Tons Of Cali Voters Accidentally Registered With An Ultraconservative Fringe Party: LAist – ROTFLMAO – read what you sign folks!

Thousands of Californians intending to register as independent voters accidentally affiliated with the fringe, ultraconservative American Independent Party. An L.A .Times investigation finds that nearly three in four registered AIP voters— likely confused by the use of “Independent” in the name—did not realize they had joined the party.

Source: Tons Of Cali Voters Accidentally Registered With An Ultraconservative Fringe Party: LAist

IRIN | 18 months on, Gaza donors still falling way short

That’s an increase of only $159 million since the last time the World Bank issued data on the donations in August 2015, and major pledgers continue to fall short: Qatar has given only 15 percent of its $1 billion pledge; Saudi Arabia 10 percent of its $500 million promise; and the UAE just 15 percent of the $200 million it pledged. Kuwait has dispursed none of its $200 million pledge.

Source: IRIN | 18 months on, Gaza donors still falling way short

Germany Green Lights Legal Case Against Erdogan Critical Comic – SPIEGEL ONLINE

Yet even as she announced that legal proceedings would go ahead, the chancellor also signaled her intention to abolish the law before the end of the current legislative session, saying it was “unnecessary.” The chancellor also shared her concerns about the situation of the press in Turkey and the plights of individual journalists in the country. She added that the German government would ensure freedom of expression at home and she emphasized that the independence of the judicial system applied as much in Turkey as it does in Germany and “other countries in the democratic world.”‘Kicking Kurds, Beating Christians’ Merkel, in short, was doing her best to walk a political tightrope — trying to satisfy Erdogan while at the same time seeking to assuage those voices which have accused her of sacrificing European values in the interest of securing a political deal with Turkey aimed at reducing the number of refugees coming to Europe.

Source: Germany Green Lights Legal Case Against Erdogan Critical Comic – SPIEGEL ONLINE

How To Handle The Disgusting Smell and Mosquitoes Overtaking Beirut

A Separate State of Mind | A Blog by Elie Fares

Pic via Mawtoura. Pic via Mawtoura.

Here it unfolds, the worst chapter in the non-ending story of the Lebanese garbage crisis. Don’t be fooled, the crisis is far from over. The governmental “solution” is so short-sighted and non-sensical that the crisis is bound to be repeated if not in 60 days, then in a few months or years. This is how we do things in this country: we put band-aids on gaping wounds, without making sure that the wound itself has actually been stabilized enough to be managed with band-aids; we do makeup coverups for problems that need hardcore fixes.

Perhaps nothing exemplifies how short-sighted and lala-landish our government is than the Minister of Environment tweeting (then deleting) a few days ago that the wave of mosquitoes and flies the likes of which this country has not seen in recent memory is due to nothing other than the heat. He then subsequently blocked…

View original post 879 more words

UC Berkeley Student Removed From Flight Out Of LAX For Speaking Arabic: LAist  :(

26-year-old Khairuldeen Makhzoomi was on the phone with his uncle, telling him about a conference he’d attended in L.A.

Source: UC Berkeley Student Removed From Flight Out Of LAX For Speaking Arabic: LAist

According to SF Gate, a female passenger sitting near Makzhoomi looked at him and left her seat, telling an airplane employee she overheard him making “potentially threatening comments,” according to a statement from the airline.

A short time later, Makhzoomi was escorted him off the plane, where he was met by an Arabic-speaking employee who asked him, “Why were you speaking Arabic in the plane?” Makzoomi told the Times he spoke to him “like I was an animal,” and told the employee, “‘This is what Islamophobia got this country into,’ and that made him so angry. That is when he told me I could not go back on the plane.”

“I had an emotional breakdown and cried a little bit,” Makhzoomi told SF Gate. “I was so afraid. I was so scared.”

Makhzoomi was “searched in front of a crowd of onlookers while half a dozen police officers, including one with a dog, stood watch” before he was questioned by FBI agents, who asked about his family; he lives with his mother and brother in Oakland, while his father, a former Iraqi diplomat, was thrown in prison by Saddam Hussein, and later killed by his regine. Makhzoomi said his family came to the U.S in 2010.

Hours later, Makhzoomi was allowed to leave the terminal, and his ticket was refunded by Southwest. He had to purchase another ticket from a different airline, and got back to Oakland nine hours later than he intended to.

London protests see thousands march against Prime Minister Cameron, spending cuts – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) Will Jeremy Corbyn demand Cameron resign?

Tens of thousands of people march through London in protest against government spending cuts, with some activists demanding Prime Minister David Cameron’s resignation over his family’s offshore finances.

Source: London protests see thousands march against Prime Minister Cameron, spending cuts – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Edward Snowden releases song with French legend – The Local

Fugitive US intelligence contractor Edward Snowden, who in 2013 revealed widespread US foreign surveillance, has released a song with French electronic artist Jean-Michel Jarre, the Columbia record company announced on Friday.

The track, titled “Exit”, features Snowden discussing digital surveillance to the backdrop of a lively electronic soundscape created by Jarre.

The song is available to stream online and will appear on Jarre’s forthcoming album “Electronica Vol. 2: The Heart of Noise” which will be released on May 6th.

The pair were brought together by Britain’s Guardian newspaper after Jarre gave an interview and asked to be put in touch with the former National Security Agency contractor, according to the title.

“Edward is an absolute hero of our times. When I first read about him, it made me think of my mother,” Jarre told the Guardian.

“She joined the French resistance in 1941, when people in France still thought they were just troublemakers, and she always told me that when society is generating things you can’t stand, you have to stand up against it.”

After being put in touch, Jarre, 67, travelled to Moscow to meet Snowden, 32, who lives in Russia in exile, and record the samples that feature on the track.

Other guest contributors on the album will include Gary Numan and the Pet Shop Boys.

Source: Edward Snowden releases song with French legend – The Local

A Mini-Skirt Might Also be a Brainwashed Choice, and Other Points From a Transfeminist Conversation – The Ladies Finger

On Women’s Day

– “When they wish us ‘Happy Women’s Day,’ they also take the liberty to define womanhood in the process. The radical nature of the movement – protests and struggles being led by dalit-bahujan women and working class women – is ignored. This reinforces caste and class divisions in society, rather than breaking them.”

– “Speaking of Working Women’s Day – what do we understand by the word ‘working’? There are women who don’t get a salary. But we can’t say, under any circumstances, that they’re not ‘working.’ Their workplace may not be a factory or an office, but it is certainly the 24×7 grind of home. Are we excluding them from our conversations?”

– “I came to know about Women’s Day when I was a teenager, around twelve or thirteen years old. I saw something about it on the glossy paper of the Lifestyle section: there it was, written in pink, ‘Happy Women’s Day.’ Next to this there was a picture of a smiling, thin, light-skinned girl dressed in a red saree. This narrow way in which society wants to see womanhood is constantly asserted so that this day can be corporatised.”

– “A few years ago, some boys wished me ‘Happy Women’s Day’ and this made me feel good, because I felt that I was being accepted as a woman. My mother too is a woman, but this day means nothing to her. We can’t truly celebrate this day if we don’t feel free as women. I don’t.”

[…]

Source: A Mini-Skirt Might Also be a Brainwashed Choice, and Other Points From a Transfeminist Conversation – The Ladies FingerThe Ladies Finger

I Am More Than Just My Trauma: Life As Victims Of War Crime In Croatia. | Rebelle Society

Source: I Am More Than Just My Trauma: Life As Victims Of War Crime In Croatia. | Rebelle Society

In Snježana’s case, her assailants’ criminal court proceedings were delayed by 12 years, and once they were finally incarcerated, they were released from jail awaiting their trial after only 1 week. One of them sold his home and fled to neighboring Serbia. The second one, a policeman, was let go due to a lack of evidence. He was suspended from his job only after she publicly accused him of the rape, but he continued to receive his salary. He, too, eventually fled Croatia. Both rapists were charged with a 6-year prison term, yet neither man served any of his sentence. Snježana is relieved that they fled the country, and thinks that this is better than having to live in fear of their release. Even so, the family of one of the perpetrators still lives in her hometown. In the past, her assailant’s family members would threaten her and her husband when they crossed paths in town.

The Israeli Right’s historic ties to European fascism | +972 Magazine

The ties Likud is trying to build with extremist right-wing groups in Europe is an attempt to find common ground over both’s hatred for Islam. This way, Europe’s racist right wing is no longer considered anti-Semitic, while the Israeli Right gets more support for settlement building and the violence against Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza. Likud, whose members often do not hesitate to label President Barack Obama an “anti-Semite,” does not think twice before it grants legitimacy to a racist political party. This is an alliance of hatred, which mocks the very idea of Israel’s war against global anti-Semitism. Unfortunately, Jewish-Israeli nationalism, as we have seen, did not shy from forming rotten alliances with the most deplorable groups. It continues to do so today. Noam Rotem is an Israeli activist, high-tech executive and author of the blog o139.org, subtitled “Godwin doesn’t live here any more.”

Source: The Israeli Right’s historic ties to European fascism | +972 Magazine

Second Look Behind the Headlines – News you can use…

Baldacchino di Perla

"Luce di parole, ombra di sogni."

Northern Desert Photography

Living on the Edge of the Sagebrush Ocean

Susana Cabaço

Spiritual Insights & Personal Empowerment

Barbara Picci

Artist & Art Blogger

craft journey

Furnicraft, woodwork, and art

musings corner

reveries and rants

Japão para Românticos

Bem Vindos a este espaço onde compartilhamos um pouco da realidade do Japão à todos aqueles que desejam visitar ou morar no Japão. Aqui neste espaço, mostramos a realidade do Japão e dos imigrantes. O nosso compromisso é com a realidade. Fique por dentro do noticiário dos principais jornais japoneses, tutoriais de Faça você mesmo no Japão e acompanhe a Série Histórias de Imigrantes no Japão. Esperamos que goste de nossos conteúdos, deixe seu like, seu comentário, compartilhe e nos ajudar você e à outras pessoas. Grande abraço, gratidão e volte sempre!

Leben als Mensch

Willkommen auf Elke´s Glücks-Blog

Sharpshot Nature .Com

- Specializing in the great outdoors, capturing nature at its finest!

Diane Ravitch's blog

A site to discuss education and democracy

Expansão e Percepção

Seu Guia de Inspirações e Reflexões Diárias

noga noga.

my-health-and-beauty.com/

Uğurcan'ın Ütopyası

Benim Gezegenime Hoş geldiniz !!!

AKILS

Blog de viajes y lugares

Ed Mooney Photography

The official blog of Ed Mooney Photography. Dad of 3, Photographer, Blogger, Powerlifter. Exploring the historical sites of Ireland.

everything Explored on the earth

It has new aidias,news, about education , motivation, social, historical, culture, marketing creation new aidias education of language science culture and history

Born to die

L'unico modo sensato di vivere è senza regole

Early Morning Memories

by Anuran (A) & Sayoni (S)

My thoughts

Fun for the Brain

Neo Vision College

An exemplary learning community.

Anthony’s Crazy Love and Life Lessons in Empathy

Loves, lamentation, and life through prose, stories, passions, and essays.

Episodic Squalid Rants

public tantrums by a non-two-year-old

The Street Art Directory

Public, street and urban art worldwide

Artie & Stu

all the rules of free form

Everyone read that they fell in love first

<script async src="https://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-2937106805202763" crossorigin="anonymous"></script>

davidscottmoyer

Lapsed Painter, Occasional Photographer, Compulsive Writer

Health & Fitness

Health Blogs

Buildings Tell Tales

Exploring the hidden architectural heritage of Budapest

Divit kalem

Yaşamdan

Roy's Weblog

The third incarnation...

Thought Pukes

More than a thought less than a question

"بوصلة الحياة"

"بوصلة الحياة: مدونة متعددة المجالات، من السياسة إلى الرومانسية، ومن تطوير الذات إلى الأدب وأكثر!" بقلم مشاعر بنت عبدالرحمن

parallax

The view from here ... Or here!

ClearingSpace4Joy

Bringer and seeker of joy

Belladonna’s Flashlight

The One Where She Stumbled Through Her 40's and Faced Her Demons

~ Trivial Music Silliness ~

Baw wit da baw. Just sayin'.

mo mnsoor blog

Website storys

Chronicles of an Anglo Swiss

Welcome to the Anglo Swiss World

gnaddrig ad libitum

Querbeet und ohne Gewähr

Peace & Truth

KINDNESS IS FREE, sprinkle it all over the world, and 😁 smile

Ética de la vida diaria

Nuestra ética de todos los días...

Elizabeth Gauffreau

Fiction Writer in Poet's Clothing