baltimore was evacuated Wednesday after the smartphone, issued as a replacement to one of Samsung's recalled 'exploding' phones, started smoking inside the plane before the aircraft took off.

No injuries were reported as a result of the incident and an investigation is now underway by the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the Federal Aviation Administration.

In September the South Korean electronics company announced a global recall of at least 2.5 million of its flagship Galaxy Note 7 smartphones in 10 markets due to faulty batteries causing some phones to catch fire.

This latest incident comes just as it appeared Samsung had resolved its 'exploding phone' crisis with replacement devices issued and sales reportedly picking up.

Comment: Samsung investigates exploding Galaxy Note 7 phones in S Korea

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Arrow Down

Failure to protect: UN peacekeepers abandon posts in South Sudan, refuse to help as rebels rape aid workers


RT
Thu, 06 Oct 2016 08:38 UTC
UN Peacekeepers South Sudan
© Albert Gonzalez Farran / AFP Peacekeeping troops from China, deployed by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), patrol outside the premises of the UN Protection of Civilians (PoC) site in Juba on October 4, 2016
Some UN peacekeepers "abandoned their posts entirely," failing to "live up to the protection mandate" and care for civilians in South Sudan in July, a rights group says. It adds that peacekeepers refused to help as rebels raped at least five aid workers.

On July 11, up to 100 rebel soldiers attacked the Terrain compound in Juba, where they "proceeded to rape and gang rape at least five international aid workers, physically or sexually assault at least a dozen others, and execute a South Sudanese journalist—apparently because of his Nuer ethnicity," the report by Washington-based Center for Civilians in Conflict (Civic) said.

Although several departments within UNMISS received information about the attack shortly after it broke out, and a Quick Reaction Force (QRF) was ordered to respond, "no QRF ever tried to leave the UN House gates, however, with at least the Chinese and Ethiopian battalions refusing to go," the report said.

Comment: More on how the UN fails to do its job: Rampaging South Sudan troops raped foreigners and killed local journalist

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Heart - Black

Ridiculous: Hospital charges family $40 to hold newborn son


RT
Thu, 06 Oct 2016 13:16 UTC
baby
© Victor Ruiz Garcia / Reuters
There is no place for miracles when it comes to hospital costs, a Utah new father has learned after he had to pay $40 for his newborn son's post C-section "skin-to-skin" contact with mother. The extra charge did not blot out the couple's happiness, but hyped up Reddit community.

Ryan Grassley, of Spanish Fork, could not help but share his "laugh" by posting a picture of a hospital bill he received after his son was born.

"During the C-section the nurse asked my wife if she would like to do skin to skin after the baby was born. Which of course anyone would say yes too. We just noticed it in the bill today and had a laugh," he later wrote.

The September, 23 invoice specifically listed "skin-to-skin after c-sec" as a separated service which Utah Valley Hospital priced at $39.95.

"The nurse let me hold the baby on my wife's neck/chest," Grassley wrote. "Even borrowed my camera to take a few pictures for us. Everyone involved in the process was great, and we had a positive experience. We just got a chuckle out of seeing that on the bill."

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People 2

More young people in UK identify as bisexual than gay or lesbian


RT
Thu, 06 Oct 2016 13:08 UTC
pride parade
© Neil Hall / Reuters
The number of young people identifying as bisexual has overtaken the number of those who consider themselves gay or lesbian for the first time, new figures have revealed.

Figures for 2015 released by the Office for National Statistic (ONS) indicate that 1.8 percent of people aged 16-24 identify as bisexual, up from 1 percent in 2012.

Meanwhile, 1.5 percent of people in this age bracket identified as gay or lesbian, a 0.1 percent drop over four years.

The figures, collected as part of the Annual Population Survey, also show that overall, one in 30 young people in UK now identify as lesbian, gay or bisexual (LGB), compared with one in 38 in 2012. The national average across all age groups is one in 60.

In every age group except the 16 to 24s, the number of individuals identifying as lesbian or gay was greater than that of those who identified as bisexual, according to the survey, which polled some 320,000 people.
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Bullseye

Karma: Israeli fighter jet crashes after bombing Gaza, pilot killed


RT
Thu, 06 Oct 2016 07:52 UTC
Israel fighter jet crash
© Tssmin News Agency
An Israeli Air Force pilot died on Wednesday as he ejected from his F-16 fighter jet upon returning from an airstrike mission in the Gaza Strip. The jet caught fire and crashed moments later outside Ramon Air Force base in southern Israel.

The pilot died while landing the jet on Wednesday evening, Anadolu news agency reported citing an army statement.

He was identified as 34-year-old Major Ohad Cohen Nov, who was only recently appointed squadron deputy commander. The pilot's navigator ejected successfully and sustained only minor injuries. He has been hospitalized.

The F-16 apparently caught fire on descent, forcing the crew to abandon the aircraft. The cause of the fire is still unknown. Israeli Air Force commander Major General Amir Eshel ordered an investigation into the incident.

The aircraft was returning from an airstrike mission in which Israeli warplanes shelled several positions in Gaza after a rocket fired from Gaza territory exploded in Israel's southern city of Sderot, the Israeli army said in a statement.

The plane was an F-16I two-seater jet fighter, also known as the "Storm," which was specifically made for Israel by US-based Lockheed Martin. It had been in service with the IAF for over 10 years. The incident became IAF's first fatality since 2010, when an F-16 crashed in southern Israel during a drill, killing both the pilot and navigator.

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Eye 2

California man dies after police shoot him with Taser, brother arrested for assault


RT
Thu, 06 Oct 2016 01:02 UTC
Police use taser
© Karen Bleier / AFP
A California man in his 60s has died after police subdued him with a Taser. Authorities say he verbally and physically assaulted officers. Police also arrested the victim's brother, who they said threatened them with a handgun and barricaded himself in a house.

The fatal interaction between the Burbank PD officers and 66-year-old Thomas Binkley took place Tuesday evening, when a woman reported criminal threats. The caller said Binkley was her ex-father-in-law, who came to her house and was making threats on her life.

Two officers responded to the call, which came from a private house in the 500 block of N. Mariposa St.

"While speaking with the officers, Thomas Binkley became verbally confrontational and ultimately physically assaulted the officers," the Burbank police said in a press release.

Comment: See also: Only one month into the school year and cops have already tasered at least four children

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Take 2

Italian mafia boss found in secret 'wardrobe' hideout in his own home


RT
Thu, 06 Oct 2016 06:28 UTC
italian mob boss antonio pelle
© Italian Police / AFP
Fugitive mafia boss Antonio Pelle, on the run since 2011, has finally been caught stowed away in a secret hideout in his own home.

The 54-year-old criminal, who was wanted for drugs and arms trafficking as well as mafia association, was found hiding in a small space built between his son's bedroom and the bathroom in his home in Bovalino in Calabria, southern Italy. Footage from the Italian police shows the mafioso talking to officers from the top of a wardrobe before climbing down and being taken into custody.

"It wasn't easy," Francesco Ratta of the Reggio Calabria Mobile Squad told la Repubblica. "Fifty of us sifted through the two-story house where Pelle had always lived, but it took a very attentive eye to discover his hiding place."

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MIB

Not a single NYPD officer wears a body camera


RT
Thu, 06 Oct 2016 06:25 UTC
police body cameras
© Shannon Stapleton/Reuters
One of the reforms stemming from a federal court case on racial discrimination in the New York Police Department's "stop, question and frisk" policy was a pilot program outfitting officers with body cameras. A report shows not one officer wears one.
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Pistol

Police fatally shoot machete-wielding man at University of Colorado


RT
Thu, 06 Oct 2016 05:22 UTC
Champions Center
© University of Colorado Boulder
An unusual and deadly battle played out in the University of Colorado's athletics department when a man began threatening people with a machete. The suspect was shot and killed by police when he refused to obey commands to drop his weapon.
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