All posts by nedhamson

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

Sand sculpture

allybeag posted a photo:

Sand sculpture

Came across this guy in the main street in Kendal, making marvellous sculptures out of sand. Most impressed, I was.

Pope sends letter of support to ‘Tarzan’ and squatters of Rome

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Pope Francis responded with a pledge of ‘warm encouragement’ for occupation of buildings next to papal summer residence

At one end of the correspondence: His Holiness, Pontiff Francis I, Vicar of Christ, Pope of Rome. At the other: Andrea Alzetta, an insurgent agitator from a movement that squats in empty properties – known as “Tarzan” in Italian revolutionary circles.

In an exchange of letters that could only belong to the transformed papacy of Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Alzetta addresses the pontiff as “my dearest Pope Francis”. His holiness replies with a pledge of “warm encouragement” for the latter’s occupation of scenic buildings and grounds right next door to his papal summer residence

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German mayoral candidate stabbed in attack linked to migrants policy

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Chancellor Merkel condemns attack on Henriette Reker, said to be in stable condition with neck wounds, on eve of Cologne election

The German chancellor, Angela Merkel, has expressed shock over the stabbing of a political ally, in an attack police said was linked to the migrant crisis.

Henriette Reker, an independent close to Merkel’s ruling Christian Democrats (CDU), suffered serious wounds to the neck in the attack in the western city of Cologne, which is to elect its mayor on Sunday, on Saturday morning.

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Bishops in stinging rebuke to David Cameron over refugee crisis | World news | The Guardian

Paul Butler, the bishop of Durham, issues a statement making clear their patience is exhausted.He describes the government’s policy response as “increasingly inadequate” and complains that the prime minister has failed, over more than five weeks, to respond to their suggestions with more than a cursory acknowledgment.“It is disheartening that we have not received any substantive reply despite an assurance from the prime minister that one would be received,” Butler says. “There is an urgent and compelling moral duty to act, which we as bishops are offering to facilitate alongside others from across civil society.”He adds: “There is a real urgency to this issue with those increasingly being forced from their land as their homes are literally bombed into the ground. As the fighting intensifies, as the sheer scale of human misery becomes greater, the government’s response seems increasingly inadequate to meet the scale and severity of the problem.”

Source: Bishops in stinging rebuke to David Cameron over refugee crisis | World news | The Guardian

Turkey’s divisions are so deep they threaten its future | Soner Cagaptay | Comment is free | The Guardian

{Too easy and since when do we take American and Turkish intelligence views as anything but spin to support status quo in Turkey. Everything is ISIS is is too easy.}

Isis intentionally targets opposition rallies in Turkey to give the impression that the government will not protect those Turks who are against Erdogan, serving its goal of destabilising the country. With the Ankara bombing, Isis seems intent on triggering conflict between the pro- and anti-Erdogan camps that are already distrustful of each other.

Source: Turkey’s divisions are so deep they threaten its future | Soner Cagaptay | Comment is free | The Guardian

Doctors, teachers, the police – public servants are demoralised | Will Hutton

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It’s practically impossible now to defend the state without being labelled left wing. It wasn’t always so

The talented young doctor, part of the brilliant cancer team that has been treating my wife for the last 22 months, is resigning and going to the US. His decision is partly informed by the opportunity to do well-funded frontier research and partly by his conviction that the government is hellbent on dismantling the NHS and has zero interest in the wellbeing and careers of those who work in it.

To toil in the present-day NHS is thankless. There have always been trade-offs in health provision; resources are not limitless and priorities have to be set. The health secretary, Jeremy Hunt, is in a quandary. He rightly wants a 24/7 NHS and too much weekend provision on current terms is substandard. Yet boxed in by too tight spending limits, he can only achieve his objective by not offering a premium for junior doctors working on Saturdays. Whatever its merits, a workforce whose morale is already low sees it as yet more evidence that professionals’ views don’t count. Morale takes a further downward lurch.

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Surge in Albanian child slaves trafficked to Britain

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Victims are involved in criminal activities, warns the children’s charity Barnardo’s

A new system to protect trafficked children indicates that there has been an alarming rise in the number of Albanian child slaves forced to work in the UK.

If the trend – being highlighted on Anti-Slavery Day – were to continue, Albanians could soon outnumber Vietnamese children as Britain’s most exploited juvenile group.

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