Embedded Files
Post date: Sep 05, 2018 1:22:44 AM
The John James Newsletter 236
23 June 2018
To subscribe or unsubscribe email me
The very word ‘secrecy’ is repugnant in a free and open society and we are as a people inherently and historically opposed to secret societies, to secret oaths, and to secret proceedings. We decided long ago that the dangers of excessive and unwarranted concealment of pertinent facts far outweigh the dangers which are cited to justify it
John Kennedy
The wise build bridges and the foolish build wall
Xinhua
Foods high in fat and carbohydrate do not exist in nature with only one exception: breast milk
Dana Small
In Trump the delicate balance between glorification and mortification can tip either way at any moment, depending on his hunches. All international relations become contests of personal dominance
Robert Reich
News is something someone, somewhere, does not want published
Julian Assange
Our Parliament is on the verge of passing draconian legislation that undermines government transparency, our civil liberties and freedom of the press.
Another step towards an Australian police state
Had the Espionage and Foreign Interference Bill been in place in 2003 when I (Andrew Wilkie) alerted the Australian people to our government's Iraq War deceit, I'd have faced 25 years in prison. I'm deeply concerned about the chilling impact this legislation will have on political debate in our country. Whistleblowers and journalists help us hold power to account, and when those voices are silenced our democracy suffers. Ordinary people participating in peaceful protest also risk being charged with serious offences. For example, if you blockaded the Adani coal mine, the Attorney General could choose to charge you with sabotage – which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. I don't know about you, but I don't think any single politician should have that sort of power. This video explains just how dangerous this legislation is. Share it with your friends and family to spread the word, then tell your Federal member to cross the House.
And it no different in America. The US President’s assault on the truth is setting the stage for authoritarian rule.
Trump, Lies and Tyranny
His Twitter machine is about more than lying, it is also about using all of the tools and resources to create a dystopia in which authoritarianism emerges through the raw power of ignorance, control and police-state repression. Trump is a serial liar who appears to exult, if not take pride, in every petty deceit, particularly if it casts him into the glare of publicity.
https://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2018/06/12/Trump-Lies-Tyranny
Trump has turned words into weapons. And he's winning the linguistic war
Language works by activating brain structures called “frame-circuits” that get stronger with repetition, and can make permanent, changes to how we view the world. Scientists, marketers, advertisers and salespeople understand these principles. But most reporters and editors clearly don’t. So the press is at a disadvantage when dealing with a super salesman with an instinctive ability to manipulate thought by 1) Pre-emptive framing, 2) Diversion from news that could embarrass him, 3) Deflection by blaming others, and with 4) trial balloons to test how what he can get away with. Trump’s tweets are not random, they are strategic.
Flooding from sea level rise threatens over 300,000 US coastal homes
Sea level rise driven by climate change is set to pose an existential crisis to many US coastal communities, with new research finding that as many as 311,000 homes face being flooded every two weeks within the next 30 years. This will potentially inflict a huge financial and emotional toll on the half a million Americans who live in the properties at risk of having their basements, backyards, garages or living rooms inundated every other week. “The impact could well be staggering,”
Four billion years of evolution in six minutes
Did humans evolve from monkeys or from fish? In this enlightening talk, ichthyologist Prosanta Chakrabarty dispels some hardwired myths about evolution, encouraging us to remember that we're a small part of a complex, four-billion-year process, and not the end of the line. "We're not the goal of evolution, but think of us as young leaves on this ancient and gigantic tree of life connected by invisible branches not just to each other, but to our extinct relatives and our evolutionary ancestors."
https://www.ted.com/talks/prosanta_chakrabarty_four_billion_years_of_evolution_in_six_minutes
The US has learned from Australia – we deliberately make it as hard and uncomfortable as we can to discourage illegals. Thats policy. But in the usual short-sighted way none of us think through what the future holds. Hundreds of millions will be fleeing rising seas and the hotter tropics, quite soon. And the numbers will be increasing year by year as our pollution affects the environment. Where's the discussion?
No, we don’t treat immigrant families the same way we treat other ‘criminals’
The US government is ripping immigrant children out of their parents’ arms even when the parents didn’t actually commit a crime. Unlike in the case with other “crimes,” the government has been refusing to reunite immigrant families even after the parents are released from jail.
The Government Has No Plan for Reuniting the Immigrant Families It Is Tearing Apart
The government has taken some two thousand immigrant children away from their parents. Under the zero-tolerance policy, border crossers are arrested and charged with a crime before being placed in immigration detention. If they came with their children, the children are treated as though they travelled alone. There are no protocols for keeping track or for keeping parents and children in contact with each other while separated, or for eventually reuniting them.
https://deathpenaltynews.blogspot.com/2018/06/us-government-has-no-plan-for-reuniting.html
US Ends Family Separations by Detaining Whole Families Indefinitely
All migrants are still getting locked up, indefinitely. As for the thousands of children who have already been separated from their parents, no immediate solution has been presented. The Trump administration has no plan for them. “No protocols have been put in place for keeping track of parents and children, for keeping them in contact with each other while they are separated, nor any plans for eventually reuniting them.
https://truthout.org/articles/trump-ends-family-separations-by-detaining-whole-families-indefinitely/
Considering sanctions and tariffs, this illustrates the present and accelerating "run from the dollar".
Russia dumps half of its US Treasury bonds
In just one month, Russia proceeded to sell $47.4 billion out of the $96.1 billion the country had in US treasury bonds. In April, Russia had only $48.7bn in American assets, occupying 22nd place on the list. China, which holds the most US Treasury bonds, also sold off some seven billion-worth and now has $1.18 trillion invested in securities. Japan, which is positioned second on the list, in the same timeframe sold off some $12 billion, leaving just over a trillion dollars in US coffers.
https://www.rt.com/business/429931-russia-sells-us-treasuries/
Did Russia Mass-Dump Its US Bonds in Coordination With China?
One can’t help but wonder – as the Yuan-denominated oil futures were launched, trade wars were threatened, and as more sanctions were unleashed on Russia – if this wasn’t a dress-rehearsal, carefully coordinated with Beijing to field test what would happen if/when China starts to really liquidate is stock of US bonds..
Russia & India ditching US dollar in defence deals
US sanctions are hampering $2 billion, as payments are getting stuck. The countries are seeking to avoid this by switching to settlements in domestic currencies and ditching the greenback.
https://www.rt.com/business/430185-russia-india-defense-deals-dollar/
Where did the Russian portfolio of bonds disappear to?
http://www.stalkerzone.org/where-did-the-russian-portfolio-of-american-bonds-disappear-to/
Plan to Reuse Tainted Soil From Fukushima
Contaminated soil isn’t classified as nuclear waste under the law and therefore isn’t required to be treated by special facilities. That’s because Japan relaxed its benchmark, based on one set by the International Atomic Energy Agency, for determining at what level of contamination radioactive waste must be treated and disposed using more protective measures.
https://www.bna.com/blowback-japanese-plan-n73014476527/
Japan Plans to Expose Its People and 2020 Tokyo Olympians to Fukushima Radiation
Radiation-contaminated debris and soil is stockpiled for disposal (photo). Both the government and the atomic power industry are trying to force the people who evacuated their homes in the wake of the Fukushima disaster to return "home" before the 2020 Tokyo Olympic, and the baseball and softball games will be played at Fukushima.
If you're old, white and racist, you're more likely to be a climate-change denier
Republicans with high racial resentment scores were 84 per cent likely to dispute and argue with man-made climate change.
The fear of a trade war is already straining global economy
As the Trump administration imposes tariffs on allies and rivals alike, provoking broad retaliation, global commerce is suffering disruption, flashing signs of strains that could hamper economic growth. As the conflict broadens, shipments are slowing at ports and airfreight terminals around the world. Prices for crucial raw materials are rising. At factories from Germany to Mexico, orders are being cut and investments delayed. U.S. farmers are losing sales as trading partners hit back with duties of their own.
Borneo primate confronts bulldozer
Humpback Whale Shows her Appreciation After Being Freed From Nets
Amazing Octopus - Most Intelligent Animal on Earth?
Pentagon Warns of “Unavoidable” Dystopian Future for World’s Biggest Cities
Religious and ethnic tensions will be the defining element in the future. “Megacities are complex systems where people and structures are compressed together in ways that defy both our understanding of city planning and military doctrine,” says a disembodied voice. “These are the future breeding grounds, incubators, and launching pads for adversaries. Even our counterinsurgency doctrine, honed in the cities of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan, is inadequate to address the sheer scale of population in the future urban reality,”
African elephants are being born without tusks due to poaching ...
In some areas 98% of female elephants now have no tusks compared to between two and six per cent born tuskless. Almost a third of Africa’s elephants have been illegally slaughtered by poachers in the past ten years to meet demand for ivory in Asia,
https://www.independent.co.uk/.../elephants-africa-tusks-ivory-poaching-born-without...
After Six Years Confinement: WikiLeaks Editor Julian Assange is in Great Danger
The British government is still refusing to give Assange an assurance against being extradited to the US. The Australian government is still refusing to demand that Britain unconditionally release Assange, an Australian citizen, from what was denounced by the UN as a violation of his human rights.
Professor ‘bragged about burying the science’ on 3M chemicals
The chemical of greatest concern in Australia is perfluorooctane sulfonate, or PFOS, arguably the most toxic of the chemicals studied. This was widely used in Scotchgard and fire-fighting foams. The US EPA and the White House blocked the publication of a health study. In emails a Trump aide warned that the report would be a “public relations nightmare” because it would show that the chemicals endangered human health at far lower levels than what the EPA had previously deemed safe. These chemicals pose a “substantial present and potential hazard” to human health, including to immune, thyroid, liver, endocrine, cardiovascular and reproductive functions, and by “causing or increasing the risk of cancer”.
When They Lynch, It’s the 'Best Fun' – Whether in the US or India
Lynchings are now nearly daily news in India. Suspicions that fuel them spread swiftly in that very 21st century style, via WhatsApp and social media.
https://thewire.in/rights/when-they-lynch-its-the-best-fun-whether-in-the-us-or-india
India's Lynch Files
Carb and fat combination makes food extra irresistible
“Our study shows that when the signals are combined they make foods more reinforcing,” Small says. "What makes this finding interesting, says Small, is that foods high in fat and carbohydrate do not exist in nature with only one exception: breast milk." In the modern food environment that is rife with processed foods high in fat and carbohydrate like donuts, French fries, chocolate bars, and potato chips, this reward potentiation may backfire to promote overeating and obesity.
https://www.futurity.org/carbohydrates-fat-foods-1787182 /
How Beijing is winning control of the South China Sea
Erratic US policy and fraying alliances give China a free hand. “What China is winning is de facto control of nearly the entire South China Sea, including all activities and resources in it, despite the other surrounding Southeast Asian states' respective legal rights and entitlements under international law,” There was little prospect of forcing China to give up its growing network of military facilities. “It is debatable whether Filipinos believe that the US will have its back in a conflict with China. Duterte's repeated statements against the reliability of the US as an ally underlines this.”
https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Cover-Story/How-Beijing-is-winning-control-of-the-South-China-Sea
The Evolution of Death
A lot has changed since 1915. Not only the way we live, but also the way we die. Around 100 years ago, if you were going to die, the chances are it would have been some kind of infection that ended it all. Due to medical advances and immunisation virtually wiping out diseases such as polio, diphtheria and measles, this type of death has been overtaken by other causes. Today, a woman is most likely to be killed by some form of cancer, while for men, the outlook is a little more mixed. While cancer in males is of course still prevalent, between the ages of 15 and 44, the most common death is one caused by 'external' factors - such as drug misuse, self-harm or suicide.
https://www.statista.com/chart/11125/the-evolution-of-death/
Page updated
Report abuse