Impfung: Darf der Staat entscheiden? | Philosophischer Stammtisch | Sternstunde Philosophie | Kultur

Apr 19, 2021 • Die Welt buhlt um Corona-Impfstoff. Doch nicht alle, die könnten, wollen sich auch impfen lassen. Darf der Staat uns dazu zwingen? Oder haben wir doch das Recht, über den eigenen Körper zu entscheiden?

Verlockungen gibt es viele: Downhill ohne Helm, Zuckerwaren haufenweise, mehrere Gläser über den Durst. Doch Väterchen Staat will uns erziehen: mit Helmobligatorien, Zuckersteuer und Alkoholverboten. Gilt nicht: «Mein Körper gehört mir»?

Doch tut er das eigentlich noch? Werden wir nicht ständig ermahnt, die steigenden Gesundheitskosten im Blick zu behalten und mit unserem Verhalten nicht die Staatskasse zu belasten? Geht mein Lebensstil die anderen etwas an? Oder ist er gänzlich Privatsache?

Mit Svenja Flasspöhler und Stefan Riedener diskutieren am philosophischen Stammtisch Wolfram Eilenberger und Barbara Bleisch.

Sternstunde Philosophie vom 18.04.2021

Unrest in Portland as Kyle Rittenhouse Verdict Divides US

THE OBSERVER: Police declare a riot in Oregon’s largest city as observers condemn discrepancy in how law enforcement treats militia supporters and anti-racism protesters

A fire burns on the street during protests in Portland, Oregon after Kyle Rittenhouse was found not guilty over the shooting deaths of two people at an anti-racism protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last year. Photograph: Grace Morgan/Reuters
About 200 protesters in Portland, Oregon, broke windows and threw objects at police on Friday night as reaction poured in after a jury cleared Kyle Rittenhouse over the shooting deaths of two people at an anti-racism protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last year.

Sheriffs in the city declared a riot downtown after “violent, destructive behavior by a significant part of the crowd”, with reports some talked about burning down the Justice Center.

Police used loudspeakers to ask the crowd to disperse or face the use of force, including “pepper spray and impact weapons”. By 11pm the crowd had broken up and largely dispersed.

In Kenosha, shouting matches flared on the courthouse steps between supporters of opposing sides, embodying the wildly different lenses through which a divided America viewed the case.

Protest marches were also held in Chicago and New York. » | Gloria Oladipo | Saturday, November 20, 2021

When it comes to self-defense, the burden is often on the prosecution. »

Rotterdam Police Open Fire as Covid Protest Turns Violent

Demonstrators protest against government restrictions. Photograph: AP
THE GUARDIAN: Warning shots fired as unrest breaks out over Dutch plans to impose restrictions on unvaccinated people

Police in Rotterdam have fired warning shots, injuring protesters, as riots broke out at a demonstration against government plans to impose restrictions on unvaccinated people.

Crowds of rioters torched cars, set off fireworks and threw rocks at police in the centre of the Dutch port city on Friday, and police responded with shots and water cannon.

“Police were forced to draw their weapons and even fire direct shots,” the mayor of Rotterdam, Ahmed Aboutaleb, told a press conference early on Saturday.

He described the riots as “an orgy of violence, I can’t think of another way to describe it”. With video » | Staff and agencies in The Hague | Saturday, November 20, 2021

Covid-19 : manifestations contre les mesures anti-Covid, violences aux Pays-Bas et aux Antilles : Sept personnes ont été blessées vendredi dans des émeutes à Rotterdam, tandis qu'un couvre-feu a été décrété en Guadeloupe pour mettre fin au vandalisme. Des manifestations agitent aussi l'Australie et l'Autriche. »

Weitere Festnahmen nach «Orgie der Gewalt» in Rotterdam: In den Niederlanden haben am Freitagabend Hunderte von Menschen gegen weitere Beschränkungen demonstriert. Es kam zu chaotischen Szenen. Nach Schüssen der Sicherheitskräfte gibt es sieben Verletzte. »

Corona-Kundgebung in Wien hat begonnen: Die rechte FPÖ sieht Österreich auf dem Weg in eine „Diktatur“ und hat zur Demo in Wien aufgerufen. In Telegram-Gruppen wird offen Gewalt angedroht. »

Austria braces for violence at mass protests over Covid measures. »

Australia Covid protests: threats against ‘traitorous’ politicians as thousands rally in capital cities: Melbourne ‘freedom’ rally draws largest crowds as counter-protesters avoid confrontation »

Last Ditch? Car-crash Fortnight Shakes Tory Faith in Boris Johnson

THE GUARDIAN: Morale low as scandals and doubts on policy delivery add to worries about PM’s competence

The backlash against scaled-back rail plans highlighted Boris Johnson’s boosterish tendency to make promises he fails to deliver. Photograph: Nathan Stirk/Getty Images
A shame-faced Boris Johnson told his own MPs this week that he had “crashed the car into the ditch” by misjudging the Owen Paterson scandal. As he heads to his country retreat of Chequers this weekend, some at Westminster have begun to wonder if he has what it takes to get the show back on the road.

As well as exposing Johnson’s lax approach to probity in public life, the Paterson debacle highlighted what those who have worked with him say is one of his most maddening characteristics – the impetuous style of decision-making and tendency to sudden reversals cruelly caricatured by Dominic Cummings as “like a shopping trolley”.

And it played into wider worries about his competence and whether the Downing Street machine is working as it should. “No 10 is a really difficult job and he doesn’t have the skillset to run it, he just doesn’t,” said one senior Tory. “He’s a great campaigner; a terrible administrator. But he doesn’t trust anyone to run it for him.” » | Heather Stewart | Saturday, November 20, 2021

Germans in Israel. Israelis in Germany. | DW Documentary

Apr 20, 2018 • A new generation of Israelis and Germans is showing that reconciliation really is possible.

This documentary presents young people who believe in a common future, even though – more than 70 years after the Holocaust – Germany still contends with anti-Semitism and anti-Jewish attacks. Shahak Shapira has been exposed to anti-Semitic hostility and lost family members in the Holocaust as well as his grandfather in the attacks on the Israelis track and field team at the 1972 Munich Olympics - yet he still lives in Germany. Israeli singer Rilli Willow’s great aunt died in Auschwitz - but Rilli married a German Christian and splits her time between Germany and Israel. German chef Tom Franz converted to Judaism, married an Israeli woman, and lives in Tel Aviv. German writer Sarah Stricker also works and lives in Israel. They are four examples of a new generation of Israelis and Germans who are proving that, even after the darkest chapters of German history, people can live together again in peace and friendship.

Young, German and Jewish | DW Documentary

Feb 21, 2021 • "We’re not aliens!" say young German Jews. They want to be seen as normal young people. But even in 2021, fitting into German society doesn’t come easily.

What does it mean to be the only Jew in the whole school? This is a film about dealing with clichés and stereotypes in everyday life, from the sports field to the synagogue, from the Torah to Instagram, from Shabbat to parties.

In German schools, calling someone a Jew is a common slur. For young German Jews, anti-Semitic phrases, jokes and prejudices are part of everyday life. It’s a sad truth that they often can’t wear their kippah or Star of David necklace openly, for fear of abuse or assault.

At the same time, they want to escape the label of victim. Ilan (20) says: "For many people we are a marginalized group that’s always being insulted. But it’s wrong to reduce us to that." Paula (12) adds: "Yes, I wish we wouldn’t get funny looks all the time."

This documentary shows the young and vibrant Jewish culture in Germany today. As different as young Jewish people are in their religious beliefs, interests and talents, they all have one thing in common. None of them want to only be seen as what Roman (19) calls a "museum piece," but as active young people who live in the here and now.

This documentary dispenses with commentary and listens to the voices of young Jews between the ages of 12 and 25, whom filmmaker Jan Tenhaven met in Berlin, Frankfurt, Osnabrück, Essen, Munich and Wessling. The conversations are interspersed with reports of anti-Semitic incidents.

Jewish Life in Poland | Free Full DW Documentary

May 5, 2020 • The Nazis murdered 90 percent of Poland's Jews in the death camps. Seventy-five years after the end of World War Two, life is returning to the Jewish community in Poland.

Jewish cultural festivals, kosher restaurants, klezmer bands and Jewish schools have returned to the Poland of today - the country that was once the location of the Nazi German Auschwitz extermination camp. The growth of the new, vital Jewish community is in part thank to the Chief Rabbi of Poland, Michael Schudrich. Visits to Auschwitz and other camp locations in Poland are for him simply part and parcel of the country's history.

Schudrich grew up on New York's Upper West Side. As a student, he traveled to what was then Communist Poland for the first time. His grandparents had emigrated to the US from Eastern Europe. At the end of the 1970s and later in the 1980s, many Jews looked for their families' roots in Poland. There were only a few left - among them were the Polish Jews who were closely linked to the Solidarity movement. They founded the "Flying Jewish University" at this time. A loose network of Jewish intellectuals even back then already believed that Jewish religious life would again find a place in Poland. The idea must have germinated in Schudrich's mind quickly. He decided to dedicate his life to rebuilding Jewish religious life in Poland. The concept was one he shared with billionaire Ronald S. Lauder, a key patron of Jewish religious projects around the globe who today is president of the World Jewish Congress.

Thirty years ago, after the fall of the Iron Curtain and the collapse of Communism, Michael Schudrich made his way to Warsaw. Here the son of a New York rabbi with a congregation in the Bronx became a chief rabbi. In the 1990s, he encouraged many more Poles to rediscover their Jewish roots. Several hundred learned the basics of Jewish religious life in the then newly-established Jewish school in Warsaw, leading them to become conscious of their long-suppressed Jewish identity. Now the Jewish communities in Poland have as many as 12,000 members who live according to the rules set out in the Torah.

A New Crusade: Poland's Embrace of Catholicism and Anti-LGBT Ideology | Foreign Correspondent

Apr 28, 2020 • When Poland’s Archbishop of Krakow talks about fighting a plague, he’s not talking about the new coronavirus. He’s talking about gay rights.

“A certain ideology is a threat to our hearts and minds…so we need to defend ourselves just like against any other plague”, says Archbishop Jedraszewski.

In the 1980s Poland played a central part in liberating the world from communism. Now there’s a push to wind back many of those hard-won freedoms.

The Catholic Church and the Polish government are forming a holy alliance, joining forces to denounce Western-style liberalism as the new enemy.

“From the very beginning the history of the Polish state and Polish nation were connected with the history of Christianity”, says Archbishop Jedraszewski. “Christianity, nation and state were so tightly connected, they were almost inseparable.”

In today’s Poland, the Church is supporting government moves to discriminate against gay people, wind back sex education and outlaw abortion.

But feminists, gays and liberals are fighting back.

Foreign Correspondent’s Eric Campbell reports on a deeply divided nation in the throes of a culture war.

He meets the Archbishop of Krakow who likens gay activists to the much-reviled Soviets who occupied Poland after the Second World War

. “This time it is not a red but a rainbow plague”, says Archbishop Jedraszewski. Regional governments across Poland have declared about a third of the country ‘an LGBT free zone’.

Eric interviews critics of the current government, including Lech Walesa, the father of Polish democracy, who warns “our Constitution is being broken, the separation of powers has been violated and we have to do something about it.”

He meets a gay mayor in a small town who says the rhetoric from Church and state is leading to an “increase in hatred spreading against homosexual people.” And he films at a far-right rally in Warsaw where Catholic extremists are co-opting the Church in their bid to push their nationalist agenda and vision of Poland as a new theocracy.

While many Poles believe a religious revival will lead their country to the light, others fear it is opening the gates to something darker.

About Foreign Correspondent:

Foreign Correspondent is the prime-time international public affairs program on Australia's national broadcaster, ABC-TV. We produce half-hour duration in-depth reports for broadcast across the ABC's television channels and digital platforms. Since 1992, our teams have journeyed to more than 170 countries to report on war, natural calamity and social and political upheaval – through the eyes of the people at the heart of it all.

Democracy Now! Top US News & World Headlines — November 19, 2021

Austria Announces a Lockdown and Vaccination Mandate for All.

In Vienna, the Austrian capital, on Thursday. | Leonhard Foeger/Reuters
THE NEW YORK TIMES: Austria will go into a nationwide lockdown on Monday and impose a coronavirus vaccination mandate in February, Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg said on Friday. It is the first such lockdown in a European nation since the spring, and the first national vaccine mandate to be announced in a Western democracy.

Austria has one of Europe’s highest national coronavirus infection rates, with 14,212 new cases registered in 24 hours on Thursday. And the Alpine country has one of the lowest vaccination rates in Western Europe, with just 66 percent of the population fully inoculated.

Recent restrictions on unvaccinated people have failed to bring the outbreak sufficiently under control, leading to the measures announced on Friday.

“For a long time — maybe too long — I and others assumed that it must be possible to convince people in Austria to voluntarily get vaccinated,” Mr. Schallenberg said on Friday. “We therefore have reached a very difficult decision to introduce a national vaccine mandate.” » | Christopher F. Schuetze and Elian Peltier | Friday, November 19, 2021

Covid-19 : l'Autriche va rendre la vaccination obligatoire à partir du 1er février, une première dans l'UE : Le chancelier Alexander Schallenberg a en outre annoncé un confinement de sa population dès lundi, y compris des vaccinés. »

Thom Hartmann : America on the Couch (w/ Dr. Justin A. Frank)

Mar 19, 2021 • What happened to American's mind after a year of loss due to COVID-19?

Dr. Justin A. Frank joined Thom to listen to the calls of people hurt and confused over the long year of Trump, COVID -19 and more.

Dr. Justin A. Frank is a Psychoanalyst & Clinical Professor, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Science-George Washington University / Author-Trump On the Couch (Previous books include Obama on the Couch & Bush on the Couch)

Bitcoin, wie alles begann - Mysterium Satoshi: Kriegserklärung (2/6) | ARTE

Nov 18, 2021 • Der Bitcoin funktioniert und wird in seinen Anfängen vor allem von denjenigen genutzt, die ihn am meisten brauchen: Whistleblower und Kriminelle. Satoshi Nakamoto verschwindet von der Bildfläche - und hinterlässt neben der ersten funktionsfähigen Kryptowährung der Geschichte nur wenige Hinweise zu seiner wahren Identität.

Teil 1.

Democracy Now! Top US News & World Headlines — November 18, 2021

Dimitra’s Dishes : Lemon Roulade

Get the recipe here.

Oberösterreich und Salzburg verhängen Lockdown für alle

CORONA-LAGE AUSSER KONTROLLE
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Lange hat sich die österreichische Kanzlerpartei ÖVP gegen Einschränkungen für Geimpfte gestemmt. Jetzt preschen zwei ÖVP-regierte Regionen vor.

In Österreich haben die Bundesländer Salzburg und Oberösterreich wegen drohender Überlastung der Krankenhäuser angekündigt, von kommender Woche an einen allgemeinen Lockdown zu verhängen. Bislang gilt dort wie in den anderen Regionen der „Lockdown für Ungeimpfte“. Der hat sich als nicht ausreichend wirkungsvoll erwiesen, um eine unmittelbare Besserung der Lage herbeizuführen. Die Kliniken in den beiden Bundesländern haben Alarm geschlagen und teils Vorbereitungen für Triage-Entscheidungen getroffen. » | Von Stephan Löwenstein, Wien | Donnerstag, 18. November 2021

Österreichs Ex-Kanzler Kurz verliert die Immunität: Der ehemalige österreichische Kanzler Sebastian Kurz hat seinen Schutz vor Korruptionsermittlungen verloren. Das Parlament hob am Donnerstag einstimmig die Immunität des 35-jährigen konservativen Politikers auf. »

Turkish Hotel Won’t Let Two Men Share a Room but Will Give Straight Couples ‘Tantra Sofas’

PINK NEWS: Holiday resorts and hotels in Turkey have been banning men from staying without female company, in widespread policies that discriminate against gay men.

The issue was revealed by travel site One Mile at a Time, after writer Ben Schlappig was alerted to the issue by a reader.

The reader was told by a the Lujo Hotel in Bodrum, Turkey, that his booking for two men to stay in one room was not allowed.

When he enquired about the reason, he was told it was because men simply party too hard when there are no women around.

However, if the hotel is against partying, its management has a strange way of showing it. » | Lily Wakefield | Thursday, September 9, 2021

George Michael : One More Try

En cas de détresse, seuls l'amour et la tendresse suffisent !

via GIPHY

When in distress, only love and tenderness will do! / In der Verzweiflung genügen nur Liebe und Zärtlichkeit!

The Women Bringing Sex Ed to the Arab World

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Activists are using social media to do what Arab countries have failed to do: teach women about their bodies. They are aiming for nothing less than a cultural awakening.

CAIRO — When Nour Emam decided to devote herself to educating Arab women about their bodies, the subject was so taboo that one of her first challenges was figuring out how to pronounce the word “clitoris” in Arabic.

“I had never heard it,” said Ms. Emam, 29, a women’s health activist from Cairo. “No one uses it, so there’s nowhere to find the right way to say it.”

After careful research, now she knows, and so do her hundreds of thousands of followers on social media, where she hosts one of the leading platforms for sex education in the Arab world.

With formal schooling on sexuality minimal to nonexistent in much of the Middle East, and a patriarchal culture that has left many Arab women ignorant and ashamed of their own bodies, Ms. Emam and a growing number of activists have built online platforms to try to fill the gap. » | Mona El-Naggar and Sara Aridi | Thursday, November 18, 2021

Comment le Covid s’attaque au cerveau

LE FIGARO : DÉCRYPTAGE - Des chercheurs européens pensent avoir mis au jour le mécanisme qui expliquerait certains troubles neurologiques.

Au début, le Covid fut avant tout considéré comme une maladie pulmonaire. Les patients les plus gravement atteints souffraient effectivement d’un syndrome respiratoire aigu comme on en voit dans la grippe. Mais il est vite apparu que le virus provoquait également des symptômes neurologiques: anosmie, crises convulsives, AVC, perte de conscience, confusion, à long terme difficultés cognitives… Pour l’expliquer, il y a bien sûr la violence de la maladie et des traitements infligés aux patients en réanimation. Mais anosmie et «brouillard» cognitif sont aussi très fréquents chez ceux atteints par les formes légères de la maladie. Tout semble donc indiquer que, d’une façon ou d’une autre, le Sars-CoV-2 fait bien plus que d’attaquer nos poumons. » | Par Soline Roy | mardi 16 novembre 2021

Réservé aux abonnés

À LIRE AUSSI : Covid-19 : le virus est capable de pénétrer dans le cerveau et d'y infecter les neurones : DÉCRYPTAGE - Des chercheurs français ont démontré que le virus ne se contentait pas de s'infiltrer dans le cerveau : il contamine aussi les neurones. Avec quelles conséquences ? »

Brigitte Macron désapprouve l’entrée du pronom «iel» dans le Petit Robert

LE FIGARO : La première dame s’est exprimée sur le pronom «iel» que Le Petit Robert a récemment intégré dans son dictionnaire numérique.

Deux petites phrases qui ne sont pas passées inaperçues. En marge d’un déplacement avec le ministre de l’Education nationale, Jean-Michel Blanquer, consacré au harcèlement scolaire ce jeudi 18 novembre, Brigitte Macron a désapprouvé l’entrée du pronom «iel» dans le petit Robert: «La langue française est si belle. Et deux pronoms, c’est bien», a-t-elle affirmé calmement. L’ancienne professeur de français n’approuve pas l’entrée du pronom «iel» dans les colonnes numériques du dictionnaire, qui suscite la polémique depuis quelques jours. » | Par Maguelonne de Gestas | jeudi 18 November 2021

One in Five Teachers Are Still Uncomfortable Discussing LGBT Topics with Children

METRO: One in five school teachers are still uncomfortable talking about LGBT+ topics with pupils, a new poll has revealed.

Independent research by Just Like Us, the LGBT+ charity for young people, found that only a third of teachers are ‘completely comfortable’ talking in the classroom about things related to being lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender.

Over 6,000 primary and secondary teachers were surveyed, and 3% of them even said they were ‘completely uncomfortable’ discussing these with pupils.

This comes despite the regulator Ofsted requiring primary schools to include different types of families – such as lesbian mums or gay dads – in lessons. » | Gergana Krasteva | Thursday, November 18, 2021

Julian Assange & CIA-gestützte Attentatspläne: Stella Moris | Truth to Power mit Lowkey

Switzerland to Implement Same-sex Marriage in July 2022

POLITICO: Almost two-thirds of the country voted in favor of the measure in September.

In Switzerland, same-sex couples can get married as of July 1, 2022, the Federal Council announced Wednesday.

“We are really happy with the outcome of the vote, and that it is now being put into law,” said Maria von Kaenel, co-president of the Marriage for All campaign, according to Reuters.

Almost two-thirds of the country voted in favor of same-sex marriage in a nationwide referendum on September 26. With the overwhelming result, Justice and Police Minister Karin Keller-Sutter moved to implement the result of the vote quickly. » | Thibault Spirlet | Wednesday, November 17, 2021

Fentanyl: An Epidemic of Addiction Made Worse by the Covid-19 Pandemic | DW News

Nov 17, 2021 • Today we learned that more than 100,000 Americans died of drug overdoses in the last year. That is the highest overdose death toll ever recorded in a 12-month period.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said 100,300 Americans died of overdoses between May 2020 and April 2021. That's a 28 percent increase on the previous year. Most of the death came from overdoses of the synthetic drug Fentanyl. An epidemic of addiction made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic. Lockdowns left drug users socially isolated and unable to get treatment. Drug overdoses now claim more lives than car accidents and gun violence combined.



Neues Rekordhoch: Mehr als 100 000 Drogentote in den USA in zwölf Monaten Pandemie: Die Zahl der an einer Überdosis gestorbenen Personen in den USA hat im Jahr nach Beginn der Pandemie um 30 Prozent zugenommen. Die anhaltende Opioid-Krise wurde durch die Corona-Pandemie noch zusätzlich verstärkt. »

Mahler Symphony No. 5 - Adagietto

Nov 22, 2015 • Myung-Whun Chung NHK Symphony Orchestra

Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No 2 | Evgeny Kissin HD

Jan 10, 2017 • Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France Conductor: Myung-Whun Chung Salle Pleyel, Paris, 19 September, 2014

Spinach & Feta Pull-apart Bread Rolls (Spanakopita-flavored)

Get the recipe here

Junge Zürcher haben besonders viel Sex - nun bietet ihnen die Stadt Gratistests zu Geschlechtskrankheiten an

NEUE ZÜRCHER ZEITUNG: In Zürich sind besonders viele junge Menschen sexuell aktiv – deshalb gibt es hier überdurchschnittlich viele Ansteckungen mit Tripper, Syphilis oder Chlamydien. Die Stadt reagiert mit Gratistests für unter 25-Jährige.

Die Stadt Zürich will sexuell übertragbare Krankheiten mit Gratistests eindämmen. | Michael Buholzer / Keystone
In Zürich ist die Ansteckungsrate bei sexuell übertragbaren Krankheiten deutlich höher als in anderen Städten. Das zeigen Zahlen des Bundesamts für Gesundheit. Zürich gilt als liberal und offen, es gibt viele Ausbildungsmöglichkeiten und Freizeitangebote. Deshalb ziehen besonders viele sexuell aktive Leute hierher. Zu diesem Schluss kommt die Stadt Zürich. Dating-Apps wie Tinder oder Grindr tun ihr Übriges: ein paar Klicks, und schon hat man sich zum Sex verabredet.

Für Zürich werden die hohen Ansteckungszahlen zum Problem, denn die Infektionen bleiben oft lange unerkannt und werden weiterverbreitet. Die Stadt startet deshalb ein Pilotprojekt: Ab Herbst 2022 bietet sie als erste in der Schweiz unter 25-Jährigen anonyme Gratistests für sexuell übertragbare Krankheiten an. Die «big five» sind HIV, Syphilis, Chlamydien, Tripper (Gonorrhö) und Hepatitis. » | Isabel Heusser | Mittwoch, 17. November 2021

"Nul ne peut ralentir le passage du temps" : le communiqué inquiétant de la reine Elizabeth II

La reine Elizabeth II en visite dans une station de pompage dans le Norfolk (5 février 2020, Wolferton. | Crédit Adrian DENNIS / POOL / AFP
MADAME FIGARO : Depuis son hospitalisation, les apparitions publiques de la monarque britannique se font de plus en plus rares. Ce mardi 16 novembre, la souveraine de 95 ans a renoncé une nouvelle fois à participer à une cérémonie officielle. De quoi raviver les craintes sur son état de santé.

C'est la première fois qu'elle n'y assiste pas en plus de cinquante ans : mardi 16 décembre, la reine Elizabeth a annulé sa participation au Synode général, l'assemblée nationale de l'Église d'Angleterre, pour se reposer. Une absence loin de passer inaperçue.

Son fils cadet, le prince Edward, a pris le relais et a partagé un communiqué écrit par la reine, rapporte notamment le site du magazine People. Dont l'un des passages a été très remarqué : «Il est difficile de croire que cela fait plus de 50 ans que le prince Philip et moi-même avons assisté à la toute première réunion du Synode général», confie Elizabeth II dans ce texte. Avant d’ajouter : «Aucun d'entre nous ne peut ralentir le passage du temps.» Regarder la vidéo » | La Rédaction | mercredi 17 novembre 2021

À LIRE AUSSI : Pourquoi la reine Elizabeth II n’abdiquera jamais : Après presque soixante-deux années de règne, la souveraine britannique confie de plus en plus de responsabilités à son héritier, le prince Charles. Les rumeurs l’annoncent sur le départ mais la reine affirme que « sa mission dure toute la vie ». »

Bitcoin, wie alles begann - Mysterium Satoshi (1/6) | ARTE

Nov 17, 2021 • Im Zeitalter des Internets versuchen die "Cypherpunks", eine anonyme, autonome, freie und direkte digitale Währung zu schaffen, die ohne Zwischenhändler auskommt. An diesem Vorhaben sind viele gescheitert - bis auf einen gewissen Satoshi Nakamoto. Mitten in der Subprime-Krise veröffentlichte er als Erster den Code für Bitcoin.


Le même documentaire en français ici.

Democracy Now! Top US News & World Headlines — November 17, 2021

Can the Vatican Reform Its Finances? | FT Film

Nov 11, 2021 • The FT investigates the Holy See's finances and looks at how landmark proceedings linked to a controversial London property deal are seen as part of Pope Francis's reforms in the city-state.

Brexit and Tory Corruption: Two Sides of the Same Coin | Truth To Power

Nov 17, 2021 • Brexit and the tsunami of corruption scandals over the last week or two are inextricably linked and involve pretty much the same people.

Jennifer Arcuri: ‘How Johnson pledged help for my business to win my love’: I’ll be your throttle, he told Arcuri as mayor / Diaries could reopen misconduct inquiry »

Labour Challenges Tories over Checks on Russia-linked Donations

THE GUARDIAN: Opposition asks whether any money given to Johnson’s party has been connected to ‘hostile state actors’

Donors who made money from Russia or Russians have given £1.9m to either the Conservative party or constituency associations since Boris Johnson took power, according to Labour. Photograph: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
Labour has asked the Conservatives what checks the party has made on donations received from Russian-linked individuals – and if it could be sure that no cash received came from the Kremlin or others hostile to the UK.

The questions follow revelations about a group of wealthy donors who have given money to the Conservatives and have business links to Russia or other wealthy Russians.

Labour’s Conor McGinn, the shadow security minister, said it was “deeply worrying to see revealed potential financial links between senior donors and Putin’s Russia” and asked about “the adequacy of the processes” by which donors are vetted.

Donors who have made money from Russia or Russians have given £1.9m to either the Conservative party or individual constituency associations since Boris Johnson took power in July 2019, according to calculations made by Labour based on disclosures to the Electoral Commission. » | Dan Sabbagh | Wednesday, November 17, 2021

Starmer has found a fruitful line of attack: fighting Tory corruption is a patriotic duty: Johnson insults people who think rules matter. The Labour leader is doing well by instead asking who speaks for the country »

Clarissa Eden, British Countess and Political Influencer, Dies at 101

THE NEW YORK TIMES: The iconoclastic niece of Winston Churchill, she was married to Prime Minister Anthony Eden, who was at the helm during the Suez crisis.

Clarissa Eden and her husband, Prime Minister Anthony Eden, at 10 Downing Street in 1955. “You were perpetually in evening gowns, tremendous evening clothes — tiaras and God knows what, and long gloves that had to be buttoned up,” Ms Eden said. | Monty Fresco Jr./Topical Press Agency, via Getty Images
LONDON — Clarissa Eden, an elegant and well-connected insider among a British elite that shaped the country’s empire, stewarded its wars and presided over the onset of post-imperial decline, died on Monday at her home in London. She was 101.

Hugo Vickers, her friend and literary executor, confirmed her death.

Long before her marriage to Anthony Eden, a Conservative who became Britain’s prime minister, Lady Eden had built an iconoclastic reputation that set her apart from her cohort of debutantes, traveling across Europe, studying art and philosophy, consorting unwittingly with Soviet agents and decoding secret messages at the Foreign Office in wartime Britain.

She was born into the Churchill family and, in a memoir published in 2007, recalled lunching with Winston Churchill — her Uncle Winston — as he allowed a pet cat to prowl the table to be fed. When she married Lord Eden, then the foreign secretary, Churchill provided for her to celebrate the occasion at 10 Downing Street, the seat of prime ministerial power. » | Alan Cowell | Tuesday, November 16, 2021

Tea and Coffee May Be Linked to Lower Risk of Stroke and Dementia – Study

THE GUARDIAN: Research looking at 365,000 people aged 50-74 finds moderate consumption could have health benefits

Drinking coffee or tea may be linked with a lower risk of stroke and dementia, according to the largest study of its kind.

Strokes cause 10% of deaths globally, while dementia is one of the world’s biggest health challenges – 130 million are expected to be living with it by 2050.

In the research, 365,000 people aged between 50 and 74 were followed for more than a decade. At the start the participants, who were involved in the UK Biobank study, self-reported how much coffee and tea they drank. Over the research period, 5,079 of them developed dementia and 10,053 went on to have at least one stroke.

Researchers found that people who drank two to three cups of coffee or three to five cups of tea a day, or a combination of four to six cups of coffee and tea, had the lowest risk of stroke or dementia.

Those who drank two to three cups of coffee and two to three cups of tea daily had a 32% lower risk of stroke. These people had a 28% lower risk of dementia compared with those who did not drink tea or coffee. » | Andrew Gregory, Health editor | Tuesday, November 16, 2021

The French Cooking Academy – Stephane: Chicken Cutlets: Pojarsky. Pan-fried Pieces of Goodness You Must Try

Nov 11, 2021 • The chicken cutlets pojarsky ( Pozharsky in russian) Inspired from Russian cuisine, this recipe is an absolute classic of old French cuisine. This is a plain chicken

Get the recipe here.

Liebe zeigen; Liebe genießen!

via GIPHY

Montre de l'amour; Profite de l'amour ! / Show love; enjoy love!

Cartier: A Celebration of Love

Nov 16, 2021 • The Maison is thrilled to present the LOVE IS ALL film, a heartfelt celebration of universal and timeless love.

Money, Happiness and Eternal Life - Greed (Director's Cut) | DW Documentary

Jun 24, 2017 • Can money and power ever make us happy? How much is enough? Our constant desire for more is part of our human nature.

Some call it a useful dowry of evolution, others a fault in the human genetic make-up: The old mortal sin Greed seems to be more ubiquitous than ever. Why can't people ever get enough, where is this self-indulgence leading - and are there any ways out of this vicious circle of gratification?

"People like to have a lot of stuff because it makes them the feeling of living forever," says American social psychologist Sheldon Solomon, who believes today's materialism and consumerism will have disastrous consequences.

Anyone who fails to satisfy his or her desires in this age of the Ego is deemed a loser. But with more than 7 billion people on the Earth, the ramifications of this excessive consumption of resources are already clear. Isn’t the deplorable state of our planet proof enough that "The Greed Program," which has made us crave possessions, status and power, is coming to an end? Or is the frenzied search for more and more still an indispensable part of our nature? We set off to look for the essence of greed. And we tell the stories of people who - whether as perpetrators or victims or even just as willing consumers - have become accomplices in a sea change in values.

Historian Alfred McCoy Predicts the US Empire Is Collapsing as China’s Power Grows

Nov 16, 2021 • President Joe Biden’s virtual summit Monday with Chinese President Xi Jinping follows the two countries’ announcement just days earlier they will work together to confront the climate emergency after Xi did not attend the U.N. climate summit in Glasgow. Tension has been mounting between the two superpowers, especially over Taiwan and Hong Kong, with some speculating that a new Cold War is developing. “The United States, in the immediate future, is faced with the possibility of fighting a war over Taiwan … that it would probably lose,” says Alfred McCoy, professor of history at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in an extended interview about U.S.-China relations. “China is also working to break the U.S. geopolitical hold over the Eurasian landmass.” McCoy is a prolific author and his newest book is out today: “To Govern the Globe: World Orders and Catastrophic Change.”

SRF: ‚GrossGschichte: Homosexualitaet‘ | Die Geschichte über Homosexualität in der Schweiz – Eine Diskussion auf Schweizerdeutsch

Homosexualität in Russland: Ein Tabu wird zementiert | DW Deutsch

Oct 9, 2017 • Immer wieder sind Lesben und Schwule in Russland Repressalien ausgesetzt. Tschetschenische Milizen setzten zuletzt über hundert Homosexuelle fest und misshandelten sie. Viktor ist einer von ihnen. Er wurde zudem gezwungen, seine Heimat zu verlassen.

“Hell on Earth”: Millions of Afghans Face Starvation as US & West Freeze Billions in Gov’t Funds

Nov 16, 2021 • Humanitarian and economic conditions are rapidly deteriorating in Afghanistan, where the U.N. estimates that more than half of the population suffers from acute hunger. The country has fallen into an economic crisis after the U.S. and other Western countries cut off direct financial assistance to the government following the Taliban takeover in August. Taliban leaders are also unable to access billions of dollars in Afghan national reserves that are held in banks overseas. “Forty million civilians were left behind when the NATO countries went for the door in August,” says Jan Egeland, secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, who recently visited Afghanistan and with refugees in Iran, where as many as 5,000 Afghans are fleeing everyday. “They told me very clearly, ‘We believe we will starve and freeze to death this harsh winter unless there is an enormous aid operation coming through.’”

Democracy Now! Top US News & World Headlines — November 16, 2021

China Warns US about 'Playing with Fire' on Taiwan - BBC News

Nov 16, 2021 • Chinese President Xi Jinping has used a virtual summit with US counterpart Joe Biden to warn that encouraging Taiwanese independence would be "playing with fire".

The talks are the most substantial since Mr Biden took office in January. Both sides emphasised the two men's personal relationship and the summit was an attempt to ease tensions.

But they could not escape one of the most sensitive topics: the self-ruled island of Taiwan. China sees Taiwan as a breakaway province to be reunified with the mainland one day.

The US recognises and has formal ties with China. But it has also pledged to help Taiwan defend itself in the event of an attack.


La réunification de Taïwan est «une aspiration partagée» par tous les Chinois, selon le gouvernement »

La Pologne annonce la construction d'un mur en décembre à sa frontière avec la Biélorussie

Plusieurs milliers de migrants tentent de rentrer en Pologne afin de rejoindre l'Union européenne. Leonid SHCHEGLOV / BELTA / AFP
LE FIGARO : Le gouvernement polonais veut empêcher les migrants de rentrer sur son territoire. La frontière avec la Biélorussie fait plus de 400 kilomètres.

La Pologne va commencer en décembre la construction d'un mur le long de la frontière avec la Biélorussie, où de nombreux migrants sont actuellement massés, et la finira au premier semestre 2022, a annoncé lundi 15 novembre dans un communiqué le ministère de l'Intérieur. «L'entreprise que nous devons mener à bien est un investissement absolument stratégique et prioritaire pour la sécurité de la nation et de ses citoyens», a déclaré le ministre de l'Intérieur Mariusz Kaminski. » | Par Le Figaro avec AFP | lundi 15 novembre 2021

À LIRE AUSSI : Crise des migrants : le Haut-Commissaire aux Réfugiés de l'ONU appelle à «trouver des solutions» : Si Filippo Grandi a dénoncé dimanche sur LCI la manipulation de la Biélorussie, il a aussi souligné la «panique» des Européens, rappelant qu'il ne s'agit que de quelques milliers de personnes. »

Poland Uses Water Cannons and Tear Gas as Tensions Rise at Belarus Border: Western leaders have accused President Aleksandr G. Lukashenko of Belarus of using migrants as weapons in an effort to pressure the European Union. »

Stanley Johnson Accused of Inappropriately Touching Tory MP

THE GUARDIAN: Caroline Nokes said PM’s father had smacked her on the bottom in 2003, while journalist also claims he groped her

Stanley Johnson told Sky News he had ‘no recollection of Caroline Nokes at all’. Photograph: Daniel Leal-Olivas/AFP/Getty Images
The prime minister’s father, Stanley Johnson, has been accused of inappropriately touching a former cabinet minister as well as a senior political journalist.

Caroline Nokes, who chairs the women and equalities committee, said Johnson had smacked her on the bottom in 2003, while he was in the running to be MP for Teignbridge in Devon.

Ailbhe Rea, political correspondent for the New Statesman, said she was grateful to Nokes for speaking out and said Johnson had “groped me at a party at Conservative conference in 2019”.

Johnson told Sky News he had “no recollection of Caroline Nokes at all” when approached by the broadcaster. The Home Office minister Damian Hinds said on Tuesday there should be an investigation into the claims “if that’s the appropriate course of action”. » | Jessica Elgot, Chief political correspondent | Tuesday, November 16, 2021

SKY NEWS VIDEO: MP accuses Stanley Johnson of inappropriate touching »

Michael Bolton : A Love So Beautiful

rovided to YouTube by Columbia | Views on YouTube: 8,613,370

Die hypersensible Gesellschaft | Philosophischer Stammtisch | SRF Kultur

Nov 15, 2021 • Eine Welle der Empfindlichkeit hat unsere Gesellschaft erfasst. Menschen fühlen sich offenbar aus kleinstem Anlass beleidigt. Empfindsamkeit mag eine Tugend sein – doch sind wir heute zu empfindlich?

Menschen sind verletzliche Wesen. Für diese Verletzlichkeit sensibel zu werden, ist deshalb sicherlich ein moralischer Fortschritt. Die Me-Too- und Black-Lives-Matter-Bewegungen gingen in den letzten Jahren mit einem weiteren Sensibilitätsschub einher. Seither herrscht Verunsicherung. Ist die Frage «Wo kommst du her?» kruder Rassismus oder nur eine harmlose Erkundigung? Wo fängt Sexismus an: Erst beim Griff an den Hintern, oder bereits beim Gebrauch des generischen Maskulinums?

Klar ist: Die Grenzen des Zumutbaren werden gerade neu vermessen. Nicht allen will das einleuchten, einige fühlen sich gegängelt. Für sie mangelt es gegenwärtig in erster Linie an Resilienz und Widerstandskraft. Hatte Nietzsche nicht recht, als er schrieb: «Was mich nicht umbringt, macht mich stärker!» Auf der anderen Seite stellt sich die Frage: Setzen wir mit diesem Imperativ nicht unsere Verletzlichkeit und letztlich Menschlichkeit aufs Spiel?

Am Philosophischen Stammtisch diskutieren Barbara Bleisch und Wolfram Eilenberger mit der Philosophin Svenja Flasspöhler, Autorin des soeben erschienenen Buches «Sensibel», und dem Philosophen Dominique Künzle, der sich unter anderem als Feminist bezeichnet.


Article associé.

Democracy Now! Top US News & World Headlines — November 15, 2021

Spain on a Fork: The Secret to the Best Spanish Ratatouille | Pisto Manchego

Get the recipe here.

Albert Bevia’s channel ‘Spain on a Fork’ can be supported on Patreon here.

L'idéologie woke à l'assaut du dictionnaire Le Robert

Le premier dictionnaire du Robert a été publié en 1951. Le Figaro
LE FIGARO : Au nom d'une démarche «inclusive», le dictionnaire a intégré sur son site le pronom personnel «iel».

La culture woke serait-elle arrivée jusqu'au dictionnaire Le Robert ? En octobre dernier, l'institution de feu Alain Rey a accepté dans ses pages numériques le pronom personnel «iel», contraction de «il» et «elle». Sa définition : «pronom personnel sujet de la troisième personne du singulier et du pluriel, employé pour évoquer une personne quel que soit son genre. L'usage du pronom iel dans la communication inclusive (sic).» Comment expliquer cet ajout ?

Chaque mois, les lexicographes du dictionnaire veillent et scrutent les nouveaux mots. Parmi ces derniers figurent «passe sanitaire», «antivax» mais aussi le fameux «iel». «On a constaté que ce mot prenait de l'ampleur et nous l'avons intégré», explique au Figaro Marie-Hélène Drivaud, lexicographe au Robert. Il a pour l'heure une période probatoire, même si on nous laisse sous-entendre que le mot rejoindra les colonnes du dictionnaire web avant d'intégrer l'édition papier de 2022. » | Par Alice Develey, Maguelonne de Gestas et Marie-Liévine Michalik | lundi 15 novembre 2021

Auch Shell verlässt die Niederlande

BRISANTER KONZERN-UMZUG
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Der Konzern zieht nun ganz nach London um. Die Politik zeigt sich „unangenehm überrascht“. Dass die steuerliche Behandlung eine Rolle spielt, erscheint offensichtlich. Inzwischen ist auch das Meinungsklima zunehmend giftig.

Die Niederlande verlieren auch ihren zweiten binationalen Industrieriesen. Der niederländisch-britische Ölkonzern Shell will – ganz ähnlich wie vor einem Jahr Unilever – seine Doppelstruktur aufgeben und ganz nach London ziehen. Dorthin soll der Steuersitz wandern, dort sollen der Vorstandsvorsitzende Ben van Beurden und Finanzchefin Jessica Uhl angesiedelt sein. Der Sitz in Den Haag hat das Nachsehen. Die Politik zeigt sich überrumpelt: „Unangenehm überrascht“ sei das Kabinett, sagte der geschäftsführende Wirtschaftsminister Stef Blok von der rechtsliberalen Partei VVD des Ministerpräsidenten Mark Rutte.

Somit verlässt innerhalb kurzer Zeit ein international bekanntes Konzernduo das Land, das viele Jahre die Liste der schwersten Mitglieder im 25 Werte umfassenden niederländischen Leitindex AEX angeführt hatte. Shell argumentierte, eine einheitliche Aktienstruktur erleichtere dem Unternehmen Rückkäufe und seine Rolle in der Energiewende. Die Anteilseigner sollen am 10. Dezember über den Plan abstimmen. Aus dem offiziellen Namen „Royal Dutch Shell“ fallen sowohl das „Königliche“ als auch das „Niederländische“ weg: als „Shell“ firmiert das Unternehmen dann. » | Von Klaus Max Smolka | Montag, 15. November 2021

Homosexuelle Liebe - Ganz anders - oder ganz normal? - ARD-alpha

Jun 1, 2017 • Die gesetzlichen Lücken zur Gleichberechtigung homosexueller Liebe schließen sich langsam, echte Akzeptanz fehlt jedoch manchmal. Dass sie mit ihrer Beziehung noch heute ein Tabu brechen, diese Erfahrung haben Lennon und Mani gemacht.

Two Young Men Simply Expressing Their Love for Each Other.

Deux jeunes hommes exprimant simplement leur amour l'un pour l'autre. / Zwei junge Männer, die einfach ihre Liebe zueinander ausdrücken.
With thanks to BeastBoy1994 on Pinterest for this super photo.

Holistic Healing and Alternative Medicine; Is It Just a Scam? | 60 Minutes Australia

Nov 14, 2021 • Did you take your vitamin C this morning? Echinacea, folic acid or fish oil? Have you had acupuncture, a remedial massage, or seen a herbalist? If you have, you are certainly not alone. It's called 'alternative' or 'complementary medicine'; a booming industry, worth at least two billion dollars a year. Its products and therapies are used by more than half the population. Yet nobody can say for sure whether they work, and if they do, why? Even the experts seem divided. Some say science should keep an open mind. Others, that it's all in the mind, mere witchcraft, a waste of money and maybe even downright dangerous.

Queen Elizabeth Pulls Out of Remembrance Sunday Service after Spraining Her Back

Related

Queen Elizabeth Misses Remembrance Service Because of Sprained Back: The British monarch, 95, has put off multiple trips and engagements recently, and the latest cancellation has deepened anxiety about her health. She has now been out of sight since mid-October. »

Prepare for Armageddon: China's Warning to the World | 60 Minutes Australia

The message coming out of China is getting louder by the day. It doesn't like other countries, especially Australia, ganging up and meddling in its affairs. As we know Beijing is currently doing its best to punish us economically, but in the last few days President Xi Jinping has also ratcheted up the rhetoric by warning of the perils of a new cold war. A loose translation is if we don't stop poking the panda, we'll face serious consequences. Now it's worth taking the threat seriously because Xi controls the largest military force in the world, and as one of his supporters cautions tonight, the cost of conflict with China could be Armageddon.

Covid: Dutch Accept Life within 'Lockdown-lite'

People in Amsterdam enjoy their last drinks before all bars have to close their doors at 7pm | AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
BBC: Twinkling fairy lights embellish the Linden trees around the Dutch parliament square.

Flames warm friends huddled beneath heaters glowing amber against the autumnal dusk.

While the anti-lockdown, anti-vax protesters and conspiracy propagators who hurled fireworks at riot police dominated the front pages, they represent a minority. Most people in the Netherlands reluctantly agree that sacrificing parts of their social lives can contribute to the greater good.

The Dutch government has announced a lockdown-lite designed to limit social contacts, in response to a sharp increase in infections. A record 16,324 new cases were recorded in one day this week and they remain stubbornly high. » | Anna Holligan, BBC News, Amsterdam | Saturday, November 13, 2021

In Österreich sind ab Montag Ungeimpfte im Lockdown: Im Kampf gegen die vierte Corona-Welle gilt in Österreich von diesem Montag an ein Lockdown für Ungeimpfte. Das haben Bundeskanzler Alexander Schallenberg und die Regierungschefs der Länder am Sonntag in Wien beschlossen. »

Remembrance Sunday 2021 : Poppies in the Field

Photograph : Adobe Stock
In Flanders Fields by John McCrae »

WIKIPEDIA: About the poem and the poet »

Remembrance Sunday: Nation Falls Silent to Remember the War Dead

Veterans from the Chelsea Pensioners were among those attending the service | GETTY IMAGES
BBC: The nation has fallen silent as it remembers those who died in past conflicts this Remembrance Sunday.

The Queen is not attending the service at London's Cenotaph after spraining her back. A national two-minute silence was held at 11:00 GMT, with similar ceremonies taking place at war memorials across the country.

Events have seen the return of pre-pandemic numbers of veterans, military personnel and crowds.

The National Service of Remembrance in Whitehall was closed to the public last year, with only limited numbers taking part, because of coronavirus measures.

This year sees a return to normal, with hundreds of servicemen and women marching and lining up around the Cenotaph and nearly 10,000 veterans marching past the war memorial, watched by large crowds. » |Becky Morton | Sunday, November 14, 2021

Thomas Markle on Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and the Leaked Letter in Exclusive Interview

For Meghan, an Image Rendered in a U.K.-U.S. Split Screen

THE NEW YORK TIMES: She has re-emerged in America as a formidable A-list celebrity and social activist. In Britain, however, Meghan remains a polarizing figure.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, at a gala for veterans in New York on Wednesday. | Craig Ruttle/Associated Press
LONDON — When Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, stepped out last week at a gala for veterans in New York City, the beaming, beribboned prince declared he was “living the American dream.” That might be even truer of Meghan, who has restyled herself since leaving Britain last year as a philanthropist, multimedia entrepreneur and outspoken campaigner for family leave rights.

Even as they were taking Manhattan, though, Meghan was shadowed by the couple’s old life in London. She was forced to apologize for erroneous statements she made in a lawsuit against a British tabloid, The Mail on Sunday, for violating her privacy by publishing a letter she had sent to her father.

Meghan said it was a case of faulty memory. But the tabloids, which have been at war with the couple since before they abandoned Britain for Southern California, leapt on the admission. “Little Miss Forgetful,” said The Sun, above an unflattering caricature of Meghan, drawn from “Little Miss,” an English children’s book series. » | Mark Landler | Saturday, November 13, 2021

La Russie et la Turquie assurent n'avoir «rien à voir» avec la crise migratoire à la frontière Pologne-Biélorussie

LE FIGARO : Le président russe Vladimir Poutine et le porte-parole de la présidence turque Ibrahim Kalin ont rejeté ce samedi toute responsabilité dans l'afflux de milliers de migrants.

Le président russe Vladimir Poutine a rejeté dans une interview diffusée samedi toute responsabilité dans la crise migratoire en cours à la frontière entre la Biélorussie et la Pologne, où des milliers de migrants sont massés depuis des jours. «Je veux que tout le monde le sache. Nous n'avons rien à voir là-dedans», a déclaré le président à la chaîne Vesti, après que plusieurs voix occidentales l'ont accusé cette semaine d'avoir orchestré avec Minsk l'envoi de ces migrants à la frontière.

Vladimir Poutine a également affirmé que les dirigeants européens devaient s'adresser directement au président biélorusse Alexandre Loukachenko pour résoudre cette crise. «D'après ce que j'ai compris, Alexandre Loukachenko et (la chancelière allemande Angela) Merkel sont prêts à se parler», a indiqué Poutine. «J'espère que cela arrivera dans un futur proche», a-t-il ajouté, rejetant la responsabilité de la crise sur l'Occident. Regarder la vidéo » | Par Le Figaro avec AFP | samedi 13 novembre 2021

À LIRE AUSSI : Pour Vladimir Poutine, l’aubaine d’une crise aux portes de l’Union européenne : DÉCRYPTAGE - Le président russe, s’il n’a sans doute pas déclenché cette situation explosive, s’érige en recours incontournable. »

Sleaze & Corruption - Is This the End for Boris Johnson?

Nov 13, 2021 • Boris Johnson has demonstrated time and again that he is not a prime minister who is interested in detail. Instead, he prefers grand gestures and being in the limelight where he can wisecrack and entertain.

He has a widespread reputation for lying and for not keeping his word, something he does without any concern for the consequences.

He has presided over the mishandling of the Covid crises where the UK consistently comes second in the world for the number of new cases reported daily despite budgeting a staggering £37,000,000,000 on Test & Trace, which has generally been considered a failure.

His Brexit is a disaster which can only get worse ,especially if he triggers Article 16 next week.

The attempt to sweep away the Parliamentary Standards Committee and replace it with a more sympathetic alternative was an extraordinary misjudgment resulting in an embarrassing climb-down and U-turn a week later.

Recent events have annoyed many Tory backbenchers especially those with slim majorities such as those in the ‘red wall’ seats. Newspapers which have normally been supportive have been critical of him during the past week. His personal poll ratings are at an all-time low as it seems public opinion is turning against him. He has gone from being a vote winner to a vote loser and it seems difficult to see how he can find a way back

De Klerk Apologises for Apartheid in Posthumous Video

F.W. de Klerk, South Africa’s last white president, apologized for his past statements on apartheid, which had angered some people who still live with the legacy of its injustices, in a posthumous video. Mr. de Klerk had helped dismantle the apartheid system as the president.

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In a Hate-filled World, Making Love Is Always Good

Our world is filled with ‘hate’. We all know it is, because the news is filled with hatred from each and every corner of the world. For this reason, I say clearly, and without reservation, that bringing love into the world is always good, whichever way that is, or can be, done between two CONSENTING ADULTS.

But when it comes to relationships, be they in the straight or gay community, there is a vast difference between “making love” and “having sex”.

As my visitors and followers will surely be aware by now, I am strongly in favour of ‘gay rights’. By ‘gay rights’, I mean the right of gay people to fall in love with whomsoever they please. But that comes with a caveat: The two people involved should always be CONSENTING ADULTS. The converse is NEVER acceptable.

Further, when I refer to “making love”, I use that term in stark contradistinction with “having sex”. Animals “have sex”; human beings are meant to “make love”.

When and where this website refers to kissing and expressing love, it should always be borne in mind that I always mean “making love”, not “having sex”. Promiscuity, be it in the homosexual or heterosexual community, is always unacceptable and abhorrent in my view.

Further, there is absolutely nothing wrong with abstinence. Being celibate is an acceptable option until the right person comes along. I know – I have actually spent most of my adult life being celibate. I have never bed-hopped; and I am very proud of that!

PROMISCUITY is NEVER a good option. It leads to no good place for either party. It is far better to wait until the right person comes along. Then, you can express your love, your true love, for that person and go on and have many years of pleasure and enjoyment together.

© Mark Alexander

All Rights Reserved

Steve Bannon Indicted by Federal Grand Jury for Contempt of Congress

Nov 12, 2021 • Steve Bannon, a former advisor to former President Trump, has been indicted by a federal grand jury for two counts of contempt of Congress after he refused to testify before the January 6 select committee for their investigation into the Capitol riot. NBC's Pete Williams has details.

Covid-19 : les Pays-Bas reviennent au confinement partiel, des manifestations éclatent à La Haye

La police anti-émeute a dû employer un canon à eau afin de disperser les manifestants, qui jetaient des pierres et tiraient des feux d'artifice. JEROEN JUMELET / AFP
LE FIGARO : Des échauffourées ont eu lieu à La Haye, où 200 personnes se sont opposées à la police anti-émeute après l'annonce des nouvelles mesures sanitaires par le premier ministre Mark Rutte.

Le premier ministre néerlandais Mark Rutte a annoncé vendredi 12 novembre la réintroduction d'une série de restrictions sanitaires, touchant notamment le secteur de la restauration, pour faire face à un nombre record de cas de Covid-19. Mark Rutte a qualifié la nouvelle série de mesures de «grand coup de quelques semaines, car le virus est partout, dans tout le pays, dans tous les secteurs et à tous les âges». «Heureusement, la grande majorité (de la population) est vaccinée, sinon la misère dans les hôpitaux serait incalculable en ce moment», a déclaré Mark Rutte.

Les bars, les restaurants et les magasins essentiels tels que les supermarchés devront fermer à 20 heures et les magasins non essentiels à 18 heures. Les citoyens néerlandais sont appelés à ne pas accueillir plus de quatre personnes chez eux et à faire du télétravail, «sauf si cela n'est vraiment pas possible», a indiqué Mark Rutte. » | Par Le Figaro avec AFP | vendredi 12 novembre 2021

Michael Bolton : Drift Away

Views on YouTube: 2,048,629

Bee Gees : You Win Again (1987)

Views on YouTube: 52,169,582

Lionel Richie : Love Will Conquer All

Ne soyez pas timide ! Exprimez votre amour !

via GIPHY

Seien Sie nicht schüchtern! Drücken Sie Ihre Liebe aus! / Don’t be shy! Express your love!

Ask Prof Wolff: Taxing Billionaires

Nov 12, 2021 • A Patron of Economic Update asks: "Now that Tesla is worth more than US $1 trillion, and Elon Musk is the wealthiest person in the world, there is more discussion of increasing the tax on billionaires specifically. Right-wingers are defending billionaires from taxation, arguing that unsold shares can't be taxed, and that billionaires, in their total pool of wealth, cannot fund the government for very long. Can you explain how taxation could work to include more progressive taxation of the billionaire class and refute some of the arguments from the right? Thanks." This is Professor Richard Wolff's video response.

Boris Johnson Holiday Villa Linked to Zac Goldsmith Firms Accused of Tax Evasion

THE GUARDIAN: Costa del Sol property firms owned by Goldsmith family ordered to pay €24m in unpaid taxes and fines

Zac Goldsmith (left) is a longstanding friend of Johnson and his wife, Carrie. In 2019, the PM personally appointed Goldsmith to the House of Lords.
The luxury villa where Boris Johnson stayed on holiday last month is linked to Costa del Sol property businesses owned by Zac Goldsmith’s family that engaged in a multimillion-pound tax evasion scheme, according to Spanish courts.

Court papers obtained by the Guardian show tax inspectors ordered two property companies owned by the Goldsmith family to pay €24m (£20m) in unpaid taxes and fines after investigating what they said was a suspicious property deal.

The tax authority’s findings have been upheld by one of Spain’s highest courts, with judges agreeing the companies effectively engaged in a deliberate effort to evade tax and committed “serious” violations of the law.

Documents indicate Spanish authorities are still seeking to recover the funds and could even seize parts of the family’s land, which is spread across more than 600 hectares (1,480 acres) of private woodland about 10 miles from the Marbella coastline. » | Harry Davies in Marbella | Friday, November 12, 2021

George Benson : Nothing's Gonna Change My Love for You

Provided to YouTube by WM Japan: Views on YouTube: 10,780,564

George Benson : In Your Eyes

Provided to YouTube by Warner Records | Views on YouTube: 3,162,448

Dimitra’s Dishes : Greek Custard Pie : Galaktoboureko

Get the recipe here.

Democracy Now! Top US News & World Headlines — November 12, 2021

The Story of Queen Farah Pahlavi - The Queen and I

Apr 10, 2021 • The personal story of Queen Farah Pahlavi and an Iranian film-maker.

WIKIPEDIA:

Farah Pahlavi

Shahbanu