Professional Racist Richard Spencer Makes His Money Off Cotton Farms and Black Labor

Authentic news,No fake news.

Professional Racist Richard Spencer Makes His Money Off Cotton Farms and Black Labor By Kali Holloway, AlterNet Surprise! White supremacy is a fraud. READ MORE» Noam Chomsky on Trump: The Worst Is Yet to Come By Alexandra Rosenmann, AlterNet This administration's legislative agenda is uniquely cruel, even for the far right. READ MORE» Trump Evangelicals Face Growing Number of 'Hidden Atheists' By Anna Sanford, AlterNet The number of American atheists may be significantly underreported. READ MORE»

White House Window Dressing: The Myth of Ivanka's Influence By Erin Keane, Salon We are finally coming to terms with the reality that Ivanka's influence is mostly a liberal fantasy. READ MORE» How Authoritarian Leaders Get Away with It By Jeremy E. Sherman , AlterNet The list of authoritarian characteristics is pretty universal. READ MORE» Trump Led a ‘Peasant’s Revolt’ and Now Those Voters Are Finding Out They Were Used By Noor Al-Sibai, Raw Story “The triumph of the oligarchs may spell the end of America as we have known it.”  READ MORE» Got OCD? Changing Your Diet Might Help By Robin Scher, AlterNet By being mindful about the food they eat, OCD sufferers can actually reduce their symptoms. READ MORE» Trump's Obsession with Obama—The Derangement Syndrome By Amanda Marcotte, Salon Much of what Donald Trump does is fueled by the desire to uproot or undo Barack Obama's legacy.  READ MORE» Why Washington Went Soft on Gianforte’s Assault By Jefferson Morley, AlterNet Back in the 19th century, the bodyslamming congressman from Montana might have faced a trial on Capitol Hill. READ MORE» Spicer Uses what George Orwell Called Duckspeak By Todd Gitlin, BillMoyers.com A note on the uses of stupefaction. READ MORE» Research Shows the Anti-Trump Resistance Is Diverse, Educated and Many Are New to Activism By Dana R. Fisher, Dawn Marie Dow, Rashawn Ray, The Conversation The demographics of the resistance. READ MORE» How a Federal Anti-Animal Cruelty Statute Will Also Help Human Victims of Violence By Wayne Pacelle, AlterNet The nation is waking up to animal cruelty as an indicator of social pathology.  READ MORE» A Damper on Blue Election Hopes: The Maps That Kill Competition By Eliza Newlin Carney, The American Prospect Faced with GOP-drawn electoral maps that are rigged against them, Democrats are pouring millions into a campaign to fight back. READ MORE» Want to Get 'Back to the Land'? You’re Not Alone By Nancy Matsumoto, YES! Magazine Each generation has had one common desire: to live a more honest, ethical life of self-sufficiency and oneness with nature. READ MORE» The Radical Poetry of Gwendolyn Brooks, the First Black Author to Win a Pulitzer Prize By Angela Jackson, Beacon Press Her poetry portrayed African American life growing up on Chicago's South Side in a complex and vulnerable way. READ MORE»

Mongolia's first university satellite flies into space from U.S.

Authentic news,No fake news.

ULAN BATOR, June 4 (Xinhua) -- The first university satellite of Mongolia which is named after the Mongolian endangered Gobi bear -- Mazaalai -- was sent off into space in the United States on Sunday.

The launch took place at 5:50 am Ulan Bator time on Sunday ((2150 GMT Saturday) from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United States.

The Mongolian CubeSat is a component of the Birds 1 satellites, which also include four other CubeSats belonging to Japan, Nigeria, Ghana and Bangladesh. They were launched from the SpaceX Falcon9 Rocket.

The Mongolian CubeSat is designed, built and owned by a team of young scholars of the National University of Mongolia (NUM) in collaboration with young scholars and students from participating countries including Ghana, Japan, Bangladesh and Nigeria.

It is the first university satellite to be launched in Mongolia. The CubeSats will be launched and docked to the International Space Station where the satellites will be deployed into lower orbit during the last week of June 2017.

The Mazaalai satellite was supposed to be sent to space on June 2, then the flight was postponed due to rain. It's the second satellite of Mongolia after the Mongol Sat-1 was sent into space on April 19.

International community condemns London terrorist attacks

Authentic news,No fake news.

BEIJING, June 4 (Xinhua) -- Leaders and foreign ministries of some countries around the world on Sunday condemned the terrorist attacks in London, expressing condolences to the bereaved families, and pledging solidarity to fight terrorism.

European Union:

"Following latest London incidents with horror. Thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families. Please stay safe," said European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker.

Russia:

"Putin expresses his profound condolences for the British people and condemns the terrorist attack carried out hours ago in London," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov quoted Russian President Vladimir Putin as saying.

U.S.:

U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday offered help to Britain after two attacks in London that have killed seven and injured at least 48.

"Whatever the United States can do to help out in London and the U.K., we will be there -- WE ARE WITH YOU. GOD BLESS!" Trump wrote on Twitter.

He also spoke with British Prime Minister Theresa May to offer condolences and offered Washington's "full support" in "investigating and bringing those responsible for these heinous acts to justice," according to a White House statement.

The country condemned the "cowardly attacks" targeting civilians and stood ready to offer any assistance authorities in Britain may request, the statement said.

France:

"In the face of this new tragedy, France is more than ever at Britain's side. My thoughts go out to the victims and their loved ones," said French President Emmanuel Macron.

Germany:

"Today we are united across borders in horror and mourning, but also in determination," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in a statement.

"For Germany, I reiterate that in the fight against all forms of terrorism, we are resolutely at Britain's side."

"At this time, I am thinking of our British friends and everyone in London with solidarity and compassion," she said.

Australia:

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on Sunday offered his "resolute support" to the British government and the people of London.

"Our prayers and resolute solidarity are today as always with the people of Britain in the face of the shocking terrorist attacks in London," he posted on Twitter.

India:

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday condemned the terror attacks in London.

"Attacks in London are shocking & anguishing. We condemn them. My thoughts are with families of the deceased & prayers with the injured," Modi tweeted.

Pakistan:

Pakistan on Sunday condemned the act of terrorism in London and expressed solidarity with Britain and its people.

"We are deeply shocked and saddened by the horrific act of terrorism in London in which, reportedly, six innocent people have been killed and dozens have sustained injuries," the Pakistan Foreign Ministry said.

"The people and government of Pakistan strongly condemn the terrorist attack and sympathize with the people and the government of the United Kingdom," a Foreign Ministry statement said.

Pakistan expressed deepest condolences to the bereaved families at the loss of their beloved ones and prayed for the speedy recovery of those injured.

"Terrorism is a global menace and hence a common challenge that needs to be tackled with collective effort and cooperation," the statement said.

UAE:

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Sunday condemned the "terrorist crimes" that took place last night in central London, according to the UAE foreign ministry.

"The terrorist crimes of London reaffirm the urgent need for concerted international efforts to counter extremism and terrorism in all its forms, and innocent civilians pay the price for these terrorist crimes," the foreign ministry said.

It called for "joint cooperation and response to this serious scourge that threatens the security and stability of the countries of the world." The UAE also expressed sincere condolences to the families of victims and wished speedy recovery to those injured.

Denmark:

Danish Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen condemned on Sunday the attacks, saying the Danish authorities are monitoring the situation.

"In the midst of grief after the abominable attack in Manchester, Britain has once again been hit by the darkness. Another cowardly attempt to muzzle us has taken place before our eyes," Rasmussen said in a statement.

"The cold-blooded contempt for life leaves us empty of words but with strengthened will."

"They will not change or break us, for our faith in our values and our way of living grows after each cowardly attack."

"I mourn with the victims, their relatives and all Britons. You are not alone," Rasmussen said.

Britain was struck again as unidentified attackers driving a van ran over pedestrians and stabbed people on Saturday night in London, leaving at least seven people killed and 48 injured so far.

BRICS Media Forum to be held in Beijing next week

Authentic news,No fake news.

BEIJING, June 3 (Xinhua) -- The BRICS Media Forum, to be held in Beijing from June 7 to 8, will be attended by the leaders of 25 media groups from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

The attendees will discuss topics including multimedia innovation for media development, as well as media outlets' duty and social responsibility.

The forum next week aims to improve the high-end dialogue platform for the mainstream media of BRICS countries, as well as advance innovation and promote fairness and justice of international public opinion.

During the forum, there will be a BRICS Media Joint Photo Exhibition to show the development and cooperation achievements of BRICS.

Proposed by Xinhua, the forum is jointly organized by the mainstream media groups of BRICS countries.

China, which took over the BRICS presidency this year, will host the Ninth BRICS Summit in September in Xiamen, Fujian Province.

Cambodian vote in elections testing strongman's power

Authentic news,No fake news.

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Cambodians voted in local elections Sunday that could shake longtime ruler Hun Sen's grip on power. Prime Minister Hun Sen has repeatedly warned of civil war if his Cambodian People's Party loses the majority in city and village councils to the main opposition party that made major gains in the last general elections four years ago and claimed it was cheated out of outright victory. The polls could have a major impact on Cambodia's political landscape ahead of 2018 national elections.

(1 of 7) Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen of the Cambodian People's Party shows off his ballot paper next to his wife, Bun Rany, foreground left, before voting in local elections at Takhmua polling station in Kandal province, southeast of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Sunday, June 4, 2017.

June 04, 2017

Hun Sen and his wife were among the early voters Sunday. His government has been accused of using violence against opponents, but in recent years has stalked its foes mostly in courts. After casting his vote, Kem Sokha, leader of the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party, said he expects to win more than 60 percent of the vote. In the last communal elections in 2012, Hun Sen's party received 60 percent compared to the CNRP's 30.6 percent.

On Friday, Hun Sen appealed to political parties to accept the outcome rather than make accusations of irregularities, saying courts can dissolve any party if it challenges the result of the vote. Hun Sen and some of his top ministers have frequently used strong rhetoric leading up to the vote, warning of dire consequences should the opposition win, in what has been seen as an attempt to intimidate voters into supporting him.

The ruling party could take some credit for bringing modest economic growth and stability in a country devastated by the communist Khmer Rouge's regime in the 1970s. Hun Sen left the movement that was responsible for the deaths of some 1.7 million people from starvation, disease and executions before it was toppled in 1979.

This week, Amnesty International accused Cambodia's government of using its grip on the judiciary system to intimidate human rights defenders and political activists. It said in a report that since the 2013 general election, Hun Sen's government has used the courts as a tool to imprison at least 27 prominent opposition officials, human rights defenders and land activists, as well as hundreds of others facing legal cases.

Also early this month, the State Department said the U.S. was urging Cambodia's government to "guarantee a political space free from threats or intimidation" and respect freedom of expression for all its citizens.

In Russian Region, A Soviet-Style 'People's Patrol' For The Cyber Age

Authentic news,No fake news.

State-sanctioned "people's patrols" were a fixture of Soviet life during most of the postwar period, walking the streets with their signature red armbands to guard against public drunkenness and other minor mayhem.

Now a Russian governor is bringing this tradition into the Internet age with a decree -- the first of its kind in the country -- that would set up an official network of vigilante cyber-snitches to ferret out illegal online content.

The order signed by Yevgeny Savchenko, governor of the southern Belgorod region, and enacted last week comes amid what rights watchdogs call Russia's escalating crackdown on Internet speech that has ensnared scores of social-media users and bloggers.

Free-speech advocates say many of these cases -- including a blogger's recent hate-speech conviction in part for a video showing him playing Pokemon Go in a church -- involve constitutionally protected expression and are aimed at stamping out dissent.

The May 22 decree signed by Savchenko, a member of President Vladimir Putin's ruling United Russia party, codifies for the first time in Russia the concept of "cyber-druzhina," co-opting a term for the civilian patrols that buttressed Soviet police and remain active in Russia today -- albeit in smaller numbers.

It places "volunteer" online informants under the control of the regional government and spells out how they should alert authorities about "illegal" online materials, including those deemed by the authorities to be "extremist," drug and gambling "propaganda," child pornography, and content encouraging suicide.

Participants must be at least 18 years old, and they would be tasked with scouring the Internet for such content. They would then report any unlawful findings to Russia's mass-media regulator, Roskomnadzor, as well as social-network administrators and a center backed by the regional government that would decide whether to forward information to law enforcement authorities.

They would also report alleged illegal content to a lobby group known as the Safe Internet League, which is backed by Russian tycoon Konstantin Malofeyev, whom the United States accuses of bankrolling Moscow-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine.

Malofeyev has called for greater Internet censorship in Russia, including banning Facebook. His organization is the most prominent of the self-proclaimed cyber-druzhina groups that have sprouted up across Russia in recent years but do not formally operate under dedicated legal regulation.

Founded in 2011, it claims to have 20,000 volunteers in 32 Russian regions and to have helped the authorities both inside and outside Russia solve "hundreds" of cases involving child pornography and "other crimes against society and the state."

'Professional Informers'

Numerous criminal cases against Russian social-media users have grabbed national headlines in recent years, targeting not only racist and xenophobic content, but also political and religious speech often critical of the Kremlin and its loyalists.

Some cases have veered toward the Kafkaesque, such as one man's recent conviction on a misdemeanor "extremism" charge for posting an article about the dismissal of an earlier charge against him for posting "extremist" content.

Sarkis Darbinyan, head of the Center for the Defense of Digital Rights, a Moscow-based advocacy group, says he believes the Belgorod initiative is aimed at setting up a network of "professional informers" who will receive "crumbs" from regional coffers in exchange for helping authorities squelch dissenting voices.

"I think that even though these so-called volunteers will supposedly work for free, there will be some budget financing," Darbinyan tells RFE/RL.

Aleksandr Verkhovksy, head of the Moscow-based Sova Center rights group, says Russian authorities are in little need of outside assistance to find Internet users to prosecute.

"They don't need a network of informers like these 'druzhinniki,' because they can easily find all of the content that isn't password-protected or in closed groups all by themselves," Verkhovsky tells RFE/RL, using the Russian word to describe members of civilian patrols.

"And they do find it -- in such quantities that the criminal justice system can't even process it all," adds Verkhovsky, a vocal critic of what he calls the authorities' overzealous pursuit of online extremism cases.

The Belgorod governor's office did not respond to a request for comment, and it was not immediately clear when the region would start coordinating the cyberpatrol brigades.

The Washington-based rights group Freedom House, which receives funding from the U.S. government, says Internet freedoms continued to slide in Russia last year, and other international watchdogs have criticized the country's treatment of online speech as well.

Russian officials have dismissed such criticism. Vyacheslav Volodin, an influential Putin ally and current speaker of the lower house of parliament, said last year that the Internet in Russia was "more free than in the United States."

Both Darbinyan and Verkhovsky say the Belgorod initiative could serve as a template for government-backed cyber-druzhina groups in other regions or on a federal level.

"It's an attractive way to provide an accounting of ideological work," Verkhovsky adds.

Nikolai Petrov, an expert on regional politics at Moscow's Higher School of Economics, says the plan could be connected to Savchenko's bid for reelection as governor in September, or to next year's presidential election that is widely expected to hand Putin another six-year term.

Regional heads will likely face pressure to ensure robust voter turnout in the March 2018 presidential election.

"It's a chance for him to demonstrate his usefulness in the region he's been entrusted with," Petrov says of Savchenko.

Why Your Car Battery Died (and How to Get It Going Again)

Authentic news,No fake news.

Why Your Car Battery Died (and How to Get It Going Again) While gasoline is like the food that fuels your car, the battery is the spark of life that actually gets it going in the first place. READ NOW   READ THESE NEXT You Keep Your Own Jump Start in Your Trunk Why Your Car Gauges Stopped Working The Timeless Cure for the Blue Screen of Death Fixing a PC That Keeps Turning Off

Turkey stops about 100 Syrian migrants in 2 days

Authentic news,No fake news.

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The Latest on Europe migration issues (all times local): 7:20 p.m. Turkey's coast guard says it has intercepted nearly 100 Syrian migrants over two days attempting to reach Greece.

(1 of 1) An employee of the International Organization for Migration picks clothes from a fence during a police operation to evacuate an unused terminal building of the old international airport, which is used as a shelter for about 600 refugees and migrants, in Athens, Friday, June 2, 2017. Over 65,000 refugees and migrants are stranded in Greece after a series of Balkan border closures and a European Union deal a year ago with Turkey to stop migrant flows.

June 02, 2017

A statement says 43 migrants were caught early Friday in the western province of Izmir, when a coast guard vessel intercepted a rubber dinghy. In an earlier statement, the coast guard said it stopped 50 Syrian migrants, including children, on Thursday.

The Turkish coast guard's operations are part of a deal struck with the European Union in March 2016 to curb illegal migration to Greece. In the year before the deal, an estimated 1 million people crossed the Aegean Sea to enter the EU. Hundreds drowned.

Turkey is hosting more than 3 million Syrian refugees. According to coast guard statistics, nearly 6,000 migrants have been stopped so far this year.

4:30 p.m.

Germany's top security official says newly passed measures strengthen authorities' ability to identify and deport migrants who may be dangerous or not deserving of asylum.

Parliament's upper house on Friday gave final approval to measures allowing Germany's migration agency to evaluate cellphone data of migrants who arrive without proper documents, and share data with other authorities in situations considered dangerous.

The measures also speed up deportations and allow authorities to monitor dangerous individuals facing deportation with electronic ankle bracelets.

They come in reaction to December's deadly Christmas market attack in Berlin by a rejected asylum-seeker awaiting deportation.

Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere says they make "very clear: those who don't need protection and above all those who deceive, trick, or commit crimes must face the consequences and return home."

9:30 a.m.

Greek police are evacuating hundreds of migrants and refugees from a makeshift shelter set up inside the abandoned buildings of Athens' old airport.

A heavy police presence blocked off all access to the Hellenikon airport site Friday morning as the roughly 600 migrants collected their belongings and began boarding buses to refugee camps elsewhere in Greece.

Police said about 350 people, mainly families, would go to a camp in Thebes, about 70 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Athens, while the remainder of mainly single people would go to Derveni, about 140 kilometers (85 miles) west of the capital.

The evacuation was proceeding smoothly and no violence was reported.

About 60,000 refugees and migrants are in Greece, which was the main entry point for people seeking to enter the European Union last year.

Protests, new climate pledges after Trump's Paris pullout

Authentic news,No fake news.

BRUSSELS (AP) — Environmental campaigners protested Friday against President Donald Trump's decision to pull the United States out of the Paris climate accord, while nations around the world pledged to double down on their efforts to curb global warming in response to the U.S. move.

(1 of 16) The City Hall of Paris, France, illuminated in green following the announcement by US President Donald Trump that the United States will withdraw from the 2015 Paris accord and try to negotiate a new global deal on climate change.

June 02, 2017

In Berlin, Greenpeace activists projected Trump's silhouette onto the side of the U.S. embassy along with the words "#TotalLoser, so sad!" Hours later German Chancellor Angela Merkel summoned reporters for an impromptu statement in which she called Trump's decision "extremely regrettable, and that's putting it very mildly."

But Merkel, whose country hosts this year's international climate summit, said it was now time to look ahead. "This decision can't and won't stop all those of us who feel obliged to protect the planet," she said. "On the contrary. We in Germany, Europe and the world will combine our forces more resolutely than ever to address and successfully tackle challenges for humanity such as climate change."

In Brussels, European Council President Donald Tusk, standing alongside Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, said that the EU and China "are convinced that yesterday's decision by the United States to leave the Paris agreement is a big mistake."

Referring to "the latest unfortunate decisions of the new administration," Tusk said that the EU and China had "demonstrated solidarity with future generations and responsibility for the whole planet" by reaffirming their climate change commitment.

Anticipating a possible U.S. pullout, officials from China and the European Union — two of the world's major polluters — have prepared a declaration reaffirming their commitment to the 2015 Paris Agreement, which is widely considered a landmark deal for bringing together almost all countries under a common goal.

Trump said the United States would be willing to rejoin the accord if it could obtain more favorable terms, but the leaders of France, Germany and Italy said in a joint statement Thursday that the agreement cannot be renegotiated, "since it is a vital instrument for our planet, societies and economics."

Germany's environment minister, Barbara Hendricks, told reporters in Berlin that other countries will fill the leadership vacuum but none will be expected to make up the shortfall in emissions reductions caused by Washington's exit.

Hendricks said the absence of $500 million contributions from the United States to the Green Climate Fund will be felt from 2018, but suggested the gap could be filled with "other financing mechanisms, for example through the World Bank."

The Green Fund is designed to help poor countries adapt to climate change and bypass some of the heavily polluting technologies formerly used by rich countries. Poor countries are predicted to be among the hardest hit by global warming, with some foreseeing tens of millions of "climate refugees" in coming decades.

South Africa called the U.S. pullout "an abdication of global responsibility. "It said the U.S. has a "moral obligation" to support poorer countries in the global effort against climate change. In Tokyo, Japan's environment minister, Koichi Yamamoto, said: "I'm not just disappointed, but also feel anger."

Former Mexican President Vicente Fox also criticized Trump's move, saying on Twitter: "He's declaring war on the planet itself." A top atmospheric scientist at the U.N.'s weather agency said Friday that the "worst-case scenario" caused by the planned U.S. pullout from the Paris climate deal would be a further 0.3-degree Celsius (0.5 Fahrenheit) rise in global temperatures by 2100.

Deon Terblanche of the World Meteorological Organization said the organization hasn't run any new scientific models following Trump's announcement. The Paris accord aims to prevent average temperature around the world from heating up by more than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) before the end of the century, compared to before the start of the industrial age.

Scientists say every fraction of a degree change in average temperatures can lead to noticeable swings in local weather patterns, though consequences are difficult to predict.

Jordans contributed to this report from Berlin. Jamey Keaten in Geneva, Cara Anna in Johannesburg and Raf Casert in Tallinn, Estonia, contributed