LGBTQ dating ban at Brigham Young University probed in federal investigation

Associated Press

SALT LAKE CITY — The U.S. Department of Education has opened a civil-rights investigation into how LGBTQ students are disciplined at Brigham Young University, a private religious school.

The complaint under investigation came after the school said it would still enforce a ban on same-sex dating even after that section was removed from the written version of the school’s honor code, the Salt Lake Tribune reported. Students can be punished for holding hands or kissing someone of the same sex, harsher discipline than that faced by heterosexual couples at the school operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 

BYU removed its written ban on “homosexual behavior,” in early 2020, prompting students to publicly come out as members of the LGBTQ community. But the school clarified a few weeks later that same-sex dating is still prohibited, even if it’s no longer expressly written in the honor code. It also bans things such as alcohol consumption, beards and piercings.

Students protested the apparent reversal, saying they felt tricked into coming out. The federal investigation from the department’s Office for Civil Rights started late last year under Title IX, the law that protects against discrimination on the basis of sex in schools.

A university spokeswoman acknowledged the investigation but said in a statement that BYU is within its rights to enforce the church’s policies against same-sex relationships and does not anticipate any further action. 

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“BYU is exempt from application of Title IX rules that conflict with the religious tenets of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” Carri Jenkins said in a statement.

The church has softened its approach in recent years but maintains doctrinal opposition to same-sex marriage and sex outside of marriage. 

A Department of Education spokesperson confirmed an investigation was opened in October, but declined to comment further. As a private religious school, BYU does have religious exemptions from Title IX related to sexuality and gender expression. 

Federal scrutiny like this is rare at church-owned schools, and typically happens only in places where there are believed to be potential systemic or serious issues, said Michael Austin, a BYU graduate and vice president at the University of Evansville, a private Methodist school in Indiana. 

“It’s really significant that investigators are stepping in now,” he told the newspaper. The new investigation appears to be about whether those exemptions allow faith-based discipline for LGBTQ students even if the behavior is not directly related to education or expressly prohibited in its written honor code.

The school’s president argued those exemptions do apply, and everyone who attends or works at BYU agrees to follow the honor code and “‘voluntarily commit to conduct their lives in accordance with the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ,’” according to a letter Kevin Worthen wrote to the Department of Education in November 2021.

In a response obtained by the Tribune, the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights affirmed the school does have some religious exemptions but the department had to investigate whether the complaint it received falls under those exemptions. 

LGBTQ rights have been a major issue in recent years at the school located in Provo, Utah. A lawsuit filed by several students last year alleges discrimination, with one recent graduate who is a lesbian alleging she lost her job at the school because she didn’t look “feminine enough” to her boss.

The institution has also banned protests near its large letter “Y” posted on a mountainside after protesters lit the letter with rainbow colors. Last fall, a top-ranking church leader publicly criticized faculty members and students who challenge the faith’s teachings on same-sex marriage.

Sonia Sotomayor Appears to Take Up the Women's Rights Mantle Left by Ruth Bader Ginsburg

BY JUSTIN KLAWANS ON 1/20/22


United States Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor issued a blistering dissent on Thursday after the court rejected another attempt to block Texas' six-week abortion ban, appearing to step into the role as a women's champion that was once held by the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

In a 6-3 decision, the court ruled that the case would not be returned to the 5th U.S Circuit Court of Appeals, which would have further delayed the ban. The court had previously allowed the law to stand but paved the way for abortion providers in Texas to sue over the ruling.

However, the court's conservative majority denied this request, allowing the ban to continue without significant barriers

Sotomayor, who was joined in her dissent by the other liberal justices of the court, Stephen Breyer and Elena Kagan, stated that she "will not stand by silently as a State continues to nullify this constitutional guarantee [of abortion]."

"This case is a disaster for the rule of law and a grave disservice to women in Texas, who have a right to control their own bodies," Sotomayor continued.

Sotomayor also harshly criticized the majority of the court for, in her mind, ignoring "nearly 50 years of this Court's precedents."

"Because our precedents are clear that Texas cannot directly ban abortion before viability, the state legislature enacted a convoluted law that instills terror in those who assist women exercising their rights between 6 and 24 weeks," Sotomayor added.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor issued a strong dissent of the Supreme Court's latest ruling on abortion. Here, Sotomayor can be seen during a group photo call in 2021.
ERIN-SCHAFF POOL/GETTY

Sotomayor argued that the case should have been returned to the lower district court following the prior decision of the Supreme Court, arguing that the 5th Circuit had twisted the Supreme Court's ruling to allow for the abortion ban to take effect.

"The Fifth Circuit should have immediately recommended this case to the District Court, allowing it to consider whether to issue preliminary relief," Sotomayor wrote. "But Texas moved to certify...the question this Court had just decided."

"Texas never asked the Fifth Circuit to certify this question during its first pass through the court, nor did it ever ask this Court to do so."

"Today, for the fourth time, this Court declines to protect pregnant Texans from egregious violations of their constitutional rights," Sotomayor wrote. While decorum typically sees dissenting justices end their opinion with "I respectfully dissent," Sotomayor simply wrote, "I dissent."

This echoes many dissents written by Justice Ginsburg, who was an ardent supporter of women's rights during her years on the court. She was seen as a champion for women and helped to initiate gender equality for educators.

However, the court's latest decision marks a major setback for pro-choice groups, who have been fighting to get the abortion ban in Texas overturned. Many activists have noted that the law only allows for abortions before six weeks, which is prior to when many women know they're pregnant.

Some activists stated their concern that the Texas abortion ban could be the first step in the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court case that guaranteed a constitutional right to abortion. Many pointed to another case, based in Mississippi, that is currently being argued before the court.

This case also concerns a law that would move to make access to abortions significantly harder in the state of Mississippi. The Magnolia State currently has only one abortion clinic, which lies at the heart of the Supreme Court case.

"So if the Supreme Court rules in the Mississippi case in a way that weakens or overturns Roe v. Wade, this means it's going to be even more difficult for people to access abortion care," Kari White, a University of Texas sociologist, told NPR. "And that this will fall most heavily on people who are already experiencing structural disadvantages."

New study shows an overwhelming correlation between weak gun laws and high rates of gun deaths

Tod Perry

01.21.22

via lifesizepotato/Flickr

Pardini GT9.

Everyone in America wants the country to be a place where they’re safe from violence. But there’s a big difference in how people think we should achieve that goal. Some Americans think that tougher gun laws make it more difficult for people to commit heinous acts of violence. While others believe that people are safer when they have easy access to firearms to protect themselves.

A new study released by the Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund has found a very strong connection between a state’s gun laws and its rate of gun deaths.

The analysis concludes that states with strong gun safety policies have lower rates of fatal shootings while states with weaker gun laws have higher rates of gun deaths, including homicides, suicides and accidental killings. Everytown for Gun Safety makes a pretty clear point by ranking states from strongest gun laws to weakest.

California has the strongest gun laws and some of the lowest rates of gun deaths per 100,000 residents, at 8.5. The national average is 13.6. Conversely, Mississippi has the weakest gun laws and the highest rate of gun deaths per 100,000 residents, 28.6.

California

via Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund

Mississippi

via Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund

“States with strong gun safety policies, such as background checks on all gun sales and extreme risk laws, have lower rates of gun violence while states with weaker gun laws, such as permitless gun carry and Stand Your Ground, have higher rates of gun violence,” Nick Suplina, senior vice president of law and policy at Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, told Upworthy.

Here are the top eight states when it comes to the strength of gun laws.

Top 8 states with strong gun laws

via Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund

The 8 states with the weakest gun laws

via Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund

You can see the entire list of all 50 states at the Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund’s website.

"Everytown’s Gun Law Rankings shows what we have been saying for years: gun laws save lives. There is a clear and direct tie between a state's gun laws and its rate of gun deaths,” Suplina told Upworthy.

The evidence for strong gun safety laws appears to be overwhelming based on Everytown’s graph. But as any statistician will tell you, correlation doesn’t imply causation. In other words, just because states with tougher gun laws are safer doesn’t necessarily mean that strong gun laws are the sole reason that gun violence is lower.

The rankings also get a bit blurrier when one takes into account the fact that guns can move from state to state. Therefore, strong gun laws in one state can be affected by weaker laws in a neighboring state.

There is a whole host of factors that can influence the rate of gun violence in a given state, including socioeconomics, access to mental healthcare, education, social mobility and its citizens’ trust in institutions

via Fibonacci Blue/Flickr

However, states with weaker gun laws make it easier to access firearms, and studies show that access to a firearm triples the likelihood of suicide, and a gun in the home is associated with more gun homicide.

The debate over guns has been one of the most heated fights in America’s culture wars and it won’t be solved anytime soon. But we all want what’s best for the country and to come to some effective agreement on how to do so we have to start with the facts. Everytown for Gun Safety has made a very compelling argument for stronger gun control laws across the country; it’ll be interesting to see if its opponents can muster any counterarguments that come close.

Doomsday Clock stuck at 100 seconds to midnight as 'apocalypse' looms

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists keeps the Doomsday Clock at 100 seconds from midnight – the metaphorical time when the human race could destroy the world with technologies of its own making.

The idea of the Doomsday Clock symbolising global vulnerability to catastrophe followed in 1947. (AFP)

The "Doomsday Clock," representing the judgment of leading science and security experts about perils to human existence, remains at 100 seconds to midnight this year, with advances like Covid-19 vaccines balanced by rising misinformation and other threats.

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists president Rachel Bronson declared on Thursday the world was no safer this year than two years ago when the clock's hands were moved to their current position.

"If humanity is to avoid an existential catastrophe, one that would dwarf anything it has yet seen, national leaders must do a far better job of countering disinformation, heeding science and cooperating," she told reporters on the 75th anniversary of the clock's initial unveiling.

The fact that it hasn't shifted closer to midnight does not imply threats have stabilised, the group said in a full statement.

"On the contrary, the Clock remains the closest it has ever been to civilization-ending apocalypse because the world remains stuck in an extremely dangerous moment."



Hopeful developments

The Bulletin was founded in 1945 by Albert Einstein, J Robert Oppenheimer and other scientists who worked on the Manhattan Project which produced the first nuclear weapons.

The idea of the clock symbolising global vulnerability to catastrophe followed in 1947.

Its time is set by the organisation's board, with the support of its board of sponsors, which includes 11 Nobel laureates.

In its statement, the Bulletin noted hopeful developments at the start of 2021, including the renewal of the New START arms control agreement between the United States and Russia.

But international tensions continue to loom ominously, including most recently over Ukraine. The United States, Russia and China meanwhile continue their march to develop hypersonic weapons.

Nice words, but little climate action

No country meanwhile remains immune to threats to democracy, the Bulletin said, "as the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the US Capitol demonstrated."

More than 10 percent of those charged with crimes related to the riot were active or retired service members, underscoring extremism in the military.

On climate, COP26 in Glasgow offered positive rhetoric but relatively little action.

Encouragingly, several countries announced net-zero carbon dioxide targets by 2050, but getting there would require immediate divestment from fossil fuels, investment in renewables, upgrading infrastructure and shifting land use and agriculture practices.

"The past year has seen a staggering onslaught of climate disasters," said Raymond Pierrehumber, a professor of physics at the University of Oxford.

"We've had the heat dome over North America, worldwide fires, drought, floods, but this is just a sample of what is to come if we don't get the emissions of carbon dioxide to zero."

Disinformation stoked by politicians

And while Covid-19 has focused the world's scientific attention, governments must be prepared for other biological threats –– from weapons programmes to the rise in antibiotic resistance, which the Bulletin said could trigger a new pandemic within a decade.

The Bulletin particularly highlighted how disinformation –– much of it stoked by politicians in high office –– is undermining faith in science and handicapping the world's ability to confront its challenges.

The Bulletin called on Washington and Moscow to expand the scope of nuclear reduction, and for the world's leading polluters to accelerate decarbonisation.
Source: AFP

US Muslim group asks Pentagon officials to resign for botched Kabul strike

Council on American-Islamic Relations demands resignation of defence chief Lloyd Austin and "any military officials who had a direct role in approving the drone strike that killed 10 civilians" in August 2021.

Aimal Ahmadi, 32, lost his three-year-old daughter Malika and nine other relatives in the August 29 US strike. (AFP)

Any Pentagon official directly involved in a botched air strike in Afghanistan last year should resign, including US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, a Muslim-American advocacy group has demanded.

The US-based Muslim body Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) also called for the resignation of "any military officials who had a direct role in approving the drone strike that killed 10 civilians" in August.

CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell said the video shows "the Pentagon launched a reckless attack that was guaranteed to kill innocent people in a densely-packed neighbourhood."

"This attack was not simply an honest mistake or a rare occurrence; it was the latest in a long line of reckless drone strikes that have killed innocent people at homes, weddings and funerals in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, and elsewhere," said Mitchell.

READ MORE: 'My kids split in half': Afghans seek answer after US strike kill civilians

Pentagon releases video

The demand came a day after the Pentagon released a video of the attack.

The New York Times obtained the footage through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against US Central Command, which then posted the imagery to its website on Thursday.

It marks the first public release of video footage of the August 29 strike, which the Pentagon initially defended but later called a tragic mistake.

The videos include about 25 minutes of footage from what the Times reported were two MQ-9 Reaper drones.

The footage shows the scene of the strike prior to, during and after a missile struck a civilian car in a courtyard on a residential street.

Indistinct images show individuals moving in or near the attack zone.

READ MORE: 'Families of Afghan drone attack victims ask US to admit to 'war crime'

"Any Pentagon leaders who played a direct role in approving the horrific massacre of these innocent people – including seven children – should take responsibility by stepping down. If secretary Austin was directly involved in approving the strike, he should resign," Mitchell added.

The US Defense Department has ruled out any punishment to US soldiers involved in the drone strike, which triggered global condemnation.

The August 29 drone attack was one of the last strikes when the US military was still in the war-torn country before it pulled out along with all foreign forces in August.

GOP lawmaker introduces measure for New Hampshire to secede: 'Our state's sovereignty has been stolen'
Matthew Chapman
January 20, 2022

New Hampshire state Rep. Mike Sylvia (Twitter).

On Thursday, WMUR's Adam Sexton reported that New Hampshire Republican state Rep. Mike Sylvia has introduced a constitutional amendment to allow New Hampshire to secede from the United States.

"Some believe that the question of independence has been settled," said Sylvia at a House hearing. "If so, then our state's sovereignty has been stolen."

CTHULHU IS CATHOLIC!
New Hampshire state lawmakers have been embattled in a series of controversies over the past several months. In October, state Rep. Ken Weyler stepped down as chair of the House Finance Committee after claiming that the COVID-19 vaccines are a Satanic plot by the Catholic Church and contain tentacled creatures and 5G mind control technology.

The party's conspiracy theories have grown so bizarre that one Republican member of the New Hampshire House, Bill Marsh, defected to the Democratic Party in protest.

Why Hasn't President Biden Moved On Net Neutrality?

By Tyler Adkisson
January 20, 2022

Net neutrality is the principle that internet providers should treat all traffic going through their systems equally.

The Biden Administration has been steadfast in its efforts to bring back net neutrality — a kind of leveling of the internet.

In a July 2021 executive order, President Biden urged the Federal Communications Commission to do it, but progress toward reinstating net neutrality has been driven to a near-halt even though it’s supported by 80% of Americans.

So what’s the hold up?

First, what exactly is net neutrality? At its core, net neutrality is the principle that internet service providers like Comcast or Verizon should treat all traffic going through their systems equally. With net neutrality rules in place, providers would be prohibited from intentionally slowing the speed of access to websites, or outright blocking that access.

The biggest issue impeding net neutrality is that the FCC hasn’t been operating with a full commission and has been deadlocked along party lines. President Biden’s nominee, Gigi Sohn, has not been confirmed yet, but reports indicate she could be as early as the week of Jan. 24.

"The two-two split has stalled a lot of action at the FCC — only one of which is net neutrality," said Chris Lewis, president and CEO of Public Knowledge.

The sooner that there's a five-person commission, the sooner net neutrality rules can be restored.

Lewis told Newsy that shutdowns during the pandemic have accentuated the need for reliable broadband internet backed by net neutrality rules. Currently, without those rules, the FCC can’t step in during an emergency, like the pandemic, to make sure people aren't cut off from broadband.

"There are currently examples of practices that broadband providers have conducted that would have been tested and challenged under the net neutrality rules, as we had them before, where they've blocked or throttled traffic over the past few years," Lewis said.

Some providers resist net neutrality, rejecting government intervention as bad for business and innovation. They tout consumer choice in offering faster service at a premium and allowing companies a way to get better placement.

Still, even without net neutrality rules in place, internet speeds have drastically risen for most U.S. citizens, and demand is rising.

In 2021, national average internet speeds doubled over 2020 to nearly 100 megabits per second.

It's a mixture of faster speeds now available due to emerging technologies like 5G and fiber and also just the fact that more people are working from home, leading more people to recognize it as a necessity.

Kang Kyung-wha to run for ILO secretary-general

Updated: 2022-01-21 

Former South Korean Foreign Minister, Kang Kyung-wha, who's running for the top job at the International Labor Organization, has expressed her ambition to "make the world a better place again."
Speaking at the ILO headquarters in Geneva on Thursday, Kang said the world is experiencing deepening inequality and weakening solidarity that was brought on by a crisis caused by a number of global issues, including the pandemic.
She added she'll support a job-oriented economic recovery and work to strengthen social security systems.
Kang is up against four other candidates from Australia, Togo, France and South Africa.
The victorious candidate will be announced on March 25th.

Reporter : seungjae86@gmail.com

North Korea launched cyberattack against Russia - media

One employee’s account was allegedly compromised

By Jonny Tickle

© Getty Images / Issaro Prakalung / EyeEm

The North Korean hacker group APT37 attacked the Russian Foreign Ministry and its employees in late 2021 and subsequently compromised the account of a government employee, US information security experts have reported.

According to researchers at US cybersecurity companies Cluster25 and Black Lotus Labs, and later reported by Moscow daily Kommersant, a phishing campaign was targeted at the Ministry back in October. The researchers claim that some employees were sent archives of documents and asked to provide vaccination details, while others were fed with links to malware disguised as software the Russian government uses to collect Covid vaccination statuses. As a result, one account was compromised.

From the compromised address, hackers managed to send a phishing email to Russian Deputy Minister Sergey Ryabkov on December 20 and also targeted the Russian Embassy in Indonesia.

APT37 is well-known for using software called Konni, a remote administration tool. It has been reportedly used to target South Korea, as well as political organizations in Japan, India, and China, among other countries. According to Kommersant, the group has been around since at least 2017.

This latest accusation isn’t the first time that North Korea has been blamed for attempted phishing attacks on Russia. In November last year, Kommersant reported that another hacker group, Kimsuky, sent phishing emails written on behalf of well-known Russian experts, scientists, and NGOs to experts on Korea in an attempt to obtain online login credentials.

Last week, Russian security services arrested a notorious group of hackers following information provided by US authorities. The Federal Security Service (FSB) detained people in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Lipetsk Region who were allegedly members of REvil, a notorious ransomware group known for receiving millions in ransom payments.

Afghanistan: Taliban Deprive Women Of Livelihoods, Identity

 January 19, 2022  

By Eurasia Review

Taliban rule has had a devastating impact on Afghan women and girls, new research shows, Human Rights Watch and the Human Rights Institute at San Jose State University (SJSU) said. The organizations looked at the conditions for women since the Taliban took control in Ghazni province, in southeastern Afghanistan.

Since taking control of the city of Ghazni on August 12, 2021, days before entering Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, the Taliban have imposed rights-violating policies that have created huge barriers to women’s and girls’ health and education, curtailed freedom of movement, expression, and association, and deprived many of earned income. Afghanistan’s rapidly escalating humanitarian crisis exacerbates these abuses. Following the Taliban takeover, millions of dollars in lost income, spiking prices, aid cut-offs, a liquidity crisis, and cash shortages triggered by former donor countries, especially the United States, have deprived much of the population of access to food, water, shelter, and health care.

“Afghan women and girls are facing both the collapse of their rights and dreams and risks to their basic survival,” said Halima Kazem-Stojanovic, a core faculty member of SJSU’s Human Rights Institute and a scholar on Afghanistan. “They are caught between Taliban abuses and actions by the international community that are pushing Afghans further into desperation every day.”

Human Rights Watch and SJSU remotely interviewed 10 women currently or recently in Ghazni province, including those who had worked in education, health care, social services, and business, and former students.

They described spiraling prices for food staples, transportation, and schoolbooks, coupled with an abrupt and often total income loss. Many had been the sole or primary wage earner for their family, but most lost their employment due to Taliban policies restricting women’s access to work. Only those working in primary education or health care were still able to work, and most were not being paid due to the financial crisis.

The Taliban have banned women and girls from secondary and higher education, and altered curricula to focus more on religious studies. They dictate what women must wear, how they should travel, workplace segregation by sex, and even what kind of cell phones women should have. They enforce these rules through intimidation and inspections.

“The future looks dark,” said one woman who had worked in the government. “I had many dreams, wanted to continue studying and working. I was thinking of doing my master’s. At the moment, they [the Taliban] don’t even allow girls to finish high school.”

The women said they had acute feelings of insecurity because the Taliban have dismantled the formal police force and the Women’s Affairs Ministry, are extorting money and food from communities, and are targeting for intimidation women they see as enemies, such as those who worked for foreign organizations and the previous Afghan government. Most interviewees cited serious mental health consequences since the Taliban takeover, including fear, anxiety, hopelessness, insomnia, and a deep sense of loss and helplessness.

“The crisis for women and girls in Afghanistan is escalating with no end in sight,” said Heather Barr, associate women’s rights director at Human Rights Watch. “Taliban policies have rapidly turned many women and girls into virtual prisoners in their homes, depriving the country of one of its most precious resources, the skills and talents of the female half of the population.”