Links 01/12/2023: Many Suppressions in Hong Kong and Attempts to Legitimise Illegal and Unconstitutional Fake Patent 'Court' in EU (UPC)
Contents
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Leftovers
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Science
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New York Times ☛ A Star With Six Planets That Orbit Perfectly in Sync
One hundred light years away, a handful of planets are circling a star in the same configuration as when they formed.
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Science Alert ☛ Scientists Discover Six Alien Worlds Perfectly Synchronized
"A planetary system that has survived untouched."
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Federal News Network ☛ The quantum battle for the Indo-Pacific theater: Intersections of technology and territory
Quantum technologies have the potential to revolutionize various fields, from communication and cryptography to material science, financial modeling, drug development, logistics, navigation and more. However, both the U.S. and China recognize the significance of quantum in enabling new military capabilities such as advanced sensing and imaging technologies, quantum radar, and quantum cyber-attacks.
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Science Alert ☛ LK-99 Is No Radical Superconductor After All, Scientists Confirm
Back to the drawing board?
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Science Alert ☛ China's Mars Lander Detects Subsurface Geometrical Shapes in Scientific First
A story of fire or ice?
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Education
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RFA ☛ Photos of kids doing homework while on a drip spark horror in China
Beijing officials tell parents not to rush kids back to class and to relax about homework while they're sick.
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Hardware
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Ruben Schade ☛ Tech I couldn’t live without: washing machines
It’s been twelve years since my last Tech I Couldn’t Live Without post, which frankly is reprehensible. And stop calling me Frank.
Not a day goes by where I’m not immensely thankful for our washing machine. This device lets me throw in whatever clothes, towels, or other fabrics I want into it, and they come out clean an hour later. No scrubbing, no wringing, no scalding. It’s a magical box of cleaning wonder, and I love that we can have one.
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Tom's Hardware ☛ Nvidia reportedly creating new RTX 4090 D 'Dragon' GPU to comply with US export regulations for China
Nvidia is believed to be developing an alternative to the outgoing RTX 4090, dubbed the RTX 4090 D, that will be designed to meet the United State's export regulations so it can be assembled and sold in China.
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Tom's Hardware ☛ Apple pays Arm less than 30 cents per chip in royalties, new report says
Apple pays Arm less than 30 cents per chip in royalties, according to a new report — adding up to less than 5% of Arm's sales.
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CNX Software ☛ Review of SONOFF BASICR4 Smart Switch and S-MATE2 Smart Remote Control
We’ve received two new devices from SONOFF for testing, namely the BASICR4 Smart Switch and the S-MATE2 Smart Remote Control. For those familiar with SONOFF devices, the Basic series is well-known as it was one of the initial products SONOFF introduced to the Smart Home market. It’s a Wi-Fi switch that can be used for various purposes, including controlling lights, fans, and other electrical devices. The BASICR4 model enhances capabilities while reducing costs compared to its predecessor. The S-MATE2, on the other hand, is the second version of a simple Remote Controller powered by batteries. It wirelessly connects to other SONOFF devices that support the eWeLink Remote Gateway feature, enabling full control within the same ecosystem. This expands its usability across different devices.
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Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
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Science Alert ☛ Common Vaginal Bacteria's Taste For Sugar Could Put Pregnancy at Risk
Luckily, it can be treated.
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NYPost ☛ Protein bars recalled after hairnets, shrink wrap found by consumers: FDA
Several consumers found what appeared to be disposable hairnets, shrink wrap and parchment paper in their treats.
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Science Alert ☛ Personalized Lifestyle Changes Boost Cognition by 74% in People at Risk of Alzheimer's
Most people enjoy the changes too.
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Science Alert ☛ New 'Remarkable Connection' Discovered Between Our Heart And Brain
It's happening every second.
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Latvia ☛ Survey suggests Latvians don't rush to doctor when feeling off
51% of Latvian residents have postponed going to the doctor at least once this year even if they had worrying symptoms, in the hope that the symptoms will resolve themselves, according to a survey conducted by the research center Norstat in cooperation with LSM.lv.
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The Straits Times ☛ Indonesia heightens monitoring in response to ‘mysterious pneumonia’ outbreak in China
Indonesia’s Health Ministry has issued a circular urging health workers to monitor respiratory cases.
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Latvia ☛ Covid rapid tests available at schools of Latvia
At the moment, various respiratory illnesses are actively spreading, including Covid-19. Although the situation is not critical, in some places municipalities have started precautionary measures. For example, self-tests for Covid-19 have been distributed in Jelgava schools, which should be carried out at home in cases of suspected illness, Latvian Radio reported November 29.
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LRT ☛ Lawyer and Covid vaccination opponent Vėgėlė to run for Lithuanian presidency
Lawyer Ignas Vėgėlė, best known for his opposition to the government’s pandemic policies, has announced intention to run for president.
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The Straits Times ☛ Taiwan urges the elderly and young to avoid China visits on concerns over respiratory illnesses
People should get flu and Covid-19 vaccinations before going to China, said Taiwan’s health ministry.
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Over 8% of Hong Kong secondary school students had suicidal thoughts in the past year, survey shows
Mental health experts have urged greater care for Hong Kong’s schoolchildren and an eased academic burden after a survey showed that some eight per cent of secondary students had thought about suicide in the past year.
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The Straits Times ☛ China cluster of flu cases under effective control, says foreign minister Wang Yi
An increase in respiratory illnesses is a common issue faced by all countries, said Mr Wang.
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Security
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Integrity/Availability/Authenticity
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WhichUK ☛ Is Feogi.com a legitimate website?
The online retailer appears to be selling jewellery at inflated prices
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Privacy/Surveillance
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Vice Media Group ☛ The LAPD Is Using Controversial Mass Surveillance Tracking Software
Cobwebs Technologies' WebLoc software allows police to track individuals using geolocation signals displayed on a map interface.
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He Wanted Privacy. His College Gave Him None
On a recent Monday, Eric Natividad woke up around 8 a.m., showered, ate breakfast, and braced himself for a day of being tracked.
Natividad, 32, is a student at Mt. San Antonio College, which is one of California’s largest community colleges, serving more than 26,000 students east of Los Angeles, about half of whom attend part-time. Like virtually all college students in 2023, his life is constantly being converted into a steady stream of data. This information undergirds algorithms and informs decisions by his professors, college administrators, campus police officers, and a far-reaching universe of technology companies—including some he has never heard of.
By the time Natividad went to bed that night, Google and Facebook had data about which Mt. SAC webpages he’d visited, and a company called Instructure had gathered information for his professors about how much time he’d spent looking at readings for his classes and whether he had read messages about his courses. Campus police and a company called T2 Systems potentially had information about what kind of car he was driving and where he parked. And as he drifted off to sleep, Natividad had to contend with the worry that, later this semester, his professors could subject him to the facial detection software incorporated into the remote proctoring tools used at Mt. SAC.
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Defence/Aggression
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New York Times ☛ What We Know About Israeli Hostages Hamas Released on Wednesday
The sixth round of hostage releases since the cease-fire began involved 10 Israelis, four Thai nationals and two Israeli-Russian dual citizens.
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Michael Geist ☛ Accountability and Antisemitism: The Canadian Heritage Committee Needs To Step Up
Concerns about the terrifying growth of antisemitism in Canada have been top of mind for me and many in the Jewish community for weeks. While some have thankfully spoken up, discouragingly too many remain silent despite shootings at Jewish schools, molotov cocktails and vandalism at Jewish community centres, and threats at Jewish businesses and homes. We desperately need strong, unequivocal action from our leaders, colleagues, and neighbours.
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New York Times ☛ Henry Kissinger, Who Shaped U.S. Cold War History, Dies at 100 [Ed: The Wall Street Times covered a war criminal like this...]
The most powerful secretary of state of the postwar era, he was both celebrated and reviled. His complicated legacy still resonates in relations with China, Russia and the Middle East.
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RFA ☛ Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger dies at 100
He was a controversial figure, winning a Nobel Peace Prize and criticized as a war criminal.
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RFERL ☛ Three Suspects, Including Father, Arrested In Pakistani 'Honor' Killing Of Girl
Police in Pakistan's northwestern region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have arrested four men suspected in the "honor" killing of a girl who had posted a photo of herself together with a boy on Facebook.
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Henry Kissinger dead at 100: Controversial giant of statecraft who moulded post-war US history [Ed: Hagiographies for mobsters]
Brilliant, abrasive and ruthlessly ambitious, Henry Kissinger towered over post-World War II US foreign policy like no one else and shaped a fateful new course for the world’s relationship with China. As secretary of state to presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, Kissinger was a master tactician whose intellectual gifts were begrudgingly acknowledged […]
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New York Times ☛ Ben Rhodes: Henry Kissinger, the Hypocrite
Henry Kissinger was as much a creation of the American national security state as its author.
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France24 ☛ Death of Henry Kissinger: From WWII refugee to the nexus of US political power
Henry Alfred Kissinger was a German-born Jewish refugee who fled the Nazi regime with his family as a teen in 1938, eventually settling in New York City. He went on to serve as national security adviser, secretary of state or as a special adviser in five US presidential administrations, becoming a pivotal – and controversial – figure in the geopolitics of the ’60s and ’70s. He remained an influential political consultant and elder statesmen throughout his life, publishing his 19th book in 2022.
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YLE ☛ Finland's final eastern border point shuts down
The only crossing point still open on Finland's border with Russia closed to traffic early on Wednesday afternoon, with asylum applications being accepted only at harbours and airports.
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AntiWar ☛ Can US Threats Prevent a Wider War in the Middle East?
While Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has been frantically shuttling around the Middle East trying to stop the Israeli coflict in Gaza from exploding into a regional war, the United States has also sent two aircraft carrier strike groups, a Marine Expeditionary Unit and 1,200 extra troops to the Middle East as a “deterrent.”
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New York Times ☛ Fears Grow Over Fate of Bibas Family in Gaza
Hamas’s armed wing said a mother and her two young children had been killed in Israeli airstrikes. Israel’s military said it was assessing the claim.
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RFERL ☛ Rights Group Says Iranian Political Prisoner Karimi Executed Along With Six Others
Ayoub Karimi, an Iranian-Kurdish prisoner of conscience who has been held in Qezelhesar prison in Karaj for the past 14 years, was executed on November 29, according to human rights watchdogs.
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The Straits Times ☛ North Korea says it will not negotiate sovereignty with ‘double-faced’ US
US showed “extreme double standards” over North’s recent launch of spy satellite, said Ms Kim Yo Jong.
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RFA ☛ Kim Jong Un’s daughter has a new lofty title
Kim Ju Ae is now the ‘Morning Star of Korea’ a title once used by revered national founder Kim Il Sung.
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RFA ☛ Kim Jong Un’s sister hints nuke weapons are non-negotiable
Pyongyang has long linked its nuclear weapons program to its state identity of self-reliance and sovereignty.
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The Straits Times ☛ Buddhist monk in South Korea arrested for ramming into 8 parked cars
He was reported to have been acting out of frustration over a land compensation dispute.
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The Straits Times ☛ Man arrested for setting fire to co-worker’s toe in South Korea
The suspect is said to have shown no remorse when confronted by the victim.
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New York Times ☛ Kissinger’s Death Ends an Era in U.S.-China Relations [Ed: Another puff piece for a war criminal]
In Beijing’s praise of his legacy, there is implicit criticism of a U.S. shift in recent years away from cooperation and toward intensifying competition.
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The Straits Times ☛ China hails Kissinger’s ‘historic contributions’ to China-US ties [Ed: Look who likes him]
Dr Kissinger is granted the sobriquet of “old friend of the Chinese people” in China.
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ China hails ‘old friend’ Henry Kissinger, architect of rapprochement
By Oliver Hotham with Emily Wang in Shanghai, China China on Thursday hailed the late Henry Kissinger as an “old friend”, paying tribute to a diplomat central to establishing ties between Beijing and Washington.
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The Straits Times ☛ Taiwan’s President Tsai says China is too ‘overwhelmed’ to invade
Ms Tsai said China is consumed by domestic, economic problems despite ramping up military pressure.
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CS Monitor ☛ A chance to grow: How China and a British town are sowing seeds
Progress roundup: Government attention to people’s needs means gardeners in a U.K. town can farm underused land. And China invests in local talent with job training.
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The Straits Times ☛ Spending fight imperils US Pacific island funding meant to counter China
U.S. budget wrangling could further delay funding approval for new agreements with Pacific island nations meant to counter Chinese influence, creating an opportunity for Beijing in the strategically vital region, congressional and other sources say.
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The Straits Times ☛ Relevant countries should help prevent Gaza conflict spillover to entire region: China Foreign Minister
China will send another batch of supplies to the Gaza Strip to alleviate the humanitarian situation.
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The Straits Times ☛ China calls for ‘concrete’ roadmap for two-state solution to solve Gaza conflict
The Chinese Foreign Ministry laid out the proposal in a position paper on the Gaza conflict.
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New York Times ☛ Some in Netanyahu’s Government Pressure Him to Reject Longer Cease-Fire
“Stopping the war = breaking apart the government,” said Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s far-right national security minister, who threatened to leave the governing coalition.
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New York Times ☛ Jerusalem Shooting Kills at Least 3 People, Israeli Officials Say
Israel’s Shin Bet security service said the gunmen were Palestinian brothers from East Jerusalem who were affiliated with Hamas.
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JURIST ☛ Kenya dispatch: government deployment of Kenyan police to gang-plagued Haiti provokes debate, division
Kenyan law students are reporting for JURIST on law-related events in and affecting Kenya. Aynsley Genga is JURIST’s Senior Correspondent in Kenya, and Griffins Ogada is a Staff Correspondent. Both of them are students at the University of Nairobi School of Law. They file this dispatch from Nairobi.
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Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine
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YLE ☛ Finland won't boycott OSCE meeting over Russia attendance
Several countries have said they will not attend the meeting if Russia's Foreign Minister turns up.
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The Straits Times ☛ 'Let us be a lesson', say Kazakhs wary of return to nuclear testing
As Russia warns of the rising risk of nuclear war, and relations with the United States sink into a deep freeze, communities close to the vast Soviet-era nuclear testing site in northern Kazakhstan have a message for leaders: "Let us be a lesson."
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teleSUR ☛ Russia to Deliver Military Aircraft to Iran
Iranian forces will be equipped with Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets, Mil Mi-28 attack helicopters, and Yak-130 jet trainers.
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teleSUR ☛ Polish Troops on Finnish Border Could Increase Tensions: Russia
"The Finns should clearly realize that this will pose a threat to us," Kremlim spokesperson said.
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RFERL ☛ Former U.S. Marine Whelan Assaulted In Russian Prison
Russia's Federal Penitentiary Service said that Paul Whelan, a U.S. citizen who is serving a 16-year espionage sentence, was assaulted by another inmate, an attack prison officials said was sparked by "political differences" but that Whelan's family said was likely due to anti-American sentiment.
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RFERL ☛ Russian Detained For Allegedly Spying For Latvia
Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said on November 29 that its officers detained a resident of the northwestern city of Pechory on suspicion of spying for Latvia.
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RFERL ☛ Blinken Attends Dinner On Eve Of OSCE Meeting In Skopje, Leaves Before Lavrov Arrives
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with the president of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) at a dinner on November 29, the eve of a two-day meeting of the group in Skopje.
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RFERL ☛ Disabled Russian Sentenced To Jail For Writing 'No To War' In The Snow
A disabled Muscovite was sentenced to 10 days in jail for writing "No to war" in the snow.
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LRT ☛ Russia, Belarus cannot be allowed to use Interpol for political purposes – Lithuanian minister
Lithuanian Interior Minister Agnė Bilotaitė on Wednesday called on Interpol to ensure that Russia and Belarus do not use their membership of the organisation to achieve their political goals and persecute dissidents.
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France24 ☛ Finland closes last border crossing with Russia amid rising tensions
NATO member Finland on Wednesday closed its last remaining border crossing with Russia after the government decided to seal the entire border with its eastern neighbor amid rising political tensions.
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Latvia ☛ "Unknown number" of Russians must leave Latvia this week
Thursday is the last day when some Russian citizens living in Latvia can submit documents requesting a residence permit. If this is not done, they must leave Latvia today. But there are still many unknowns about how many Russian citizens are left, Maira Roze, chief of the Citizenship and Migration Affairs Office (PMLP), told Latvian Radio November 30.
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New York Times ☛ NATO Ministers Vow to Maintain Support for Ukraine
Amid questions over Western resolve, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and other diplomats stressed their commitment to Kyiv’s bid to join the alliance.
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teleSUR ☛ Ukraine and Italy Start Talks on Security Guarantees
The Czech Republic also announced that it will extend the training program for Ukrainian soldiers until 2024.
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RFERL ☛ Russian Military Unit Admits To Hiring Women For Assault Detachments To Fight In Ukraine
Espanola, a military unit within the Redut network, is hiring women as fighters in its assault detachments, the media outlet iStories reported on November 28.
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RFERL ☛ Russian Lawmaker Jailed For 11 Years In Absentia In Ukraine
A court in Ukraine has sentenced in absentia Olga Kovitidi, a member of the Russian parliament's upper chamber, the Federation Council, to 11 years in prison on charges of collaboration with occupying Russian forces and justification of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
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RFERL ☛ Former Crimean Mayor Sentenced To 16 Years On Espionage Charge
A Russian-installed court in Ukraine's occupied Crimea on November 29 sentenced Yuriy Lomenko, former mayor of the city of Simeyiz, to 16 years in prison for espionage.
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RFERL ☛ Russia Issues Arrest Warrant For Ukrainian Eurovision Winner
The Moscow prosecutor's office said on November 29 that an arrest warrant had been issued for Ukrainian Eurovison Song Contest winner Jamala, who is of Crimean Tatar origin, on a charge of distributing "fake" information about Russia's armed forces,
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RFERL ☛ Another Russian General Reportedly Dies In Ukraine
Another Russian Army general has died in Ukraine, according to Ukrainian and Russian media reports on November 29.
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RFERL ☛ Ukraine Repels Russian Drone Attack, But Shelling, Missiles Claim More Victims
At least 10 civilians were wounded by Russian shelling in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk overnight, regional Governor Ihor Moroz said on November 30.
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LRT ☛ Lithuania secures seat on chemical weapons watchdog’s council while Russia gets voted out
Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine have won the vote to sit on the Executive Council of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), while Russia lost in its bid for re-election to the chemical watchdog’s decision-making body on Wednesday.
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France24 ☛ Blinken says US, NATO allies 'must and will' continue support for Ukraine
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday said Washington and its allies remained steadfast in their backing for Ukraine against Russia's invasion, despite doubts over future assistance and stalemate on the ground.
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France24 ☛ Russia ramping up attacks in eastern Ukrainian town of Avdiivka
Russian forces were ramping up attacks in eastern Ukraine on Wednesday, Moscow and Kyiv said, as they vie to secure elusive territorial gains before the end of the year.
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AntiWar ☛ NATO Chief Puts Hypocrisy on Full Display
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg put NATO’s hypocrisy on display while talking to reporters ahead of the meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels on November 28.
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Latvia ☛ Should Ukrainian children go to Latvian schools?
How to better integrate Ukrainian children into society – this issue is raised by the organization “I want to help refugees” (Gribu palīdzēt bēgļiem). Latvia is encouraged to choose a model practiced in neighboring countries, which provides for the mandatory inclusion of Ukrainian children in local educational institutions, Latvian Radio reported November 30.
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PHR ☛ PHR Urges U.S. Congress to Protect the Right to Asylum in Funding Negotiations
As U.S. Congress continue funding negotiations, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) is alarmed at reports that aid to Ukraine could be withheld unless the bill includes permanent and devastating changes to the U.S. asylum system.
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Environment
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France24 ☛ Ibama: Brazil's environmental police are back on the job
When President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva returned to power in January, he revived Brazil's environmental police force. The Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (Ibama) is "back at work", says its president, Rodrigo Agostinho. After years of budget cuts under Lula's predecessor Jair Bolsonaro, Ibama has seen its resources triple since the start of the year and is now stepping up its efforts to combat deforestation and illegal gold mining as well as limit livestock farming. FRANCE 24 reports from the northern state of Para.
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Energy/Transportation
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The Strategist ☛ The Australian goose that lays the (multi-billion dollar) iron ore eggs
China’s demand for Australia’s iron ore is the gift which keeps on giving.
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YLE ☛ Helsinki region transport to increase fines for fare dodging
The current fine, set in 2007, is 80 euros.
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YLE ☛ Olkiluoto 3 shuts down again
The nuclear power plant's third reactor has faced some disruption since it started production in March 2022.
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Wildlife/Nature
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The Straits Times ☛ South Korean farmers scuffle with police at protest over dog meat ban
The farmers are demanding that the government scrap a plan to ban the controversial centuries-old practice.
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New York Times ☛ Britain Says Bye-Bye to Its Only Pandas as They’ll Soon Depart for China
The playful, waddling bears charmed millions of people at the Edinburgh Zoo of the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland.
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Finance
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The Straits Times ☛ IMF says Sri Lanka debt deal could help board clear first bailout review
Sri Lanka's in-principle pact with creditor nations to restructure its debt prepares the way for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to consider clearing the first review of a bailout next month, the global lender said on Thursday.
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The Straits Times ☛ China to review anti-subsidy tariffs on Australia wine imports
China said on Thursday it would review the need for anti-dumping and anti-subsidy tariffs on Australian wine imports, a highly anticipated move that is part of a push to improve the relationship between the two countries.
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RFA ☛ Samoa wanted Chinese tourists – it got a dreamer and grifters instead
Finance minister who took part in unauthorized launch of cryptocurrency exchange was replaced in September.
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Reason ☛ Biden Warns Companies To Bring 'Prices Back Down' Even as Inflation Persists
The president touted the lower annualized inflation rate but blamed the companies themselves for higher prices, rather than government policies.
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LRT ☛ Ministry, trade unions back tighter recruitment of third-country nationals in Lithuania
The recruitment of third-country nationals should be tightened to attract more workers with higher added value, Deputy Minister of Social Security and Labour Vytautas Šilinskas has said after the interior minister’s comment this week that the growing inflow of third-country nationals coming to Lithuania to work poses a threat to national security.
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Federal News Network ☛ Labor Dept employees face less telework in 2024
In today's Federal Newscast: The State Department is setting records issuing visitor visas. Maryland's former governor is getting closer to confirmation to run the Social Security Administration. And Labor Department employees will greet 2024 with less telework.
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Latvia ☛ Rīga re-establishes anti-corruption committee
On Wednesday, November 29, Riga City Council decided to reinstate the previously abolished Anti-Corruption Committee. The aim is to better understand ethics, prevent conflicts of interest and improve whistleblowing, Latvian Radio reported.
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AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ US inches closer to closing Hong Kong representative offices, as local gov’t slams ‘malicious slander’
A US bill that would close Hong Kong’s representative offices in Washington DC, New York and San Francisco – on the grounds that the city no longer has a high degree of autonomy from China – was passed by the congressional House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday.
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The Straits Times ☛ New Zealand seeks to strengthen engagement with US: Foreign minister
New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said on Thursday his country would seek to strengthen engagement with the United States on strategic and security challenges while also looking to unlock potential in their economic relationship.
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RFA ☛ Vietnam lawmakers pass law creating new grassroots security force
Neighborhood-based members will wear uniforms and will supplement full-time commune police officers.
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Censorship/Free Speech
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New York Times ☛ Russia Asks Court to Label Gay Rights Movement as ‘Extremist’
Activists say the designation could put L.G.B.T.Q. people and their organizations under threat of criminal prosecution for something as simple as displaying the rainbow flag.
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RFERL ☛ Russian LGBT Activists Form Organization In Last-Ditch Attempt To Stymie Government's 'Extremist' Case
Russian activists have made a last-ditch attempt to stymie a controversial government case that many fear could force LGBT organizations in the country to shut down.
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong nat. security police charge man over wearing alleged ‘seditious’ shirt at airport
A 26-year-old man has been charged by national security police over allegedly wearing “seditious” clothes at Hong Kong’s international airport. According to a government statement issued on Wednesday, the man was arrested at the airport on Monday after police “sped to the scene.”
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong 47: Prosecution argues for ‘wide interpretation’ of national security law as closing arguments begin
The prosecution in a landmark national security trial relating to 47 Hong Kong pro-democracy figures has argued for “a wide interpretation” of the security law as closing arguments began, almost 10 months after the trial first got underway.
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Gov’t auditor finds Chinese University of Hong Kong lacking in nat. security safeguards
The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) has not included terms to safeguard national security in its contracts, the city’s Audit Commission has found, calling on the university to “strengthen guidance and regulation” for its externally operated facilities.
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Civil Rights/Policing
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European Commission ☛ Speech by Commissioner Urpilainen on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Speech by Commissioner Urpilainen at the European Parliament High-level event on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
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ACLU ☛ Indigenous and Filipino Women are Leading the Fight for Reproductive Justice in Guam
Picture this: A 12-year-old girl is raped and impregnated, and because there are no abortion providers within 4,000 miles of where she lives, she must carry the pregnancy to term.
It doesn’t sound like something that could happen in the United States, right? But for the people of Guåhan, what is more commonly known as the U.S. unincorporated territory of Guam, this was the reality in 2019, even when Roe v. Wade was still law. That year, the only abortion provider on the island retired — and it was this story that sparked the creation of Famalao’an Rights, a reproductive justice initiative fighting for access to reproductive care for everyone on the island.
The fight for abortion access has always been an uphill battle in Guåhan. The first Christian missionaries in Micronesia arrived in Guåhan in the 1500s alongside Spanish colonization, bringing a Catholic religion that heavily influenced CHamoru culture and spirituality. Today, the island’s total population is about 70 percent Roman Catholic, a force that has undoubtedly contributed to harsh anti-choice local government policies for decades.
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RFA ☛ US activists mark year since White Paper protests
Lawmaker Mike Gallagher said China’s reaction to the anti-lockdown demonstrations was ‘like an old Soviet joke.’
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CS Monitor ☛ Americans need help with child care. One solution is catching on in Maine.
The pandemic brought more attention to the challenges of working parents. In Maine, a new model for expanding day care options is offering one solution to America’s child care need.
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Ruben Schade ☛ Price versus affordability and quality
These three things are true:
Buying something higher quality can save you money in the long term, because you’re not having to replace it. It’s one of the many perverse ways in which being wealthy is more affordable.
Something more expensive isn’t automatically higher quality.
This… is a word!
My broad impression is that there’s a bathtub curve of problems, regardless of whether you’re buying bathroom fixtures or not:
You start with something crappy, because it’s been designed primarily to a price. It needs to sell for 100 §, so everything has to be whittled down, compromised, or removed to achieve it.
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ACLU ☛ Three Redistricting Cases to Watch
Next year, voters across the country will head to polls to cast their ballots for congressional and state representatives. The choices we’ll have before us as voters are dictated by what district we live in — lines that are redrawn every 10 years. This critical process, called redistricting, is intended to ensure each district accurately reflects the people who live there. But in practice, some states have strayed from that ideal and instead drawn district lines that dilute the power of voters of color, particularly Black voters, in an effort to manipulate election results.
This manipulation undermines our democracy. Voters should pick their politicians; not the other way around. Ensuring district maps are drawn equitably is key to fair and effective representation for all voters, reconciling decades of power imbalances, and systemic equality. Here are three notable cases in which the ACLU is advocating for fair maps.
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France24 ☛ Tough security limits on Paris residents for 2024 Olympics spark outrage
The Paris police chief has outlined drastic security measures for next year's summer Olympics, sparking an outcry from politicians Wednesday who said they were an attack on civic freedoms.
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Internet Policy/Net Neutrality
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Vice Media Group ☛ The Palestinian Internet of the 90s Is Being Preserved, One GIF at a Time
'Palestine Online' is reviving the history of Palestinian life at the turn of the millennium, amidst the ongoing siege on Gaza.
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Monopolies
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Patents
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Unified Patents ☛ World’s 1st Wi-Fi Economic Report finds RAND royalty rate to be between $0.04 and $0.69
The full report is available exclusively to members of Unified Patents’ Wi-Fi Zone, which includes access to Unified’s ML-based objective patent monopoly landscaping analytics (“OPAL”) and indexed IEEE standardization technical submissions repository (“OPEN”).
Brattle calculated the range of reasonable and non-discriminatory (“RAND”) royalty rates for the universe of SEPs essential to implement the full capabilities of Wi-Fi, including up to Wi-Fi 6/6E, to be between $0.04 and $0.69.
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JUVE ☛ Mathys & Squire fight for access to evidence at UPC [Ed: UPC is utterly illegal. The very existence of such a fake, unconstitutional court is an epic crime. JUVE, the publisher in this case, was bribed to promote and propel this crime into a reality. JUVE is a participant in crime in the EU. Put another way, the people who write in Team UPC-bribed JUVE profited from a crime, and proved that it pays off to promote crimes. This isn't journalism but criminal activities disguised as "reporting". Since it's high-level and well-connected, nobody will be held accountable for it. They control the system.]
In the UPC proceedings between Astellas and Healios, Riken and Osaka University (case ID: UPC_CFI_75/2023 and ACT_464985/2023) the UK firm Mathys & Squire has filed a request for documents under rule 262.1 (b) of the UPC Rules of Procedure.
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Unified Patents ☛ $10,000 for Mimzi audio recording patents prior art
Unified Patents added five new PATROLL contests, each with a $2,000 cash prize, seeking prior art on the list below. The patents are owned by Mimzi LLC, an NPE. The patents generally relate to systems for recording audio conversations. The patents have been asserted against Foursquare, TripAdvisor, HTC, Acer, ASUSTek, and Samsung.
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Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Seeing Clearly: Article III Standing of IPR Judicial Review
Article III standing remains a hot topic at all levels of federal litigation and across many different areas of law. Inter partes review is not unique. In Allgenesis Biotherapeutics Inc. v. Cloudbreak Therapeutics, LLC, Case No. 22-1706 (Fed. Cir. Nov. 7, 2023), the Federal Circuit dismissed, in a unanimous opinion by Chief Judge Moore, an appeal of a PTAB final IPR decision before reaching the merits by finding that the IPR challenger did not allege sufficient “injury in fact” to confer standing necessary for Article III judicial review.
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Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Supreme Court on Patent Law: November 2023
The Supreme Court is set to consider several significant patent monopoly law petitions addressing a range of issues from the application of obviousness standards, challenges to PTAB procedures, interpretation of joinder time limits IPR, to the proper scope patent monopoly eligibility doctrine. Here’s a brief overview of each case, followed by more details:
- MacNeil v. Yita (No. 23-494): This case examines the Federal Circuit’s reversal of a PTAB obviousness decision. Petitioner argues that the appellate court substituted its own findings in the reversal rather than vacating and remanding. This could be an important case for revitalizing the importance of secondary indicia of non-obviousness.
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Kluwer Patent Blog ☛ Unified Patent Court introduces ‘My Legal Team’ functionality [Ed: Unified Patent Court is utterly illegal and unconstitutional, but we know who pushes to legitimate this crime of a "court" and why]
The Unified Patent Court has introduced a ‘My Legal Team’ functionality in the case management system. The functionality ‘allows for representatives and other users such as legal assistants, to gain access and work on cases before the Court.’
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Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Jepson Formats and Means Limitations Under More Fire
I have been following the pending Federal Circuit case of In re Xencor. It is a quirky case involving both a Means-Plus-Function Claim and a Jepson claim. In its decision, the PTAB went off the rails with its means-plus-function analysis. In particular, the Board held that the MPF claim was invalid for lack of written description because the specification did not describe equivalents to the disclosed structure.
There is some logic to the decision. Let me try to explain: First, we know that written description doctrine requires a showing of possession of the full scope of the claims. With MPF claims, we know that the statute requires a particular construction that includes both the structure described in the specification and “equivalents thereof.” 35 U.S.C. 112(f). What we see here is that equivalents of the disclosed specification are within the literal scope of the claims — ergo, the written description must show possessions of those equivalents.
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Unified Patents ☛ $6,000 for Vision Works sensor patents prior art
Unified Patents added three new PATROLL contests, each with a $2,000 cash prize, seeking prior art on at least claim 1 of U.S. Patent 8,682,558, U.S. Patent 8,954,251, and U.S. Patent 10,391,989, all owned by Vision Works IP, an NPE. The patents generally relate to acceleration sensors for use within moving vehicles. The patent monopoly has been asserted against Polaris, Nissan, and Mercedes-Benz.
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Unified Patents ☛ $2,000 for DynaIP entity, Galicia IP, anti-theft patent monopoly prior art
Unified Patents added a new PATROLL contest, with a $2,000 cash prize, seeking prior art on at least claim 1 of U.S. Patent 10,814,831, owned by Galicia IP, an NPE managed by patent monopoly advisory firm, Dynamic IP Deals LLC (d/b/a DynaIP).
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Unified Patents ☛ Fortress IP entity, Neo Wireless, 3GPP patent monopoly challenged
On November 27, 2023, Unified Patents filed an ex parte reexamination proceeding against U.S. Patent 9,948,488, owned by Neo Wireless, LLC, an NPE and Fortress IP entity. The '488 patent monopoly generally relates to transmitting probing signals in a wireless communication system employing OFDM, where multi-carrier signals and spread spectrum signals are overlaid together in both time and frequency domains. This reexamination challenge is part of Unified’s 3GPP zone.
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Software Patents
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Tom's Hardware ☛ Uncovered EA patent monopoly would use Hey Hi (AI) to replace professional voice actors with (fake) you
Electronic Arts has filed a patent monopoly intent on allowing gamers to insert their AI-approximated voice into the main character of a gaming experience.
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Copyrights
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IT Wire ☛ Google reaches deal with Canada over Online News Act
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported that the two parties had reached an agreement on Wednesday. Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge later confirmed the news.
The Online News Act, also known as C-18, was approved by the Senate, the upper chamber of the Canadian parliament, on 29 June. It was later passed by the lower chamber.
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Vice Media Group ☛ Google Agrees To Pay Canadian News Outlets $100M Annually in Rare Win for Media Industry
The agreement is the result of months of negotiations related to the Online News Act, which aims to make “dominant platforms compensate news businesses" for their work.
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New York Times ☛ Google Agrees to Pay Canadian Media for Using Their Content
The Canadian government reached a deal with Surveillance Giant Google before a new law compelling tech giants to compensate news organizations comes into effect late next month.
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Gemini* and Gopher
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Politics and World Events
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Re: The Religion of Peace
It's a great resource and a strong rebuttal to Muslims who argue that Islam is a peaceful religion. Islam is not a peaceful religion. It is a hateful, repressive, and dangerous ideology. It's anti-gay, anti-woman, anti-progressive, and anti-freedom.
[...]
Unfortunately in the west we have a lot of difficulty even talking about how dangerous Islam is thanks to radical leftists conflating every criticism of Islam as an ideology with racism against Muslims as people. This conflation is represented with a misleading term which has entered common parlance: "Islamophobia²". I've already discussed that term before, so I won't repeat myself here.
[...]
The problem isn't that Muslims are brown or that they have different customs. The problem is what they believe. Allowing in more without any kind of screening process will continue to steer the ideological composition of Europe away from modern secular values. European leaders should be able to acknowledge this problem without being labeled racists.
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Identification
Gurdjieff/Ouspensky wrote/spoke much about so-called "identification" in a "crux of the problem" kind of way.
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Technology and Free Software
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Follow them, waste yourself
That title sounds pretty individualistic. Could it be less so if I tell you what I mean by “them”. They are those who want to go where you don't want to go, or do what you don't want to do. Oh... how come do you end up following them? Easy: the need for success.
I saved the entries of my old blog. Today, as I was reviewing them I noticed that I was mostly following the advice given to the bloggers at the time. Namely sticking to my niche, keeping a schedule, answering popular queries on search engines, well the search engine that needs not to be named, and so on and forth. It was a “naïve” attempt by today's standards. Heck, I didn't even pretend to make money, just to be read.
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Internet/Gemini
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New web hotel
After ten years at the same web hotel I decided to move everything on my main site (not this capsule) to another one. The process was far more complicated than just setting up a new domain. For a few days my e-mail didn't work, then I managed to set it up almost correctly. I never figured out if it would be possible to somehow merge the previously stored inbox with the newly created blank inbox. Maybe it's not the kind of thing people do.
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Thursday somehow became Codeday
I've been enjoying - when not suffering at the hands of my own stupidity - messing with scripting to create versions of Gemini pages showing dead links. It's far from perfect, but mostly does what I need it to do. Much thanks to @skyjake for the insights!
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AuraGem Music's Public Radio Updates
AuraGem has a public radio that livestreams public domain and royalty free music over Gemini, which you can find here: gemini://auragem.letz.dev/music/public_radio AuraGem Music's Radio
The biggest update is that I have added a whole new station that plays music from the early 1900s as well as Radio Dramas and Book Dramatizations. It is called "Old Time Radio" and you can find the schedule here: gemini://auragem.letz.dev/music/public_radio/Old-Time-Radio AuraGem Music's Old Time Radio Station
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* Gemini (Primer) links can be opened using Gemini software. It's like the World Wide Web but a lot lighter.