What's in the news?

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

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Lustful Bride

Quote from: Dashenka on September 12, 2015, 10:23:17 AM
Protesting against shale gas in a gas guzzling noisy tank is like demonstrating against whaling in a speedboat made of babyseals.

Not to mention Tank treads probably did some damage to the road they drove on which will require more resources to repair.

:/ Cool...but utterly wasteful.

Beorning

In Polish news: yesterday, there was another attempt in the parliament to pass a complete ban on abortion. It didn't pass, but I fear what happens after the conservatives win the coming elections (and it seems that they *will* win...).

Anyway, yesterday's debate featured an anti-abortionist activist who said that, because of abortion, Poland is worse than the Nazi Germany...  ::)

gaggedLouise

Quote from: Beorning on September 12, 2015, 11:31:55 AM
In Polish news: yesterday, there was another attempt in the parliament to pass a complete ban on abortion. It didn't pass, but I fear what happens after the conservatives win the coming elections (and it seems that they *will* win...).

Anyway, yesterday's debate featured an anti-abortionist activist who said that, because of abortion, Poland is worse than the Nazi Germany...  ::)


And to think there was a time, back in the sixties, when women from Sweden and Finland traveled by the thousands to Poland to get a safe abortion.  ^_ ^

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"

Dashenka

Quote from: Beorning on September 12, 2015, 11:31:55 AM
In Polish news: yesterday, there was another attempt in the parliament to pass a complete ban on abortion. It didn't pass, but I fear what happens after the conservatives win the coming elections (and it seems that they *will* win...).

Anyway, yesterday's debate featured an anti-abortionist activist who said that, because of abortion, Poland is worse than the Nazi Germany...  ::)

I'm surprised there isn't some sort of European law on that yet.

Shows how far the EU is from being 'united'.
Out here in the fields, I fight for my meals and I get my back into my living.

I don't need to fight to prove I'm right and I don't need to be forgiven.

Beorning

Quote from: gaggedLouise on September 12, 2015, 12:40:55 PM

And to think there was a time, back in the sixties, when women from Sweden and Finland traveled by the thousands to Poland to get a safe abortion.  ^_ ^

Really? Anyway, things changed after 1989, when the Church supporters got political power...

Quote from: Dashenka on September 12, 2015, 12:43:01 PM
I'm surprised there isn't some sort of European law on that yet.

Shows how far the EU is from being 'united'.

Oh, I'm not certain there *should* be an EU-mandated law for that. I wouldn't be comfortable with the EU forcing laws on us.

Still, the "ban all abortion" stance is quite awful, especially as our conservatives couple it with "no contraception" and "no sexual education in schools"... It's religious fundamentalism and I fear it will become much more influential than it is, when the Law and Justice people become the government.

These guys' mindset was, I think, best revealed during the debate about in-vitro fertilization, when one of LnJ senators said that the proper way to write the IVF legislation would be to invite the bishops to consult it...  ::)

Caehlim

#1830
So in Australia we don't directly elect our Prime Minister like the Americans do with their President. Instead we elect a political party and whoever leads that party is our Prime Minister.

The political situation for our government has gotten so bad that our Minister for Communication Malcolm Turnbull just challenged the Prime Minister for his position. If he wins the challenge he'll be our new Prime Minister. (source)

Edit: The leadership challenge has succeeded, so Malcolm Turnbull is now the 29th Prime Minister of Australia by 54 to 44 votes. (Source)
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consortium11

Turnball comes from a more libertarian wing of the party than Abbott, with a strong emphasis on free speech and a more liberal social policy in general (such as with gay rights). The biggest difference is probably over climate change; while Abbott tends to have views that edge towards denialism Turnball had frequently called for more action on it and nearly threw away his political career a few years back by fighting for it. That said he's unlikely to change too many policies too quickly and he remains heavily in favour of the free market.

Australia has some history of doing this; the last government also changed Prime Minister in the middle of a term with Julia Gillard replaced by Kevin Rudd (who then lost to Abbott at the election), meaning there will now have been four prime ministers since 2013.

Caehlim

Oh, just a quick correction. I said that Malcolm Turnbull is the new Prime Minister but that's not actually true. He's the new leader of the Liberal Party.

The Liberal party though only made government because they've been in a perpetual coalition agreement with the National party since 1923. The National party are advising that they haven't yet endorsed him as PM and are trying to wrangle some political concessions out of him. Not that they're really fooling anyone, as I said this coalition agreement has been in place for 92 years and most people simply treat them being two separate parties as a polite legal fiction. All the major newspapers have already designed tomorrow's front pages and tweeted them out, they're just declaring him PM.

Quote from: consortium11 on September 14, 2015, 07:36:56 AMTurnball comes from a more libertarian wing of the party than Abbott, with a strong emphasis on free speech and a more liberal social policy in general (such as with gay rights). The biggest difference is probably over climate change; while Abbott tends to have views that edge towards denialism Turnball had frequently called for more action on it and nearly threw away his political career a few years back by fighting for it. That said he's unlikely to change too many policies too quickly and he remains heavily in favour of the free market.

*nods* that's the local perspective here as well.

QuoteAustralia has some history of doing this; the last government also changed Prime Minister in the middle of a term with Julia Gillard replaced by Kevin Rudd (who then lost to Abbott at the election), meaning there will now have been four prime ministers since 2013.

Actually it's even worse than that. Kevin Rudd was the original Prime Minister. He was replaced by Julia Gillard. Then later he challenged her and replaced her again.
My home is not a place, it is people.
View my Ons and Offs page.

View my (new)Apologies and Absences thread or my Ideas thread.

kylie

     US voting machines found far too often error-prone again.
     

Lustful Bride

Theres no school like the old school :P 

I prefer the old pen and paper stuff. Much simpler.

eBadger

Quote from: kylie on September 15, 2015, 10:28:19 AM
     US voting machines found far too often error-prone again.

*Enjoys living in a state with no voting booths*  Mind you, counting up pen and paper ballots isn't without the potential for error, either. 

However, the issue there seems more of an alarmist 'what could happen' than a specific problem currently occurring.  Not that there isn't value, but 'nearing sell-by date' isn't necessarily the end of the world, and it's not unreasonable to get full value from equipment before replacing it. 

Valerian

There's also a lot of concern in some areas that have already started switching to the 'new and improved' computer voting machines because on some systems no results can be double-checked in case of a recount or other problem.  >.<
"To live honorably, to harm no one, to give to each his due."
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gaggedLouise

Vladimir Putin places a private phone call to Elton John after Elton, who is currently touring Ukraine, had said in interviews that he would appreciate to meet the big man and discuss LGBT rights and issues in Russia with him (I saw one of those news pieces on the BBC). Both Elton John and Putin's press people acknowlegded that there had been a phone convo and it seems it was amicable enough. No confirmation of what was discussed, but Elton tweeted later that he was appreciative of Putin's gesture and "look[ing] forward to meeting with you face-to-face to discuss LGBT equality in Russia".

Elton John has a long involvement with Russia and a big fan base there, he first gigged there way back in 1979. Whatever might come out of this, it was cool of Putin to actually pick up and show that he is aware of opinions about Russia and life there that are not simply part of some culture war.

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"


eBadger

Ugh, for a moment there I gained a lot more respect for Putin....

Lustful Bride


gaggedLouise

Quote from: Caehlim on September 15, 2015, 03:50:31 PM
Unfortunately spokesperson for Vladimir Putin denies conversation with Sir Elton John.

Dang, apparently the Guardian have updated their piece - when I read it, it actually said that someone on Putin's communications staff had confirmed the call, but now there's a guy saying no such thing took place.  :-(

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"


Beorning

On a related note, I recommend you guys to watch a sci-fi movie named Europa Report. :)

consortium11

Schoolboy with a real interest in engineering makes a clock at home and then brings it to show his engineering teacher. Another teacher sees it.

Guess what happens next...

Lustful Bride

Assad blames the west for the migrant crisis.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/crying-west-at-root-of-europe-migrant-crisis-assad/ar-AAemy4f?ocid=iehp

Yeah and it has absolutely nothing to do with him massacring his own people and basically committing genocide.   ::)

I wonder if he realizes how far his head must be up his own ass?

gaggedLouise

Quote from: Lustful Bride on September 16, 2015, 10:02:23 AM
Assad blames the west for the migrant crisis.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/crying-west-at-root-of-europe-migrant-crisis-assad/ar-AAemy4f?ocid=iehp

Yeah and it has absolutely nothing to do with him massacring his own people and basically committing genocide.   ::)

I wonder if he realizes how far his head must be up his own ass?

Assad and his PR men have a way of bending the facts of reality to his own imagination. Remember how one of his communications guys claimed that Lionel Messi was sending secret messages to the Syrian rebels by means of the foot artistry tricks and running curves he pulled off in his televised football matches?  :D

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"

Cassandra LeMay

Quote from: Lustful Bride on September 16, 2015, 10:02:23 AM
Yeah and it has absolutely nothing to do with him massacring his own people and basically committing genocide.   ::)
Read no further than the second paragraph of the article: "In an interview with Russian media, ..."

Assad wants Russian support. Russia is not on the best of terms with 'the West' at the moment. Add those two factors together and the result isn't all that surprising.
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Lustful Bride

Quote from: gaggedLouise on September 16, 2015, 10:20:21 AM
Assad and his PR men have a way of bending the facts of reality to his own imagination. Remember how one of his communications guys claimed that Lionel Messi was sending secret messages to the Syrian rebels by means of the foot artistry tricks and running curves he pulled off in his televised football matches?  :D

Actually have to look that up now. O_O

gaggedLouise

Quote from: Lustful Bride on September 16, 2015, 10:52:29 AM
Actually have to look that up now. O_O

yes, it's one of my favourite "Baghdad Bob moments".  ;)

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"