Hungary: Bill Makes Aiding Migrants a Crime
Human Rights Watch | hrw.org | 2018-05-31
An anti-immigration poster by Victor Orban's Fidesz party during Hungary's April 2018 elections, April 8, 2018, Gyongyos, Hungary. | © 2018 REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger | (Budapest) — A revised draft bill published by the Hungarian government on May 29, 2018, would criminalize efforts to help migrants and asylum seekers and curb their access to protection, Human Rights Watch said today. | The bill the government presented to parliament proposes amending nine existing laws related to asylum, the national border, and the police. It creates a new criminal offense in the Criminal Code of "enabling illegal immigration," which is defined to include helping asylum seekers who are "not eligible for protection," as well as to include border monitoring, producing and disseminating information, or "network building." If committed "regularly," or with the aim of "help[ing] several persons,"
www.hrw.org/news/2018/05/31/hungary-bill-makes-aiding-migrants-crime
Life Will Not Spare Them: Graduating White in a Black City
John Davis | counterpunch.org | 2018-05-31
The doubling of the earth's human population in the four decades between 1960 and 2000, from three to six billion, a population now on its inexorable way to an expected ten billion by 2050, is the proximate cause of the cataclysmic environmental changes that are upon us and which have marginalized geopolitical maneuverings, nationalistic grandstanding,…
counterpunch.org/2018/05/31/life-will-not-spare-them-graduating-white-in-a-black-city/
Hungary: Bill Makes Aiding Migrants a Crime
Human Rights Watch | hrw.org | 2018-05-31
An anti-immigration poster by Victor Orban's Fidesz party during Hungary's April 2018 elections, April 8, 2018, Gyongyos, Hungary. | © 2018 REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger | (Budapest) — A revised draft bill published by the Hungarian government on May 29, 2018, would criminalize efforts to help migrants and asylum seekers and curb their access to protection, Human Rights Watch said today. | The bill the government presented to parliament proposes amending nine existing laws related to asylum, the national border, and the police. It creates a new criminal offense in the Criminal Code of "enabling illegal immigration," which is defined to include helping asylum seekers who are "not eligible for protection," as well as to include border monitoring, producing and disseminating information, or "network building." If committed "regularly," or with the aim of "help[ing] several persons,"
www.hrw.org/news/2018/05/31/hungary-bill-makes-aiding-migrants-crime
Why Was Claudia Patricia Gómez González Murdered?
truth-out.org | truth-out.org | 2018-05-30
Truthout refuses corporate funding and all the strings that come attached. Instead, reader support powers us. Make a tax-deductible donation today! | Claudia Patricia Gómez González, a young Indigenous woman from Guatemala, was shot and killed by a Border Patrol agent on May 23 while crossing from Mexico into Rio Bravo, Texas. | Marta Martinez, who lives just a mile from the border and regularly witnesses migrants being chased down by Border Patrol, heard a gunshot that morning and witnessed the deadly aftermath. In a recording that immediately went viral, Martinez can be heard shouting: "Why do you mistreat them? Why did you shoot the girl? You killed her! He killed the girl. She's there! She's dead!" | The US Customs and Border Protection agency released a statement the same day that attempted to justify the agent's actions.
www.truth-out.org/news/item/44630-why-was-claudia-murdered
Trump's Plan for Migrants Fleeing Violence: Blame Democrats and Expand Family Detention
truth-out.org | truth-out.org | 2018-05-30
The Trump administration is calling on Congress to close so-called loopholes created by protections for vulnerable migrant children and allow entire families to be held in immigration jails and detention camps while adults await to see a judge. Trump is also attempting to shift the blame for the migrant "crisis" on Democrats ahead of the midterms.An immigrant mother gives medicine to her sick child after a night's rest on an outdoor basketball court during a pause on their journey toward the US-Mexico border on April 22, 2018, in Hermosillo, Mexico. (Photo: John Moore / Getty Images) | Support your favorite writers by making sure we can keep publishing them! Make a donation to Truthout to ensure independent journalism survives. | Facing heavy criticism for a new "zero-tolerance" policy that is separating migrant children from their parents on the southern US border, the…
www.truth-out.org/news/item/44629-trump-s-plan-for-migrants-fleeing-violence-blame-democrats-and-expand-family-detention
Trudeau's Reckless Support for Kinder-Morgan. Billions of Tax Dollars to Buy an Unbuildable, Financially Doomed Pipeline
Adam Scott | globalresearch.ca | 2018-05-30
With his reckless support for Kinder Morgan and other oil pipelines, Trudeau has willingly compromised his own commitments to address climate change and pursue reconciliation with Canada's Indigenous peoples. Now he's willing to risk billions of public tax dollars as …
globalresearch.ca/trudeaus-reckless-support-for-kinder-morgan-billions-of-tax-dollars-to-buy-an-unbuildable-financially-doomed-pipeline/5642333
Study Shows Judges Appointed by Republicans Are Way More Racist Than Others
Rebecca Buckwalter-Poza, Daily Kos | alternet.org | 2018-05-30
The study reviewed 1,400 federal judges' sentencing practices over a 15-year period. | The study was sui generis: Two Harvard Law professors, Alma Cohen and Crystal S. Yang, set out to analyze 1,400 federal judges' sentencing practices over a 15-year period affecting more than 500,000 defendants. The results were predictable but disheartening. They unearthed a stunning number of influences on sentencing, from years of experience and level of racism in a state to the party of appointment. Its major finding: Republican-appointed judges give black defendants harsher sentences than their white counterparts. "Republican-appointed judges sentence black defendants to three more months than similar nonblacks. . . . These differences cannot be explained by other judge characteristics and grow substantially larger when judges are granted more discretion. "Three months' discrepancy accounts for 65 percent of the baseline racial sentence gap, meaning the average sentence disparity between similarly. . .
www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/study-shows-judges-appointed-republicans-are-way-more-racist-others
Confronting Germany's New Fascists in Berlin
Victor Grossman | counterpunch.org | 2018-05-30
Hopes and fears compete amidst the turmoil of today's world. Fears for the worst in Korea have lessened with hopes, after a series of typical Trumpian somersaults, that the thrust of the Bolton-Haley-Pompeo line may yet give way to negotiations and diplomacy. But looming ever closer is the question of Iran, with the same cabal…
counterpunch.org/2018/05/30/confronting-germanys-new-fascists-in-berlin/
Poland Wants a Permanent U.S. Military Base, and is Willing to Pay $2 Billion for It
Emma Fiala | mintpressnews.com | 2018-05-30
The Poles are buying what the U.S. is selling: fears of Russian aggression and a $2 billion permanent U.S. military base on Polish soil to meet it. | The post Poland Wants a Permanent U.S. Military Base, and is Willing to Pay $2 Billion for It appeared first on MintPress News.
www.mintpressnews.com/poland-us-military-base/243011/
US State Department Tells Syria What It Can and Can't Do on Its Own Soil
Peter Korzun | mintpressnews.com | 2018-05-30
The US State Department has warned Syria against launching an offensive against terrorist positions in southern Syria. The statement claims that the American military will respond if Syrian forces launch an operation aimed at restoring the legitimate government's control over the rebel-held areas, including the territory in southwestern Syria between Daraa and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Washington is issuing orders to a nation whose leadership never invited America in in the first place! The very idea that another country would tell the internationally recognized Syrian government that it cannot take steps to establish control over parts of its own national territory is odd and preposterous by any measure. | State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert said Washington would respond with "firm and appropriate measures." But does the US have any legal grounds for responding with any measures at all? What…
US State Department Tells Syria What It Can and Can’t Do on Its Own Soil
Not for Sale: Congo's Forests Must be Protected from the Fossil Fuels Industry
Global Witness | globalresearch.ca | 2018-05-30
As we have previously revealed, the Democratic Republic of Congo government is attempting to reclassify swathes of two UNESCO protected World Heritage Sites — Salonga and Virunga National Parks — to allow oil exploration to take place. In our …
globalresearch.ca/not-for-sale-congos-forests-must-be-protected-from-the-fossil-fuels-industry/5642318
Brazilian truck drivers reject union-government attempt to shut down strike
wsws.org | wsws.org | 2018-05-30
The government has sought to block the spread of social unrest with a ruling Tuesday that a planned strike by oil workers is illegal.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2018/05/30/bras-m30.html
Stolen sperm & cheese injustice: The most bizarre lawsuits in US history
RT | rt.com | 2018-05-30
The United States is known for being the most litigious country on Earth, and home to 80 percent of the world's lawyers. Some of the most bizarre and frivolous lawsuits in the world have taken place in the US. …
www.rt.com/usa/428292-crazy-us-lawsuits-list/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=RSS
White Fear: As the GOP Veers Toward Fascism, Establishment Democrats Face a Grassroots Insurgency
Intercepted | theintercept.com | 2018-05-30
Subscribe to the Intercepted podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, Radio Public, and other platforms. New to podcasting? Click here. | ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection have become authoritarian shock forces, operating with impunity, ripping children from their parents' arms, and enforcing the anti-immigrant edicts of Donald Trump and Jeff Sessions. But the horrors did not start with Trump. This week on Intercepted: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a 28-year-old former waitress, is challenging one of the most powerful Democrats in the country for his congressional seat. She is running on a platform of social and economic justice and she has called for ICE to be abolished. Ocasio-Cortez explains why she wants to unseat the "King of Queens," Rep. Joseph Crowley, who portrays himself as Nancy Pelosi's rightful successor. Princeton professor Eddie Glaude Jr. joins Intercepted to talk about white supremacy and law enforcement, the "rot" in the establishment Democratic Party, and Trump's obsession with black athletes. | Transcript coming soon. | The post White Fear: As the GOP Veers Toward Fascism, Establishment Democrats Face a Grassroots Insurgency appeared first on The Intercept.
theintercept.com/2018/05/30/white-fear-as-the-gop-veers-toward-fascism-establishment-democrats-face-a-grassroots-insurgency/
On many questions, Germany nears the proverbial fork in the road
Victor Grossman | peoplesworld.org | 2018-05-29
BERLIN — Hopes and fears compete amidst the turmoil of today's world. Fears for the worst in Korea have lessened with hopes, after a series of typical Trumpian somersaults, that the thrust of the Bolton-Haley-Pompeo line may yet give way to negotiations and diplomacy. But looming ever closer is the question of Iran, with the …
On many questions, Germany nears the proverbial fork in the road
Rising Global Support for Safe Schools
Human Rights Watch | hrw.org | 2018-05-29
A map depicting the 75 countries around the world that have endorsed the Safe Schools Declaration. | © 2018 Human Rights Watch | Three years ago today, representatives from countries from around the globe came together in Oslo to declare their support for the protection of students, teachers, schools, and universities during times of war. Three years later, an incredible 75 countries have joined the Safe Schools Declaration. | Support for the declaration has come from the highest levels of the United Nations, notably the UN secretary-general, Antonio Guterres; the human rights chief, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein; and the special representative for children and armed conflict, Virginia Gamba. | In the past year, the Peace and Security Council of the African Union repeated its call for all its…
www.hrw.org/news/2018/05/29/rising-global-support-safe-schools
Trump Set To Recognize Israel's Claim To Occupied Golan Heights And Its Sizable Oil Reserves
Whitney Webb | iranian.com | 2018-05-28
Exporting Golan oil is problematic under international law but, were the U.S. to unilaterally recognize the Golan as Israel's, that oil could potentially be exported to the U.S. Major U.S. oil investors and lobbyists are therefore pushing hard for Trump to make that move. While President Trump has reneged on many of his campaign promises […] | The post Trump Set To Recognize Israel's Claim To Occupied Golan Heights And Its Sizable Oil Reserves appeared first on The Iranian.
iranian.com/2018/05/28/trump-set-to-recognize-israels-claim-occupied-golan-heights/
Media Quote Frank on Rolling Back Dodd/Frank–Not Disclosing He's Now a Bank Director
Justin Anderson | fair.org | 2018-05-25
The House of Representatives voted on Tuesday to roll back key provisions of the landmark Dodd/Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, a 2010 law that increased regulatory scrutiny of banks following the 2008 financial crisis. | One of the many provisions of the original Dodd/Frank law subjected banks with over $50 billion in assets to annual economic "stress tests" to gauge their potential for collapse in the event of an economic crisis. The rollback bill raises that threshold to $250 billion, which would exempt at least two dozen "small" banks, including SunTrust, BB&T, Charles Schwab and American Express. By comparison, in 2008, key failed bank Countryside had only $172 billion in assets, and so would have avoided stress testing, while other financial dominos like Washington Mutual ($264 billion) and Bear Stearns ($289 billion) were close to the lower limit.
fair.org/home/media-quote-frank-on-rolling-back-dodd-frank-not-disclosing-hes-now-a-bank-director/
European Earthquake as Populist Government Forms in Italy
Consortiumnews.com | consortiumnews.com | 2018-05-25
After having fought off popular rejection of its neoliberal economic policies that serve its own interests, the European establishment has lost its first major election, as Andrew Spannaus reports. By Andrew Spannaus Special to Consortium News In Milan The revolt… Read more ?…
consortiumnews.com/2018/05/24/european-earthquake-as-populist-government-forms-in-italy/
House Bill Would Let Airports Stop Using Toxic Firefighting Foam
Sharon Lerner | theintercept.com | 2018-05-25
While the controversy over the Environmental Protection Agency's recent " leadership summit" on PFAS chemicals held in Washington earlier this week brought attention to the cancer-causing contaminants in the drinking water of millions of Americans, Congress has quietly made an important step toward getting rid of one of the products responsible for this widespread water pollution. On April 27, the House of Representatives passed legislation that would free the Federal Aviation Administration from longstanding requirements that commercial airports use firefighting foam that contains the chemicals. | For decades, FAA policy has been to require airports to use firefighting foam that meets specifications developed by the Navy. Those standards mandate the use of fluorinated chemicals, a term that includes PFAS, all of which persist indefinitely in nature. While most of the thousands of chemicals in this class have yet to be…
theintercept.com/2018/05/25/airport-firefighting-foam/
Ireland Asks Voters to Lift the Nation's Strict Ban on Abortion
Robert Mackey | theintercept.com | 2018-05-25
Ireland has changed quite dramatically since 1983, when two-thirds of the electorate approved a constitutional amendment that imposed a near total ban on abortion by recognizing "the right to life of the unborn," which promised equal protection under the law to fetuses and pregnant women. | The contours of Ireland's gradual transformation into a more liberal country in the decades since can be traced in the results of a series of subsequent referendums that defied the teachings of the once-dominant Catholic Church. Divorce was legalized, narrowly, in 1995; same-sex marriage, overwhelmingly, in 2015. | On Friday, Irish voters go to the polls once again, this time to cast ballots in a referendum on their government's proposal to repeal the abortion ban enshrined in the Eighth Amendment to the constitution 35 years ago.Manifestation on O'Connell St. A few minutes ago.
theintercept.com/2018/05/24/irelands-sex-marriage-vote-easy-win-ending-abortion-ban-might-not/
Focus on Pruitt's Scandals Obscures Environmental Degradation Under Trump
Justin Anderson | fair.org | 2018-05-23
Focusing on a $43,000 phone booth (Washington Post, 4/16/18), not on the $60 trillion that unchecked climate change is projected to cost (Nature, 7/25/13). | Scott Pruitt sure is busy these days. The climate change-denying head of the Environmental Protection Agency has been renting out a DC condo on the cheap from an energy lobbyist; installing a $43,000 soundproof booth for his telephone calls; passing out improper pay raises to aides; jet-setting around the world on first-class flights; hitting up Disneyland and the Rose Bowl with his oversized $3 million, 20-person security detail; receiving police escorts to trendy DC restaurant Le Diplomate; and even having a fancy dinner in Rome with Vatican treasurer, climate denier and recently charged child sexual abuser George Pell. | What's more, Pruitt's staffers at the EPA have continued to…
fair.org/home/focus-on-pruitts-scandals-obscures-environmental-degradation-under-trump/
Work of Satan? Sinkhole opens on White House lawn, Twitter in turmoil over its meaning (PHOTOS)
RT | rt.com | 2018-05-23
A sinkhole has opened up near the White House press briefing room on the north lawn, prompting a wave of derision online as social media users revelled in the unique karma of the event. …
www.rt.com/usa/427493-white-house-sinkhole-photos/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=RSS
Venezuela Slams New US Sanctions as Washington Hints at Oil Embargo
Cira Pascual Marquina | venezuelanalysis.com | 2018-05-22
The latest measures fly in the face of international concern about the living conditions of Venezuelans.
venezuelanalysis.com/news/13833
Trump's EPA Doesn't Want You to Know Chemicals in Teflon Are Poisoning Waterways & Firefighters
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2018-05-18
The Environmental Protection Agency is facing a major new scandal after it worked with the White House to bury an alarming federal study detailing widespread chemical contamination of the nation's water supply. One Trump administration official warned release of the study would create a "public relations nightmare." The study found chemicals commonly present in Teflon and firefighting foam are a threat to human health at levels the EPA had previously called safe. We speak with Robert Bilott, the attorney The New York Times calls the "worst nightmare of DuPont," the manufacturer of Teflon. He successfully won compensation for his clients whose drinking water had been contaminated by toxic chemicals used to make Teflon. He is a recipient of the 2017 Right Livelihood Award.
www.democracynow.org/2018/5/18/trumps_epa_doesnt_want_you_to
ConocoPhillips Moves to Seize Venezuelan Oil Assets as PDVSA Maneuvers to Safeguard Tankers
Paul Dobson | venezuelanalysis.com | 2018-05-09
In response to the threat, PDVSA has allegedly ordered its fleet of tankers stationed in the Caribbean to return to Venezuelan waters.
venezuelanalysis.com/news/13803
Venezuela: Zulia Governor Blames Illegal Crypto Mining for Continuing Regional Power Shortages
Paul Dobson | venezuelanalysis.com | 2018-05-07
Sabotage, lack of maintenance, and climate change have also been offered to explain the crippling blackouts.
venezuelanalysis.com/news/13796
Venezuela Offers Petro-Based Oil Discount, Denounces "Kidnapping" of Funds
Paul Dobson | venezuelanalysis.com | 2018-05-03
Maduro has accused Euroclear of withholding USD$1.2bn as part of international financial sanctions against Caracas.
venezuelanalysis.com/news/13791
ConocoPhillips Awarded US$2bn for 2007 Oil Field Expropriation, Venezuela Claims Victory
Paul Dobson | venezuelanalysis.com | 2018-04-26
Venezuela claims the award ordered by the ICC is lower than the amount originally offered by Chavez as compensation and is only 10% of what the oil giant filed for.
venezuelanalysis.com/News/13785