Friday Post

For the first day of summer...

Three people are dead and one is missing in what is being described as the one of the worst floods Alberta has seen:

Three people are dead, another is missing, and tens of thousands have been forced from their homes in Calgary and throughout the rest of southern Alberta over the past 36 hours, with more being evacuated from Medicine Hat, as swollen streams and rivers overflowed their banks, some with so little warning that residents had no choice to flee to the roof of their house to await rescue.

Twenty-six communities along the Bow and Elbow Rivers in the city of Calgary were evacuated on Thursday, displacing an estimated 75,000 people from their homes in anticipation of flooding in the city, and more evacuations are taking place today as the entire downtown area suffers power failures.

Residents woke this morning to find several areas of the city under water as it is believed that both rivers crested either overnight or this morning, and more rain is on the way.

Related: being prepared for situations such as these.

Also: Saint Gregory Thaumaturgus is the patron saint invoked against floods. In case you were asking.


Are they aware that there is severe flooding out west?

Members of Canada's First Nations community are staging a full-court press for respect on Friday, marking National Aboriginal Day with marches and demands for reconciliation with Ottawa.

Sorry. The question should have been: do they care that there is severe flooding out west? Is everyone supposed to stop and listen to their problems again? Try owning their problems and their own property, or getting rid of the Indian Act.


To be filed under - INSANE IDEAS:

A group of soldiers are preparing for their deployment to Egypt with riot training on post. 

They're planning ahead for violent protests or riots and the possibility of protecting the country's border with Israel.

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A bipartisan group of senators, including Republicans Rand Paul, Mike Lee, and Tom Udall, plus Democrat Chris Murphy – has introduced a bill to cut off Defense Department and intelligence agency funding for operations in Syria.  Humanitarian aid would not be affected.  This would effectively checkmate President Obama’s plan to arm the Syrian rebels.

(Sidebar: this wouldn't be necessary if someone wasn't planning on giving weapons to the rebels.)

As Afghanistan’s democratically elected president, Karzai may at the very least expect to be involved in any discussions relating to his country’s future. He is also within his rights to object to the Taliban naming their office in Qatar, where the negotiations are due to take place, as the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan”.

The country Karzai governs is no such thing and his government has committed itself to a pluralist society, rather than one based on the narrow strictures of Sharia. The Taliban have even been allowed to fly their own flag over the building. Such is Obama’s desperation to reach a deal with the Taliban before the last American combat troops return home next year, that he is prepared to go to the most extraordinary lengths to tempt them to the negotiating table – even if it means alienating a key White House ally. ...

The only commitment the White House could evince from the militants in their official statement was a pledge that the “Islamic Emirate never wants to pose harm to other countries from its soil, nor will it allow anyone to cause a threat to the security of countries from the soil of Afghanistan”.

As for its attitude towards a ceasefire, within hours of the statement, four American soldiers had been killed by a Taliban attack on Bagram air base. There will, of course, be those who argue that, after the 3,000 Nato fatalities (including 444 British dead and hundreds more wounded) suffered during the past decade, the US should not be talking to people who have the blood of western soldiers on their hands. However, any chance America had of defeating them on the battlefield and forcing them to submit to its terms, vanished the moment Obama, with David Cameron’s active encouragement, opted for a policy of cut and run, thereby handing the advantage to the Taliban.

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The Philippine government said on Friday it hoped to resume talks with Muslim rebels early next month to kickstart negotiations for a peace settlement that looked to have stalled in recent months.

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NARAL tempts Netroots Nation with pro-choice candy

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In September of 2012, a thirteen-year-old girl from Elwood, Indiana was overpowered and raped by her seventeen-year-old neighbor and became pregnant as a result. Her abuser was found guilty of molesting her and two other child victims and faces sentencing this week. The girl, now fourteen, chose to carry the baby to term and is due in early July. ...

Earlier this month, Planned Parenthood of Indiana weighed in on the tragic Elwood story via their official Facebook page. Planned Parenthood of Indiana posted a link to an article in the Indianapolis Star about the rape in Elwood along with this insightful comment: “As this article notes, heartbreaking stories like this are all too common in Indiana, which ranks second in the number of teen sexual assaults. Comprehensive sex ed can make a difference in preventing sexual assaults.”

 (Sidebar: also to be filed under- SICK, CHILD LURING)


Interns are normally unpaid but this is Gawker, so....

Gawker is the latest media company to be sued by its former interns.

Bloomberg reports that three former Gawker interns filed suit against the company in a Manhattan federal court Friday. They allege that they worked at least 15 hours a week writing, researching, and promoting articles for Gawker's sites for no pay.

(Gracias)