All posts by nedhamson

Activist, writer, researcher, addicted to sharing information and facts.

Water crisis in Marathwada worsens as 7 dams dry up – Times of India

{A shift of 5% of total water for agriculture in India can mean famine conditions and will pull down India’s resources significantly – do not know at present how drop in this state will affect overall needs}

A top bureaucrat said, “Last year, only one dam had reached zero level. This time, there are seven of them, so we are forced to lift water from the dead stock, which will not last long.” Marathwada has 11 big dams in all. The Jaikwadi one is the largest, with an irrigation potential of 2.37 lakh hectares and storage capacity of 2,171 million cubic litres. The other dams at zero level are Majalgaon, Manjara, Lower Terna, Manar, Siddheshwar and Sina-Kolegaon.

Source: Water crisis in Marathwada worsens as 7 dams dry up – Times of India

State of play: the business of photography today

A less literal selfie. Selfies are a huge part of photography today: but there’s no business model here. And the underlying reason is inextricably linked to why we find photography appealing in the first place. The game is changing, yet again – faster than ever. In today’s post I’d like to address the current state […]

http://blog.mingthein.com/2016/03/25/state-of-play-the-business-of-photography-today/

Terror Attacks Cast Light on Belgian Identity Crisis – SPIEGEL ONLINE – “Spiegel joins ISIS in attacking Belgium and promoting German takeover?”

Fears seem to be greater in Germany about Belgium’s nuclear power plants than in the country itself. Belgians tend to get used to things, that’s the habit. They tend to respond in ways similar to Françoise Georis, who opened up her Bio, dis-moi organic supermarket directly across the street from Tihange, because this type of store didn’t exist within a 15 kilometer radius of the nuclear power plant. She says she’s pleased to have plant workers among her customers, since “not everyone has their heart in the job that they do.” In general, she says, her customers are more afraid of genetically modified food than they are of radioactivity. Speaking a week before the terrorist attacks, she said she hardly even notices the nuclear power plant — and that’s the case for most here.

Source: Terror Attacks Cast Light on Belgian Identity Crisis – SPIEGEL ONLINE

Egypt police kill members of gang linked to Regeni murder – The Local

The interior ministry said in a statement that it has shared its findings with Italy, which was helping investigate the abduction and murder of the Cambridge University graduate whose mutilated body was found in Cairo in January. The ministry also released photographs of Regeni’s passport, university identification cards and a wallet. The manner of Regeni’s abduction and killing provoked accusations in Italy of Egyptian police involvement, something Cairo had strongly denied. Regeni, 28, had been researching labour movements in Egypt, a sensitive topic, and had written articles critical of the government under a pen name. The incident threatened relations between Egypt and Italy, a strong supporter of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi whose security services have been accused of abusing dissidents. The ministry had announced earlier on Thursday that police had killed four members of a criminal gang that had kidnapped and robbed foreigners in Cairo in a shootout, without mentioning Regeni.

Source: Egypt police kill members of gang linked to Regeni murder – The Local

Friday Open Thread |Our Gems Week: Nina Simone | 3CHICSPOLITICO If you love Nina – you have to bookmark this – thanks 3CHICKS!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BTNjeKqpEk

She was one of the most extraordinary artists of the twentieth century, an icon of American music. She was the consummate musical storyteller, a griot as she would come to learn, who used her remarkable talent to create a legacy of liberation, empowerment, passion, and love through a magnificent body of works. She earned the moniker ‘High Priestess of Soul’ for she could weave a spell so seductive and hypnotic that the listener lost track of time and space as they became absorbed in the moment. She was who the world would come to know as Nina Simone.

Source: Friday Open Thread |Our Gems Week: Nina Simone | 3CHICSPOLITICO

Raul Castro: Blockade Most Serious Barrier to Economic Progress | News | teleSUR English

Destroying a bridge is easy and requires little time. To solidly rebuild one is a much longer and difficult task.After four failed attempts, as a symbol of willpower and perseverance, on September 2, 2013, U.S. swimmer Diana Nyad managed to swim across the Florida Straits, without a shark cage.For this feat, overcoming the distance that geographically separates our countries, on August 30, 2014, to the tune of the national anthems of Cuba and the United States, she was presented with the Order of Sporting Merit, awarded by the Cuban Council of State.This accomplishment contains a strong message, it should serve us as an example for bilateral relations, as it confirms that if she could, then we too can.I reiterate our thanks to President Obama for his visit and the willingness of the government of Cuba to continue moving forward in the coming months for the benefit of our peoples and countries.

Source: Raul Castro: Blockade Most Serious Barrier to Economic Progress | News | teleSUR English

Femen earn victory in right to protest topless – The Local

Three Femen activists were acquitted of exhibitionism on Wednesday for a topless protest staged as former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn arrived at his trial for “aggravated pimping” in February 2015. “It’s the first acquittal in a trial against Femen on the charge of sexual exhibition,” their lawyer Valentine Reberioux told AFP. “A political demonstration should not be confused with sexual aggression,” she said. “These are political acts using the nude torso as a mode of expression and it ends there.”

Source: Femen earn victory in right to protest topless – The Local

French workers forced to ask bosses if they need pee break – The Local PeeMail?

The rule has been brought in to try to limit the time the workers are away from their post in order to maximise their output. Out of their seven hour day, workers are allowed a maximum of 30 minutes away from their desks that includes for toilet trips. “It’s the same for everyone, whether they have a disability or not,” Dengean said. An anonymous employee told local newspaper La Dépêche that 7 percent of the workforce were older or had disabilities and should not be forced to get green light from management if they want to satisfy a natural need. Unions have made a joint call for workers to stage a walkout on Friday. Thierry Godec, a representative from the CFDT union described the problems that workers will face. “There’s a huge risk that managers won’t respond [to the requests for a pee break],” he told La Dépêche newspaper. “According to stats managers are only at their desks 55 percent of the time. So if it’s the 45 percent of time and an employee gets stuck on a long call they will burst a pipe.”

Source: French workers forced to ask bosses if they need pee break – The Local

Voter Suppression in Arizona: Desperation Politics – LA Progressive

During every election cycle, there is an outcry against shady practices like what happened in Arizona, but we never do anything about them after the election cycle. We look at our antiquated primary and caucus system (especially on the Democratic side) and wonder how a modern country can actually function this way. We shake our heads at the Electoral College and maybe make some noise about changing it until the next President is sworn in. Then we all go silent. Meanwhile, voter suppression efforts gain ground every year – even when the White House isn’t changing hands. Despite low turnout and nearly non-existent cases of voter fraud, state legislatures are making it increasingly more difficult to vote. A total of 36 states now have draconian Voter ID laws on the books – 33 of them are being enforced this cycle. During the 2015 legislative session, at least 113 bills that would restrict access to registration and voting were introduced or carried over in 33 states, according to the Brennan Center for Justice. I know. I was part of the successful effort that defeated one of the most severe Voter ID laws in the country in my home state of Pennsylvania. State Rep. Mike Turzai proudly bragged in 2012 that our law would give the state to a Republican president. After protests and petitions from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh and everywhere in between, the state Supreme Court struck it down.

Source: Voter Suppression in Arizona: Desperation Politics – LA Progressive

The worst is yet to come: New virus even deadlier than Ebola, Zika may emerge, warn Swiss scientists | Christian News on Christian Today

The worst is yet to come: New virus even deadlier than Ebola, Zika may emerge, warn Swiss scientists Andre Mitchell 23 March 2016 Email Print More Sharing Services Share (Wikipedia) Coronaviruses are a group of viruses that have a halo, or crown-like (corona) appearance when viewed under an electron microscope. The coronavirus is now recognised as the etiologic agent of the 2003 SARS outbreak. In 2014, the Ebola virus outbreak killed more than 11,000 people in Africa. This year, the Zika virus is currently affecting millions of people and even unborn children in South America, prompting the declaration of a public health emergency by the World Health Organisation (WHO). If you think you’ve seen the worst in terms of deadly diseases, think again. In a study published last week in the journal “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,” scientists from Switzerland warned that a deadlier virus may emerge, causing more illnesses and deaths. According to a report on WND.com, the Swiss scientists described the virus as something similar to the one which causes severe acute respiratory syndrome or SARS, which killed over 700 people during an outbreak in southern China from November 2002 to July 2003. The virus, which is called “WIV1-CoV,” may come from zoonotic sources, meaning it may be transmitted from animals to human beings. It is likely to exhibit flu-like symptoms which will eventually escalate into pneumonia. “Focusing on the SARS-like viruses, the results indicate that the WIV1-coronavirus (CoV) cluster has the ability to directly infect and may undergo limited transmission in human populations,” the researchers wrote in their study. Lead researcher Dr. Vineet Menachery of Department of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill explained that the transmission of this new virus to humans is not yet a certainty, but if it happens, the scenario is discouraging. “This virus may never jump to humans, but if it does, WIV1-CoV has the potential to seed a new outbreak with significant consequences for both public health and the global economy,” the lead scientist explained.

Source: The worst is yet to come: New virus even deadlier than Ebola, Zika may emerge, warn Swiss scientists | Christian News on Christian Today