June 6, 2020

Largest Locust Invasion In Decades Plagues Farmers Across South And Central Asia

Farmers across Central and South Asia are struggling to save their crops from the largest invasion of locusts in more than 20 years. The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is warning that there could be a second wave of locusts if storms on the Indian Ocean cause heavy rains this summer.

Video at Link (worth the watch)
https://www.rferl.org/a/largest-locust-invasion-in-decades-plagues-farmers-across-south-and-central-asia/30655232.html

Tajikistan's southern Kalton Region. In addition to Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Iran, Pakistan and India
Per the video: The larger than normal rainfall since 2018 allowed the locusts to expand in remote areas of Saudi Arabia where they moved to east Africa and central Asia

June 6, 2020

5 Stories from Europe You May Have Missed

1. Kosovo Lifts All Trade Barriers Against Serbia

The new government of Kosovo announced on June 6 that it is lifting all trade barriers imposed on Serbia in a bid to reopen EU-brokered talks on normalizing ties with Belgrade.

Trade sanctions have been in place in some form since November 2018, when then-Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj imposed them in retaliation for Serbia's "de-recognition" campaign against Kosovo.

Speaking at a press conference in Pristina, Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti stressed that the decision was temporary and could be reversed if Serbia refuses to end the campaign to reduce the number of countries that recognize Kosovo as a state.

"We expect Serbia to end the de-recognition campaign against Kosovo," he told a news conference, adding that Kosovo also expected its partners, the European Union and the United States, to put pressure on Belgrade.

https://www.rferl.org/a/kosovo-lifts-all-trade-barriers-against-serbia/30656182.html


2. Normandy landings anniversary marked on Omaha beach despite coronavirus pandemic

A small ceremony was held on Omaha Beach in Saint-Laurent-Sur-Mer on Saturday morning (June 6) to honour the sacrifice of those who died in the D-Day landings in 1944.

Compared to 12 months ago, when many tens of thousands came to the northern French beaches of Normandy to cheer the dwindling number of veterans on the 75th anniversary, the coronavirus lockdown turned this year's remembrance into one of the eeriest ever.

When the sun rose the other side over the English Channel there was no customary rumble of columns of vintage military vehicles and cheers to be heard.

https://www.euronews.com/2020/06/06/normandy-landings-anniversary-marked-on-omaha-beach-despite-coronavirus-pandemic

3. Report: German Neo-Nazis Training At Russian Terrorist Camp

German neo-Nazis are conducting paramilitary training with a Russian ultranationalist group at a camp near St. Petersburg, German magazine Focus reported on June 5.

Citing German security sources, Focus said members of the far-right National Democratic Party’s (NDP) youth wing and neo-Nazi The Third Path completed training at the camp run by the Russian Imperial Movement.

In April, the United States designated the Russian Imperial Movement along with three of its leaders as terrorists, marking the first time the classification has been applied to a white supremacist group.

Focus reported that German neo-Nazis have received training in using arms, explosives, and hand-to-hand combat at a camp named Partizan near St. Petersburg.

https://www.rferl.org/a/german-neo-nazi-training-in-russia/30655860.html


4. Drama schools accused of hypocrisy over anti-racism statements

The UK’s most prestigious drama schools have apologised for not doing enough to combat racism on their campuses after being accused of hypocrisy over social media posts in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.

The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (Rada), the Academy of Live and Recorded Arts (Alra), the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (Lipa) and the Oxford School of Drama all apologised for incidents at their institutions after students spoke out on social media to detail their experiences.

The Oxford School of Drama said that it “needs to do better as an institution and take steps to safeguard our community of students”, after former BAME students said they had been targeted by teachers who dismissed concerns and singled them out because of their race.

https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2020/jun/06/drama-schools-accused-of-hypocrisy-over-anti-racism-statements

5. Russia Orders Review Of Infrastructure Built On Permafrost In Wake Of Arctic Fuel Disaster

Russia's Prosecutor-General's Office on June 5 ordered a review of all hazardous objects built on permafrost in response to a fuel tank leak that has created an ecological disaster in the Arctic linked to climate change.

President Vladimir Putin ordered a state of emergency earlier this week after a holding tank at a thermal power plant in the industrial city of Norilsk spilled at least 20,000 tons of diesel fuel into the soil, two rivers, and a downstream lake.

The power plant is owned by a subsidiary of Norilsk Nickel, the world's leading nickel and palladium producer, which said the leak on May 29 was caused when pillars supporting a storage tank sank due to the thawing of permafrost soil.

https://www.rferl.org/a/russian-fuel-disaster-caused-by-permafrost-melting/30655856.html

June 4, 2020

10 Things Narcissists do to Appear Smarter than They Really Are

I had a slight problem with number 9
I had my IQ test in school in 1st grade (1970)
I couldn't tell you much about it

June 4, 2020

70 years ago assassins tried to assassinate President Truman

On November 1, 1950 two men attempted to assassinate the late Pres Harry S Truman
Truman was staying in the Blair House while the White House was being renovated
The attack came too quickly to have moved President Truman to a safer location
As the Secret Service agents shot it out with the would be assassins, President Truman watched from a window upstairs (about 31 ft from the attackers).
Notice how he wasn't hiding under the bed or in a closet. He was actually watching the whole thing
il douche would have probably wet himself.

Also, to give you an idea of how much the better the man Truman ever was than trump; Oscar Collazo, one of the two would be assassins survived the encounter, while the other man Torresola was killed. He received a sentence of the death penalty. Truman commuted the sentence to life (eventually he was pardoned by Jimmy Carter).
He also recognized the importance of Puerto Rican independence to some. He ordered a plebiscite in Puerto Rico in 1952 on the new constitution to determine its relationship to the U.S. The people voted 81.9% in favor of continuing as a Free Associated State, as established in 1950.

il douche would probably have bombed the island. Cotton probably would have called on the police to attack every brown-skinned person that they saw.

June 4, 2020

Aaron Rodgers responds to Drew Brees flag comments

The latest comments from New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees are not going well. In an interview on Wednesday, Brees said he would not disrespect the flag by kneeling when asked about that form of protest returning in the wake of the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer.

Many players were critical of Brees, including superstar wide receiver and teammate Michael Thomas who felt Brees’ comments missed the point. Now, another superstar quarterback is weighing in: Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

snip

“A few years ago we were criticized for locking arms in solidarity before the game,” Rodgers wrote. “It has NEVER been about an anthem or a flag. Not then. Not now. Listen with an open heart, let’s educate ourselves, and then turn word and thought into action. #wakeupamerica #itstimeforchange #loveoverfear?? #solidarity #libertyandjusticeforall #all.”

https://247sports.com/Article/Aaron-Rodgers-Drew-Brees-responds-to-flag-comments-protest-Colin-Kaepernick-NFL-Green-Bay-Packers-New-Orleans-Saints-147819175/

June 3, 2020

Iowa voters say no to Steve King in primary race

DES MOINES — Republicans in northwest Iowa decided Tuesday they've had enough of conservative lightning rod Steve King, after tolerating the congressman's incendiary comments about immigrants and white supremacy for nearly two decades.

The nine-term Republican, shunned by his party leadership in Washington and many of his longtime supporters at home, was in the fight for his career against four challengers— including well-funded state Sen. Randy Feenstra. The state GOP has said Feenstra won the race.

Several former King supporters backed Feenstra's campaign. They argued that King's loss of clout, even more than the continuous string of provocative and racially-charged statements over his career, was reason enough for turning on him.

snip

But the 4th District Republican primary appeared to be the most competitive, and dramatic as it posed the greatest challenge to the conservative lightning rod's career.

https://qconline.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/iowa-voters-say-no-to-steve-king-in-primary-race/article_b1fb26ba-8b19-5285-b884-c9e0384abc70.html#tracking-source=home-top-story-1

June 2, 2020

Gabe Marks: It's time for a frank discussion on race in America

THE MURDER OF George Floyd in Minneapolis has triggered a reaction in the nation’s black community that has people drawing parallels to the 1960s. As a product of Los Angeles’ African American neighborhoods I can tell you exactly why this killing triggered such an outpouring.

First, there’s the callously egregious actions of the police officer and the complicity of his colleagues.
Second, it comes on the heels of two other preposterous killings: Ahmed Aubrey going out for a jog and being hunted down and killed by vigilantes who authorities originally said acted within the law; and EMT Breonna Taylor being shot eight times in her sleep during a misguided police raid.
Third, my community - the black community - deals with this kind of brutality every single day and the frustration that our institutions aren’t changing and that our friends in the white community aren’t as outraged as we are.

snip

The “few bad apples” that white America and law enforcement can point at to separate themselves from the immediate crime are obviously a problem, but the bigger issue in my view is the cognitive dissonance in white America. This dissonance and disassociation of the white community from issues regarding racism and discrimination against black people is what enables this kind of abuse by those “few bad apples” to go on year after year, decade after decade.

You stand by and say that because you personally didn’t pull the trigger, you aren’t the problem when in reality, your complacency and reticence to demand change has emboldened these killers because they’ve seen that you will do nothing in the face of their hunting of black people in our communities. The words of Angela Davis ring so true to me: “In a racist society, it is not enough to be non-racist -- we must be anti-racist.”

snip

Policing in large parts of America, and more particularly to the black experience in the American south, was originally created as a means of controlling black populations and hunting escaped slaves. These “Slave Patrols” were authorized to enter any individual home based on the suspicion of harboring individuals who had escaped captivity. Eastern Kentucky criminologist Gary Potter explained that the officers were expected to control the “dangerous underclass” rather than combat crime itself.

https://247sports.com/college/washington-state/LongFormArticle/Gabe-Marks-Its-time-for-a-frank-discussion-on-race-in-America-147702267/?utm_source=247Sports%2520Newsletter&utm_medium=Newsletter&utm_campaign=200601_190147_WashingtonStateCougars&utm_content=Link