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For most of the Gaza “war” official civilian casualty numbers were in the mid tens of thousands. They rose quickly at first, then they rose slowly, which was odd, because as time went by there were fewer and fewer hospitals, less food, less clean water, less medicine and less of Gaza that wasn’t rubble. There was every reason to expect the death toll to accelerate.

It now seems like the death toll is around four hundred thousand, perhaps higher, out of an initial population of 2.2 to 2.3 million.

The official numbers were offered by Hamas and they were obviously wrong, on the face of it. I don’t entirely know why, but there are some likely possibilities:

As Trump attacks foreign spending on “woke” initiatives, a GOP-aligned outfit has largely escaped scrutiny, despite using taxpayer funds to sponsor “transgender dance performances” and what it called the “largest published survey of LGBTI people in Bangladesh.”  According to documents obtained by The Grayzone, the US-funded International Republican Institute sees gay and transgender people as uniquely disruptive actors who can be deployed to manipulate political realities overseas, stating, “LGBTI people tend to participate in social change activities to eventually bring […]

The post Why did Republicans fund ‘transgender dance’ in Bangladesh? first appeared on The Grayzone.

The post Why did Republicans fund ‘transgender dance’ in Bangladesh? appeared first on The Grayzone.

The Oregon Zoo has an adorable new baby: The long wait is over. After more than 20 months of pregnancy, Rose-Tu, a 30-year-old Asian elephant at the Oregon Zoo, gave birth at 4:29 p.m. Saturday afternoon. Staff are keeping their distance to give the pair time to bond, but the calf appears to be a healthy, strong female, weighing in the vicinity of 200 pounds. “We couldn’t be happier with how everything is going so far,” said Steve Lefave, who oversees the zoo’s elephant program. “This was one of the smoothest births I’ve ever seen. Rose knew just what to do. She helped her baby up right away. The kid was standing on her own within 15 minutes and took her first steps soon after that.” Zoo staff had been on baby watch since Jan. 29, when Rose-Tu’s progesterone levels dropped to near zero, indicating labor should begin soon. Rose experienced early labor throughout the day on Feb. 1 and began showing signs of active labor a little after 3 p.m. Veterinary staff have yet to conduct their first check-up, but once Rose and her calf are ready, they’ll weigh the baby and confirm its sex.

Source - Patreon

Source - Patreon

Source - Patreon

Adventure therapy takes on the challenge of helping war-torn families

The post Ukrainian War Widows on the Edge appeared first on Nautilus.

There are many pleasures for students of the Catholic Church in Conclave—which recently received eight...

Tax cuts, what else? Yesterday Trump unveiled his priorities for his tax bill. Everyone needs to understand what’s going on here. It’s a massive tax giveaway to the rich and powerful, financed by deadly cuts to programs like Medicare and the ACA that help regular people. I explain it here — Chris Murphy Yesterday Trump unveiled his priorities for his tax bill. Everyone needs to understand what's going on here. It's a massive tax giveaway to the rich and powerful, financed by deadly cuts to programs like Medicare and the ACA that help regular people. I explain it here. pic.twitter.com/DmZ5undJF0 — Chris Murphy 🟧 (@ChrisMurphyCT) February 7, 2025 This is why they need to eradicate as much government spending as they can. Musk and the boys need their tax cuts and Trump wants to deliver on his promises: Obviously, this is just a wingnuts wet dream. But you can bet that the tax cuts for the wealthy and the corporations will go through on a party line vote no matter what. They always do. The big question is how much they’re going to take out of the hides of the rest of us to make it happen.

The bay where kelp gulls are killing off baby whales

The post Death by a Thousand Pecks appeared first on Nautilus.

Surprise! Now why do you think they’d do that? On Wednesday evening, one day into her tenure as U.S. attorney general, Pam Bondi announced the end of the Kleptocracy Initiative, launched by the Justice Department in 2010 to battle high-level corruption worldwide and return ill-gotten funds to victims of financial crimes. The former Florida attorney general and legal counsel to President Trump during his first impeachment trial, who spent the last several years as a corporate lobbyist, also closed the KleptoCapture task force, created under AG Merrick Garland in 2022 to target Russian oligarchs violating U.S. economic sanctions imposed because of Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine. Through the initiative, the DOJ has prosecuted frauds worth billions, recovering embezzled funds and seizing assets like megayachts and luxury condos.

Biden increased transparency around the risks of chemical disaster — industry lobbyists just asked Trump’s new EPA chief Lee Zeldin to roll that back.

Wildfires are terrifying. They are especially gobsmackingly horrible when you add in hurricane-style winds. I will never forget the day of the Marshall Fire when my daughter stepped out of the car and literally blew down the street, forcing us to race after her and catch her. In those environments, it’s easy to see how […]

Former followers of the ‘Dark Enlightenment’ say a planned 'neo-reactionary' hollowing out of government is happening in real time

At least five federal agencies that have investigated Musk companies had their inspectors general axed by Trump.

The word “Orwellian” is overused but this is actually Orwellian. 404 Media reports: While responding to the most damaging wildfires in the history of California, FEMA employees received an order “for immediate compliance” this week that states they must immediately change their vocabulary to comply with the Trump Administration’s preferred terminology on gender and immigration.  For example, FEMA employees are no longer allowed to call undocumented immigrants “migrants” or “undocumented individuals,” they must instead call them “undocumented aliens or illegal aliens.” FEMA can no longer refer to the idea of “integration,” it must begin to say “assimilation.”  The subject line of the email was “For Immediate Compliance.” “While the chart presents examples of terminology that should be replaced, it should not be considered to be comprehensive, particularly in the immigration space. Please consult your program counsel for additional language if you are unsure,” the email says. It’s happening all over the government.

"NFL to remove ‘End Racism’ messaging in end zone ahead of Super Bowl. — New York Times

We at the NFL have been committed to racial justice ever since the George Floyd protests brought renewed criticism of our treatment of Colin Kaepernick. This is why we began proudly displaying the slogan “End Racism” in the end zones of games in 2021.

That said, for this year’s Super Bowl, we’ve decided to switch to broader, all-encompassing slogans like “Choose Love” and “It Takes All of Us.” We assure you this change has nothing to do with President Trump attending the big game; it is simply about acknowledging a more inclusive range of perspectives. Here’s a breakdown of why we chose the new slogans and a look at some of the other slogans we’ll be rolling out soon.

In the period since 7 October 2023, serious questions have arisen as to whether the Australian Government is properly discharging its obligations under international law in light of Israel’s devastation of Gaza, invasion of Lebanon and the escalation of settler violence in the illegally occupied West Bank. In November 2024, Senators Lidia Thorpe and Fatima Continue reading »

In Asian media this week: Xi thanks Bangkok for strong action against online rackets. Plus: Myanmar civil war is world’s third-worst conflict; Confirmation bias behind markets’ DeepSeek shock; China advances its military technology; Allies must adapt to ‘fundamental’ US changes; Cambodia confirms it is free press desert. Thailand has cut off power, fuel supplies and Continue reading »

With the election still somewhere between eight and 14 weeks away, it is too early to get much of a guide from the opinion polls about the probable outcome – except that a majority Liberal-National Party Government, the result most favoured by those who have already punted their money on the result with the various Continue reading »