STATE CAPITALIST BARBARISM

Reports: Myanmar troops burn alive 11 in retaliation attack

By GRANT PECK

In this image from video taken Dec. 7, 2021, bloodstain is seen on the ground near charred corpses in Done Taw village in the Sagaing region of Myanmar. Outrage spread on social media in Myanmar on Wednesday over images and accounts of the alleged killing and burning of 11 villagers captured by government troops in the country's northwest. (AP Photo)

BANGKOK (AP) — Myanmar government troops raided a small northwestern village, rounding up civilians, binding their hands and then burning them alive in apparent retaliation for an attack on a military convoy, according to witnesses and other reports.

A video of the aftermath of Tuesday’s attack showed the charred bodies of 11 victims, some believed to be teenagers, lying in a circle amid what appeared to be the remains of a hut in Done Taw village in Sagaing region.

Outrage spread as the graphic images were shared on social media over what appeared to be the latest of increasingly brutal military attacks in an attempt to put down stiffening anti-government resistance following the army takeover in February.

Human Rights Watch called Thursday for the international community to ensure that commanders who gave the order are added to targeted sanctions lists, and more broadly, efforts are stepped up to cut off any source of funding to the military.

“Our contacts are saying these were just boys and young people who were villagers who were caught in the wrong place at the wrong time,” a spokeswoman for the group, Manny Maung, said.

She added that similar incidents have been occurring regularly, but that this one happened to be caught on camera.

“This incident is quite brazen, and it happened in an area that was meant to be found, and seen, to scare people,” she said.

The images could not be independently verified, but an account given to The Associated Press by a person who said he was present when they were taken generally matched descriptions of the incident carried by independent Myanmar media.

The government has denied that it had any troops in the area.

The military ouster of the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi was initially met with nonviolent street protests, but after police and soldiers responded with lethal force, violence escalated as opponents of military rule took up arms in self-defense.

The killings in Done Taw were decried by Myanmar’s underground National Unity Government, which has established itself as the country’s alternative administration in place of the military-installed government.

The organization’s spokesperson, Dr. Sasa, said a military convoy had been hit by a roadside bomb and troops retaliated first by shelling Done Taw, then assaulting the village, rounding up anyone they could capture.

He said victims ranged in age from 14 to 40.

“Sickening scenes reminiscent of the Islamic State terrorist group bore witness to the the military’s escalation of their acts of terror,” he said in a statement.

“The sheer brutality, savagery, and cruelty of these acts shows a new depth of depravity, and proves that despite the pretense of the relative détente seen over the last few months, the junta never had any intention of deescalating their campaign of violence,” said Sasa, who uses one name.

The witness who spoke to the AP said about 50 troops marched into Done Taw village at about 11 a.m. Tuesday, seizing anyone who did not manage to flee.

“They arrested 11 innocent villagers,” said the witness, who described himself as a farmer and an activist and asked to remain anonymous for his own safety,

He added that the captured men were not members of the locally organized People’s Defense Force, which sometimes engages the army in combat. He said the captives had their hands tied behind them and were set on fire.

He did not give a reason for the soldiers’ assault.

Other witnesses cited in Myanmar media said the victims were members of a defense force, though the witness who spoke to the AP described them as members of a less formally organized village protection group.

In recent months, fighting has been raging in Sagaing and other northwestern areas, where the army has unleashed greater force against the resistance than in urban centers.

U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric expressed deep concern at the reports of the “horrific killing of 11 people” and strongly condemned such violence, saying “credible reports indicate that five children were among those people killed.”

Dujarric reminded Myanmar’s military authorities of their obligations under international law to ensure the safety and protection of civilians and called for those responsible “for this heinous act” to be held accountable.

He reiterated the U.N.’s condemnation of violence by Myanmar’s security forces and stressed that this demands a unified international response. As of Wednesday, he said security forces have killed more than 1,300 unarmed individuals, including more than 75 children, through their use of lethal force or while in their custody since the military takeover on Feb. 1.

The allegations follow Monday’s conviction of Suu Kyi on charges of incitement and violating coronavirus restrictions and sentencing to four years in prison, which was quickly cut in half. The court’s action was widely criticized as a further effort by military rulers to roll back the democratic gains of recent years.

In New York, the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday expressed “deep concern” at the sentencing of Suu Kyi, ousted President Win Myint and others and reiterated previous calls for the release of all those arbitrarily detained.

“The members of the Security Council once again stressed their continued support for the democratic transition in Myanmar, and underlined the need to uphold democratic institutions and processes, refrain from violence, pursue constructive dialogue and reconciliation in accordance with the will and interests of the people of Myanmar, fully respect human rights and fundamental freedoms and uphold the rule of law,” a council statement said.

MAKE IT GLOBAL

Australian lawmakers call for inquiry into Murdoch media


Australian lawmakers Thursday backed calls for a full judicial inquiry into media ownership, at the end of their own year-long investigation sparked by a record-breaking petition demanding a probe into Rupert Murdoch's dominance of the sector.

© PETER PARKS An Australian Senate committee has backed calls for a full judicial inquiry into media ownership

The Senate committee recommended the establishment of an independent and more "comprehensive investigation" that could subpoena witnesses and look at overhauling media watchdogs.

"Australia has one of the most concentrated media markets in the world", the lawmakers found, with a regulatory regime that is "not fit-for-purpose".

"Large media organisations have become so powerful and unchecked that they have developed corporate cultures that consider themselves beyond the existing accountability framework," their report said.

It is unlikely that the incumbent conservative government, which usually enjoys strong support from the Murdoch press, would act on the Senate recommendations.

However, they could have a greater chance of success if the centre-left opposition Labor party takes control at upcoming elections due by May next year.

The Senate investigation was prompted by a petition by former Labor prime minister Kevin Rudd -- a frequent target of newspapers controlled by Murdoch's News Corp -- that attracted half a million supporters.

The Australian arm of the New York-headquartered company is the country's largest media organisation, owning papers in nearly every major city as well as cable television networks and magazines.

Rudd, who was prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and briefly in 2013, has long been critical of what he has called the media organisation's "vicious" campaigning for the political right.

He welcomed the Senate report Thursday, calling it an "important decision" for the future of media ownership and regulation in Australia.

The committee also called for Australia's public broadcasters, ABC and SBS, to receive better funding, along with independent newswire Australian Associated Press, which nearly collapsed when investors including News Corp withdrew support in 2020.

hr/arb/reb

AFP

Starbucks faces union test as worker votes are counted

By DEE-ANN DURBIN

Richard Bensinger, left, who is advising unionization efforts, along with baristas Casey Moore, right, Brian Murray, second from left, and Jaz Brisack, second from right, discuss their efforts to unionize three Buffalo-area stores, inside the movements headquarters on Oct. 28, 2021 in Buffalo, N.Y. The National Labor Relations Board is scheduled to count ballots Thursday, Dec. 9, 2021, from union elections held at three separate Starbucks stores in the Buffalo area. Around 111 Starbucks workers from the three stores were eligible to vote by mail starting last month.

(AP Photo/Carolyn Thompson, File)

A growing effort to unionize Starbucks stores — despite company resistance — is facing its first major test.

The National Labor Relations Board is scheduled to count ballots Thursday from union elections held at three separate Starbucks stores in the Buffalo, New York, area. Around 111 Starbucks workers from the three stores were eligible to vote by mail starting last month.

If the majority of workers at any of those locations votes to unionize, they could become the first union-represented U.S. Starbucks stores in the company’s 50-year history.

“Yes” votes could also accelerate unionization efforts at other U.S. Starbucks stores. Already, three more stores in Buffalo and a store in Mesa, Arizona, have filed petitions with the labor board for their own union elections. Those cases are pending.

Union backers at the first three Buffalo stores filed petitions with the labor board in August seeking representation by Workers United, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union. Those workers say Starbucks’ stores had chronic problems like understaffing and faulty equipment even before the pandemic. They want more input on pay and store operations.

“We have no accountability right now. We have no say,” said Casey Moore, a union organizer who has been working at a Buffalo-area Starbucks for around six months. “With a union we will actually be able to sit down at the table and say, `This is what we want.’”

Starbucks insists its 8,000 company-owned U.S. stores function best when it works directly with its employees, which it calls “partners.” Many employees in the Buffalo area work at more than one store depending on demand, Starbucks says, and it wants to have the flexibility to move them between stores.

Starbucks asked the labor board to hold one vote with all 20 of its Buffalo-area stores, but the board rejected that request, saying store-by-store votes were appropriate under labor law.

In a letter to Starbucks’ U.S. employees this week, Starbucks President and CEO Kevin Johnson reiterated the company’s wish to include all Buffalo-area stores in the union vote.

“While we recognize this creates some level of uncertainty, we respect the process that is underway, and independent of the outcome in these elections, we will continue to stay true to our mission and values,” Johnson wrote.

Johnson also reminded employees of the company’s generous benefits, including paid parental and sick leave and free college tuition through Arizona State University. Late last month, the company also announced pay increases, saying all its U.S. workers will earn at least $15 — and up to $23 — per hour by next summer.

But backers of the union say Starbucks can do more.

“If Starbucks can find the money to pay their CEO nearly $15 million in compensation, I think maybe they can afford to pay their workers a decent wage with decent benefits,” said U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent, in a recent Twitter post. Sanders held a virtual town hall with Buffalo Starbucks workers earlier this week.

Johnson earned $14.7 million in salary and stock awards in the company’s 2020 fiscal year.

Starbucks or the union can contest individual votes in the election, which could delay the certification process by the labor board. But if the votes do get certified, Starbucks is legally obligated to begin the process of collective bargaining with Workers United and any of the three stores that vote to unionize, said Cathy Creighton, the director of Cornell University’s Industrial and Labor Relations Buffalo Co-Lab.

In some cases, companies have closed a location rather than deal with a union. But that’s difficult for a retailer like Starbucks, since it would be illegal to close one store and then open another nearby, Creighton said.

Starbucks has shown a willingness to bargain outside the U.S. In Victoria, Canada, workers at a Starbucks store voted to unionize in August 2020. It took Starbucks and the United Steelworkers union nearly a year to reach a collective bargaining agreement, which was ratified by workers in July.

The union votes come at a time of heightened labor unrest in the U.S. Striking cereal workers at Kellogg Co. rejected a new contract offer earlier this week. Thousands of workers were on strike at Deere & Co. earlier this fall. And the U.S. labor board recently approved a redo of a union vote at an Amazon warehouse in Alabama after finding the company pressured workers to vote against the union.

Labor shortages are giving workers a rare upper hand in wage negotiations. And Dan Graff, director of the Higgins Labor Program at the University of Notre Dame, said the pandemic gave many workers the time and space to rethink what they want from their jobs.

Joining drag queens on TV show costs Indiana pastor his job

By DAVID CRARY

1 of 5

This image released by HBO shows Pastor Craig Duke, of Newburgh, Ind., appearing in drag in a scene from the HBO series "We're Here." Duke’s pastoral duties have been terminated – the result of a bitter rift surfacing in his Indiana church after he sought to demonstrate solidarity by appearing in drag alongside prominent drag queens in the reality show. (Jakes Giles Netter/HBO via AP)


NEW YORK (AP) — The Rev. Craig Duke has been a Methodist minister for three decades, building a reputation as a staunch advocate of LGBTQ inclusion. His pastoral duties have now been terminated — the result of a bitter rift surfacing in his Indiana church after he sought to demonstrate solidarity by appearing in drag alongside prominent drag queens in the HBO reality series “We’re Here.”

Duke, 62, said he thought most of his 400-member congregation at Newburgh United Methodist Church shared his inclusive views, and he was taken aback when a prominent congregation member, soon backed by other churchgoers, circulated emails attacking him.

“You have thrown NUMC under the bus to elevate a minority of individuals,” said one of the emails. Another, according to Duke, said Satan must be pleased with the discord over LGBTQ rights.

Duke, who declined to identify his chief critics, told The Associated Press that the attacks “felt very personal,” causing him to worry about his mental health.

“It was a matter of sadness and disappointment and heartbreak on my part ... realizing I was losing the ability to lead,” he said.

Under United Methodist Church protocol, a pastor does not have the option of resigning, but Duke said he made clear to his immediate superior, regional superintendent Mitch Gieselman, that he needed to step away.

On Nov. 26, Gieselman — who had been hearing from the pastor’s critics and supporters — sent a letter to the NUMC congregation announcing that Duke “is being relieved of his pastoral duties.”

Through the next three months, Duke said he and his wife will be allowed to continue living in the NUMC parsonage, while he incurs a 40% pay cut. They must relocate no later than Feb. 28, when his pay will be halted, Gieselman said.

While Gieselman noted in his letter than Duke’s actions had “polarized” the congregation, he said none of those actions constituted formal violations of UMC’s Book of Discipline, which functions as a legal code for Methodist clergy.

“I was bullied out,” Duke said.

The episode of “We’re Here” featuring Duke — at one point shown in a dress, high-heeled boots, a pink wig and heavy make-up — was taped in July but did not air until Nov. 8.

Duke was invited to participate in the show by an LGBTQ Pride group in nearby Evansville and accepted in part to show support for his 23-year-old daughter, Tiffany, who identifies as pansexual.

The premise of “We’re Here,” an Emmy-nominated series now in its second season, is that three renowned drag performers travel to towns and small cities across the U.S., recruiting a few locals to join them as drag queens.

Even before the episode was broadcast, some congregation members complained that Duke hadn’t given them advance notice of his decision to be in the show, which included scenes filmed at the church. In response, Duke wrote to the congregation in August, saying he was sorry that trust in his leadership had been damaged.

But he defended his motives, saying, “I was willing and excited to share God’s love with the LGBTQ community on a national level.”

Any hope that conflict would subside vanished in mid-November when the emails attacking him began to circulate.

The rift within Duke’s congregation reflects broader divisions within the United Methodist Church, the largest mainline Protestant denomination in the United States.

Conservative leaders in the UMC have unveiled plans to form a new denomination, the Global Methodist Church, with a doctrine that does not recognize same-sex marriage. The move could hasten the long-expected breakup of the UMC over differing approaches to LGBTQ inclusion, including whether LGBTQ people should be ordained as clergy.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the UMC’s General Conference — at which the schism would be debated — has been postponed for two consecutive years and is now scheduled for August 2022 in Minneapolis.

According to Duke, one of the reasons he was invited to appear on “We’re Here” was because of the divisions in both his own church and the UMC.

“My only hope and goal was and is to bring the message of God’s unconditional love to a community that has been greatly marginalized,” Duke wrote to his congregation.

The decision to terminate Duke’s duties already has had ripple effects. His wife, Linda, who was pastor of youth ministry, resigned. So did church administrative assistant Erin Sexton, who along with her husband, Chris, organized a GoFundMe campaign to help the Dukes.

As of Wednesday morning, more than $52,000 had been pledged by more than 900 people, scores of whom added comments thanking Duke for his LGBTQ advocacy.

Chris Sexton said he had been a member of Newburgh United Methodist since childhood and described Duke as “one of the most captivating and genuine” of the many pastors who served over the years. But the Sextons said many congregants shied away from the conflict over “We’re Here,” allowing Duke’s critics to dominate the debate.

Duke is unsure what his next step will be, though he doesn’t plan to return to pastoring. One possibility, he said, would be for him and his wife to establish “an inclusive camp” for youths and young adults.

“My heart is moving in a new direction,” he said. “There are so many people who have been hurt by religion, felt rejection, who are reaching out, who are hopeful this will spark me to do something different on their behalf.”

___

Associated Press religion coverage receives support from the Lilly Endowment through The Conversation U.S. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

Researcher's groundbreaking work exploring juvenile crime wins Grawemeyer psychology award




Wed, December 8, 2021

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — For her work shedding new light on the nature of juvenile crime, psychologist Terrie Moffitt has won the 2022 Grawemeyer Award in psychology.

Moffitt, a Duke University psychologist and King’s College, London, social development professor, discovered two types of antisocial behavior in juveniles.

One persists from early childhood to adulthood, is relatively rare and is seen mostly in males, while the other occurs only in adolescence and is seen in both males and females, the University of Louisville said in a release.

Although both types appear to be the same on psychological tests and in illegal behaviors, Moffitt found they are distinctly different, an insight that has changed the way the courts prosecute juveniles, U of L said.

Before Moffitt’s initial research paper in 1993, most psychologists thought antisocial behavior in young people resulted from poor parenting or social stress such as poverty, and therefore was essentially unchangeable.

But Moffitt's studies of teenagers showed antisocial behavior often is part of normal adolescent development, U of L's release said.

Her research has generated hundreds of empirical tests in the social, biological and health sciences over the past 25 years that have supported her findings.

"She and her colleagues studied the life trajectories of people with both types of antisocial behavior and built models to identify and rehabilitate them," award judges said. "Her work has become a cornerstone of how courts decide to sentence juvenile offenders."

More: Composer's gender-switching opera wins U of L's prestigious Grawemeyer music award

The research carries special weight in American cities such as Louisville, which has seen a glut of youth violence during the pandemic.

More than 80 children and teens ages 17 and younger have been wounded in shootings across Louisville this year, already surpassing all of last year.

In the 2020 book “The Origins of You: How Childhood Shapes Later Life,” Moffitt and three other psychologists shared their research on 4,000 children through adulthood. The team found although genetics and environment affect how young people develop, neither factor alone determines their behavior as adults, U of L said.

Moffitt, a licensed clinical psychologist, was elected to the National Academy of Medicine and has received distinguished career awards from the American Psychological Association.

Recipients of next year’s Grawemeyer Awards are being named this week pending formal approval by university trustees. The annual, $100,000 prizes also honor seminal ideas in music, world order, education and religion. Winners will visit Louisville in April to accept their awards and give free talks on their winning ideas.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Duke psychologist's look at juvenile crime wins Grawemeyer award

THE CRONE

Study Says Grandmas May Feel More Connected To Grandkids Than Their Own Kids

Brittany Wong
Wed, December 8, 2021


A new study out Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, suggests that grandmothers relate to their grandchildren differently than they do to their own offspring. (Sorry, parents: That suspicion you’ve long held that your mom feels closer to your kids? It might be true after all!)

Interested in studying the evolutionary value of grandmothering, James Rilling, a professor of anthropology, psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Emory, measured the brain function of about 50 women with at least one biological grandchild age 3-12.

The study used functional magnetic resonance imaging to scan the grandmothers’ brains as they stared at photos of a grandchild, the child’s parents and images of an unrelated child and adult.

“When grandmothers viewed pictures of their grandchildren, they particularly activated brain regions that have been implicated in emotional empathy, such as the insular and secondary somatosensory cortices,” said Rilling of his findings, which were published last month in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

Simply put, “emotional empathy” is the ability to feel the emotions that another person is feeling, Rilling said.

Something else happened when the group of grandmas looked at photos of their offspring (the grandkids’ parents).

“When viewing pictures of the grandchild’s same-sex parent, who was often but not always the grandmother’s own adult biological child, they particularly activated areas of the brain involved with cognitive empathy such as the precuneus,” he said.

Cognitive empathy (also called theory of mind) is understanding at a cognitive level what someone is thinking or feeling and why ― maybe you even attempt to put yourself in their shoes ― but there’s less of a shared emotional experience than with emotional empathy.

Previously, Rilling and his team performed a similar study where they had fathers look at pictures of their children. Compared to data from that group of dads, grandmothers showed stronger activation than dads within areas of the brain implicated in emotional empathy and areas involved in reward and motivation.

Rilling said that it’s important to note here that there was some variation from person to person within the groups. For instance, some fathers scored higher on empathy than grandmothers.

“There is considerable evidence that grandmothers can contribute to grandchild well-being,” lead researcher James Rilling said. (Photo: Willie B. Thomas via Getty Images)

As an anthropologist, Rilling finds this topic utterly fascinating.

“I am interested in the ways in which humans are similar to and different from other primates,” he said. “One interesting difference is the way we raise our offspring. Great ape mothers raise their offspring all by themselves. Human mothers, on the other hand, typically receive help in raising their offspring.”

The source of that help can vary quite a bit across and within human societies, but grandmothers are an important source of help in many families, and Rilling said “there is considerable evidence that grandmothers can contribute to grandchild well-being.”

Building on the work of earlier biologists, in the 1980s and 1990s, anthropologist Kristen Hawkes proposed a theory that she and her team dubbed the “grandmother hypothesis.” It’s the idea that human females, unlike those of the other great apes, survive well past their reproductive years so they can help raise successive generations of children. (Sure, your mom loves to babysit your kids, but doing so also ensures the survival of her genes.)

As for the unique hold grandkids seem to have on their grandmas’ hearts, the reasoning behind that is still up for debate. A tired parent might hypothesize that it has something to do with the fact that grandma can spoil little Ezra or Eva all she wants and then send them back home to mom and dad at the end of the night. (Distance makes the heart grow fonder, especially when there are everyday tantrums involved.)

Rilling thinks that’s an interestingidea but pointed to something else.

“I think it may have more to do with the ‘cute’ phenotype of children, which is likely designed by evolution to make adults find them endearing and want to care for them,” he said.
We asked the experts: grandmas themselves.

Grandmas we spoke to had their own theories.

Marion Conway, a grandma of three and a blogger at The Grandma Chronicles, generally thinks there is more “growth, excitement and pleasure” to be experienced with her grandkids.

“Since you are not really an authority figure to your grandchildren ― rather you’re a promoter or supporter ― both of you are more open to a stress-free relationship,” she told HuffPost.

Donne Davis, the California-based founder of the grandma online community GaGa Sisterhood, said that she connects with her three grandchildren differently because she looks at them as a clean slate, as far relationships go.

“The different kind of closeness I feel with my kids versus my grandkids is based on our shared history,” she said. “Parenting can be a more adversarial relationship with power struggles, boundary-setting, some ego and definite responsibility for how your child will turn out.”

You don’t have that as much with your grandchildren, Davis explained.

“You just love them unconditionally and think everything they do and say is wonderful and exceptional,” she said.

The biggest difference [is that] my grandchildren tend to elicit strong feelings of joy and delight in me compared to my adult children.Lisa Carpenter, a grandma of six in Colorado and the author of “A Love Journal: 100 Things I Love About Grandma"

Lisa Carpenter, a grandma of six in Colorado and the author of “A Love Journal: 100 Things I Love About Grandma,” agrees that grandmas get to do “the fun stuff” and evade the “thorny issues of child-rearing.” (They’ve been there, done that with their own kids.)

Carpenter said the study rings true to her experiences to some degree, though she wouldn’t say she necessarily feels more connected to her grandkids compared to her adult children.

“I simply have different feelings overall about the two, besides loving and caring intensely about both,” she said.

“The biggest difference being that my grandchildren tend to elicit strong feelings of joy and delight in me compared to my adult children,” she explained. “Even an intense curiosity about who they are, what’s going on in their little minds, what interests them, who and what they will become.”

Exciting as that all is, Carpenter admits that at the end of a long, fun day with her grandkids, she’s glad to have her nights to herself.

“Usually, by the time the kids are tired and grandma’s tired, it’s time for the kids to leave, and the parents get to deal with crankiness and crying, while grandma gets a break,” she said. “That is when this grandma has stronger feelings for her adult children — feelings of gratitude.”

1. Crone Goddess
   https://www.goddess-guide.com/crone.html

   The Crone Goddess or dark mother is the last aspect of the Triple Goddess, together with the 

2. Mother and the Maiden she represents part of the circle of life. In today's society where

3.  we worship youth and beauty, this aspect of the Goddess is the most frightening 

4. and misunderstood of the three, as she represents our destruction, decay and death.

The Crone: Woman of Age, Wisdom, and Power

• Look inside

Goodreads

4.2/5

A probing account of the honored place of older women in ancient matriarchal societies restores to contemporary women an energizing symbol of self-value, power, and respect.

1. 
   

THE MAMMALIAN GRANDMOTHER & MENOPAUSE

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/orcas-killer-whales-menopause-grandmothers

Plumber who discovered money in wall of Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church gets $20,000 reward

Marlene Lenthang

Wed, December 8, 2021, 

A plumber who discovered stacks of cash and checks inside a wall at celebrity televangelist Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church last month has been awarded $20,000 by Crime Stoppers of Houston.

The envelopes were discovered behind a loose toilet by the plumber while he was doing repairs at the Houston church on Nov. 10 — seven years after the church reported $600,000 in cash and checks stolen from a safe.

"Evidence from the recovered checks suggests that the discovery of was connected to the March 2014 theft," Crime Stoppers of Houston said in a statement. The Houston Police Department is still investigating the case.

Back then, Crime Stoppers of Houston offered a cash reward of up to $5,000, and Lakewood Church added a supplemental reward of $20,000, bringing the total to $25,000 to anyone with information that led to an arrest. After years of no word on the case, Lakewood turned that sum into a charitable donation to Crime Stoppers of Houston.

Following news of the discovery behind the church wall, Crime Stoppers CEO Rania Mankarious asked the Crime Stoppers Executive Committee if the organization could gift $20,000 to the “Good Samaritan” who turned in the money and received approval, the statement said.

"In 2014, Lakewood Church gave us $20,000 to work on this case. In 2016, they chose to gift us those funds for operations," Mankarious said in the statement. "Today, we are gifting that same [amount] of money to this Good Samaritan and wishing he and his family a wonderful holiday season."

"Crime Stoppers of Houston is a public safety organization that thrives on the public safety of all communities. We believe that it takes all of us, working together, to keep Houston safe and thriving," she added.

The plumber behind the discovery, Justin Cauley, told NBC affiliate KPRC, "This money is going to help tremendously."

"Bills are stacking up," he said. "I’m trying to make the best of it, and today, the light shined through."

Lakewood responded to the news in a statement to KPRC: “In 2016, Lakewood Church made a $20,000 charitable donation to Crime Stoppers of Houston to help solve this case and support them for all they do for the community. We are appreciative of the plumber and we hope he pays the gift forward.”

The Houston Police Department said in a statement last week that "an undisclosed amount of money was inventoried, documented and left in the custody of Lakewood Church since it was property found on its premises.

THE CHURCH GAVE HIM NOTHING

THEIR DONATION TO CRIME STOPPERS WAS TAX DEDUCTABLE

CRIME STOPPERS RIPPED THE PLUMBER OFF FOR $5000 THEY PROMISED

10% FINDERS FEE OF $600,000 WOULD BE $60,000 THREE TIMES WHAT HE GOT. 

THE MONEY WAS INSURED, SO THE CHURCH MADE OUT LIKE BANDITS.

YA THINK IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN AN INSIDE JOB?

 

Apple's Tim Cook signed $275 billion deal to placate China - 

The Information

Tue, December 7, 2021, 

(Reuters) - Apple Inc Chief Executive Tim Cook signed an agreement with Chinese officials, estimated to be worth about $275 billion, to placate threats that would have hobbled its devices and services in the country, The Information reported on Tuesday. 

  Apple did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. 

  The five-year agreement was made when Cook made visits to China in 2016 to quash a host of regulatory action against the company, the report said, citing interviews and internal Apple documents. 

  Cook lobbied Chinese officials, who believed the company was not contributing enough to the local economy, and signed the agreement with a Chinese government agency, making concessions to Beijing and winning key legal exemptions, the report added. 

  Some of Apple's investment in China would go toward building new retail stores, research and development centers and renewable energy projects, the report said, citing the agreement. 

  China is one of Apple's largest markets with annual sales growth of 83% in the country in its fiscal fourth quarter. 

  As part of the agreement, Apple promised to use more components from Chinese suppliers in its devices, sign deals with Chinese software firms, collaborate on technology with Chinese universities and directly invest in Chinese tech companies, the Information report said. 

  (Reporting by Chavi Mehta in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel) 

TIRED OLD TORIES GOTCHA POLITICS

Conservatives reject Liberals' compromise deal on Winnipeg lab documents over firing of scientists

Ryan Tumilty 

OTTAWA — The Conservatives are rejecting a proposed deal over access to documents related to the firing of two scientists from Canada’s National Microbiology lab, arguing the Liberals’ efforts are too little too late.

© Provided by National Post 

The National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg. Xiangguo Qiu and her husband, Keding Cheng, were escorted out of the lab in July 2019, and later fired.

Liberal House Leader Mark Holland offered the compromise last week. It called for striking an all-party committee to review the confidential documents, with a panel of judges enlisted to settle any disputes over whether the documents should be made public or kept secret.

The documents surround the mysterious firing of two scientists from the national lab two years ago. Xiangguo Qiu and her husband, Keding Cheng, were escorted out of the Winnipeg lab in July 2019. The government has consistently refused to reveal why they were dismissed.

Liberals offer deal to allow select MPs to see documents on fired Winnipeg lab scientists

Fired Winnipeg lab scientist listed as co-inventor on two Chinese government patents

Conservative House Leader Gérard Deltell said the new deal is insufficient and the Liberals should respect four separate votes from the last Parliament that called for the documents to be released.

“Regrettably, your government’s efforts to find a suitable arrangement are many months too late,” he said in a letter to Holland. “The will of Parliament is clear, September’s election has not changed its composition to the point where you might hope for a different outcome in a fifth vote.”

The documents were first demanded by the House of Commons committee on Canada-China relations, but the government essentially ignored the request. A motion was then passed in the House calling for them to be presented but Iain Stewart, then president of the Public Health Health Agency of Canada, repeatedly argued that he was prevented by law from releasing material that could violate privacy or national security laws.

The battle culminated in June with Stewart being hauled before the bar of the Commons to be reprimanded by the Speaker. A few days later, the government asked a Federal Court to intervene to stop the release of the documents, arguing they must be kept secret to protect national security. That case was then dropped when the Liberals called an election for September.

Deltell charged the Liberals have consistently avoided parliamentary accountability.

“We have little faith that your letter represents an actual change in any way, shape or form to the government approach given your pattern of behaviour concerning parliamentary accountability over the past few years.”

Holland said he was deeply disappointed to see the Conservatives respond as they did, especially because his proposal was modelled on one adopted by the Harper government in 2010 to allow opposition MPs to read unredacted documents detailing the treatment of detainees turned over to Afghan authorities by the Canadian military.

“I was hopeful their posture would be a reasonable one, and confused because the mechanism that we suggested was created by them. It was a mechanism that Stephen Harper called reasonable.”

Deltell in his letter contends the two situations are not the same, because the Liberals initial motion on Afghanistan had no safeguards for protecting sensitive information and the demand was coming as NATO troops remained on the ground in Afghanistan.

Under Holland’s rejected proposal each party and one alternate would sit on a panel to review the documents and decide what information should be made public. The MPs would be selected by their parties, but they would have to pass a security clearance and read the documents in a secure room.

Any disagreements about what should be made public would be decided by a panel of three judges, who would be selected by MPs from all parties.

Holland said the documents and the secrets within have to be protected and the Conservative proposal doesn’t achieve that.

“These are documents that could endanger our national security operations globally. Our relationships with our Five Eyes partners. It could endanger the lives of those that serve us.”

Holland said he hopes the Conservatives change their view, but he is prepared to work with the NDP and the Bloc Québécois to find a reasonable compromise.

“I am absolutely committed to continue to work with reasonable parties in the House and I’m very hopeful that the NDP and the Bloc won’t make a similar determination.”

• Email: rtumilty@postmedia.com | Twitter: ryantumilty

Serbia moves to defuse protests over Rio Tinto lithium mine

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Trying to defuse large protests by environmentalists, Serbia's populist government decided Wednesday to suspend two key laws that would help mining giant Rio Tinto launch a lithium mine in western Serbia.

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For two consecutive weekends, thousands of protesters in Belgrade and other Serbian towns have blocked main roads and bridges to decry the planned lithium mine despite an intimidation campaign launched by authorities against the demonstrators.

The protests are the biggest challenge yet to the increasingly autocratic rule of President Aleksandar Vucic, who has denounced the road blockades as illegal and claimed they are being financed from abroad to destabilize the Balkan country.

Vucic said the suspension of the laws does not represent his “defeat and weakness” or his caving in to pressure from the protesters “who want my head."

“I apologize to citizens for the terror of irresponsible people," Vucic said at a press conference, adding that he expects more protests despite the law suspension.

Serbian environmental groups and civil society organizations were angry that Serbian authorities lowered a referendum threshold on major projects in the country and wrote another law that would lead to the swift expropriation of private property near major construction projects. Activists argue this would pave the way for Rio Tinto to quickly launch the lithium mine.

The Serbian government said in a statement Wednesday that the expropriation law will be withdrawn for further public discussion while the referendum law would be amended.

Protest organizers have also demanded that the government’s financial deal with Rio Tinto be made public. The multinational company has pledged it will put $2.4 billion into the Serbian lithium mine project.

Throughout its almost 150-year history, Rio Tinto has faced accusations of corruption, environmental degradation and human rights abuses at its excavation sites.

Lithium, which used in batteries for electric cars, is considered one of the most sought-after metals of the future as the world shifts to more renewable energy sources.

Environmentalists are also upset in general at the Serbian government's lack of response to rising pollution in the country.