What's in the News? 2.0

[gaggedLouise]

After several thousand registered earth tremors over the last two months, the anticipated thing happened: a volcano near Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland, has entered an eruption.

Not a very powerful one so far, but it could grow into a large one. The region sits right on the seam between the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates.

[TheGlyphstone]

Mass shooting attack at a Boulder, Co. grocery store.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/22/us/boulder-colorado-shooting/index.html

[Haibane]

A girl of 7 shot dead by Myanmar security forces. She was in her own home on her father's lap.... how bad can things get there?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-56501871

[Beorning]

These are some horrible news... 

Something more bizarre - Polish writer might face 3 years in prison for calling Polish president a "moron":

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/03/23/poland-zulczyk-duda-moron/
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-56491949

[Mechelle]

There are a number of disturbing things going on in Poland, and also in Hungary, which are not getting as much publicity as they should.

Does the EU ever react to this?

[Beorning]

There are a number of disturbing things going on in Poland, and also in Hungary, which are not getting as much publicity as they should.

Does the EU ever react to this?

Yes and no. They do notice, but it's mostly words of concern and warnings of possible legal repercussions. But they haven't really done anything tangible...

The one tangible thing are a few verdicts by EU's Justice Tribunal which ruled that the judicial reforms made by the current government are against UE law. Which, in theory, should cause these reforms to be reversed... but our government is, more and more openly, not giving a piss about these verdicts. So, they have no effect...

[Haibane]

In my view if EU member states do not adhere to EU rules or guidelines they should be financially penalised by receiving lower financial subsidies. If action still isn't taken within a modest time limit they should be ejected from the union. When the UK was a member I recall there was a lot of ill-feeling about intrusive or seemingly pointless rules from Brussels. Many were minor like the silly ruling on the curvature of bananas and the banning of selling food measured only in Imperial weights but our trading and retail bodies still complied. If you're going to join and be a member of such a powerful and helpful economic body then you need to follow their rules.

[Oniya]

Container ship lodged sideways in Suez Canal

They've had to open the older section of the canal in order to let other ships get through.

[gaggedLouise]

Container ship lodged sideways in Suez Canal

They've had to open the older section of the canal in order to let other ships get through.

I've heard that they were blown into that position by hard winds coming from the desert. Very strange with such a huge motor ship.

[Callie Del Noire]

 

I've heard that they were blown into that position by hard winds coming from the desert. Very strange with such a huge motor ship.

You have to understand how tight the canal is. When we transitioned thru it in 2000 on the USS Stennis, you could stand on the center of the flight deck and not see water on either side. Forward and aft, yup, port and starboard..nope. Unless you’re in one of the lakes it’s amazingly skinny.

[Humble Scribe]

Many were minor like the silly ruling on the curvature of bananas

You do know that that story was invented by Boris Johnson when he was Brussels correspondent for the Daily Torygraph, don't you?

[Haibane]

You mean Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2257/94?

This one. Quite real.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commission_Regulation_(EC)_No._2257/94

[Beguile's Mistress]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/03/24/rachel-levine-confirmed/?wpmk=1&wpisrc=al_news__alert-politics--alert-national&utm_source=alert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=wp_news_alert_revere&location=alert&pwapi_token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJjb29raWVuYW1lIjoid3BfY3J0aWQiLCJpc3MiOiJDYXJ0YSIsImNvb2tpZXZhbHVlIjoiNTk2OTljNzk5YmJjMGY2ZDcxYzU3ZmZkIiwidGFnIjoid3BfbmV3c19hbGVydF9yZXZlcmUiLCJ1cmwiOiJodHRwczovL3d3dy53YXNoaW5ndG9ucG9zdC5jb20vaGVhbHRoLzIwMjEvMDMvMjQvcmFjaGVsLWxldmluZS1jb25maXJtZWQvP3dwbWs9MSZ3cGlzcmM9YWxfbmV3c19fYWxlcnQtcG9saXRpY3MtLWFsZXJ0LW5hdGlvbmFsJnV0bV9zb3VyY2U9YWxlcnQmdXRtX21lZGl1bT1lbWFpbCZ1dG1fY2FtcGFpZ249d3BfbmV3c19hbGVydF9yZXZlcmUmbG9jYXRpb249YWxlcnQifQ.v_k_Mb6nKa_5v9ZqWFC3RK_RY1SHdZpfflKy469gVHE

The Senate on Wednesday voted 52 to 48 to confirm Rachel Levine as the nation’s assistant secretary for health, making her the highest-ranking openly transgender official in U.S. history.

Great on two fronts.  She is transgender and is a Pennsylvanian.  She was our highest ranking health official before her appointment by President Biden.

Congratulations Dr. Levine!

[Oniya]

Although it's interesting to note that the phrase in question, which appears to have been repealed in July 2008, had no explicit standards as to what was 'abnormal'.

This regulation requires that bananas as a minimum standard must not have "abnormal curvature" although no definition or guidance was given about the degree of curvature that would be regarded as "abnormal".

(Wikipedia footnote replaced with actual link to the PDF)

[Haibane]

Yes, quite right, which is what made it a very daft ruling. What a waste of Brussels' money.

I was just using this though as a measure of some EU rulings that we in the UK accepted, no matter how frivolous and pointless, yet significant rulings which carry great weight and value are being ignored in countries like Poland.

[Haibane]

A grim and apparently in-depth report on the forced labour of Muslim and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang province, China.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/extra/nz0g306v8c/china-tainted-cotton

[Skynet]

So much for that Southern hospitality; the state of Georgia banned giving out water to people waiting in line to vote.

[Haibane]

What? Why? Why the hell is it now a misdemeanour in Georgia to give people waiting in line to vote a drink? That's.... insane. There's no point to it except to 1) try to force a reduction in voter queue lengths and/or 2) To drive people away from voting. Madness.

There comes a time when State power needs to be curtailed by Federal power. Wasn't there a motion to issue a series of Federal rules governing elections that set out a base line that no state could go below? I am sure I read it via a link given on E about a month ago. Does anyone have more information about that?

Is there any protocol in US governance for Federal authority to overturn State authority if voter resticting legislation is seen as unreasonable?

[Haibane]

China has imposed sanctions on 9 UK citizens for their work in speaking out about "genocide" against Uighurs in Xinjiang province. Four groups have also been sanctioned - the China Research Group, the Conservative Party Human Rights Commission, the Uighur Tribunal, and Essex Court Chambers. A legal opinion by senior barristers at Essex Court Chambers had concluded there was a "very credible case" that the Chinese government was committing genocide against the Uighurs.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-56532569

The action by China is a tit-for-tat response to the sanctions imposed in a co-ordinated move by the European Union, UK, US and Canada on Chinese citizens 3 days ago.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-56487162

[legomaster00156]

What? Why? Why the hell is it now a misdemeanour in Georgia to give people waiting in line to vote a drink? That's.... insane. There's no point to it except to 1) try to force a reduction in voter queue lengths and/or 2) To drive people away from voting. Madness.

There comes a time when State power needs to be curtailed by Federal power. Wasn't there a motion to issue a series of Federal rules governing elections that set out a base line that no state could go below? I am sure I read it via a link given on E about a month ago. Does anyone have more information about that?

Is there any protocol in US governance for Federal authority to overturn State authority if voter resticting legislation is seen as unreasonable?

HR 1 is the major Democrat-sponsored bill that is essentially the Voting Rights Act of 2021. Naturally, it has exactly zero Republican support.

[Beguile's Mistress]

If you can keep the people who would vote against you from voting for anyone else you can feel you've done your job.

[The Lovely Tsaritsa]

US loses any rights, I think, for lecturing other countries, on running elections proper any more.

[TheGlyphstone]

US loses any rights, I think, for lecturing other countries, on running elections proper any more.

We really do. It's sad.

[Lustful Bride]

I hate that we are at this point. I really hope the Republican party just collapses in on itself and dies already. Maybe the party that replaces them wont be as insanely corrupt and treasonous.

(And maybe I will trip over a pot of gold, but I can dream.)

[Oniya]

What? Why? Why the hell is it now a misdemeanour in Georgia to give people waiting in line to vote a drink? That's.... insane. There's no point to it except to 1) try to force a reduction in voter queue lengths and/or 2) To drive people away from voting. Madness.

The Former Guy(TM) actually said that 'if everybody voted, you'd never get a Republican in office again'.  Governor Kemp doesn't like that prospect.

A rabbi I know is planning on some civil disobedience next election time.