September 28, 2017


News and Views


THE CUBAN EMBASSY HEALTH PROBLEM – CUBA DENIES THAT THEY HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DISCOVER A CAUSE. FROM THE DESCRIPTION, IT IS CLEAR THAT THERE IS A SONIC DEVICE, BUT I WONDER IF IT CAN BE LOCATED SOME DISTANCE AWAY, EVEN POSSIBLY ON A SATELLITE OR DRONE.

THE ATTACKS ARE OCCURRING “AT THEIR HOMES” ACCORDING TO A REPORT YESTERDAY, SO THE SOURCE CAN MOVE, PERHAPS, IN ORDER TO TARGET DIFFERENT LOCATIONS (ON A TRUCK OR IN A CAR). COULD IT BE A DEVICE THAT AN OUTSIDER HAS INSERTED INTO THEIR HOME COMPUTER, TV, OR SOME OTHER HOUSEHOLD EQUIPMENT?

THERE HAVE BEEN TWO ARTICLES WITHIN THE LAST YEAR OF A REFRIGERATOR – ALONG WITH MANY CASES INVOLVING COMPUTERS AND TVS -- HAVING A SOUND OR VIDEO RECORDING DEVICE IN IT (INSERTED THERE BY MANUFACTURER) WITH THE PURPOSE OF RANDOMLY EAVESDROPPING ON FOLKS CONVERSING IN THE IMMEDIATE AREA, SUPPOSEDLY TO COLLECT BUSINESS RELATED INFORMATION ON THE HOUSEHOLD.

WE ARE LIVING IN A TECHNOLOGICAL JUNGLE, WITH THE OCCASIONAL PREDATOR ROAMING AROUND. I EVEN SUGGESTED ON MY FACEBOOK PAGE THAT IT COULD BE CAUSED BY DR. NO. NO?

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/u-s-plans-major-withdrawal-of-staff-from-embassy-in-cuba/
By STEVE DORSEY AND KYLIE ATWOOD CBS NEWS September 28, 2017, 3:32 PM
U.S. plans major withdrawal of staff from embassy in Cuba

Two sources tell CBS News the U.S. is preparing to announce a major withdrawal of staff and family from the U.S. embassy in Cuba in response to attacks targeting diplomats. Only essential personnel will be left.

An internal memo was sent to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson suggesting a drawing down of personnel in Havana. The meeting this week between Tillerson and Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Eduardo Rodriguez Parrilla did nothing to help assure the U.S. that Cuban officials are doing enough to protect the safety and welfare of U.S. diplomats in their country. Though Cuba is allowing U.S. investigators into the country, it has not convinced the U.S. that it's taken any real action to prevent the health attacks.

Top U.S. security official targeted in Cuba embassy "health atttacks"
In fact, the Cuban readout of the meeting contained a complete denial that the attacks were taking place.

"The Cuban government has never perpetrated nor will it ever perpetrate attacks of any kind against diplomats," it read. "The Cuban government has never permitted nor will it ever permit the use of its territory by third parties for this purpose."

The readout went on to say that Cuban authorities had so far found, "There is no evidence so far of the cause or the origin of the health disorders reported by the U.S. diplomats."

Diplomats have complained about symptoms ranging from hearing loss and nausea to headaches and balance issues after the State Department said "incidents" began affecting them in late 2016. In total, the State Department says there are 21 medically confirmed cases. The attacks were directed at their homes, which the Cuban government provides. The last reported incident was in August.

The U.S. investigation, led by the FBI, is ongoing. At this time, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert says Tillerson is still reviewing his options on how best to protect American personnel in Cuba."


ABOUT FORMALDEHYDE, I PERSONALLY WALKED INTO A CLOTH SHOP A FEW YEARS AGO AND IMMEDIATELY SMELLED THE STRONG VERY SHARP SMELL OF THAT CHEMICAL ON SOME FABRIC OVER TO THE RIGHT. IT SMELLS LIKE ROTTING FISH, BUT STRONGER. IT WAS SOME 40 OR 50 FEET AWAY FROM ME, AND YET IT CAUSED MY NASAL PASSAGES TO HURT AND MY HEAD ALONG WITH THEM WITHIN ABOUT 15 SECONDS. I GET THE SAME REACTION TO MOST PERFUMES AND HOUSEHOLD CHEMICALS. THAT’S AN ALLERGY SITUATION, AND IT CAN GIVE ME NAUSEA; IF IT’S SEVERE ENOUGH I MAY ALSO HAVE HEARING AND BALANCE DIFFICULTIES. SO, THIS UNIFORM MANUFACTURER NEEDS TO IMMEDIATELY STOP USING THAT FABRIC, OR MORE LIKELY, THE LOW COST FOREIGN MANUFACTURER OF THE UNIFORMS, AND SUE THE COMPANY WHICH SOLD THEM IN ORDER TO COVER THE COST THAT THEY ARE GOING TO HAVE TO “EAT” AS ALL THOSE AIRLINE WORKERS SUE THEM. THAT’S BUSINESS.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/american-airlines-workers-sue-maker-of-uniforms-that-allegedly-caused-illnesses/
CBS NEWS September 28, 2017, 3:07 PM
American Airlines workers sue maker of uniforms that allegedly caused illnesses

Photograph -- American Airlines planes are seen on the tarmac at Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida, June 8, 2015. ROBYN BECK/AFP/GETTY IMAGES



BURMA AND THE ROHINGYA REFUGEES – THREE ARTICLES. THE FOLLOWING SHORT COMMENT CONCERNS ALL OF THEM, AND PRESENTS THE GIST.

THE MOST INTERESTING THING TO AMERICANS HERE IS THAT SUU KI IS BEING ACCUSED OF BEING COMPLICIT, OR PERHAPS, TOO WEAK TO STOP THIS VIOLENCE BY THE POLICE AND MILITARY AGAINST THE ROHINGYA POPULATION. ONE ROHINGYA COMMENT ALSO CLAIMS THAT “MOBS” OF THE BUDDHISTS HAVE ATTACKED THEM AND THEIR VILLAGES. IT APPEARS TO ME THAT THOSE “CLEARANCE OPERATIONS” (ETHNIC CLEANSING?) MENTIONED BY SUU KI ARE ONGOING RATHER THAN BEING IN THE PAST.

IT IS STATED AS A FACT, THOUGH, THAT ROHINGYA INSURGENTS BURNED DOWN A NUMBER OF POLICE FACILITIES BEFORE THEY AND THEIR VILLAGES WERE ATTACKED. UNFORTUNATELY, IT APPEARS THAT THE GOVERNMENT’S RESPONSE TO THAT ATTACK IS TO DESTROY THEM. THIS IS THE KIND OF THING THAT WE TRY NOT TO DO IN THE USA – ANYMORE. THE NATIVE AMERICANS HERE WERE ALMOST DESTROYED AND EXTERMINATED IN THAT SAME WAY, HOWEVER, SO IT ISN’T JUST A “THIRD WORLD” PROBLEM.

AS FOR THE BURNING OF POLICE STATIONS, THAT VERY LIKELY WAS NOT UNPROVOKED, EITHER. IF THE US WHITE VS BLACK SITUATION IS ANY EXAMPLE, THE POLICE HAVE PROBABLY ON A DAY TO DAY BASIS COMMITTED VIOLENCE AGAINST THE ROHINGYA WITH NO MASSIVE REVENGE BEING TAKEN. ONE OF THE ARTICLES DOES SAY THAT BUDDHISTS CLAIM THE ISLAMIC ROHINGYAS HAVE SEXUALLY ASSAULTED THE WOMEN AND GIRLS. THIS IS ALL VERY SAD, BUT UNTIL PEOPLE LEARN NOT TO INITIATE AN ATTACK, THEY WILL SUFFER REPRISAL. I DON’T KNOW WHAT THE ECONOMIC CONDITION IS THERE, BUT IF THE WEALTH IS ALL AT THE TOP AND THE LOWER GROUPS STARVE, THAT DOESN’T HELP EITHER. ALL TOGETHER IT BECOMES THE PROVERBIAL “POWDER KEG,” WHICH IS AWAITING THE FUSE AND IGNITION.


https://www.cbsnews.com/news/myanmar-rohingya-rakhine-state-united-nations-visit-cancelled-refugee-crisis/
CBS/AP September 28, 2017, 11:23 AM
Myanmar abruptly cancels U.N. visit to Rohingya region

35 Photographs -- People gather around bodies of Rohingya Muslim refugees, on the shore of Inani beach, near Cox's Bazar, Sept. 28, 2017. GETTY

A planned visit by a United Nations team to Rakhine state in Myanmar, the region which almost half a million Rohingya Muslims have fled in recent months claiming violent persecution, was cancelled on Thursday by Myanmar's government, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric confirmed to CBS News.

CBS News' Pamela Falk reports that a U.N. Security Council meeting has been called for Thursday afternoon with a briefing by Secretary-General António Guterres on the crisis in Myanmar.

World's "most persecuted minority" recall the horrors of home

Is Myanmar's leader out of touch or ignoring Rohingya crisis?
Play VIDEO
Is Myanmar's leader out of touch or ignoring Rohingya crisis?

The United Nations team was to be the first group of international observers allowed by Myanmar's government into Rakhine state since the violence there escalated rapidly in August. According to the U.N., Myanmar's government gave no explanation for the sudden cancellation of the planned visit.

An ethnic Rohingya insurgent group attacked police posts in Myanmar, sparking a brutal crackdown by the country's military and security forces, which have been accused of razing scores of villages in what U.N. officials have said amounts to "ethnic cleansing."

An estimated 480,000 Rohingya have fled to neighboring Bangladesh since late August alone, and there were already significant numbers seeing refuge there before as the crisis has been simmering for years.

The head of the U.N.'s migration agency warned Wednesday about increasing reports of sexual violence directed at Rohingyas in the increasingly-over-crowded Bangladesh refugee camps.

Rohingya refugees pour into Bangladesh after fleeing violence in Myanmar
Play VIDEO
Rohingya refugees pour into Bangladesh after fleeing violence in Myanmar

Director-General William Lacy Swing of the International Organization for Migration said he was "shocked and concerned" about the reports of sexual and gender-based violence among Rohingya newly arrived in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh.

IOM said rape, sexual assault, domestic violence, child marriage and other forms of gender-based violence have been identified. It did not specify who was responsible for the violence.

The agency is coordinating the humanitarian response among U.N. agencies and aid providers amid the exodus of people who have reached Cox's Bazar since Aug. 25.

An agency statement said IOM doctors have treated dozens of women who experienced "violent sexual assault" since August, but that the known cases likely represent only a "small portion" of actual cases.

Swing said such "egregious violence and abuse is underreported" even in more stable and better-resourced humanitarian aid situations.

"Sexual and gender-based violence is a severe, life-threatening public health and human rights abuse," he said. "Particularly women and girls, but also men and boys, have been targeted for and are at risk of further exploitation, violence and abuse simply because of their gender, age and status in society."



https://www.cbsnews.com/news/rohingya-people-flee-myanmar-aung-san-suu-kyi-united-nations-bangladesh/
CBS/AP September 19, 2017, 7:41 AM
Has Aung San Suu Kyi changed her stance on Rohingya crisis?

NAYPYITAW, Myanmar -- With a mass exodus of Rohingya Muslims sparking accusations of ethnic cleansing from the United Nations and others, Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Tuesday said her country does not fear international scrutiny and invited diplomats to see some areas for themselves.

Though an estimated 421,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh in less than a month as their villages burned and hundreds were killed, Suu Kyi said the "great majority" of Muslims within the conflict zone stayed and that "more than 50 percent of their villages were intact."

The Nobel Peace laureate's global image has been damaged by violence since Rohingya insurgents attacked Myanmar security forces on Aug. 25. Rohingya fled their villages in the military crackdown that followed, and many of their villages have been burned. The government has blamed the Rohingya themselves, but members of the persecuted minority have said soldiers and Buddhist mobs attacked them.

Rohingya refugees pour into Bangladesh after fleeing violence in Myanmar
Play VIDEO
Rohingya refugees pour into Bangladesh after fleeing violence in Myanmar

Suui Kyi's first address to the nation since the violence erupted came days after she canceled plans to attend the U.N. General Assembly, a decision widely seen as a response to international criticism.

Suu Kyi said anyone found to have broken the law would be punished. "Human rights violations and all other acts that impair stability and harmony and undermine the rule of law will be addressed in accordance with strict laws and justice," she said.

The Rohingya, who live mainly in northern Rakhine state near the Bangladesh border, have had a long and troubled history in this predominantly Buddhist nation of 60 million.

Though members of the long-persecuted religious minority first arrived in the western state of Rakhine generations ago, most people in Myanmar consider them to have migrated illegally from Bangladesh. Denied citizenship, they are effectively stateless. They cannot travel freely, practice their religion, or work as teachers or doctors, and they have little access to medical care, food or education.

The Rohingya: Stateless and adrift

The attacks on Rohingya villages in the last month appear to many to have been a systematic effort to drive them out. U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres has described it as ethnic cleansing.

Suu Kyi sought to assure foreign diplomats gathered for her speech in Naypyitaw, the capital, that those who fled to Bangladesh would be allowed to return if they passed a "verification" process. She also said the government was working to restore normalcy in the area.

Though fires have continued to flare in recent days in northern Rakhine state, she said "there have been no armed clashes and there have been no clearance operations" for the past two weeks.

Rohingya refugees injured by landmines
Play VIDEO
Rohingya refugees injured by landmines

"Nevertheless we are concerned to hear that numbers of Muslims are fleeing across the border to Bangladesh," she said. "We want to understand why this exodus is happening. We would like to talk to those who have fled as well as those who have stayed."

She said she it would be helpful to understand why conflict did not break out everywhere. She invited the diplomats with visit villages that weren't affected so they could learn along with the government "why are they not at each other's throats in these particular areas."

BBC News correspondent Jonah Fischer, reporting from Bangladesh on Tuesday for "CBS This Morning," said the Rohinya refugees who have sought shelter there have told journalists they were forced to flee because of an offensive by Myanmar's military. They have spoken of atrocities committed by soldiers.

Fischer said there were two ways of looking at Suu Kyi's remarks on the crisis; either she is genuinely out of touch and not getting good information from Rakhine state in the capital, or she's being wilfully blind to the alleged abuses of her country's military, possibly because it is too difficult for her politically to say anything that might be seen as critical of the military.

The New Burma
Play VIDEO
The New Burma

Suu Kyi shares power with the military in Myanmar, which is also sometimes referred to as Burma, in a very delicate balance between the civilian government and the army, notes Fischer, and she doesn't want to say anything that might jeopardize that fragile relationship.

Rohingya now in camps in Bangladesh were angered by the implication that Rohingya who were driven from their villages were themselves responsible, or that some members of the ethnic group are safe.

In the Kutupalong refugee camp, Abdul Hafiz said Rohingya once trusted Suu Kyi more than the military that not only ruled for half a century before, but also held her under house arrest for many years. Now Hafiz calls Suu Kyi a "liar" and says Rohingya are suffering more than ever.

He said Suu Kyi should give international journalists more access to their destroyed villages. If Rohingya are proven wrong that they were attacked, he said, "we will not mind if the world decides to kill us all by pushing us into the sea."

Play VIDEO
Refugee camps in Bangladesh stretched to capacity as thousands flee Myanmar violence

Some observers who attended the speech said it was progress for Suu Kyi to invite diplomats to at least some Rohingya villages.

"Today's welcoming of the international community to travel to Rakhine and see for ourselves what the situation is, I think that is a positive statement," said Andrew Kirkwood of the United Nations' Office for Project Services.

W. Patrick Murphy, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for Southeast Asia, left the event without commenting.

Russian and Chinese diplomats praised the speech. "The message is quite clear that Myanmar is ready to cooperate with the international community," said the Russian ambassador to Myanmar, Dr. Nikolay Listopadov.

The head of a team of U.N. human rights investigators said Tuesday that Suu Kyi's comments "bode well" for its so-far unsuccessful efforts to gain access to the country now facing an exodus of Rohingya Muslims to neighboring Bangladesh.

Marzuki Darusman decried stepped-up violence in Myanmar and asked the U.N.-backed Human Rights Council for a six-month extension until next September for his team's first written report.

Addressing the council, Darusman cited two main points from Suu Kyi's speech: The "categorical readiness" of Myanmar's government to accept returnees once procedures are worked out, and its readiness to be "globally scrutinized by the international community."

Rights groups were far more critical. Amnesty International regional director James Gomez accused Suu Kyi of "a mix of untruths and victim-blaming."

"There is overwhelming evidence that security forces are engaged in a campaign of ethnic cleansing," Gomez said. "While it was positive to hear Aung San Suu Kyi condemn human rights violations in Rakhine state, she is still silent about the role of the security forces in this."

The exodus continues to grow. The U.N.'s migration agency on Tuesday raised its estimate of the number of refugees in Bangladesh to 421,000, and UNICEF says more than a quarter-million of those are children. Hundreds of thousands more Rohingya were already in Bangladesh from waves of violence years earlier.

Spokesman Joel Millman of the International Organization for Migration says an estimated 20,000 people are flowing across Myanmar's border into Bangladesh every day.



http://www.sfgate.com/news/crime/article/Obliterated-village-burned-by-Rohingya-Myanmar-12178964.php
New fires in empty Rohingya village challenge Myanmar claims
Updated 12:05 am, Friday, September 8, 2017

10 Photographs

BANGKOK (AP) — Journalists saw new fires burning Thursday in a Myanmar village that had been abandoned by Rohingya Muslims, and pages ripped from Islamic texts that were left on the ground. That intensifies doubts about government claims that members of the persecuted minority have been destroying their own homes.

About two dozen journalists saw the fires in Gawdu Zara village in northern Rakhine state on a government-controlled trip.

About 164,000 Rohingya from the area have fled across the border into Bangladesh in less than two weeks since Aug. 25, when Rohingya insurgents attacked police outposts in Gawdu Zara and several other villages, the U.N. refugee agency said Thursday.



I MAY BE WRONG, BUT IT HAS SEEMED TO ME FOR AWHILE NOW THAT THE “IT” PROFESSIONALS ARE LARGELY VERY YOUNG MEN, AND HIGHLY DRIVEN BY THE CREATING OF MORE AND MORE POWERFUL TECHNOLOGY, AND THAT THEY AREN’T VERY “SERIOUS” PEOPLE AT ALL. THEY ARE LIKE MILO YIANNOPOULOS – OVERPRIVILEGED, IMMATURE, AND NOT FULL OF HUMAN KINDNESS. ANOTHER EXAMPLE IS THE BIG PHARMA GUY, MARTIN SHKRELI – HAVING A SENSITIVE CONSCIENCE ISN’T ONE OF THE CHARACTERISTICS OF PEOPLE LIKE THEM. I THINK SOME STRONG PERSONAL AND BUSINESS PRESSURE WILL HAVE TO BE USED AGAINST THEM TO GET MUCH USEFUL INFORMATION. ZUCKERBERG DID IN THE END GIVE SOME GOOD CLUES TO WHAT WAS (AND IS) GOING ON WITH THE RUSSIANS IN THEIR ATTEMPT TO WORM THEIR WAY INTO THE GOVERNMENT AND SOCIETY OF EVERY NATION ON EARTH.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mark-warner-calls-twitter-presentation-to-intel-panel-deeply-disappointing/
CBS NEWS September 28, 2017, 4:38 PM
Mark Warner calls Twitter presentation to Intel panel "deeply disappointing"

The top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee said Thursday that he found the presentation made by Twitter earlier in the day to be "deeply disappointing."

"The presentation that the Twitter team made to the Senate Intel staff today was deeply disappointing," Sen. Mark Warner, D-Virginia, told reporters Thursday. "The notion that their work was basically derivative, based upon accounts that Facebook had identified, showed [an] enormous lack of understanding from the Twitter team of how serious this issue is, the threat it poses to democratic institutions, and again begs many more questions than they offered."

Twitter hands over ads from Russian TV network to congressional committees

Representatives from the social media giant met with the committee Thursday because lawmakers are investigating the spread of fake news stories and propaganda during the election as part of their probe into Russian interference. Warner had said he wanted to hear from Twitter to learn more about the use of fake accounts and bot networks to spread misinformation.

Warner said Twitter's response was "frankly inadequate on almost every level" and said that Twitter must explain to the public what happened during the 2016 election. He said that the American public should have the ability to know when they're seeing a political ad, who's behind it and if it's sponsored by foreign agents on social media platforms.

gettyimages-683864378.jpg
Reporters surround Senate Intelligence Committee ranking member Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) as he heads for his party's weekly policy luncheon at the U.S. Capitol May 16, 2017 in Washington, DC. CHIP SOMODEVILLA/GETTY IMAGES

"If there are ads that appear, pop up high on your Twitter newsfeed, Americans have the right to know if that's being generated by interests from Americans or generated by interests from, by activities of foreign powers, so again, [I'm] more than a little surprised, in light of all of the press interest in this subject over the last few week, how inadequate Twitter's presentation was today," Warner said.

The House and Senate Intelligence Committees have invited Twitter, Facebook and Alphabet, which owns Google, to testify in public hearings.


MADDOW’S RATINGS ARE SOARING. I’M GLAD TO SEE THAT OTHERS LIKE HER AS MUCH AS I DO.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/markjoyella/2017/09/26/rachel-maddow-leads-msnbc-to-record-ratings/#6a538c4213f9
Rachel Maddow Leads MSNBC To Record Ratings
Mark Joyella , CONTRIBUTOR I cover political media--and media politics.
Media & Entertainment #OnTV
SEP 26, 2017 @ 12:43 PM

MSNBC's Rachel Maddow. (Photo by Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images)

It's good to be Rachel Maddow.

The MSNBC host just hit a milestone for MSNBC, with her 9 p.m. hour, The Rachel Maddow Show, finishing the third quarter of 2017 as the No. 1 cable news show on television. It's the first time any MSNBC show has finished first in the Nielsen ratings for an entire quarter.

Maddow hit her highest ratings among total viewers (2.7 million) and in the advertiser-coveted demographic of adults 25-54 (606,000). That represents an increase of 75% compared to the third quarter of 2016 (total viewers), and 65% (adults 25-54).

As Maddow heads into the fourth quarter, she faces new competition from Fox News, which shifts its prime-time lineup to put Sean Hannity head-to-head at 9 p.m. FNC's Tucker Carlson, who will move from 9 to 8 p.m., finished the quarter as the number two show in cable news, trailing Maddow by just 177,000 total viewers (2.721 to 2.544).

Hannity, however, was not far behind, finishing third place overall and just 30,000 total viewers behind Carlson.

Overall, Maddow helped push MSNBC to its highest quarter ratings (total viewers) ever. Still, Fox News held on to the overall lead, finishing first among total viewers in prime time and in the critical A 25-54 demo.

Fox News has now posted 63 consecutive quarters as the highest-rated cable news network among total viewers (averaging 1.4 million for the total day and 2.2 million in prime), and five consecutive quarters as the top network in both prime time and total day (total viewers).

But in finishing second overall, MSNBC is as close to Fox News as it has been in 17 years. The network was also the only cable news network to post gains in prime time (43% among total viewers and 29% among viewers 25-54). Fox News and CNN both posted losses.

Mark Joyella is a journalist, writer and public speaker; you can follow him on Twitter and Facebook, and watch his vlog on YouTube.



THE PUTIN PLAN OF WORLD CONQUEST

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/expansionist-russia-promotes-division-everywhere-else-1056627268001?cid=eml_mra_20170928
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 9/27/17

Expansionist Russia promotes division everywhere else
Rachel Maddow reports on the latest revelations about how Russia used social media to disrupt the 2016 U.S. election and in actively encouraging secessionist movements around the world to promote division as it tries to grow itself. Duration: 22:19



THIS GREAT WEBSITE CALLED "ATTN.COM" EXPLORES LOTS OF DIFFERENT IMPORTANT AND INTERESTING MATTERS. TAKE A MINUTE OR TWO TO LOOK AT THESE TWO VIDEOS ON A TRULY SHAMEFUL PRACTICE THAT LOCAL SCHOOLS ACROSS THE COUNTRY ARE DOING. KIDS NOT HAVING LUNCH MONEY MAY BE A GENUINE PROBLEM, BUT THERE ARE BETTER WAYS TO HANDLE IT. KIDS HAVE ENOUGH PROBLEMS ADJUSTING TO LIFE AS THEY GROW UP. THEY DON’T NEED AN EXTRA EMOTIONAL BURDEN LIKE THIS. THEN WE WONDER WHY THEY TURNED OUT TO BE DELINQUENTS. SOMETIMES I DO THINK THIS IS A VERY DULL-WITTED SOCIETY, OR MAYBE WE’RE JUST LIKE THE TIN MAN WITH NO HEART.

https://mg.mail.yahoo.com/neo/launch?.rand=ccqud6rgfgqm0#1053
Lunch shaming
ATTN:

Hi there,
This week, ATTN: released a new video highlighting the practice of "lunch shaming", which is when school districts punish or ostracize poor students who cannot afford lunch from the school cafeteria by forcing them to wear wristbands, stamps, or do chores so they can eat to pay off their debt. Nearly half of all school districts in the U.S. permit this practice, despite 13 million American children being "food insecure" or prone to missing consistent meals.
One state, New Mexico, is fighting back. They recently banned lunch shaming, and their U.S. senator, Tom Udall, has introduced legislation to prohibit it federally, too. Udall told ATTN: he believes that lunch debt should be settled with parents — not kids — and that it's cruel to embarrass vulnerable children. Watch his full message here.
Other Stories Worth Your Attention This Week:
+ Understanding the Relationship between China and North Korea Is Important
+ Meet America's First Zero-Waste Grocery Store
+ The Images of Aaron Hernandez's Brain Are Shocking
+ We Should Never Forget the Horrors of the Holocaust
+ Saving Public Lands Is worth $500 Billion More Than Opening the Land to Oil and Mining
+ "We Need the President to Tell the Truth about Russia." — Morgan Freeman
+ How to Turn Your Old Shirts into a Reusable Bag
+ Jessica Alba Explains How to Perfect Your Body Language
Thanks,
Matthew
Make sure you never miss out on Sundays - drag this email to your primary box!
This email was sent to:
manessmorrison2@yahoo.com
To unsubscribe, click Here.


THIS IS PROBABLY A BOOK THAT I WILL WANT TO READ. I HAVE READ THREE OR FOUR OF HIS, AND I LOVE THE ADVENTURE/MYSTICISM/FANTASY THAT THEY COMPRISE. BEATS REALITY ANY DAY!

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/excerpt-dan-brown-origin-robert-langdon/
CBS NEWS September 28, 2017, 1:48 PM
Excerpt: Dan Brown's "Origin"

There is a long summary of this story, and I don’t want to copy it all in here, but take a look at it for yourself if you are interested. Personally, I don’t want to be given that much information on something that I want to experience for myself. It spoils my fun.



http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 9/26/17
Trump inauguration donor gets personal attention
Sam Stein, politics editor for The Daily Beast, talks with Rachel Maddow about a newly discovered example of apparent special access to White House officials given to a donor to Donald Trump's inauguration fund. Duration: 6:41


THIS IS A GREAT VIDEO STORY. GO TO THE WEB AND WATCH IT.
https://www.today.com/video/meet-the-police-dog-who-sniffs-out-electronic-evidence-to-catch-crooks-1056947779601



I’VE NEVER BEEN A HUGE FAN OF HUGH
https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/playboy-founder-hugh-hefner-early-proponent-lgbtq-rights-n805591
NBC OUT SEP 28 2017, 6:18 PM ET
Playboy Founder Hugh Hefner: An Early Proponent of LGBTQ Rights
by JOHN PAUL BRAMMER



HOW BREITBART GETS ITS’ MONEY -- DO WATCH THIS RACHEL MADDOW VIDEO FOR A VISION OF WHAT RUSSIA IS TRYING TO DO. THIS IS THE RESULT OF A FAKE NEWS BASED PANIC IN THE USA. IT’S SHOCKING, AND IT’S PAINFULLY EASY TO DO. THEY WERE HITTING ON THE “IMMIGRANT” NERVE HERE, AND THE AMERICAN EMOTIONAL RESPONSE WAS FRIGHTENING. WHEN I THINK WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THESE THINGS WERE TO OCCUR MORE THAN IN A FEW LOCATIONS, I CAN SEE HOW RUSSIA OR ANY OTHER MALEVOLENT NATION COULD WEAKEN US INTERNALLY TO THE POINT THAT WE MIGHT BE UNABLE TO MOUNT AN EFFECTIVE DEFENSE.

WHEN THERE IS A TORNADO SPOTTED NEAR JACKSONVILLE, WE HAVE AN AUTOMATIC WEATHER ANNOUNCEMENT “CRAWL” ACROSS THE TOP OF MY TV SCREEN. WE COULD SET UP A SIMILAR SYSTEM FOR BOTH TV AND RADIO, TO BE ACTIVATED EVERY TIME ONE OF THESE LIES IS TURNED LOOSE HERE IN THE US, SO THAT THE PUBLIC CAN BE AWARE THAT THE STORY IS, IN FACT, UNTRUE. THAT WON’T SOLVE THE WHOLE PROBLEM, BUT IT SHOULD HELP.

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 9/27/17
Right-wing, anti-refugee fake news terrorizes American town
Caitlin Dickerson, national immigration reporter for The New York Times, talks with Rachel Maddow about how right-wing media, aided by Russian accounts, whipped a local story into an anti-immigrant, anti-Islam fake news crisis that terrorized residents of ... more Duration: 5:23



MAYOR CRUZ EXCORIATES TRUMP – WITHOUT MENTIONING THE NAME – FOR CHIDING PUERTO RICO ABOUT ITS’ DEBT WHEN IT IS IN A DEADLY SITUATION. HE IS IMPLYING THAT HE WON’T SEND HELP. HE HAS FINALLY STARTED TO DO THAT, THOUGH. GETTING THE FOOD AND WATER OUT OF THE AIRPORT AND INTO THE COUNTRYSIDE HAS BEEN CONFUSED AND UNPLANNED, SO FOOD IS SITTING THERE WHILE PEOPLE GO HUNGRY. THIS MAKES ME WONDER IF HE HAS GUTTED FEMA AS HE DID THE STATE DEPARTMENT?

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 9/26/17
San Juan mayor: 'This is a big S.O.S. for anybody out there'
Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz of Puerto Rico's capital city, San Juan, talks with Rachel Maddow about the desperate situation in her city and in Puerto Rico broadly, and expresses her frustration with an administration that is slow to deploy eager helpers. Duration: 9:56