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Internation Events X - Why such a long break...?


TheLastWolf

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From Heather Cox Richardson's Substack, yesterday:

"Today, meetings began to take place before the Munich Security Conference begins in Berlin, Germany, on February 17. This conference is the world’s leading forum for talking about international security policy. Begun in 1963, it was designed to be an independent venue for experts and policymakers to discuss the most pressing security issues around the globe. "

https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/february-13-2023?

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.... The report goes on to identify a growing conflict around the globe between intensifying authoritarian regimes and a liberal, rules-based international order. It calls for shoring up that liberal order and for strengthening it by addressing the legitimate claims of countries and regions that have been excluded from that order or have even been victims of it. That many governments in Africa, Latin America, and Asia have refused to speak up against Russian aggression shows that there is deep dissatisfaction there with existing international patterns, and that dissatisfaction threatens the survival of democracy. The people of all countries must have a say in how the global future plays out.

The report notes that Russia’s “brutal and unprovoked invasion of a sovereign state” is “an attack against the foundational principles of the post–World War II order,” with “an authoritarian power” setting out “to eliminate a democracy.” But that’s not the only sign that autocracies are rising. China’s quiet support for Russia, its attempt to assert its own sphere of influence in East Asia through military shows of force, and its wide-ranging efforts “to promote an autocratic alternative to the liberal, rules-based international order” show the broad challenge of autocratic rule. “[T]he main fault line in global politics today,” the report suggests, is “that between democracies and dictators.” 

Many world leaders believe that the next ten years will lay down the blueprint for the future of the international order, the report says, and it credits Ukraine and the “extraordinary resilience and determination of the Ukrainian people” with instilling “a new sense of purpose into democratic countries.” The report encourages democracies to use this momentum to re-envision the liberal, rules-based order to include countries that previously were excluded from the rulemaking. A new order “that better delivers on its promises” and “truly benefits everyone equally” has the potential to increase the coalition of those resisting autocracy. “If the revisionist moment we are currently experiencing spurs the renewal of this liberal, rules-based order,” it suggests, “President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the people of Ukraine will have played a big part in this achievement.”

The conference organizers did not invite Russian government officials to participate in this year’s meeting, saying, "We do not want to offer a stage for those who have stamped over international law." But they did invite more leaders from emerging economies, vowing to get past the idea of an event where Europeans and Americans just talked to each other. 

In a sign that many relationships are now in flux, the Chinese foreign ministry said today that China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, will go to the conference and will also visit France, Italy, Hungary, and Russia. China has been embarrassed recently by the exposure of what seems to have been an extensive spying program run by the Chinese military that included countries on five continents. 

Meanwhile, in the U.S., the attention the Republican-controlled House Oversight Committee has been paying to what committee chair James Comer (R-KY) says on his website has been the Biden family’s “pattern of peddling access to the highest levels of government to enrich themselves, often to the detriment of U.S. interests,” has resurrected questions about the connections of the Trump family and Saudi leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Popularly known as MBS, the Saudi leader in 2021 transferred $2 billion to a private equity firm that Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner created the day after he left the White House.

In an op-ed today in Time magazine, a former associate of Trump ally Rudy Giuliani, Lev Parnas, who had been part of the attempt to smear Hunter Biden in Ukraine, said that his “real job was to help undermine and destabilize the Ukrainian government.” Parnas was convicted of fraud, making false statements, and illegally funneling foreign money to the Trump campaign. 

“I eventually realized,” he said, “that not only was I enabling Trump’s dirty tricks in the 2020 election, I was also risking that Ukraine would be essentially unarmed when Putin invaded.”

 

 

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"Quake Fallout Hits Retailers That Sought Supply Resilience in Turkey"

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2023-02-15/quake-fallout-hits-retailers-that-sought-supply-resilience-in-turkey?

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.... The devastating earthquake in Turkey reinforces the notion that you can diversify supply chains to avoid concentration in hubs like China, but ultimately you can’t hide from the forces of nature.

Turkey is among the countries often mentioned as an alternative to Asia for low-cost manufacturing, especially textiles for traditional retailers and the online fast-fashion business.

Companies like Germany’s Hugo Boss have sought to shorten supply routes with new or larger facilities in Turkey in recent years. Inditex, the Spain-based owner of Zara stores, has 194 partners in the country with a workforce of more than 383,000, according to its 2021 annual report.

The Feb. 6 temblors that struck along the Turkish and Syrian border left a shocking human toll — surpassing 40,000 deaths as of Wednesday.

The economic costs are rising, too. Bloomberg Economics calculates the calamity could shave around 1% off GDP and lowered its real GDP growth forecast for this year to 2.6% from 3%. (Bloomberg Terminal users can read more on that downgrade here.)

Here’s a sampling of the kind of exposure some foreign fashion companies are facing:

Mango has 663 factories, 70 stores and about 1,300 employees across Turkey, one of the biggest suppliers for the brand
Levi Strauss has 17 facilities in Turkey, and three factories in the earthquake zone, according to a Bloomberg estimate
VF, the owner of North Face, has two factories in the earthquake zone, but the company says the any impact on business operations is minimal
H&M has 105 suppliers and 179 factories in Turkey, but most of those are not in the affected areas. “Our teams in the country are in close dialogue with all our business partners to understand the impact,” a company spokesperson said in an email.
A map from Open Supply Hub, a crowdsourced supplier website, overlaid with Google’s map of the earthquake strike zone, shows that there are some 500 apparel facilities in that region.

The Ekonomi newspaper reported that hundreds of textile plants in Kahramanmaras have halted operations and it may take about six months to restart production. ....

 

 

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A team of Israeli contractors who claim to have manipulated more than 30 elections around the world using hacking, sabotage and automated disinformation on social media has been exposed in a new investigation.

The unit is run by Tal Hanan, a 50-year-old former Israeli special forces operative who now works privately using the pseudonym “Jorge”, and appears to have been working under the radar in elections in various countries for more than two decades.

He is being unmasked by an international consortium of journalists. Hanan and his unit, which uses the codename “Team Jorge”, have been exposed by undercover footage and documents leaked to the Guardian.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/series/disinfo-black-ops

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President Obrador is taking steps to have Mexico's lithium resources nationalized.

Bravo to him. his caution over foreign exploitation is wise. The Mexican people deserve no less.

https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Mexico-Moves-To-Nationalize-Its-Lithium-Reserves.html

“What we are doing now (…) is to nationalize lithium so that it cannot be exploited by foreigners, neither from Russia, nor from China, nor from the United States. Oil and lithium belong to the nation, they belong to the people of Mexico, to you, to all those who live in this region of Sonora, to all Mexicans,” Obrador said, as quoted by the Mexico Daily Post.

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1 hour ago, DireWolfSpirit said:

President Obrador is taking steps to have Mexico's lithium resources nationalized.

Bravo to him. his caution over foreign exploitation is wise. The Mexican people deserve no less.

https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Mexico-Moves-To-Nationalize-Its-Lithium-Reserves.html

“What we are doing now (…) is to nationalize lithium so that it cannot be exploited by foreigners, neither from Russia, nor from China, nor from the United States. Oil and lithium belong to the nation, they belong to the people of Mexico, to you, to all those who live in this region of Sonora, to all Mexicans,” Obrador said, as quoted by the Mexico Daily Post.

I seem to remember Mexico's oil production is also nationalized - and noted for substantial corruption. 

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Korea’s Chip Slump Shows Soft Patch for Global Trade Is Deepening

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2023-02-21/supply-chain-latest-the-chip-slump-isn-t-over?

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If you thought it was about time global semiconductor demand bottomed out, you may want to think again by looking at South Korea’s latest chip exports.

Korea’s shipments abroad of semiconductors that go into everything from computers to smartphones plunged 43.9% in the first 20 days of this month compared with a year earlier, according to the national customs office. That’s similar to the 44.5% drop for the full month of January. ....

... When a recovery does happen, businesses are hoping the wave of artificial intelligence technologies led by ChatGPT could be the spark the world economy needs. But for now, winter continues for tech and that’s not good news for global trade watchers. ....

 

 

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Dratted article vanished already, but supposedly the Supreme Court members across the spectrum appear confused about the arguments being presented to invalidate Article 230, the law that sort of protects free speech on the internet. Looks like 230 could stay intact.

 

Another article claims a group of physicians is putting together a ballot measure initiative to preserve what remains of abortion rights in that state. Given past popular votes on this topic, if it makes it onto the ballot, it'll likely pass.

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Kung Fu Nuns of Nepal Smash Convention
In Himalayan Buddhism, the religious roles of nuns have long been restricted by rules and customs. But one sect is changing that, mixing meditation with martial arts and environmental activism.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/26/world/asia/nepal-kung-fu-nuns.html

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The opening video, which can't be posted here, is breathtaking. So are the photographs.

As the first rays of sun pierced through the clouds covering snowcapped Himalayan peaks, Jigme Rabsal Lhamo, a Buddhist nun, drew a sword from behind her back and thrust it toward her opponent, toppling her to the ground.

“Eyes on the target! Concentrate!” Ms. Lhamo yelled at the knocked-down nun, looking straight into her eyes outside a whitewashed temple in the Druk Amitabha nunnery on a hill overlooking Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal.

Ms. Lhamo and the other members of her religious order are known as the Kung Fu nuns, part of an 800-year-old Buddhist sect called Drukpa, the Tibetan word for dragon. Across the Himalayan region, and the wider world, its followers now mix meditation with martial arts. ....

 


 

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Nicaragua’s ‘Nazis’: Stunned Investigators Cite Hitler’s Germany
A U.N. inquiry found that President Daniel Ortega and top members of his government committed human rights abuses, providing evidence for efforts to try them overseas.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/02/world/americas/nicaragua-human-rights-nazi-germany-un.html?

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Nicaragua’s president, his wife and top members of the government committed human rights abuses — including torture and murder — so serious they amounted to crimes against humanity, a United Nations investigative team concluded, providing evidence for any efforts to try them overseas.

In a news conference Thursday, the head of the investigation called for international sanctions against the government and compared Nicaragua’s track record on human rights to the Nazis, saying the current government’s tactics to hold power beginning in 2018 were like those seen during the Nuremberg trials.

“The weaponizing of the justice system against political opponents in the way that is done in Nicaragua is exactly what the Nazi regime did,” Jan-Michael Simon, who led the team of U.N.-appointed criminal justice experts, said in an interview.

“People massively stripped of their nationality and being expelled out of the country: This is exactly what the Nazis did too,” he added. ....

 

 

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A new generation of Palestinian fighters is rising up in the West Bank

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/03/03/israel-palestinians-militants-raids-uprising/

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.... Fighters like Abu Dhraa are not tied to a party or a political ideology. But they have easy access to guns and are committed to the fight. In their youth and independence, they represent a new kind of threat — not only to Israel but to an ever-weaker Palestinian Authority, run by unelected men in their 70s and 80s.

In earlier generations, Palestinian political factions ran the brigades during street fighting against Israel. Now, cells of teenagers and young men in their early 20s from the neighborhood are calling the shots. ....

.... Over the past year, the Israeli military has carried out increasingly lethal near-daily raids across the occupied West Bank, targeting Palestinian militants it says are responsible for, or planning, attacks against Israelis. Under the most far-right government in Israel’s history, sworn in late last year, the raids have escalated, taking a heavy toll on civilians. The cycle of gun battles and funerals in Nablus, Jenin and elsewhere have inspired revenge attacks, and appear to be fueling the growing militancy rather than containing it. ....

.... It has been nearly 20 years since the last Palestinian intifada, or uprising. And while the dynamics have changed, observers say, the fundamentals are the same — occupation, despair and relentless violence.

Across the West Bank, “the widespread public frustration and desperation is there” for another Palestinian uprising, said Tahani Mustafa, an expert with the International Crisis Group. “I think it’s going to be a lot bloodier, far more diffused, far more fragmented.” ....

 

 

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We in the USA do forget that International Women's Day is a very large observance in many countries, even though we don't bother that much with it here these days.

Europe: Demonstrations and rallies marking International Women's Day planned in European cities March 8

https://crisis24.garda.com/alerts/2023/03/europe-demonstrations-and-rallies-marking-international-womens-day-planned-in-european-cities-march-8

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Event
Women's rights activists in parts of Europe will hold rallies and demonstrations to mark International Women's Day on March 8. Organizers have confirmed demonstrations in the following cities:

Austria, Vienna: Yppenplatz from 17:00

Belgium, Brussels: Place de l'Albertine from 14:00

France, Paris: Palais de Justice from 13:00

Germany, Berlin: Invalidenpark, 13:00

Greece, Athens: Klafthmonos Square to Syntagma Square from 13:00

Italy, Bologna: Piazza XX Settembre, 17:00

Italy, Milan: Piazza Duca d'Aosta from 18:00

Italy, Naples: Piazza del Gesu Nuovo from 16:00

Italy, Rome: Piazzale Ostiense to Largo Bernardino da Feltre from 17:00

Italy, Turin: Piazza XVIII Dicembre from 15:30

Portugal, Lisbon: Alameda Dom Afonso Henriques from 18:30

Spain, Barcelona: Placa Universitat 18:30

Spain, Madrid: Atocha to Plaza de Espana from 19:00

Turkey, Istanbul: Taksim Square from 19:30

Turkey, Izmir: Cultural Center from 18:30

Further protests will almost certainly occur in additional towns and cities throughout Europe on March 8; demonstrations could take the form of marches through city centers in many locations. Attendance will vary by location but will reach into the thousands at larger actions. In some locations, women's rights activists may also take part in short-term strike actions, possibly causing business and transport disruptions.

Additional police will likely deploy to all demonstrations. Large crowds and associated security measures could prompt localized disruptions, including possible road closures and movement restrictions. Most demonstrations are likely to pass off peacefully, though isolated clashes between police and protesters cannot be ruled out.

 

Hmm.  They didn't say from which direction the possible violence might start.  One thinks of the cops and the suffragette demos back in the last century ....  Some serious beatings and torture from the cops dealt out to the women, including prison.

A friend in Madrid tells us that particularly around our hotel things are going to be very fraught tomorrow due to these reasons:

Spain gov’t parties vie for feminist flag before Women’s Day

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/03/07/spain-womens-rights-sexual-violence-quotas-rape/97acb418-bcfc-11ed-9350-7c5fccd598ad_story.html

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BARCELONA, Spain — Spain’s government presented Tuesday a plan to mandate gender quotas in elected government bodies and companies’ executive boards, on the eve of International Women’s Day when thousands will take to the streets of Madrid and other cities for women’s rights.

But the buildup to the annual women’s march comes amid a political spat inside Spain’s ruling coalition over which of the two left-wing parties best represents the feminist cause in an election year where Spain’s Right will try to reclaim power.

The Socialist Party of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and the anti-austerity United We Can are sparring over one of their government’s banner causes: a sexual violence law proposed by the latter party that, while increasing support and resources for victims, has inadvertently led to the reduction of sentences of over 700 offenders since taking effect in October. ....

 

In London --

Celebrate International Women’s Day 2023 with the best things to do, events and activities happening across London.

https://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/international-womens-day-whats-on-this-year

In the US capital International Women's Day will be virtual:

https://washington.org/event/international-womens-day

 NYC has lots going on but nothing city-wide is planned.  No parades down Fifth Ave. as in ye Suffragette Days!

https://www.eventbrite.com/d/ny--new-york/international-women's-day/

 

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On 2/15/2023 at 3:57 AM, Zorral said:

It calls for shoring up that liberal order and for strengthening it by addressing the legitimate claims of countries and regions that have been excluded from that order or have even been victims of it.

Pretty much sums up right there why these countries and regions should have no confidence in this so called liberal rules based order, since it never had any kind of purpose to achieve broad prosperity among all peoples and nations. It was always about liberalism for the already rich and oppression for the poor. And neither should they have any confidence that those who have been in charge of this order up to now will significantly change anything about it. Sadly the response looks to be out of the frying pan and into the fire, rather than making meaningful strides towards prosperity and well-being for the people in those regions.

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From a strictly HR perspective, and not in any way political one: 

Anybody has any details about how the menstrual leave in Spain (or in other countries where it’s already a practice) works in practice? 
Is it paid or unpaid? Is it deducted from the general number of sick days an employee has or is it added to them? Is there a yearly cap? Is it in any way tracked who takes it and how many times? Is the employee required to make up for the time they spent on menstrual leave by doing extra time? How does the employer take care of substitution when someone takes menstrual leave? Does it require a doctor’s note? Do women going through menopause get the same opportunity? Do they get a similar but different in specifics arrangement?
 

I have so many questions. Way more interesting than a 4 day work week. 

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20 hours ago, RhaenysBee said:

Anybody has any details about how the menstrual leave in Spain (or in other countries where it’s already a practice) works in practice?

In Spain, more or less, though it's not my area of expertise.

20 hours ago, RhaenysBee said:

Is it paid or unpaid?

Paid.

20 hours ago, RhaenysBee said:

Is it deducted from the general number of sick days an employee has or is it added to them? Is there a yearly cap?

In Spain there is no such thing as a number of sick days. If you're given medical leave by a doctor, you're allowed to be off work for as long as the doctor says you remain sick (and terminating your employment because of it would be unlawful).

20 hours ago, RhaenysBee said:

Is it in any way tracked who takes it and how many times?

The Spanish health service and your employer's HR department would have this information, but being personal health data, it is specially protected, and may not be divulged to others.

20 hours ago, RhaenysBee said:

Is the employee required to make up for the time they spent on menstrual leave by doing extra time?

No.

20 hours ago, RhaenysBee said:

How does the employer take care of substitution when someone takes menstrual leave?

That would be up to each individual employer, and depending of the job of the person that needs substituting it may not be easy. That doesn't mean they're entitled to restrict your right to medical leave, though.

20 hours ago, RhaenysBee said:

Does it require a doctor’s note?

Yes. Any sick leave does, and this is no exception. Since it's a recurring condition, you wouldn't need to visit the doctor every time, though.

20 hours ago, RhaenysBee said:

Do women going through menopause get the same opportunity? Do they get a similar but different in specifics arrangement?

Menstrual leave is for strong menstrual pains or side-effects. You wouldn't be entitled to leave if you don't experience them.

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From my own perspective of being in Spain, waiting for our train, the US in every matter other than having for the moment the strongest and biggest military, at least in terms of weapons, and the strongest currency at the moment -- compared to the US, and particularly where we live, everything here is far less expensive and far more functional -- the US and England look remarkably like brutal, repressive, cruel, toxic, dysfunctional, failing states, not sliding, but galloping as fast as possible to full out catastrophe on every front.  They certainly appear in comparison to be uncivilized, so speak, when contrasted with the sheer numbers of arts and cultural institutions, which also here receive both national and EU support.  What little support the US provides, is rapidly evaporating into nothing.  Moreover it's much cleaner, nor have I seen a rat once in all this time.  Walking NYC streets at night particularly, it's garbage everywhere, rats running everywhere, and the streets reek. 

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6 hours ago, Zorral said:

Moreover it's much cleaner, nor have I seen a rat once in all this time.  Walking NYC streets at night particularly, it's garbage everywhere, rats running everywhere, and the streets reek. 

To be fair, this is more of an "NYC" thing than a "US" thing. NYC is by far the filthiest of all US cities I've visited.

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3 hours ago, A Horse Named Stranger said:

Long story shor

No tiktok buddy-o or twitting etc. eitherHowever this is the stuff that makes people expatriate and become refugees: 

https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/texas-drag-queen-bounty-17836118.php

So much, so much.  How safe from gunfire do you feel in your town?  So far, NYC is a lot safer than many, many, many cities in the US from gunfire, targeted or random, taking you and your children down, and it's not very safe at all. Especially when it comes to cop fire and violence.

Just sayin'.  But for very many, this is exactly the US they want, and they want MORe of it, and plan to make the whole world that way.  THINK for a minute instead of going all attack and fury when hearing the truth of what is going on in the Us.

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