Post No. 741 – For Sunday evening’s meditation-clearing

I'd like to begin this week's post with a nice interlude from the week. Occasionally I drive to work via a road alongside Albert Park Lake, and it was nice to see other cars stopping to let the swans cross the road safely (black swans, incidentally: I've never seen a white swan). OK, back to work ...

For everyone’s convenience, I’ve shifted the reminders / explanations about Sunday’s meditation-clearing to this post. I have a simplified blogiography of posts related to this work here, a list of themes I have identified here, and my changing the personality of oppressors post, which I am contemplating expanding to include some key people to work on, is here. (Also, see here for some investigation into evidence of the effectiveness of this type of work, which shows variability [and mentions causes] and cycles in the energetic/consciousness response.) A range of information on emotions is here, and suggestions on how to work with emotions is here.

The purpose of posting these news links is not only to inform: it is also to stimulate a connection to nonBPLF units that need to be cleared and BPLF units that need to be strengthened. That only works if you don’t let yourself be overwhelmed by this, so take it in small chunks if you need to, but remember to actively clear and heal! … including yourself.

Also, in the same way that activists used to argue that “the personal is political”, the energies we use and manifest in our daily lives contribute to the larger soup of energies that influence world events. If you want to, for example, improve the communication of nations, improve yours. To help stop abuses of power, be always ethical in your conduct. Want peace? Then work in an informed, understanding, intelligent and nuanced way for peace in yourself and your life.

Now, the themes – short, medium and long term - that come to mind for my work this week, after I review all this news, are (and no apologies if this repeats the themes of any previous weeks – in fact, given the size of this task, that is to be expected):

(a)   based on my interpretation of information here and here with Saturn in Sagittarius contributing to finding an authentic balance (until 20^th December, 2017), Uranus in Aries contributing to fresh and possibly radical starts (until some date in the Year 2018), and Pluto in Capricorn contributing to a transformation of power and business (and careers) (until some date in the Year 2024), conditions are ripe for a change for the better in world politics;

(b)   viewing the overall emotional state of the world from an elemental point of view, we need more Æther (inspiration, spirituality) and Air (thought and communication), balanced by some inward-focused Earth for grounding;

(c)   Turkey’s President Erdogan is doing so much damage that he needs to be added to the list of incarnates to be cleared – him, Putin, and a few others … and Australia’s negative example and influence also needs to be countered (again);

(d)   some groups which have been using violence appear to be realising that won’t lead to what they want, and they will ultimately have to talk their issues through … others are becoming more desperate and nasty. Ultimately, all have to learn how to coexist in a world where others will inevitably have different views;

(e)   smaller groups in society need to be considered and included, and mistakes must be acknowledged and then learned from;

(f)   abuse of power and corruption, and being vulnerable to being blackmailed or similarly influenced, remain major concerns;

(g)   communication needs to be fostered, and good media is a key part of that, along with tools such as collaborative communication;

(h)   the world needs to slow down, live more simply, and control population;

(i)   exhaustion is a problem – even going so far as to cover a particular set of strategies in warfare;

(j)   decision makers outside conflict zones need to accept and act on their responsibilities. From the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect on Sudan, for instance: "After more than 10 years and 60 resolutions it is time for the UNSC to review its entire approach to endemic conflict and ongoing atrocities in Sudan". This is a case where the words have not led to action, and thus are cheap, and action is required;

News and other matters from this week include the following (opportunities/good news are shown in green; comments are shown in purple; WARNING: some of these links may contain triggers around issues such as violence, sexual assault, discrimination, etc).

• permanent issue: may all actual and potential BPLF [1] Leaders be kept BPLF safe, including keeping them undetectable to the nonBPLF and keeping all their Significant Others inviolable against being used for indirect psychic attack, all as is for the Highest Spiritual Good;

• with regard to Da’esh and violent extremism generally:   an article suggesting that Turkey’s attacks on Kurds in Syria may result in Da’esh being able to survive;   Iran may be considering supporting the Kurds;   the Syrian al-Qaeda affiliate al-Nusra Front has ceded frontline positions against IS to other rebel factions in an area of northern Syria where Turkey hopes to establish a buffer zone, Reuters reported on Monday;   the importance of understanding Da’esh’s view of history;   the UN Security Council will hold a meeting to discuss Da’esh’s attacks on LGBT people. How will nations which are bigots on this issue handle the meeting?;   the USA has called for reducing tension between Pakistan and Afghanistan, and has asked leaders of both the countries to work together to combat violet extremism;   a security expert has warned public officials to get off or minimise their use of social media;   Da’esh is suspected of having used chemical weapons in an attack on Kurds in northern Iraq;   a bomb blast killed at least 47 people in north-eastern Nigeria and hundreds of fighters invaded a town across the border in Cameroon in attacks that witnesses and officials blame on Boko Haram;   a truck bomb in Iraq has killed at least 60;   the British SAS are reported to have successfully rescued hostages from a hotel siege in Mali that has left 7 people dead (other reports attribute the rescue to the local military);   a pregnant Swedish teenager is being held by Da’esh;

• with regard to democracy, freedom and governance:   the hope some recently elected Australian MPs have of changing politics for the better;   lost opportunities in Lebanon’s political crisis;   an editorial on India’s belief in democracy;   from Haiti, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General in the country and head of the UN Mission there, Sandra Honoré, welcomed today the long overdue holding of the first round of legislative elections in Haiti yesterday. She commended all those citizens who peacefully exercised their right to vote across the country;   controversy surrounds a bill in Tunisia that offers immunity for financial crimes committed before and after the 2011 revolution;   Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed a committee to advise him on how best to tackle corruption and reform the legal system;   an article on the influence of the ultra-rich;   in China, questions are being asked about the real motivations for the current anti-corruption campaign, as well as the methods being used to interrogate officials who are deemed to be corrupt by the Communist Party;   the importance of perception in elections;   a team of international envoys for the Great Lakes Region, including the UN Envoy for the Great Lakes, Said Djinnit, are calling for restraint, leadership, and vision from all concerned citizens of Burundi to prevent further violence;   a prominent leftist opposition leader in Bahrain is to stand trial again this month for "promoting political change through forceful means," two months after his release in a royal amnesty, judicial sources said on Wednesday;   disturbing claims that a private security company misled the Australian Parliament when it downplayed its admission of spying on a Senator;   the need to change politics, with a few comments about how past greats would fare under today’s high levels of scrutiny, and another article on the politics of fear trumping the politics of courage;   Australian Prime Minister Abbott is mishandling a crisis over a Royal Commission into alleged union problems;

• with regard to crime, judicial matters and policing:   a call to focus on teaching perpetrators not to commit acts of violence, rather than, for instance, telling women to take precautions against sexual assault;   a review of police responses since the events a year ago in Ferguson, USA, where a man shot recently by police has been charged with assault, and police are attempting to use a less inflammatory response (seems to be working) as vigilantes add to tensions;   an analysis of the risks of corruption amongst attorneys general in the USA:   New York police are avoiding ban on photographing the homeless by doing so while off duty (do those morons not understand what leads to people being homeless? This also question their professionalism, in my opinion);   authorities in Texas have fired a white police officer who shot and killed an unarmed black college student (now, what about criminal charges? Losing a job is hardly a punishment for taking a life. Incidentally, I have an uncle who was in the police in Queensland: he left after the Fitzgerald Enquiry, as “they didn’t get all the crooked cops”. Getting rid of corruption and prejudice within police is vital for the community it serves, and that also requires taking measures to address the cyclic nature of such corruption and bigotry – i.e., it tends to disappear after measures are taken, and then gradually creep back in);   the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has said that they are appalled by what they call the shockingly disproportionate prison terms handed down in recent months in lèse-majesté cases in Thailand;   in Mali, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has said that it is deeply concerned at the reported release of detainees who were suspected of involvement in, or already formally charged with serious crimes, including war crimes, terrorist acts and gross human rights violations. Any measures which would de facto amount to an amnesty would be contrary to international law, and in violation of the commitment by the parties to the Peace and Reconciliation Agreement;   a call for the Constitution, Justice and Citizenship Commission in Brazil’s Senate to approve a bill that would introduce basic due process procedures to prevent arbitrary detention;   a call for the Philippine House of Representatives to fast-track its investigations of alleged human rights abuses by state security forces;   more Indigenous people will die in custody unless controversial paperless arrest laws are scrapped, the Northern Territory coroner has said;

• with regard to human rights and discrimination:   Muslim women in India are seeking an end to “instant divorce”;   a campaign appears to have been successful in stopping someone with misogynistic lyrics coming to Australia;   prominent Syrian rights defender Mazen Darwish has been released after more than three years in prison pending a verdict in his case at the end of this month, his wife has said;   probably no surprise, but Australia’s conservative Prime Minister has “led” his party, which contains some truly appalling bigots, into another rejection of same sex marriage (good analysis of this situation here);   in Mali, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has said that it is deeply concerned at the reported release of detainees who were suspected of involvement in, or already formally charged with serious crimes, including war crimes, terrorist acts and gross human rights violations. Any measures which would de facto amount to an amnesty would be contrary to international law, and in violation of the commitment by the parties to the Peace and Reconciliation Agreement;   an Australian tennis player has been fined after yet another controversy, this one involving a slur against another player’s girlfriend (it is possible that stress is opening the player to nonBPLF influence, but such players must know they are in the public eye, and thus both under a high level of scrutiny, and a high level of expectation over the examples they set);   a court in Azerbaijan has convicted the human rights activists Leyla and Arif Yunus who had faced politically motivated prosecution for economic crimes;   allegations that Sri Lanka is continuing to torture Tamils;

• with regard to media and freedom of expression:   journalists in Brazil are being murdered;   the (concerning) trial in Iran of a Washington Post journalist on charges of spying has resumed;   the Editors Guild of India has called for the show-cause notices imposed by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry on three leading news broadcasters for their coverage relating to the hanging of Yakub Memon to be immediately withdrawn;   an editorial on the vicious campaigns against secular bloggers in Bangladesh;   Saudi authorities have detained Zuhair Kutbi, a prominent writer and commentator, following a TV interview in which he discussed his ideas for peaceful reform;   Bangladesh authorities should unequivocally declare their commitment to free speech instead of proposing self-censorship, Human Rights Watch said;

• with regard to refugees:   in the Democratic Republic of Congo, ethnically Luba fighters have attacked a camp for Batwa (“pygmy”) refugees, burning to the ground and killing at least 30;   some factual information about refugees in Europe;   Australia has refused medical treatment for a woman who was raped while in detention;   concerns over a backlash in Sweden after two refugees were arrested on suspicion of murder. The Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention said this week the number of suspected hate crimes hit a record level last year. In one of the latest incidents, two homeless migrants were shot at as they slept in a car in the northern Swedish town of Boden last week;   Afghanistan is refusing to accept forced return of asylum seekers;   a call to tone down the rhetoric over refugees;   chaos has broken out on the Greek island of Kos amid attempts to relocate hundreds of migrants to a football stadium for registration, with violence and one police officer being suspended;   Uighur refugees in Pakistan;   a whistleblower has told of Australia’s abuse of children in refugee detention camps leading to a six year old trying to commit suicide;   Hungary is putting asylum seekers at risk by following the Australian approach;   has Europe forgotten its history?;   an article on Médecins Sans Frontières’ work in the Mediterranean Sea, which includes the following: “they calculate the need for help based on mortality rates -- a cold, precise measurement. An emergency situation is considered acute when there is one death per day for every 10,000 people. Last year, at least 3,500 refugees died in the Mediterranean while 219,000 made it to Europe. That's a mortality rate of around 10 per day, or one in 63”;

• with regard to overcrowding and “modern” lifestyle issues:   an article on the “Slow Movement”;   if we all lived in “ecovillages”, we still use too much of the world’s resources to be sustainable: population growth MUST be addressed!;   air pollution in China is killing 1.6 million people every year. I can vouch for that being a problem from my work trips there in the 90s – and other places have similar problems: during winter in Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia (I had a work trip there a few years ago – not in winter), when the poorer people living in gers around the edges of the city (the city itself has a steam heating system provided by the Russians) run out of coal, they burn shredded tyres – resulting in terrible air pollution problems in the valley that city is located in (and flooding in spring regularly kills people);

• with regard to education:   the UN Secretary-General has asserted that we must not deprive children in Gaza and elsewhere from education – especially when extremists are in full recruitment mode. The cost of education is low. The price of inaction is too high. Later in the week, he UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees said that Saudi Arabia has approved an assistance package worth $35 million. However, even with such a generous donation, UNRWA has not been able to bridge the $101 million deficit in its general fund;   appallingly poor sex “education” in US high schools;

• with regard to the conflict in Afghanistan (noting that Afghanistan was once a peaceful and modern society, even allowing women in miniskirts, before the Russian invasion – see here):   a suicide car bombing near the entrance to Kabul’s international airport on Monday killed at least five people and wounded 16. According to the UN, three attacks by anti-Government elements on Friday 7 August caused at least 355 civilian casualties, including more than 40 deaths. The UN Security Council reiterated that no violent or terrorist acts can reverse the path towards Afghan-led process - democracy and stability in Afghanistan. The attacks have led to the Afghani President lashing out at Pakistan. Afghani forces appear to be standing their ground well;

• with regard to China:   an analysis of China’s actions in the South China Sea as a modern version of the Maginot Line, which was bypassed by Germany in 1940, and the need for the US to be similarly flexible now in regard to the South China Sea;   military exercises;   air pollution in China is killing 1.6 million people every year;

• with regard to the conflict in Iraq (noting that Iraq was once a peaceful and prosperous society, before the USA / CIA backed revolution – see here):   Iraq’s Prime Minister has announced measures to address corruption;   a severe funding shortfall in Iraq has forced the World Food Programme (WFP) to cut down the amount food it provides to close to one million displaced people in Iraq;   three explosions, two of them suicide bombings, have killed at least 33 people near Baquba, the capital of Iraq's restive eastern province of Diyala on Monday;

• with regard to Russia:   an analysis of Russia’s views and possible actions militarily, via a former Russian General, and another analysis focused on Russia’s reasons for its recent actions in Georgia, and the major risk of further actions against Georgia;   Saudi Arabia's foreign minister has rejected Russian calls to join forces with the Syrian authorities against Da’esh, insisting it was impossible to work with President Bashar al-Assad;   an article alleging that Mr Putin is a bad strategist (on the basis that he does not understand the relationship between military violence and political objectives), and that the USA should “et Russia continue to engage in self-defeating behaviour without acting in ways that raise the spectre of nuclear escalation”;   Russia has extended its list of countries subject to a food import ban in retaliation for Western sanctions over the Ukraine crisis;

• with regard to the conflict in Syria:   Syria's President Bashar al-Assad has vowed to punish a cousin who is accused of shooting dead Colonel Hassan al-Sheikh in an apparent road rage incident, the family of the victim told the Syrian daily Al-Watan;   Saudi Arabia's foreign minister has rejected Russian calls to join forces with the Syrian authorities against Da’esh, insisting it was impossible to work with President Bashar al-Assad;   claims of a ceasefire for 3 towns, although a ceasefire for a Damascus suburb has not been honoured;

• with regard to the conflict in eastern Ukraine:   an analysis of the “strategies of exhaustion”, as opposed to strategies of annihilation or attrition;   the World Food Programme has said that it has started cash distributions in government-controlled areas to 60,000 people – most of whom are internally displaced – in Ukraine’s Luhansk and Donetsk regions. it is using cash transfers in areas where there are functioning banks and markets to restore some normalcy to people’s otherwise shattered lives;

• with regard to the war in Yemen:   allegations that Egyptian ground forces are fighting the Houthis in Yemen, and that the United Arab Emirates are sending conscripts to the war;   the Special Envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, convened a meeting in Muscat, Oman, over the weekend with senior leaders of the Houthis and General People’s Congress to explore how to resume the political process;   an assessment that the Houthis have experienced setbacks not because of Eid, as they claim, but because they lack the firepower needed against the Saudi-led onslaught;   the battle to retake Sanaa is imminent;   the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has described the humanitarian situation in Yemen as "catastrophic" and getting worse by the day after a three-day visit to the war-stricken country;   Oman may become a key player in resolving the civil war in Yemen;

• with regard to the natural and other catastrophes :   there has been an earthquake in Afghanistan;   at least 11 have died and 50 were injured in a stampede at a temple in India;   Typhoon Soudelor has made landfall in Taiwan killing at least four people with four people missing and 64 injured, and subsequently made landfall in China with 250,000 people having been evacuated – a total of 29 have died, and hundreds have been injured;   flooding in Myanmar has damaged 520,000 acres of farmland, , with initial assessments in Rakhine indicating that floods and salt water have severely damaged the rice harvest. One million people have now been affected;   dozens are missing after a landslide in China;   a shipment of explosives appears to have caused a huge explosion in Tianjin, China, with over 50 dead, hundreds injured and thousands forced out of their homes;

Also from the Daily Briefings of the United Nations (UN) (and other sources):

• the Secretary-General is personally dismayed and disappointed, not just by the latest troubling allegations of abuse by peacekeepers, but by the series of allegations that has surfaced in the Central African Republic mission in recent months, relating to both the period before UN peacekeepers were deployed in that country and since, and no misconduct of this nature can be tolerated and that every allegation will be taken extremely seriously and investigated vigorously and thoroughly. The Secretary-General has accepted the resignation of Babacar Gaye, his Special Representative and Head of the UN Mission in the Central African Republic, and has held a video conference with the heads of peacekeeping operations on an urgent basis to speak directly to them about the ongoing sexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeepers and problems of misconduct. The Secretary-General said that he would be sending the same message to others beyond peacekeeping: the zero tolerance policy applies to the entire United Nations system, and means zero complacency and zero impunity and that when allegations are substantiated, all personnel whether military, police or civilians - must be held accountable (is this response too late? The problems have been there for months! More here);

• on the Central African Republic, the Secretary-General said this weekend that he was saddened to learn of the death of five Rwandan peacekeepers serving in the Mission in that country. MINUSCA is investigating the incident in which eight additional peacekeepers were wounded;

• United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced today the appointment of Elia Armstrong, a national of Canada, as Director of the Ethics Office;

• United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed Jean Arnault of France as his Delegate to the Sub-Commission on End of Conflict Issues within the Colombian Peace Process. The appointment follows a 12^th July request by the parties to the peace talks in Havana, the Government of Colombia and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC);

• the Secretary-General has spoken at an event commemorating International Youth Day, and emphasised the role that today’s young people can play in helping to realize the sustainable development goals;

• the newly-appointed Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Somalia, Peter de Clercq, has just completed his first official visit to Puntland and Somaliland, where an estimated 220,000 people are internally displaced and seriously in need of food, water and shelter. There is a need for a concerted and rapid response by international actors, and national and local authorities to avert a humanitarian crisis;

From other sites:

• Human Rights Watch also has:   a call for Ukraine to avoid Russia’s misinformation approach;   Chaloka Beyani, the United Nations special expert on internally displaced people, was “appalled” by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) misrepresentation of his views – he castigated the AFP for attributing to him an assessment of the situation that was “incorrect, unacceptable, and … a gross distortion of my views”. (The AFP had alleged that Beyani had declared that the 700 Lumad who had taken shelter in a church compound in Davao City on southern Mindanao island were victims of “human trafficking”);   an investigation announced on August 10, 2015, into allegations by five recently released detainees of abuse by the counterterrorism police will test Tunisian authorities’ political will to eradicate torture;   Turkmen authorities prevented a prominent horse breeding expert who fell out of favour with the government from leaving the country for much needed medical treatment;   the fatal shooting by Egyptian security forces of nine Muslim Brotherhood members on 1^st July, 2015, may have been unlawful killings and could qualify as extrajudicial executions. Independent prosecutors should investigate the killings and hold accountable any members of the security forces found to have committed any unlawful killings or to have been otherwise responsible for them;

• the Middle East Eye also has:
   - a review of who was responsible for the breakdown of the ceasefire between Turkey and the PKK, as violence  continues;   a questioning of western media simplifications regarding Kurds;   the attacks by Turkey on Kurds in Syria has strained the relationship with the USA, which has denied any agreement with Turkey over a so-called “safe zone” in Syria;   the failure to form a coalition government in Turkey may lead to another election;
   - a review of the history and choices facing Kurds in Turkey, which argues that the best decision would be to eschew violence;
   - new tensions have emerged between Berber Mozabites and Arabic-speaking populations in Algerian Sahara;
   - Guardian columnist and author Owen Jones has said that the United Kingdom should accept refugees from crises that the UK caused;
   - Israel has released all suspects detained in raids as part of a probe into the firebombing of a Palestinian home that killed an 18-month-old child and his father, which was followed by a widespread hacktivist attack, and further arson attacks;   after a previously unknown group in the Gaza Strip launched rockets into Israel on Friday, Israel hit Hamas's military wing, wounding four policemen, as unexploded ordnance killed 4 and injured 35;   Jewish hardliners are increasing tensions in Al Aqsa over a site that is holy to both Islam and Judaism;   homophobia has been filmed in Israel;   a British petition is calling for the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu;   Palestinian lawyer Mohammed Allan, who has held without charge since November 2014 and has been on hunger strike for 59 days, is at risk of death, supporters say, with medical teams flouting a controversial new law by refusing to force-feed him;   a review of the legal case in support of Susiya, a village that Israel has been trying to remove;
   - an article on the “slow deaths” of political prisoners in Egypt;   the Egyptian judiciary is cracking down on criticism;
   - the place of music and culture in Tunisia;   a call for the USA to better support Tunisia, which some view as the only success to come out of the “Arab Spring”;
   - Bahrain claims to have arrested suspects in a recent bombing case with alleged links to Iran;
   - an article suggesting “Black Lives Matter” is the USA’s equivalent of the “Arab Spring”;

• the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) also has:
     the UN Secretary-General has submitted the 7^th report on R2P (summary here);   a summary on a briefing on the anniversary of the massacre at Srebinica, which ended with Russia (mis)using its veto to block a statement that would have acknowledged the event as genocide, although claiming to accept the principles of R2P, and some strong debate from other members of the UN Security Council;
     a current fortnightly report, aiming to give background, offer analysis, track international response and suggest necessary action, for four nations in immediate crisis (“mass atrocities are occurring and urgent action is needed”: Syria, Iraq, Sudan and South Sudan), three nations at imminent risk (“the situation is reaching a critical threshold and the risk of mass atrocity crimes occurring in the immediate future is very high if effective preventive action is not taken”: Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi), and five nations for which there is serious concern (“significant risk of occurrence, or recurrence, of mass atrocity crimes within the foreseeable future if effective action is not taken”: Central African Republic, Burma/Myanmar, Libya, Yemen and Pakistan);
• Recommended actions are:
• in Sudan (I will work through other nations from the report in coming weeks):
  "After more than 10 years and 60 resolutions it is time for the UNSC to review its entire approach to endemic conflict and ongoing atrocities in Sudan."
  

  - the UNSC should expand the arms embargo on Darfur to include South Kordofan and Blue Nile;
  - the UNSC and AU must ensure the government and SPLM-N facilitate the delivery of humanitarian assistance to populations in South Kordofan and Blue Nile, as stipulated in the 2011 Framework Agreement and 2012 cooperation agreements;
  - the UNSC should mandate the establishment of an independent international commission of inquiry for South Kordofan and Blue Nile and actively support efforts to bring ICC indictees to justice;
  - states with major investments in Sudan, including China, Qatar, Iran and Saudi Arabia, should press the government to fulfillits commitments;
  - the government and SPLM-N, in accordance with UNSC Resolution 2046, must cease armed hostilities and address the underlying causes of the conflict

• the US-based and -centric “War on the Rocks” blog (which I have found may also have other articles that I have concerns with - and thus do not provide links to, unless I want you to think … :) ) also has:   a review of the roe of history in current international relations, which argues for a more modest use;   tor many Israelis, the lesson of the Gaza withdrawal is that Palestinians, if left to their own devices, will elect terrorists. Learning only this lesson would be a mistake, however, as on balance the withdrawal from Gaza was good for Israel. Now, the way to further improve the situation lies, in part, in the West Bank: to prevent Hamas from making further political gains, Israel needs to show Palestinians that a commitment to negotiations can reap rewards;   a questioning of Pakistan’s potential to be a “good” influence;

• the Justice in Conflict blog has:   a review of Kosovo’s new war crimes court;

• the Political Violence at a Glance blog has:   some drug violence is visible and grisly, but much is not, but it appears to be more visible when the government is weak or corrupt;   an analysis of far right violent extremists in the USA;   an analysis of which nations are more likely to resort to military violence;

• the International Crisis Group has:   a review of the initially good, but subsequently less so, progress of Sri Lanka since the elections six months ago;

• The Hindu also has:   a report on further actions towards peace with the Nagas;  an agreement for 6 provinces has removed a hurdle in the search for a new constitution in Nepal;   signs of a Maoist revival in Tamil Nadu;   the Indian Government and Reserve bank of India have adopted a new monetary policy;   a proposed dam will imperil a species of black crane that is sacred to Buddhists;   Amnesty International will support the decriminalisation of sex work;   ten people have been charged – later reduced to a caution - for spreading a rumour likely to cause public fear (good!);   lessons from Singapore for India;   the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme reduced poverty by up to a third and gave a large number of women their first opportunity to earn cash income, a new research has found;   a community’s views will harm families with daughters who married elsewhere;   Iran is taking a hard line on a jailed women’s rights activist;   Iran is seeking increased trade with India, after the nuclear deal;   Pakistan and India’s National Security Advisors will meet;   “Since 1947, India has stood as a beacon for the world, as an economic power that prides innovation, as a resilient democracy in the face of terror and as a strategic power that upholds international norms”, Mr. Kerry said in his Indian Independence Day message on behalf of US President Barack Obama;

• the BBC also has:   a report on a child abuse scandal in Pakistan;   a Mexican community activist who helped families search for their missing relatives has been killed;   the impact of a recurrence of violence on Kurds in Turkey;   the Greek debt crisis has saved the German government some €100bn (£70bn; $109bn) in lower borrowing costs because investors have sought safety in German bonds, a study has found - even if Greece defaults on all its debt, Germany would still benefit, reported the German IWH institute;   a UK court has rejected a bid to extradite Rwanda's spy chief to Spain to stand trial for his alleged role in massacres after the 1994 genocide, as the offence is not also a crime in the UK;   toxic mine wastes have turned a river in Colorado, USA, yellow;   concerns that Hindu nationalists may be creating an atmosphere where other Indians are at risk of violence;

• the (South African) Mail & Guardian also has:   a report on the need to do more for women in South Africa;   a report on the “Black Sash” movement, which was a women’s anti-apartheid movement;   a call for care in land reform;   concerns about the impact of China freeing its currency on African economies;   in South Africa, the Democratic Alliance has threatened to take Parliament to court after their bid for a debate on a motion of impeachment against Zuma in relation to the handling of Sudanese leader Omar Al Bashir’s visit and departure failed;   “afriLeaks” has been launched to help African whistleblowers;   an opinion piece suggesting that, in South Africa, “respect for the people is the missing glue in our governance architecture”;

• Spiegel International also has:   an interview with London’s Mayor, Boris Johnson;   an interview with Ai Weiwei: “Nobody has endless strength”;   an assessment of Indonesia (“In the Kingdom of Gentle Islam”);

and from other sites: 

•  this week see the 77^th anniversary of the Rape of Nanking, which saw Japanese soldiers kill up to 300,000 people, including around 20,000 women who were raped first;

• ugly threats of violence from the more extreme anti-Muslim mobs in Australia and the USA – the latter even calling for people to turn up with guns! Police have warned that inciting violence is a crime, and will be monitoring the events;

• North Korea's vice premier Choe Yong-Gon has been executed for voicing frustration at the policies of leader Kim Jong-Un, South Korea's Yonhap news agency has reported;

• property prices are causing a problematic wealth transfer;

• Japanese youth are protesting the increasing militarism of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government;

[1] BPLF = Balanced Positive (spiritual) Light Forces. See here and here for more on this. 

[2] Please see here, here and my post "The Death of Wikipedia" for the reasons I now recommend caution when using Wikipedia. I'm also exploring use of h2g2, although that doesn't appear to be as extensive (h2g2 is intended - rather engagingly - to be the Earth edition of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy").

[3] I apologise for the formatting: it seems Blogger is no longer as WYSIWYG as it used to be, and there are a lot of unwanted changes to layout made upon publishing, so I often have to edit it immediately after publishing to get the format as close to what I want as possible.

Love, light, hugs and blessings

Gnwmythr, Pagan Energy Worker, Wéofodthegn

(pronounced "new-MYTH-ear"; ... aka Bellatrix Lux … aka Morinehtar … would-be drýicgan or maga ... )

My "blogiography" (list of all posts and guide as to how to best use this site) is here, and my glossary/index is here.

I started this blog to cover karmic regression-rescue (see here and here), and it grew ... See here for my group mind project, here and here for my "Pagans for Peace" project (and join me for a few minutes at some time between 8 and 11 PM on Sunday, wherever you are, to meditate-clear for peace), and here for my bindrune kit-bag. I also strongly recommend learning how to flame, ground and shield, do alternate nostril breathing, work with colour, and see also here and be flexible.

Tags: activism, discrimination, energy work, magick, meditation, nonviolence, peace,  society, violence, war,

First published: Laugardagr, 15^th August, 2015

Last edited (excluding fixing typo's and other minor matters): Saturday, 15^th August, 2015