Post No. 1,530 - In this week’s news

Stay safe - wash your hands, practice social distancing, and follow informed medical advice - and be considerate towards those at risk or in situations of vulnerability (including economic) while the COVID-19 pandemic is a problem.

This is a new, very cut down series of posts based on some observations on matters that struck a personal note: unlike the former “Gnwmythr’s News”, it is not trying to convey key events.

Content Warning: the linked articles and their descriptions here may be about violence, abuse, hate, and other problems.

On personal / spiritual matters:   common sense advice to Pagan priests;   plant familiars;   alternative thoughts on the “three element” view of the “soul”.

Reading I found interesting this week included:   on our inherent connectivity.

In this week’s news:   the drought in southeast Australia may be ending;   a survivor’s experience with suicide is being used to make approaches more effective;   the staggering and gravely concerning impact of this week’s High Court decision - and advice on coping with the distress caused by coverage;   a social media platform is limiting forwarding to restrict the spread of fake news;   in the same way that a brand name became ubiquitous for GRP, a tech company’s name became nearly ubiquitous for “internet search”, and Tupperware now often represents other manufacturer’s plastic products, word changes have led to some regional names becoming generic. Where those places try to “fight back”, they look petty. In this instance, they have been petty;   a rebuttal of some of the idiotic comments this week about press reporting;   the activism of grandmothers.

In the environmental arena:   zoonotic diseases show the NEED for better human-wildlife conflict laws;   worst ever (most extensive) coral bleaching of the Great Barrier Reef;   koalas may be endangered;   Russia’s policy in the Arctic - which has a record size hole in the ozone layer - is the same;   the current state of Africa’s Green Belt project;   improved visibility of the Himalayas;   a Peruvian village is still feeling the effects of a mercury spill after 20 years;   the “doughnut” alternative to economic growth;   suggestions on improving compliance with international environmental treaties;   an opinion that the strategic threats of supporting coal may be more effective at causing change than environmental arguments;   “women in the Solomon Islands are raising awareness of deforestation and standing up to loggers”.

On human and animal rights:
   as the Union of Soviet Socialist Russia’s Grand Tsar Putin clearly intended, an official determination has been made that the Assad regime made a chemical attack in 2017 - so late that it is UTTERLY USELESS, notwithstanding that it is the first time a specific allocation of responsibility has been “allowed” by Putin;
   the Inter-American Court of Human Rights has found Peru tortured a trans woman;
   my home state’s coroner has referred a “preventable” death in custody of an Indigenous woman to prosecutors;   the USA has, for the first time, declared a (Russian) white supremacist group a terrorist group;
   a critique of the need for police to have community trust and consent in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic;
   despite claims to the contrary, India IS targeting Muslims;
   criticism of Australia for keeping a man in illegal detention because it didn’t agree with the tribunal order to release him;
   an utterly insane idea to put medical cameras in toilets.
racism matters (good and bad) have occurred in:   US Census;
trafficking/slavery/child abuse matters (good and bad) have occurred in:   Australia;   Australia;   Brazil;
LGBTIQ+ matters (good and bad) have occurred in:   Australia;
sexism matters (good and bad) have occurred in:   Afghanistan (misogyny),   Saudi Arabia (why misogyny not reported);   Tanzania (good news);   Ethiopia (good news);   West Asia;   Europe; and
other matters (good and bad) have occurred in:   the chocolate industry.

In the governance, politics, and society arena:   analysis of Jacinda Ardern’s leadership;   the savage, malicious and inhuman neoliberals have ordered “debt recovery” staff to “keep raising debts against people who have died and to undertake a range of debt recovery activities”;   another large banking organisation has self-reported potential money laundering breaches;   a critique of the motivations of CEOs;   a call for Burundi to end its forced “contributions” scheme;   a quarter century of longitudinal research on Australian youth;   building transport safety capacity in the Pacific;   the lockdown has reopened a debate about opening golf spaces to public use.

Risks of atrocities this week in:   Syria, burma, and Sudan.

On humanitarian aid:   Yemen remains the world’s largest case of humanitarian aid (I thought it had got better), but at least a ceasefire appears to be happening.

Internationally:   the new leader of the UK’s Labour party will address anti-Semitism;   the US military wants more money to deter China in the Indo-Pacific region following the pandemic;   Viêt Nám has objected and may take legal action after a Chinese vessel sank a Vietnamese fishing vessel (so much for SOLAS);   Senator Sanders has stopped running, but will remain on ballots to “amass influence” . . . ;   after ten years, the New START treaty is working.

In Africa:   the potential value of drones;   Guinea’s strongman president is still trying to cling to power;   conflicts and state repression are fuelling human rights violations;   corruption allegations in the DR Congo;   separatists have resumed fighting in Cameroon.

On the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 novel coronavirus (there are other novel coronaviruses) (seven major risks to watch here, and seven sins of thought to avoid here):
   the USA has STOLEN masks that were on their way to Germany, and the feds have stolen state supplies (how can any person with any decency vote for or support POTUS45 - who has also removed the watchdog appointed to oversee spending of the financial aid package - after all this, on top of everything else?);   vandalism over false 5G claims;   lessons from those idiot religious groups still holding public events;   what we have learned about our capacity to change quickly ;   spreading myths about 5G is destructive (I would say evil);   a reminder that Nelson Mandela stayed fit while exercising in a jail cell (and there are programmes such as the XBX/5BX programmes);   the need to match messaging to the cultural context;   a review of how Parliaments across the world have been adapting to the CLOVID-19 pandemic - including, in some cases, using prior technological adaptations;   the working from home “revolution” means the world could be better after the pandemic - particularly for women;   an opinion the pandemic will accelerate, rather than reshape, history;

   good stories of people coming together:   a COVID version of a song from Les Misérables by a family;   here (including pen pals across generations);   urban farming;   a vet on the Faroe islands adapted his salmon testing lab and human testing was used to limit the spread and prevent fatalities;   using time alone to reset;   Singapore;

   medical aspects:   as Israel adopts wearing them, some stupid comments about face masks (I think the problem is not enough for all, which is what should be said, if that is so, rather than stupid advice that will have to be walked back if [when!] masks are recommended);   those at risk includes those with diabetes and heart disease;   there is no hard evidence that a drug “touted” by POTUS45 actually works;   air pollution increases death rates from COVID-19;   a notorious transphobe is spreading medical BS;   a review of “second wave” infections;   the importance of the GROWTH FACTOR in understanding the spread of the pandemic;   scapegoating of a doctor;   almost one third of infected children under nine are asymptomatic;   heart damage;   medical waste workers are doing overtime;

   resources:   for journalists;   debunking myths;   guidance on the best long term options around rent relief;   how to keep Zoom meetings safer;   a mental health tool is now available free (NOTE: I have not checked the too, and cannot vouch for it);

   human rights aspects:   another Chinese whistleblower has disappeared;   an utterly STUPID proposal to have teachers, no matter how homophobic/transphobic/racist/misogynistic/otherwise bigoted they may be, ESTIMATE Year 12 students’ results . . . ;   at least one new committee will monitor the government on COVID-19, but there is still pressure to keep Parliament sitting;   recommendations to protect privacy and data;   another article on power grabs;   an academic publication on the likelihood of violence against women and children;   a global review by HRW;   lack of PPE has stopped testing in some Indigenous areas;   press freedom is at risk;   “autocrats’ quandary: you can’t arrest a virus”;   concerns in Zimbabwe (where food markets have reopened), and Cambodia;   the risks of surveillance are not known;   xenophobia, against Asians in other nations, is now surfacing in China against foreigners;   Australia’s multiculturalism may be damaged;   South and Central America;   Mexico;

   Australia:   as 14 police recruits may face being sacked for breaching social distancing rules and after a stupid fine is withdrawn, police are warned to exercise restraint over possibly unnecessary powers - see here on your rights;   business renters are stressed;   the particular crisis facing homeless people - a group which international students may find themselves in soon . . . ;   a warning on superannuation scams;   mental health concerns in Australia;   calls to support people here on temporary visas;   a criminal investigation has been launched into allowing infected passengers off a cruise ship;   reforms of one state’s youth detention centres have been reversed, putting those in them at risk;   more Australians are worried about longer lasting social impacts (including overloading the health system) and a recession than the impacts on themselves;   time constraints made the job relief package imperfect;   local Councils have a valid need for help as well;   crimes rate in one Australian state are down - all except domestic violence, which is up;   the pandemic is leading to a changed demand for, and delivery of, charity;   in my home state, people laid off by the COVID-19 lockdown are being hired for other work, such as sorting and delivering food;   casual and migrant workers are at risk;   calls for disability carers to be given the same support as aged care workers (why weren’t they in the first place?);   practical measures in my home state for the (rough sleeping) homeless;   the pattern of police fines does NOT match the pattern of COVID-19;   reports that immigration department staff are not following guidelines;   a reminder to be careful to keep the social distancing this weekend;   a refugee advocate was arrested and others fined for trying to support treating refugees with professionalism, responsibility and caring;

   internationally:   Singapore requires face masks in markets;   the loss of shared economic interests could result in Asia being less stable after the pandemic - and the Pacific needs aid;   the need for nations to look after neighbours;   a US navy captain who was sacked after he tried to save his crew from COVID-19 was cheered by the crew as he left, and the US Navy Secretary who mocked him has been forced to resign;;   a European mayor who has criticised China over human rights abuses doesn’t want their help;   limited resources are restricting Native American Tribes’ response;   no-one believes Grand Tsar Putin’s claims about the levels of COVID-19 in the Union of Soviet Socialist Russia;   mental health concerns in Singapore, where basic military training is being suspended;   a virus carrier who fled quarantine and was reported by his family has been arrested;   Ireland’s Prime Minister has re-registered as a doctor and will help one day/week;   a State of Emergency in Japan;   exacerbated existential threats to the EU;   the EU will (finally) start relocating child refugees from Greek camps;   as China reports a day with no deaths, Wuhan starts dealing with the long term scars;   China should be leading the way on debt relief for poor nations;   “China's dilemma and challenge of jumpstarting economy and keeping lid on cases”;   as “hidden” home workers miss out on aid, India may continue the world’s biggest lockdown;   an Indigenous community in Brazil has banished miners for protection;   in Bangladesh garment workers have been  forced home, but sex workers will be supported - and moves are now underway to support the garment workers;   refugee camps quarantined in Greece and Malta and risks in Libya as the UN urges care for all, but there may be some benefits with some conflicts going into ceasefires;   Afghanistan;   fears about getting food in South Africa, and violent abuse of the poor in several nations who are trying to get food;   prisoner releases in Morocco, and Chad, and calls for same in Eritrea;   “empty sport stadiums and train carriages in India are being converted into quarantine centres and makeshift hospitals”;      a majority of the US Supreme Court have shown their utter stupidity, irresponsibility and lack of understanding by putting one state’s voters at risk of death (Ginsberg dissented);   controversy after a large corporation that received financial aid makes a massive dividend payout;   some religions are continuing to arrogantly show disdain for safety precautions;   concerns in Afghanistan;   concerns of a second wave of infections in Asia;   as mass burials happen in the USA, another opinion that the USA’s position as world leader is declining as China’s position rises;   China has caught up with the early 20^th Century and reclassified dogs as pets, rather than livestock . . . ;   Spain will use unemployed and “illegal migrants” to pick fruit;   1.5 million families in the USA are being moved to the cusp of homelessness;

   Africa:   some police are using excessive force;   bracing for an impact;   a robot used for enforcement in Tunisia;   Kenya has closed off Nairobi;   fear has led to a violent NIMBY response in the Ivory Coast;   a caution not to derail Somali’s moves towards democracy;   concerns and disinformation;   South Africa is extending its lockdown;   concerns the pandemic may lead to a relapse of Ebola in the DR Congo;   the UN mission in Mali has been repurposed to fighting the pandemic;   Kenya is struggling, but a factory has been transformed into making surgical masks;   refugees are “sitting ducks”;   ECOWAS has announced a support package;   concerns over press freedom;   extended curfew in Egypt;   Parliamentary quarantine in Botswana;   state of emergency in Ethiopia;   warnings in Burkina Faso;   empty churches in economically struggling Nigeria;   refugees stranded in an unsafe port in Libya;   voter registration will continue in Malawi;   xenophobia in the Central African Republic;   stupidity in Burundi;   Gabon has secured funding;

   globally:   the poor will be hit for years by the pandemic;   a call for the UN Security Council to support calls for a global ceasefire;   the race to protect the world’s slums;   the virus has cut off aid;   half a billion people are at risk of poverty;

   blame games:   USA, including Florida;   Australia;   residual doubt after political scandals;   POTUS45 knew the virus could kill up to half a million in January - which makes that moron’s threats about the WHO particularly egregious;   Australia (on the docking of a cruise liner).