Category Archives: human rights

‘This generation will be the last to skin cows in India’ – Times of India

“The Brahmanical influence on social structure soon after the collapse of the Mauryan empire in 150 BC became so overpowering that it dehumanised the lower castes forever. For the following centuries, the Dalit could never rise or prosper,” he fumes. Then his face lights up. “One of my sons is a law graduate from Delhi University. The other is studying at the Indian Institute of Information Technology, Allahabad. Both are preparing for the civil services. Mine will be the last generation from my family to skin cows. In fact, I think this is India’s last generation of Dalits to be involved it as a traditional profession.”

Source: ‘This generation will be the last to skin cows in India’ – Times of India

Israel erases Palestine-related contents from school books in J’lem – PNN

The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) in Occupied Jerusalem has omitted all texts and pictures that are related to Palestine and the struggle against the occupation from Palestinian school books before its distribution.According to the Hebrew newspaper Iroshalim, the Israeli municipality and the ministry of education deleted Quranic verses, poems and other contents from Palestinian curriculums advocating the Palestinian struggle against the occupation.The IOA recently distributed these books that contained some blank pages and blackened lines to Palestinian schools in the holy city. Among the lines that disappeared from those books are texts talking about the unity of the Muslim nation and the importance of the Aqsa Mosque.The Palestinian map, flag and anthem were also removed from text books. The Israeli municipality justified the measure by claiming that it would not allow the presence of educational books encouraging violence

Source: Israel erases Palestine-related contents from school books in J’lem – PNN

Sadder than sad :>(

https://youtu.be/OZynXM2mgxo

I am breaking with my tradition of posting only one article on weekends so I can spend more time doing stuff other than thinking about the world going to crap. Since I was young and living in Europe I have been a Ferrari fan…..I was living on the island of Mallorca and one day I […]

via This Is Just Wrong! — In Saner Thought

More local Zika cases in Florida as Puerto Rico numbers soar | CIDRAP “So why is Puerto Rico mentioned second and why is this not on nightly US Network or Cable News?

CDC: Zika spikes in Puerto RicoIn its weekly Zika update late yesterday, the CDC documented a spike of Zika cases in the US territories, mostly in Puerto Rico.As of Aug 10, there are now 6,587 Zika cases in US territories, up by 1,039 from last week. But the Associated Press (AP) is reporting even larger numbers: 10,690, according to Puerto Rico’s Health Secretary Ana Rius, MD. Rius said that’s 1,914 new cases this week. A total of 1,035 cases in Puerto Rico involve pregnant women, according to the story.

Source: More local Zika cases in Florida as Puerto Rico numbers soar | CIDRAP

Donald Trump’s achilles heel is that he is truly un-American | Jonathan Freedland | Opinion | The Guardian

 

What Trump had done was violate a core American ideal: the notion – not always honoured, admittedly – that no matter where your family came from, if you were born in the US or had come there and subscribed to its founding principles, then you were as American as a direct descendant of those who landed on Plymouth Rock. This was what set the US apart, the belief that national identity did not reside in blood or soil, but in loyalty to the nation’s constitution and its bill of rights.Or consider Trump’s proposal to ban Muslims from entering the US; it was again attacked by Republicans as well as Democrats because it contradicts America’s founding purpose, to be a haven from religious persecution, a purpose encapsulated in the constitution’s first amendment guaranteeing the “free exercise” of religion. Or reflect on Trump’s little joke this week, suggesting the way to deal with Clinton might be a bullet – at odds with America’s professed determination to resolve its differences through a constitution, the law and elections.The common thread is that all these moves by Trump are not just reactionary or bigoted or dangerous. They contradict the ideals that all Americans are meant to regard as sacred. Perhaps this is the way to attack Trump: as truly un-American. He says he wants to make America great again. The truth is, he would stop America being America.More comment TopicsDonald Trump US constitution and civil liberties Republicans DemocratsShare on LinkedIn Share on Google+ Save for laterReuse this contentAdvertisementMost popular in USHope Solo calls Sweden ‘a bunch of cowards’ after USA falter at Olympics Rio Olympics 2016: women’s football, tennis, athletics and basketball – live! San Jose Mercury News says sorry for ‘insensitive’ Simone Manuel headline Donald Trump: it’s all a joke Have we detected an alien megastructure in space? Keep an open mind | Seth Shostak

Source: Donald Trump’s achilles heel is that he is truly un-American | Jonathan Freedland | Opinion | The Guardian

Most states’ child abuse and neglect laws have religious exemptions | Pew Research Center – Time has come to think again!

All states prosecute parents whose children come to severe harm through neglect. But in 34 states (as well as the District of Columbia, Guam and Puerto Rico), there are exemptions in the civil child abuse statutes when medical treatment for a child conflicts with the religious beliefs of parents, according to data collected by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.Additionally, some states have religious exemptions to criminal child abuse and neglect statutes, including at least six that have exemptions to manslaughter laws.These exemptions recently drew renewed attention in Idaho when, in May, a state task force released a report stating that five children there had died unnecessarily in 2013 because their parents, for religious reasons, had refused medical treatment for them. The report has prompted some of Idaho’s legislators to begin pushing for a repeal of state laws that protected the parents of these children from civil and criminal liability when they refuse to seek medical treatment for religious reasons.

Source: Most states’ child abuse and neglect laws have religious exemptions | Pew Research Center

Children are not their parent’s property; they are our future!

‘This is who I am’, says first female MP to wear Māori facial tattoo in NZ parliament | World news | The Guardian

“I’m proud as a Māori woman to sit alongside her in parliament restoring to our political landscape a symbolic gesture of rangatiratanga [self-determination] previously dissuaded during our colonial struggle to give vote to Māori women in their land of inheritance.”Mahuta had the moko kauae inked over the weekend, alongside 13 other prominent Maori women. They are usually bestowed on high-ranking Māori women as a reflection of their standing and mana, or power, in the community. The group were also marking the 10-year reign of Māori king Tuheitia Paki, and grieving deceased relations. Mahuta said the moko was both highly individual and also intrinsically linked to her tribe, whanau (family) and bonds to the rivers and mountains of New Zealand.

Source: ‘This is who I am’, says first female MP to wear Māori facial tattoo in NZ parliament | World news | The Guardian

Official from Christian charity tortured by Israel, lawyer says | The Electronic Intifada

Israel detained Mohammad El Halabi in June, interrogated him for more than 50 days and then charged him with diverting up to $50 million to the military wing of Hamas.There are also new indications that Israel’s Shin Bet secret police tortured Halabi to extract the confessions it is relying on.On Monday, Kevin Jenkins, president and CEO of World Vision International, said his organization is “seeking to understand the truth behind the allegations laid against Mohammad El Halabi,” and had suspended operations in Gaza pending investigations.Jenkins added that “we still have not seen any of the evidence.”“World Vision’s cumulative operating budget in Gaza for the past ten years was approximately $22.5 million, which makes the alleged amount of up to $50 million being diverted hard to reconcile,” Jenkins said. He also noted Halabi’s signing authority to spend funds was limited to to just $15,000.“He was afraid they would kill him”Faced with these figures – which severely undermine the credibility of the Israeli accusations – an Israeli government official told Australia’s ABC network that the numbers were irrelevant.“It’s like when you catch a serial killer, the question of whether he killed 50 people or 25 people is not really relevant is it?” Israeli foreign ministry spokesperson Emmanuel Nahshon said.This kind of reckless statement is adding to concerns among observers.“That’s an absolutely ridiculous statement from Emmanuel Nahshon,” Jacob Burns, a researcher at Amnesty International, tweeted. “Serious charges require serious (and fair) trial.”

Source: Official from Christian charity tortured by Israel, lawyer says | The Electronic Intifada

False Promises: Avoid ‘Miracle’ Rice and Just Eat a Carrot | Inter Press Service

Golden rice is a false miracle. It is a disease of nutritionally empty monocultures offered as a cure for nutritional deficiency. In fact, golden rice, if successful, will be 400 per cent less efficient in providing Vitamin A than the biodiversity alternatives that women have to offer. To get your daily requirement of Vitamin A, all you need to eat is one of the following:Two tablespoons of spinach or

Two tablespoons of spinach or cholai (amaranth) leaves or radish leavesFour tablespoons of mustard or

Four tablespoons of mustard or bathua leavesOne tablespoon of coriander chutneyOne-and-a-half tablespoon of mint chutneyOne carrotOne mangoSo, if you want to be four times more efficient than 107 Nobel laureates, just eat a carrot!Not only do these indigenous alternatives based on women’s knowledge provide more Vitamin A than golden rice ever will, and at a lower cost, but also provide multiple other nutrients.Our critique of golden rice is that even if it is developed, it will be inferior to the alternatives women have in their hands and minds. Women are being blocked from growing biodiversity and spreading their knowledge to address malnutrition, by rich and powerful men and their corporations who are blind to the richness of the earth and our cultures.Through their monoculture of the mind, they keep imposing monocultures of failed technologies, blocking the potential of abundance and nourishment. As I wrote in 2000, blindness to biodiversity and women’s knowledge is a blind approach to blindness prevention.

One tablespoon of coriander chutneyOne-and-a-half tablespoon of mint chutneyOne carrotOne mangoSo, if you want to be four times more efficient than 107 Nobel laureates, just eat a carrot!Not only do these indigenous alternatives based on women’s knowledge provide more Vitamin A than golden rice ever will, and at a lower cost, but also provide multiple other nutrients.Our critique of golden rice is that even if it is developed, it will be inferior to the alternatives women have in their hands and minds. Women are being blocked from growing biodiversity and spreading their knowledge to address malnutrition, by rich and powerful men and their corporations who are blind to the richness of the earth and our cultures.Through their monoculture of the mind, they keep imposing monocultures of failed technologies, blocking the potential of abundance and nourishment. As I wrote in 2000, blindness to biodiversity and women’s knowledge is a blind approach to blindness prevention.

One-and-a-half tablespoon of mint chutneyOne carrotOne mangoSo, if you want to be four times more efficient than 107 Nobel laureates, just eat a carrot!Not only do these indigenous alternatives based on women’s knowledge provide more Vitamin A than golden rice ever will, and at a lower cost, but also provide multiple other nutrients.Our critique of golden rice is that even if it is developed, it will be inferior to the alternatives women have in their hands and minds. Women are being blocked from growing biodiversity and spreading their knowledge to address malnutrition, by rich and powerful men and their corporations who are blind to the richness of the earth and our cultures.Through their monoculture of the mind, they keep imposing monocultures of failed technologies, blocking the potential of abundance and nourishment. As I wrote in 2000, blindness to biodiversity and women’s knowledge is a blind approach to blindness prevention.

One carrotOne mangoSo, if you want to be four times more efficient than 107 Nobel laureates, just eat a carrot!Not only do these indigenous alternatives based on women’s knowledge provide more Vitamin A than golden rice ever will, and at a lower cost, but also provide multiple other nutrients.Our critique of golden rice is that even if it is developed, it will be inferior to the alternatives women have in their hands and minds. Women are being blocked from growing biodiversity and spreading their knowledge to address malnutrition, by rich and powerful men and their corporations who are blind to the richness of the earth and our cultures.Through their monoculture of the mind, they keep imposing monocultures of failed technologies, blocking the potential of abundance and nourishment. As I wrote in 2000, blindness to biodiversity and women’s knowledge is a blind approach to blindness prevention.

One mangoSo, if you want to be four times more efficient than 107 Nobel laureates, just eat a carrot!Not only do these indigenous alternatives based on women’s knowledge provide more Vitamin A than golden rice ever will, and at a lower cost, but also provide multiple other nutrients.Our critique of golden rice is that even if it is developed, it will be inferior to the alternatives women have in their hands and minds. Women are being blocked from growing biodiversity and spreading their knowledge to address malnutrition, by rich and powerful men and their corporations who are blind to the richness of the earth and our cultures.Through their monoculture of the mind, they keep imposing monocultures of failed technologies, blocking the potential of abundance and nourishment. As I wrote in 2000, blindness to biodiversity and women’s knowledge is a blind approach to blindness prevention.

So, if you want to be four times more efficient than 107 Nobel laureates, just eat a carrot!Not only do these indigenous alternatives based on women’s knowledge provide more Vitamin A than golden rice ever will, and at a lower cost, but also provide multiple other nutrients.Our critique of golden rice is that even if it is developed, it will be inferior to the alternatives women have in their hands and minds. Women are being blocked from growing biodiversity and spreading their knowledge to address malnutrition, by rich and powerful men and their corporations who are blind to the richness of the earth and our cultures.Through their monoculture of the mind, they keep imposing monocultures of failed technologies, blocking the potential of abundance and nourishment. As I wrote in 2000, blindness to biodiversity and women’s knowledge is a blind approach to blindness prevention.

Not only do these indigenous alternatives based on women’s knowledge provide more Vitamin A than golden rice ever will, and at a lower cost, but also provide multiple other nutrients.Our critique of golden rice is that even if it is developed, it will be inferior to the alternatives women have in their hands and minds. Women are being blocked from growing biodiversity and spreading their knowledge to address malnutrition, by rich and powerful men and their corporations who are blind to the richness of the earth and our cultures.Through their monoculture of the mind, they keep imposing monocultures of failed technologies, blocking the potential of abundance and nourishment. As I wrote in 2000, blindness to biodiversity and women’s knowledge is a blind approach to blindness prevention.

Our critique of golden rice is that even if it is developed, it will be inferior to the alternatives women have in their hands and minds. Women are being blocked from growing biodiversity and spreading their knowledge to address malnutrition, by rich and powerful men and their corporations who are blind to the richness of the earth and our cultures.Through their monoculture of the mind, they keep imposing monocultures of failed technologies, blocking the potential of abundance and nourishment. As I wrote in 2000, blindness to biodiversity and women’s knowledge is a blind approach to blindness prevention.

Source: False Promises: Avoid ‘Miracle’ Rice and Just Eat a Carrot | Inter Press Service

No prison for Colorado college student who ‘raped a helpless young woman’ | US news | The Guardian – Woman violated, assaulted, raped; Guy gets no prison – though found guilty. Crap!

A jury convicted Austin James Wilkerson, 22, of sexually assaulting a “helpless” woman on 15 March 2014 when prosecutors say he “isolated and raped the half-conscious victim” after he had told his friends at a St Patrick’s Day celebration that he was going to take care of her.Wilkerson – who eventually admitted that he “digitally and orally penetrated” the woman while he “wasn’t getting much of a response from her” – was potentially facing four to 12 years in state prison for the felony offense.The law, however, gives judges discretion to issue lighter sentences, and in Boulder County court on Wednesday, district judge Patrick Butler ruled that the former student should not serve any time in state prison. Instead, he ordered Wilkerson to serve two years of so-called “work release” and 20 years to life on probation.That means that Wilkerson, who was suspended from the public university, will be able to work or go to school during the day and will have to return to a county jail at night while he serves his sentence.

Source: No prison for Colorado college student who ‘raped a helpless young woman’ | US news | The Guardian