Category: International Affairs,

Trump Praises Africa for Making “So Many Friends” Rich 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Africa,, Domestic Affairs,, Money, Class, and Poverty,Leave a comment

…Naturally, his praise quickly took on a vaguely colonialist tone.

“I have so many friends going to your countries to get rich,” he actually said to them, adding that “six of the world‘s 10 fastest growing economies are in Africa.” Perhaps getting himself a little too worked up about all the ways in which Africa poses an opportunity for his close personal friends to further enrich themselves, the president referred to a country called “Nambia,” which has the unique distinction of not existing.

…In fairness to Trump, we should probably award him partial credit for refraining from telling the group “I love Africa. Great colonialism. Excellent mineral extraction opportunities,” which we can only assume was how the first draft of his speech began.

Trump Praises Africa for Making “So Many Friends” Rich | Vanity Fair

Jeezus….

India calls Pakistan ‘Terroristan’ in UN speech row 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Southern Central Asia,Leave a comment

In his speech [Pakistan’s] PM Shahid Khaqan Abbasi accused India of “war crimes” in the disputed Kashmir region and of “exporting terror” to Pakistan.

…In his speech Mr Abbasi addressed the issue of the Afghan war, saying Pakistan refused to be a “scapegoat” for the conflict. The US accuses the Pakistani intelligence services of ties to militants who operate in Afghanistan, allegations Pakistan rejects.

On Kashmir, the Pakistani leader accused India of employing “massive and indiscriminate force” against civilians protesting against Delhi’s rule.

“Shotgun pellets have blinded and maimed thousands of Kashmiris, including children. These and other brutalities clearly constitute war crimes and violate the Geneva conventions,” he said.

He also asked the UN to appoint a special envoy to oversee the region.

Exercising the right of reply, Eenam Gambhir, India’s first secretary to the UN, said it was “extraordinary that the state which protected Osama Bin Laden and sheltered Mullah Omar should have the gumption to play the victim”.

“Pakistan is now Terroristan with a flourishing industry producing and exporting global terrorism,” the envoy said.

India calls Pakistan ‘Terroristan’ in UN speech row – BBC News

hmmmm

Trudeau confronts Canada’s failure of indigenous people in U.N. speech

On By peanutgallerynhIn The Americas,Leave a comment

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday admitted Canada had failed its indigenous people and told the United Nations his government would do better to improve the lives of aboriginals and achieve reconciliation.

Trudeau used his speech to the U.N. General Assembly to frankly acknowledge the dark history of Canada’s colonization as one of “humiliation, neglect and abuse” and promised to do more to help the nation’s 1.4 million indigenous people.

…“Though this path is uncharted, I am confident that we will reach a place of reconciliation,” Trudeau later added.

…indigenous Canadians, who make up about 4 percent of the population and face higher levels of poverty and violence and shorter life expectancies.

Canada’s national inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women has been hit by resignations and complaints it is progressing too slowly.

…Many aboriginal communities do not have access to safe drinking water, and suicides have plagued several isolated communities.

…Acknowledging Canada’s attempt to force assimilation through residential schooling and other repressive policies, Trudeau called the living conditions aboriginals face “the legacy of colonialism in Canada.”

Trudeau confronts Canada’s failure of indigenous people in U.N. speech

hmmm

Rohingya crisis: Bangladesh’s Sheikh Hasina at UNGA proposes creation of safe zone in Myanmar

On By peanutgallerynhIn Southern Central Asia,Leave a comment

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday proposed creating “safe zones” inside Myanmar, supervised by the United Nations, to protect the Rohingya Muslims who are fleeing violence in Rakhine state, AFP reported. According to the international body, more than 4,20,000 Rohingya refugees have fled to Bangladesh since August 25, when fresh violence erupted in Myanmar.

“These people must be able to return to their homeland in safety, security and dignity,” Hasina told the UN General Assembly.

She also called on the international community to take immediate measures to find a permanent solution to the Rohingya crisis. She further urged the UN to send a fact-finding mission to Myanmar. The Bangladeshi leader demanded the full implementation of the Kofi Annan Commission report that recommends citizenship for the Rohingyas.

…The Bangladeshi prime minister accused the security forces of Myanmar of laying landmines on the border to prevent the refugees from returning. She called on the Myanmar government to end the violence in Rakhine state “immediately and forever.”

Rohingyas have been denied citizenship in Myanmar, and are classified as illegal immigrants, despite them claiming roots going back centuries in the country. The community has been subjected to violence by the Buddhist majority and the Army in Myanmar. 

Rohingya crisis: Bangladesh’s Sheikh Hasina at UNGA proposes creation of safe zone in Myanmar

hmmm

Myanmar’s Suu Kyi condemns abuses in Rakhine but silent on army role

On By peanutgallerynhIn Southern Central Asia,Leave a comment

Myanmar’s Suu Kyi condemns abuses in Rakhine but silent on army role

Hmmmm…

I wonder what the current relationship between Suu Kyi and the military is. They are the ones who controlled the government that imprisoned her, yes? And they control large parts of the government still, correct?

I’m curious as to what -if anything at all- they have said to her will happen if she throws them under the bus.

Iceland Has Nearly Eradicating Down Syndrome Births – Some Offer A Typically American Response (Unsophisticated, Un-nuanced, Holier-Than-Thou, Eschewing Reason, Logic, and the Valuation of Women’s Lives in Favor of Heavy Handed Religious Guilt, Not Grounded in Anything Like a Holy Text But Stemming From Four Decades of Politically Rooted Culture Wars ) 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Chick Stuff,, Europe,, Media and Culture,Leave a comment

Iceland seems to be leading the world in the eradication of Down syndrome; on average, only one or two babies suffering from the condition are born in the nation of 330,000 each year. 

…Cognitive impairments resulting from Down syndrome can range from mild to severe, and deadly physical anomalies are also often associated with the disease. Roughly half of all those who suffer from Down syndrome have serious health conditions, including potentially deadly congenital heart defects. The life expectancy of those afflicted with the syndrome is roughly 60 years, and many require specialized medical care for the entire duration of their lives.

…Down syndrome is often not discovered until late in the 2nd trimester, which can pose a legal and ethical dilemma for some expectant mothers. However, Iceland allows for the termination of pregnancies after 16 weeks in cases of fetal deformity, including Down syndrome.

Only a couple of babies with Down syndrome are born during an average year in Iceland, and in many of those few instances it is because parents get incorrect genetic screening results. In the United States, roughly 6,000 Down syndrome babies are born annually.

…When genetic abnormalities, including Down syndrome, are discovered, Helga Sol Olafsdottir (also of Landspitali University Hospital) helps to counsel the pregnant women in the midst of crisis. She tells those feeling guilty over their decision to terminate that “this is their life.”

…Women in Iceland who choose to terminate Down syndrome fetus are given a prayer card following the procedure. The tiny memento includes the termination date and the footprints of the terminated fetus, a practice that is confusing to [anti-womens’ empowerment] activists in America, many of whom [are intellectually and emotionally shallow enough to] consider terminating a pregnancy to be tantamount to murder.

Iceland Under Fire Over Controversial Method Of Nearly Eradicating Down Syndrome Births

It is satisfying to re-title clickbait…

NAFTA: The view from a mind-bogglingly massive Mexican marketHerald

On By peanutgallerynhIn Money, Class, and Poverty,, The Americas,Leave a comment

Avocado is on such a winning streak one merchant feels invincible in the face of Donald Trump. Rene Torres says a case of avocados that sold for as little as $13 a few years ago now costs $97.

…Oscar Moherano says he’s worried about what the end of NAFTA would mean to his market.

“The product would drop,” he said. “We’d be producing here with no other place to sell it.”

But these successes don’t tell the full NAFTA story. In fact, for agriculture, it’s been mostly negative. While salaries have gone up in industrial sectors like auto production, traditional farmers have been steamrolled by American competitors.

Margarita Rodriguez Lopez runs an association of farmers at the market. She says specialty products like avocados and papayas have thrived under NAFTA, but there have been sad stories in other sectors.

…Men in cowboy hats overseeing a corn delivery express opinions, discreetly. 

Mexico’s corn producers have been devastated under NAFTA. Imports have surged nearly tenfold from the more productive U.S. As much as manufacturing communities have gained, Mexico’s traditional corn-farming communities have suffered.

“Prices are low,” says a man calling himself Oscar.

A friend next to him says of NAFTA: “It hasn’t helped.”

NAFTA: The view from a mind-bogglingly massive Mexican market | The Chronicle Herald

hmmm

Viking warrior found in Sweden was a woman, researchers confirm 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Europe,, Science and Stuff,Leave a comment

For more than a century, archaeologists and historians have assumed that the remains of a person found buried along with arms and horses in one of the most spectacular graves discovered in the Viking Age town of Birka, in Sweden, belonged to a man. Turns out they were wrong. Osteology- and DNA tests now show that that he has always been a she, and she was most likely a powerful military leader.

…Now, however, a DNA-analysis has been carried out, clearly confirming that the Viking warrior was indeed a woman.

“This image of the male warrior in a patriarchal society was reinforced by research traditions and contemporary preconceptions. Hence, the biological sex of the individual was taken for granted,” Hedenstierna-Jonson, Kjellström and the eight other researchers behind the study, wrote in their report.

Viking warrior found in Sweden was a woman, researchers confirm – The Local

Wild.