Category Archives: Fail!

Dozens of Palestinian cars defaced in J’lem ‘price tag’ attack | +972 Magazine

The attack took place between the Palestinian village of Shuafat and the Jewish neighborhood Ramat Shlomo in the northern part of the city. Some of the cars had their tires slashed, while others were spray-painted with graffiti reading “administrative price tag” or “Pikar the King” referencing Elkana Pikar, a settler who was recently served with a four-month administrative restraining order.Over a dozen restraining orders barring Israeli citizens from the West Bank have been issued in recent weeks.

Source: Dozens of Palestinian cars defaced in J’lem ‘price tag’ attack | +972 Magazine

Egypt’s Islamists and Pope Francis | Nervana Truth is lost in the world

In an ideology that mixes religion with politics, it is almost impossible to view outsiders, such as Pope Francis, as one with good intentions. The ideology that thrives on invoking insecurity, introversion, and fear, would never see calls for peace and love as genuine or sincere. In their denigration of the Pope, Islamists have only exposed the darkness of their thoughts, and obsolescence of their ideology.

Source: Egypt’s Islamists and Pope Francis | Nervana

Donald Trump staffers copied classified documents and removed them from secured room | 3CHICSPOLITICO

The only way Trump’s transition team could have thought it was okay to act in such a manner was if they’d gotten the signal from Donald Trump himself that it was all perfectly fine. It’s not even clear from the AP story if these documents were being photocopied so they could be stolen and sold, or if the Trump staffers just thought it was okay to photocopy classified documents and take them home for further reading. This is what Trump’s administration is built on – and it can’t be scapegoated on any particular disgraced former team members.

Source: Donald Trump staffers copied classified documents and removed them from secured room | 3CHICSPOLITICO

East Jerusalem hit by wave of home demolitions | +972 Magazine

Israel has significantly stepped up its demolition of homes in the occupied territories, destroying 123 housing units in Jerusalem in 2016 — a record, and more than double its prior yearly average. Israel demolished 66 housing units in East Jerusalem during the first four months of 2017, a pace which, if maintained, would make 2017 a far worse year than the one before.Last year was also the first in which Israel destroyed homes in East Jerusalem neighborhoods cut off by the separation wall, which brings us back to al-Walaja — where, a week ago, construction of the barrier resumed.The demolitions were carried out in the part of al-Walaja that has been annexed to Jerusalem. Despite its annexation, the municipality and the state have never provided even a semblance of services to the village. Yet Israel insists on demolishing buildings constructed without a permit — which itself is a result of the government not approving a master plan for the village.

Source: East Jerusalem hit by wave of home demolitions | +972 Magazine

In Rare Unity, Hospitals, Doctors and Insurers Criticize Health Bill – The New York Times “Pro-Death is now GOP’s trademark!”

The overriding concern — for insurers, many workers and officials throughout the health care systems in many states — is the broad reductions proposed for Medicaid. Even for insurers that have largely abandoned the individual market, like UnitedHealth Group and Aetna, a substantial portion of their business is providing coverage under Medicaid. The same is true for many local nonprofit plans, said Ceci Connolly, the chief executive of the Alliance of Community Health Plans.Employers and others said they were also concerned about the effects on freelancers, who do not have a traditional employer but are self-employed or contract workers in the so-called gig economy.Depending on their income, those workers have shuttled between Medicaid and the individual insurance market under the federal health care law, which offered a greater level of stability, said Nell Abernathy, vice president for research and policy at the Roosevelt Institute, a left-leaning economic research organization.“A huge swath of Americans are in insecure work arrangements,” she said. “This repeals that level of security, which was not perfect, but it was a step in the right direction.”Small businesses, which were sharply divided over the original law, remained mixed in their response to the Republican bill, and there seemed little doubt that some companies would drop coverage in the absence of any penalty. The National Federation of Independent Business, which opposed the Affordable Care Act, said the House legislation was “a crucial first step toward health care reform.”In other people’s view, employees of small businesses would lose out if Medicaid were rolled back or the exchanges became threadbare, because many smaller companies rely on employees’ ability to obtain coverage through the government program or individual market.

Measles outbreak rages after anti-vaccine groups target vulnerable community | Ars Technica Dr. Death strikes again!

The activists held community meetings and invited Wakefield {Dr. Death} to visit with scared families. Vaccination rates dropped from 92 percent in 2004 to 42 percent in 2014.Wakefield, a former British doctor who now lives in Texas, is considered the founder of the modern anti-vaccination movement. In 2010, around the time he was visiting the Somali community, he was stripped of his British medical license for falsifying a 1998 study he was paid to produce to aid a money-making legal scheme, which ultimately failed. The study falsely alleged that the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine caused autism. The study was retracted, and Wakefield was also found guilty of dozens of other counts of professional misconduct, including abusing autistic children.Despite the shocking misconduct and retraction, the harmful belief that life-saving vaccines cause autism lives on.

Source: Measles outbreak rages after anti-vaccine groups target vulnerable community | Ars Technica

Global warming is reshaping the world′s forests | DW Environment | DW.COM | 04.05.2017

In the mountains, trees are racing uphill to escape the heat – and in Canada, invasive insects have already killed massive swaths of forest. Such changes will have significant consequences for communities and ecosystems.

Source: Global warming is reshaping the world′s forests | DW Environment | DW.COM | 04.05.2017

‘No Asylum Here’: Some Say U.S. Border Agents Rejected Them – The New York Times #TraitorTrump, #LoserTrump encourages law breaking!

Under United States and international law, everyone who asks for asylum is supposed to be allowed into the country to plead their case. But instead, they said, a Customs and Border Protection agent shooed them away.“There is no asylum here,” Francisca, 32, recalled the agent telling them. “We are not granting asylum.”Customs agents have increasingly turned away asylum seekers without so much as an interview, according to migrants and their lawyers, in a trend first noted several months ago and that appeared to accelerate after President Trump’s inauguration. That has left an untold number of migrants trapped in Mexico, where they have sometimes fallen prey to kidnappers seeking ransom or been driven into the hands of drug cartels and smugglers. Some have tried to enter the United States illegally and dangerously, through the desert or across the Rio Grande, a risky journey.

Missing Spanish woman María Jimena Rico: Spaniard who went missing in Turkey blames homophobia for her treatment | In English | EL PAÍS

The nightmare began last month. Jimena, 28, and Shaza, 21, have been together since the end of last year. On April 14, the pair flew from London, where they were both living, to Dubai, having allegedly been “duped” by the father of Shaza, who had told her that her mother was very ill. The Egyptian youngster had shortly beforehand told her family that she was gay. Once they arrived in the Emirate, they were greeted with alleged death threats, while Shaza had been reported to the authorities. “I know that her father loves her,” explained Jimena, “but his mind is so closed that he can’t understand [their relationship].”The girls managed to escape and got as far as Georgia. At the airport in the capital, Tbilisi, they planned to catch a return flight to London, but they were intercepted by Shaza’s father and other members of the family, who wanted to take her back to Dubai. An altercation took place in the airport, in which the police were involved. The authorities then took the two young women to the Turkish border.

Source: Missing Spanish woman María Jimena Rico: Spaniard who went missing in Turkey blames homophobia for her treatment | In English | EL PAÍS

Sandy Hook father Lenny Pozner on death threats: ‘I never imagined I’d have to fight for my child’s legacy’ | US news | The Guardian

Earlier this year, the Newtown school board sent Trump a letter, asking him to denounce Alex Jones and the other Sandy Hook hoaxers, and to state definitively that Sandy Hook happened: “Jones repeatedly tells his listeners and viewers that he has your ears and your respect. He brags about how you called him after your victory in November. He continues to hurt the memories of those lost, the ability of those left behind to heal,” the school’s board wrote. Two months on, they have yet to receive a response.

Source: Sandy Hook father Lenny Pozner on death threats: ‘I never imagined I’d have to fight for my child’s legacy’ | US news | The Guardian