Saturday, April 16, 2022

Finland and Sweden May Join NATO - What about Ukraine? | Ayman

Apr 16, 2022 • If part of Putin’s strategy in invading Ukraine was to scare European countries out of wanting to join NATO, that plan has backfired. But if Finland and Sweden may now get a green light on membership, Ayman and former US ambassador to NATO Ivo Daalder discuss: Why didn't Ukraine?

Guerre en Ukraine : le premier ministre britannique interdit d’entrée en Russie

LE MONDE : Selon le ministère des affaires étrangères russe, cette mesure a été prise en réponse aux sanctions britanniques contre Moscou. L’interdiction concerne également d’autres responsables, comme le vice-premier ministre et la ministre des affaires étrangères.

Le président ukrainien, Volodymyr Zelensky, et le premier ministre britannique, Boris Johnson, dans les rues de Kiev lors d’une visite surprise du chef du gouvernement britannique, le 9 avril 2022. AP

La Russie a annoncé, samedi 16 avril, que le premier ministre britannique, Boris Johnson, ainsi que plusieurs autres hauts responsables étaient interdits d’entrée dans le pays, en réponse aux sanctions britanniques à l’encontre de Moscou, en raison de son opération militaire en Ukraine.

« Cette mesure a été prise en réponse à la campagne médiatique et politique effrénée visant à isoler internationalement la Russie et créer les conditions propices pour freiner notre pays et étrangler l’économie » nationale, a affirmé le ministère des affaires étrangères russe dans un communiqué.

Il dénonce les « actions hostiles sans précédent » de Londres, en particulier les sanctions à l’égard de hauts responsables russes. « Le gouvernement britannique cherche délibérément à aggraver la situation autour de l’Ukraine, en fournissant des armes létales au régime de Kiev et en coordonnant des efforts similaires au nom de l’OTAN », ajoute le ministère. » | Samedi 16 avril 2022

Russia bans Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Ben Wallace from entering country: Moscow announces move that will also bar 10 other UK government members and politicians »

El Armario Real: Homosexuales en las casas reales

Truth To Power: Brexit Damage: What They're Not Talking about

Apr 16, 2022 • What a week. Rwandan Red Meat for the Tory racists, a law-breaking Prime Minister defended by gutless Tory MPs who have this week lost any shred of dignity or integrity, more COVID deaths than any other country in the world at the same time as the government tell us we’re world beating on COVID, a suggestion that the irrelevant Boris Johnson is somehow leading the world on Ukraine after his grubby photo op in Kiev. Against this backdrop, and flying almost completely under the radar, is the on-going catastrophe of Brexit. So many developments to tell you about.

Michael Lambert: Johnson's Law-breaking and Rwandan 'Dead Cat'

Apr 16, 2022 • Last week Boris Johnson, his wife and the Chancellor Rishi Sunak were all fined for attending a birthday party for Johnson during the lockdown.

Later in the week, it was announced that the government intends to send asylum seekers arriving in the UK by crossing the Channel to Rwanda with no possibility of return.

Both Johnson and Sunak have told Parliament that they did not attend any parties during lockdown and yet both have been fined for doing so. It is expected that further fines will be issued in respect of Johnson. Both Johnson and Sunak have declared that they will not resign.

The plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda seems rushed, ill-thought-out and unworkable. It will also be very expensive. However, it does serve to distract from Johnson's main problems which are further fines and the May local elections.


Friday, April 15, 2022

Don McClean : American Pie

Feb 26, 2017 • Provided to YouTube by Universal Music Group

'I Am Heartbroken': Last Surviving Nuremberg Prosecutor on War in Ukraine | Amanpour & Company

Apr 15, 2022 • Benjamin Ferencz was just 27 when he successfully prosecuted 22 defendants for war crimes. Now he tells Amanpour it pains him to once again see atrocities in Europe.

Mel Gibson's Passion - Primetime Live Interview with Diane Sawyer - 2004

Jan 4, 2016 • Diane Sawyer interviews Mel Gibson about The Passion of the Christ in 2004. Sawyer's husband was Mike Nichols, the overrated Jewish director who made lots of crap movies. I'm sure this Jewish family link colored her coverage big time. The media is controlled by people who are obscenely pro-Jewish, and they hire accordingly. The dingbat Sawyer squints in bewilderment at Gibson explaining basic Christian teaching. Lightweight "interfaith scholars" like Dr. Amy-Jill Levine (Jewish), pro-Israel Dr. Darrell Bock, and Nostra Aetate enthusiast Dr. Phillip Cunningham lie about Christian teaching on the Jews, claiming that the curse on the Jews no longer exists. This is a lie. A Jew is cursed so long as he remains a Jew. To remove the curse necessitates sincere conversion to Christianity. The former priest John Dominic Crossan whines about the extreme brutality of the movie. And the criminal Abraham Foxman appears to spread his usual BS, as if he has any moral authority. Not one real Christian was called upon to testify to the biblical accuracy of Gibson's movie. Even with a stacked deck against him, and the inanity of Diane Sawyer, Gibson does quite well. The Passion of the Christ was not a controversial movie. "Controversial" suggests that people are divided about something roughly 50/50. Only a small percentage of people were bothered by the movie. But this small group is the de facto ruling elite and they detest authentic Christianity, for they know that it represents a counter-establishment that has the potential to unseat them.

Dimitra’s Dishes : Pistachio Galaktoboureko Rolls


Get the recipe here.

Macron Wants Cap on ‘Shocking and Excessive’ Executive Pay

THE GUARDIAN: In run-up to the presidential vote, French premier calls for EU-wide ceiling after head of carmaker Stellantis receives €19m

Emmanuel Macron says ‘society will explode’ if CEO salaries are not kept in check in France where executive pay has become a prominent election issue. Photograph: Christophe Petit-Tesson/EPA

Emmanuel Macron will push for a cap on excessive executive pay should he be re-elected president after he described as “shocking and excessive” the €19m (£15.7m) pay packet handed to the head of carmaker Stellantis.

Macron, who is campaigning in the run-up to the final vote for the French presidency on 24 April against far-right candidate Marine Le Pen, told France Info radio that he was in favour of an EU-wide ceiling for top executives’ pay.

The multimillion-pound payout handed last year to chief executive Carlos Tavares, when French carmaker PSA merged with Italian-US rival Fiat Chrysler to form Stellantis, one of the world’s largest carmakers, has emerged as a prominent issue in the election.

Macron and Le Pen are attempting to woo the 7.7 million people who voted in the first round for left-wing candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon, who has described the final run-off as “a choice between two evils”. » | Phillip Inman | Friday, April 15, 2022

How Russia’s Disinformation Spreads beyond Its Borders | Russia-Ukraine War

Apr 15, 2022 • We traveled inside Transnistria, a Moscow-backed breakaway state in Moldova, to find out how Russia’s disinformation campaign stretches beyond its borders.

The Passion of the Christ (2004): Crucifixion Scene

Dec 12, 2019 • Depicts the final twelve hours in the life of Jesus of Nazareth, on the day of his crucifixion in Jerusalem.

Easter: Simnel Cake | Waitrose

Apr 2, 2014 • Silvana Franco shows you how to make this traditional Easter cake.


Get the recipe here.

WIKIPEDIA: Simnel cake.

Undocumented Lotto Winner Struggles to Claim Prize

BBC: An Algerian man who won €250,000 (£206,000; $270,000) on a €5 scratchcard in Belgium is struggling to claim his winnings because of his undocumented status.

The prize is too large to be paid in cash and the man does not have the papers he needs to open a bank account.

A friend who tried to claim the money for him was briefly detained on suspicion of theft. The winner says he wants to use the money to build a life in Belgium.

"When I get the money, I am going to buy a place to live in Brussels. And maybe a car," the man, whose identity has not been revealed, told Belgian newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws.

However, first he has to find a way to claim the money.

The 28-year-old man has no valid identity papers nor a permanent place to live, according to Belgian broadcaster VRT.

Because he cannot open a bank account, the lottery company will not make the payment, the man's lawyer, Alexander Verstraete, said. » | Friday, April 15, 2022

'I'm Shocked by My Church Leaders in Moscow' - Priest in Ukraine

Father Nicolay Pluzhnik

BBC: The Russian Orthodox Church has echoed the rhetoric of the Kremlin in justifying the war in Ukraine. It is a stance that appears to be driving large numbers of Ukrainian priests and parishioners to turn their backs on Moscow.

"I will never forget the moment when I woke up early to go to mass, only to suddenly hear the shocking sounds of bombing," says Father Nicolay Pluzhnik.

"The wonderful woman who cooked at our church and her son, who was in a wheelchair, were both killed when an artillery shell hit their apartment. I now know of several other of our parishioners who have died."

Like most clergy in the region of north-eastern Ukraine where he is from, Father Pluzhnik belonged to the branch of the Russian Orthodox Church which takes its direction from its religious leadership in Moscow.

But now, he says, has applied to join the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - which was finally granted independence from the Russian Orthodox Church in 2019, in a move never recognised by Russia.

He says many fellow priests who followed Patriarch Kirill in Moscow are doing the same because of the Church leader's stance on the war. » | Aleem Maqbool, religion editor, Chernivtsi, western Ukraine | Friday, April 15, 2022

North Korea’s ‘Only Openly Gay Defector’ Finds Love

OH HWAN

BBC: Jang Yeong-jin's remarkable story as North Korea's only openly gay defector was covered by the international media after he published his autobiography. Now, almost a quarter of a century after fleeing the country, he tells the BBC that he plans to marry his American boyfriend.

Jang Yeong-jin had never found women attractive. But it wasn't until his wedding night, aged 27, that this made his life difficult.

Jang felt intensely uncomfortable. "I couldn't lay a finger on my wife," he recalls. Although the couple did eventually consummate their marriage, sex was rare. Four years later - his wife still not pregnant - one of Jang's brothers began to quiz him. Jang admitted he had never been aroused by the opposite sex, and his brother promptly sent him to a doctor.

"I went to so many hospitals in North Korea because we thought that I had some sort of physical problem."

It never occurred to Jang, or his family, that there could be another reason for his lack of interest.

Medical tests

"There is no concept of homosexuality in North Korea," he says. If someone is seen running to greet another same sex friend, it's assumed that's just because they have such a close friendship. In fact adults of the same sex often hold hands in the street, he says. "North Korea is a totalitarian society - we have lots of communal life so it's normal for us."

Jang now thinks his experience of being misunderstood was by no means unique. » | Julie Yoonnyung Lee, BBC Korean | Sunday, March 21, 2022

LGBT Rights in North Korea »

«Jour du Soleil» en Corée du Nord, qui fête le 110e anniversaire de Kim Il Sung, fondateur du pays

Apr 15, 2022 • La Corée du Nord fête le 110e anniversaire de Kim Il Sung, fondateur du pays, avec un spectacle de danse et des feux d'artifices. Le 15 avril, «Jour du soleil», constitue l'un des événements politiques les plus important de Pyongyang.


La Corée du Nord commémore le 110e anniversaire de son «père fondateur» : La Corée du Nord a célébré vendredi 15 avril l'anniversaire de Kim Il Sung, fondateur du pays, ont rapporté les médias d'État, sans dissiper le mystère autour d'une éventuelle parade militaire pendant laquelle le pays dévoilerait de nouvelles armes. »

Democracy Now! US News & World News – April 15, 2022

'We Are the Most Homophobic Country in the EU': Poland’s Election and the LGBT Fightback | 2020


A short note to Andrzej Duda: Being gay is not an "ideology"! Calling the LGBT movement an ideology is about as absurd as it gets! The movement came about because gay people were downtrodden over the centuries, and denied their rights as himan beings. If people had behaved in a fair and decent manner toward them, there would have been no need for an LGBT movement in the first place!

All people, whether straight or gay, deserve to be treated with decency and respect, indeed, treated in a humane way. People shouldn't be demonised for being true to themselves.

In recent weeks, since the start of Russia's war on the Ukraine, Poles have shown the world how extraordinarily kind and generous they can be. Poles have truly stepped up to the plate and treated Ukrainian refugees exceptionally well. Kudos! Would that Poles would also show the same kindness and consideration to gay people, many of whom struggle to come to terms with their sexual orientation.

Come on, Mr Duda! It's the Christian way. Gays do not choose to be so; rather, they are God's creation. God simply made them that way! If being gay is wrong, then God Himself has erred. But the mere idea of God erring goes against Christian doctrine that God is perfect and inerrant.

Therefore, on this Good Friday, Mr Duda, I implore you and your colleagues to re-assess your treatment of gay people in your country. It's the only thing that makes sense; and it is also the Christian way. – © Mark

LGBT in Poland: I Still Can't Be Myself - BBC News

Nov 24, 2021 • Large parts of Poland were labelled "LGBT-free zones", where regional governments, as well as smaller councils, declared they were against LGBT ideology or ideologies that “undermine” the family.

Now, provinces have started to backtrack after the EU said it would freeze funds.

But has anything really changed for LGBT people in those areas?


Poland Election: The Fight for LGBT Rights - BBC News | 2020

Jul 9, 2020 • Polish President Andrzej Duda, who is seeking re-election on Sunday, is accused of running on an anti-LGBT platform and says he plans to ban same-sex couples from adopting.

Before the coronavirus lockdown, Ben Hunte, the BBC’s LGBT correspondent, went to Poland to visit its so-called ‘LGBT-free’ zones, and discovered what life is like for gay people living there.

Filmed by: Sean Allsop, Patrick Clahane
Edited by: Tobias Chapple


UK Plan to Send Refugees to Rwanda Is “Cruel” and “Immoral” Say Critics - BBC News


The Guardian view on Britain’s Rwanda deal: a cruel, cynical pretence: Sending asylum seekers on a one-way journey does nothing to address the global refugee crisis »

Thursday, April 14, 2022

Khatia Buniatishvili: Tchaikovsky - Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat Minor, Op. 23 | Klaus Makela & Orchestre de Paris

March 2022. Live at Philharmonie de Paris.

Hunger in Brazil I ARTE.tv Documentary

Apr 14, 2022 • Almost 60% of the Brazilian population is now food insecure and around 20 million Brazilians suffer from hunger... This is Twice as many as in 2018. A situation further aggravated by the COVID-19 epidemic that has caused more than 600 000 deaths and ruined the economy.

Hunger in Brazil I ARTE.tv Documentary
Available until the 08/02/2025


No Safe Haven for Russian SuperYachts in Dubai | SY News

Apr 12, 2022 • Shipping agents in Dubai imposing restrictions in Dubai on Russian yachts. Contractors not allowed to work with them and agents can’t do any cash deals or money transactions with them. Not sure if that’s all Russian or just sanctioned elsewhere ones.

Michael Bolton : Drift Away

Provided to YouTube by Columbia | Views on YouTube: 3,124,106

A Splendiferous “First Kiss” in Tel Aviv


I don’t believe that first kisses come much better than this!

Because this ‘kissathon’ has been age-restricted by YouTube, it is available for viewing only on YouTube itself; so, click here for your treat!

“First Kiss” is an 84-minute long kissing video between the artists Idan Bitton and Alfredo Ferran Calle. While the camera is still, the kiss is in motion, provoking the viewer to stay and watch.

Idan and Alfredo do not interact with the viewer, but offer a peek into their intimate moments of commitment. This long-lasting, present and unapologetic kiss defines our current gay rights momentum: We are here, we love each other, and this is what it looks like.

By Idan Bitton (idanbitton.com)
Performed by Idan Bitton & Alfredo Ferran Calle
Video by Runn Shayo
More of Idan's work: www.idanbitton.com
www.facebook.com/idanbittonstudio

Elegant Wedding Guests; Stylish Gay Couple

Ricky Martin y Jwan Yosef- ElleSpain [Todos los invitados a la boda de Eugenia de York y Jack Brooksbank]

With many thanks to Si quiero market on Pinterest for this delightful photo.

Ricky Martin shares heartfelt tribute to husband in rare post »

This Is the Best Place for Gay Men to Get Married | Gay Documentary' | Gay Men in the Promised Land'

Oct 14, 2019 • Michael Lucas shows you the most romantic moment in Tel Aviv...

Russia Warns of Nuclear Weapons in Baltic if Sweden and Finland Join Nato

THE GUARDIAN: ‘No more talk of any nuclear-free status for the Baltic,’ senior member of security council says

‘The balance must be restored’ in the Baltic, says Dmitry Medvedev (right), pictured with Vladimir Putin in 2020. Photograph: Yuri Kochetkov/EPA

Moscow has said it will be forced to strengthen its defences in the Baltic if Finland and Sweden join Nato, including by deploying nuclear weapons, as the war against Ukraine entered its seventh week and the country braced for a major attack in the east.

The Russian former president Dmitry Medvedev, a senior member of Russia’s security council, said on Thursday that all its forces in the region would be bolstered if the two Nordic countries joined the US-led alliance.

Finland and Sweden are deliberating over whether to abandon decades of military non-alignment and join Nato, with the two Nordic countries’ leaders saying Russia’s onslaught on Ukraine had changed Europe’s “whole security landscape”.

Their accession to the alliance would more than double Russia’s land border with Nato members, Medvedev said. “Naturally, we will have to reinforce these borders” by bolstering ground, air and naval defences in the region, he said. » | Jon Henley, Europe correspondent | Thursday, April 14, 2022

Inside Israel's Closed Off Ultra-Orthodox Communities | Foreign Correspondent

Apr 14, 2022 • In the modern State of Israel, the ultra-Orthodox – or Haredi – communities live a world apart.

Rejecting the secular, they live according to ancient religious principles. Many Haredi men spend their days in religious schools studying the Jewish bible.

“People here focus on the essentials: on the Torah. Material things are irrelevant here,” says Yossef, a member of a Haredi community on the edge of Tel Aviv.

“On Shabbat, cars stand still, everyone observes Shabbat. The women show restraint outdoors.”

Yossef’s wife, Esther, supports her husband.

“Man was created to study day and night. As a woman, I support that and benefit from it as well.”

The Israeli government subsidises this lifestyle, exempting community members from compulsory military service.

It has lead to resentment among secular Jews, tensions which have deepened during COVID.

“This is a state within a state,” says one Israeli MP. “Many Haredi movements want to integrate into Israeli society…the only problem is that some Haredi leaders strongly hinder this integration.”

Presented by Eric Campbell, this Arte documentary explores how pressures from outside are forcing many Haredim to integrate more with the modern world.

Moshe is one who’s pushing the boundaries. He’s set up a tech company which adheres to religious rules, including providing separate workspaces for men and women.

“In the business world, the sexes share a space and many Haredim don't deal well with that. So, we founded this place, so the Haredim feel comfortable in the high-tech world.”

Chira dreams of becoming a professional singer, but as a Haredi woman she’s not allowed to perform for men. She’s decided she wants to be a performer, but only for other women.

“I will never be able to sing on a stage where everyone can see me. But a new female audience is emerging. They organise parties, celebrations for young girls, festivals for women.”

Moshe feels his community’s traditions can help drive innovation.

“Some think if you preserve tradition, you stay stuck in the past, but the future is innovation… The talent for innovation comes precisely from reflection…This legacy enables us to look forward and invent new things.”

This is a fascinating and rare insight into a normally-closed world on the cusp of change.

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.


'Is This All a Troll?': Elon Musk Offers to Buy Twitter

Apr 14, 2022 • Elon Musk has made an offer to buy Twitter (TWTR) and take it private, saying he believes it needs to be "transformed."

According to an SEC filing, Musk has offered to acquire all the shares in Twitter he does not own for $54.20 per share, valuing the company at $43.4 billion. That represents a 38% premium over the closing price on April 1, the last trading day before Musk disclosed that he had become Twitter's biggest shareholder, and an 18% premium over its closing price April 13, 2022.



Related.

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.


Inside Poland's 'LGBT-Free' Zones | Insider Docs

Oct 21, 2021 • Warning: Some viewers may find scenes and comments expressed in this video upsetting. So-called 'LGBT-free' zones have made Poland the laughing stock of Europe. But it's no joke for LGBTQ+ people who face physical attack and verbal abuse - even from their own president. Activists are now leading a fightback that is showing signs of success.

Queen Expected to Miss Easter Sunday Service

THE GUARDIAN: News follows announcement last week that monarch, 95, would not attend Thursday’s Maundy church service

The Queen is understood to be in good health but has some mobility problems. Photograph: Ian Kington/AFP/Getty Images

The Queen will not attend the Easter Sunday service in Windsor after pulling out of several events in recent months because of mobility problems.

Buckingham Palace said the Queen, who has experienced health problems recently, was not expected to attend the event on Sunday, although it is not known why.

Last week Buckingham Palace announced that the monarch, 95, would also not be attending the Maundy Thursday service at St George’s Chapel in Windsor. For the first time she will be represented by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall at what is considered an important fixture in the royal calendar. » | Rachel Hall | Thursday, April 14, 2022

Lewis Lapham: Can America Survive the Rule of a “Stupified Plutocracy”?

Oct 24, 2018 • When author and journalist Lewis Lapham, founder of Lapham’s Quarterly and former editor of Harper’s, turned his shrewd gaze on the go-go ‘80s in “Money and Class in America,” he never imagined the era’s avatar of greed would one day become President Donald Trump.

Three decades later, Lapham shares his views on the decades-long deterioration of democracy in an interview with INET’s Lynn Parramore. An expanded and revised edition of his book is now available with a new foreward by Thomas Frank from OR Books.


Elon Musk Offers to Buy Twitter for $54.20 a Share.

Elon Musk said his offer to buy Twitter for $54.20 a share represented a 54 percent premium over the share price on the day before he began investing in the company in late January. | Pool photo by Patrick Pleul

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Elon Musk has offered to buy Twitter for $54.20 a share, just weeks after he became the social media company’s largest shareholder.

Mr. Musk said this was a “best and final offer,” representing a 54 percent premium over the day before he began investing in the company in late January, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. It would value the company at about $43 billion.

If the offer is not accepted, Mr. Musk said he would “need to reconsider my position as a shareholder,” according to a letter sent to Bret Taylor, Twitter’s chair, on April 13 and enclosed in the filing. “Twitter has extraordinary potential. I will unlock it.”

Twitter shares were 11 percent higher in premarket trading. On Wednesday, the closing price was $45.85. » | Eshe Nelson | Thursday, April 14, 2022

New Discoveries about Trump's Tenure | The Mehdi Hasan Show

Apr 13, 2022 • Because of all that happened, there's probably a lot you've forgotten about Donald Trump and his bumbling brand of authoritarianism. How does one remember it all, much less make sense of it?

Welcome to the world of presidential historian Julian Zelizer, who's authored or edited 22 books, including one all about the Trump presidency. He joins Mehdi to discuss his recent work — and the discoveries that he and his colleagues unearthed while writing it.


War in Ukraine: The Economist Interviews Tony Blair | The Economist

Apr 12, 2022 • Tony Blair, former British Prime Minister, talks to Zanny Minton Beddoes, The Economist’s editor-in-chief, about the war in Ukraine. He gives his opinions on how to deal with Vladimir Putin, the retreat of Western foreign policy and the future of geopolitics.

Inside Zelensky's War Room: "The Most Extraordinary Interview I've Ever Done" | Amanpour & Co

Apr 13, 2022 • In Estonia today, the Ukrainian President delivered his 26th address to a foreign government since the war began. Zanny Minton Beddoes, editor-in-chief of The Economist, recently met with Zelensky to discuss the world's response to Putin's war. Now back from Kyiv, she speaks with Walter Isaacson. Originally aired on April 13, 2022

Wednesday, April 13, 2022

Abramovich Hit by Multibillion-pound Crackdown on Assets in Jersey and France

THE GUARDIAN: More than £5.4bn of Chelsea FC owner’s assets frozen in Jersey and 12 luxury French properties seized

The Chelsea FC owner was subjected to UK sanctions on 10 March after ministers accused him of having ‘clear connections’ to Putin’s regime. Photograph: Paul Gilham/Getty Images

Roman Abramovich has had more than £5.4bn of his assets frozen in Jersey and 12 luxury properties – including a near-£100m villa on the Riviera that was once the holiday home of King Edward VIII – seized by the French government.

The Royal Court of Jersey announced on Wednesday that it had imposed a formal freezing order on “assets understood to be valued in excess of US$7bn, which are suspected to be connected to Mr Abramovich and which are either located in Jersey or owned by Jersey incorporated entities”.

The Russian oligarch and Chelsea FC owner was also hit by another crackdown in France on the assets of individuals affected by sanctions. The economy and finance ministry announced on Wednesday that it had seized 33 properties owned by oligarchs who had been hit by sanctions, including a dozen belonging to Abramovich.

“They include homes, superyachts and helicopters, and add up to well over €25bn,” a French finance ministry source said. “There are 33 properties that have been frozen, including a dozen belonging to Roman Abramovich.”

Among the properties seized is Abramovich’s Château de la Croë villa in Cap d’Antibes, which has eight bedrooms, a 15-metre rooftop pool, gym and cinema. The villa, which was built in 1926, is set in 12 acres of manicured lawns overlooking the Mediterranean. High-end estate agents estimate the property is now worth £90m-£100m. » | Rupert Neate, Wealth correspondent and Pjotr Sauer | Wednesday, April 13, 2022

World Leader Describes Putin's Mindset during Meeting Yesterday

Apr 13, 2022 • CNN's Becky Anderson speaks with Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer, who met with President Vladimir Putin of Russia to confront him over his actions in Ukraine.

Eine Geschichte des Antisemitismus (3/4) | Doku HD | ARTE

Apr 13, 2022 • 1791 - 1945, dritte Folge: Freiheit, Gleichheit, Brüderlichkeit? Die Französische Revolution ließ die europäischen Juden auf ein Ende der Diskriminierung hoffen. Doch bald schon brachten politische Bewegungen und pseudowissenschaftliche Strömungen neue Formen des Judenhasses hervor – unter einem neuen Begriff: Antisemitismus.

Im 19. Jahrhundert tauchten neue, politisch und rassistisch motivierte Formen des Hasses auf Menschen jüdischen Glaubens auf. Ein neuer Begriff wurde dafür geprägt: Antisemitismus. Vorgebliche Kritik am aufstrebenden Kapitalismus des industriellen Zeitalters, die auf falscher Personalisierung und der Leugnung komplexer ökonomischer Zusammenhänge beruhte, wurde zum Kern des modernen Antisemitismus. Das sogenannte Weltjudentum war geboren und wurde gerne auch in Karikaturen angesehener großer europäischer Tageszeitungen dargestellt. Die sogenannte Dreyfus-Affäre (1894), als der aus dem Elsass stammende Offizier Alfred Dreyfus als Spion für das Deutsche Reich beschuldigt und zur Verbannung auf die Teufelsinsel verurteilt wurde, beförderte die Karikatur in ein neues Zeitalter und verlagerte den Kampf gegen den Antisemitismus in die Politik. Dieser Kampf nahm eine neue Dimension an, als mitten in Paris auf dem Boulevard Saint-Michel der ukrainische General Symon Petljura von dem jüdischen Anarchisten Schlomo Schwartzbard erschossen wurde. Während des Ukrainischen Unabhängigkeitskrieges war es zu Judenpogromen gekommen, der Attentäter machte Petljura dafür verantwortlich.

Autor und Regisseur Jonathan Hayoun ist M.A. in Politischer Kommunikation, jüdischen Wissenschaften und audiovisueller Produktion. Er war Präsident der UEJF (Union des Etudiants Juifs de France) und Regisseur des ARTE-Dokumentarfilms „Rettet Auschwitz!“ (2017).

Dokureihe, Regie: Jonathan Hayoun und Judith Cohen Solal (F 2022, 52 Min)
Video auf YouTube verfügbar bis 11/06/2022



Teil 1 & Teil 2

MPs to Question Chair of Appointments Panel over Evgeny Lebedev Peerage

THE GUARDIAN: Committee summons Paul Bew to give evidence on No 10’s role in Standard owner’s elevation to Lords

Evgeny Lebedev and his father have owned the Evening Standard since 2009. Photograph: Neil Hall/Reuters

The chair of the commission that advised on the appointment of the Evening Standard owner Evgeny Lebedev to the House of Lords has been summoned to give evidence to MPs when parliament returns next week.

Paul Bew, an Irish historian, will appear before parliament’s public administration committee on Wednesday to answer what its chair described as “very serious questions” about Downing’s Street’s role in the appointment.

“We will be holding an evidence session on the role of the House of Lords appointments commission with Lord Bew,” the committee’s Conservative chair, William Wragg, said in a letter to the Labour deputy leader, Angela Rayner. He said members would raise some of the issues regarding Lebedev’s elevation in the session.

Controversy has surrounded Lebedev’s peerage after it emerged that the commission expressed concerns about his elevation to the Lords and asked Downing Street to reconsider in March 2020, after advice from Britain’s spy agencies. The appointment went through only after it was resubmitted amid pressure from Downing Street. » | Dan Sabbagh | Wednesday, April 13, 2022

Democracy Now! US News & World Headlines – April 13, 2022

Im Amt nicht mehr tragbar

Rishi Sunak und Boris Johnson müssen Geldstrafen zahlen. | Bild: AFP

BORIS JOHNSON

FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Der britische Premierminister muss Bußgeld zahlen, weil er wissentlich und willentlich gegen Corona-Auflagen verstoßen hat. Spätestens jetzt müsste die Konservative Partei erkennen, dass „Boris“ nicht mehr tragbar ist.

Es sind schon Menschen wegen weniger zurückgetreten. Aber die Erfahrung lehrt leider, dass der britische Premierminister an sich andere Maßstäbe anlegt als an Normalsterbliche. Boris Johnson muss, wie sein Schatzkanzler Rishi Sunak, Bußgeld bezahlen. Beide haben durch die Teilnahme an Feiern im Regierungssitz gegen Corona-Auflagen verstoßen. Das hat die Polizei festgestellt und entsprechende Strafbefehle erwirkt. » | Ein Kommentar von Peter Sturm | Dienstag, 12. April 2022

Lie, deny and move on – how much longer will the Johnson mantra plague British politics?: Partygate, bullying ministers, groping MPs and insider lobbying: the Tories have polluted our entire system of government »

Ukrainian First Lady: "Don't Get Used to Our Grief" | Amanpour and Company

Apr 13, 2022 • Christiane could not meet in person with Ukraine's First Lady for reasons of security. The responses of Olena Zelenska to a series of questions are voiced by a narrator in this exclusive conversation. Originally aired on April 12, 2022.

Aleksandr Dugin: The Far-right Theorist behind Putin's Plan

Apr 12, 2022 • In 2017, 60 Minutes spoke with the Russian political philosopher Aleksandr Dugin, who for decades has called for the annexation of Ukraine.

Steinmeier's Visit to Kyiv 'Not Wanted' | DW News

Apr 13, 2022 • German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Tuesday said a proposed trip to Kyiv had been rejected by the Ukrainian leadership.

Steinmeier had been planning to make a joint visit to Ukraine with Polish President Andrzej Duda and their Estonian, Lithuanian and Latvian counterparts "a strong signal of joint European solidarity with Ukraine."

But "that apparently wasn't wanted in Kyiv" Steinmeier said while visiting the Polish capital Warsaw.

Ukraine has previously been highly critical of the German president over his connections with Russia and the leading role he played as former foreign minister in improving relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin.



Ukrainekrieg: Selenskyj will Steinmeier nicht empfangen »

NATO-Erweiterung: Russland verlegt schwere Waffen an die finnische Grenze | WELT Analyse

Apr 13, 2022 • Eine von Finnland und Schweden in Erwägung gezogene Nato-Mitgliedschaft bringt nach Einschätzung Russlands keine Stabilität in Europa. "Wir haben wiederholt gesagt, dass das Bündnis ein auf Konfrontation ausgerichtetes Instrument bleibt und seine weitere Expansion dem europäischen Kontinent keine Stabilität bringen wird", sagt der Sprecher des russischen Präsidialamtes, Dmitri Peskow, in einer Telefonkonferenz mit der Presse. Finnland hat eine lange Grenze mit Russland.

Tuesday, April 12, 2022

Cigarette. Inhalation. Contemplation.

Zigarette. Einatmung. Betrachtung.

With many thanks to Death By Elocution for this expressive photo.

Ich liebe dich mehr als Worte sagen können.

Je t'aime plus que les mots ne peuvent le dire. / I love you more than words can say.

Mit bestem Dank an ginboysblog.tumblr.com für dieses entzückende Bild.

Disney Heir Comes Out Publicly as Transgender, Condemns Anti-LGBTQ Bills

Charlee Corra speaks at a Human Rights Campaign dinner on March 12 in Los Angeles. Randy Shropshire / Getty Images

NBC NEWS: Charlee Corra, a high school science teacher, regrets not having done more to advocate against Florida’s bill limiting LGBTQ classroom discussion.

Charlee Corra, a member of the Disney family, came out publicly as transgender and condemned anti-LGBTQ bills in a recent interview.

Corra, who uses "he" and "they" pronouns, announced that their family would match up to $250,000 in donations to the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest LGBTQ advocacy group, during the organization's annual gala in Los Angeles last month.

Roy P. Disney, Corra's stepfather and the grandson of Roy O. Disney, a co-founder of The Walt Disney Company, upped that amount to $500,000 last week.

“Equality matters deeply to us,” Disney said in a statement, according to the Los Angeles Times, “especially because our child, Charlee, is transgender and a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community.”

Disney also said the family was "heartbroken" when Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the Parental Rights in Education Act, which critics have dubbed the "Don't Say Gay or Trans" bill because it prohibits classroom instruction of sexual orientation or gender identity with students in grades K-3 or in a way deemed developmentally or age inappropriate.

Corra, a high school biology and environmental science teacher, told the L.A. Times that the HRC gala was sort of a public coming out for them, since they had come out privately as trans four years ago. » | Jo Yurcaba | Monday, April 11, 2022

Brokeback Mountain: Reunion

Homosexualidad en la antigua URSS / Persecución

Jerry Springer Says Trump Is Actually Worse Than the Trashy Guests on His Show

Apr 12, 2022 • Longtime daytime TV host and former politician himself Jerry Springer said during a recent interview that Donald Trump was exactly like the guests on his show that would engage in the trashiest behaviors. The only difference, Springer said, is that none of those people suffered from the same delusions that Trump did in believing that he was a suitable person to run the country. Farron Cousins explains why Springer is right, and also why Springer is partially to blame for Trump.

Eine Geschichte des Antisemitismus (2/4) | Doku HD | ARTE

Apr 12, 2022 • 1144 – 1791: Von der ersten "Judennase" in der christlichen Malerei bis zur Vertreibung der Juden aus den großen Königreichen Europas, vom Stereotyp des "reichen Wucherers" bis zum "Antijudaismus ohne Juden": In fünf Jahrhunderten erreicht die schleichende Entmenschlichung der Juden auf drei Kontinenten eine neue Dimension.

Auf welchem Bild tauchte zum ersten Mal in der Malerei des Mittelalters eine auffallende Nase auf, mit der Menschen jüdischen Glaubens hinfort dargestellt werden sollten? Wie überschritt diese Stigmatisierung die Grenzen der Ikonographie, um zum ersten diskriminierenden Erkennungsmerkmal der Geschichte zu werden? Woher kommt das Klischee vom „reichen, wuchertreibenden Juden“? Wie wurde der Hass auf Juden zum politischen Werkzeug für ihre Vertreibung aus einem Großteil Europas?

In den von ihrer jüdischen Bevölkerung verlassenen Königreichen entwickelte sich ein neues, paradoxes Phänomen: ein Antijudaismus ohne Juden – obwohl schon lange keine Juden mehr in einer Region leben, blüht der Antijudaismus. Im Spanien der Inquisition kommt es zur Unterdrückung der Marranen, also jener Juden, die gewaltsam zur Konversion zum Christentum gezwungen worden waren. Im Osten Europas fanden Juden zunächst Zuflucht. Doch dann wurden antijüdische Bilder immer beliebter, und die Ritualmordlegenden erblühten in Polen. Die Episode kommt zum Abschluss mit der Französischen Revolution 1789, die für immer das Schicksal der Juden auf der Welt verändern wird.

Autor und Regisseur Jonathan Hayoun ist M.A. in Politischer Kommunikation, jüdischen Wissenschaften und audiovisueller Produktion. Er war Präsident der UEJF (Union des Etudiants Juifs de France) und Regisseur des ARTE-Dokumentarfilms „Rettet Auschwitz!“ (2017).

Dokureihe, Regie: Jonathan Hayoun und Judith Cohen Solal (F 2022, 52 Min)
Video auf YouTube verfügbar bis 11/06/2022



Teil 1.

Coming Out Colton | Official Trailer | Netflix

Nov 29, 2021 • This is Colton Underwood's story of self-discovery coming out as a gay man, including addressing his past and embracing his place in the LGBTQ community. Watch as the former professional football player and star of The Bachelor embarks on his personal journey to a new reality.

Saudis Give Billions to Jared Kushner; Turkey Suspends Trial of Saudis Accused of Killing Khashoggi

Apr 12, 2022 • We speak with Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), about Turkey's recent decision to suspend the trial of 26 Saudi men accused of killing journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul in 2018. DAWN sued Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and his alleged conspirators in the murder. Whitson says Turkey's move to turn over the case to prosecutors in Saudi Arabia shows "the Turkish government has decided that good relations — and in particular investment and trade with Saudi Arabia — is more important than pursuing justice for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi on Turkish soil." We also ask Whitson about news that a fund led by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has invested $2 billion in Jared Kushner's new private equity firm just years after Kushner helped push forward a $110 billion weapons sale to Saudi Arabia while his father-in-law was in office. She says the investment "exposes the corruption and lack of accountability in both the American system and the Saudi system."

Eine Geschichte des Antisemitismus (1/4) | Doku HD | ARTE

Apr 12, 2022 • Die Jahre 38 bis 1144: Wo nahm der Antisemitismus seinen Anfang, und wie hat er sich weiterentwickelt? Die erste Folge der Dokureihe untersucht die Wurzeln des Phänomens: von der ersten Welle antijüdischer Gewalt im antiken Alexandria über das goldene Zeitalter von al-Andalus und das Massaker von Granada bis hin zu den Kreuzzügen.

Wo nahm der Antisemitismus seinen Anfang? Warum konnte er sich weiterverbreiten? Warum entstand die erste große Welle antijüdischer Gewalt ausgerechnet im antiken Alexandria, als die Römer die Macht übernahmen? Wie setzte sich der Antijudaismus in den christlichen und in den muslimischen Zivilisationen fest? Wie konnte Granada nach einem 300-jährigen Goldenen Zeitalter auf der Iberischen Halbinsel zum Schauplatz eines Massakers werden, dem ersten Pogrom auf europäischem Boden? Warum kam es während der Kreuzzüge zu organisierten Judenpogromen? Der Gang durch das erste Jahrtausend erzählt nicht nur von den Anfängen des Antisemitismus, sondern auch vom beginnenden Kampf gegen diese Anfeindungen, vom Schutz der Juden durch die Karolinger, von der Unterstützung durch die maurischen Könige in Spanien bis zum Aufruf des Abts Bernhard von Clairvaux (1090-1153), der blutigen Judenverfolgung während der Kreuzzüge ein Ende zu bereiten.

Autor und Regisseur Jonathan Hayoun ist M.A. in Politischer Kommunikation, jüdischen Wissenschaften und audiovisueller Produktion. Er war Präsident der UEJF (Union des Etudiants Juifs de France) und Regisseur des ARTE-Dokumentarfilms „Rettet Auschwitz!“ (2017).

Dokureihe, Regie: Jonathan Hayoun und Judith Cohen Solal (F 2022, 52 Min)
Video auf YouTube verfügbar bis 11/06/2022


Democracy Now! US News & World News – April 12, 2022

What Neo-Nazis Have Inherited from Original Nazism | DW Documentary

Sep 21, 2019 • What resemblance do today’s ethnonationalistic ideologies bear to those which surged during the rise of the Nazis in the Weimar-era? Quite a lot, this documentary shows. Germany’s far-right neo-nazi scene is now bigger than at any time since National Socialism.

History may not repeat itself, but one can still learn from it. The years of the Weimar Republic were scarred by post-war trauma, political extremism, street fighting, hyper-inflation and widespread poverty. But they also saw economic boom, the establishment of a liberal democratic order and a parliamentary party system. Nobody could really imagine that the Nazis would brush aside the achievements of this young democracy just a few years later. But there were signs, warnings even that all was not well.

So how does that resonate today? How do today’s right-wing populist movements and parties achieve their political aims? Which slogans, images and stereotypes played a role then, and which ones are playing a role now?

The film also looks beyond Germany’s borders. How has Europe changed in the last few years and how have far-right movements been able to gain such influence? In the interwar period, democracies across the continent collapsed one after the other like a house of cards. What about today? Riding on the coat-tails of the political party the Alternative for Germany (AfD) the far-right has become a factor in both national and state parliaments, united by nationalist and often racist ideologies directly linked to those of the 1930s. At that time, global economic crisis and mass unemployment drove people straight into the fascists’ arms. So what will happen if crisis strikes now? Are our democracies and their achievements today any more stable than they were in the years before the Second World War?


Loved and Loathed: Raising a Gay Child in the Former Soviet Union

Oct 22, 2018 • It took eight years for Olena Globa to accept her son's sexuality, and the battle to overcome her prejudices set her on a new path: helping other Ukrainian families accept their gay children, too.


Read the full story here.

Vladimir Putin Is Now Purging His Own over War Failures

Apr 12, 2022 • Russian President Vladimir Putin is reported to be conducting a 'Stalinist' mass purge of Russian secret intelligence, dismissing about 150 Federal Security Bureau officers, including some who have been arrested, according to a Times of London report. The Morning Joe panel discusses.

Zelensky Says Ukraine Takes ‘as Seriously as Possible’ an Apparent Threat of Russian Chemical Weapon Use.

THE NEW YORK TIMES: President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine in his latest address seized on an apparent Russian threat to use chemical weapons against the remaining defenders of Mariupol, as they prepare for what he called a “new stage of terror against Ukraine.”

Mr. Zelensky’s comments came after Eduard Basurin, a spokesman for the Kremlin-backed, separatist Donetsk People’s Republic, said on Russian television that Russia should bring in “chemical forces” to use in Mariupol, the besieged southern city. He said the remaining Ukrainian forces in Mariupol were dug in at a steel plant and that Russia should encircle it and “smoke out the moles.”

Referring to those remarks, Mr. Zelensky said in his latest video address, “We take this as seriously as possible.” The video was posted online Monday in the United States, and shortly after midnight on Tuesday in Ukraine. » | Jesus Jiménez | Monday, April 11, 2022

The Putin Files: Vladimir Kara-Murza

Oct 26, 2017 • Vladimir Kara-Murza’s candid, full interview on Putin and allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 US election.

Kremlin Critic Kara-Murza Reportedly Arrested In Russia

Apr 12, 2022 • Rachel Maddow revisits the years of advocacy by Vladimir Kara-Murza for democracy and against corruption in Russia, making him a prominent critic of Vladimir Putin and a target of his ire, and now, reportedly, the subject of detention in Russia.


Prominenter Putin-Kritiker in Moskau festgenommen: In Moskau ist der prominente Putin-Kritiker Kara-Mursa festgenommen worden. Der amerikanische Außenminister Blinken forderte seine unverzügliche Freilassung. »

Monday, April 11, 2022

French Elections: Macron and Le Pen Kick Off Presidency Run-off Campaigns

Democracy Now! US News & World Headlines – April 11, 2022

Claude Debussy : Arabesque No. 1

Yuja Wang – Rachmaninov: Prelude in G Minor, Op. 23, No. 5 | Live at Philharmonie, Berlin / 2018

Yuja Wang’s philosophy of music is both simple and profoundly complex. “I want to relate all life to music,” she recently told veteran British critic Fiona Maddocks. The Beijing-born pianist’s latest album for Deutsche Grammophon 'The Berlin Recital' captures the white heat of solo works by Rachmaninov, Prokofiev, Scriabin and Ligeti, a trio of Russians together with one of the late 20th-century’s greatest composers.

Daniil Trifonov – Chopin: Fantaisie-Impromptu In C-Sharp Minor, Op. 66

Oct 6, 2017 • Listen to Chopin’s “Fantaisie Impromptu” played by Daniil Trifonov. Daniil Trifonov's album contains Chopin's two beautiful piano concertos in fascinating new orchestrations by pianist-conductor-composer Mikhail Pletnev. Alongside the concerts Trifonov presents Chopin's solo works and pieces by Mompou, Schumann, Tchaikovsky, Grieg, and Barber paying homage to the genius who, in Trifonov's words, "revolutionized the expressive horizons of the piano."

USA : l'inflation de mars attendue «extraordinairement élevée»

LE FIGARO : L'inflation du mois de mars aux États-Unis, qui sera publiée mardi, devrait être «extraordinairement élevée», a averti lundi la porte-parole de la Maison Blanche, Jen Psaki, lors de son point presse quotidien. » | Par Le Figaro avec AFP | lundi 11 avril 2022

Austrian Chancellor Confronts Putin over Ukraine War Crimes

THE GUARDIAN: Karl Nehammer becomes first western leader to hold face-to-face talks with Russian president since invasion of Ukraine

Karl Nehammer speaks during a news conference after his meeting with the Russian president.Photograph: Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP

Austria’s chancellor, Karl Nehammer, has said he told Vladimir Putin that “all those responsible” for war crimes must be brought to justice and warned that western sanctions would intensify as long as people kept dying in Ukraine.

After becoming the first western leader to hold face-to-face talks with the Russian president since the invasion of Ukraine, Nehammer said his trip to Moscow was not “a visit of friendship” and that the two had had a “direct, open and hard” conversation.

“I mentioned the serious war crimes in Bucha and other locations and stressed that all those responsible have to be brought to justice,” Nehammer said in a statement.

Russian media reported that the meeting, which took place at Putin’s official Novo-Ogaryovo residence just outside Moscow, was behind closed doors at Austria’s request. Speaking before the meeting began, Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said the two would discuss “the situation around Ukraine”, but declined to give further details. Peskov said he could not exclude that gas would be discussed as this was “very, very relevant for the Austrian side”, according to Russia’s Interfax news agency. » | Jennifer Rankin in Brussels | Monday, April 11, 2022

Österreichs Kanzler und sein Blick in Putins Augen: Beim persönlichen Gespräch in Moskau wollte Karl Nehammer den russischen Präsidenten „mit den Schrecken des Krieges konfrontieren“. Doch nach dem Treffen mit Wladimir Putin ist Österreichs Kanzler „eher pessimistisch“. »

New Russian War Chief Will Bring More Brutality in Ukraine, US Warns

THE GUARDIAN: Moscow promotes Alexander Dvornikov, who led Russian troops in Syria, as it regroups for Donbas battle

The newly appointed general in command of Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine is likely to usher in a fresh round of “crimes and brutality” against civilians, the US has said.

Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser in Washington, said the appointment of Alexander Dvornikov as theatre commander of Russian forces in Ukraine could not disguise the strategic failure of Vladimir Putin’s war so far. “Ukraine will never be subjugated to Russia; it doesn’t matter which general President Putin tries to appoint,” he told CNN.

Dvornikov’s appointment follows the withdrawal of Russian forces from around the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. Dvornikov, 60, came to prominence at the head of Russian troops in Syria in 2015-16, when there was particularly brutal bombardment of rebel-held areas, including civilian populations, in Aleppo.

Sullivan said Dvornikov’s promotion would lead to more atrocities. “This particular general has a résumé that includes brutality against civilians in other theatres – in Syria – and we can expect more of the same” in Ukraine, he said.

“This general will just be another author of crimes and brutality against Ukrainian civilians, and the United States is determined to do all that we can to support the Ukrainians as they resist him and the forces that he commands.” » | in Kyiv and Ed Pilkington in New York | Sunday, April 10, 2022

Just a List of Terrible Things Rishi Sunak Has Done

Apr 7, 2022 • Fishy Rishi Sunak has had quite the fall from grace.

Dimitra’s Dishes: Greek-style Roast Leg of Lamb | Perfect for Your Easter Table


Get the recipe here.

Merkels Verhältnis zu Putin: Wie viel Verantwortung lastet auf der Ex-Kanzlerin? | Berlin direkt

Apr 11, 2022 • Die Kritik an der Russland-Politik der ehemaligen Kanzlerin Angela Merkel wird lauter: Hat sie Deutschland abhängig gemacht von Präsident Putin und russischem Gas?

Exclusive Access to Poland's Frontline amid Fears of Russian Invasion | 60 Minutes Australia

Apr 11, 2022 • On the border with Ukraine, war games have added urgency as the threat of a Russian invasion is dangerously close. Nine News correspondent Mark Burrows was granted exclusive access to the front lines by Major General Jaroslaw Gromadzinsk and Commander Colonel Peter Halys.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy: The 60 Minutes Interview

Apr 11, 2022 • Ukraine’s president speaks with Scott Pelley about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and recently uncovered alleged war crimes in Kyiv suburb of Bucha.


FULL INTERVIEW HERE.

Sunday, April 10, 2022

Ulrich Schmid | Endspiel in Kiew oder in Moskau? – Putins Ukraine-Krieg markiert eine Zeitenwende

Apr 10, 2022 • Der Krieg in der Ukraine dauert bereits Wochen. Putins Plan eines schnellen Sieges ist gescheitert. Einmal mehr wird klar: In Russland klaffen Sein und Schein weit auseinander. Und es fragt sich, ob die Jahre nach 1991 mehr gebracht haben als die Verfestigung einer neuen Diktatur.

Mit dem Slawisten Ulrich Schmid diskutiert der NZZ-Chefredaktor Eric Gujer über den Zustand von Putins Regime und der russischen Gesellschaft. Wieso verfällt das Land einmal mehr der Gewaltherrschaft. Warum ist der «homo sovieticus» noch immer nicht Geschichte? Und wie hat es die Ukraine geschafft, sich vom toxischen Erbe des Sowjetimperialismus zu befreien?


phoenix persönlich: Georg Stefan Troller zu Gast bei Michael Krons

Premiered Apr 8, 2022 • Er ist schon zu Lebzeiten eine Legende: der Schriftsteller und langjährige Fernsehjournalist Georg Stefan Troller, der beeindruckende 100 Jahre alt ist.

1921 in Wien als Sohn eines jüdischen Pelzhändlers geboren, muss Troller 1938 vor den Nazis fliehen und gelangt über Prag und Paris 1941 in die USA.

Als amerikanischer Soldat kehrt Troller nach Europa zurück, kommt 1945 nach München und dokumentiert als Fotograf den erschütternden Anblick, der sich ihm nach der Befreiung des Konzentrationslagers Dachau bietet.

1949 geht Georg Stefan Troller nach Paris, wo er seitdem lebt. Berühmt wird er mit dem Reportage-Format „Pariser Journal“ und der Portraitreihe „Personenbeschreibung“, wegweisend und stilbildend seine Art, sich mit einfühlsamen und subjektiven Fragen den Portraitierten zu nähern.

Für die Sendung „phoenix persönlich“ spricht Michael Krons in Paris mit Georg Stefan Troller über die prägendsten Momente seines Lebens, die Motivation für seine journalistische Arbeit und über die Frage, was Glück für ihn bedeutet.


Election présidentielle 2022 en direct : Emmanuel Macron en tête (28,1 %) devant Marine Le Pen (23,3 %) et Jean-Luc Mélenchon (20,1 %)

LE MONDE : Le président sortant devance la candidate d’extrême droite, également qualifiée pour le second tour, et le candidat de La France insoumise. Eric Zemmour est quatrième (7,2 %), devant Valérie Pécresse (5 %). Suivez en direct les résultats du premier tour de l’élection présidentielle 2022.

LIVE EN COURS ICI.


Erste Runde der Präsidentschaftswahl in Frankreich: alle Ergebnisse in der Übersicht: Hier finden Sie Hochrechnungen sowie laufend aktualisierte Ergebnisse und Grafiken zur ersten Runde der französischen Präsidentschaftswahl 2022. »

Fünf Jahre Macron – zehn Dinge, die Sie über seine Amtszeit wissen müssen: Als Überraschungskandidat der letzten Präsidentschaftswahl hat Emmanuel Macron den grossen Wandel versprochen. Welche Spuren hat er hinterlassen? »

Martha Stewart : Golumpki or Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

Apr 4, 2018 • Here, Martha and her mom share a Golumpki recipe that speaks to tradition and includes a couple of tips from Martha’s grandmother.


WIKIPEDIA: Gołąbki.

French President Macron Seeks Re-election

Apr 10, 2022 • A month ago, the French presidential race was offering little to quicken the pulse, with incumbent Emmanuel Macron expected to breeze through to another five-year term.

But far-right candidate Marine Le Pen has run a canny campaign capitalising on the cost-of-living crisis.

And now some are predicting that if she can make it through to the run-off between the two strongest candidates in a fortnight, she could even beat him.


Persia before Khomeini : The History of Iran in 15 Minutes of Perfectly-restored Film Material

Premiered Aug 27, 2021 • This documentary has been re-edited out from CHRONOS-documentaries "The Heirs of Cyrus the Great" (1974), "Politics of Oil" (1980) and super-8 home movies by Irmgard and Bengt von zur Mühlen.

Since the 1960s filmmaker-couple Irmgard and Bengt von zur Mühlen have been producing and directing documentaries about history and the countries of this world. Many of the more than five hundred films from the CHRONOS-company received international recognition (e.g. two Oscar nominations).


Shocking Intercepted Audio Reveals Talk between Russian Soldiers

Apr 9, 2022 • Shocking intercepted audio reveals conversation between Russian soldiers

J.S.Bach : "The Goldberg Variations" | Glenn Gould | 1955

Energie aus Saudi-Arabien: Und die Menschenrechte? I 3sat kulturzeit

Apr 10, 2022 • 81 Menschen hat Kronprinz Mohammed Bin Salman im Schatten des Ukraine-Kriegs hinrichten lassen - an nur einem Tag. Zeitgleich wurde der inhaftierte Blogger Raif Badawi nach zehnjähriger Haft freigelassen, doch wirklich frei ist er nicht: Er darf Saudi-Arabien weitere zehn Jahre lang nicht verlassen und nach Kanada zu seiner Familie reisen. Kurz nach der Massenhinrichtung der 81 Menschen, die zumeist den Schiiten angehören, reiste der britische Premierminister Boris Johnson nach Saudi-Arabien, um neue Öl- und Gasquellen zu erschließen, sollte Russland den Hahn abdrehen.

Und auch Bayerns Ministerpräsident Markus Söder (CSU) reist am Sonntag nach Saudi-Arabien und in die Vereinigten Arabischen Emirate. "Es wird eine Wasserstoffreise", sagte Söder der Deutschen Presse-Agentur in München. Und die Menschenrechte?

Im Interview mit 3sat-„Kulturzeit“ sagt Experte Guido Steinberg, dass die Betroffenheit des Westens angesichts der Hinrichtungen in Saudi-Arabien oft nur eine kurze Halbwertszeit hat. "Man muss dazu sagen, dass die Proteste nach der letzten Hinrichtungswelle Anfang 2016 beispielsweise doch sehr schnell abgeebbt sind. Also Saudi-Arabien hat die Erfahrung gemacht, dass der Westen das Königreich braucht und dass dann solche Hinrichtungen längerfristig nicht schaden."