World News Random, Random

[luvs10s]

How on earth do you not yell out WTF at the top of your lungs!

[Ti-Amie]

BBC Breaking News ‏@BBCBreaking
#Malala Yousafzai, Pakistani schoolgirl shot by Taliban, staying in UK after father offered diplomatic job in Birmingham by Pakistan

[mmmm8]

So, Bulgaria's president Rosen Plevneliev was delivering holiday greetings on national TV and talking about how awesome Bulgaria is, accompanied by photos of the described awesomeness. And when he talked about Bulgaria's beautiful nature, photos of beautiful nature were shown. Except it was the beautiful nature... in Colorado

http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=146539

[Ti-Amie]

Via the BBC:

Viewpoints: What next after outcry over Delhi rape?

Urvashi Butalia, feminist writer and publisher:

One of the remarkable things about the recent incident in Delhi and the subsequent protests has been the media's restrained and non sensational reporting.

This marks a break from the almost hysterical tone that has characterised reports on previous such cases.

Whether it is television, or radio, or newspapers, there's been a tremendous amount of respect, and restraint - notwithstanding the calls for punishments such as chemical castration.

The victim's name has not been revealed (the law requires this but in the past it has been flouted), the parents' privacy has been respected, protests have been covered with empathy, and there have been excellent articles in the press.

The media has played an important role in this instance in channelling popular anger at the government.

It's hard to say whether this change will last but at least it has been shown that it is not always necessary for the media to be sensationalist.

Will this also lead to some kind of change in the sort of representations of women that we see on television?

Again, difficult to say - television serials do make the mandatory nod to social issues, include powerful women, and discuss things like child marriage, divorce or abortion.

But they remain focused on upper class and rich India, the poor never figure, minorities are absent, dark people too, and caste as an issue is unheard of.

Perhaps women's issues will get reflected more seriously, but unless media become inclusive in a much more real way, the chances of any real change may be slim. Nevertheless, I think it's important to note that there has been an attempt to take what were seen as "women's issues" seriously, and that's at least a beginning.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia...28#TWEET496877

[dryrunguy]

Well, the media coverage is getting mixed reviews. On one hand, we're thrilled that the story is getting out. But the only reasons it's getting so much coverage from the West, many think, is because of it's exceptionally brutal nature and because it reinforces typical, racist, Western stereotypes of the Indian people. (And Pakistani people in Malala's shooting case.) It does leave many women (and even men) who were raped by a husband or partner without an iron pole asking, "Why does rape have to involve an iron pole, removal of intestines, and death to get global attention and discussion of solutions?"

And for those living in the West who point to these stories with an air of ethnocentrism, it's important to point out that Congress has not yet passed the Violence Against Women Act because they don't want to protect undocumented women, because the white men who rape Native women don't want to be subjected to the Tribal justice system, and because they don't want to protect lesbians. We have our share of "savages," too.

[Ti-Amie]

And for those living in the West who point to these stories with an air of ethnocentrism, it's important to point out that Congress has not yet passed the Violence Against Women Act because they don't want to protect undocumented women, because the white men who rape Native women don't want to be subjected to the Tribal justice system, and because they don't want to protect lesbians. We have our share of savages, too.

I agree Dry.

With all the carrying on about the fiscal curb it's only today that the expiration of the VAWA is getting attention.

I think it's important that this story be followed and talked about but so should the status of women all over the world. The horrors of East Africa are also dismissed because it's happening to "others". I know you know this but it does need to be said.

[Miles]

Well, the media coverage is getting mixed reviews. On one hand, we're thrilled that the story is getting out. But the only reasons it's getting so much coverage from the West, many think, is because of it's exceptionally brutal nature and because it reinforces typical, racist, Western stereotypes of the Indian people. (And Pakistani people in Malala's shooting case.) It does leave many women (and even men) who were raped by a husband or partner without an iron pole asking, "Why does rape have to involve an iron pole, removal of intestines, and death to get global attention and discussion of solutions?"

And for those living in the West who point to these stories with an air of ethnocentrism, it's important to point out that Congress has not yet passed the Violence Against Women Act because they don't want to protect undocumented women, because the white men who rape Native women don't want to be subjected to the Tribal justice system, and because they don't want to protect lesbians. We have our share of "savages," too.

This is why you are a class act.

[Ti-Amie]

Chavez still has "severe" respiratory problem: Venezuela government

CARACAS | Thu Jan 3, 2013 9:26pm EST
(Reuters) - - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is still suffering from a lung infection that has hindered his breathing as he battles to recover from December 11 cancer surgery, the government said on Thursday.
"Commander Chavez has faced complications as a result of a severe lung infection," Information Minister Ernesto Villegas said, reading the latest official update on the president's condition in a hospital in Cuba.

"This infection has caused a breathing insufficiency that requires Commander Chavez to strictly comply with medical treatment," the communiqué added, giving no further details.

(Reporting by Diego Ore; Writing by Andrew Cawthorne; Editing by Paul Simao)


http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...90303D20130104

[Ti-Amie]

India gang rape victim's father: I want the world to know my daughter's name is Jyoti Singh Pandey

5 Jan 2013 20:56

Devastated dad tells The Sunday People he hopes revealing her name will give courage to other women who have survived such attacks



She is known to the world only as India’s Daughter following her sickening gang rape and murder.

But today, with permission of her devastated father, we can reveal her name: Jyoti Singh Pandey.

Brave dad Badri, 53, told The Sunday People: “We want the world to know her real name.

“My daughter didn’t do anything wrong, she died while protecting herself.

“I am proud of her. Revealing her name will give courage to other women who have survived these attacks. They will find strength from my daughter.”

We interviewed Badri and his family in his ancestral village of Billia in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.

They have retreated there to grieve away from their Delhi home – a place that will constantly remind them of the barbaric sexual attack Jyoti, 23, was subjected to when she and a male friend were lured on to a bus.

His wife Asha, 46, was too shell-shocked to talk to us.

Badri said: “At first I wanted to see the men responsible face to face but I don’t want to any more. I just want to hear that the courts have punished them and they will be hanged.

“Death for all six of them. These men are beasts. They should be made an example of and that society will not allow such things to happen.”

Recalling the day he found out about his only daughter’s ordeal, Badri said he had just returned home after 10:30pm on December 16 from his shift at Delhi airport where he works as a loader.



(...)

Badri now cherishes the memories of his daughter. He remembers her dream of being a doctor.

He said: “I told her I can’t afford to pay for her to do such subjects but she was determined. She wanted to be a doctor and earn lots of money and go overseas a lot.”

When Badri first moved to Delhi in 1983 he earned just 150 Rupees a month – the equivalent of £1.70 today.

But he sold some land to pay for his daughter’s studies and saved as much as possible from his 5,700 Rupees (£65) a month he now earns.

Badri said: “It’s hard living in Delhi on my wages, very hard. But Jyoti always said she would change all of that. She wanted to change our lives once she got a job.”

Jyoti had only just finished her four-year course in physiotherapy at college outside Delhi. She was doing an internship when she was attacked.

Her brothers, Gaurav Singh, 20, and Saurav Singh, 15, were close to their big sister and cannot image how they will cope.

Gaurav said: “Life is going to be so difficult without her. Without her guidance I don’t know what to do or how to go about life again.”

Badri and all the family have been touched by the way the nation has supported them.


He said: “The people of India have given us strength to cope up with our loss. I feel she’s not just my daughter but also India’s daughter.

“I used to read about rape incidents in the newspapers but never digested it much. We’re so thankful to the people who came out to protest against the barbarity.”

DNA tests have linked five men and a 17-year-old from the bus with rape and murder. The men will appear at the District Court in the Saket area of the Indian capital tomorrow. The 17-year-old will be tried separately as a juvenile.

Badri now hopes mothers and fathers will teach their sons to respect women.

He said: “The police cannot handle this on their own. But parents need to keep an eye on their children too.”

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-n...father-1521289

[Martini4me]

It's So Hot in Australia That They Added New Colors to the Weather Map

See that deep purple in the middle of this acne-red weather report from Down Under? That right there represents 129.2° F or 54 °C — it's a brand-new shade that the Australian bureau of meteorology was forced to add to its heat index because their country is, you know, kind of on fire.
"The scale has just been increased today and I would anticipate it is because the forecast coming from the bureau's model is showing temperatures in excess of 50 degrees," David Jones, head of the bureau's climate monitoring and prediction unit, told The Sydney Morning Herald, which notes that the previous record high was 50.7°C (123°F), recorded in 1960 at Oodnadatta Airport in the southern part of Australia — right around where the new shades of hot are showing up today.
To give you an idea of just how uncomfortable this Australian heatwave really is, consider that at just past midnight, it's 95°F in Sydney. Doubly scary are the giant fire risks that come with the heat — risks so severe Australian officials are taking no chances and labeling the warning "catastrophic." "A 'catastrophic' warning carries the risk of significant loss of life and the destruction of many homes, according to the NSW Rural Fire Service," reports CNN.

http://news.yahoo.com/hot-australia-...135043015.html

[Scotty]

It's So Hot in Australia That They Added New Colors to the Weather Map

See that deep purple in the middle of this acne-red weather report from Down Under? That right there represents 129.2° F or 54 °C — it's a brand-new shade that the Australian bureau of meteorology was forced to add to its heat index because their country is, you know, kind of on fire.
"The scale has just been increased today and I would anticipate it is because the forecast coming from the bureau's model is showing temperatures in excess of 50 degrees," David Jones, head of the bureau's climate monitoring and prediction unit, told The Sydney Morning Herald, which notes that the previous record high was 50.7°C (123°F), recorded in 1960 at Oodnadatta Airport in the southern part of Australia — right around where the new shades of hot are showing up today.
To give you an idea of just how uncomfortable this Australian heatwave really is, consider that at just past midnight, it's 95°F in Sydney. Doubly scary are the giant fire risks that come with the heat — risks so severe Australian officials are taking no chances and labeling the warning "catastrophic." "A 'catastrophic' warning carries the risk of significant loss of life and the destruction of many homes, according to the NSW Rural Fire Service," reports CNN.

http://news.yahoo.com/hot-australia-...135043015.html

Eeek! This is why all the Sydneysiders I talked to last year kept telling me about the surprisingly cool summer weather they were having (85-90 F) the week I was there.

[skatingfan]

A pod of killer whales trapped in sea ice off the Hudson Bay coast of Quebec - hopefully something can be done.

[skatingfan]

An Ottawa-area man has been charged with polygamy after Ontario Provincial Police responded to a domestic dispute.

Police responded to a home in Renfrew County, west of Ottawa, last week and one man was charged with assault with a weapon, domestic mischief and polygamy.

Police said the man lived with one of two wives and said the other wife lives at a different home.

Renfrew OPP spokeswoman Const. Janice Sawbridge said no other details could be released, including the name, age or address of the accused, because it is a domestic case.

WTF!!

[suliso]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20938125

Dry would probably be interested. It's about kidnapping of girls due to widespread foeticide and infanticide...

[dryrunguy]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20938125

Dry would probably be interested. It's about kidnapping of girls due to widespread foeticide and infanticide...

Read this earlier today, suliso. But I'm thrilled you posted it here. I meant to and completely forgot.

What we're seeing now is just the beginning of the long-term consequences of large scale surpluses of males. And there will be a huge domino effect that extends into regions where sex-selective abortion or foeticide is not widely practiced, creating new surpluses of men. We're already seeing lots of reports of girls being sold to groups of men so she can service all of them.