For the sake of my health, until I retire or change to an
easier day job , I have cut back these posts.
Information and Summary of News with Opinion / Advocacy / Analysis:
Notes:
(1) I am NOT a journalist (this blog was created for spiritual reasons, including a course), and make NO claims to objectivity or freedom from bias.
(2) Furthermore, I do NOT hold copyright to any of the articles I link to, nor do I claim authorship, except for those links to material I have written for this and my related blogs, and my commentary in these posts. (I try to make sure quotes are shown using quotation marks.)
The purpose of posting these news
links is
not only
to inform; it is also to
stimulate a connection to:
- nonBPM units that need to be cleared, and
- BPM units that need to be strengthened,
so that you can do the clearing / strengthening that is required.
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.
As part of that, note
that there are key uncooperatives
to be cleared (rescued):
you should ONLY address those that are within your ability – if you get a
sense (e.g., through meditation) or are told by your BPM Guides/Higher
Self to back off, do so, and content yourself with clearing the smaller
nonBPM units within your capability – which will weaken those
uncooperatives. More importantly, there are many people doing this sort of
work, and others are quite likely to be able
to clear the uncooperatives concerned.
That is also one of the
many reasons it is OK to take a break or cut back this work if you need – in
fact, doing so will help you deal with the next point, which is …
… the energies we use and manifest in our daily lives contribute to the larger soup of energies that influence world events, so it pays to address those as well, to the extent that one can, or to at least stop oneself projecting them into the psychic soup.
… the energies we use and manifest in our daily lives contribute to the larger soup of energies that influence world events, so it pays to address those as well, to the extent that one can, or to at least stop oneself projecting them into the psychic soup.
The reminders /
explanations about Sunday’s meditation-clearing
are here; see also here, here, here, (here and also here and here are interesting), here,
here, here, and
this
post reminds us to be patient and persistent, like a “speeding oak”.
There are some notes at
the end of this post about other options for those who do not like this way of
working.
Finally, one of the biggest concerns I have about spirituality in the
world now is that the concept of agape type love has been perverted into both a
quest for emotional warm fuzzies, and an excuse to avoid doing the hard work of
improving oneself and
all that one does. See also here
and here.
The themes that come to mind for my work
this week, after I review all this news, are:
(a) based on my interpretation of information here and here with Uranus in Aries contributing to fresh and possibly radical starts (until March 2019), 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) there is an enormous need to clear nonBPM energy – the thought forms, unattached energy and scars of the collective unconscious created by millennia of violence, including spirit rescue, and healing the warped views, seemingly “inherent” biases, and other damage created. Also, remember:
(1) the counter to fear is genuine EQ and clear thinking, expressed through calm, de-escalating speech,
(2) where problems exist, advocating for BPM responses, and being as BPM as one can be, are constructive solutions,
(3) peace is powerful, but it is a process requiring patient, persistent and nuanced nurturing, and a blend of conventional spiritual work, clearing nonBPM units, and physical world activism;(c) dealing with the 45th “President” of the USA requires:
1. eroding (i.e., slow, patient and persistent clearing of the little bits one can SAFELY cope with – remember, you are but one of many) the nonBPM influences feeding his arrogance and his mind-set, and strengthening that person’s BPM Guides and giving those BPM Guides whatever BPM help they need to present a BPM alternative to promote a change of heart,
2. lifting the nonBPM influences from the shoulders of that person’s marginal supporters, allowing them to “come to their senses”, which may result in them feeling bewilderment/shame, and simultaneously strengthening the BPM influences around them (e.g., their BPM Guides) to counter them backsliding,
3. physical world activism (especially education) – e.g., this. As well as doing what one can there, help those who are doing this work (e.g., sending them “positive vibes”) and look for nonBPM blockages that can be cleared (e.g., setting up a BPM vortex above meetings to draw away external nonBPM influences/energies/units, so that the audience can listen as they are, without any obsession/possession);(d) the major events this week are:
(i) as attraction to violence continues to be inadequately addressed and the search for humans rights abusers continues, the risks of mass atrocities in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Yemen and Nigeria,
(ii) ongoing violent conflicts and crises in Syria, Afghanistan, Mexico, Iraq, Burma, Somalia, South Sudan, Nigeria, Central African Republic, Libya, Sudan (Darfur and South Kordofan), Yemen, Egypt (Sinai), Kurdistan, the Philippines, Ethiopia, Mali, DR Congo, Burundi, Kashmir, Baluchistan (Pakistan and Iran), India (Maoist and other insurgencies), the Maghreb (Africa), Ukraine, and elsewhere;
(iii) refugee and humanitarian crises; - the political madness of regimes with authoritarian leaders – and all who put or keep them there; - and, specific to this week, the value and need of providing a human face to events in order to overcome lack of empathy and prejudgement; “out of sight, out of mind”, and ascribing matters as being “somebody else’s problem”; technological disruptions to the balance of military power amongst the larger powers, with more weight to the totalitarian power(s), exacerbated by hardline communication, and displays and tests of macho strength; public and peer pressure both for better and for worse; misuse of technology; casualness and carelessness; maintenance of power by elites; continued sexism, white supremacism, and other forms of bigotry and hate;(f) may all people have the BPM caring to take on BPM responsibility, including the BPM forbearance to avoid misuse of pressure, influence and/or power, BPM forethought on the use of technological advances, and BPM taking care in what one does;(i) may all people fully BPM realise the dangers of violence, and the few times that is BPM justifiable;(k) may all people BPM think deeply about themselves, their lives, and society (including the lessons of history), so that they can overcome socialisation and other influences that create and/or sustain patriarchies/oligarchies/similar concentrations of power amongst the few;
It
is absolutely VITAL that this psychic
/ metaphysical / spiritual work be performed non-violently and as is for the Highest Spiritual Good – which is
part of being BPM – on all levels and in all ways. Always remember
(see here): Do you fight to change things, or to punish?
See also here, here, here, here, here, and my comments about “authentic
presence” in this post.
News and other matters
from this past week follows:
news items are presented in the following sections (there is overlap, and items may appear more than once; those without news deleted each week):
- Permanent Issues and Thematically Arranged News:
permanent issues; particular attention;
democracy, freedom, governance, and ethics; the USA and POTUS45;
violent extremism; refugees and migrants; human rights
(including homophobia/transphobia, white supremacism, trafficking
and children’s rights, sexism, religious rights, workers’ rights, animals’ rights,
and privacy, differently abled and other rights); war, violence and hate;
peace; spirituality and psychism; natural and other catastrophes;
modern lifestyle (including climate change and environment, technology
and science, economic and financial, housing, health and medical); media;
education; crime judicial and police;- Location-based News:
Africa; South and Central America;
mainland China, East and South East Asia, and the Pacific; Europe;
Ukraine; Russia and Central Asia; Afghanistan; South Asia;
West Asia and northern Africa;- Other Sites;opportunities/good news (in my opinion) are shown in green;comments (by me) are shown in purple; andWARNING: some of these links may contain triggers around issues such as violence, sexual assault, discrimination, etc.
Permanent Issues and Thematically Arranged News:
- Permanent issue: may all actual and potential BPM Leaders and their Significant Others be kept BPM safe, undetectable and inviolable against indirect psychic attack, and may they have all the BPM resources (including an assured income), opportunities and assistance for them to be BPM effective, all as is for the Highest Spiritual Good;
- Permanent issue: may all humans recognise, irrespective of the appearance of difference, the essential shared humanness of other people, the strength of BPM collaboration, and the opportunities of having a diverse, inclusive and welcoming population, and may all people choose fairness, when such decisions are before them;
- Permanent issue: may all actual and potential BPM Violence Interrupters (and Interrupters of hate / fear / anger) of be kept BPM safe, and may they have all the BPM opportunities and assistance for them to be BPM effective at containing and stopping – along the lines of the Cure Violence model - the spread of violence (and hate / fear / anger), all as is for the Highest Spiritual Good;
- Permanent issue: may all humans choose to live modestly – to forgo outdoing others, or trying to have more than they need - for the sake of an easier, more manageable life, if they cannot do it for the sake of the planet, and may we all exercise our human characteristics of reason, self discipline and improvement to overcome the often evil flaw of seeking social status;
- Permanent issue: may all humans be in better communication with the better parts of their nature – especially those who need that more than other, better people;
- Matters warranting particular attention:
this week on reversing the deliberate, well-funded, long-term strategy (from about the 70s) to make self-interest seem normal and a commitment to fairness (such as former US President Franklin D Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms) an aberration (see also here, here, and here) : the entirety of this blog and all other spiritual work and physical activism I and many others do;
on the Rohingya genocide this week:
- a human interest story from the Rohingya refugee camp: a musician;
on other matters requiring particular attention:
- this week I found nothing in the news on Ukraine;
- a call to “end deforestation in supply chains”; an entertainingly written (“I think the first economist must have been named Horatio. He’s the one who had to be reminded there were more things in heaven and earth than dreamt of in his model”) article on why we need trees;
- China’s navy appears to have developed a practical “rail gun”, capable of firing a projectile 200 km at hypersonic speeds – but see also this assessment (if true, this could be more of a “game changer” than steel ships, steam turbines, the Dreadnought, submarines, and aircraft carriers were); an opinion that the POTUS45 and the USA’s current National Security Advisor “appear to have forgotten, or never learned,” a “hard-earned lesson of the Cold War . . . that arms control reduces the risk of nuclear war by limiting dangerous deployments and . . . by creating channels of communication and understanding”;
- “Iran is set to deploy a fleet of warships to the western Atlantic Ocean . . . in an apparent bid to counter the presence of a US aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf”;
- another article on North Korea’s declining patience with US inaction on sanctions;
- as China uses machine learning (aka “AI”) to enforce political repression, a Guardian editorial on the power and irresponsibility around the use of AI; as a “cyber-attack disrupts distribution of multiple US newspapers”, a warning of the “cyber risks to financial stability”, a breach of government employee work details in my home state and similar in Germany, and a media company has said “information it collected from listeners . . . over a two-year period [2009 – 2011] has been ‘publicly disclosed’ ”; the year 2018 CE from a privacy perspective; another social media privacy violation; a detailed, nuanced examination of “exceptional access” by intelligence agencies;
- “following protests by Muslims, a mosque in [the UK] dropped plans to host an exhibition on Muslims who saved Jews during the Holocaust” (the protests and cancellations are backward steps – this could have been constructive);
- as an article is published arguing that history is rhyming (i.e., not quite repeating), the “Political Insights” team (who do a great weekly e-newsletter) has presented a report assessing 2019: “Democracy in Retreat: Challenges in 2019” (I haven’t read this yet, but everything else they’ve produced has been well done) - see also this assessment of 10 conflicts of concern for 2019 (Yemen, Afghanistan, US-China, West Asia, Syria, Nigeria, South Sudan, Cameroon, Ukraine, and Venezuela), and the UN expects to have to work on Yemen, Syria, the Rohingya, and Colombia, ;
- “today’s elite prefers the myth of the meritocracy” – which is a term “coined in mockery”;
- “hundreds of thousands of women have linked arms across the southern Indian state of Kerala in a show of defiance against moves to keep women away from a famous Hindu temple” – but bigots protested after two women entered; in yet another example of worker abuse, sexism and backwardness in the UAE, “with sex outside marriage punishable by jail, migrant workers who become pregnant are often forced to keep their babies locked away”; a stand-up comedian, attempting a comeback after admitting to sexual misconduct, appears to have mocked survivors of a US school shooting as he tries to recast himself as a victim . . . see also this assessment;
- an assessment of possible changes in US policy towards West Asia;
- ”why being single isn't a character flaw”;
this week’s atrocity alert at R2P lists Democratic Republic of the Congo, Yemen and Nigeria; - With regard to democracy (which can
be measured [as can goodness], requires protection of minorities and the vulnerable - and are you fighting to change things [by 198 nonviolent methods], or to
punish), freedom, governance (e.g., here, here, here, here, here) and ethics:
Note: I have a section specifically for POTUS45 below
of concern internationally this week:
- Russia’s President has sent a new year’s message to POTUS45 offering talks but pledging more support to the Assad regime in Syria; proposed US limits on Freedom of Information requests may be illegal;
of concern in my nation (Australia) this week:
- an opinion piece arguing that the “Australian government’s strategy of vilifying Muslims can be used against all of us” . . . “a government that accepts no limits to its power to cleave and quarter society at will” . . . “the government used these final days to bully, harass, intimidate and politicise any opposition to an encryption bill allowing security agencies access to our encrypted private messages”; as a call is made for a “broad apartment development” enquiry, an Australian state government “has announced a crackdown on dodgy building certifiers” (I consider it possible that certifiers are not the only problem, which is why the broader enquiry sounds good – and we still need the “1-2 mm movement” rubbish explained). Meanwhile, as three residents refuse to leave, more cracks have been found, emergency internal props have been installed, and engineers report that the building “has ‘a number of design and construction issues’ ” . . . ; “an investigation into last year's industrial inferno in [a warehouse] has uncovered ‘illegal’ chemical stockpiles in seven warehouses in [my home city’s] north”;
also of concern this week:
- other concerning events have occurred or are developing in: Yemen, DR Congo, India, Madagascar, Cameroon;
in the grey/mixed [good and bad aspects] or neutral area this week:
- “Australia is coming under increasing pressure to address China’s detention of activists and foreign citizens, as it attempts to balance diplomatic and trade ties with the secretive state”;
good news this week includes:
- an isolated regional Australian town is using local bylaws covering the Aboriginal community lands – with police cooperation and enforcement – to ban known drug dealers and users from entering;
- other good news has occurred: Ethiopia;
and democracy/governance/political matters in my home nation this week: - Australia’s automated welfare systems have been labelled ‘heartless’ following email and text notifications of stopped payments just before the end of year holidays; “the family of a young girl who was seriously injured by an electric shock at a public housing property has been offered an act of grace payment of $1 million”; “complaints about Australia’s freedom of information system spiked by 72% in a single year, heaping further pressure on an already under-resourced regulator”; my home state’s government has been challenged for not releasing documents relating to the removal of a media service from public screens on public transport after the outlet posted an interview with an extremist; - With regard to the USA and their
schoolyard BULLYING, unpresidential, uncomprehending, delusional 45th “President” (“POTUS45”)
(see here on actions for US residents; the VP is at least as bad):
- as the ongoing shut down devastates US National Parks and US government employees, POTUS45 claimed (without contacting Democrats directly) – in what “appeared to be another attempt by the president to convince the public that the federal government shutdown and impasse over funding for a wall on the US-Mexico border is the fault of Democrats” – to be “ready, willing and able” to negotiate an end to the partial government shutdown. He followed this by calling for “a border security briefing” while claiming to want “an agreement that reopens the government AND keeps Americans safe” but rejecting “a proposal from Democrats to reopen the government without money to build a wall” . . . but the Democrats are digging in, although POTUS45 may respond by declaring and using a State of Emergency . . . Meanwhile, the “outgoing White House chief of staff John Kelly said he had ‘nothing but compassion’ for migrants attempting to enter the US without documentation”, that he “should be judged on the things [POTUS45] did not do while he was chief of staff”, and that POTUS45 “was now pushing for a steel slat structure, rather than a concrete wall”. Also, “the son of a Yemeni woman who sued the [POTUS45] administration to let her into the country to be with her ailing toddler has died”; after coordinating releases of “migrants” with aid agencies for five years, the USA “has released more than 1,600 migrants . . . overwhelming aid agencies that have scrambled to find shelter for families left to fend for themselves”;
- more wrong (can these be considered delusional?) claims from POTUS45 – this time about Afghanistan;
- in response to POTUS45’s misogyny and the controversial nominee for US Supreme Court, the number of women in the US Congress is now at a record high of 24% (as the article points out, there is still work to do, but I’ve read that getting to ⅓ will actually start to result in change, so it may not be far off), and there are also a record high number of representatives who are people of colour, and one Palestinian;
- the Republican probe of alleged FBI bias, “condemned as [a] ploy to undermine” the Special Prosecutor, has ended “with a whimper”, as a letter is issued rather than final report; a defence of last week’s criticism of the legal aspects of a memo from the next US Attorney-General on the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 US Presidential election;
- despair at the loss of transparent communication from the US White House, with the formerly daily news briefing now stretching out to monthly;
- a billionaire (who may be a candidate for President in 2020) has slammed POTUS45 on climate change inaction, and a State Governor has “likened the fight against climate change to the fight against Nazism during the second world war”; “US senator Elizabeth Warren, a liberal firebrand who has taken on Wall Street and traded barbs with [POTUS45], has announced she is seeking to challenge the Republican President in 2020” - and the moronic elements of the US media are being sexist already; the woman who is the new US Speaker of the House of Representatives;
- a criticism of the USA’s indictment strategy against Chinese hackers;
- stupidity from US Strategic Command led to withdrawal of a post and an apology; - With regard to violent
extremism (VE) (aka, terrorism)
(ALL people advocating hate or discrimination in response to
violent extremism are actively doing the work of violent extremists. This will be countered, in part, by “Cure
Violence”,
real and perceived disempowerment as
well as acknowledging the variety in what provides genuine, BPM fulfilment as a counter to fanaticism as a source of meaning, and good
old fashioned police work. Also,
I don’t name groups in order to reduce their publicity):
- according to this Wikipedia page, there have been 1 attack in Iraq, 9 attacks in Afghanistan, and 5 attacks in Syria (out of a total of 32), including Germany, UK;
- in addition: actions (Note: there are many others that don’t reach the media I read) have occurred this week against violent extremists in: Australia, Yemen, Tunisia;
- a dispute between Australia and Fiji over the citizenship of a violent extremist (who Australia want to deport to Fiji) is continuing; - With regard to refugees (noting the New York Declaration), people
seeking asylum and migrants:
- “the rising number of migrants attempting to cross the Channel in small boats has been declared a ‘major incident’ by the UK home secretary”, who “has asked for an urgent call with his French counterpart”, allegedly over a “concern that it is only a matter of time before people lose their lives” (what a convenient excuse to cover xenophobia or racism . . . ), and deployed the Royal Navy . . . ; a 19th asylum seeker detention centre in Australia has closed “as the number of people in detention drops” (overall, probably has even when allowing for those in Australia’s offshore gulags, but the overall human misery and suffering has risen – including in places of origin, and those supporting and/or enabling these policies have become less as human beings); “Australia's unwanted refugees are living with ‘nightmares’ while building new lives in the USA”; a review of a documentary on Australia’s former Christmas Island gulag – “the system worsens trauma . . . we’re creating a whole community of people who will be dependent on mental health services for the rest of their lives”; UNHCR has “called on UN Member States to urgently offer safe ports of disembarkation for 49 refugees and migrants, including young children, aboard rescue vessels in the Mediterranean Sea”; - With regard to other human (and other) rights and
discrimination (incidentally,
bigots clearly have flaws of observation and thinking – shown by the fact that NOT all people choose to
discriminate [and there’s this]):
- the Bahraini-led Asian Football Confederation “has broken its month-long silence on Australian-based Bahraini [refugee’s] detention in Thailand” with dismissive “responses” . . . ; “a German female member of [a violent extremist group] is facing war crimes charges in her home country for letting a five-year-old girl die of thirst”;
on HOMOPHOBIA/TRANSPHOBIA (including heteronormativity and cisgender-normativity and noting that trans kids are the same as cis kids of the trans kids’ true gender):
- “Germany [has adopted] third gender identity for intersex people”;
- other homophobic/transphobic (and heteronormativity / cisgender-normativity) matters have also occurred in: South Africa, Brazil;
on white supremacist and other forms of RACISM / CULTURAL DISCRIMINATION and Indigenous matters generally this week:
- following the misdeeds of some non-Caucasian youths in my home state has been the misdeeds of white supremacists . . . and something similar in Germany;
on TRAFFICKING, and CHILDREN’s and associated human rights this week (from Thomson Reuters Foundation, Freedom United, and other sources):
- “senior rabbis have been described by a child sexual abuse survivor as a ‘law unto themselves’ and urged to resign . . . after being found guilty of contempt of court for pressuring a community member to bypass secular authorities”; “after an 11-year battle, survivors of institutional child abuse locked out of suing for compensation [by the ‘Ellis defence’, which protected ‘unincorporated organisations including churches and other institutions’] will be able to launch civil claims”; as the Pope criticises the US catholic church over its bickering, the latter has “released the names of more than 1,000 priests and others accused of sexually abusing children in an unprecedented public reckoning”;
- also on child abuse, including institutional, this week: Australia, Israel;
- also on slavery / human trafficking this week: here;
on SEXISM this week (keeping in mind the overblown influence given to testosterone, and the potential value to women of using anger):
- an opinion that 2018 exposed what women are up against; progress in one Australian state’s legal system, but there is more to be done; “why women need a better plan than marrying rich”; a united campaign is seeking to bring Northern Ireland into line with Ireland and the rest of the UK, and into the late 20th Century, by overturning the ban on abortion;
- other sexism matters have also occurred in: Australia;
on ANIMALS’ rights this week:
- six men have been “arrested in central Vietnam for killing and eating an endangered monkey while live-streaming it on social media”; a requirement for animals to be stunned before slaughter is being misinterpreted as religiously motivated;
on PRIVACY, AGED, DIFFERENTLY ABLED, AND OTHER forms of human (and other – e.g., ANIMAL) rights this week:
- “companies that cater exclusively for employees who are on the autistic spectrum”;
- other privacy, differently abled, animal, and other forms of human or other rights matters have also occurred in: Malawi; - With regard to war (noting that
economic ties do NOT prevent war), violence
and hate generally:
- following a case by a “farmer ‘at extreme risk’ of hearing loss”, one Australian state has ruled that the “ban on firearm silencers ‘may be questionable’, amid concern from gun control advocates that strict laws are being undermined by an increasing number of legal challenges”; a drive by shooting committed (by a white man, but police are not speculating on motive) on a car with an African-American family inside has left their seven-year old daughter dead; - With regard to spirituality and/or psychism generally (including empathy, revolutionary
love, survival after death, good religion, UFOs, being single / asexual / off-grid / non-conformist / true to
yourself, overcoming:
belief in management fads and fashions,
filling time / distraction):
- “seeking inner peace in a violent, unequal world is not a selfish act . . . that is, so long as you don’t ignore the outside world, like the . . . CEO who blithely tweeted from a meditation retreat in [burma]”; a farmer using “ancestral” techniques; the Japanese art form / practice of “Kintsugi teaches that broken is still beautiful — and it can transform how we see ourselves”; a positive assessment of the reasons sports stars become involved in philanthropy; a couple of responses to a poorly written media article on Paganism / “post-neochristianity”; - With regard to natural and other catastrophes:
- a landslide in Indonesia has killed at least 15 people and destroyed a village; an explosion (probably a gas leak) at a building in Russia has killed at least 37 people; as 200 people die on Thailand’s roads in three days, the human face of the road toll in Australia; the drowning deaths – some altruistic - are continuing in my home state – and a flash flood in another state appears to have taken at least life, and other drownings have also occurred (see this on learning to swim as an adult); four people are missing after an avalanche in Norway; as one town loses water and power and carelessness causes fires (and a large bushfire burns wilderness in one state), advice on managing a heatwave and a dust storm; - With regard to overcrowding and “modern” lifestyle issues (such as conflict minerals,
environmental harm and child labour in smart phones, FOMO [which can be overcome], addiction or unthinking pro-technology bias [new is NOT
always good], second thoughts,
social media making people miserable or envious, work and lifestyles causing depression, being duped by modern mantras and management fads,
“failing” at being well, life options,
AI ethics, corporate misuse of mindfulness as
a distraction from working conditions, embedded emissions, plane pollution,
bigger, flashier homes/cars and financialisation,
the need for agroforestry,
insisting on busy-ness,
raising Prince Boofheads,
trying to force everyone to have children, the “Earth3” model [SDGs + 9PBs]):
on climate change (our World War III?) and other environmental matters:
- as a koala was given water during a heatwave, sprinklers to help turtle hatchlings survive heatwaves; as environmental lawyers say the company behind a controversial coal “has unwittingly provided ‘persuasive’ evidence for a . . . Government investigation into allegedly illegal works” on its proposed mine site, a Guardian exclusive reports that a the coal mine has proposed a ‘conservation area’ for an endangered finch on the site of another proposed coal mine . . . . Meanwhile, “as controversial plans to dump up to 15 million tonnes of salt and other waste [from fracking] near a creek in [a] drought-stricken [state] hit an unexpected roadblock”, more on my nation’s pathetic history on climate change; “the worst oil disaster you’ve never heard of” has leaked “between 300 and 700 barrels of oil . . . into the Gulf of Mexico every day”, totalling 140 million gallons of oil, compared to the Deepwater Horizon disaster’s spill of 200 million gallons of oil; pollution concerns after shipping containers are lost overboard in a storm;
- other environmental matters have occurred in: Mexico, Central America, India;
on technology and science matters:
- an idiotic complaint about social media messaging which fails utterly because it does not consider the issue of VOLUME OF TRAFFIC;
on affordable, sustainable and decent housing and homelessness matters (why are politicians with “investment properties” not admitting a conflict of interest and staying out of housing affordability debates?):
- housing prices are falling in Australia;
on health and medical:
- experts have called for the meat industry to stop adding cancer causing chemicals that turn the meat pink to bacon; a recommendations from an enquiry into Human Organ Trafficking and Organ Transplant Tourism to automatically make people organ donors could create confusion about the wishes of a person who had recently died and ultimately reduce the number of available organs; after more deaths from drugs, a hardline Australian state Premier is easing her opposition to pill testing (another example of the failure of the so-called “war on drugs” approach – which actively causes additional harm); a teenager “who was wrongly diagnosed with a string of mental illnesses has survived a serious brain disease and graduated dux of her school”; a lucky escape from heatstroke for a group choosing to walk without enough water in 45°C heat . . . ; - With regard to press aka the
media, and freedom of expression (claims
of presenting “both sides” of a debate can be WRONG if the other side is RUBBISH –as is the case
on LGBTIQ issues. Also, media can be unprofessional, but funding is an issue … ):
- a major Australian daily newspaper “has apologised after it published a photo of the wrong person in an article about a man who allegedly shot his stepmother with a nail gun”;
- other media / freedom of expression matters have occurred in: USA/Saudi Arabia, India (good news), Sudan; - With regard to education:
- a neoliberal push in Australia to scrap tertiary student amenity fees, which raise more than $100 million a year for bodies such as student representative councils, student unions and sports clubs, is being resisted by the opposition and the neoliberal’s conservative coalition partner;
- other education matters have occurred in: South Africa; - With regard to crime, judicial
matters and policing (noting that an
uncle of mine resigned when corruption was not comprehensively cleaned out of
the police force he served in, I also have high expectations of police [to
match their powers], and I consider all violence, abuse of power and failure to
understand the impacts of their actions [e.g., see here and here] by police – who are under incredible
pressure –is, nevertheless, undermining and weakening all police and what they
are trying to achieve):
- “call for air-conditioners in ‘inhumane’ cells after outback heatwave triggers [a] prison riot”; my home state’s “judicial watchdog will investigate a . . . magistrate over comments he made in court which suggested an alleged rape victim had suffered ‘buyer's remorse’ ”.
Location based News:
- With regard to Africa, the Africa
Center for Strategic Studies (and other sources) has:
on Africa generally:
- “the Solar for Health initiative”;
on specific African nations:
- “towns and villages in Cameroon’s . . . Anglophone regions are being deserted as battles rage between separatists and the country’s military”;
- “Muslim rebels who briefly seized power in the Central African Republic in 2013 have received fresh weapons supplies from traffickers in Sudan even as they take part in peace talks”;
- a criticism of the DR Congo’s disenfranchisement of over a million voters from the “third [election] since the end of a civil war in 2002 that killed about 5 million people” (an election which has been delayed for two years). As the catholic church urges telling the true result (which it says it knows), “the UN Security Council will hold a closed-door meeting . . . on the elections”; training is improving farm yield in DR Congo;
- “there is now the very real possibility that Ethiopia could make a lasting shift to democracy”;
- “teenage pregnancy in Kenya is a crisis of hope, education and opportunity”;
- protests in Madagascar over the recent election result;
- attacks are continuing on Malawi’s albinos;
- an example of religious tolerance in Mali; “an attack on a village in central Mali earlier this week in which at least 37 civilians died, is to be investigated with the help of United Nations human rights experts”;
- more than 5,000 violent deaths in Nigeria last year;
- a mortar attack on a UN compound in Somalia “may be [a] ‘violation of international humanitarian law’ “;
- South African schools are slowly learning how to support trans students;
- protests in Sudan are continuing, despite dozens of deaths, and have been described as “a full-blown revolt” (“the biggest threat to . . . [war criminal] Bashir’s iron-fisted rule since he swept to power in a 1989 coup”) – there have been arrests of journalists and activists, and see also here, and there are murky claims around the relationship with Israel;
- fears of a health crisis in Zimbabwe as the doctors’ pay crisis continues; seven Chinese men have been arrested for poaching rhino horn; - With regard
to South and Central America:
- “in addition to the violence and poverty, climate change is the third cause of the exodus of Central Americans” – particularly farmers;
- “Brazil’s indigenous peoples, already targeted by loggers”, face “genocide under [the new president]”;
- 85 ex-FARC rebels have been killed since the peace deal in Columbia;
- a Mexican Mayor’s assassin has been captured by the crowd; “Mexico’s forests [are] both victim of and solution to climate change”;
- a review of Venezuela as “the country that has lost three million people”; - With regard to mainland China (may her
growing middle class bring a love of peace and freedom), East and South East Asia and the Pacific (and noting the risks of atrocities in North Korea and burma):
on increasingly totalitarian mainland China, and also Hong Kong, the DPRK (North Korea) and South Korea (which need to accept their partition – for now – and sign a peace treaty), Taiwan, and the free but invaded and occupied nation of Tibet:
- China has landed the first craft (a rover) on the far side of the Moon - see also this assessment; as a “turbulent year marked by trade wars, detention camps and an economic slowdown” (and only two “no” votes to Chairman Winnie the Pooh, being “President for life”, as opposed to normally some dozen of no votes, and “the world's most sophisticated censorship and state security apparatus”) comes to a close, young Chinese have adopted a despairing new term on social media, and, although a Canadian teacher being “administratively punished for illegally working” has been released, the continued detention of others and an ordered “retrial of a Canadian citizen on drug smuggling charges” could further test relations, poor after the arrest of a senior Chinese executive for allegedly breaching US sanctions against Iran, between China and Canada – and the USA has now warned its citizens to be careful of travel to China;
- the leaders of the two Koreas will meet more frequently in 2019;
- “a North Korean diplomat who was until recently acting ambassador to Italy has gone missing after reports he was seeking asylum in the West”;
elsewhere in Asia:
- the Philippine’s (misogynistic [wannabe rapist], self-proclaimed murderer, mass killing enabler, admitter of extrajudicial killings, human rights abusing, with shades of Pinochet) president Marcos-Lite has admitted to another sexual assault;
- at least one person is dead after Thailand was hit by a Tropical Storm; - With regard to Europe and the European Union (EU) (which need
to step up, as the USA steps down):
- more violent “gilets jaunes” protests in France have led to a warning of “order at all costs” from France’s President;
- Germany is debating social media moderation;
- “Greece has awarded citizenship to three migrant (refugee?) fishermen . . . who rescued Greeks from a devastating fire . . . last July”;
- the UK has been told by the EU to “get its act together” before it votes on the Brexit deal, and The Guardian reports that “almost 1,000 police officers from England and Scotland are to begin training for deployment in Northern Ireland in case of disorder from a no-deal Brexit”; - With regard to Russia, Russian influenced nations and eastern Europe, Central Asia, and responses to same (see also
elsewhere):
Russia:
- Russia’s growing poverty rate – officially 13%, unofficially 22% - is revealing “cracks in society”, while the oligarchs who “amassed their wealth during the economic and social turmoil following the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the introduction of the market economy”, are “moulding into a class akin to the Soviet intelligentsia or Tsarist aristocracy, using cultural patronage to disguise the often-murky origins of their wealth”; a former US marine, in Russia ostensibly for a friend’s wedding, has been charged with allegedly spying; “SIPRI has produced a new series of films that provide Russian perspectives on the landscape of arms control . . . The interviewees—many of whom are affiliated with the Russian Academy of Sciences—are pessimistic and . . . would like to see policymakers maintain existing treaties”; - 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):
- the UN has welcomed clarity on the decision to delay elections; - With regard to South Asia (aka
the Indian
sub-continent), The
Hindu and other sources have:
on India:
- “ancient DNA is rewriting prehistory in India - and shows that its civilisation is the result of multiple ancient migrations” – to the dismay / denial of hardline right wing Hindus; the opposition is expected to be competitive in India’s upcoming elections; the ongoing devastation from hundreds of preventable deaths from silicosis decades ago; seven Indian cities have successfully dealt with the problem of open defecation; a court has acted to stop weakening of controls on extraction of groundwater; progress on the rescue of trapped miners; wi-fi will be available at 2,000 railway stations “soon”; an Indian state is increasing support for inter-caste marriages to “break the shackles of caste hierarchy”; an analysis indicates that recent election results show India’s secularism is still under threat; “India must be prepared for the potential consequences of withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan”; corruption allegations; managing plastic waste is proving difficult;
on Pakistan:
- Pakistan has developed a military rocket;
elsewhere in South Asia:
- after an election with fatal violence and allegations of vote rigging, a description as “farcical” together with a call for a new votes, an arrest of a journalist who reported “election irregularities”, which saw the government returned (with a staggering 96% of seats off an 80% voter turnout), the UN has urged ‘restraint’ in Bangladesh’s post-parliamentary election violence; - With regard
to West Asia (aka “the Middle East”) and
Northern Africa, the Middle East Eye, the Times
of Israel, and other sources have:
- Egyptian-Israeli military cooperation; an assessment of international relations in West Asia as “pragmatic”; Israel and Russia will “strengthen military and diplomatic cooperation in Syria”;
on Israel and Palestine:
- “Palestinians decry rise in attacks by Israeli settlers”; a “superbug” epidemic in Palestine could spread (considering the likely contribution of Israeli-caused health cuts, if it reaches Israel that would be possibly karmic); Israel’s opposition alliance has fallen apart . . . ; Israeli settlers have attacked the Palestinian Prime Minister; grave concerns over how Israeli courts are treating Palestinian children; information on Palestinians who have been killed by Israeli soldiers during the “Great March of Return” that POTUS45 caused; - see this, on this week’s protests; Brazil is the latest nation to decide to inflame tensions by moving its Embassy to Jerusalem – see also here;
- other events concerning Israel/Judaism and/or Palestine have occurred or are developing in: France, France;
on the conflict and the world’s biggest humanitarian crisis in Yemen:
- “the theft of food aid in Yemen” – where “it has emerged that aid officials have been aware for months that armed groups . . . have been diverting food aid into the key areas they control, including by manipulating data in malnutrition surveys used by the UN” – “might be only the tip of the iceberg”;
on Syria (where the Assad Dictatorship has lost all pretence of legitimacy, and partition is needed):
- some of the brave Syrian White Helmets (who are reported to have saved over 100,000 lives, at the expense of 214 of their own) are trying to rebuild their lives in a “Canadian exile”; POTUS45 “appeared to water down plans for an immediate pull-out of US troops from Syria, even as he defiantly (and stupidly [is this more evidence of delusion?]) claimed that his achievements in the conflict should make him a ‘national hero’ ”; “Syrian Kurdish leaders aim to secure a Russian-mediated political deal with [the Assad regime] regardless of US plans to withdraw from their region”;
elsewhere in the region:
- “Egyptian security forces have killed 40 suspected militants in a series of gun battles a day after a Vietnamese tourist bus was bombed”; a campaign against bullying in Egypt; the bloody-mindedness of Egyptian officials at the Gaza border;
- an examination of the protests in Jordan, which may herald a new phase of the “Arab Spring”;
- a US official has criticised the Saudi investigation into Jamal Khashoggi’s murder as “lacking credibility”;
- following the failed 2016 coup, Turkey is experiencing a “brain drain”; an assessment of the risks for Turkey of focusing on its relationship with Russia.
General Comments/Information
(Dear Reader, please remember, I expect you
to THINK when reading this blog, and I reserve the right to
occasionally sneak in something to test
that)
Many
others are very capably doing this type of work – for instance, the Lucis Trust's Triangles network (which has been running for many decades);
the Correllian Tradition's
'Spiritual War for Peace'
(see also here,
here,
and here), the Hope, Peace, Love and Prosperity Spell
(also from the Correllian Tradition, in around 2007 or 2008), the
Healing Minute started by the
late, great Harry
Edwards (running for decades);
the “CE 5 ET
contact” movement started by Dr Steven
M Greer, which is the one which
appears to me to most capitalise on the teachings of “The Nine”, the “Network of Light” meditations; the 1 Million Meditators
movement, and also see here, here and here –
even commercial organisations (for instance, see here), online groups (e.g. here
and here
– which I do not know the quality of)
and even an app.
Thus, if you don't like
what I am suggesting here, but want to be of service, there are many other
opportunities for you – including secular opportunities: e.g., see here,
here and here.
Again, activism in the physical world is also required - see here,
here
and here,
here,
and, of course, here.
(I specifically have a role for (absent) healers on Saturdays [see Psychic
Weather Report]. Anyone who wishes to be protector has a role every day. At all
times, on all levels and in ways, BOTH must ALWAYS be BPM in the way they perform such roles.)
If I am ever late getting
my Psychic Weather Report up any week, there is a default
plan.
I apologise for publishing these posts
twice, but Blogger keeps changing my formatting.
