Biden Administration 'To Declassify Report' into Khashoggi Murder

THE GUARDIAN: Decision would mean US could assign blame for death on to Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman

The Biden administration will declassify an intelligence report into the murder by the Saudi government of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, according to Avril Haines, who has been nominated to serve as director of national intelligence.

The decision means that the US is likely to officially assign blame for Khashoggi’s brutal murder to the kingdom’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Khashoggi, a Washington Post journalist and US resident who wrote critical columns about the Saudi crown prince, was murdered by Saudi agents inside the Saudi consulate in Turkey in October 2018.

While media reports have said that the US intelligence community determined with a medium to high degree of confidence that Prince Mohammed ordered the killing, that assessment has never officially been stated. The crown prince has denied he ordered the murder. » | Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Washington | Tuesday, January 19, 2021

The Nazi Officer's Wife

The Nazi Officer's Wife: How One Jewish Woman Survived the Holocaust is a 1999 autobiography by Austrian-born Edith Hahn-Beer. Written with the help of Susan Dworkin, the book's first edition was published by Rob Weibach Books and William Morrow and Company. A documentary film based on the source material and starring Hahn-Beer herself was released in 2003.

«La violence n'est jamais la solution» : Melania Trump publie une vidéo d'adieu

LE FIGARO: La première dame s'apprête à quitter la Maison-Blanche et n'a qu'à peine évoqué son mari.


Vous pouvez lire l’article ici »

Brexit Was a Typically English Revolution – One That Left the Elites Unharmed

THE GUARDIAN: Our ruling class is expert in maintaining a myth of continuity, and absorbing supporters from the ranks of the aggrieved

Jacob Rees-Mogg’s star has waned since his glory days leading backbench rebellions against Theresa May. He is on TV less, playing to smaller crowds. I caught him the other week on the BBC Parliament channel telling the Commons that fish unable to reach EU markets were “better and happier” because Brexit makes them more British.

Watching his performance, I recalled the perennially startling fact about Rees-Mogg: he is younger than Kylie Minogue (also Noel Gallagher and Damon Albarn, but Minogue is the more arresting comparator for some reason).

No one expects politicians and pop stars from the same generation to sound and dress alike, but how many people realise that the artist known to fans as Moggy is of Kylie’s generation? His style implies something ancient, but that is the point. It is a look, tailored for an audience – just like any theatrical costume. Except his stage is parliament. » | Rafael Behr | Tuesday, January 19, 2021

The Last Christmas of the Romanovs

Christmas 1917 would be the last for the Romanov family. Isolated from the world, exiled in Siberia, they lived the joy of the feast of love, distributing gifts to the members of their staff that they had made themselves. Under house arrest and closely guarded, they were able to organize a traditional Christmas that was in many ways their closest family holiday.

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

President Trump: The 24 Final Hours in the White House | DW News

Washington has become a fortress city of roadblocks and barricades, and the FBI is vetting all 25,000 people providing security for President-elect Joe Biden's upcoming inauguration. Rehearsals of the ceremony are taking place in a city that now resembles a ghost town.

Le nouveau président de la CDU, un choix rassurant pour l’Allemagne et l’Europe

LE MONDE: Editorial. En choisissant de porter Armin Laschet, fidèle de la chancelière Angela Merkel, à la tête de leur parti, les conservateurs allemands réaffirment leur ancrage dans une ligne européenne et centriste.

Editorial du « Monde ». Quinze ans après l’élection d’Angela Merkel à la tête du gouvernement allemand, le congrès de l’Union chrétienne-démocrate (CDU), vendredi 15 et samedi 16 janvier, avait un parfum d’adieu : « Selon toute vraisemblance, c’est mon dernier congrès en tant que chancelière », y a déclaré Mme Merkel, qui s’est engagée à quitter le pouvoir après les élections législatives du 26 septembre.

Si elle s’apprête à tourner la page des années Merkel, la droite allemande n’entend toutefois pas rompre avec le « merkélisme ». Armin Laschet, 59 ans, le nouveau président de la CDU, est un fidèle de la chancelière, dont il a toujours soutenu la politique, y compris quand elle se heurta à de vives critiques dans le parti, comme en 2015, lors de la crise des réfugiés. » | Éditorial | lundi 18 janvier 2021

Covid-19 : la lourde responsabilité de Donald Trump dans l’hécatombe américaine

LE MONDE: Editorial. Le bilan de 400 000 morts apparaît comme la conséquence de ce mélange d’arrogance, de cynisme, de mépris pour les scientifiques et de mensonge caractéristique de la personnalité du président américain.

Editorial du « Monde ».Il y a tout juste quatre ans, Donald Trump promettait devant le monde abasourdi de « mettre fin au carnage américain ». A la veille de quitter la Maison Blanche, le président républicain laisse derrière lui un pays en lambeaux, parcouru de divisions rarement égalées, secoué par des violences politiques inédites et, surtout, ravagé par une pandémie galopante et, par endroits, totalement hors de contrôle.

Sa gestion de la crise sanitaire, marquée tour à tour par l’indifférence, le déni, les mensonges et l’instrumentalisation politique, laisse les Etats-Unis face à un bilan unique au monde : près de 400 000 morts en onze mois, 23 millions de personnes contaminées. A son actif demeureront seulement les efforts financiers déployés pour permettre la découverte rapide d’un vaccin. » | Éditorial | Samedi 16 janvier 2021

Tunisia Protests: Hundreds Arrested as Clashes Continue

BBC: Police in Tunisia say they have arrested more than 600 people as a fourth night of violent protests saw protesters return to the streets.

On Monday, crowds of mainly young demonstrators again gathered in the centre of the capital, Tunis, throwing stones and petrol bombs at police.

Security forces responded with tear gas and water cannon.

Tunisia faces severe economic problems and a third of its young people are unemployed.

The economic crisis has worsened under the pandemic.

The latest unrest comes almost exactly 10 years since the Tunisian revolution ushered in democracy and triggered the Arab Spring revolts across the region. However, hopes that this would bring more jobs and opportunities have been disappointed.

Outside Tunis, clashes were reported on Monday in the cities of Kasserine, Gafsa, Sousse and Monastir. » | Tuesday, January 19, 2021

Italy Smoking: Want to Light Up in Milan? Not Any More, You Can't

BBC: It's all change for the trendy crowds along the canals of Milan, used to holding a glass of aperitivo in one hand and a cigarette in the other. Because a ban on smoking outdoors has just come into force in a range of public places.

Smoking within a 10m (30ft) distance of other people is no longer permitted from Tuesday at bus and tram stops as well as in the city's parks and green spaces, sports and recreational grounds, children's play areas, stadiums and cemeteries.

Italy was the first country in the EU to pass a law backing an indoor ban on smoking in public places in 2003.

Milan is now the first Italian city to introduce such an extensive outdoor ban, part of a package of measures to improve air quality and combat climate change.

Other planned regulations, which will come into effect in phases over the next three decades, also target factors like car emissions and heating fuels. » | Dany Mitzman | Bologna | Tuesday, January 19, 2021

Majority of Europeans Fear Biden Unable to Fix 'Broken' US

THE GUARDIAN: Survey finds more Europeans than not say US cannot be trusted after four years of Trump

A majority of Europeans believe America’s political system is broken, that China will be the world’s leading power within a decade, and that Joe Biden will be unable to halt his country’s decline on the world stage, according to a report.

While many welcomed Biden’s victory in November’s US election, more Europeans than not feel that after four years of Donald Trump the US cannot be trusted, according to the study by the European Council on Foreign Relations.

“Europeans like Biden, but they don’t think America will come back as a global leader,” said the thinktank’s director, Mark Leonard. “When George W Bush was president, they were divided about how America should use its power. With Biden entering the White House, they are divided about whether America has power at all.” » | Jon Henley | Tuesday, January 19, 2021

Chris Hedges on the Bleak Future of the USA (Audio Only)

A chilling speech by Chris Hedges, Pulitzer prize winning journalist and political activist, given at St. Andrew's - Wesley United Church in Vancouver, CA on March 3, 2017.
Listen HERE »

Lights Go Out on Trump's Reality TV Presidency but Dark Legacy Remains

THE GUARDIAN: For four years the outrages piled up so high they were hard to keep track of but the coronavirus pandemic proved to be one crisis he couldn’t bluster away

In a cold, sombre, damp Washington four years ago this Wednesday, Donald Trump took the oath of office as the 45th president of the United States and delivered an inaugural address now remembered for two words: American carnage.

He delivered, but not as he promised. Trump pledged to end the carnage of inner-city poverty, rusting factories, broken schools and the scourge of criminal gangs and drugs. Instead his presidency visited upon the nation the carnage of about 400,000 coronavirus deaths, the worst year for jobs since the second world war and the biggest stress test for American democracy since the civil war.

“It’s not just physical carnage,” said Moe Vela, a former White House official. “There’s also mental carnage and there’s spiritual carnage and there’s emotional carnage. He has left a very wide swath of American carnage and that is the last way I would want to be remembered by history, but that is how he will be remembered.” » | David Smith in Washington | Tuesday, January 19, 2021

Brexiters Are Waking Up to the Damage They've Done

THE GUARDIAN: From horse racing to fishing to road haulage, British industry is in chaos. No wonder leavers are turning on each other

Brexit has beached the fishing boats at Hastings. The two-man crew of Paul Joy’s boat Kaya have left for shore jobs, after the price of the huss they land fell to just 2p a kilo. Exports to the European Union are Brexit-blighted, with fishers across Britain poleaxed by new costs and regulations, their catches rotting before they reach EU markets. It’s costing them millions already.

For the past two years Joy, a passionate Brexiter, has consistently told me he believes his industry would be shafted in any trade deal. “Betrayed, sacrificed,” he says, outraged at the government’s failure to secure British fishing rights for 12 miles around the coast, and now crippled by the export costs. So when foreign secretary Dominic Raab has the effrontery to tell the BBC’s Andrew Marr that this is “a great deal for the fishing industry”, he must know it’s not true.

Other industries want to know if Boris Johnson’s promised “compensation” for fishing losses means a huge subsidy in perpetuity for this less than 0.2% sliver of the economy? Because the problems exploding in one industry after another, in less than three Brexit weeks, are not going away.

Friction is the new normal. As the chief EU negotiator, Michel Barnier said firmly last week, things have “changed for good”. UK choices mean “mechanical, obvious, inevitable consequences when you leave the single market and that’s what the British wished to do”. It’s not French revenge, or bloody-minded Brussels, but ordinary life as a third country. » | Polly Toynbee | Monday, January 18, 2021

Biden’s Incoming Chief of Staff Warns That the Virus Death Toll Will Reach 500,000 by the End of February.

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Officials in the incoming Biden administration braced the country for continued hardship in the days after the inauguration, with the president-elect assuming control of a struggling economy and surging coronavirus outbreak in less than three days.

Ron Klain, President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s incoming White House chief of staff, had a dire forecast for the course of the coronavirus outbreak in the new administration’s first weeks, predicting that half a million Americans will have died from the coronavirus by the end of February. The current toll is nearing 400,000.

“The virus is going to get worse before it gets better,” Mr. Klain said in an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “People who are contracting the virus today will start to get sick next month, will add to the death toll in late February, even March, so it’s going to take awhile to turn this around.”

Average daily U.S. deaths from the virus have risen to well past 3,000, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has sounded the alarm about a fast-spreading, far more contagious variant of the coronavirus that officials project will become the dominant source of infection in the country by March, potentially fueling another wrenching surge of cases and deaths. » | Chris Cameron | Sunday, January 17, 2021

Opinion: The Extraordinary Courage of Aleksei Navalny

THE NEW YORK TIMES: After a near-fatal poisoning, Russia’s top dissident steps back into the bear’s den.

Aleksei Navalny knew he would be arrested as soon as he stepped foot on Russian soil, and he had no illusions about what this could mean.

Mr. Navalny had been abroad since August, after all, because President Vladimir Putin’s political goons had poisoned him, and had failed to kill him only because a pilot had diverted his flight to Omsk, where doctors kept him alive until he could be evacuated to Germany. Ironically, his flight was diverted again on Sunday — this time by Russian authorities afraid of the welcoming crowd gathering at the Moscow airport where his flight was supposed to land.

Mr. Navalny knew he would be arrested, because he has been arrested several times before. Repression is the only way Mr. Putin knows. But he is also learning that, in the era of social media, every arrest on a trumped-up charge only broadens Mr. Navalny’s following and amplifies his indictment of the corruption of Russia’s rulers. » | The Editorial Board | Sunday, January 17, 2021

Nicholas and Alexandra | by HRH Prince Michael of Kent | Parts 1 & 2

Narrated by Jack Perkins, presented by HRH Prince Michael of Kent, includes interviews with Prince Nicholas Romanov (1922-2014), and people who were born in the late 19th century, and witness to Nicholas II's reign.

For almost a century their fabled dynasty and tragic fate have been enveloped in myth and surrounded by mystery. Now, with the opening of the former Soviet Union, the true story of Nicholas and Alexandra can be told. This groundbreaking production, filmed on location throughout the former Soviet Union and Europe, presents a treasure trove of information and documents that have been kept secret for decades. Intimate diaries, letters, and personal effects from the once-sealed imperial archives tell the astonishing story of the Romanovs' reign. Chilling eyewitness accounts, testimony from executioners, and a somber exhumation finally put to rest the enigma of their dynasty's horrifying end. Stunning, fact-filled and grand, this is the ultimate chronicle of a romance that changed the world.

Originally produced by A&E Biography, 1998.

Prof. Wolff on the Capitol Hill Riot: Capitalism's Last Gasp?

Sterben & Tod – Warum haben wir Angst davor? | Philosophie | Bleisch & Bossart | SRF Kultur – Ein Gespräch in Schweizerdeutsch (Schwiezertüütsch)

Muss man vor dem Tod Angst haben? Vielleicht nicht vor dem Tod, denn den Zustand des Totseins erleben wir ja nicht mehr. Ist es also das Sterben, das uns beschäftigt? Barbara Bleisch und Yves Bossart diskutieren über Facetten der Endlichkeit – vom Sekundentod bis zum ewigen Leben und fragen: Wäre Unsterblichkeit die Lösung?

Hebrew University's Prof. Yuval Noah Harari on the Era of the Coronavirus: Living in a New Reality

Interview between journalist Romi Noimark and Hebrew University's Prof. Yuval Noah Harari on The Era of the Coronavirus: Living in a New Reality

Evangelical Christians in the USA | DW Documentary

Evangelical Christians often have a huge impact on American politics. Many of these people are socially conservative, consider themselves patriots, and believe that Americans have a constitutional right to own guns.

This documentary explores the core beliefs of America's fundamentalist Christians - including the concept of creation, as opposed to evolution.

Our report features interviews with conservative evangelicals who, for example, believe that God created the world in six days about 6,000 years ago. Our reporters traveled to the state of Kentucky to visit a Creation Museum and a Christian theme park that features a life-size model of Noah's Ark.

Christian churches in the US play a major social role, especially in rural areas. They operate schools and universities and organize music festivals that celebrate their faith.

Most fundamentalist Christians are opposed to abortion, pre-marital sex, and homosexuality. They believe that those who engage in these activities will be condemned to Hell. And some have formed paramilitary groups to defend themselves against those whom they perceive as enemies - including non-believers, Communists, and Muslims.

Donald Trump Isolated and Enraged ahead of Biden Inauguration

THE GUARDIAN: A slew of aides have deserted the president and the Pentagon has decided not to hold an armed forces farewell tribute

It was once easy to determine Donald Trump’s mood. All it took was a look at his Twitter account. But with that gone, it has never been so difficult to gain a glimpse into the president’s mindset.

Where frequently a series of all-caps tweets might have suggested an emotional, frustrated Trump, there is silence.

Where posts screeching at fellow Republicans would have indicated a more vindictive bent, or messages with exclamation points a triumphant mood, all that is left of Trump’s Twitter account – which once had 88.7m followers – is a curt message from Twitter’s admin team: “Account suspended. Twitter suspends accounts which violate the Twitter Rules.”

So how has Trump reacted to the events of the past few weeks? By the accounts available, not well. A notoriously excitable president has remained in a state of high alarm. » | Adam Gabbatt in New York | Saturday, January 16, 2021

What Will Be Trump's Legacy? Hear Historian's Prediction

CNN's presidential historian Douglas Brinkley talks with CNN's Don and former White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci about what President Trump's legacy will be once he leaves office, and how the riots at the US Capitol have affected that legacy.

Deadly Earthquake Hits Indonesia's Sulawesi Island | DW News

An earthquake struck Indonesia's Sulawesi island early on Friday morning, leaving at least 34 people dead and injuring over 600 others. The head of the local disaster mitigation agency Ali Rahman told AFP that "the latest information we have is that 26 people are dead in Mamuju city." The national disaster agency said that a further eight people had died to the south of the city. Many buildings were damaged. Two hospitals and the building that houses the provincial government offices collapsed, said Muhammad Idris, secretary to the governor on national television. A large number of people are trapped under the rubble, officials said. The epicenter of the 6.2 magnitude quake was 6 kilometers (3.73 miles) northeast of Majene city and measured at a depth of 18 kilometers. Thousands of people left their homes when the quake hit. They were evacuated to temporary shelters.

Saukälte in Sibirien: Minus-Rekord - Temperatur sinkt auf minus 49 Grad

Kalt, kälter, am kältesten: Im Süden und Westen Sibiriens haben Meteorologen neue Kälterekorde gemessen. Im Dorf Teguldet nahe der Großstadt Tomsk sei das Thermometer am Wochenende auf minus 49 Grad gesunken, sagte ein Wetterexperte am Montag der russischen Staatsagentur Tass. «Westsibirien hat die Meteorologen tief beeindruckt.»

In Nowosibirsk wurden demnach zwischen minus 37 und minus 41 Grad gemessen. Frühere Rekorde in Sibiriens größter Stadt seien um 5 Grad getoppt worden. In anderen Regionen sei es so kalt gewesen wie in den vergangenen 50 bis 100 Jahren nicht mehr, sagte der Sprecher. Nach Angaben der Behörden mussten viele Menschen mit Erfrierungen behandelt werden. Außerdem habe es zahlreiche Verkehrsunfälle und Flugausfälle gegeben.

Jacob Rees-Mogg Says British Fish Are 'Happier' because of Brexit Deal

The leader of the House of Commons claimed fish delayed for export because of the introduction of the post-Brexit fishing regime were 'happier' because they are now British. 'The key is we’ve got our fish back,' he told MPs. 'They’re now British fish and they’re better and happier fish for it'

Jacob Rees-Mogg? What a tw*t! (Please insert the vowel of your own choosing.) – Mark

Former Spanish King's Ex-lover Says She Was Threatened by Spy Chief

THE GUARDIAN: Corinna Larsen tells court ‘chilling’ warning to her and her children came on the orders of King Juan Carlos

The ex-lover of Spain’s former king Juan Carlos has told a court in Madrid of the “chilling” moment when she claimed the head of the country’s intelligence services threatened her and her children on the monarch’s orders.

Corinna Larsen told the court Félix Sanz Roldán met her in London after her relationship with the king had ended to warn her that if she did not follow his instructions he could not guarantee her safety. She claimed she later returned to her home in Switzerland where she discovered a book about the death of Princess Diana and subsequently received a cryptic phone call about tunnels, which she took to be an allusion to the princess’s fatal accident in 1997. » | Sam Jones in Madrid | Friday, January 15, 2021

Philipp Blom: Wie sieht unser Lebensmodell nach Corona aus? | Sternstunde Philosophie | SRF Kultur

Für den Bestsellerautor, Historiker und Philosoph Philipp Blom ist klar: Unser Selbstbild und unser Wirtschaftssystem sind bankrott. Wir brauchen ein neues Lebensmodell für die Zukunft. Denn wir Menschen stehen nicht über der Natur. Wir sind Teil von ihr, abhängig und verletzlich. Das zeigt die Pandemie ebenso wie die Klimakrise.

«Menschen lernen nicht aus der Geschichte, aber sie reagieren auf Traumata», schreibt der deutsche Historiker und Philosoph Philipp Blom. Hinterlässt die Pandemie ein solches Trauma? Oder die Klimakrise?

Nach Blom befinden wir uns derzeit am Ende von 3000 Jahren Kulturgeschichte. Am Anfang stand das göttliche Gebot: Macht euch die Erde untertan! Aufklärung, Industrialisierung und Kolonialismus folgten diesem Glauben.


Sternstunde Philosophie vom 10.01.2021

Zucker – Die süsse Droge | Wie Zucker unsere Gesundheit gefährdet | Doku | SRF DOK

Vier von zehn Schweizern sind übergewichtig. Unter anderem ist auch der zu hohe Zuckerkonsum daran schuld. Überall ist Zucker drin. Selbst dort, wo wir es nicht für möglich halten. Eine fünfköpfige Familie aus dem Aargau hat einen Monat lang zuckerfrei gelebt. Mit überraschenden Erkenntnissen.

«Zucker macht süchtig, denn Zucker aktiviert im Hirn die gleichen Rezeptoren wie andere Drogen», sagt die Basler Ärztin Bettina Wölnerhanssen. Darum sei es auch so schwierig, Eigenverantwortung zu übernehmen, und den eigenen Zuckerkonsum zu reduzieren. Wir alle lieben Süsses. Auch die Familie Rechsteiner mit drei Kindern im Teenageralter aus Döttingen ist der süssen Verführung nicht abgeneigt. Allerdings will die Familie nun herausfinden, was der Zuckerkonsum bei ihnen bewirkt, und lässt sich auf einen Versuch ein: Alle fünf Familienmitglieder wollen einen ganzen Monat lang auf Lebensmittel mit zugefügtem Zucker verzichten. Das ist einfacher gesagt als getan. Denn in vier von fünf Lebensmitteln versteckt sich zugefügter Zucker. Selbst in solchen, die gar nicht besonders süss schmecken.

In der Schweiz ist jedes sechste Kind zu dick. Eine halbe Million Schweizerinnen und Schweizer leiden an Diabetes. Vielen Menschen ist zu wenig bewusst, dass sie Zucker aus gesundheitlichen Überlegungen meiden oder nur in geringen Mengen konsumieren sollten. Eine staatlich verordnete Zuckerreduktion stösst auf wenig Akzeptanz: 2019 wurde die Einführung einer Zuckersteuer von den eidgenössischen Räten abgelehnt. In England hingegen hat man das Problem erkannt und reagiert. Mit der Einführung einer happigen Zuckersteuer konnte dort der Zuckergehalt in Süssgetränken massiv gesenkt werden. Heute enthält beispielsweise eine Orangenlimonade in London nur noch halb so viel Zucker wie eine Limonade derselben Marke in Zürich oder Genf.

Erwachsenen Menschen empfiehlt die Weltgesundheits-Organisation nicht mehr als 50 Gramm Zucker pro Tag. Für Kinder die Hälfte. In der Schweiz sind wir mit der doppelten Zuckermenge alarmierend weit von den WHO-Richtwerten entfernt. Die Politik macht wenig Druck auf die Nahrungsmittelproduzenten. Sie setzt auf die Eigenverantwortung der Konsumentinnen und Konsumenten. Wie schwierig das ist, musste auch Familie Rechsteiner feststellen.


Dieser Dokumentarfilm ist zum grossen Teil in Schyzertüütsch (Schweizerdeutsch) übertragen worden. – Mark

Trump 'Refusing to Pay' Rudy Giuliani's Legal Fees after Falling Out

THE GUARDIAN: President said to be offended by personal lawyer’s demand for a reported $20,000 a day

Donald Trump has fallen out with his personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, and is refusing to pay the former New York mayor’s legal bills, it was reported, with the president feeling abandoned and frustrated during his last days in office.

Giuliani played a key role in Trump’s failed attempts to overturn the results of November’s presidential election through the courts. The lawyer mounted numerous spurious legal challenges, travelling to swing states won by Joe Biden, and spread false claims the vote was rigged.

According to the Washington Post, relations between Trump and Giuliani have dramatically cooled. Trump has instructed his aides not to pay Giuliani’s outstanding fees. The president is reportedly offended by Giuliani’s demand for $20,000 a day – a figure the lawyer denies, but which is apparently in writing. White House officials have even been told not to put through any of Giuliani’s calls. » | Luke Harding | Thursday, January 14, 2021

The Last Days of Pompeo: Secretary of State Lashes Out as Reign Comes to an End

THE GUARDIAN: Trump’s foreign policy chief has pursued confrontation with Iran and other perceived enemies, but his efforts to disrupt diplomacy will end in failure

The finale of Mike Pompeo’s reign at the state department has been as controversial and clamorous as the rest of his 32-month tenure, but it is unclear what traces will remain after he has gone.

The last days of Pompeo have been played out in a blizzard of self-congratulatory tweets, at the rate of two dozen a day, as he seeks to write his own first draft of history.

The former Kansas congressman, with evident ambitions for a presidential run in 2024, has accented his claims of success by frequent derogatory references to the previous administration, portrayed as hapless appeasers. The political point-scoring and aggrandizement have made the use of the megaphone provided by a government Twitter account, with 3 million followers. » | Julian Borger in Washington | Thursday, January 14, 2021

Gay Hollywood: The Last Taboo (2009 – Documentary*

This documentary looks at the challenges facing gay artists in Hollywood past and present. Hollywood in the 1920s was the most homosexual-friendly place to be as most of the behind-the-camera staff were gay. However, for those in front of the camera there was no tolerance from the movie-going public. Any homosexual who wanted to maintain a career had to remain in a well-locked closet. During the 1950s, the studios provided their own "police" who would be the first to arrive at any scene of an "indiscretion" or other scandalous act. Their task was to collect and remove any evidence and then call the real police if necessary. The studios, wanting to safeguard their investments, even forced male gay actors, like Rock Hudson and Cary Grant, into sham marriages.
Watch the documentary HERE »
* This documentary is age-restricted, so it cannot be embedded. It must be watched on YouTube.

Trump Impeached Again

THE NEW YORK TIMES: The House voted on an article of impeachment that accuses President Trump of “incitement of insurrection,” and 10 Republicans supported the move. Senator Mitch McConnell said he would not agree to use emergency powers to bring the Senate back into session for a trial before Jan. 19. » | ohn Eligon and Thomas Kaplan | Nicholas Fandos and Glenn Thrush contributed reporting | Wednesday, January 13, 2021

“American Abyss”: Fascism Historian Tim Snyder on Trump’s Coup Attempt, Impeachment & What’s Next

As the House votes to impeach President Trump, the FBI warns there could be a repeat of the violent insurrection he encouraged on January 6, with Trump loyalists planning to hold armed protests nationwide ahead of Joe Biden’s inauguration. We speak with Timothy Snyder, a historian of fascism, who says the riot at the U.S. Capitol was “completely and utterly predictable” given President Trump’s record of stoking extremism and undermining democratic institutions. “The American republic is hanging by a thread because the president of the United States has sought to use violence to stay in power and essentially to overthrow our constitutional system,” says Snyder.

Nahtoderfahrungen | Was passiert, wenn wir sterben? | Reportage | SRF DOK

Menschen mit Nahtoderfahrungen berichten darüber, wie es ist, mit einem Fuss im Jenseits stehen. Was passiert, wenn wir sterben? Sie reden darüber, wieso sie keine Angst mehr haben vor dem Tod. Und wie ihre Nahtoderfahrung ihr weiteres Leben verändert hat.

Andrea Pfeifer war 26 Jahre alt, als sie im Urlaub eine Lebensmittelvergiftung bekam, an der sie beinahe gestorben wäre. Was sie erlebte, als sie mit einem Fuss im Jenseits stand, behielt sie für sich. «Ich habe es ganz lange niemandem erzählt, weil man automatisch in eine Schiene reingedrängt wird: In eine spirituelle oder religiöse Schiene, wo ich überhaupt nicht hingehöre.» Heute kann sie von dem erzählen, was in jener Nacht passiert ist: «Es gab einen Moment, als etwas in meinem Körper zum Stillstand gekommen ist. Als wäre ich ein Uhrwerk: Plötzlich rastete es ein. Da wusste ich: Jetzt ist es gar nicht mehr gut.» Dann habe sie eine Bewegung wahrgenommen. «Ich habe den Kopf gedreht. Es sass jemand neben meinem Bett: ein junger Mann. Aber er war ganz etherisch, ausgefüllt mit Licht.»

Rund fünf Prozent der Menschen machen im Laufe ihres Lebens eine sogenannte Nahtoderfahrung. Aber nur wenige reden darüber – oft aus Angst, nicht ernst genommen zu werden. Bei jenen, die davon erzählen, lassen viele wiederkehrende Elemente identifizieren: Sie erleben bewusstes Sein ohne physischen Körper, berichten von einem Tunnel, von Licht, von tiefen Gefühlen des Friedens und der Liebe – und von Lichtwesen oder verstorbenen Angehörigen, mit denen sie kommunizieren konnten. Viele Schulmedizinerinnen und -mediziner sind indes überzeugt, dass es ganz simple Erklärungen gebe für solche Erfahrungen: etwa Sauerstoffmangel, zu viel Kohlendioxid oder chemische Reaktionen im Gehirn. Andrea Pfeifer kann darüber nur lächeln: «Was ich erlebt habe, ist so viel grösser als alles, was wir uns vorstellen können: Ich bin in einer Ekstase explodiert und zu Licht geworden. Es war pures Glück.»

Viele sagen, die Nahtoderfahrung habe sie verändert. «Ich habe den Eindruck, ich wurde intuitiver», erzählt die promovierte Historikerin Magdalen Bless, «ich hatte plötzlich Vorahnungen, die ich mir nicht erklären konnte.» Dem Hauswart Marcel Gasser geht es ähnlich: «Plötzlich habe ich Bauchweh. Oder Krämpfe. Mir wird schlecht. Dann ist etwas. Oder es kommt etwas.» Bei Ramón Gartmann, der als sogenannter «Lebenscoach» sein Geld verdient, gehen die Veränderungen noch weiter: «Wenn ich jemanden ansehe, sehe ich verschiedene Schichten von Energien um die Person herum.» Allen gemeinsam ist, dass das Ende des Lebens für sie den Schrecken verloren hat. «Ich freue mich auf den Tod, auch wenn ich ihn noch nicht will», sagt Magdalen Bless. «Der Tod ist ein grossartiger Übergang, in dem sich die Rätsel des Universums entschlüsseln.»


Dieser Dokumentarfilm ist zum Teil in Deutsch aber zum großen Teil in Schwyzertüütsch. – Mark

De Blasio: City of New York Severing All Contracts with Trump Organization | Morning Joe | MSNBC

Mayor Bill de Blasio, D-NY, joins Morning Joe to discuss why New York City is severing all contracts with the Trump Organization and what it means. Aired on 1/13/2021.

George Conway: Trump Is Leaving in Complete Disgrace | Morning Joe | MSNBC

A growing number of Republican lawmakers publicly endorsed impeaching President Donald Trump ahead of a Wednesday vote in the House. Attorney George Conway says support for Trump is collapsing and he compares and contrasts Trump with Richard Nixon. Aired on 1/13/2021.

Mike Pompeo Claims without Evidence That Iran Is Al-Qaida's New 'Home Base'

THE GUARDIAN: Move seems designed to restrict Biden administration’s options as secretary of state confirms killing of al-Qaida leader in August

The US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, has claimed, without providing evidence, that al-Qaida leaders have established a new “home base” in the Iran, in what appeared to be his latest effort to raise the political cost of the next administration reviving the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran.

Speaking with just eight days left in office, Pompeo alleged that Iran was “the new Afghanistan”, telling a news conference in Washington: “Unlike in Afghanistan, when al-Qaida was hiding in the mountains, al-Qaida today is operating under the hard shell of the Iranian regime’s protection.” » | Julian Borger in Washington | Tuesday, January 12, 2021

This assertion appears to be manifestly absurd! Al-Qaeda is a Sunni terrorist group. Iran is Shia. Sunnis and Shiites hate each other with a vengeance. This alone makes Pompeo’s assertion highly unlikely to be true. Pompeo is playing to people’s ignorance. He, in his position, should know better than this. The man needs to go back to school! – ©Mark Alexander

The Guardian View on Covid's Widening Gaps: The Rich Are Getting Richer

THE GUARDIAN: Rishi Sunak ought to make it clear that it is the real economy that needs rescuing, not the City

For speculators, the cryptocurrency party was just starting. At the beginning of last year one bitcoin was worth £5,614 before almost reaching £30,000 at the end of last week. On Monday, Britain’s financial watchdog took the punch bowl away, by warning bitcoin investors that they could lose all their money. While it may sober up a few of the partygoers many will find solace in their bank balances. Anyone who bought cryptoassets at the beginning of the year was sitting potentially on a 400% gain, an extraordinary return in a year when a health crisis has morphed into an economic one.

Thanks to the government’s actions, owners of assets have had a very good pandemic. Shares in London are back to where they were in late February last year. House prices in 2020 rose by 6%, helped by the chancellor’s temporary stamp duty holiday. Economic euphoria needs a drug. It turns out that the dealer with the best supply of credit is the government. Its central bank has flooded the financial system with cash meant to be loaned to chase a positive rate of return. In Britain’s distorted economy investors, even in the midst of Covid, prefer to make outlandish short-term capital gains rather than income from productive investment. » | Editorial | Monday, January 11, 2021

Ex-Melania Trump Adviser: First Lady Is President's Enabler

Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, author and former senior adviser to first lady Melania Trump, speaks to CNN's Brianna Keilar about her article in The Daily Beast where she writes that Melania and the President "lack character, and have no moral compass."

Turkish Televangelist Sentenced to 1,075 Years for Sex Crimes

THE GUARDIAN: Adnan Oktar was detained in 2018 along with more than 200 other suspects in his group

A Turkish court has sentenced a Muslim televangelist who surrounded himself with scantily clad women he called “kittens” to more than 1,000 years in jail for sex crimes

. Adnan Oktar preached creationism and conservative values while women in revealing outfits – many of whom appeared to have had plastic surgery – danced around him to upbeat music in the TV studio.

The bearded 64-year-old was detained in 2018 along with more than 200 other suspects as part of a crackdown on his group by the financial crimes unit of the Istanbul police.

He was sentenced to 1,075 years for crimes including sexual assault, sexual abuse of minors, fraud and attempted political and military espionage, the private NTV broadcaster reported. » | AFP in Istanbul | Monday, January 11, 2021

Republicans Beg Democrats Not to Impeach Trump Again

Republicans are now claiming that impeaching Donald Trump for a second time would just be too darn divisive at a time when the country just needs to heal. The real reason they are against impeachment is because it is going to put them in the tough position of having to publicly stand up to the President, or publicly admit (with their vote) that they are secretly ok with everything he has done. Ring of Fire's Farron Cousins discusses this.

Governor Schwarzenegger's Message Following This Week's Attack on the Capitol

This is my message to my fellow Americans and my friends around the world after January 6, 2021.

Trump Impeachment: Democrats Formally Charge President with Inciting Insurrection

THE GUARDIAN: Trump set to become the first president to be impeached twice / Pelosi: Trump a ‘deranged, unhinged, dangerous president’

Donald Trump is set to become the first US president to be impeached twice, after Democrats in the House of Representatives formally charged him with one count of “incitement of insurrection”, over the Capitol Hill riot.

Five people died in the attack last week, which Trump prompted when he told supporters to “fight like hell” in his attempt to overturn election defeat by Joe Biden.

On Monday, as security officials scrambled to ensure that the inauguration next week would not be marred by violence attached to protests planned for the day, Democrats in the House moved swiftly.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who in an interview on Sunday called Trump “a deranged, unhinged, dangerous president”, initiated a plan in two parts.

An initial resolution called on Vice-President Mike Pence to support removing Trump under the 25th amendment. » | Tom McCarthy, national affairs correspondent | Monday, January 11, 2021

Dutch Officials Seize Ham Sandwiches from British Drivers

THE GUARDIAN: Personal imports of meat and dairy products banned from EU since Brexit transition ended

Dutch TV news has aired footage of customs officers confiscating ham sandwiches from drivers arriving by ferry from the UK under post-Brexit rules banning personal imports of meat and dairy products into the EU.

Officials wearing high-visibility jackets are shown explaining to startled car and lorry drivers at the Hook of Holland ferry terminal that since Brexit, “you are no longer allowed to bring certain foods to Europe, like meat, fruit, vegetables, fish, that kind of stuff.”

To a bemused driver with several sandwiches wrapped in tin foil who asked if he could maybe surrender the meat and keep just the bread, one customs officer replied: “No, everything will be confiscated. Welcome to Brexit, sir, I’m sorry.” » | Jon Henley, Europe correspondent | Monday, January 11, 2021

So Brexiteers can't have their cake and eat it too after all! Who would have 'thunk' it! Unfortunately, sensible Brits will now have to pay for the shortsightedness of these people who are stuck in the twentieth century. Fossils and fools all! – ©Mark

Nach Gewalt am Kapitol: Melania Trump „enttäuscht und entmutigt“

FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Melania Trump hat ihr Schweigen seit dem Gewaltausbruch am Kapitol gebrochen. Gewalt sei niemals zulässig, sagt sie. Und: „Es war die Ehre meines Lebens, als Ihre First Lady zu dienen.“

Amerikas First Lady Melania Trump hat ihr Schweigen seit dem Gewaltausbruch von Anhängern des abgewählten Präsidenten Donald Trump am Kapitol gebrochen. „Ich bin enttäuscht und entmutigt über das, was letzte Woche passiert ist“, erklärte sie am Montag in einer ausführlichen Mitteilung. „Es ist erbaulich zu sehen, dass so viele eine Leidenschaft und Begeisterung für die Teilnahme an einer Wahl gefunden haben, aber wir dürfen nicht zulassen, dass Leidenschaft in Gewalt umschlägt. Unser Weg nach vorne besteht darin, unsere Gemeinsamkeiten zu finden und die freundlichen und starken Menschen zu sein, von denen ich weiß, dass wir es r />
sind.“

Melania Trump drückte den Angehörigen der Toten im Zusammenhang der gewalttätigen Erstürmung des Kapitols ihr Mitgefühl aus, wobei sie zuerst die gestorbenen Teilnehmer nannte und dann die beiden Polizisten, von denen einer außerhalb des Dienstes starb. » | Quelle: dpa | Montag, 11. Januar 2021

Melania Trump pays tribute to dead of Capitol attack but casts herself as victim »