Society's ChildS


Red Flag

German teen confesses to making up story of New Year's Eve gang rape by migrants


RT
Fri, 29 Jul 2016 18:23 UTC
park scene
© Michaela Rehle / Reuters
An 18-year-old woman who earlier claimed to have been brutally raped by a gang of refugees in front of a Cologne train station reportedly confessed that her chilling story was fiction the whole time - she hadn't even been in the city on New Year's Eve.

Hundreds of women reported being harassed, abused and even raped by crowds of migrants at the New Year's Eve celebration in central Cologne.

One story stood out - an 18-year-old girl said earlier this year that she had been surrounded by a group of men who"pushed her back and forth like a ball," and one man eventually forced himself upon her.

Notably, after the alleged rape the 18-year-old turned to the Cologne-based Lobby for Young Women, which assisted victims of the New Year's Eve assaults.
Read More...
War Whore

Somerville police officers protest Black Lives Matter banner displayed on City Hall building


WCVB News
Fri, 29 Jul 2016 09:19 UTC
BLM banner
© Erin Tiernan/Wicked Local
About 50 police officers and their supporters upset about a Black Lives Matter banner that has been hanging outside City Hall for a year rallied on Thursday to try to pressure the mayor to remove it.

The primarily white opponents of the banner broke into chants of "All lives matter!" and "Take it down!" Many held signs saying "Cops lives matter" and "Support your local police."

Harold MacGilvray, president of a coalition representing 1,500 officers in 26 communities, said a public building like Somerville's City Hall is "no place" for political slogans to be displayed.

The mayor of Somerville, a largely white and historically working-class Boston suburb, had earlier in the day promised not to remove the banner despite complaints from officers across the state.

Mayor Joe Curtatone, a white Democrat, said it's "OK to disagree" and the only way to resolve the impasse is through an "open dialogue" about race.

"That sign is not coming down," he insisted while standing in front of City Hall flanked by the police chief and two deputy chiefs.
Read More...
Shoe

Russian Olympic team arrives in Rio, missing over 100 athletes including pole vault record holder Yelena Isinbayeva


RT
Fri, 29 Jul 2016 16:57 UTC
russian olympic team
© Ruptly
Around 70 athletes from Russia's Olympic team touched down in Brazil on Friday ahead of next month's games, which start in Rio on August 5. However, hours earlier, the IAAF rejected an appeal from world pole vault record holder Yelena Isinbayeva to compete.

Russia's national team was greeted by Russia's consulate general in Rio and compatriots in Brazil they landed at Galeao International Airport.


At the farewell ceremony before the Russian athletes departed from Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport, the president of Russia's Olympic Committee (ROC) Aleksandr Zhukov stated that about 270 Russian athletes have been given the green light by their respective international federations to participate in the competition.

The men's and women's volleyball teams, the women's handball team, the boxing team, synchronized swimmers and table tennis players were among the flight's passengers that departed Moscow on Thursday.

Speaking at the ceremony, Isinbayeva who was fighting back tears, said that Russian athletes were banned "without a chance" to defend themselves and called on the remaining athletes to "show them what you're able to do — for yourself and for us too."

Comment: Despite the political pressure put on the governing bodies by imperial interests, the Russian team will be competing and visible at the Rio Olympics, albeit a team decimated by the political witch-hunt led by the US. Despite this, knowing the strength and determination of the Russian people, it would not be surprising to see them do very well in the Games in spite of all the stress surrounding their participation. See also:

Read More...
Life Preserver

Police rescue armed robbery suspect from burning car in Texas - VIDEO


RT
Fri, 29 Jul 2016 08:39 UTC
cops saves criminal
© InsideFWPD / YouTube
Police officers have been hailed as true heroes after they managed to rescue a robbery suspect from a burning car, despite the fact that the suspect might have been armed. The rescue was caught on one officer's body camera.

The video was released by Fort Worth Police, Texas, on Thursday.

"RAW video from [an] officer's Axon body camera system showing heroic rescue of a suspect trapped in his burning vehicle. Heroes," the statement under the video says.

"It was pretty dramatic," said Sgt. Marc Povero, a Fort Worth public information officer, as cited by WFAA news. "We recruit people that can think on the fly, think quickly, and perform under pressure."

Comment: Not that there aren't many honorable and courageous people on the U.S. police force but, considering how many crazed ones there are, this article is a testament to how badly they require some good PR these days.

Read More...
Stock Up

As Ukraine flounders, Crimean economy grows up to 18 percent year-on-year


Sputnik
Fri, 29 Jul 2016 16:05 UTC
Crimea
© Sputnik/ Taras Litvinenko
The Crimean economy has grown 17-18 percent since last summer amid a steady rise in tourist arrivals and more vigorous tax collection, the head of the region's Supreme Council said Friday.

Vladimir Konstantinov, who chairs the legislature of southwest Russia's autonomous region, briefed a visiting French delegation of lawmakers led by Foreign Affairs Committee's member Thierry Mariani.

"Since your last trip, the gross regional product grew around 17-18 percent. We also observed a steady growth in tax collection. The number of tourists visiting Crimea also shows a steady growth," Konstantinov told reporters.
Read More...
Beer

UK to crackdown on alcohol sales at airports after dozens of Brits cause havoc on flights


RT
Fri, 29 Jul 2016 15:58 UTC
duty free store
© Michael Dalder / Reuters
Britain's new aviation minister has pledged a crackdown on alcohol sales at airports after dozens of drunken Brits caused havoc on flights, with one man allegedly drinking a whole bottle of vodka before abusing fellow passengers.

Lord Ahmad has announced he will look into the way alcohol is sold in airports to ensure business travellers and families going on holiday feel "safe and secure."

The peer will examine the timings during which alcohol is sold in airports and ways to prevent drunken passengers boarding planes. Ahmad denied he wants to "kill merriment altogether," but insisted passengers need to be "responsible" when flying.
Read More...
Stormtrooper

Video shows cops dragging woman away by her legs during peaceful sit-in protest outside governor's mansion

Justin Gardner
The Free Thought Project
Thu, 28 Jul 2016 15:49 UTC
protesters
© gettyProtesters in front of Minnesota governer's mansion
Hours after Philando Castile was murdered by a Minneapolis cop and died on camera, protesters began descending on the Minnesota Governor's mansion to demand accountability for this heinous act of police brutality.

Protesters have kept up their campaign to this day, but it seems that police finally reached the limits of their tolerance to this peaceful demonstration.

Video footage of the sit-in protest taken yesterday shows cops single out a woman in the crowd and attempt to drag her away, as her colleagues try to hold her back from the cops.

The result is like a tug of war, with the woman suspended in midair, screaming continuously as one cop pulls each leg and the protesters hold on to her upper body.

She appears to be just one of the 69 arrested on Tuesday and Wednesday for "public nuisance and unlawful assembly," as police were on a mission to clear out the encampment.

Read More...
Star of David

IDF kills Israeli Air Force captain in friendly fire while shooting at charging Palestinian


RT
Fri, 29 Jul 2016 15:33 UTC
idf checkpoint
© Depth Charge / YouTube
Video footage of an Israeli Air Force captain who was killed by IDF servicemen at a checkpoint in Jerusalem has been published. The soldiers were aiming at a Palestinian trespasser, fearing he may try to stab them, but fatally missed their intended target.

The incident occurred at the Gush Etzion Junction south of Jerusalem earlier this year on February 24.

Eliav Gelman, 30, who according to reports was waiting for his bus at the checkpoint, happened to be in the firing line of two law enforcement officers who were trying to shoot Palestinian Mamdouh Amro.

Amro attempted to dart in between the soldiers and the captain, as he tried to evade the gunfire. However, the gunshots missed their intended target and fatally wounded Gelman, who fell to the ground and lay motionless.


Comment: The IDF is an illegal occupying force for an apartheid regime that creates racial colonies on Palestinian land. See: How Israel's oppressive and humiliating occupation affects all aspects of Palestinian life and incites violent resistance

Read More...
USA

Number of Americans renouncing their citizenship nears record high

Rudy Takala
Washington Examiner
Fri, 29 Jul 2016 15:41 UTC
passport
A total of 508 Americans renounced their citizenship in the second quarter of the year, according to information published by the Internal Revenue Service, putting the country on track to lose at least the second highest number of citizens on record.

That brings the total number of expatriates for the year to 1,666, according to data published on Friday, just below the 1,795 who renounced during the same period in 2015. Yet because the number of expatriates tends to increase toward the end of the year, 2016 could still set another record for the number of Americans it sends packing. A total of 4,279 left over the duration of 2016, a new annual record.

Tax experts have suggested the uptick is due, in part, to the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act. The 2010 law was aimed at forcing nonresident citizens to report more of their income for tax collection. Expatriation increased in subsequent years, and 2015 saw a 560 percent increase in departures over the highest number seen by the Bush administration.

The Treasury Department began collecting expatriation information in 1996 as part of the Health Insurance Accountability Act. The data does not distinguish between green card and passport holders, and does not provide descriptive information beyond the names of those who have left.
Read More...
House

Homeownership rate in the U.S. continues to decline, lowest since 1965

Prashant Gopal
Bloomberg
Fri, 29 Jul 2016 15:24 UTC
US homes
The U.S. homeownership rate fell to the lowest in more than 50 years as rising prices put buying out of reach for many renters.

The share of Americans who own their homes was 62.9 percent in the second quarter, the lowest since 1965, according to a Census Bureau report Thursday. It was the second straight quarterly decrease, down from 63.5 percent in the previous three months.

The drop extends a years-long decline from the last housing boom, in part because of tight credit and a shift toward renting in the aftermath of the crash. First-time buyers have been struggling to find affordable properties as low mortgage rates and an improving job market spur competition for a tight supply of listings. Home prices rose 5.2 percent in May from a year earlier, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller index of values in 20 cities released this week.
Read More...