Society's Child

It's 'unthinkable & absurd' to jail Catalan pro-independence leaders, former UN special rapporteur tells RT

RT
Fri, 25 Oct 2019 17:37 UTC

The prosecution of Catalan pro-independence politicians by Spain violates European law and is simply "absurd," a former high-ranking democracy and human rights expert at the UN has told RT.

"Political prisoners in Spain... It's absolutely unthinkable!" Alfred-Maurice de Zayas, who served as the UN Independent Expert on the Promotion of a Democratic and Equitable International Order, said in an interview with Rafael Correa on RT Spanish.

He branded the jailing of the leaders of the Catalan independence movement "absurd," especially since the "Catalans have been protesting for many years in a peaceful, democratic fashion."

Spain's northeastern region of Catalonia voted in favor of independence in October 2017. Madrid called the vote illegal and sent in a massive police force to disrupt the referendum.

Postmodern hysteria: GQ magazine's 'new masculinity' is men in make-up and dresses

RT
Fri, 25 Oct 2019 17:33 UTC

I'm not sure who asked it to, but GQ magazine has used its November issue to redefine the modern man. It's put a bunch of men in make-up and dresses and called it the 'new masculinity.'

GQ stands for 'Gentlemen's Quarterly' but 'gentlemen' are a toxic brand in the post-Weinstein world, and just don't sell as many overpriced clothes, watches, and aftershave as they used to. Hence why GQ appears to be trying to distance itself from the gender that's been buying it for decades.

GQ is only adding to the confusion because this 'new masculinity' looks a lot like old 'femininity'. And frankly speaking, if anyone at GQ thinks men in make-up is new, then they should go and watch some heavy metal from the 1980s.

GQ editor Will Welch has this message for all those men out there who didn't even know that they needed redefining. He says 'new masculinity' is "very simple. It's I know who I am, and I respect who you are."

Programming is complete: More than half of Americans want government-imposed press restrictions & curbs on free speech

RT
Fri, 25 Oct 2019 17:27 UTC

Some Americans are having second thoughts about the First Amendment, a new survey has found. Over half are calling for it to be rewritten, and some 61 percent believe there should be limits on freedom of speech.

The First Amendment, which guarantees Americans freedom of speech, should be overhauled to reflect current cultural norms, according to 51 percent of the respondents to a survey published on Wednesday by the Campaign for Free Speech. The campaign is hoping to call attention to the dire state of Americans' preeminent civil right with the poll, which breaks down opposition along gender, race, class, and educational lines.

The younger respondents were, the more they supported overhauling the law to restrict speech. However, college graduates were the least likely of all educational groupings to support the restrictions, indicating that the increasingly regulated speech environment at American universities may be backfiring in some cases and producing adults who cherish their rights because they know what it's like to be deprived of them.

Bright idea! School sees behavior changes, grade improvements after complete ban on cell phones

Abbie Wightwick
Wales Online
Fri, 25 Oct 2019 17:20 UTC

Ysgol John Bright Headteacher Ann Webb

A school said its total ban on pupils using mobile phones has improved exam results and behaviour. The ban, which has been running for a year, has "made a massive difference" said Ann Webb, headteacher at Ysgol John Bright, in Llandudno .

The strict rule applies at any time during the school day, even during breaks or at lunchtime. Staff are also asked not to use mobile phones in front of pupils. Mrs Webb said pupils are now more sociable and concentrate better in lessons. And she claimed that the ban, which was introduced in 2018, helped pupils get better GCSE and A level results this summer.

At GCSE level, the school saw a 10% improvement on last year's results with nearly a quarter of pupils getting five A* or A grades. At A-level 79 per cent of students achieved A* to C grades with 62 per cent getting at least one A and 11 per cent three As.

Russia launches 'combat icebreaker' Ivan Papanin, an advanced patrol boat for the Arctic

RT
Fri, 25 Oct 2019 16:42 UTC

The lead vessel of a new class of Russian ice-rated warships, the 8,500-ton 'Ivan Papanin', has been launched in St. Petersburg. When in service, she will help defend Russia's interests in the Arctic region.

This latest addition to Russia's Arctic military arsenal was launched on Friday at the port city's Admiralty Shipyard. Dubbed 'the combat icebreaker' by some Russian media, she is of a newer design created for the Russian Navy and is, in her role and size, roughly a counterpart to the Norwegian Coast Guard's ship 'Svalbard.'

Work on the 'Ivan Papanin' began in April 2017 and the vessel is expected to be commissioned sometime in 2022 or 2023. The 114-meter-long warship can be used as a patrol ship, a tug or an icebreaker for other vessels. Her hull is strong enough to deal with ice up to 50cm thick.

8 killed, 2 injured after Russian military service member opens fire on fellow soldiers at high-security base

RT
Fri, 25 Oct 2019 17:12 UTC

A major gun violence incident occurred on Friday at a nuclear-related military base in Siberia, when a service member opened fire on fellow soldiers, killing eight people on the spot and injuring two others.

The gunman used the firearm he'd been issued with for his guard duties in the attack, the Russian defense ministry said. He was apprehended just after the incident, which occurred in the Chita region.

The two survivors were taken to a military hospital. Their lives are not in danger.

Military investigators have identified the shooter as Private Ramil Shamstudinov. Among the eight people he has alleged to have killed were two officers.

Comment: Incredibly, they captured the shooter alive:

It sounds like something more than a personal grudge. He's surrounded by equally armed and trained soldiers, and doesn't exactly look physically commanding. Was he under some sort of strange influence?

PC culture gone mad: Black-o'-lantern or blackface? Retailer pulls pumpkins from sale after racism claims

Sophia Narwitz
RT
Wed, 23 Oct 2019 17:06 UTC

In a modern tale that keeps occurring, a retailer once again gave in to the demands of a handful of sensitive Sallys and pulled black pumpkins from sale after they were deemed offensive.

Displayed on the porch of a law office in Nyack, New York, a pair of jack-o'-lanterns found themselves in a mini-controversy after someone within the local community complained about them over concerns they looked like blackface. The issue reached the desk of a local chapter of the NAACP where director Wilbur Aldridge replied by saying the pumpkins show an "extreme lack of sensitivity."

Upon being made aware of the 'issue,' the law firm abruptly took them down before then directing blame at their point of purchase, Bed Bath & Beyond. Mary Marzolla, a partner at the firm, told News 12: "If you go into Bed Bath & Beyond you don't think they're going to be selling offensive materials."

Which begs the question. Who deems what to be offensive?

Second protester in Baghdad dies in latest protest - over 350 wounded

Sputnik
Fri, 25 Oct 2019 16:50 UTC

Earlier on Friday, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi said he would carry out a cabinet reshuffle and change election laws amid a wave of anti-government protests.

A second protester has died and more than 350 others were injured during the protests in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, the local police and hospital sources have said.

According to AP citing a security official, 5 protesters have been killed during the demonstrations.

Comment: Since the start of the protests, at least 157 have died.

Videos and photos are being posted online showing crowds of protesters in Tahrir square.

Comment: Protests are rocking the world, and the grievances are similar in many of them: state mismanagement of the economy, corruption, croneyism, incompetence. The ongoing protests in Iraq broke out on October 1, in Papua August 19, Sudan September 12, Egypt September 20, Ecuador October 3, Chile October 14, Lebanon October 17, and that's only a fraction of them.

Belgium reopens notorious Dutch 'prison ship' as places for asylum seekers start to run out

RT
Fri, 25 Oct 2019 16:56 UTC

Facing a shortage of accommodation for immigrants seeking asylum there, Belgium is recommissioning The Reno, the notorious Dutch 'prison ship' that had previously been leased as a stopgap measure during the 2015 migrant crisis.

The boat, or rather the 'pontoon housing unit,' was one of several 'prison ships' used by the Netherlands to address a rapid rise in demand for jail space in the 2000s, partially caused by an increasing number of undocumented immigrants arriving in Belgium. A 2006 exposé by an undercover journalist, which made public the vessel's inhumane living conditions and the widespread abuse of inmates on it, sparked a scandal and forced the closure of the facility.

'The Reno' was leased by Belgium in 2016 to house 250 asylum seekers as Europe was dealing with the aftermath of the immigration crisis a year earlier. The boat was placed in the port city of Ghent and operated by the British private prison behemoth G4S until April 2017, when a sharp decrease in the number of asylum-seekers rendered it surplus to requirements.

But, soon, the boat will be back in Ghent housing asylum seekers again. According to the Het Laatste Nieuws newspaper, the Belgian immigration agency Fedasil will soon reopen the facility as part of a larger effort to tackle an influx of refugees. This time the government will be directly responsible for its operation.

"Panic mode" run on Lebanon's banks feared after 7-day closure amid protests

Zero Hedge
Thu, 24 Oct 2019 16:31 UTC

Banks across Lebanon have been shuttered now for a seventh consecutive day, with the country's banking association saying banks would remain closed Friday over "safety concerns" as massive anti-corruption protests have brought multiple cities to a standstill, which began a week ago.

Reuters reports that banking operations have been "limited to paying out customer and employee salaries via ATMs" in a situation which has also hit war-torn Syria, given many Syrians rely on the neighboring Lebanese banking system to hold dollars and savings following the collapse of Syria's currency.

For the first time addressing the protests — dubbed the 'WhatsApp Revolution' because it was initially triggered by a government a plan to boost state revenues with a daily tax rate on calls made via voice over internet protocol (VoIP), utilized by applications such as Facebook-owned WhatsApp — Lebanon's President Michel Aoun in a public speech touted an economic reform package proposed by the prime minister as a "first step" toward staving off economic collapse.

Aoun acknowledged state corruption has "eaten us to the bone" and assured the crowds, "I am ready to meet your representatives who carry your concerns, to listen to your specific demands."

He also hinted at a government reshuffle potentially in the works, saying that there was "a need to review the current government."

Comment: For commentary, see:

Lebanese president ready to meet with protesters to discuss demands

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Society's Child

It's 'unthinkable & absurd' to jail Catalan pro-independence leaders, former UN special rapporteur tells RT

Postmodern hysteria: GQ magazine's 'new masculinity' is men in make-up and dresses

Programming is complete: More than half of Americans want government-imposed press restrictions & curbs on free speech

Bright idea! School sees behavior changes, grade improvements after complete ban on cell phones

Russia launches 'combat icebreaker' Ivan Papanin, an advanced patrol boat for the Arctic

8 killed, 2 injured after Russian military service member opens fire on fellow soldiers at high-security base

PC culture gone mad: Black-o'-lantern or blackface? Retailer pulls pumpkins from sale after racism claims

Second protester in Baghdad dies in latest protest - over 350 wounded

Belgium reopens notorious Dutch 'prison ship' as places for asylum seekers start to run out

"Panic mode" run on Lebanon's banks feared after 7-day closure amid protests

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