Monday, August 19, 2024

AOC Slams Trump As Union Buster at Dem Convention

By Michael Katz | Monday, 19 August 2024

NEWSMAX

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., a member of the far-left wing "Squad" of House Democrats and a frequent GOP antagonist, laid into former President Donald Trump on Monday night as the Democratic National Convention opened in Chicago.

"Chicago, we have to help [Kamala Harris] win because we know that Donald Trump would sell this country for a dollar if it meant lining his own pockets and greasing the palms of his Wall Street friends," Ocasio-Cortez said in her speech, a portion of which aired live on Newsmax and simulcast on the Newsmax2 online streaming platform.

"And I, for one, am tired about of hearing about how a two-bit union buster thinks of himself as more of a patriot than the woman who fights every single day to lift working people out from under the boots of greed trampling on our way of life."

Ocasio-Cortez said Trump can't love this country if he only fights for the wealthy and big business.

"To love this country is to fight for its people," she said. "All people, working people, every-day Americans like bartenders and factory workers and fast-food cashiers who punch a clock and are on their feet all day in some of the toughest jobs out there."

AOC speaks to the middle class in her first major convention appearance

August 19, 2024

By C Mandler

NPR

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) speaks onstage during the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 19, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois.Joe Raedle/Getty Images

The NPR Network will be reporting live from Chicago throughout the week bringing you the latest on the Democratic National Convention.

New York Representative and member of the "Squad," Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, began her speech at the DNC by thanking Kamala Harris and Tim Walz for their "vision," and Joe Biden for his "leadership."

She then weaved her own story of growing up middle class in New York into the stories of the upbringings of Harris and Walz.

"There is nothing wrong with working for a living. Imagine having leaders who understand that," she told the cheering crowd.

This was the congresswoman's first major convention speech, for which she was given a primetime slot. In 2020, Ocasio-Cortez addressed the DNC crowd with a pre-recorded minute-and-a-half-long endorsement for Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Ocasio-Cortez also used her time at the podium to slam former President Trump, saying, “We know Trump would sell this country for a dollar if it meant lining his own pockets and greasing palms of his Wall Street friends."

"I, for one, am tired of hearing about how a two-bit union buster thinks of himself as more of a patriot than the woman who fights every single day to lift working people out from under the boots of greed trampling on our way of life," she added.

The congresswoman was also seemingly the first person on stage to reference Israel's war on Gaza, saying that Harris has been “working tirelessly to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza.”

Following the end of her speech, the crowd cheered, "AOC! AOC!" as she walked off the stage.

WATCH: Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez speaks at 2024 Democratic National Convention

Politics Aug 19, 2024

New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez delivered the first mention of the war in Gaza from the DNC stage.

WATCH LIVE: 2024 Democratic National Convention Night 1

“And she is working tirelessly to secure a cease-fire in Gaza and bringing the hostages home,” Ocasio-Cortez said to cheers in the crowd.

Ocasio-Cortez has been one of the most critical voices in Congress of the Biden administration’s policy on Israel-Palestine and has called for greater restrictions on military aid to Israel. But she and other progressives have also been in dialogue with the administration on its policy, which has caused her to face pushback from some on the hard left.

UAW President Shawn Fain tears into Donald Trump during DNC speech:

‘Trump Is A Scab’

UAW President Shawn Fain contrasts the working-class policies of presidential candidates Donald Trump and Kamala Harris during his Democratic National Convention speech.

UAW’s Shawn Fain Blasts ‘Scab’ Trump In DNC Speech

The convention’s first day showcased the labor support lining up behind Kamala Harris’ campaign, with the crowd chanting, “Trump’s a scab!”

By Dave Jamieson
Aug 19, 2024

Labor leaders sent a message loud and clear on the opening day Monday of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago: Unions stand behind Vice President Kamala Harris in her quest to keep former President Donald Trump out of the White House.

United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain summed up the sentiment when he removed his blazer while speaking onstage, revealing a red T-shirt that read: “Trump is a scab. Vote Harris.”

“When the UAW stands up, we know who stands with us and who stands against us,” Fain told the crowd. “Donald Trump laughs about firing workers who go on strike. Kamala Harris stands shoulder to shoulder with workers when they’re on strike. And that’s the difference.”

Delegates responded to Fain’s remarks with chants of “Trump’s a scab!”

Fain was one of a half-dozen union leaders who addressed the crowd Monday night, showcasing the Democratic Party’s close ties to organized labor.

Some of the largest unions quickly announced they were backing Harris after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race last month, and the AFL-CIO labor federation of 60 unions said Harris received a unanimous endorsement from its executive council.

Shawn Fain, president of the United Automobile Workers, speaks Monday during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images

Organized labor is historically a pillar of the Democratic Party and could prove pivotal in driving turnout for Harris and down-ballot Democrats in battleground states such as Michigan, Nevada and Pennsylvania.

Kenneth Cooper, president of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, urged union members to get behind the Harris campaign, noting that Harris had cast a tie-breaking vote to pass a massive pension rescue for union workers and retirees.

“She has come through for all of us,” Cooper said. “Now it’s our turn to come through for her.”

There was, however, one striking omission from the DNC’s union-heavy speaker list on Monday: Sean M. O’Brien, president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.

O’Brien angered many Democrats and union activists when he sought and accepted Trump’s invitation to speak at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee last month. Trump was overtly hostile to unions and union organizing during his first term in the White House, and precious few Republicans support policies that would bolster the labor movement.

O’Brien used the opportunity at the RNC to court Republican support for unions. But his appearance, which included praising Trump as “one tough S.O.B.,” may have come at a political price: A Teamsters spokesperson told HuffPost that the DNC never responded to O’Brien’s request for a speaker slot in Chicago.

Mpox Isn't More Infectious for Gay and Bisexual Men

The director-general of the World Health Organization declared the virus a "public health emergency of international concern" in August 2024.

Madison Dapcevich
Published Aug. 19, 2024

SNOPES

Image courtesy of Getty Images

There is no evidence to suggest that gay or bisexual men are biologically more susceptible to mpox.

Rather, health experts warn that the virus is spreading within that community due largely to human habits, and the World Health Organization has previously said men who have sex with other men are a vulnerable population.

Mpox is a virus that can be spread through respiratory droplets and skin-to-skin contact, and thus sexual activities in general.

In mid-August 2024, the director-general of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, declared mpox a "public health emergency of international concern" because of a growing number of cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo and other African nations.

As the virus — which was formerly known as monkeypox — spread, some social media users began sharing posts that misstated scientific facts about the disease to exaggerate its danger. One such user posted (archived) headlines about the spread of the disease between men and about cases in children in an attempt to imply a connection between homosexuality and pedophilia.

That post dredged up a claim shared widely 2022, when the virus spread outside of its endemic African range to areas it isn't normally reported in — including the United States and parts of Europe. Social media posts (archived) implied then that the properties of mpox allow the virus to spread faster among men who have sex with men, or that gay and bisexual men are more susceptible to infection:

This was not true. As far as medical health experts are concerned, there is nothing about the mpox virus that targets gay or bisexual men over others. Neither does AIDS, for that matter. Transmission within such communities is largely due to human behavior — not how the virus itself behaves within infected people's immune systems.

In 2022, it was true that mpox spread faster within some communities of men who have sex with other men, giving public health officials reason to issue public warnings to the LGBTQ+ community. Put another way, men who have sex with other men were found to be more susceptible to the virus compared to other people, simply because of who was infected and where, not because of biological properties of the virus. Transmission can simply be explained by human behavior. (More on that below.)

A leading adviser to the WHO told The Associated Press in 2022 that the "unprecedented outbreak" that year likely began through sexual transmission during two raves in Spain and Belgium.

"We know monkeypox can spread when there is close contact with the lesions of someone who is infected, and it looks like sexual contact has now amplified that transmission," Dr. David Heymann said.

As we have previously reported, mpox is a DNA virus related to smallpox in the poxvirus group. (DNA viruses are those that have genomes that can be replicated by the host, meaning that they use the host to make copies of themselves to further spread through the body during the course of infection.) Mpox infections are rare, but they can lead to serious complications that begin with flulike symptoms and progress to a widespread rash on the face and body.

Though not easily transmitted between people (the virus mainly spreads from infected animals to humans), human-to-human transmission occurs through the swapping of bodily fluids and touch — including sexual activities if contact is made with the lesions of an infected person — as well as shared personal items, such as contaminated clothing and bedding. Health experts recommend avoiding contact with anyone who is exhibiting symptoms, and for symptomatic individuals to isolate at home and talk to a health worker.

"Stigmatizing people because of a disease is never ok. Anyone can get or pass on monkeypox, regardless of their sexuality," the WHO said.

With regard to the 2022 outbreak, the WHO issued a public health advisory for men who have sex with other men.

"Some cases have been identified through sexual health clinics in communities of gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men. It is important to note that the risk of monkeypox is not limited to men who have sex with men. Anyone who has close contact with someone who is infectious is at risk," the global health agency said.

Although a sizable amount of mpox cases in 2022 were confirmed in men who have sex with men, there is no evidence to suggest that gay or bisexual men are biologically more susceptible to the virus. Rather, health experts warn that the virus is spreading within that community due largely to human habits. Regardless of a person's sexuality, they can become infected with mpox through sexual contact — or any physical contact, for that matter — with an infected person either via respiratory droplets or by touching skin lesions and bodily fluids.

Gaza Protesters Breach Democratic Convention Fence In Chicago

AFP
August 20, 2024
Chicago, US

Riot police officers block a road as demonstrators take part in the rally March on the DNC on the sidelines of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 19, 2024. (Reuters)

A small group of around 100 demonstrators broke off from a larger march involving thousands of people

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Kamala Harris Makes Debut At Democratic Convention In Chicago, Lauds Biden's 'Historic Leadership' | WATCH next »

Donald Trump Posts Image Of Fake Taylor Swift Endorsement

Protesters against Israel’s war in Gaza briefly breached the outer security fence of the Democratic convention in Chicago, hours before US President Joe Biden was set to pass the torch to new nominee Kamala Harris.

A small group of around 100 demonstrators broke off from a larger march involving thousands of people and targeted the metal barriers surrounding the United Center on the first day of the party gathering

Police in blue helmets with shields and carrying black batons prevented them from getting to the inner cordon. One demonstrator clad in black was carried out by their arms and legs by several officers, an AFP correspondent saw.

Protest groups have called for mass demonstrations throughout the week against the Biden-Harris administration’s support for Israel’s war on Hamas following the Palestinian militant group’s deadly October 7 attacks.

Chicago police said in a statement that protesters “breached a portion of anti-scale fencing along the Democratic National Convention’s outer perimeter.” “Law enforcement personnel were immediately on-scene and contained the situation. At no point was the inner perimeter breached, and there was no threat to any protectees,” police said.

Police later advanced on a park near the convention center to clear it of demonstrators. Chants of “Free Palestine” and “Let’s March” continued as about half a dozen holdout activists, one wearing a pink gas mask, began to leave.

The Gaza war has been a hugely divisive issue for the Democratic Party ahead of the November 5 election. It has threatened to alienate Muslim and Arab-American voters, once a reliable Democratic voting bloc, particularly in key battleground states

Thousands march against Gaza war at Democratic convention

By Andrea Shalal and Bianca Flowers for Reuters

A protest to demand reproductive justice, defend the rights of trans and queer people and demand a ceasefire in Gaza on the eve of the Democratic National Convention at the United Centre in Chicago, Illinois, on August 18, 2024. Photo: AFP / Matthew Hatcher

Thousands of mostly peaceful pro-Palestinian protesters marched in Chicago on Monday as President Joe Biden arrived for the opening day of the Democratic National Convention, in a show of force against his administration's support for Israel in the Gaza war.

After hours of peaceful demonstrations, dozens of protesters broke through part of the perimeter security fence, drawing riot police to the site, a Reuters witness said.

The Democratic National Convention security team did not respond to a request for comment on whether the protesters were arrested.

"Law enforcement personnel are currently on scene and more information will be provided when available," said a Chicago city spokesperson.

Chanting intensified ahead of the fence breach, as protesters reached a neighbourhood park on Chicago's West Side and paused to amplify their calls for a ceasefire. Amid the noise, the crowd turned its frustration toward Vice President Kamala Harris, referring to the Democratic candidate as "Killer Kamala".

A person films the crowd during the protest rally in Chicago. Photo: AFP

Chicago police formed a perimeter around the park on foot to contain protesters, with some police personnel on bikes.

Still, the umbrella group "March on the DNC" drew fewer supporters than expected to a park outside the convention arena, hours before Biden was to address the gathering.

They started a two kilometre march near where Democratic delegates will nominate Harris as their candidate to face Republican Donald Trump in November's presidential election.

Organisers had expected tens of thousands of protesters - enough to fill the park and the march route - Hatem Abudayyeh, a spokesman for March on the DNC, said on Monday. By afternoon though, several thousand protesters had gathered for speeches and the park was only half full.

The coalition of more than 200 groups includes those advocating for a variety of causes from reproductive rights to racial justice. Many people were coming from Palestinian and Arab communities in Illinois and neighbouring states, organisers said last week.

Roman Fritz, at 19 one of the youngest Wisconsin delegates, wore a scarf imprinted with the traditional Palestinian keffiyeh pattern. He planned to participate in the march but had no plans to disrupt the official events later, and said he supported Harris as the party nominee to beat Trump.

Dozens of Muslim delegates and their allies, angry at US support for Israel's offensive in Gaza, are seeking changes in the Democratic platform and plan to press for an arms embargo, putting the party on guard for disruptions to high-profile speeches at the convention.

Some protesters were doubtful that the party will change its platform.

"It'll never happen," said Mwalimu Sundiata Keita, who travelled from Cincinnati, Ohio, to join the protest. "It's the policy of the party to support Israel, and until that policy changes, that's the way it's going to be."

Senan Shaqdeh, 54, a member of the executive committee of the Palestinian American Organisations Network, said additional buses from as far away as Florida were expected to deliver more protesters to the site of the march throughout the day.

"The Democratic Party should not expect business as usual," Shaqdeh said.

Another large protest was scheduled for Thursday, when Harris is due to formally accept the nomination. Pro-Palestinian groups have for months protested the Biden administration's military and financial support for Israel during its war against Hamas, which has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to Gaza health officials.

Israel launched the offensive after it was attacked on 7 October by Hamas militants who killed 1200 people, according to Israel tallies. The protests swelled on US college campuses in the spring, with police clearing student encampments, at times after confrontations between protesters and counterprotesters.

"The Democrats are the ones in power," Abudayyeh said on Monday. "It's their war. They're responsible for it, they're complicit, and they can stop it."

-Reuters

Trump shares fake AI posts of Taylor Swift fans endorsing him

The people depicted in the photos were obviously AI-generated, but it's unclear whether Donald Trump knew that. — Picture via TruthSocial/@realdonaldtrump

Monday, 19 Aug 2024 9:00 PM MYT

WASHINGTON, Aug 19 — US Republican presidential candidate and former US president Donald Trump has shared posts depicting images of fans of pop star Taylor Swift aka Swifties endorsing him.

The trouble is that those images were AI-generated and Swift very likely had nothing to do with them, but that didn’t stop Trump from declaring “I accept!” on his social media.

-Advertisement-

An X (formerly Twitter) account that reposts Trump’s posts from TruthSocial, another social media site primarily catering to right-wing or US Conservatives, shared Trump’s latest post that depicts various obviously faked AI posts.

While Swift has not as yet publicly endorsed any of the US 2024 presidential candidates, she did publicly endorse Joe Biden in the last election and encouraged her fans to turn up to vote.

As of press time, Swift has yet to make a statement about the fake posts. This is not the first time Swift has been the subject of fake AI posts as Taylor Swift searches were temporarily banned on X after a proliferation of deepfaked porn videos featuring the singer.

Swift had allegedly considered legal action but various AI services including OpenAI have blocked her name as a prompt to forestall any lawsuits so it begs the question which service was used to create those fake posters.

From paradise to hell: Turkish village stunned as forest fires turn olive trees and beehives to ashes

A local resident looks at damages on the site of a burnt barn following a wildfire in the Sancakli village, in Turkey's western province of Izmir on August 18, 2024. — AFP pic

Monday, 19 Aug 2024

SANCAKLI (Turkiye), Aug 19 — A picturesque village perched high on the slopes of hills offered a stunning sea panorama on Turkey’s western coast — until the engulfing flames turned the scene from paradise to a nightmare.

Fires have ripped through forests and steep valleys around Turkey’s third most-populous city Izmir in recent days.

Abdullah Ozata was desperate to see the scale of the damage when he returned to his nearby village of Sancakli, one of the areas where residents were evacuated to avoid the rushing flames.

“Twelve of my sheep and 50 chickens have perished in the blaze” that roared across the landscape, he told AFP, while showing the remains of burnt animals, turned into ash.

“I lost all my livestock,” the 43-year-old lamented as he walked among the debris. “I neither have another job nor another source of income.”

Two officials from the finance ministry photographed the damage and recorded Ozata’s loss for the compensation claim.

“The gendarmerie evacuated us against the human loss but I lost my animals,” he said.

“Our village was pretty, it was like a paradise, but it has turned into a hell”.

After four days of raging flames spread by strong winds, the fire has largely been brought under control, authorities said Sunday.

But the fire — the biggest Turkey has seen yet this summer — has left huge areas of charred and blackened land, destroying olive trees, gardens and beehives.

At least 43 buildings were damaged in Izmir, while 26 people were hospitalised with injuries related to the blaze.

Agriculture and Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakli said that efforts to douse hotspots were continuing but that the flames were now largely controlled in one place.

This photograph shows a helicopter carrying water to fight a forest fire, with windmills in the background in Turkey's western province of Izmir on August 17, 2024. — AFP pic

’Hide-and-seek’

Gokhan Cekmez was evacuated during the fire, but defied official orders to slip back into the village through a river in an effort to battle the flames.

“I played hide-and-seek with the gendarmerie, and without me and other villagers, the scale of the damage would have been much more serious,” the 35-year-old said.

“The outside help was not enough. We tried hard to put out the fire with pots and plates.”

In Sancakli the water was just beginning to run again on Sunday, after pipes were burned by the blaze, and authorities were still repairing the electricity cables damaged by the fire.

Local administrator Ilhan Kaya said agriculture and animal breeding were the only source of income for the 200-strong village.

“The villagers have to survive with the help of the state for at least six months, we will wait for the burned areas to turn green,” Kaya said.

Gulhan Arasa, wearing a flowered headscarf on the terrace of her three-storey house, was still haunted by the nightmare of the fire.

“I wish authorities would let me (help), even though I am a woman, I would take a hose and work to extinguish the fire,” she said.

“We were panicked when we were besieged by the flames that literally spread in seconds,” she said.

Arasa and her family, who rely on animal husbandry for their income, managed to keep around 100 sheep and goats in their shelter during the fire.

“Thank God, they’re all alive. We didn’t let them out because we were circled by the flames,” she said.

But other than that, she said, “everything has turned to ashes.”

“We expect the state to cover our losses. We want new saplings to be planted instead of our burnt saplings, we want trees to be planted instead of our burning trees.”

“God will help, the soil will renew itself, but when? I don’t know.” — AFP

After anti-immigrant riots, what do British Muslims need to feel safe?

Volunteers rebuild the fence outside the Southport Islamic Society

Mosque after it had been torn down by violent protesters.

By Hasan Ali Special contributor
August 19, 2024|Southport, England

Nearly three weeks after the Southport Islamic Society Mosque came under attack by anti-immigrant rioters, the building is still on high alert. Security guards in black uniforms patrol the premises, and few worshippers have yet felt safe enough to return to attend prayers.

The mosque, in northwestern England, was the first to be assaulted by far-right mobs hurling bricks and other objects and setting fires in the street, signaling the start of a nationwide wave of rioting. Though the violence has now died down, its impact here lives on.

“You can never say when this sort of thing might happen again,” says local resident Muhammad Ayman. “So there is fear, but our faith in Allah gives us a lot of courage.”

Why We Wrote This

A story focused on

Compassion

The anti-Muslim riots that swept Britain recently have died down. But Muslim leaders say that only a more measured approach to immigration by the government and the media will reassure them that a calmer mood will prevail.

Bolstering that sentiment have been non-Muslim locals who were quick to show their support and sympathy for their neighbors. The morning after the attack, dozens of them came to the mosque to express solidarity, says Farrukh Ahmad, the mosque’s muezzin, who calls the hour of daily prayers.

“They came here even before we came here,” Mr. Ahmad recalls. “They came with brushes and shovels, and they tried to clean our road and our car park,” he says. “Plus, they sent us loads of food and flowers and cards. And it wasn’t just our neighbors. People have come from Bolton, Manchester, Preston, and all over to share in our sorrow. And they are still coming.”

Temilade Adelaja/Reuters
Ibrahim Hussein, chair of the Southport Islamic Society Mosque, speaks to the media after violence broke out outside the mosque.

His words are echoed by Ibrahim Hussein, the chair of the mosque. “The community is wonderful,” he says. “We’ve been here for 30 years, and none of this [rioting] has ever happened before. We’re always passing by and saying good morning, good evening. There is nothing between us but respect.”

The riots broke out following the killing of three little girls, stabbed as they attended a dance class a few hundred yards from the Southport mosque. False reports that the attacker was a Muslim immigrant spread across social media, sparking nationwide violence against mosques and hotels sheltering asylum-seekers.

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It was later announced that the attacker was neither an immigrant nor a Muslim.
Facing the facts

The British government, led by Keir Starmer, formerly the country’s top prosecutor, has promised stern punishment for those found guilty of committing or inciting acts of violence. The National Police Chiefs’ Council has announced that 1,024 people have been arrested and 575 charged nationwide. Around 100 have been convicted and sentenced so far.

Among those convicted last week was a middle-aged woman who responded to a photograph of white and South Asian people clearing up outside the Southport mosque by urging fellow members of her Facebook group to “blow the mosque up with the adults in it.” She was sentenced to 15 months of imprisonment.

Still, there remains a sense among British Muslims that much needs to change if they are to feel safe. To start with, says Mr. Hussein, “the language of the media has to change, and the politicians have to watch their words because whatever they say ends up resonating. When they talk about immigration, they talk about it in a derogatory way. They just should calm down a little bit.”

Belinda Jiao/Reuters
People hold signs at a protest against racism outside the Reform UK party's headquarters in London, Aug. 10, 2024. Reform UK politicians have expressed hostility toward migrants and Muslims, though the party denies fostering bigotry.

For Zara Mohammed, secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, only a clear-eyed appraisal of past immigration policies can serve as a basis for healing. “We have to tackle the root of the issue,” she says.

Ms. Mohammed accuses the previous Conservative government of “not only inciting hatred against migrants and asylum-seekers,” but also allowing former Home Secretary Suella Braverman to talk of an “Islamist takeover” and letting Lee Anderson, the former party chair, claim that London Mayor Sadiq Khan was under the control of extremists.

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This kind of language, Ms. Mohammed argues, has been co-opted by some tabloid newspapers to sow divisions in British society, helping to create an atmosphere of mistrust that can be exploited by far-right activists.

This can be addressed only if the media report on Muslims with greater nuance and accuracy, says Faisal Hanif, who tracks media coverage of Islam for the Centre for Media Monitoring. Riot reporting threw up numerous examples of “journalists excusing the violence or at the very least providing a context which they would not afford to Muslims in a similar situation,” he says.

Thousands of anti-racism protesters have gathered across the country in response to the riots. But though these counterprotests have done much to restore trust among British Muslims, who make up about 6% of the total population, there remains a sense that there is work still to be done.

“From a government point of view, there needs to be positive engagement and work with Muslim communities, as well as ensuring that our mosques and places of worship are kept safe,” says Ms. Mohammed.

“And of course the ... most important thing ... is keeping our communities united and together,” she adds. “It’s in that spirit that we’ve seen so many people come out against racism. ... We know that doesn’t represent the Britain we all love.”

Kenya will reintroduce some tax proposals that sparked deadly protests

Kenya’s new finance minister says some of the proposed taxes that led to weeks of deadly protests earlier this year will be reintroduced through a tax amendment bill as the country struggles to find revenue to pay off debts

ByEVELYNE MUSAMBI
August 19, 2024,

NAIROBI, Kenya -- Kenya’s new finance minister says some of the proposed taxes that led to weeks of deadly protests earlier this year will be reintroduced through a tax amendment bill as the country struggles to find revenue to pay off debts.

The announcement by John Mbadi in a local television interview broadcast Sunday has already drawn criticism from some Kenyans whose anger over the rising cost of living had led demonstrators to storm Parliament and pressure President William Ruto to drop a contentious finance bill and fire most of his Cabinet.

But now some of the proposals in that unpopular finance bill are back. Mbadi said the tax amendment bill will include dozens of measures including a tax on goods considered not environmentally friendly.

“This country is not a dumping place,” he said.

Critics had said the tax would increase the cost of goods like sanitary towels and diapers.

Already, the youth-led protest movement has responded to the minister's remarks, saying demonstrations across Kenya will continue. More than 50 people have died since the protests started in mid-June, according to the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, amid accusations of police brutality.

An opposition lawmaker, Robert Mbui, on Monday told a local television station that the plan to reintroduce certain proposals was a “mistake” and accused the new minister of “double speak” after saying earlier this month he had no plans to increase taxes.

Kenya's president had defended the new taxes, saying the country needs to be self-sufficient, and warned that there would be consequences after withdrawing the previous bill.

Protesters also have called for the president’s resignation, but Ruto said he would not do it.

Italy extradites Turkish citizen suspected of PKK membership to Germany

TURKIYE IS A FASCIST REGIME

PKK IS THE KURDISH RESISTANCE

By Turkish Minute
August 19, 2024

A suspected former outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) executive has been extradited by Italy to Germany, where he was arrested upon his arrival, Agence France-Presse reported, citing a statement from the German Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office in Karlsruhe on Monday.

Selahattin K. was arrested by the German federal police on Friday upon his arrival at Frankfurt Airport. The Turkish citizen is said to have held managerial positions for the PKK in west Germany.

The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies.

The detention warrant issued for Selahattin K. by the investigating judge of the Federal Court of Justice, the highest court of civil and criminal jurisdiction in Germany, is reported to date from mid-February. Selahattin K. was arrested in Italy in mid-June based on a European arrest warrant.

Between January 2014 and July 2015, Selahattin K. is said to have worked as a full-time PKK executive in Germany. He performed the typical managerial duties of a so-called area leader, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office said. These primarily included coordinating the PKK’s organizational, personnel and propaganda activities in various areas.

Selahattin K. gave instructions to the area managers as well as groups and activists who were under his command and monitored their implementation. In doing so, he himself had to follow the instructions of the so-called European leadership of the PKK.

The German Federal Prosecutor’s Office accuses him of membership in a foreign terrorist organization.

The PKK took up arms in 1984 for the creation of an independent state in predominantly Kurdish southeastern Turkey, but it later scaled back its demands to greater Kurdish autonomy.

The conflict between the PKK and the Turkish state has claimed tens of thousands of lives.

Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned leader of the outlawed group, was captured by Turkish security forces in Nairobi in 1999 and has been jailed on İmralı Island in the Sea of Marmara since then.

DC councilmember known for pushing antisemitic conspiracy theories is arrested on bribery charge

Trayon White Sr., a Democrat who ran an unsuccessful mayoral campaign in 2022, was arrested on a federal bribery charge by the FBI on Sunday. He is expected to make his initial court appearance on Monday.

White’s chief of staff and spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to emails seeking comment.

An FBI agent's affidavit says White agreed in June to accept roughly $156,000 in kickbacks and cash payments in exchange for pressuring government agency employees to extend two companies' contracts for violence intervention services. The contacts were worth over $5 million.

White, 40, also accepted a $20,000 bribe payment to help resolve a contract dispute for one of the companies by pressuring high-level district officials, the affidavit alleges.

An FBI informant who agreed to plead guilty to fraud and bribery charges reported giving White gifts including travel to the Dominican Republic and Las Vegas along with paying him bribes, the FBI said.

White, who has served on the D.C. council since 2017, represents a predominantly Black ward where the poverty rate is nearly twice as high as the overall district. He is running for re-election in November against a Republican challenger.

White was one of two D.C. council members whom Mayor Muriel Bower defeated two years ago in the Democratic primary. White, a former grassroots community activist, was a protégé of former Mayor Marion Barry, who also represented the same ward as White on the council.

In March 2018, White posted a video on his Facebook page claiming that an unexpected snowfall was because of “the Rothschilds controlling the climate to create natural disasters.” The Rothschilds, a Jewish family that was prominent in the banking industry, are a frequent subject of conspiracy theories.

At the time, White said he was unaware that the weather-related conspiracy theory is antisemitic. A video later surfaced of White pushing a similar conspiracy theory during a meeting of top city officials. He posed a question based on the stereotypical premise that the Rothschilds controlled the World Bank and the federal government.

___

Associated Press writer Ashraf Khalil contributed to this report.

Michael Kunzelman, The Associated Press

"My next great adventure... is going to be dying."

World renowned primatologist Jane Goodall, who's 90 years old, says she "can't think of a greater adventure" than finding out if there is "something" after death.

How the Ukraine-Russia war is playing out differently on 3 separate fronts

August 19, 2024
Greg Myre

PBS

A damaged statue of Soviet Union founder Vladimir Lenin in a central square in Sudzha, in the Kursk region of western Russia, on Aug. 16. Ukrainian troops say they've taken control of Sudzha, one of more than 80 towns and villages they've captured since a cross-border invasion of Russia on Aug. 6.-/AP

KYIV, Ukraine — The front line in the Russia-Ukraine war stretches for more than 600 miles. Yet roughly speaking, it breaks down into three separate fronts — in Ukraine's north, east and south — which are all playing out differently.

The latest front is just across Ukraine's northern border, where Ukrainian troops carried out a surprise invasion into Russian territory on Aug. 6, and are solidifying their positions two weeks after that breakthrough.

Ukraine invasion — explained
Ukrainian forces attack a second border region in western Russia

In eastern Ukraine, Russian forces are making steady advances and are closing in on a town that's crucial for Ukraine's military supply lines.

And in the south, in the Black Sea, Ukraine has delivered an ongoing series of powerful blows to the Russian navy and carved out a channel that allows it to export its wheat and other agricultural products.

Here's a closer look at all three.

In the north, a "buffer zone"

Ukraine said over the weekend it knocked out two bridges that cross the Seym River in western Russia, rendering them useless.
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This cuts off key transportation routes that Russia could have used to send reinforcements into the Kursk region, with the intent of driving out the Ukrainian forces that have been taking and holding ground for the past two weeks.

However, it also suggests Ukraine is adopting a defensive position and is not looking to advance deeper into Russia, at least in this area.

In video remarks Sunday night, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine was trying to keep Russia away from the border region it has used to stage attacks against Ukraine.

"The creation of a buffer zone on the aggressor's territory is our operation in the Kursk region," Zelenskyy said.

In May, the Russians attempted to advance on the city Kharkiv, just 20 miles inside Ukraine. Ukraine halted the Russian ground offensive, though the city and surrounding areas still come under frequent Russian airstrikes with glide bombs that are difficult to defend against.

Ukraine invasion — explained
Ukraine's Kharkiv has withstood Russia's relentless strikes. Locals fear what's next

After lightning advances in the first few days of its incursion, Ukraine's forces inside Russia have been making only limited gains in the past week. Ukraine is still providing limited details of the operation, but Zelenskyy, military analysts and a range of media reports indicate Ukrainian forces are solidifying their positions.

Ukraine's military says it has taken more than 80 villages and towns and now controls more than 400 square miles in the Kursk region. Those figures cannot be independently confirmed.

The Ukrainians have captured, at minimum, several hundred Russian troops. Ukraine's military allowed journalists to see more than 300 Russian prisoners of war who have been moved across the border and placed in a Ukrainian prison.

Meanwhile, Russia has not yet mounted a significant counterattack. Russian officials says additional troops are on the way, and Russian television has shown columns of troops and equipment heading to Kursk.

But so far, the fighting appears limited to mostly small-scale clashes. The Russians appear to be drawing their forces from other parts of Russia — and not from front-line troops already fighting inside Ukraine.

One of Ukraine's goals with the incursion into Russia is to draw Russian forces away from the front line in eastern Ukraine, but there's no evidence this has happened on any significant scale so far.

In Russia, President Vladimir Putin has not commented on the Ukrainian invasion for the past week, and made a visit Monday to Azerbaijan.

Smoke billows above a bridge on the Seym River in Russia's western region of Kursk. Ukraine's military released the footage on Sunday, saying this was the second bridge on the river it has destroyed in recent days. The bridge could have been a route for Russia to send in reinforcements to the area, where Ukrainian troops invaded Russia on Aug. 6.Ukrainian Armed Forces/via AP
In the east, Russian troops close in on a key town

Eastern Ukraine is still the main battlefront. The Russians claimed the capture of another small town Monday and are now less than 10 miles from the town of Pokrovsk.

Pokrovsk is a transportation hub that Ukraine uses to send troops and supplies to its front-line positions in the east. If the Russians take the town, Ukraine will have a tougher time supporting forces that are already outnumbered and outgunned.

For the past several days, Ukrainian officials have been urging civilians in Pokrovsk to evacuate to safer areas.

"With every passing day there is less and less time to collect personal belongings and leave for safer regions," local officials in Pokrovsk said in a recent statement.

Throughout the war, Ukraine has had a shortage of troops in the east. By sending thousands of its troops into Russia, Ukraine could be even more vulnerable in areas where it's struggling to stop Russian advances.

Weapons packages from the U.S. and European states are arriving, but not fast enough, according to Zelenskyy.

"We need to speed up the supply from our partners," Zelenskyy said in his Sunday night remarks. "There are no holidays in war. We need solutions, we need timely logistics of announced [weapons] packages. I am especially appealing now to the United States, Great Britain, and France."

In the Black Sea, Ukraine creates an export channel

One of Ukraine's biggest successes over the past year has been driving back the Russian navy in the Black Sea and establishing a shipping channel so it can again export grain and other agricultural products to world markets.

Russia dominated the Black Sea and blocked Ukrainian exports after its full-scale invasion in 2022. A subsequent deal that allowed limited Ukrainian exports fell apart last summer.

But Ukraine has found its own solution. Ukraine has fired missiles from land, hitting Russian ships that ventured too near the coast, and Ukraine also has developed its own sea drones to attack Russian vessels.

Retired U.S. Adm. Jame Foggo, who worked alongside the Ukrainian Navy in the Black Sea a decade ago, said the sea drones point to Ukraine's naval ingenuity.

"They're jet skis with explosives packed on them," said Foggo, who now heads the Center for Maritime Strategy in Arlington, Va. "They have some kind of remote control from some kind of command center. I don't know what kind of radio control they have on these things, but they're pretty darn good."

The Ukrainian missile and sea drone attacks have forced Russian ships to retreat from the western half of the Black Sea, opening the channel along the western coast for Ukrainian exports.

Ukraine announced last week that it's been one year since this option became available, and 2,300 cargo ships have used the route, an average of more than six a day. Ukraine also says it's approaching its prewar exports of wheat and other farm products at around 5 million tons a month.
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Foggo called this a remarkable achievement.

"The Ukrainians, without a floating navy, have been able to destroy about one-third of the [Russian] Black Sea fleet," or about 25 ships and submarines. "That's absolutely amazing," he said.

Gay man says he was assaulted by Shake Shack workers after kissing boyfriend in line

Video of the assault appears to show Christian Dingus, 28, being shoved and punched in the head by Shake Shack workers

Andrea Cavallier
AUG 19, 2024

Shake Shack employees accused of assaulting gay man who kissed his boyfriend in line

A gay man claimed a group of Shake Shack workers beat him up after he kissed his boyfriend while they waited in line for their order at the fast food establishment in Washington, DC.

Christian Dingus, 28, told NBC News that the violent encounter happened inside the chain’s Dupont Circle location on Saturday night.

After putting in their order, Dingus asked an employee where their food was and said the response he got was “aggressive,” NBC4 reported. He said his partner pulled him aside in an effort to try to defuse the situation. The pair continued to wait in line and began to kiss, Dingus explained.

“And while we were back there — kind of briefly — we began to kiss,” Dingus said. “And at that point, a worker came out to us and said that, you know, you can’t be doing that here, can’t do that type of stuff here.”

Video of the alleged assault appears to show Christian Dingus, 28, being shoved and punched in the head by Shake Shack workers (NBC News)

The couple stopped kissing, but Dingus said his partner got more upset and told the employee they had done nothing wrong. The employee then escorted his partner outside where the verbal argument escalated.

Dingus said that’s when he followed them outside and ended up stepping in between his partner and the worker in another attempt to defuse the situation.

“At that point, immediately, without a second, the worker just turned on me, starting attacking me,” Dingus said. “At that point, I think there might have been two or three other workers as well, threw me to the ground. I didn’t fight back at all — immediately just kind of went into the fetal position to protect myself.”

Harrowing video of the alleged assault taken by a Shake Shack patron through the window of the restaurant shows a man being shoved and punched in the head by several people wearing Shake Shack shirts.

“There was a desire to be violent towards me, and I think it’s very evident in that film,” Dingus told NBC News.

After the attack, Dingus was taken to the emergency room where he had a concussion and trauma to his jaw, he said. He also had swelling and bruising on his face.

The incident is being investigated as a hate crime, according to the Metropolitan Police Department, who has classified the offense alleged by Dingus as a simple assault, with an anti-gay bias motivation. No arrests have been made.

“You hear all the time that this stuff happens, but, you know, I started kind of believing that it didn’t, right?” Dingus said. “I’ve been ... thinking of progress and how great that community is here, and then for that all to kind of be shattered, you know, kind of sucks.”

A Shake Shack spokesperson told NBC News that the employees allegedly involved have been suspended pending further review and that the company is cooperating with authorities.

“At Shake Shack, the safety and well-being of our guests and team members are our top priorities, and we have a zero-tolerance policy for any form of violence,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

“We are aware of the incident on Saturday, Aug. 17 involving team members and a guest at our Dupont Circle location and are taking it very seriously.”

Young People Must Be ‘Full-fledged Partners in All Decisions That Shape the Future’, Deputy Secretary-General Tells World Scout Conference

18 August 2024

Following are UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed’s remarks to the forty-third World Scout Conference Intergenerational Town Hall on Trends of the World, in Cairo today:

It’s a great pleasure to deliver this keynote at such an important session on the trends of the world. The first trend coming to my mind are the increasingly complex challenges our world faces. There are more conflicts than at any time since the Second World War. Our planet is suffering the deadly effects of climate change. We have lost trust in our institutions, and one another.

This trend is no more positive when it comes to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Only 17 per cent of the Sustainable Development Goals’ targets are on track, with nearly half showing minimal progress, and worse still, over one third of the SDGs have stalled or even gotten worse.

Gender equality is a litmus test for how far off our goals we really are: at the current rate of progress, it may take another 12 generations to achieve gender equality. Our world simply cannot wait that long.

The second trend that I am seeing is about youth. Over the last 30 years, very little has changed in terms of youth representation in politics.  Young people are not often enough in the rooms where important decisions are being made.

More than half of the world’s population is under 30. Yet, less than 3 per cent of members of Parliament are under 30. With young women making up less than 1 per cent of members of Parliament. Despite global commitments to improving education outcomes, reducing violence and increasing employment rates, many young people remain out of school, unemployed and vulnerable to extreme forms of sexual and gender-based violence.

Indeed, we cannot renegotiate the world of tomorrow on our terms without the input of young people, when the world of tomorrow will belong to young people. We need to reverse these trends. Through one of our initiatives at the United Nations, the Spotlight Initiative to end violence against women and girls, we have witnessed first hand how young people are building a more equitable world where everyone can live free from violence.

Through creative self-expression, peer-to-peer learning, advocacy and digital technology, more than 8 million young people and activists around the world are driving meaningful and sustainable change and creating a better future for all. Your generation can be the one to end violence against women and girls by starting in the home.

Your three impact statements align perfectly with this vision, articulating exactly what we need to accelerate progress over the next decade: a peaceful, inclusive and sustainable world that is shaped by its young people. They represent a pressing call to action that all of us should heed. And they inspire us to consider a new way for youth participation.

Participation that is diverse and inclusive: They call for all initiatives to be inclusive of young people in meaningful ways and in all their diversity.

Participation that is accessible and safe: The participation of young people needs to be fully accessible and safe. Promoting peace, preventing violence or defending human rights cannot come at the cost of young people’s lives and security any longer.

Participation that is meaningful: Young people must be engaged in meaningful and effective ways, as full-fledged partners in all decisions that shape the future. From conceptualization to implementation, and monitoring and evaluation. It means co-creation from beginning to end.

These impact statements are an excellent path forward, but we also need a mindset shift. It’s time to let go of social and cultural beliefs that portray young people as inexperienced and indecisive.   You, as Scouts, are the perfect examples of young change-makers leading efforts to combat the world’s most pressing challenges.

The World Organization of Scout Movements is one of the most important youth movements in the world. You put youth empowerment first. You encourage global solidarity in the face of our greatest challenges. You work hard in your communities for the 2023 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals. Above all, you are the flagbearers for the timeless values of responsibility, diversity and being a force for positive change in the world.

More than ever, we need structures and platforms like the Scouts Movement to actively advocate for a world in which the human rights of every young person are realized. A world that ensures every young person is empowered to achieve their full potential. A world that recognizes young people’s agency, resilience and positive contributions as agents of change.

Young people are often the minds behind the greatest outside-of-the-box thinking. And we need those ideas and innovations to help restore faith in institutions. The upcoming Summit of the Future is an important opportunity to mend eroded trust and reform multilateralism.

I was deeply inspired by the 2024 United Nations Civil Society Conference in support of the Summit of the Future that gathered last May in Nairobi where many excellent ideas were on display. Almost half of the more than 2,100 participants were under the age of 34.

Young people spoke, and the message was unmistakable: the youth of today are contributing, are deeply interested, and must have a say in the future we are shaping. Now it is time to listen.

The Road from Fascism

BENJAMIN CREMEL/AFP via Getty Images

Aug 19, 2024

YANIS VAROUFAKIS

Once fascism is in the air, it is pointless to pander to xenophobia, as liberals do when they embrace an anti-immigrant agenda, or to rail against austerity, as leftists do. Neither issue is what is really fueling far-right extremism, which is good news for progressives.

ATHENS – The recent riots in the United Kingdom have demonstrated, yet again, the inability of liberals and leftists to figure out how to appeal to working class people who are attracted by the far right. Once fascism is in the air, it is pointless to pander to xenophobia, as liberals do when they embrace an anti-immigrant agenda, or to rail against austerity, as leftists do. To deal with Britain’s rioters, and similar mobs across Europe and the United States, progressives must first commit to not abandoning them.

My shocking introduction to the fascist mindset happened three decades ago, when Kapnias, an aging Greek peasant, decided to educate me. His twisted insights, though revolting, still hold clues for places like northern England, eastern Germany, and America’s Midwest.

Kapnias had grown up dirt poor, a semi-bonded farmhand in a Peloponnesian village dominated by his landowner boss – a liberal patriarch who, during the Nazi occupation, was a British intelligence asset, his house functioning as a hub of the resistance. Watching British officers who had parachuted in enter the farmhouse, sometimes accompanied by bearded communist partisans, Kapnias knew that something was afoot – something he was unceremoniously excluded from.

“I was an untouchable,” Kapnias told me. “Until my white angel touched me,” he added, while proudly placing in my hand a leather-bound volume in an advanced state of disrepair: a 1934 edition of Mein Kampf that his Gestapo instructor, his “white angel,” had given him as a parting gift during the final stages of the occupation. Savoring my revulsion, he proceeded to explain his hatred for the Allies.

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“Their arrogance, their self-importance, their hubris led myriads to their death,” he said. Even before enlisting in a unit of collaborators, where he encountered his white angel, hatred drove him.

Sure, had Kapnias been better off, he might not have succumbed to the lure of Nazism. But poverty does not explain why he collaborated when most boys from his village, no less disadvantaged, joined the Resistance. When marginalization combines with deprivation, a certain type of person falls headlong into a moral void. Like Kapnias, they become susceptible to the perverse logic of a super race whose time has come.

When I raised the Nazi massacres of his own people, Kapnias would have none of it. For him, it was the British, his Greek boss, and the leftists who brought carnage to the land – a word I did not hear being used with such gusto again until Donald Trump deployed it in his inaugural address in 2017. When I pushed him to comment further on the Nazi murders of hundreds in a nearby town, it was his cue elatedly to proclaim:

“Real men eliminate those who stand in their way, and thus survive. And if they die, through their death they accept their unfitness to live. My white angels were above God. Unlike the Italians, the British, or our own mob, they did not hesitate to use any means. No wincing! No fear! No passion! No love! No hatred! You had to see them with your own eyes. They were magnificent!”

As he spoke, his face lit up, my pained reaction to every word filling his heart with pleasure. The British flashmobs who rioted against immigrants, supporters of Germany’s Alternative für Deutschland, and the resurgent American white supremacists may not be as vocal or articulate in their fascism, but they come from the same psychic place, and we can draw four lessons from their example.

First, fascist violence is a recruitment tool. Its chief purpose is to outrage us so that we denounce them and demand violent police action and long prison sentences. That is how they gain recruits who, Kapnias-like, delight in watching their anger infect us.

Second, fascists are not community defenders or builders. They talk a good game about ruined communities but the closest they get to community-building is riots and social-media threads that evoke, but never satisfy, people’s hunger for community.

Third, while fascism breeds on a bed of austerity, fascists will never rail against austerity. Austerity has no face, unlike Jews or Muslim asylum seekers. And fascism needs faces as focal points of the violent hatred that drives it.

Fourth, immigrants are irrelevant. As Kapnias taught me, fascists happily embrace foreigners as their white angels, including those, like Elon Musk or Donald Trump, who boast the kind of exorbitant wealth that they claim to decry. Even if there are no brown faces or newcomers around, fascists will conjure some Other to focus their hatred on.

These four lessons suggest what we must avoid. For starters, when governments and mainstream parties adopt an anti-immigration “lite” agenda, fascists smell blood in the water, and their appetite for cruelty explodes. Similarly, those who treat fascists like victims of austerity, poor education, or bad luck only make them angrier. Telling them that anti-Semitism or Islamophobia are the fool’s anti-capitalism (though correct) works no better.

So, what must we do? The answer, I suggest, also comes from Britain, in the form of Ken Loach’s most recent film The Old Oak, written by Paul Laverty. When a group of Syrian refugees is deposited in the midst of a ruined northern English town, a publican and a refugee succeed in defusing the clash between the new arrivals and the wretched locals whom deindustrialization and austerity made susceptible to the fascist mindset. Under the slogan “eating together, sticking together,” they set up a communal dining hall where no fascist trope is tolerated, but no one is harangued, demeaned, or attacked, either.

The Old Oak’s moral clarity, and its testament to the power of solidarity, is as good a contemporary guide as any on how to stop victims from turning against each other. Its message is universal: there is nothing inevitable about resurgent fascism.

YANIS VAROUFAKIS
Writing for PS since 2015

Yanis Varoufakis, a former finance minister of Greece, is leader of the MERA25 party and Professor of Economics at the University of Athens.

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