Thursday, August 01, 2024

Bank of England Cuts Interest Rates to 5% in Narrow Vote

THE GUARDIAN: Reduction is first since March 2020 as governor says inflationary pressures have ‘eased enough’ to enable cut

The Bank of England has cut interest rates for the first time since the start of the Covid pandemic, moving to ease the pressure on households after ratcheting up borrowing costs to combat the worst inflation shock in four decades.

In a finely balanced decision after holding borrowing costs at the highest level since the 2008 financial crisis for a year, the Bank’s monetary policy committee (MPC) voted by a narrow majority to cut its base rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 5%.

Exposing divisions within the central bank’s most senior ranks over the timing of a cut, the MPC was split by five votes to four, with the governor, Andrew Bailey, casting the deciding vote for the first reduction in borrowing costs since March 2020. » | Richard Partington, Economics correspondent | Thursday, August 1, 2024

Don’t be fooled by the interest rate cut – higher rates are here to stay: Mortgage payers and business owners vainly hope cut to 5% signals return to pre-pandemic era of cheap borrowing »

UK Must Apply Existing Brexit Deals before Any Reset in Relations, Says EU

THE GUARDIAN: Government told it must fully implement deals on EU citizens and Northern Ireland to show ‘commitment’ to good-faith reset

Brussels has warned the UK that it must fully apply the existing Brexit deals on EU citizens and Northern Ireland before it will entertain a reset in the relationship with London.

A leaked document reported by the Financial Times lists eight demands of the new Labour government in order to “demonstrate the real UK government commitment” to a good-faith reset of the relationship with the EU.

EU leaders have said they are “open minded” about the future relationship with the UK, and Germany has said it is enthusiastic about a youth mobility deal.

They have also raised the possibility of a new EU-UK agreement that could encompass deals on mutual recognition of professional qualifications and other low-hanging fruit. » | Lisa O’Carroll, Brussels correspondent | Thursday, August 1, 2024

Blasphemy in Morocco with Mohamed

Jul 30, 2024 | Interview with a Moroccan ex-Muslim ‪@ skeptic mohamed‬ who applied for asylum in Sweden after being attacked for his beliefs and political statements


Please be aware that some people might be offended by some of the content in this video. I am posting this discussion because it is very interesting and very informative. Posting it, however, should not necessarily be construed as a full endorsement.

My visitors and followers will know by now that I am committed to freedom of thought and freedom of expression. I abhor censorship in all its forms. I am also committed to the concept of freedom of religion and man’s right to reject what he considers to be myth and fable, too. If a person rejects the concept of God, then so be it. Advancement in this world can only be achieved with freedom of thought and freedom of expression. Societies which reject freedom of thought, freedom of expression, and freedom of religion, or punish people for the agnosticism or atheism are always held back in their scientific and societal progress.

Blasphemy laws are a nonsense and do not belong in the modern world. – © Mark Alexander


The Moroccan atheist referred to in this video is Kacem El Gazzali. You can find information on him on WIKIPEDIA here.

Huw Edwards' Deeply ‘Consumed Personality’ Led Him to Commit Crime | Andrew Billen

Aug 1, 2024 | "People like Huw Edwards are a bit weird, a bit different, a bit untouchable, but have a bit more leeway in how they behave”. Former BBC presenter Huw Edwards was able to "hoodwink" other staff members to do as he feels, says The Times’s Andrew Billen.


Huw Edwards’ fall comes 14 months after career peak: Questions to be asked about whether sufficient safeguarding was in place to prevent another TV face exploiting power A measure of the speed and depth of Huw Edwards’ reputational collapse is that his appearance at Westminster magistrates court on Wednesday came just 14 months after he reached his career peak, presenting the king’s coronation. The presenter has already suffered disgrace and career ruin and could, when sentencing occurs on 16 September, face jail. »

Related »

Wednesday, July 31, 2024

Die brutale Folter schwuler Männer unter dem Naziregime – Nazideutschland

Sep 15, 2023 | Schwule Männer konnten natürlich auch aus anderen Gründen als ihrer Sexualität in Konzentrationslagern inhaftiert und verfolgt werden. Einige schwule Männer wurden als politische Oppositionelle, als Juden oder als Angehörige anderer Häftlingskategorien in die Lager geschickt. In diesen Fällen war ihre Sexualität im Allgemeinen zweitrangig gegenüber dem Grund ihrer Inhaftierung, und sie trugen das Abzeichen, das ihrer offiziellen Häftlingskategorie entsprach.

Der Zweite Weltkrieg begann am 1. September 1939. Die Zahl der gemäß Paragraph 175 verhafteten Männer ging während der Kriegsjahre zurück, da die Anforderungen eines totalen Krieges Vorrang vor der nationalsozialistischen Kampagne gegen Homosexualität hatten. Viele Männer, die nach Paragraph 175 verurteilt worden waren, traten in das deutsche Militär ein oder wurden einberufen. Das Militär brauchte diese Rekruten, und in den meisten Fällen wurde die Sexualität eines Soldaten als zweitrangig betrachtet. So auch im Fall von Albrecht Becker, einem deutschen Produktionsdesigner, Fotografen und Schauspieler, der vom NS-Regime wegen des Vorwurfs der Homosexualität inhaftiert wurde. Gegen Ende des Krieges, als die deutsche Armee mehr Männer brauchte, wurde Becker jedoch entlassen, um an der Ostfront zu dienen, was er bis 1944 tat. Albrecht Becker gehörte zu denjenigen, die den Krieg überlebten, und er starb 2002 im Alter von 95 Jahren in Hamburg.

Bei Kriegsende vernichteten die Nazis zahlreiche Akten, darunter auch das Archiv der Reichszentrale zur Bekämpfung der Homosexualität und des Schwangerschaftsabbruchs. Wissenschaftler schätzen, dass es während des NS-Regimes etwa 100.000 Verhaftungen nach Paragraph 175 gab. In mehr als 53.000 Fällen kam es zu Verurteilungen.

Im Frühjahr 1945 befreiten alliierte Soldaten die Konzentrationslager und ließen die Gefangenen frei, darunter auch diejenigen, die den Rosa Winkel trugen. Doch das Ende des Krieges und die Niederlage des Naziregimes brachten keine umfassende Befreiung für schwule Männer, die nicht nur in der deutschen Gesellschaft ausgegrenzt blieben. Sexuelle Beziehungen zwischen Männern blieben in Deutschland weiterhin illegal. Viele Männer, die wegen angeblicher Verstöße gegen den Paragraphen 175 verurteilt worden waren, blieben auch nach dem Krieg im Gefängnis, und weitere Zehntausende wurden in der Nachkriegszeit verurteilt.

In Ostdeutschland wurde Homosexualität erst 1968 entkriminalisiert, in Westdeutschland 1969. Erst in den 1990er Jahren erkannte die deutsche Regierung "verfolgte Homosexuelle" als Opfer des NS-Regimes an. Als die Regierung 2002 die Verurteilungen aufgrund des Paragraphen 175 aus der Nazizeit aufhob, hatten schwule Männer, die unter den Nazis gelitten hatten, zum ersten Mal Anspruch auf eine finanzielle Entschädigung für das erlittene Unrecht durch die deutsche Regierung.

Aufgrund der fortbestehenden Vorurteile gegen gleichgeschlechtliche Sexualität und der fortdauernden Strafverfolgung nach Paragraph 175 bis ins späte 20 Jahrhundert, wagten es viele schwule Männer nicht, über ihre Erlebnisse in der Nazizeit zu sprechen oder zu schreiben. Wir dürfen diese Männer nie vergessen, die starben oder bis an ihr Lebensende gezeichnet blieben, wenn sie überlebten. Ihre Geschichten und ihr Leiden müssen uns für immer an die Gefahren von Diskriminierung, Rassismus und Hass erinnern, denn oft wiederholt sich Geschichte.

Haftungsausschluss: Alle Meinungen und Kommentare unten stammen von Mitgliedern der Öffentlichkeit und spiegeln nicht die Ansichten des World History Channel wider. Wir tolerieren nicht das Fördern von Gewalt oder Hass gegen Einzelpersonen oder Gruppen aufgrund von Merkmalen wie Rasse, Nationalität, Religion, Geschlecht und sexueller Orientierung. World History hat das Recht, Kommentare zu überprüfen und zu löschen, wenn sie als unangemessen erachtet werden.


Trump Questions Harris’s Racial Identity, Saying She Only ‘Became Black’ Recently

THE NEW YORK TIMES: In an appearance before the National Association of Black Journalists, Donald Trump also said his choice of Senator JD Vance as vice president will not matter to voters.

Former President Donald J. Trump questioned Vice President Kamala Harris’s identity as a Black woman on Wednesday in front of an audience of Black journalists, suggesting his opponent for the presidency had adopted her racial profile as a political “turn.”

“She was Indian all the way, and then all of a sudden, she made a turn, and she went, she became a Black person,” he said of Ms. Harris, whose mother is Indian American and whose father is Black.

The former president was addressing a gathering of the National Association of Black Journalists in Chicago, where Mr. Trump repeated falsehoods about immigration, sparred with reporters over the merits of diversity, equity and inclusion efforts and told the group that he was “the best president for the Black population” since Abraham Lincoln.

The event proved to be one of the most unusual appearances of the presidential campaign so far. Mr. Trump has favored friendly appearances with conservative television, radio and podcast hosts, but he had ample warning that the panel awaiting him in Chicago would be tough. Facing three Black women, he insulted the first Black woman on the top of a major-party ticket and seemed perfectly comfortable disparaging his hosts, even as he tried to appeal to Black voters as their best choice for safeguarding Black well-being. (+ video) » | Jonathan Weisman and Maya King, Jonathan Weisman and Maya King reported from Chicago | Wednesday, July 31, 2024

Prince Andrew Treats His Staff Like Peasants – Norman Baker

Jul 18, 2024 | Insider and royal expert Norman Baker sheds light on the weird teddy bear life of Prince Andrew, the financial theft and the Jeffrey Epstein allegations after his client list and flight logs came out. He explains how the royals make their money, who pays for them, and why this is so controversial.

Huw Edwards' Broadcasting Career Ends in Disgrace

Edwards, who joined the BBC in 1984, was one of the UK's most high-profile broadcasters | PA MEDIA

BBC: Huw Edwards was one of the most familiar and respected faces on British TV, but is now in disgrace after pleading guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children.

The former BBC News presenter's admission at Westminster Magistrates 'Court on Wednesday came three months after the former anchor resigned from the BBC on "medical advice".

The presenter had been off air since July last year, when he was named as the star at the centre of different allegations, also involving explicit images.

His guilty plea marks the end of a career in broadcasting which has spanned more than 40 years.

He was known for his calm delivery of major news stories and was trusted by viewers.

Until last year, Edwards had been the BBC's first choice to front coverage of major national events, including the 2019 general election and the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.

Professor Tim Luckhurst, a former BBC executive, said there had been "the revelation of a dark side", which had been "extremely well hidden".

"We've seen the downfall of a national figure, and we must recognise that dark side has been responsible for his fall." » | Steven McIntosh, BBC News | Wednesday, July 31, 2024

Huw Edwards could lose series of Welsh honours: Former BBC news presenter Huw Edwards could lose a number of Welsh honours after pleading guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children. »

BBC knew Huw Edwards had been arrested in November: The BBC knew in November that Huw Edwards had been arrested on suspicion of serious offences, the corporation said. »

Related »

Dimitra’s Dishes: Summertime Mediterranean Orzo Salad

Jul 30, 2024


Get the full recipe here.

MAGA and the Cult of Weird: The Warning with Steve Schmidt

Jul 31, 2024 | The Democrats are on the attack with their "MAGA is weird" movement. And it's working. Steve Schmidt looks at all the weirdos in the MAGA cult and how we can cast them out permanently.


Reject Trump and his acolytes! Choose sanity over insanity! Make America America Again (MAAA)! America needs ‘Mamala’’s MAAA not Trump’s MAGA! Our American friends should choose PROGRESS over REGRESS! Choose Kamala! – © Mark Alexander

Iran Vows Revenge after Hamas Leader Ismail Haniyeh Killed in Tehran

THE GUARDIAN: Death came hours after Israel said it killed a top Hezbollah commander in Beirut, fuelling fears of regional conflict

Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas, was killed by a strike in Tehran in the early hours of Wednesday morning, only hours after Israel said it had killed a top Hezbollah commander in Beirut.

The dual assassinations are heavy blows to Hamas and Hezbollah, but also raise the stakes for Iran, which backs both groups and vowed revenge. They will fuel growing fears that the war in Gaza could escalate into a broader regional conflict.

A senior Hamas official described Haniyeh’s killing as a “cowardly act that will not go unpunished”. Mediators Qatar and Egypt warned it would set back talks on a ceasefire and a deal to release hostages held in Gaza. » | Emma Graham-Harrison, Quique Keirszenbaum and Bethan McKernan in Jerusalem, and William Christou in Beirut | Wednesday, July 31, 2024

Ismail Haniyeh’s death brings prospect of regional war closer: While Hamas’s capacity to retaliate is diminished, response could come from axis of militias backed by Iran »

Former Counter-terror Chief Accuses Farage of Inciting Southport Violence

THE GUARDIAN: Neil Basu says Reform UK leader is ‘creating conspiracy theories’ by questioning whether truth is being ‘withheld’

Nigel Farage was criticised across the political spectrum for stirring up fake news and spreading misinformation. Photograph: Dominic Gwinn/ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock | Screenshot taken from the accompanying article

A former counter-terrorism police chief has accused Nigel Farage of helping incite violence that broke out in Southport after the killing of three children in a knife attack this week.

Farage drew criticism from across the political spectrum for remarks he made in a video on Tuesday in which he questioned “whether the truth is being withheld from us” after the attack on Monday.

Neil Basu – a former senior Scotland Yard officer who was in charge of counter-terrorism from 2018 to 2021 – said there were “real world consequences” when public figures failed to “keep their mouth shut”.

“Nigel Farage is giving the EDL [English Defence League] succour, undermining the police, creating conspiracy theories, and giving a false basis for the attacks on the police,” he said, referring to the far-right, Islamophobic group whose supporters are believed to have been involved in the rioting in Southport. » | Ben Quinn, Vikram Dodd and Rowena Mason | Wednesday, July 31, 2024

Evangelikale – Mit Gott an die Macht (3/3) | Doku HD Reupload | ARTE

Jul 31, 2024 | Zu Beginn des 21. Jahrhunderts schafften es die Evangelikalen, an die Spitze der Macht zu gelangen. Und noch weiter: Sie exportieren ihre messianische Hoffnung auf die Rückkehr Christi auch ins Heilige Land. So brachten sie Donald Trump dazu, Jerusalem als Hauptstadt Israels anzuerkennen. Ein Schritt hin zum Wiedererwachen eines gefährlichen christlichen Nationalismus.

Am 6. Januar 2021 stürmte ein aufgeheizter Mob das Washingtoner Kapitol, drang in das Repräsentantenhaus ein und betete. Die Bilder schockierten Beobachter auf der ganzen Welt, waren aber die Konsequenz einer extrem polarisierten Stimmung, die Donald Trump im Verlauf seiner Präsidentschaft geschürt hatte. Nie zuvor war die Verbindung zwischen Religion und Politik so offensichtlich wie in seiner Amtszeit, in der sich ein christlicher Nationalismus ungebremst entfalten konnte.

In den vier Jahren der Trump-Regierung verschärften die von ihm unter evangelikalem Einfluss getroffenen Entscheidungen die Spannungen und Verwerfungen innerhalb der US-amerikanischen Gesellschaft. Nur wenige Monate nach seinem Einzug ins Weiße Haus erkannte Donald Trump Jerusalem als Hauptstadt Israels an. Dieser symbolträchtige Schritt war das Ergebnis geheimer Verhandlungen seiner evangelikalen Ratgeber und verlieh dem Präsidenten eine fast biblische Statur. Der radikalste Teil seiner Wählerschaft stützt sich auf eine „Prophezeiung“ aus der Heiligen Schrift und ist fest von einer baldigen Rückkehr Christi überzeugt – im Heiligen Land! Diese messianische Hoffnung lässt die palästinensische Frage völlig außer Acht und setzt auf eine massive Finanzierung der israelischen Siedler, die sich die Gunst der Stunde zunutze machen. Was diese Umtriebe so beunruhigend macht, ist ihr Schauplatz, der seit Jahrzehnten als Pulverfass gilt.

2021 rang sich die von der Entwicklung offenbar überforderte Weltweite Evangelische Allianz dazu durch, den Aufstieg des christlichen Nationalismus und den Schulterschluss mit rechtsextremen Parteien zu verurteilen. Was jedoch den Wertekanon angeht, bleibt das Erbe Trumps und seiner evangelikalen Gefolgschaft besorgniserregend. Während ein Teil seiner Wähler sich – abgeschreckt durch diverse Auswüchse – von ihm abgewandt hat, haben viele noch immer Vertrauen in seinen ehemaligen Vizepräsidenten Mike Pence. Als „evangelikaler Thronfolger“ im Weißen Haus kann er sich Chancen für 2024 ausrechnen und bandelt bereits heimlich mit der extremen Rechten in Europa an. Vor allem aber wurden drei ultrakonservative Richter am Obersten Gerichtshof der USA ernannt. Dies führte bereits dazu, dass das Recht auf Abtreibung gekippt wurde, und lässt mit Blick auf die Zukunft das Schlimmste befürchten.

Dokureihe, Regie: Thomas Johnson (F/USA 2023, 53 Min)
Video auf YouTube verfügbar bis zum 29/09/2024



Um Teil 1 dieser Serie anzusehen, klicken Sie hier, und um Teil 2 anzusehen, klicken Sie hier. – Mark

The Lincoln Project: The Stakes

Jul 31, 2024 | In 2020, Joe Biden created the broadest coalition in American history to defeat Trump. Now in 2024, together with Kamala Harris, we will save our country from this generation’s greatest threat to our democracy, again.

The Lincoln Project is a leading pro-democracy organization in the United States — dedicated to the preservation, protection, and defense of democracy. Our fight against Trumpism is only beginning. We must combat these forces everywhere and at all times — our democracy depends on it.


Project 2025 Exposed: The Trump Allies Seeking a Christian Nationalist Coup

Jul 30, 2024 | The dangers of Project 2025, the manifesto that would give Donald Trump the authoritarian power to limit your rights, are outlined by Joy Reid. Roughly 140 individuals who worked in Trump's presidential administration are affiliated with Project 2025.

Hillary Clinton: Trump’s Hold on the GOP Is Frightening

Hillary Clinton speaking common sense.

Huw Edwards Pleads Guilty to Possessing Indecent Images of Children ‘as Young as Seven’

Jul 31, 2024 | Huw Edwards, the former leading BBC presenter, has pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography, including one image of a child believed to be as young as seven years old. Edwards, 62, who left the corporation last year, admitted at Westminster magistrates’ court on Wednesday morning to possessing 41 indecent images, seven of which are Category A, the most serious.


BBC video here.

TIMES RADIO video here.

THE GUARDIAN: Huw Edwards pleads guilty to making indecent images of children: Former BBC News presenter admitted three counts at Westminster magistrates court »

Related »

Michael Lambert: Britain Has No Future Outside the EU - Growth Will Be Almost Impossible

Jul 31, 2024 | Brexit is possibly the stupidest and most damaging event ever to befall the UK. There are no benefits, and the cost to the UK has been enormous. Brexit has resulted in loss of trade and the creation of major barriers to trade with the EU. More than £200 million has been spent by the government to erect border facilities which were previously unnecessary. Trade with the EU is now more difficult, time consuming and expensive than before.

Keir Starmer has rebuffed suggestions from the EU to allow British young people to work in the EU for up to two years whilst EU young people would be able to do the same in the UK. At the same time young people from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Korea, Iceland, Japan and Uruguay are free to apply for visas to live and work in the UK for up to three years and even start businesses.


After Biden’s Withdrawal, Other Aged Leaders Get Some Serious Side-Eye

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Most of the world’s oldest leaders — in their 80s and even one in his 90s — are in Africa, which happens to have the youngest population of any continent.

President Paul Biya of Cameroon with his wife, Chantal Biya, in Yaoundé, the capital, in May. At 91, Mr. Biya is the world’s oldest leader. | Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

When President Biden abandoned his re-election campaign this month, citing the need to “pass the torch to a new generation,” some of the most envious accolades he received came from 6,000 miles away.

In central Africa, in coastal Cameroon, many are longing for their president, Paul Biya — at 91 the world’s oldest leader — to take a leaf out of President Biden’s book. But most think he never will.

“He’ll do everything to remain in power,” said Lukong Usheno Kiven, a human rights advocate based in Yaoundé, the capital of Cameroon, where Mr. Biya has been in power for 42 years.

Mr. Biya is just one of dozens of notably aged leaders who are also far older than the populations they serve.

Presidents Xi Jinping of China and Vladimir V. Putin of Russia are both 71. India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, is 73. Israel’s leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, is 74, while Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, is 88.

But it is in Africa — the world’s youngest continent — where the gerontocracies are most stark. Eleven of the world’s 20 oldest leaders are African, according to research done by the Pew Research Center. » | Ruth Maclean, Reporting from Dakar, Senegal | Tuesday, July 30, 2024

A Top Hamas Leader Is Killed in Iran

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Hamas accused Israel of killing Ismail Haniyeh, who was in Tehran for the inauguration of Iran’s new president. He was a key player in negotiations to stop the fighting in Gaza.

Ismail Haniyeh, one of the most senior Hamas leaders, was assassinated in Iran, the country’s Revolutionary Guards Corps and Hamas said on Wednesday, a severe blow to the Palestinian group that threatens to engulf the region in further conflict.

Hamas accused Israel of killing Mr. Haniyeh, who led the group’s political operations from exile in Qatar. He was in Tehran to attend the inauguration of the newly elected president of Iran, Hamas’s main backer. (+ video) » | Patrick Kingsley, Farnaz Fassihi, Adam Rasgon and Ronen Bergman | Wednesday, July 31, 2024

Israel Says It Killed Hezbollah Commander in Airstrike Near Beirut: The strike was in retaliation for a deadly rocket attack this weekend in the Golan Heights. At least three civilians were killed and 74 others wounded on Tuesday, Lebanese officials said. »