Wednesday, June 07, 2023
Rishi Sunak’s White House Jolly Can’t Mask the Fact That Brexit Britain Is a Fading Power
THE GUARDIAN: The prime minister arrives in Washington with no real leverage in Europe – and therefore no real leverage with Joe Biden
‘Joe Biden can bestow the normal diplomatic courtesies on Rishi Sunak at this week’s summit, while conceding nothing of strategic substance.’ Biden and Sunak in Belfast, April 2023. Photograph: Reuters
The Americans know how to make a prime minister feel special. It isn’t hard. Saying “you are special” or words to that effect, usually does the trick. It helps to say it in the White House, within earshot of the British press corps.
Westminster hacks and Downing Street aides, most of whom are unhealthily obsessed with US politics, love a Washington summit for the same reason that Harry Potter fans queue to visit the Warner Bros studio in Watford. Standing on the stage where the magic happens is its own reward.
That makes Rishi Sunak a cheap date for Joe Biden at this week’s summit. The US president can bestow the normal diplomatic courtesies, while conceding nothing of strategic substance. Downing Street then tells friendly journalists that the two men bonded over baseball, or some other shared cultural enthusiasm, or that their wives did. The prime minister flies home with burnished credentials as the leader of a very important country indeed. » | Rafael Behr | Wednesady June 7, 2023
Schoolboy meets granddad. Naturally, granddad puts schoolboy in his place. Also probably advising him to pay more attention to his homework, especially that relating to geopolitics. Granddad will surely also add that he has been a very silly boy to back Brexit, telling him he should have known better. – © Mark Alexander
Rish! demonstrates the incapabilities of artificial stupidity during US jolly: Despite big talk on AI, trade and Ukraine, it’s obvious to all PM’s visit is a waste of his and Joe’s time »
Rishi Sunak is most unimpressive. Has he ever done anything in politcs that impresses anyone? No, please don't mention his give-aways to his croney friends during the pandemic. That 'generosity' doesn't count. He should have helped EVERYONE, not just his select donors and chums. All of us had to live through the pandemic. We all suffered. Because of Sunak's policies, the select few made a killing; the rest of us had to go and sing for our supper, so to speak. – © Mark Alexander
The Americans know how to make a prime minister feel special. It isn’t hard. Saying “you are special” or words to that effect, usually does the trick. It helps to say it in the White House, within earshot of the British press corps.
Westminster hacks and Downing Street aides, most of whom are unhealthily obsessed with US politics, love a Washington summit for the same reason that Harry Potter fans queue to visit the Warner Bros studio in Watford. Standing on the stage where the magic happens is its own reward.
That makes Rishi Sunak a cheap date for Joe Biden at this week’s summit. The US president can bestow the normal diplomatic courtesies, while conceding nothing of strategic substance. Downing Street then tells friendly journalists that the two men bonded over baseball, or some other shared cultural enthusiasm, or that their wives did. The prime minister flies home with burnished credentials as the leader of a very important country indeed. » | Rafael Behr | Wednesady June 7, 2023
Schoolboy meets granddad. Naturally, granddad puts schoolboy in his place. Also probably advising him to pay more attention to his homework, especially that relating to geopolitics. Granddad will surely also add that he has been a very silly boy to back Brexit, telling him he should have known better. – © Mark Alexander
Rish! demonstrates the incapabilities of artificial stupidity during US jolly: Despite big talk on AI, trade and Ukraine, it’s obvious to all PM’s visit is a waste of his and Joe’s time »
Rishi Sunak is most unimpressive. Has he ever done anything in politcs that impresses anyone? No, please don't mention his give-aways to his croney friends during the pandemic. That 'generosity' doesn't count. He should have helped EVERYONE, not just his select donors and chums. All of us had to live through the pandemic. We all suffered. Because of Sunak's policies, the select few made a killing; the rest of us had to go and sing for our supper, so to speak. – © Mark Alexander
A National State of Emergency: Human Rights Campaign Sounds the Alarm over Anti-LGBTQ+ Laws in US
The USA is falling into darkness. The mere thought that this country has dragged us out of the progressive European Union through that ridiculous Brexit referendum only to Americanize this European country fills me with dread. America, once the beacon of progressive hope, is now going back to the Stoneage. – © Mark Alexander
Pope Francis Admitted to Hospital to Undergo Abdominal Surgery | DW News
Jun 7, 2023 | Pope Francis is going to the hospital for abdominal surgery, the Vatican said on Wednesday. Francis, who is 86, is to be put under general anesthesia and will be hospitalized at Rome's Gemelli hospital for several days. The Vatican said that the treatment for "recurrent, painful and worsening" intestinal constriction would entail a "laparotomy and abdominal wall plastic surgery with prosthesis." The procedure is conducted by inserting surgical instruments through the abdominal cavity.
"The stay at the health facility will last several days to allow for the normal post-operative course and full functional recovery," it said. Earlier on Wednesday, Pope Francis held an audience in St. Peter's Square in Vatican City and also attended two meetings.
Related video.
"The stay at the health facility will last several days to allow for the normal post-operative course and full functional recovery," it said. Earlier on Wednesday, Pope Francis held an audience in St. Peter's Square in Vatican City and also attended two meetings.
Related video.
Being Gay Is Illegal in Many Countries. L.G.B.T.Q. Travelers Are Going Anyway.
THE NEW YORK TIMES: Tropical reefs, safaris, the pyramids: L.G.B.T.Q. travel companies deliver dream vacations, even to places where being out and proud could land you in prison.
A romantic island getaway in the Maldives. A safari in Kenya. A visit to the pyramids in Egypt.
Apart from being popular on bucket lists, these vacations have one thing in common: Their destinations have strict anti-L.G.B.T.Q. legislation. In the Maldives, gay sex may be punished with lashes and up to eight years in prison. In Kenya, it can bring a sentence of up to 14 years. And in Egypt, the authorities are known to throw people in jail for simply waving a rainbow flag.
Paradoxically, these trips are also all offered by travel companies founded by and catering to members of the L.G.B.T.Q. community. In interviews, the founders of four of these companies, which take a combined total of 3,000 tourists — most of them American — abroad each year, said they were providing a safe way to meet a growing demand for trips to countries that criminalize L.B.G.T.Q. people.
“I’m gay and I want to visit these places,” said Darren Burn, the founder of Out of Office, an inclusive luxury travel company. “And if I want to visit these places, then there are other gay people who do, too. So if we can enable them to do it in a fun, exciting and safe way, then that’s exactly what we’re here for.” » | Ainara Tiefenthäler | Tuesday, June 6, 2023
A romantic island getaway in the Maldives. A safari in Kenya. A visit to the pyramids in Egypt.
Apart from being popular on bucket lists, these vacations have one thing in common: Their destinations have strict anti-L.G.B.T.Q. legislation. In the Maldives, gay sex may be punished with lashes and up to eight years in prison. In Kenya, it can bring a sentence of up to 14 years. And in Egypt, the authorities are known to throw people in jail for simply waving a rainbow flag.
Paradoxically, these trips are also all offered by travel companies founded by and catering to members of the L.G.B.T.Q. community. In interviews, the founders of four of these companies, which take a combined total of 3,000 tourists — most of them American — abroad each year, said they were providing a safe way to meet a growing demand for trips to countries that criminalize L.B.G.T.Q. people.
“I’m gay and I want to visit these places,” said Darren Burn, the founder of Out of Office, an inclusive luxury travel company. “And if I want to visit these places, then there are other gay people who do, too. So if we can enable them to do it in a fun, exciting and safe way, then that’s exactly what we’re here for.” » | Ainara Tiefenthäler | Tuesday, June 6, 2023
US-Saudi Relations: Secretary of State Meets Saudi Crown Prince
Canada Wildfires Cause Smoky Skies and Spark Air-quality Alerts in North-East US
THE GUARDIAN: Hazy skies hung over north-eastern US a day after the midwest received a similar alert from the Environmental Protection Agency
The sun is shrouded as it rises in a hazy, smoky sky behind the Empire State Building in New York City on 6 June. Photograph: Gary Hershorn/Getty Images
Canada is dealing with a series of intense wildfires that have spread from the western provinces to Quebec, with hundreds of forest fires burning. Wind has carried smoke from the fires southward, triggering air-quality alerts throughout the United States.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Tuesday issued a poor air-quality alert for New England, a day after parts of Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota received a similar advisory. Last week, US officials as far south as Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania reported being affected by the wildfires. » | Associated Press | Wednesday, June 7, 2023
From British Columbia to Nova Scotia, Wildfires Spread Across Canada: Hundreds of wildfires are burning nationwide, expanding a sense of unease in the country as thick smoke billowed over Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal. »
Tracking the Smoke From the Canadian Fires »
Wildfires Are Intensifying. Here’s How to Protect Your Health.: Wildfire smoke is “like tobacco smoke without the nicotine,” one expert said. Here are some ways to keep yourself — and your family — healthy. »
EN FRANÇAIS :
Feux au Canada : le Québec, dernière victime des incendies hors norme qui ravagent le pays : Le pays connaît une saison intense de feux de forêts. Selon le gouvernement fédéral, 2 214 incendies ont consumé environ 3,3 millions d’hectares ces dernières semaines. Au total, 120 000 personnes ont déjà été forcées de quitter leur domicile et 26 200 autres sont en cours d’évacuation. »
A New York, les incendies canadiens rendent l’air irrespirable : L’indice de qualité de l’air ne cesse de se dégrader dans la mégapole américaine, où il est conseillé de ne pas sortir et d’utiliser des masques. »
Canada is dealing with a series of intense wildfires that have spread from the western provinces to Quebec, with hundreds of forest fires burning. Wind has carried smoke from the fires southward, triggering air-quality alerts throughout the United States.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Tuesday issued a poor air-quality alert for New England, a day after parts of Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota received a similar advisory. Last week, US officials as far south as Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania reported being affected by the wildfires. » | Associated Press | Wednesday, June 7, 2023
From British Columbia to Nova Scotia, Wildfires Spread Across Canada: Hundreds of wildfires are burning nationwide, expanding a sense of unease in the country as thick smoke billowed over Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal. »
Tracking the Smoke From the Canadian Fires »
Wildfires Are Intensifying. Here’s How to Protect Your Health.: Wildfire smoke is “like tobacco smoke without the nicotine,” one expert said. Here are some ways to keep yourself — and your family — healthy. »
EN FRANÇAIS :
Feux au Canada : le Québec, dernière victime des incendies hors norme qui ravagent le pays : Le pays connaît une saison intense de feux de forêts. Selon le gouvernement fédéral, 2 214 incendies ont consumé environ 3,3 millions d’hectares ces dernières semaines. Au total, 120 000 personnes ont déjà été forcées de quitter leur domicile et 26 200 autres sont en cours d’évacuation. »
A New York, les incendies canadiens rendent l’air irrespirable : L’indice de qualité de l’air ne cesse de se dégrader dans la mégapole américaine, où il est conseillé de ne pas sortir et d’utiliser des masques. »
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Pope Francis to Undergo Surgery - BBC News
Tuesday, June 06, 2023
Nocturne for Piano, No. 8 in D flat Major, Op. 27,2
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