What's in the news?

Started by Beorning, September 21, 2014, 07:02:11 AM

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consortium11

Quote from: TheGlyphstone on August 19, 2016, 08:54:07 AM
I'm pretty sure if someone trips over a rock and breaks their ankle screaming 'Aaaaaah', ISIS will claim responsibility at this point and claim they were screaming 'Allah!'.

Quote from: Kythia on August 19, 2016, 08:58:51 AM
Yeah, I went on a killing spree yesterday for entirely secular reasons and regularly screamed "This is utterly unrelated to any desires I may or may not have regarding a global Islamic caliphate" (which is quite hard to do with an automatic weapon in each hand).

ISIS still took responsibility.  Really pissed me off, but what you gonna do.

While one can certainly mock the Islamic State's tendency to claim any attacks they can as their work and the way the nebulous nature of their organisation works means they can claim attacks they're not directly linked to (someone with no direct contact with the Islamic State says their name during an attack, ISIS claims they inspired them and are thus can claim the attack) it's worth noting that in this case it appears there's a video where the two presumed attackers pledge allegiance to the Islamic State before going out and doing an attack which means I think they can legitimately claim this one, albeit under the "inspired" rather than "organized" banner. From the little we know at this point both of the attackers appear to be Chechen and ISIS has drawn a large amount of its man power from that region... it's been (fairly reasonably in my opinion) suggested that one of the reasons the North Caucasus insurgency has died down from about 2010 onwards is because many of the commanders in that region had switched their alliance from the Caucasus Emirate to the Islamic State and many of the footsoldiers had left the region to fight in Syria.

Lustful Bride

12 year old killed by lions after worker supposedly stole the keys to the encloruse and led him in.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/lions-kill-child-led-into-their-enclosure-by-wildlife-sanctuary-worker/ar-BBvPQLN?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=HPCOMMDHP15

I just...I hope this boy is in a better place.. :'(

Lustful Bride


gaggedLouise

Quote from: Lustful Bride on August 21, 2016, 08:37:09 AM
Kim Jong Un orders terror attacks against South Koreans in other countries.

This might be a problem considering his fanatics.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/kim-jong-un-orders-terror-attacks-against-south-koreans-abroad-over-defection/ar-BBvRRgY?li=BBnbfcL&ocid=HPCOMMDHP15

That guy is looking more and more desperate to remain in charge, and consequently to look tough. Remember, he's already chopped off the heads of several of the top brass from the time when he ascended plus many of his own extended family.

But attacking Korean civilians 8and businesses?) in other countries sounds really far out. Hope China will rein him in on this one.

Good girl but bad  -- Proud sister of the amazing, blackberry-sweet Violet Girl

Sometimes bound and cuntrolled, sometimes free and easy 

"I'm a pretty good cook, I'm sitting on my groceries.
Come up to my kitchen, I'll show you my best recipes"

Skylarblueskys

In the US it depends on which news channels you tune into.

But the common theme is the flooding that's happening in the state Louisiana. Border control debates. Presidential debates. Police Brutality debates. LocheGate mess... -_-

Oniya

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/aug/21/caster-semenya-wins-gold-but-faces-scrutiny

Caster Semenya is a South African athlete who is a hyperandrogenic woman:  Her body produces high levels (but still within the 'normal range') of testosterone.  Female athletes with this condition are sometimes coerced into taking hormone treatments or even major surgery in order to be allowed to compete.

Vonnegut would be nodding his head knowingly.
"Language was invented for one reason, boys - to woo women.~*~*~Don't think it's all been done before
And in that endeavor, laziness will not do." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think we're never gonna win this war
Robin Williams-Dead Poets Society ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think your world's gonna fall apart
I do have a cause, though.  It's obscenity.  I'm for it.  - Tom Lehrer~*~All you need is your beautiful heart
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Skylarblueskys

@Oniya: They once stripped an US sprinter of her medal because of this. The thought she was using and have since then had a debate about if these athletes could actually compete. Eventually years later they all agreed it wasn't fair to deny these women the right and even gave her back the medal and honor.

We talked about it in my physiology class along with other fun facts about athletes and speed/strength. Even talked about the hormone bar style of birthcontrol and how the testosterone can affect women and why doctors should explain in more depth what the implant actually is and the side effects.

I approve of comment with millions of claps and thumbs up!

Kythia

So the UN criticised the Phillipines' War on Drugs as a crime under international law.  In response, President Duterte said he "doesn't give a shit about them", they're "stupid" and that he was going to leave the UN and start his own gang.

BBC coverage here.  I love the phrase "expletives-laden tirade"
242037

gaggedLouise

The Rio Olympics are over and Tokyo, the host city four years ahead, has declared that five new sports will appear on the Olympic roster next time, among them surfing, baseball and karate.  :-) Every host city has the choice of introducing a couple of new sports in this way, then it's up to the IOC and later hosts to see if any of them are gonna become permanent (beach volleyball was introduced at the LA games in the mid-eighties I think, and is now a permanent event).

Good girl but bad  -- Proud sister of the amazing, blackberry-sweet Violet Girl

Sometimes bound and cuntrolled, sometimes free and easy 

"I'm a pretty good cook, I'm sitting on my groceries.
Come up to my kitchen, I'll show you my best recipes"

Oniya

Quote from: gaggedLouise on August 22, 2016, 04:38:43 AM
The Rio Olympics are over and Tokyo, the host city four years ahead, has declared that five new sports will appear on the Olympic roster next time, among them surfing, baseball and karate.  :-) Every host city has the choice of introducing a couple of new sports in this way, then it's up to the IOC and later hosts to see if any of them are gonna become permanent (beach volleyball was introduced at the LA games in the mid-eighties I think, and is now a permanent event).

Wasn't judo an Olympic sport for a while?   I seem to remember that.  Kinda like to see Olympic level surfing.
"Language was invented for one reason, boys - to woo women.~*~*~Don't think it's all been done before
And in that endeavor, laziness will not do." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think we're never gonna win this war
Robin Williams-Dead Poets Society ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think your world's gonna fall apart
I do have a cause, though.  It's obscenity.  I'm for it.  - Tom Lehrer~*~All you need is your beautiful heart
O/O's Updated 5/11/21 - A/A's - Current Status! - Writing a novel - all draws for Fool of Fire up!
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Orval Wintermute

Quote from: Oniya on August 22, 2016, 10:48:58 AM
Wasn't judo an Olympic sport for a while? 
Men's judo has been in the Olympics since 1964 and women's since 1992.

Oniya

Quote from: Orval Wintermute on August 22, 2016, 10:57:08 AM
Men's judo has been in the Olympics since 1964 and women's since 1992.

At least I know my memory isn't failing me.  Might make it a little harder for karate to become a permanent sport in that case.
"Language was invented for one reason, boys - to woo women.~*~*~Don't think it's all been done before
And in that endeavor, laziness will not do." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think we're never gonna win this war
Robin Williams-Dead Poets Society ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think your world's gonna fall apart
I do have a cause, though.  It's obscenity.  I'm for it.  - Tom Lehrer~*~All you need is your beautiful heart
O/O's Updated 5/11/21 - A/A's - Current Status! - Writing a novel - all draws for Fool of Fire up!
Requests updated March 17

Orval Wintermute

Judo has more in common with wrestling than karate, but both judo and wrestling are full Olympic sports. If anything taekwondo or even boxing would have more overlap with karate but I wouldn't see either of those sports being a blocker.

Lustful Bride

US Supreme Court using "Of Mice and Men" to rethink how they handle the mentally disabled in court cases.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/supreme-court-to-consider-legal-standard-drawn-from-%e2%80%98of-mice-and-men%e2%80%99/ar-BBvU27Q?li=BBnb4R7&ocid=HPCOMMDHP15

I'm unsure how to feel about this but at least its something being discussed and the disabled aren't just all being thrown into a box.

consortium11

Quote from: Oniya on August 21, 2016, 04:06:05 PM
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/aug/21/caster-semenya-wins-gold-but-faces-scrutiny

Caster Semenya is a South African athlete who is a hyperandrogenic woman:  Her body produces high levels (but still within the 'normal range') of testosterone.  Female athletes with this condition are sometimes coerced into taking hormone treatments or even major surgery in order to be allowed to compete.

Vonnegut would be nodding his head knowingly.

That's not quite true; she's still outside the 'normal range' but the 'normal range' is now of no consequence.

Since 2011 the range the IAAF allowed for someone competing in a woman's competition was 10nmol/l (nanamole/litre) of testosterone; anyone with a higher ratio than that not allowed to unless they could prove they gained no advantage from having such a high rate (i.e androgen resistance). Caster Semenya (along with a number of other athletes) had a higher ratio than this and so since 2011 had to have treatments (often essentially taking a contraceptive pill) which lowered her testosterone ratio to within the range allowed if she wished to compete.

In July 2015 the Court of Arbitration in Sport made a decision in Dutee Chand's case, an Indian athlete who was presumed to also have a higher ratio (the full tests weren't done but both sides accepted she would almost certainly "fail" them) and had made a complaint about the entire regulations. CAS's conclusion was that there wasn't enough evidence to suggest that a woman with a testosterone ratio of above 10nmol/l had a substantive enough advantage over those who didn't and thus suspended the regulations for two years with the suspension becoming permanent unless the IAAF provides new and compelling evidence.

Renegade Vile

Quote from: consortium11 on August 22, 2016, 06:10:39 PM
In July 2015 the Court of Arbitration in Sport made a decision in Dutee Chand's case, an Indian athlete who was presumed to also have a higher ratio (the full tests weren't done but both sides accepted she would almost certainly "fail" them) and had made a complaint about the entire regulations. CAS's conclusion was that there wasn't enough evidence to suggest that a woman with a testosterone ratio of above 10nmol/l had a substantive enough advantage over those who didn't and thus suspended the regulations for two years with the suspension becoming permanent unless the IAAF provides new and compelling evidence.

Probably too early to tell, but any idea if they've made new findings?
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consortium11

Quote from: Renegade Vile on August 23, 2016, 02:30:56 AM
Probably too early to tell, but any idea if they've made new findings?

They've already made clear they intend to take advantage of the chance to psuedo-appeal so they'll almost certainly either be presenting new evidence or focusing in on things from existing evidence that support their cases. In cases like this neither party tends to make new findings themselves... instead they rely on expert witnesses and third party scientific literature. I'm not sure if there have been new studies in the relevant areas published in the year since the CAS case or any likely to be published in the year or so before the psuedo-appeal needs to be heard.

In short the case came down to this; both sides accepted that men have an advantage over women in athletic endeavours of around 10%-15%. The biggest reason for this is the additional lean body mass that men possess compared to women. It's on that basis that the division between men and women in athletics (which both sides accept is prima-facie discriminatory) is allowed; it would negatively impact on female athletes if they were forced to compete with men because that 10%-15% gap is too much for them to make up in other areas. The IAAF's case was that testosterone was the biggest factor in the amount of lean body mass an athlete has and that athletes like Caster Semenya who were outside the allowed testosterone range would have an advantage of around 10-12%, roughly in line with the advantage men have, and so it was fair and reasonable to expect them to lower their testosterone levels to within the 'normal' range if they wished to compete against women. Chand's case (which CAS agreed with) was that the evidence doesn't support that... that while lean body mass may explain the difference testosterone levels alone don't and that if there is an advantage from having elevated testosterone it is more likely in the 1%-3% range, a small enough factor that it can be overcome through other areas. So the IAAF will have to come back with more evidence directly linked increased testosterone and increased performance in women's athletics and showing that the increase is significant enough that it's unreasonable to think someone without it can overcome the gap.

Orval Wintermute

There is some anecdotal evidence if you look at Caster Semenya's race times.
2009 - 1:55.45 marking the start of the hyperandrogenism debate
2011 - 1:56.35 IAAF announce rules on testosterone limits
2012 - 1:57.23 Wins Olympic silver
2015 - 2:03.18 CAS overturns IAAF rulings
2016 - 1:58.45 Wins 400m,800m & 1500m National titles in the same day
2016 - 1:55.33 Wins Olympic 800m

If any other athlete had made a 8 second improvement in a year then I think the doping agencies would be crawling all over them.

Renegade Vile

Quote from: consortium11 on August 23, 2016, 04:24:40 AM
*snip*

Interesting, I didn't know testosterone was the main reason for the separation.
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Lustful Bride


Lustful Bride


Lustful Bride

#4021
Four Iranian navy vessels get danger close to a US navy ship and harass it repeatedly.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/iran-vessels-make-high-speed-intercept-of-us-ship-us-official/ar-BBw1igJ?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=HPCOMMDHP15

OOhh sooo scary Iran. Your using highschool bully tactics and pretending to look tougher than you are. We are just soooooo intimidated.

:P

Oniya

Reminds me of a story where the crew of a US destroyer was particularly put out that they weren't allowed to let an attack 'hit' - and then deploy a paint crew to repair the 'damage'.
"Language was invented for one reason, boys - to woo women.~*~*~Don't think it's all been done before
And in that endeavor, laziness will not do." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think we're never gonna win this war
Robin Williams-Dead Poets Society ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think your world's gonna fall apart
I do have a cause, though.  It's obscenity.  I'm for it.  - Tom Lehrer~*~All you need is your beautiful heart
O/O's Updated 5/11/21 - A/A's - Current Status! - Writing a novel - all draws for Fool of Fire up!
Requests updated March 17

Lustful Bride

Quote from: Oniya on August 24, 2016, 07:48:29 PM
Reminds me of a story where the crew of a US destroyer was particularly put out that they weren't allowed to let an attack 'hit' - and then deploy a paint crew to repair the 'damage'.

Never heard that one before.

Oniya

Quote from: Lustful Bride on August 24, 2016, 08:06:40 PM
Never heard that one before.

Could have just been some braggadocio, but the basic gist of it was that the armor on the ship was thick enough that whatever was being thrown at it would have maybe left a dent and some smoke-stains.
"Language was invented for one reason, boys - to woo women.~*~*~Don't think it's all been done before
And in that endeavor, laziness will not do." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think we're never gonna win this war
Robin Williams-Dead Poets Society ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think your world's gonna fall apart
I do have a cause, though.  It's obscenity.  I'm for it.  - Tom Lehrer~*~All you need is your beautiful heart
O/O's Updated 5/11/21 - A/A's - Current Status! - Writing a novel - all draws for Fool of Fire up!
Requests updated March 17