Auschwitz survivor, Dutch theoretical physicist and human rights activist HAJO MEYER (died at 90 in 2014, both his parents were killed at Auschwitz):

<< "If we want to stay really human beings, we must get up and call the Zionists what they are: Nazi criminals," Meyer said. The hate of the Jews by the Germans "was less deeply rooted than the hate of the Palestinians by the Israeli Jews," he observed. "The brainwashing of the Jewish Israeli populations is going on for over sixty years. They cannot see a Palestinian as a human being."

While discussing Europe's response to Israel's policies, Hajo said that Europe should respond with "a much more large scale boycott of Israel" than a ban on settlement products. If we Europeans pretend to hold high the flag of humanity with what is happening in Gaza, Israel should be outcasted by us."

I asked him if he had a message for the Palestinians, Israelis or human rights activists.

"My message for the Palestinians is that they should not give up their fight," he replied. "If they give up, they might lose their self-esteem with the ongoing humiliations by the Israeli Nazis. Fight with human means. It is justified to show to the Israeli Zionists that you are a force to reckon with. Fight with stones, with weapons. Yes, also with weapons. If you don't fight, you lose your self-esteem and will not be respected by the Israelis."

"If we Western democratic societies don't support the Palestinians in their fight, we must feel ashamed if the Palestinians are annihilated. The US and the European Union must show their teeth," he added. >> --LINK

Rates of deaths from suicides, drug overdoses and alcohol have reached an all-time high in the United States, but some states have been hit far harder than others, according to a report released Wednesday by the Commonwealth Fund.

The report examined data in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., taking an in-depth look at 47 factors that have an impact on health outcomes, including insurance coverage, access to doctors, obesity, smoking, even tooth loss, and ultimately assigning each state a score. The data are from 2017.

Although the rates of the so-called deaths of despair are up nationally, the report's investigators were particularly struck by regional differences in the rates.

An NYPD officer has reportedly shot himself on Staten Island.

According to police sources, the 29-year-old officer was found behind the 121st Precinct in a locked car and he was found by an off-duty officer who immediately called 911.

The NYPD said the officer had only been on the job for six years.

The incident is the third in a disturbing series of events involving NYPD officers and apparent suicides this month.

BP warns of 'vicious cycle' as use of heating and cooling systems boosts emissions

Extreme weather drove growth in energy demand last year to its highest level since 2010, triggering warnings of a "vicious cycle" fuelled by reliance on heating and cooling systems that could worsen the world's carbon emissions crisis.

Energy group BP said in its closely watched annual market review that energy consumption grew 2.9 per cent in 2018, led by China and the US, despite modest economic growth and strengthening oil and gas prices.

The rise spurred a 2 per cent increase in carbon emissions, the fastest since 2011 and equivalent to increasing the global passenger car fleet by a third, or just under 400m. "If there is a link between the growing levels of carbon in the atmosphere and the types of weather patterns observed in 2018, this would raise the possibility of a worrying vicious cycle," Spencer Dale, BP's chief economist, said in a speech on Tuesday afternoon.

The US saw an unusually high number of very hot or cold days last year, the most since the 1950s. China and Russia also saw greater fluctuations in temperature in 2018. Such patterns could cause stronger growth in energy demand and carbon emissions as households and businesses seek to offset the effects, Mr Dale warned.

Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere causes a greenhouse effect, trapping heat and increasing average global temperatures. Changes in atmospheric currents linked to climate change are also thought to contribute to extreme cold weather snaps in some areas.

Australia has given the final approval for construction to begin on a controversial coal mine to be built by Indian company Adani.

The mine, in Queensland's Galilee Basin, has been the subject of years of hold-ups over environmental approvals.

But it was given the go-ahead by the state government on Thursday, after earlier receiving federal approval.

Critics say the project's true impact remains unclear. Approval could pave the way for six more mines in the area.

Construction at the mine site could begin within days, but Adani must wait for additional approvals before it can begin extracting underground coal, for export to India and other countries in Asia.

On Thursday, a contractor for the US Environmental Protection Agency started an operation to remove barrels containing defoliants from Wallowa Lake in Oregon.

Last August, recreational divers Lisa Anderson and William Lambert came across barrels labeled as containing 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T, which are defoliants, chemicals that when sprayed on plants cause their leaves to fall off. The two defoliants combined are also known as Agent Orange.

"We didn't know they were there," Anderson told media outlets at the time. "When we dusted one off, we were shocked to see the words 'weed killer' on it."

According to the US Department of Veterans Affairs, Agent Orange was used by the US military between 1962 and 1975, when it was sprayed on trees and vegetation during the Vietnam War. Some veterans exposed to Agent Orange during military service later developed cancers and other health problems that have been found to be related to exposure to dioxin, a byproduct of Agent Orange production.

Controversial psychologist and author Jordan Peterson has launched a new "anti-censorship" social media platform that promises to be an alternative to Facebook and Twitter, but what exactly is it - and could it really work?

Thinkspot, a subscription-based service, is meant to be a radical alternative to the major social media platforms and, Peterson told podcast host Joe Rogan, it will not ban a user "unless we're ordered to by a US court of law."

It describes itself as an "an intellectual playground for censorship-free discourse" and "a collaborative community where individuals can explore and exchange ideas in a thoughtful and respectful manner." The platform also aims to monetize content-creation, making it a kind of social media version of YouTube or Patreon.

It is time to hold the left and academia accountable for their blatant propaganda. Not just teachers and schools, but the creators of course materials.

The near sole purpose of present-day academia is indoctrination. This is a fairly bold thesis, but the evidence is in its favor.

The increasingly progressive leftist agenda is sweeping through academia and conservatives are passively watching it happen.

The main indoctrination stories you hear are those of radical professors on college campuses, outlandish majors created to forward social justice movements, and, on occasion, a political outburst by a high school teacher.

The family has been called "the cornerstone of society" and for good reason. According to studies, children born to married parents are more likely to go to university and less likely to receive government benefits. Children raised in fatherless homes, however, appear more likely to face worse outcomes when it comes to well-being, education and mental health. Married people also appear to be healthier and happier.

According to a report, before the 1970s there were no large class divides in American family life. Most people got married and stayed married and the children were raised in two-parent families. This trend eventually changed, with poorer and less educated people becoming less likely to get married and stay married. The decline of marriage is also correlated with the rise of single-mother households. A similar decline of the working class family appears to exist in the UK, with men from poor backgrounds being significantly more likely to be single in their forties than richer men.

With nearly 6 million Americans unemployed and regular bouts of layoffs in the U.S. tech industry, major American tech companies like Google, Microsoft and Intel Corporation are nonetheless moving key operations, billions in investments, and thousands of jobs to Israel - a trend that has largely escaped media attention or concern from even "America first" politicians. The fact that this massive transfer of investment and jobs has been so overlooked is particularly striking given that it is largely the work of a single leading neoconservative Republican donor who has given millions of dollars to President Donald Trump.

To make matters worse, many of these top tech companies shifting investment and jobs to Israel at record rates continue to collect sizable U.S. government subsidies for their operations while they move critical aspects of their business abroad, continue to layoff thousands of American workers, and struggle to house their growing company branches in Israel. This is particularly troubling in light of the importance of the tech sector to the overall U.S. economy, as it accounts for 7.1 percent of total GDP and 11.6 percent of total private-sector payroll.