HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam’s President Tran Dai Quang, a former chief of internal security who became one of the most high-profile leaders in the communist-ruled country, died on Friday after an illness, state media said.
Quang’s rise, at a time of growing dissent on social media and challenges to the party’s authority, signaled limits to Vietnam’s liberal agenda, despite a growing openness to social change and sweeping economic reform, experts say.
Quang, 61, died in a military hospital in Hanoi of a "serious illness despite efforts by domestic and international doctors and professors," Vietnam Television said.
He had hosted a reception for China’s Supreme Court chief on Wednesday, state-owned newspaper Vietnam News said.
Quang had been ill for months, said former health minister Nguyen Quoc Trieu, who now oversees healthcare for high-ranking officials.
"He began showing symptoms of illness in June last year and has been treated in Japan six times since," Trieu told Reuters.
"He suffered from a kind of highly virulent virus, for which there has not been any efficient treatment."
[JOURNALDUCAMEROUN] A Saudi court has ruled in favour of a woman who challenged her father’s decision to not let her have a passport, reports said Thursday, stirring an online debate on the contentious male guardianship system.
The conservative kingdom requires women to seek permission from male "guardians" ‐ their fathers, husbands or other male relatives ‐ to travel, get married and do other tasks.
In a rare case, an unnamed 24-year-old woman in western Jeddah city sought to disown her father as her guardian after he refused to let her seek a passport to study abroad, local media including the pro-government Okaz newspaper reported.
A civil court this week ordered the father to obtain a passport for the woman.
The newspaper also said the woman, a university student, had been living with her mother for 10 years and had not seen her father for six years.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2018 00:00 ||
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[Breitbart] Muhammad was the most popular name for baby boys in English regions London, the West Midlands, and Yorkshire and the Humber in 2017, government statistics show, with spelling variations in the name taking it to first place across England and Wales.
Officially Oliver remains the most popular name for newborn boys across the country, with 6,259 born last year. However, it is pushed into second place by Muhammad when slight spelling variations including Mohammed and Mohammad are included, which achieve 6,510 newborns between them.
The one-letter differences in spelling of the name between the three top-100 variants stem from the transliteration of مُحمّد from Arabic into the Latin alphabet, which can be imprecise.
Even alone, Muhammad was the 10th most popular name in England and Wales last year, having slipped two places since 2016 but rising 28 places since 2007.
[JOURNALDUCAMEROUN] One of the media darlings of Brazil’s eccentric presidential race is a buff, bible-thumping reserve fireman who barely registers in the polls and insists God wants him to win.
Introducing Cabo Daciolo, who calls himself a messenger from heaven, says he wants to expel Satan from Congress and, with the campaign for the October 7 vote in the home stretch, has chosen to go on a religious retreat in the mountains for three weeks.
Up there on high, the Rio native says he is fasting and praying for the recovery of the frontrunner in the race, of all people: rightwinger Jair Bolsonaro, who was stabbed two weeks ago while campaigning. The two men are close, personally and ideologically.
Bolsonaro finds himself out front with the most popular presidential hopeful, former president and leftist icon Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, in jail for corruption and disqualified from running.
Yes, it has been that kind of race.
Daciolo rarely appears in public, relying instead on social media. On Facebook he has 264,000 followers.
He likes to begin talks to his disciples with a rousing shout of "Glory be to God."
"I am not a politician. I am an envoy from God," Daciolo, a handsome 42-year-old with an athletic build, said once on Instagram.
"Everyone says, ’Daciolo, you are crazy to jump into this campaign,'" he told the magazine Epoca. "With people, my chances are less than 0.001 percent. But with God they are 100 percent."
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09/21/2018 00:00 ||
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#1
"I am not a politician. I am an envoy from God,"
[DAWN] Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was re-elected as head of his ruling Liberal Democratic Party in a landslide on Thursday, paving the way for up to three more years as the nation’s leader.
The decisive victory may embolden Abe to pursue his long-sought revision to Japan’s US-drafted pacifist constitution, although the hurdles remain high and doing so would carry political risks.
"It’s time to tackle a constitutional revision," Abe said in a victory speech. "Now the fight is over."
Abe said he’s determined to use his last term to pursue his policy goals to "sum up" Japan’s postwar diplomacy to ensure peace in the country.
"Let’s work together to make a new Japan," he said.
Abe, who has been prime minister since December 2012, has cemented control of his party and received support from conservatives for bringing stability and continuity to economic and diplomatic policies. With a third term as party leader, Abe is poised to become Japan’s longest-serving leader in August 2021.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2018 00:00 ||
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[France24] MONTREAL - Fighting global warming will necessarily require taxing carbon emissions, or setting a price on carbon pollution, the World Bank's chief executive said Wednesday at a G7 environment meeting in Canada.
"We believe very strongly that we can send an economic signal by introducing a shadow price for carbon," Kristalina Georgieva told AFP, referring to a method of calculating a price per tonne of carbon that includes the social costs of pollution.
"We are the last generation that can do something to fight climate change but we are also the first generation that has to live with its consequences," she said.
"There is a consensus among scientists and economists that carbon pricing is the best way to signal to economies that the behavior has to change."
According to the Institute for Climate Economics, 46 countries and 26 subnational governments have established a carbon pricing policy as of April 1, either using a carbon tax or a carbon market in which quotas are set for big polluters who then have the option to buy or sell credits from other companies.
These policies added US$30 billion to government coffers, with prices per tonne ranging from US$1 to US$133.
But, according to the OECD, the amount being charged is insufficient to meet climate targets.
The World Bank is "making every major step to integrate climate action into all of our lending policies," Georgieva commented.
#1
And yet the US with no carbon taxes dropped our CO2 emotions more than any other nation. Perhaps the World Bank should be promoting capitalism instead.
I believe this should finally end this freaking circus - now hold the vote.
[Politico] - The Senate Judiciary Committee is giving Christine Blasey Ford attorney’s until the end of the day Friday to work out terms of next week’s proposed hearing on Ford’s allegations that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her, according to a Republican senator.
...
The GOP has been told that Ford does not want to fly from her California home to Washington, according to the Republican senator, which means she may need to drive across the country to make the hearing. Ford has reportedly told friends she is uncomfortable in confined spaces, indicating a physical difficulty in making the trip by plane.
#2
finally Professor Ford says something that makes sense
Posted by: lord garth ||
09/21/2018 16:14 Comments ||
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#3
Christine, you know - who's better - how the Trump/Putin operate.
If you fly, your plane will be shot down by Syrian AA.
If you drive in a car, it will collide with a truck.
In fact, not going, won't save you - they know where you live!
The noise you hear outside
#12
What needs to happen is the FBI should seize all papers and computers at her house, arrest her. Then they need to grab everything her lawyers have, as well as feinstein and arrest them. Mueller showed the way to deal with people attempting to 'influence' the government, let's use their playbook. Oh and ship them off some crappistan for some 'gentle and caring' interrogation rusty drill bits and butane torches. This attempted coup needs to be crushed.
BLUF:
[Breitbart] Planned Parenthood will be running digital ads, participate in door-to-door canvassing, and distribute mailers emphasizing their continued fight for abortion rights and support for Obamacare.
Earlier in September, Planned Parenthood announced a $20 million midterm election ground campaign ‐ reportedly the largest ever organized by the group.
#6
Mother Teresa: "I always say one thing: If a mother can kill her own child, then what is left of the West to be destroyed? It is difficult to explain, but it is just that."
Interview with Time, reproduced at http://romancatholicvocations.blogspot.com/2008/09/interview-with-mother-teresa.html
Posted by: james ||
09/21/2018 23:32 Comments ||
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[Breitbart California] Retiring Rep. Darrel Issa was nominated Wednesday to head a trade agency that a 2017 Trump administration budget blueprint wanted eliminated.
The White House released five presidential nominations, one of which was President Donald Trump’s announcement of intent to nominate Issa to be the director of the United States Trade and Development Agency.
The first budget blueprint President Trump released in March 2017 proposed cutting 19 federal agencies, of which the Trade and Development Agency was one. The stated mission of the agency is to help "companies create U.S. jobs through the export of U.S. goods and services for priority development projects in emerging economies."
"USTDA links U.S. businesses to export opportunities by funding project preparation and partnership building activities that develop sustainable infrastructure and foster economic growth in partner countries," according to the agency’s website.
Issa announced in January that he would not seek re-election as the congressman for California’s 49th congressional district. The district has been highly targeted by Democrats and he held on to the seat by a razor-thin, less than one percent margin in the 2016 election. Republican Board of Equalization Member Diane Harkey and Democrat Mike Levin are campaigning for the seat in the 2018 midterm elections.
[The Hill] A Republican candidate won an upset victory Tuesday night in the runoff for a Texas state Senate seat that had been held by Democrats for more than a decade. Pete Flores (R), a conservative former leader of the state Parks and Wildlife Department’s law enforcement division, won a surprise victory over Democrat Pete Gallego. Watch out! It's a blue ripple!
The runoff election was held following the resignation of the seat's previous holder, state Sen. Carlos Uresti (D), after Uresti was found guilty of charges related to defrauding investors in an oil services company and sentenced to prison.
Uresti previously defeated Flores in 2016 by double digits. Flores won in an eight-way special election encompassing both parties earlier this year, with Gallego trailing him by single digits. Sounds like the Dems killed each other off, leaving the Pub victor. The district would probably still vote for Hillary. More analysis: Anti-abortion said to be a key factor.
"Pete’s strong law enforcement background will be invaluable to the Legislature as we work to combat human trafficking and provide greater protections for our peace officers," Gov. Abbott said. "I look forward to working alongside him next session to build a brighter future for all Texans."
Texas has been looked at by Democrats as a potential target for the party ahead of November's midterm elections, with several Texas Republicans in diverse districts seen by wishful thinkers as vulnerable to Democratic challenges.
Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D) has mounted a high-profile challenge against Sen. Ted Cruz (R) for the state's Senate seat as Democrats attempt to retake both chambers of Congress in November. O'Rourke trailed Cruz by 9 points in a poll of likely voters released Tuesday. His ads are all over prime time in Dallas, compared to one Cruz ad I fast-forwarded through.
Democrats need a net gain of 23 House seats and 2 U.S. Senate seats to retake both chambers in November. But it ain't gonna happen, unless you don't bother to vote!
Posted by: Bobby ||
09/21/2018 00:00 ||
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… runoff for a Texas state Senate seat that had been held by Democrats for more than a decade.
According to the San Antonio Express, the seat has been held by Democrats for 139 years--even before Reconstruction ended in Texas. The loser was a former Democrat Congressman that used to represent the area.
Republicans all over the country should be thanking Beto O'Rourke for sucking up Democrat contributions from all over the country. He pulled in another 9.1m in August. Won't matter. Hispanics won't vote in the numbers necessary for a man that wore a dress in a punk rock band.
[DAWN] A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar will take up next week a petition seeking disqualification of Prime Minister Imran Khan ... aka Taliban Khan, who is the lightweight's lightweight... According to the cause-list issued by the apex court, the petition has been fixed before the bench comprising CJP Nisar, Justice Umar Ata Bandial and Justice Ijazul Ahsan for Monday (Sept 24).
The petition was filed by Barrister Danyal Chaudhry in May last year soon after the apex court had constituted a six-member Joint Investigation Team (JIT) to probe allegations of corruption against then prime minister Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf, then by the courts... , and has been pending before court since then.
The petitioner was seeking a special oath to the JIT members for protecting them from getting influenced by the speeches of Pakistain Tehrik-e-Insaf ...a political party in Pakistan. PTI was founded by former Pakistani cricket captain and philanthropist Imran Khan. The party's slogan is Justice, Humanity and Self Esteem, each of which is open to widely divergent interpretations.... chief Imran Khan.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2018 00:00 ||
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[DAWN] Police have arrested a 40-year-old man on Wednesday for allegedly raping his teenage daughter for four years in western India.
Police officer S.B. Patil said the man was living with his 14-year-old daughter after separating from his wife and two sons seven years ago in Thane city near Mumbai, India's financial capital.
The girl approached her neighbours who helped her in filing a police complaint against her father this week, Patil said.
Police arrested her father on Wednesday, he said.
Rising incidents of brutal sexual assaults against girls and women have galvanized India where such crimes had been quietly accepted in the past.
The government has increased punishment for rape of an adult to 20 years in prison.
India's government also approved the death penalty for people raping children under the age of 12.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2018 00:00 ||
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[DAWN] A 14-year-old girl with disabilities was allegedly raped by a neighbour in Khanewal's Kabirwala tehsil on Wednesday morning.
A first information report has been registered but the suspect has not been incarcerated Please don't kill me! as yet, Station House Officer (SHO) Tayyab Sarfaraz said.
The victim's father told DawnNewsTV that the suspect had raped his daughter in their home within the limits of the Bara Kata cop shoppe with help from an accomplice while he and the victim's mother were working in the fields.
He said that when they returned home, they found the victim unclothed. The daughter, who is unable to speak or walk properly, told her parents what had happened using gestures.
Upon discovery, the suspect expeditiously departed at a goodly pace. When the victim's parents went to his house, they were told he was not there.
When the police later visited the suspect's house, they were also told that he was not there, the father said.
According to the FIR, the victim's father upon returning home caught the suspect in the act while an unidentified individual kept watch. When the suspect realised he had been discovered, he pulled out a pistol and threatened to shoot if anyone came nearer and then expeditiously departed at a goodly pace of the crime.
A Medico-Legal Examination of the victim suggests the possibility that rape may have taken place, but the examination report said that a final opinion on the matter would be provided after the hospital receives final reports from the Punjab 1.) Little Orphan Annie's bodyguard
2.) A province of Pakistain ruled by one of the Sharif brothers
3.) A province of India. It is majority (60 percent) Sikh and Hindoo (37 percent), which means it has relatively few Moslem riots.... Forensic Science Laboratory.
SHO Tayyab Sarfaraz said a search operation for the suspect was underway, and that he would soon be dealt with in accordance with the law.
Locals from the area and the girls relative held a protest, demanding the arrest of the suspect. They alleged that the suspect had previously raped two other girls as well.
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09/21/2018 00:00 ||
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[DAWN] Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... 's Zaman Town police on Thursday claimed to have tossed in the clink Drop the gat, Rocky, or you're a dead 'un! three suspects allegedly involved in several street crimes in Korangi and other areas.
Zaman Town Station House Officer (SHO) Anzar Alam told Dawn that among the three held suspects, one was the son of a serving police officer, and the other two were sons of retired Navy officials.
"They were involved in street crimes and house robberies and were also arrested in the past," claimed the police officer.
However, ars longa, vita brevis... SHO Alam did not corroborate media reports that the suspects were involved in 200 cases registered at different cop shoppes in the metropolis.
He said that the matter was being probed and that their victims had been called to identify the suspects.
Deputy Inspector General (DIG) East Zone Amir Farooqi told Dawn that the three had also been arrested by Aziz Bhatti and New Town police respectively in the recent past when they were found involved in snatching cash from people drawing money from ATMs.
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[DAWN] Malaysia's former leader Najib Razak was hit with 25 new charges of money laundering and abuse of power linked to the 1MDB mega-scandal on Thursday, including allegations that hundreds of millions of dollars were transferred to his personal bank account.
Najib pleaded not guilty "Wudn't me." to all the charges during a court appearance in Kuala Lumpur. Since his shock election defeat in May, he has now been charged with a total of 32 counts related to state fund 1MDB, which he and his cronies allegedly looted.
He faced four abuse of power and 21 money-laundering charges Thursday, in what observers said represented the most serious allegations he has yet faced.
He was accused of receiving illegal transfers to his own accounts from the fund totalling nearly 2.3 billion ringgit ($555 million). The suspicious transfers were a key chapter in the scandal, and Najib had previously insisted they were a donation from Saudi royalty.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2018 00:00 ||
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h/t Instapundit
A prominent Cornell University food researcher resigned after an investigation found he committed academic misconduct, including misreporting data, the school announced Thursday.
Brian Wansink has been removed from all teaching and research positions and will retire at the end of the school year next June, Cornell said in a statement.
Wansink had previously helped update the U.S. dietary guidelines and is known for his research on consumer behavior, which has been widely cited including in articles by The Associated Press.
Cornell says Wansink’s academic misconduct also included "problematic statistical techniques, failure to properly document and preserve research results, and inappropriate authorship."
#1
10,000 years from now as the world wallows in a new stone age, whites will occupy the same niche that elves do now; a mythical race that could work magic.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam’s President Tran Dai Quang, a former chief of internal security who became one of the most high-profile leaders in the communist-ruled country, died on Friday after an illness, state media said.
[Breitbart] Muhammad was the most popular name for baby boys in English regions London, the West Midlands, and Yorkshire and the Humber in 2017, government statistics show, with spelling variations in the name taking it to first place across England and Wales.
[France24] MONTREAL - Fighting global warming will necessarily require taxing carbon emissions, or setting a price on carbon pollution, the World Bank's chief executive said Wednesday at a G7 environment meeting in Canada.
... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf, then by the courts...
[DAWN] Police have arrested a 40-year-old man on Wednesday for allegedly raping his teenage daughter for four years in western India.
[DAWN] A 14-year-old girl with disabilities was allegedly raped by a neighbour in Khanewal's Kabirwala tehsil on Wednesday morning.
[DAWN] 
[DAWN] Malaysia's former leader Najib Razak was hit with 25 new charges of money laundering and abuse of power linked to the 1MDB mega-scandal on Thursday, including allegations that hundreds of millions of dollars were transferred to his personal bank account.
