Post No. 1,306 – Gnwmythr’s News Ed. No. 259

For the sake of my health, until I retire or change to an easier day job , I have cut back these posts.
Throughout 2019, these posts are likely to be cut back even further as a family illness is dealt with.

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 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 45^th “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);
         4. Ensuring opposition to POTUS45 is unified, cohesive and FOCUSED, NOT fractured or divisive;

   (d)   the major events this week are:
          (i)   as attraction to violence continues to be inadequately addressed, the search for humans rights abusers continues, and further to the current map of genocides, this week there are risks of mass atrocities in   Syria, Venezuela and Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories,
          (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 insanity of megalomaniacs who are bringing the world closer to nuclear catastrophe AND THOSE WHO SUPPORT THEM,     abuse of the vulnerable;     fear and sadistic use of fear (especially fear of difference), leading to hate fuelled violence;     some genuine empathy and outstanding courage;     “dirty tactics” to maintain power and stop others accessing accurate information;     dithering around the edges of taking real and genuine action on issues – including refusal to admit personal failings and flaws;     trying to hold oneself up as being above the law;     trying to be tougher than evil;     social stereotypes;     using fear and hate and bigotry to divide, conquer and rue societies;     superficiality;     materialism;     refusing to relinquish / change when it is needed (e.g., for countering climate change);     using aggression and dominance to try to feel good about oneself – on large and small scales;     old problems such as air and water pollution are still with us;     allowing oneself to be duped by business/commercial propaganda;     delusion and denial and cognitive dissonance;     jealousy and retaliation;     lack of respect for human dignity;

   (e)   may all people think of the future with care, free of any “mini-me” syndrome, only wanting future humans to be able and free to make their own, BPM well-informed decisions without any of our wounds scarring their thinking;

   (f)   may all people be willing to BPM learn from the past – genuinely, objectively, and without any crippling forms or extents of negativity

   (g)   may all people be prepared to, and actually undertake, BPM healing of themselves on all levels – especially of inherited biases and bigotries;

   (h)   may all systems likewise be healed and made whole, and serve only the genuine BPM good of all people;

   (i)   may all damage done by flawed systems undone and what has been harmed made whole – being with the world’s future, its children, by continuing on to the provision of BPM justice;

   (j)   may all flaws of thinking, such as social stereotypes be shattered and abandoned;

   (k)   may all people walk lightly on the earth;

   (l)   may all this include non-human forms of life –plants and animals in particular, and the whole ecosystem be respected and revered;

   (m)   may all else that should BPM asked for, also be done;

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; and

   WARNING: 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;     a call to learn the indigenous names of trees;     reflections from a Westerner who was comforted by a Palestinian with an Israeli soldier’s rifle in his face on genuine empathy;     the “UN [has strengthened] peacekeeping despite US scepticism”, and has “issued a call for societies, faiths and cultures everywhere to ‘focus on what unites us’, urging everyone to work together towards realising the 2030 Agenda ‘for the collective benefit of all’ ”;
     a special section this week on the terrorist attack in a Christchurch, New Zealand mosque:
     -   as a man is refused bail because of threatening extreme violence because of his (unstated) extreme religious views (he has been found to not have a mental illness – the shooter at the Christchurch mass murder has been ordered to undergo such an assessment), a man who made comments supporting the massacre loses his access to the internet, a US man is charged with threatening to kill a Muslim US Congresswoman, and an Australian MP has been censured for “appalling” remarks about the massacre, a call for nuance in measures introduced in schools, but a warning that “mass murders like Christchurch don’t just happen – just ask Indigenous Australians”;     France may have been an influence;
     -   accusations that a notorious right wing media commentator is “engaging in a smear campaign against Al Jazeera”;
     -   “Australian security agencies had no information to suggest the man accused of the Christchurch mosque massacre should be placed on a watchlist or prevented from leaving the country . . . however, there were no major changes being made to Australia’s ‘scientifically calibrated’ [what on earth does that mean?] focus on different types of terrorism”;
     -   a social media (which is opening up about its algorithms, but still facing increasing numbers of complaints) executive wants governments, not social media to take a lead in controlling hate speech and has proposed a model that doesn’t interrupt their business model (is claiming need agreement to identify hate speech etc – crap: took Christchurch video down, so know there is some stuff that is unacceptable, debate is only about grey areas – should commit to dealing with extreme stuff now, get more people, and get more women etc instead of boys);      some opposition to Australia’s law forcing companies to take down violent content (while I’m generally in favour of consultation, and from a human rights perspective I can see the importance of freedom of expression [avoiding limits makes it surer that governments can be criticised], as a human being, and from a spiritual perspective, I question why people want to make violent content – are they perpetuating things like rape fantasies? Why is it necessary to see graphic details before discussing violence – why would someone be so limited in their human comprehension that they need that? Are such people indulging hidden sadistic tendencies? [I can see the need for medical experts to have access to such imagery as part of their training.] What about the desensitisation aspects? Is the objection because those involved in the tech industry are from only one group that has problems judging such things? Spiritually and socially, these are valid questions – but they are questions to be addressed in a spiritual setting, not a legal setting, and thus this law should be reviewed with commentary from legal and human rights experts – who are not the social media industry . . . ) - see this critique, and these concerns from a similar issue in the USA;
     on other matters requiring particular attention:
     -   this week I found nothing in the news on  the Rohingya;
     -   the USA has blocked entry for the ICC’s main prosecutor over fears it will be investigate for war crimes in Afghanistan (does this mean they want to reserve the right to continue committing them? So much for their much vaunted “:exceptionalism” . . . );     “Latin American states are mounting a challenge to the acceptance of a legal standard promoted by the US, UK and their allies to justify military operations in the Middle East, fearing the same standard could eventually be used to justify intervention in their own hemisphere” (and if they are allowing terrorism, are they not in breach of R2P and international law? The comment about needing an open debate is, however, valid);     the “prospect of a nuclear war [is] ‘higher than it has been in generations’ ” – see also here (the comparison to the Cuban  missile  crisis is particularly concerning);
     -   some US ”active shooter” drills are going too far, becoming more “preparation for war zone” than helping students prepare, and causing psychological problems rather than preventing them (this, to me, is a sign of the influence of minds that have been warped into an unhealthy state by what they have experienced in life – which probably includes extreme levels of violence, and those minds now consider that the best way to “manage” the world is to be more violent than it is, rather than trying to move the world to a less violent state. Expressed more simply, this is the militarised mind warping other people . . . );     concerns about so-called “predictive policing”;     a call to “Prosecute the Profiteers”, to support war crimes accountability;
     -   as Brunei charges into mediaeval viciousness (joining a few other retrogrades) by introducing stoning to death for LGBT people (the boycotts have started, as some flee), acceptance of a trans child in Australia has been limited to home because of bigotry;     unbelievably, a magistrate has ruled that “it was not an indecent assault when a police officer pinched a woman's backside” - and another dinosaur “spoke in court about the ‘fundamental human right’ of a man to have sex with his wife”;     “a children’s clothing company which revolutionised gender-neutral clothing for girls has turned their attention to boys . . . ‘gender stereotypes work both ways’ ”;     the experiences of African-Australians;     the problem of cretins who body shame women (that’s why I refuse to exercise in public);     appalling anti-Semitic abuse of an Australian Liberal MP;     the “rapid degeneration of sports commentary and analysis” – but, in the week a 12 year old attempted suicide, some sports players are standing up to online trolls, and praise for a world record breaking female sporting event;     “thousands of ageing Australians who were abused while in institutional care as children have now grown up and face the ‘terrifying’ prospect of entering an aged care system that reckons with its own allegations of misconduct”;     some “strict christian parents” are subjecting their daughters to FGM;     “why do so many incompetent men become leaders?” (good comment about conflating confidence and competence);     “a teacher and Christian chaplain of Hindu background who normally gets around largely unnoticed in a t-shirt and jeans . . . [undertook] a year-long social experiment in which he grew a beard, shaved his head and wore a kurta . . . [which] was like ‘walking around with a red flag on you’ “;     “details have emerged of how a plot by a neo-Nazi to kill an MP and a serving police officer was foiled by an anti-racism charity that had infiltrated the group”;
     -   the UN has called “for food aid for starving North Koreans despite sanctions” (there is a good case for providing this to prevent violent and probably unsuccessful riots there, which may spread – or leave the regime more desperate and thus more likely to cross the line into major violence against the West);     “no one from [North Korea] will stand trial over the death of Kim Jong-un’s half-brother, leading to fears it will act again”;     Taiwan has condemned an incursion into its airspace by the military of China – which still is hell bent on reunification, whatever it takes - see also here;     China – which “is suspected of being the main source of a powerful painkiller 50 times stronger than heroin that has caused record overdose deaths in the United States” - “has announced it will crack down on all fentanyl-like substances”, but, in a staggering display of doublethink, is blaming the crisis on American culture (there is also the historical issue of the West having done far worse to China during the Opium Wars . . . );     a woman carrying two Chinese passports and a device containing computer malware has been arrested after she lied to Secret Service agents and briefly gained admission to a protected area;     a US higher education institute has banned a controversial Chinese technology company (see here) in response to US government pressure;     Europe is getting tougher on China as US-China talks on the trade war continue;
     -   Libya is on the brink of all out civil war;
     -   “the life expectancy of children born today will be shortened by 20 months on average by breathing the toxic air that is widespread across the globe, with the greatest toll in south Asia”;     one third of Bangladeshi children are at risk from climate change;     the “last time CO₂ levels were this high, there were trees at the South Pole”;     confirmation that company directors have a liability around climate change (it is worth downloading and reading the document – its isn’t too legalistic, and the new opinion is only 9 pages – the rest icomprises endnotes and a copy of the original opinion [and its footnotes . . . ]);     “even nations that got rich on fossil fuels are seeing the future is green”;     “academics have mapped out a network of sanctuaries they say are required to save the world’s oceans, protect wildlife and fight climate breakdown”;
     -   “Trump and Brexit were not some perversions brought about by corrupt campaigners, but the result of years of failing politics”;
     -   allegations that, in response to a US newspaper’s coverage of the murder of a journalist ( a US citizen born in Saudi Arabia), by several Saudi Arabians in their Turkish Embassy, Saudi Arabia hacked the phone of the newspaper’s owner and leaked private information which was allegedly used to attempt blackmail, have not been responded to;     as Saudi Arabia continues to punish female activists, the US “Congress has given final approval on a resolution to end American military assistance for Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen, in an unprecedented attempt to curtail the president’s power to go to war and a sweeping rebuke to Donald Trump’s foreign policy”;     in response to concerns about possible diversion of uranium to make nuclear weapons, the “IAEA [has demanded] safeguards from Saudi Arabia on [its] first nuclear reactor”;
     -   a warning that India’s destruction of one its satellite “could endanger the ISS” – see also this analysis;
     -   a hidden camera was found in an Airbnb rental;
     -   the World  Bank’s next President – a man from the USA, as were all the others, although the interim President is a Bulgarian woman – is from POTUS45’s team, with a history of long time criticism of global financial institutions and position as Chief Economist at a major Bank that collapsed, but has already instituted reforms and initiatives at the World Bank in other roles;
       this week’s atrocity alert at R2P lists   Syria, Venezuela and Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories;
• 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
     analyses, research and commentary this week include:
     -   an economist has made an incompetent analysis of the effect of a living wage, by ignoring the mental health problems caused by the degrading and abusive treatment people on unemployment social security have to undergo;     another call to lower the voting age;     “a promising US fragile states strategy”;     a critique of “nationalist populism” (good commentary on the differences between nationalism and populism, the characteristics [including antipluralism and that it is a frame] of the latter, and how – objectively – to respond);     the need for a national history;     the impact of ageing on the budget – in context;     the Australian electorates most at risk from climate change;    “Australia can learn much from the policy leadership of the Ardern Government in New Zealand and its reforms to address stagnant wages and rebuild a more inclusive workplace relations framework”;     a review of international threats to Australia;     a slightly clumsily worded book review and discussion on globally contented/contentious policies, including foreign interference;     a debunking of claims Russia and China are forming an alliance;
     -   for other analyses see:   Mali;
     of concern internationally this week:
     -   concerningly, Canada’s government has expelled the ‘whistleblower’ MPs;     UK soldiers have used a politician’s face for target practice;     “a legal expert has criticised Australia’s freedom of information regime after spending two years . . . trying to shed light on Australia’s enormous lobbying effort to prevent the Great Barrier Reef from being listed as ‘in danger’ ”;     as “MPs backing a soft [blame] MPs backing a people’s vote for parliament’s failure to reach a consensus” and a cross-party group of MPs forces “through an emergency bill in less than six hours to . . . avoid a no-deal Brexit”, a warning that “the macho drama queens of Brexit are about to be knocked out by reality”;     as Iran spreads fake news about Israel in South America, concern over the level of the government’s involvement in Singapore's anti-fake news law;     the leader of a political party in Thailand has been charged with sedition – based on him being part of student demonstration four years ago -by the ruling military junta;
     of concern in my nation (Australia) this week:
     -   a “Federal police raid did not respect parliamentary privilege rules”;     unethical political strategies (“such arguments are patently absurd. No reasonable political observer could be fooled into believing there is any kind of moral equivalence between the reformist intentions of the Greens and the forces of white nationalism, or of any other radically extremist politics. Indeed, worse than that. It is offensive to make such an argument at the very moment when the world is shaken by the very real horrors in Christchurch”);     some millionaires are not paying any tax;     “allowing heavy polluters to use international permits to meet emissions reduction targets allows companies to ‘keep polluting at home’ “ - see also here;     “Australia has fallen behind many other countries in its response to one of the world's worst pharmaceutical scandals” (thalidomide);     a Guardian Australia exclusive reports that the Australian Government belatedly tried to censor itself after releasing information about how it stuffed up and exported birds to a convicted German fraudster;     another Guardian Australia exclusive reports that staff at a provider for a notorious single parents programme were told “not to exempt those with medical certificates”;     a “professional” organisation made a donation to a far right wing party – to the disgust of at least some of its members;
     -   other concerning events have occurred or are developing in:   Sudan;
     with regard to cyber warfare and other cyber problems this week:
     -   events related to cyber warfare have occurred or are developing in:   here;
     in the grey/mixed [good and bad aspects] or neutral area this week:
     -   “Canada [which “is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world”] has imposed a landmark carbon tax on four provinces which had defied [the] push to combat climate change”;
     good news this week includes:
     -   “how to spot similarity bias and encourage diversity at work”;     a court in the Philippines has ordered the release of police files on thousands of deaths in the so-called “drug war”;     President Erdogan’s party – which will lodge objections - has lost political control of Turkey’s capital;     “a 15-year-old boy who stood up to far-right activists during violent protests in Rome has won plaudits across Italy”;
     on development (in an “end poverty/thirst/hunger” sense):
     -   “lack of basic water facilities risks millions of lives globally” – “2 [billion] people lack water at health facilities”;     “acute food insecurity [is] ‘far too high’ ” – and is likely to get worse as a result of climate change;     more on impact investing;     “secure land rights is the path to end global poverty”;
     and democracy/governance/political matters in my home nation this week:
     -   rural voters are leaving the established conservative rural party over drought exacerbated water problems, and widespread discontent about health, education, transport, and jobs – “you reap what you sow”;     Australian politicians are courting voters on Chinese language social media;     a warning the major parties “will pay” at the upcoming election for “ignoring voters on corruption”;    “lifting the rate of unemployment benefits would bring down poverty levels and reduce inequality”;
     on the budget (hey - it’s a “big deal” here :) ):
       indigenous groups have denounced the neoliberal government’s selfish (“fairy tale”) budget as “punishing people in poverty” (also, “regional and older Australians benefit least”) – a critique of the opposition reply (“reply speech has actually been years in the making . . . aimed to reframe the conception of good economic management, so that it centred around producing fair and equitable outcomes”);     a suggested (progressive) budget;     the money has to come from somewhere . . . ;     listening to the voices of future in my state;     a social media platform is attempting to ban foreign political ads before the upcoming Commonwealth election;
• With regard to the USA and their schoolyard BULLYING, unpresidential, uncomprehending, murdering, lying, dishonourable, delusional 45^th “President” (POTUS45) (see here on actions for US residents, and note that the VP is at least as bad):
     -   as accusations surface of “inappropriate touching” against a former US President and 2020 hopeful candidate, those women who are defending him “are probably sincere in their admiration for Biden and honest about their positive experiences with him, but their testimonies imply a logic deployed often in the [defence] of men who are alleged to have behaved in abusive, coercive, or creepy ways toward women: if he didn’t behave badly toward one woman, the thinking goes, then he could not have behaved badly toward any women. We already know that this is not the case” – see also here;
     -   the Special Prosecutor’s report (which has received increased public confidence) into POTUS45 can be subpoenaed;     Congress has demanded POTUS45’s tax returns (it will be interesting to see if they have the legal power to do so – presumably that is based on POTUS45’s position, which excludes such demands for other, everyday people?);
     -   as the USA (viciously and inhumanely) “cuts $US700 million in aid to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras . . . for over-migration” (which may actually INCREASE migration), POTUS45 has threatened “to close the border with Mexico, regardless of potentially severe consequences for the US economy” – and Mexico;
     -   POTUS45 has backflipped on his plan to scrap health care for millions of US residents quickly, and now plans to do that after the next election;
     -   fighting back against POTUS45 on climate change;
• 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 6 attacks in Iraq, 4 attacks in Afghanistan,   and 1 attack in Syria   (out of a total of 22, causing at least 108 deaths [52 in Muslim nations * ] and 71 injuries [all in Muslim nations * ]),   including   Nigeria;
  ( * there are utterly nonsensical claims trotted out from time to time that Muslims are not doing enough against violent extremism: they are doing an enormous amount , and their continued suffering shows how strongly motivated they are to do so)
     -   in addition:     actions (Note: there are many others that don’t reach the media I read) have occurred this week against violent extremists in:   the Philippines,   Mali;
• With regard to refugees (noting the New York Declaration), and remembering Haiti, Ethiopia, Madagascar, DR Congo, and the Philippines), people seeking asylum and migrants:
     -   three teenage refugees who allegedly briefly hijacked an oil tanker that picked their group of around 100 refugees up in the Mediterranean have been charged;     anger after Australia’s government decided to close the Christmas Island gulag it has just reopened so it could avoid treating ill refugees with decency;     in contravention of SOLAS requirements, a migrant ship with 64 people (including a newborn baby) has been forced by Italy and Malta to stay at sea as a storm approaches;
• 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]):
     -   opportunities to take action on human rights here, here, and, this week,   here,   here;
     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):
     -   the life story of a person whose gender does not fit the rigid binary of most societies;     the Cayman Islands has been pushed, kicking and screaming, into the late 20^th Century by a court, and will now legalise Equal Marriage;
     -   other homophobic/transphobic (and heteronormativity / cisgender-normativity) matters have also occurred in:   BBC,   a US rabbinical school;
     on white supremacist and other forms of RACISM / CULTURAL DISCRIMINATION and Indigenous matters generally this week:
     -   another article on the air harvesting used for a water supply in a remote indigenous community;     the recovery of an Australian indigenous language;     the discovery of aboriginal handprint art has temporarily closed a rail line;     homelessness;     Australian bush foods;     aiding indigenous people in my home state to buy their first home;
     on TRAFFICKING, and CHILDREN’s and associated human rights this week (from Thomson Reuters Foundation, Freedom United, and other sources):
     -   funding is needed to stop Cambodian women being trafficked to China;     “addressing inequalities based on caste means stopping labour exploitation”;     “hope is on the horizon for tackling orphanage trafficking”;
     -   also on slavery / human trafficking this week:   Bangladesh,   Brazil,   India;
     on SEXISM this week (keeping in mind the overblown influence given to testosterone, and the potential value to women of using anger):
     -   “how to create a period-friendly workplace”;     more support for survivors of sexual assault in my home state;     a call for better definitions of rape;     three years after the Royal Commission into family violence, my home state is slightly past half way in implementing the recommendations;     “increasing male engagement in gender equality”;
     -   other sexism matters have also occurred in:   Slovakia (good news),   Sudan,   film industry,   UK;
     on WORKERS’ rights this week:
     -   a worker has been awarded damages after being defamed by their former employer;     overwork led to a suicide in Japan;
     on ANIMALS’ rights this week:
     -   a Greek island’s famous tourist-bearing donkeys have been “found to have spinal injuries, saddle sores and exhaustion”;     the USA has closed a “kitten slaughterhouse” after an outcry;     Japan is still trying to slaughter sentient beings;     “hundreds of Australian and New Zealand cattle have died in a Federal Government-backed export deal with Sri Lanka, which [Sri Lankan] farmers say has left them broke, and in some cases, suicidal”;
     on PRIVACY, AGED, DIFFERENTLY ABLED, AND OTHER forms of human rights this week:
     -   a call for improved medical care for the intellectually disabled (“health procedures are made more difficult because of doctors’ lack of understanding”);     Australia wants to deport a family because they have a hearing-impaired son . . . ;     a Royal Commission into the disability sector has been announced;     “the Director of National Intelligence [has directed] the US intelligence community to provide equal opportunities ‘for the hiring, placement, and advancement of qualified individuals with disabilities’, as required by law”;
     -   other privacy matters have also occurred in:   here;
• With regard to war (noting that economic ties do NOT prevent war), violence and hate generally:
     -   a funding programme to increase the number of women peacekeepers, on the basis of evidence showing they reduce sexual assaults and improve the peace;     a call to prevent the many forms of violence against children in violent conflicts;
• With regard to spirituality,   personal growth,    and     psychism generally     (including empathy, revolutionary love, survival after death, good religion, UFOs, being single / asexual / off-grid / non-conformist / true to yourself):
     -   an obstetrician, gynaecologist and maternal foetal medicine specialist who is a Christian, an elder in her Uniting Church congregation, and helps women have abortions;    a call for a more realistic approach to intimate relationships;
• With regard to natural and other catastrophes:
     -   “at least 30 people have been killed and hundreds more injured in a violent thunderstorm that hit southern Nepal”;     more than 1,000 cholera cases in one of the nations hit by Cyclone Idai – a vaccination programme has been planned;     dozens have been killed by floods in Iran;
• 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 – see here],     social media making people miserable or envious,     work and lifestyles causing depression and burnout,     being duped by modern mantras and  management  fads,     “failing“ at being well,     life options,     AI ethics, corporate misuse of mindfulness as a distraction,     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:
     -   a home-grown electric car aims to be more affordable to businesses than imported electric vehicles;     one small colony of goannas is surviving the lethal, introduced pest cane toads;     “regional forest agreements [in Australia] have failed in the 20 years since they were established . . . [with] record numbers of threatened forest dwelling fauna and many species are heading towards imminent extinction”;     bleaching has occurred at the coral reef closes to a pole, as new coral rates collapse;     “the Government’s own projections show Australia is not on track to meet its current Paris target”;     “a ladybird ‘possibly carried in on a cyclone’ may be the answer to controlling destructive pests that cause millions of dollars of damage each year to tomato and potato crops”;     concerningly, prey and predators are getting out of sync;     Australia’s neoliberal government has cut its spending on climate change by one third – and last month was my nation’s hottest on record . . . ;     the burnt body of a British environmental activist has been discovered in Peru;     the US regulator will allow an oil company to block shareholders from considering a climate change proposal;     tougher laws are needed to stop Australia’s animal extinction crisis;     “2018 was [a] boom year for renewables despite political chaos”;     a record fine for illegal clearing;     cutting back on food waste;     a “solar thermal power plant [has been] scrapped after failing to secure finance”;     reforestation as part of an infrastructure project (although not major, as claimed), and consultation of a forest/wetland area;     “10 animals we are eating into extinction”;     “marine plastic pollution costs the world up to $2.5 [trillion] a year”;
     -   other environmental matters have occurred in:   Cameroon,   Botswana;
     on technology and science matters:
     -   the quest for shared ownership of the “Amazon” internet extension;
     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?):
     -    gentrification is pushing people out of affordable housing in regional areas of my home state;     rising mortgage stress;     compensation in my home state for those forced out of caravan parks;
     on health and medical:
     -   as the USA's vaccination crisis is described as “a symptom of our broken society” (“but our divided politics and the anti-vaxxer movement share three things: distrust of authority, divisive cherry-picking of evidence on both sides, and the fundamental erosion of trust among stakeholders. How can we join together to defeat measles when we don’t share a reality?” – see also here, on the need for better scientific communication), the terrifying ordeal of a pre-measles vaccination baby getting measles (and it would have been far worse an experience – as it no doubt is – for those parents in developing nations) - and more on the measles outbreak in the USA;
     on other matters in the category:
     -   “DNA testing can challenge not just our ideas of race and identity, but our notion of being”;
• 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, and was notoriously so the case with a violent extremist attack.     Also, media can be unprofessional,     but funding is an issue … ):
     -   the history of the rise of a right wing media outlet in the USA:
• With regard to education:
     -   an approach to training teachers by sending them to classrooms rather than uni, which was found ineffective in the UK, is being tried in Australia;     a Guardian Australia exclusive reports that my home state will finally allow secular / atheist and “any faith” school chaplains, rather than only neochristian proselytisers;     an admission that the teaching of statistics has been an abject failure that aided the rise of POTUS45 and his ilk, and needs to be improved – see also here, on the need for better scientific communication;
• With regard to crime, judicial matters and policing     (noting (1) an uncle of mine resigned when corruption was not comprehensively cleaned out of the police force he served in, I have high expectations of police, and I consider all violence, abuse of power and failure to understand the impacts of their actions [e.g., see here and here] undermines and weaken all police – who are under incredible pressure, and (2) all people charged are innocent until proven guilty):
     -   an inquest into a cold case has been told key evidence has “disappeared”;     a union has been fine for unlawful strikes.

Location based News:

• With regard to Africa, the Africa Center for Strategic Studies (and other sources) has:
     -   farmers in Cameroon are working with forests;
     -   “a Congolese rebel leader accused of orchestrating mass rapes and other atrocities has been caught”;
     -   the “hidden costs” (closed schools, hospitals, etc) of a violent extremist campaign in north east Kenya;     “Kenya’s Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission is investigating more than 15 regional governors and may arrest at least four of them within a month”;     “Kenya says it is agreeing to normalise relations with Somalia as the ‘first step’ of addressing their differences over the maritime borderline”;
     -   “the complexity of conflict and peacebuilding in central Mali”;     a call for more aid, not security spending;
     -   “Nigeria’s main opposition party has retained control of the key oil-producing state of Rivers, according to official results from a vote marred by violence and delay”;     “In Africa’s biggest democracy, women are struggling to make any progress when it comes to political representation”;
     -   South Africa is downgrading its relations with Israel, and struggling to manage internal xenophobia;
     -   sexism in the protests in Sudan;     corruption in Sudan;  
• With regard to South and Central America:
     -   the desire of Brazil’s right wing despot to celebrate past, human rights abusing despots (a characteristic shared by some other despots) in Brazil was initially blocked, following protests, and then allowed by a judge who “allowed the government’s argument that Brazilian democracy was strong enough to support a ‘pluralism of ideas’ “ (is it? We’ll see – and if it isn’t, the appeals judge has just aided the loss of democracy . . . [precautionary principle, anyone?]);
     -   “Ecuador’s president . . . has said the WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange had ‘repeatedly violated’ ” the conditions of his asylum in the country’s London embassy” (the anger may be over circulation of personal photos, although the Ecuadorian government considers others are responsible) - for another view on this, see the first of a five part series here (and I admit to being one of those who is wary, at the least of Assange, who, notwithstanding the people I respect speaking on his behalf, I consider has made some . . . ill-judged actions, but you can read the series and make up your own minds);
     -   Haiti is at a crossroads, and needs strengthened human rights protection;
     -   “Venezuela's slums are turning on Maduro [who has called on vigilante groups] – but Guaidó faces uphill battle”;     a call for more aid;     the “crucial role of the military”;     thousands of Venezuelans – who have been wading rivers – have broken through barricades on bridges to get food, medicine and work from Colombia;     sanctions have been extended to Venezuela’s oil industry;
• 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):
     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:
     -   three men from a group aimed at ousting North Korea’s leader gained access to the DPRK’s Spanish Embassy through a ruse and then held staff hostage for several hours before stealing several computers, leading to a call by the DRPK for an investigation (this appears to be  one of those zealot driven acts that seems like a good idea to them, owing to lack of perspective, but actually isn’t – the DPRK is milking this for all it is worth);
     elsewhere in Asia:
     -   increasingly hardline Muslim Indonesia now has schools on polygamy (not to be confused with polyamory);
     -   “concerns about authoritarian connotations” of Japan’s new imperial era title;
     -   an outline of the corruption case against a former Prime Minister of Malaysia;     “Malaysian peacekeepers in Lebanon”;
• With regard to Europe and the European Union (EU) (which need to step up, as the USA steps down):
     -   an anti-corruption candidate has become Slovakia’s first President;
• With regard to the (forgotten or ignored and underreported) conflicts in Ukraine, particularly in the east:
     -   a former TV comic has taken the lead in the first round of Ukraine elections – see also here;
• With regard to Russia,     Russian influenced nations     and     eastern Europe,     Central Asia,     and responses to same (see also elsewhere):
     Russia:
     -   “a blatant bit of spin in the form of obfuscation by the Russian government’s press secretary in response to “a survey that shows that Russians struggle to afford new shoes . . . [which suggests] that officials are out of touch with everyday reality”;
• With regard to the conflict in  sexist Afghanistan (noting that Afghanistan was once a peaceful and modern society, even allowing women in miniskirts, before the Russian invasion – see here):
     -   the difficult choices and challenges facing Afghanistan as the USA continues talks with a misogynist violent extremist group;
• With regard to South Asia (aka the Indian sub-continent), The Hindu and other sources have:
     on India:
     -   the use of film (“Bollywood”) in India’s elections;     an examination of charity vs. philanthropy in India;     the challenges facing India’s cyclone shelters;     “India's Election Commission has demanded that Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister . . . explain his reference to India’s army as ‘Narendra Modi’s army’ [which] could be deemed a violation of the election code”;     more on the plight of forest people;     a critique of the manifesto of the Indian opposition Congress Party;     a court case on the privacy of judges in matters that “no nexus to public activity or which amounts to an unwarranted invasion of privacy unless the larger public interest justifies such a disclosure” may have a bearing on other privacy rights;     an opinion piece on “making democracy meaningful”;
     on Pakistan:
     -   Pakistan will release 100 of 385 Indian fishing people and 10 civilians;
• With regard to West Asia (aka “the Middle East”) and Northern Africa, the Middle East Eye, the Times of Israel, and other sources have:
     on Israel and Palestine:
     -   the main challenger to Israel’s prime Minister – the election is predicted to be close;     recommendations on defusing the ongoing crisis at a holy site in Jerusalem;     hope as Palestinians are allowed (by Israel) to fish in deeper water;     Israel “won’t evacuate ‘a single person’ from settlements”;     this week, “over 10,000 Palestinians [protested] at [the] Gaza border, [with] 70 injured”;
     on the  conflict and the world’s biggest humanitarian crisis in Yemen:
     -   the misogynistic rebels have “denied the United Nations access to a grain storage site”;     legal responsibility for US drone strikes may now reach Germany;
     on Syria (where the Assad Dictatorship has lost all pretence of legitimacy, and partition is needed):
     -   Assad regime forces have shelled the rebel held northwest, killing 12 people;
     elsewhere in the region:
     -   Algeria's President has resigned (and his intelligence chief has been sacked) after weeks of mass protests – which have been commended for being “mature and calm”, but have continued against the caretaker government;
     -   an Australian “is on his way home after being held for more than 400 days in an Egyptian prison” without charge;     Egypt’s hypocrisy on foreign funding –OK for the government, but not for civil society;     the UN has praised “Egypt’s role in avoiding [a] ‘dramatic’ escalation in conflict across the Gaza-Israel border”;     “an international rights group has expressed concern about the disappearance of five Egyptians who were recently deported back to the country, saying they are at serious risk of torture”;
     -   two years after liberation from violent extremists, the BBC reports an Iraqi city has “large parts . . . yet to be rebuilt and residents are growing increasingly frustrated”;     the concerning situation in Kurdistan after the failed independence referendum.

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 (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.