Cincinnati Bans Conversion ‘Therapy’
Fix society. Please.That was the close of Leelah Alcorn’s suicide note; she was a Southwest Ohio teen who killed herself a year ago after undergoing conversion ‘therapy’. This past Wednesday the...
View ArticleThe 2015 Arab Opinion Index — Perhaps Some Surprises
From the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies:Results from the 2015 Arab Opinion Index, the largest public opinion poll of its kind in the Arab region, were officially released as part of a press...
View ArticleWhat Happened in Köln (Cologne) on New Year’s Eve – and in Hamburg (Update)
This has been the top story in online German news for a couple of days now. The first two sections below are summarized from ZEIT ONLINE; the last is based on a chronology and another article from...
View ArticleAn Update on the New Year’s Eve Assaults in Köln and Hamburg
This is a short update to the diary What Happened in Köln (Cologne) on New Year’s Eve – and in Hamburg that I posted last night; if you’re not familiar with the events, that’s a place to start. This...
View ArticleThe Prehistory of English: The Case of the Hidden Suffix
This is the first in what I hope will be a (very sporadic) series on the roots of English. It may also be the last; I’ll have to see how it goes. It’s very difficult to write at all accurately on this...
View ArticleACLU and others file federal lawsuit to secure safe drinking water in Flint
I just got an email from the ACLU with this link: A coalition of local citizens and national groups filed suit today to ask a federal court to step in and secure access to safe drinking water for the...
View ArticlePretty Curious Indeed!
From TakePart: Boy Takes Home Top Prize in Competition for Girls in STEM Pretty Curious, a U.K. program aimed at getting girls interested in STEM careers, asks on its website, “why aren’t more girls...
View ArticleAlternative für Deutschland, the new boy on the German political block
Last night johnnygunn published the diary Sobering Election News from Germany about the success of the right-wing populist party Alternative für Deutschland (Alternative for Germany) in this past...
View ArticleEuropean Council President lists new American administration among threats to...
On the eve of the informal Malta summit, Donald Tusk, President of the European Council, just released the text of his letter United We Stand, Divided We Fall to the 27 EU heads of state or heads of...
View ArticleSweden’s government takes a subtle swipe
Today Isabella Lövin, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for International Development Cooperation and Climate, posted this photo on Twitter and on her Facebook page:xJust signed referral of Swedish...
View ArticleCrackdown on LGBT in Chechnya – Updated with Additional Background
From SPIEGEL ONLINE today [my translation]:More than a hundred arrests and at least three dead: according to a report by the investigative journalist Elena Milashina of the Russian Novaya Gazeta, the...
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More German Trump-Trashing
Martin Schulz, the SPD (centre-left) candidate running against Angela Merkel for the German Chancellorship, isn’t the only senior German politician with harsh words for Trump.SPIEGEL ONLINE reports...
View ArticleThe Prehistory of English: Another Hidden Suffix
I don’t know whether this will get lost amidst the insanity or provide a bit of dry, stodgy relief, but it’s finally ready to go, so I’ll take my chances.Far too long ago I wrote a diary, The...
View ArticleThe Eighth Emissions Gap Report by the UN Environment Programme
The UN Environment Programme’s eighth Emissions Gap Report came out yesterday. At 116 pages it’s impressively hefty; even the executive summary runs to ten pages. The first paragraph of that summary...
View ArticleMissing Kiwis? #GetNZontheMap
And now for something on the lighter side.New Zealand is three-quarters the size of Germany and bigger than Great Britain, but it can be very hard to find on some maps — because it isn’t there!From the...
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PWB Peeps: You've Got Mail!
Despite what it says at the top, this diary was written by twingrace, who is the me of the diary.Tonight’s diary is a collaboration amongst BMScott, who edited photographs, twingrace, who wrote a bit,...
View ArticleGreta Thunberg’s speech upon accepting the Amnesty International Ambassador...
Back in June Greta Thunberg and the Fridays for Future movement received Amnesty International’s Ambassador of Conscience Award for 2019. “The Ambassador of Conscience Award is Amnesty International’s...
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PWB Peeps’ Emergency Watering Hole
These diaries are especially important when so many folks are stuck at home, so I’ve thrown together a quick emergency diary where the Peeps can congregate.Yes, I’ve been sitting here twiddling my...
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Moondai Furkids: It's Looking A Lot Like Catmas
It’s Catmas week! Not long to go now — just a sleigh ride from Moondai to Friedai and we’re there! What better time for a Catmas song and the Furkids team know exactly which one they want! They chose...
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Moondai Furkids: Our Prayer
Please Note: This diary was written by Mopshell.As this time in our history of trials and tribulations comes to a close, the Moondai Furkids team farewell the old year with a prayer for the new year....
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