Category Archives: Just strange

Now Roberta’s Is Getting Threatening Pizzagate-Related Phone Calls: Gothamist

Pizzagate, the conspiracy theory that claims (with no evidence) that high-ranking Democratic officials and allies operate an international pedophilia ring centered around Washington, DC’s Comet Pizza, made a cameo in New York City this month when employees of Roberta’s received threatening phone calls related to the internet fixation.

Source: Now Roberta’s Is Getting Threatening Pizzagate-Related Phone Calls: Gothamist

Israel singled out African scholar for deportation, world church group says | The Electronic Intifada

The World Council of Churches has strongly condemned Israel’s deportation of its associate general secretary Dr. Isabel Apawo Phiri.In a statement on Tuesday, the Geneva-based ecumenical organization said that Apawo Phiri had been “apprehended, interrogated and deported” upon arrival at Tel Aviv airport.The World Council of Churches said it “deeply regrets the Israeli antagonism against the WCC’s initiatives for peace with justice for both Palestinians and Israelis.”Apawo Phiri was the only African member of a WCC staff delegation and “the only one denied entry,” according to the group. The reason Israeli authorities provided, according to WCC, was “prevention of illegal immigration considerations.”The WCC said it had instructed lawyers to appeal against “this patently unjust and discriminatory action.”

Source: Israel singled out African scholar for deportation, world church group says | The Electronic Intifada

Both Feeling Threatened, American Muslims and Jews Join Hands – The New York Times

After joining in blessings over home-baked challah and sparkling grape juice (instead of wine, out of consideration for the Muslims), Ms. Firdaus talked with four Jewish women she had never met before, balancing plates of Indian food on their laps. They found that the spate of hate crimes and the ominous talk by Mr. Trump or his advisers about barring Muslims from entering the country and registering those living here had caused all of them to think about Germany in the years before the Holocaust.“When did you know it was time to leave?” Ms. Firdaus asked one woman who had just recounted how her relatives had fled the Nazis. “The ones that didn’t leave are the ones who went to Auschwitz.”The Jewish women tried to convince her that they would not let it come to that. “If Muslims have to register, we’re all going to register,” said Mahela Morrow-Jones, who is helping to build the first West Coast chapter of the Sisterhood in Santa Barbara, Calif. “You’ve got to believe it, sister.”Groups are reaching out not just to clergy members, but also to laypeople, including business executives, students and women.

Source: Both Feeling Threatened, American Muslims and Jews Join Hands – The New York Times

Israeli teens charged for brutally beating asylum seeker to death | +972 Magazine

Two weeks ago two Israeli teens murdered Babikir Adham-Uvdo, a Darfuri asylum seeker who lived in the city of Petah Tikva, not far from Tel Aviv. Adham-Uvdo was attacked after he reportedly spoke to two white teenage girls. The teenagers kicked him in the head for an hour and a half, leaving him for dead. His body was found and brought to Rabin Medical Center. After four days in the hospital, Adham-Uvdo was taken off life support and died.On Sunday the State Attorney indicted the two teenagers, 19-year-old Dennis Bershivitz and a 16-year-old minor, on manslaughter charges. Manslaughter, not murder, since the State Attorney argues that it cannot be proven that the two intended to kill Adham-Uvdo. The State Attorney claims that it cannot be proven that the two acted out of racism.This is an absurd claim: whoever kicks a helpless person in the head for an hour and a half clearly intends to kill him. It is also clear that the killing was racially motivated: had a white person been caught with the teenage girls, we would safely say that the two attackers would not act the same way.Channel 10’s Itay Vered’s excellent report [Hebrew] shows how several Petah Tikva locals responded to the attack. One woman can be seen saying “whoever isn’t Jewish can go fuck himself,” a different woman says “this is the Jewish state, why do we need Muslims?” while a passerby is asked his opinion on the fact that a brutal killing had taken place right where he was standing. His response: “Okay, so what? Yalla.”

Source: Israeli teens charged for brutally beating asylum seeker to death | +972 Magazine

Photos: Jewish Group Leads Several Hundred On Anti-Bannon March To Breitbart HQ: LAist

Approximately three hundred members and allies of IfNotNow marched through the Mid-Wilshire area Sunday morning to protest former Breitbart executive Stephen Bannon’s appointment as chief strategist for President-elect Donald Trump’s administration.”Los Angeles has one of the largest Jewish communities in the entire country, and has yet to say anything denouncing the kind of hate speech that Bannon represents,” organizer Max Daniel told KPCC of the march.The march began at 10 a.m. at La Cienega Park and the group continued on to Breitbart’s headquarters on Wilshire Boulevard. Breitbart is headquartered in Los Angeles. IfNotNow LA is the local branch of a national Jewish group dedicated to opposing anti-Semitism and Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories.

Source: Photos: Jewish Group Leads Several Hundred On Anti-Bannon March To Breitbart HQ: LAist

‘I have never felt so terrified’: Harassment of female runners a gendered issue with no simple solution – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

‘It is a highly gender-based experience’But the experiences of these women are far from unique.A recent study by Runner’s World found that 43 per cent of female runners experienced harassment at least sometimes — compared with just 4 per cent of men.The study also found that 63 per cent of women ran where they felt it was unlikely they would encounter a person who might harm them, and 41 per cent ran where they thought they would be less likely to received unsolicited attention.For men, the figures were 23 per cent and 9 per cent, respectively.Thirty per cent of women reported being followed by someone — and 18 per cent had been sexually propositioned while out running.

Source: ‘I have never felt so terrified’: Harassment of female runners a gendered issue with no simple solution – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Bowe Bergdahl asks Obama for pardon before Donald Trump takes office | US news | The Guardian

Throughout his presidential campaign, Trump was Bergdahl’s most vocal critic, saying repeatedly the soldier is a traitor who would have been executed in the “old days”. In a July speech in Indiana, Trump lamented that Bergdahl could wind up with a light punishment.“Remember the old days? A deserter, what happened?” he said before pantomiming pulling a trigger and adding: “Bang.”Bergdahl’s lead defense lawyer, Eugene Fidell, declined to comment on the pardon request. But Fidell said he plans to file a motion seeking dismissal of the charges against Bergdahl shortly after the January inauguration, arguing Trump violated Bergdahl’s constitutional due-process rights.The defense has been noting Trump’s comments about Bergdahl in what they have called the “Trump Defamation Log”. A version included in the court record lists 40 such instances as of August.“All of these things put together and repeated rally upon rally for basically a year have a cumulative effect that I think is totally at odds with the right to a fair trial,” Fidell said in a phone interview.A spokeswoman for Trump did not respond to emails seeking comment.There is precedent for a military judge to decide a president’s comments have tainted a military prosecution.

Source: Bowe Bergdahl asks Obama for pardon before Donald Trump takes office | US news | The Guardian

Pakistan says Donald Trump called Nawaz Sharif ‘a terrific guy’ with ‘a very good reputation’ – Times of India

In ‘yuge’ news, US President-elect Donald Trump pressed on with his love for hyperbole and vague generalizations, and purportedly told beleaguered Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif yesterday that he’s a “terrific guy”, “has a very good reputation” and added that he is “ready and willing to play any role that you want me to play” to address outstanding problems.That is, Trump said this to Sharif according to a Pakistan government press release of a phone conversation between the two, after Sharif called the US President-elect to congratulate him.In his country, Sharif is under investigation for funnelling money abroad, after his and his family members’ names were mentioned in the Panama Papers.The US real estate magnate supposedly also told Sharif “it will be an honor” and that he will “personally” play any role to “find solutions to the outstanding problems” – problems that Trump didn’t specify.Trump also purportedly told Sharif that he feels like he’s “talking to a person I have known for long” and that Pakistanis “are one of the most intelligent people.” He apparently urged Sharif to “feel free” to call him at “any time even before 20th January that is before I assume my office.”

Source: Pakistan says Donald Trump called Nawaz Sharif ‘a terrific guy’ with ‘a very good reputation’ – Times of India

Humans of New York

“I grew up in the suburbs. I used to think that I could write a prescription for a poor man: ‘Get a job, save your money, pull yourself up by the bootstraps.’ I don’t believe that anymore. I was ignorant to the experiences of poor people. I’d invite anyone to come and meet the people who live in this neighborhood. Right now we are surrounded by working poor people. These are the people who sell your tools at Sears, and fix your roofs, and take care of your parents, and mow your lawns, and serve your meals. They’re not getting a living wage. There’s no money left to save. There’s nothing left if they get sick. Nothing left if their car breaks down. And God forbid they make a mistake, because there’s nothing left to pay fines or fees. When you’re down here, the system will continue to kick dirt in your face. You can’t pull yourself up when there’s nothing to grab onto. We aren’t paying our brothers and sisters enough to live. We want them to serve us, but we aren’t serving them.”

Source: Humans of New York