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Beijing has vowed to seize “strategic opportunities” and further raise its “international influence, appeal and power” to shape a rapidly changing world by strengthening Communist Party control of foreign affairs and standing firm against “bullying” and “hegemonism” from the West. At a rare closed-door party meeting about China’s future foreign policy direction that concluded on Continue reading »

Gibran Rakabuming Raka is smarter than his stolid Dad Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo, President of our huge neighbour since 2014. As Vice President Gibran could be a positive change agent – but that demands missionary zeal and the guts to challenge his dangerous leader. Does he have The Right Stuff? In the lead-up to the 14 Continue reading »

With QUAD and maybe JAUKUS, Japan is anxious to recruit us and others as spear carriers against China. The anti-China cause is long standing in Japan. China suffered greatly at the hands of the brutal Japanese military in the 1930s and the 1940s. Twenty million Chinese died and a large part of the country was Continue reading »

In Gaza, the 16 year old ghetto of two million people that Israel created, it seems that we are looking at Israel’s own hideous “final solution” with their collective punishment of a whole civilian population, their catastrophic genocidal practices and their mass ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians. After decades of a systematic, sustained and strategic Continue reading »

How News Corp used fear, manipulation and division to campaign against the Indigenous Voice to Parliament. HOLDING NEWS CORP ACCOUNTABLE TO BUILD A BETTER MEDIA LANDSCAPE The defeat of the Voice to Parliament was a dark moment in Australian politics. This loss cannot, of course, be attributed to the actions of News Corp alone. However, Continue reading »

If a recent Production List posting is accurate, then Russell T. Davies's Doctor Who "Whoniverse" might begin further expanding this March.

“I’ve been to pretty much any conflict,” the World Food Program’s chief economist said. “And I have never seen anything like this, both in terms of its scale, its magnitude, but also at the pace that this has unfolded.” With roughly 90% of Gaza residents displaced and seeking safety from Israel’s bombardment and ground attacks, crowding Continue reading »

Despite a reputation for violent over-reaction in Palestinian affairs, the Israeli reaction has astonished and confused the world. The atrocities committed on 7 October 2023 by the military wing of Hamas, exceed in scale, intensity and barbarity anything previously done in Israel or Palestine. Despite its enduring cruelty, nothing in the Israeli treatment of the Continue reading »

Rep. Ilhan Omar introduced the resolutions in an effort to hold the countries accountable for human rights abuses.

The post New Bills Aim to Block U.S. Arms Sales to Saudi Arabia, UAE Amid Concerns of Regional Conflict appeared first on The Intercept.

It’s not because he thinks he’s losing The new year is off to a strong start with two weeks to go to the first primaries, more debates for second place in the offing and legal filings dropping in the Trump cases day and night. And we’re only three days in. I hope everyone got themselves a good rest over the holidays because there’s going to be no time to catch your breath between now and election day next November. The games have officially begun. The Republicans primaries look to be gelling exactly as predicted. The weak and tepid Trump opposition hasn’t been able to get any real traction despite hundreds of millions of dollars being spent. The race for second place is between Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former S. Carolina Gov. It’s clear that Trump is still the leader of the party and, as predicted, will almost certainly get the nomination. There have been a number of articles in recent days taking a look at his campaign. The Washington Post published a long piece about how he “reignited his base and took control of the Republican primary” which ends up concluding that he never really lost the base in the first place.

Retired NASA astronaut Nicole Stott on her revelations from orbit.

The post A Call to Action for Earthlings appeared first on Nautilus.

In recent times, there has been a growing interest in institutionalist trends and research within economics. Traditional explanations and analyses have seemed to have little or no value. Abstract and unrealistic theories have increasingly been replaced by historically grounded ones. Institutional and structural elements in the economy are highlighted, replacing overly short-term and model-based variables. […]

Hamlet never imagined this It’s long seemed as if this country is suffering a severe case of mass insanity. The truth is out there. It is more than QAnon, but please see that obligatory nonsense at the bottom later. The occasion for revisiting societal mental breakdown is a couple of headlines this morning. This will take a moment. Texas doctors do not need to perform emergency abortions, court rules (Washington Post) A federal appeals court on Tuesday ruled that Texas hospitals and doctors are not obligated to perform abortions under a long-standing national emergency-care law, dealing a blow to the White House’s strategy to ensure access to the procedure after the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to abortion in 2022. The federal law “does not mandate any specific type of medical treatment, let alone abortion,” the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit concluded, faulting the Biden administration’s interpretation of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA. The law “does not govern the practice of medicine,” the court added.

Tottenham Tories have falsely claimed the murder rate in London is higher than New York.

BBC responded to those who complained about the inclusion of Yasmin Finney's transgender character Rose Noble in Doctor Who "The Star Beast."

If you don’t know, you don’t care From Civil Discourse with Joyce Vance, A Warning: One morning before Christmas, I was working out with a friend who I adore, and workout with regularly. She’s young, smart, and a recent college graduate. In the middle of our session, my phone started going off incessantly and I finally picked it up. It was, of course, breaking news. That day, it was about the Giuliani bankruptcy. I apologized to her for taking the call. I got off quickly and told her, by way of explanation, “Rudy Giuliani just filed for bankruptcy.” “Who’s Rudy Giuliani?” she asked. Vance realizes that her friend born after 9/11 has no idea that Giuliani was once “America’s Mayor.” And has no reason to know. I decided to get a gut check from my 21-year-old. “Do you know who Rudy Giuliani is?” I asked. He rolled his eyes. Of course he does. He reminded me he’s my son. But then, he schooled me on how it works for his generation. College kids, or most of them, don’t watch TV news or read newspapers. They get it from their social media feeds. Intellectually I know this.

The considerable upcoming reduction in spending calls into question the Government's 'Living with COVID’ strategy

Nearly £1m was spent by Sellafield and its regulator fighting a whistleblower who raised concerns about workplace culture at the vast nuclear site

Despite claims President Vukic's party 'stole the vote' in recent elections, the West seems to be placing stability in the Balkans over democratic legitimacy

In today's BCTV Daily Dispatch: Jimmy Kimmel/Aaron Rodgers, FOX Business/Green Day, Echo, Doctor Who, CNN/Donald Trump, Ren & Stimpy and more!

Our 6th most-read article of 2023.

Originally published August 21, 2023.

Welcome to Mary Oliver Garden, home of Italian-adjacent cuisine and poignant observations about the human condition as it intersects with the natural world.

As you can tell from our name, we invite you to step across the threshold of ordinary life into a world of exquisite writing, spiritual luminescence, and fried lasagna.

My name is Blair, and I’ll be your server today. To start, I have just one question: What will you do with your one wild and precious appetizer Toasted ravioli? Excellent choice. That’s one of my faves—a tender prayer of cheese embraced by crispy breadcrumbs, bringing gentle solace amid what nourishes us.