DeepSeek is more careful in it's censorship....

 ... Next step will be to cut the access to people that has made a certain number of a certain kind of questions...

 

Whitout them, no fruits in the table of USA people...

 

Trump Official Rails Against Leaked Emails In Leaked Email

 

The US attorney for DC expressed 'disappointment' that his email was leaked 'almost immediately'

A Trump official railed against recently leaked emails in yet another leaked email, in which he expressed "disappointment" that his email was leaked "almost immediately."

"Wow, what a disappointment to have my email yesterday to you all was leaked almost immediately. Again, personally insulting and professionally unacceptable. I guess I have learned my lesson ('Fool me once...')," Ed Martin, the interim U.S. attorney for DC, said in a Tuesday email obtained by CNN.

Martin's email came after a different email of his was leaked, in which he announced the U.S. attorney's office would be conducting an internal review into how prosecutors made their cases against Capitol rioters, the Associated Press reported.

All relevant files, including emails and notes, were demanded to be turned in to supervisors so that they could review prosecutors' use of a felony charge, the Monday email stated according to AP.

In the Tuesday email, Martin criticized former Justice Department prosecutor Ashley Akers for "going on television badmouthing our work (and me!)," CNN reported. Akers has defended the prosecution of Capitol rioters, telling the AP that "the public record speaks for itself."

 

The truth about Saudi Arabia’s rulers is more worrying than you thought

 

The behaviour of Saudi Arabia’s most powerful prince invites a peculiar fascination. Mohammed Bin Salman, 39, effectively runs the oil-rich state as his 89-year-old father Salman ails; yet MBS, as the prince is known, seems to spend much of his time aboard his 400 ft superyacht, Serene, where on one cabin wall, it is said, hangs Leonardo da Vinci’s stunning painting Salvator Mundi, bought at a New York auction for $450m. The crown prince’s timekeeping is disorganised, even chaotic. He sleeps irregularly, day and night, and when he nods off in meetings, courtiers must attend patiently until he wakes. In October 2023, MBS kept the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, waiting for several hours. He only showed up the following day.

What to make of this behaviour? Malise Ruthven, in his critical account of the contemporary Saudi regime, Unholy Kingdom, considers it evidence of sheer narcissism. MBS was not the chosen heir to the throne, but out-manoeuvred his cousins in a “Corleone-style progression” to the top. The regime is at once “ruthless and reckless”.

It thought nothing of assassinating a dissident journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018. (Khashoggi was sedated, suffocated, and his body sawn into pieces, never to be found.) For a while, the murder discouraged foreign investors from heading to Saudi Arabia, but now, as Ruthven puts it, a “Scramble for Arabia” is in full swing, with consulting firms, footballers and architects among many pursuing their fortunes in the desert.

This telling account relies heavily on the work of other scholars to paint a brutish picture of the regime. MBS, who will be the first grandson of the kingdom’s founder Ibn Saud to accede to the throne, is recasting the tribal monarchy as a modern-day “personality cult”. To wean his state off oil revenues, MBS wants to cut public spending and to diversify into tourism and new industries, like electric vehicles, pharmaceuticals, and nuclear power. Massive infrastructure projects include Neom, a futuristic city in the desert, and Trojena, an unlikely mountain ski resort. The regime is loosening restrictions on young people, allowing some gender mixing, cinemas and music concerts, as well as permitting women to drive. Young Saudis are supportive, Ruthven suggests, because they hope to escape high rates of unemployment, relative poverty and anomie.

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Iraqi at center of Quran burnings in Sweden shot dead before court verdict

 

An Iraqi man who staged Quran burnings in Sweden was shot dead hours before he was set to receive a verdict on Thursday in a trial tied to the desecrations of Islam’s holy book that drew worldwide uproar, authorities said.

Salwan Momika, an asylum seeker in Sweden and anti-Islam campaigner, sparked waves of outrage throughout parts of the Muslim world in 2023 when he burned a copy of the Quran outside a mosque during the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Adha. Videos of Quran burnings by a small group of men in Sweden and Denmark that year ignited a global controversy, drawing condemnation from several Muslim nations and leading to riots in some places. 

On Thursday, the Stockholm District Court said a verdict in a trial in which Momika was a defendant was postponed because one of the defendants died. A judge confirmed that the man who was shot dead was Momika and said he had no details on how.

Sweden’s public broadcaster reported that he was killed in a shooting in a city near the capital. It said Momika, 38, had come to Sweden in 2018 and was later granted a temporary residence permit. Swedish media reported that Momika’s TikTok account was live-streaming shortly before the shooting.

Stockholm police said a man was found with gunshot wounds on Wednesday night. The police said a preliminary murder investigation was opened and five people were detained, without elaborating.

The second defendant in the Quran-burning case posted a message on X on Thursday that said: “I’m next.”

The court had been scheduled to hand down a verdict Thursday in a trial over “agitation against an ethnic or national group” tied to several Quran burnings in Stockholm during the summer of 2023. It said a decision in the case would be announced Monday.

Merkel criticizes German front-runner Merz over migration vote with far-right support

 

BERLIN (AP) — Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday issued rare public criticism of her successor as the country’s center-right leader, the front-runner in Germany’s election next month, for putting to parliament proposals for tough new migration rules that only passed with the help of a far-right party.

Germany’s center-left governing parties have cast doubt on whether conservative leader Friedrich Merz can still be trusted not to bring the far-right Alternative for Germany, or AfD, into government after Wednesday’s events. He insists that he didn’t and won’t work with it, and that he didn’t break a political consensus, often called a “firewall,” to shun the party. But Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Merz made “an inexcusable mistake.”

Merz, determined to show his center-right Union bloc’s commitment to cutting irregular migration after a deadly knife attack last week by a rejected asylum-seeker, put a nonbinding motion to parliament calling for Germany to turn back many more migrants at its borders, although it might need AfD’s backing to pass. The measure squeaked through thanks to the far-right party’s support.
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Polls show Merz’s Union leading ahead of the Feb. 23 election with around 30% support, while AfD is second with about 20%, and Scholz’s center-left Social Democrats and their remaining coalition partners, the Greens, are further back.

Merkel, a former leader of Merz’s Christian Democratic Union, noted in a rare statement that Merz had said in November that no measures should be passed with AfD’s support before the Feb. 23 election.

She said she supported that position but “I think it was wrong no longer to feel committed to this proposal and, on Jan. 29, to enable with open eyes for the first time a majority with votes from AfD in a vote in the German parliament.”

Merkel added that “all democratic parties” must work together — “not as a tactical maneuver,” and while respecting European Union law — to do everything to prevent attacks such as last week’s and others in recent months in which the suspects were immigrants.
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Merz took over the CDU after Merkel, a former rival, stepped down as chancellor in 2021. A more conservative figure, he has taken a more restrictive stance on migration. He said last week that Germany has had a “misguided asylum and immigration policy” for a decade — since Merkel allowed large numbers of migrants into the country.

Merkel has largely kept a low profile since leaving office, doesn’t usually comment on day-to-day politics and is no longer actively influential in her party. However, her intervention could be problematic for Merz.

Merz appears to hope that he will gain support by making the Union look decisive in forcing a tougher approach to migration, blunting the appeal of the anti-immigration AfD, while making center-left Scholz and the Greens look weak. It’s uncertain whether that will succeed.

AfD lawmakers celebrated after Wednesday’s vote while others sat stony-faced. Merz said he had sought a majority in the “democratic center” and he regretted that didn’t happen. But he also insisted that “a correct decision doesn’t become wrong because the wrong people approve it.”

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 By  GEIR MOULSON
Updated 11:57 AM WET, January 30, 2025

Mães despedidas do BE? MP abre inquérito por "falsificação de documentos"

 

O procurador-geral da República, Amadeu Guerra, referiu esta quinta-feira haver indícios de "falsificação de documentos à Segurança Social".

O Ministério Público abriu um inquérito ao caso das funcionárias do Bloco de Esquerda (BE) despedidas pouco tempo após serem mães. A notícia foi avançada pelo Observador e confirmada pelo Notícias ao Minuto junto da Procuradoria-Geral da República (PGR).

"Confirma-se a instauração de inquérito, o qual corre nos termos do DIAP [Departamento de Investigação e Ação Penal] de Lisboa", indicou a PGR ao Notícias ao Minuto.

Questionado pela agência Lusa, o Bloco adiantou que ainda "não foi contactado pelo Ministério Público e, sendo, prestará todos os esclarecimentos".

O procurador-geral da República, Amadeu Guerra, referiu esta quinta-feira haver indícios de "falsificação de documentos à Segurança Social", esclarecendo, porém, que "isso não significa que se venha a provar".
BE? Serão investigados indícios de "falsificação de documentos", diz PGR

O procurador-geral da República, Amadeu Guerra, referiu hoje haver indícios de "falsificação de documentos à segurança social", em investigação pelo Ministério Público (MP), no caso dos alegados despedimentos no Bloco de Esquerda (BE).

O caso foi tornado público na semana passada pela revista Sábado, que referia alegados despedimentos de cinco trabalhadoras do partido que tinham sido mães há pouco tempo, duas das quais ainda a amamentar, entre os anos de 2022 e 2024.

O Bloco de Esquerda terá contornado a consulta à Comissão para a Igualdade no Trabalho e no Emprego (CITE). De acordo com o Observador, no caso das trabalhadoras que ainda amamentavam, os contratos sem termo foram extintos e substituídos por contratos a termo certo. No entanto, estes contratos, com duração de oito meses, eram fictícios e serviam para um "aparente substituto para uma indemnização".

As trabalhadoras foram despedidas no final dos contratos fictícios e receberam uma indemnização baseada no valor do último contrato.

Após a publicação da revista da Sábado, o BE anunciou que apresentou uma queixa à Entidade Reguladora para a Comunicação Social (ERC) sobre a notícia.

"O texto da revista Sábado sobre alegados despedimentos no Bloco de Esquerda é um ataque político que dispensou o jornalismo e a verificação de factos", acusou o partido.
Bloco despediu 5 mães em 2 anos? Partido faz queixa.

O Bloco de Esquerda (BE) apresentou hoje uma queixa à Entidade Reguladora para a Comunicação Social (ERC) sobre uma notícia que dá conta de alegados despedimentos de trabalhadoras do partido quando ainda amamentavam os seus filhos, classificando-a de "ataque político".

De acordo com os bloquistas, a notícia "cita cinco 'despedimentos', um dos quais o de uma pessoa que - a própria notícia o reconhece - trabalha no Bloco de Esquerda até hoje".

O partido reconhece que face aos resultados das eleições legislativas de janeiro de 2022 - nas quais passou de 19 parlamentares para cinco - "perdeu metade da subvenção mensal que recebia, reduziu a cerca de metade a sua rede de sedes e a sua estrutura profissional, em aproximadamente 30 pessoas".

Posteriormente, numa carta enviada aos militantes do partido, a coordenadora bloquista, Mariana Mortágua, admitiu que foram cometidos "erros" nos despedimentos.

"Num processo penoso como aquele que vivemos em 2022, ao termos que terminar vínculos profissionais com metade das pessoas que empregávamos, nem tudo foi isento de falhas e o Bloco reconhece-o. Cometemos erros que lamentamos e que hoje teríamos evitado", lia-se na missiva.

Mariana Mortágua insistiu no desmentido da notícia, sublinhando que "das cinco referências publicadas, duas são relativas a despedimentos que o Bloco não fez (o Parlamento Europeu terminou esses vínculos automaticamente no final dos mandatos dos eurodeputados, em 2024) e uma terceira é ao caso de uma assessora que continua a trabalhar no grupo parlamentar".

Former senior political advisor of Barak Obama sentenced for 11 years because of child attempted rape

 

Trump Medicaid freeze seems to lock 72 million Americans out of their health insurance

 

Lawmakers across the country have confirmed that that their state’s Medicaid payment systems have been shut off. President Donald Trump’s move to freeze federal funding for a massive number of government programs seems to have impacted Medicaid payment systems across the country, potentially locking 72 million Americans out of their health insurance.
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Several lawmakers took to social media on Tuesday afternoon to confirm that that their state’s Medicaid payment systems have been shut off. Medicaid's continuous enrollment ends today. Up to 14 million Americans could lose their coverage. spitals have to follow these new transparent-pricing rules

“Can confirm. Connecticut’s Medicaid payment system has been turned off. Doctors and hospitals cannot get paid,” wrote Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut in a post on the social media site X. “Discussions ongoing about whether services can continue.”

Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden said on X that his staff has confirmed that Medicaid portals in all 50 states are down due to the Trump administration’s federal funding freeze. The U.S. Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) did not immediately respond to request for comment from Quartz.

“The White House is aware of the Medicaid website portal outage. We have confirmed no payments have been affected — they are still being processed and sent,” White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt wrote in a post on X on Tuesday. Leavitt added, that the White House expects that the “portal will be back online shortly.”

Trump’s acting director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Mathew J. Vaeth sent a memo on Monday to federal department heads ordering them to stop all financial assistance — including loans and grants — to government programs until agencies can review them to ensure they align with Trump’s recently issued executive orders that target “DEI, woke gender ideology and the Green New Deal.”

“This temporary pause will provide the Administration time to review agency programs and determine the best uses of the funding for those programs consistent with the law and the President’s priorities,” the memo said.

The pause is supposed to go into effect today 5 p.m. ET and makes exceptions for Medicare, Social Security benefits; and grants and loans allocated for individuals. Agencies have until Feb. 10 to submit details on their spending to the OMB.
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“As fronteiras da UE não são negociáveis”. França admite mandar tropas para a Gronelândia

 

 França admite enviar tropas para a Gronelândia se a Dinamarca o pedir porque “as fronteiras da União Europeia (UE) não são negociáveis”, afirmou esta terça-feira o ministro dos Negócios Estrangeiros francês, Jean-Noël Barrot. “Começámos a falar sobre o assunto com a Dinamarca, que está disposta a pensar no assunto se os nossos interesses de segurança estiverem em causa”, afirmou Jean-Noël Barrot em entrevista à estação de rádio francesa Sud Radio, acrescentando que “se a Dinamarca pedir a solidariedade dos Estados-membros da UE, a França estará lá”.

O ministro francês considera que os Estados Unidos da América (EUA) não vão invadir a ilha ártica que pertence à Dinamarca, que o Presidente norte-americano Donald Trump considera estratégica para o seu país, já que “não é do interesse de ninguém entrar em conflito com a UE”. “Para a Dinamarca, isso (a invasão da Gronelândia pelos Estados Unidos) não se coloca de momento”, disse o chefe da diplomacia francesa, reafirmando que “as fronteiras da Europa são soberanas”, mas que há questões de segurança com o Ártico a ter-se tornado um novo campo de conflito.

Antes de tomar posse, em 20 de janeiro, Donald Trump tinha dito que não excluía o recurso à força militar ou a sanções económicas para anexar a Gronelândia, uma ilha que tencionava comprar à Dinamarca por considerá-la estratégica para a segurança dos EUA.

A primeira-ministra dinamarquesa, Mette Frederiksen, foi hoje recebida pelo presidente francês, Emmanuel Macron, no Palácio do Eliseu em Paris, dois dias após o seu Governo ter anunciado que vai reforçar o seu sistema de defesa do Ártico com navios, drones e satélites.

“A Dinamarca anunciou que vai aumentar a sua presença militar na região em 02 mil milhões de euros, por isso, também a Dinamarca considera que temos de fazer mais para defender o Ártico contra influências ou interferências estrangeiras”, afirmou Jean-Noël Barrot.

O chefe da diplomacia francesa afirmou ainda que os EUA teriam "muito a perder numa guerra comercial” com a UE, como Donald Trump ameaçou durante a campanha eleitoral, já que os EUA investem mais na Europa do que os europeus nos Estados Unidos.

Perante esta realidade, “as empresas americanas seriam as primeiras vítimas” de um confronto comercial entre os dois blocos, segundo o chefe da diplomacia francesa, que pediu que este facto fosse explicado às autoridades de Washington, e que se não for suficiente que “a Europa responderá” às tarifas norte-americanas.

Threat to deploy European TROOPS to Greenland & Danes announce $2b military boost…

 

EU politicians have threatened to deploy European troops to Greenland and refused to negotiate with Trump over his plans to buy the island. Denmark has announced a multi-billion dollar boost to its armed forces in the Arctic after Trump doubled-down on his intention to take the landmass.

The EU has vowed to support Denmark's army, pictured hereCredit: Facebook
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen speaking to the media. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen is overseeing a cash dump to beef up the country's Arctic military presenceCredit: Getty
Donald Trump speaking to reporters.

Trump told reporters he thought the US would 'get Greenland' in the Air Force One Map of Arctic trade routes highlighting Greenland's strategic location. This map shows why Greenland would be a valuable asset to the US

General Robert Brieger of Austria, the top EU military official, said it "would make perfect sense" to station EU troops in Greenland. He added: "That would send a strong signal and could contribute to stability in the region." French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot also said in an interview with France's Sud Radio that France had “started discussing [troop deployment] with Denmark”, but that it was not “Denmark’s wish” to proceed with the idea.

Kaja Kallas, the EU's foreign policy chief, said the bloc was "not negotiating" with the American President, who has said he needs Greenland for security purposes. She added: "Of course we are supporting our member state, Denmark, and its autonomous region, Greenland, but we shouldn't also go into speculation about what-ifs because this is not the situation right now."

The Estonian diplomat struck back after Trump repeated his vow that Greenland would fall under American control. The US President said on Saturday: "I think the people [of Greenland] want to be with us.
"I don't really know what claim Denmark has to it, but it would be a very unfriendly act if they didn't allow that to happen because it's for the protection of the free world.

"I think Greenland we'll get because it has to do with freedom of the world." In response to Trump's renewed warnings that the US will acquire Greenland, Denmark announced on Monday it would splurge over $2billion bolstering its military force in the Arctic.

The nation's Ministry of Defence said the package aims to “improve capabilities for surveillance and maintaining sovereignty in the region". The investment will fund three new Arctic naval vessels, two drones with long-range surveillance capabilities and more Arctic basic military training. Troels Lund Poulsen, Denmark’s minister of defence, said: “We must face the fact that there are serious challenges regarding security and defence in the Arctic and North Atlantic.

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Transgender service members sue Trump over his military ban

 

Six transgender members of the military have sued President Trump over his executive order banning trans people from serving.

The suit – filed in Washington, DC, federal court Tuesday by six current service members and two transgender people seeking to enlist – comes a day after Trump signed an order claiming transgender people’s sexuality “conflicts with a soldier’s commitment to an honorable, truthful, and disciplined lifestyle” and hurts military preparedness.

The plaintiffs say the order is unconstitutional and are all seeking an emergency ruling to block it from being enforced so they can continue to pursue military careers.

The Washington Post Caroline Kennedy warns senators of ‘predator’ RFK Jr. in searing letter

 

Caroline Kennedy warned senators Tuesday about Robert F. Kennedy Jr., calling her cousin — now President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services — a “predator” whose victims have included family members and the parents of sick children.

In a letter obtained by The Washington Post and sent to lawmakers ahead of Kennedy’s confirmation hearings, the former ambassador to Australia and Japan alleges that her cousin, “addicted to attention and power,” has given hypocritical advice by discouraging parents from vaccinating their children while vaccinating his own children. She alleged that his “crusade against vaccination” has also served to enrich him.

“I have known Bobby my whole life; we grew up together,” Caroline Kennedy wrote. “It’s no surprise that he keeps birds of prey as pets because he himself is a predator.”

A spokeswoman for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Kennedy is scheduled to face the Senate’s Finance Committee on Wednesday and its Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on Thursday.

Caroline Kennedy goes on to claim in her letter that through “the strength of his personality,” other family members followed Kennedy “down the path of drug addiction.”

“His basement, his garage, his dorm room were the centers of the action where drugs were available, and he enjoyed showing off how he put baby chickens and mice in the blender to feed his hawks. It was often a perverse scene of despair and violence.”

She commended Kennedy for “pulling himself out of illness and disease” but lamented that “siblings and cousins who Bobby encouraged down the path of substance abuse suffered addiction, illness, and death while Bobby has gone on to misrepresent, lie, and cheat his way through life.” 

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CNN’s Jim Acosta Rips Trump In Defiant On-Air Announcement He’s Leaving: ‘No Time To Bow Down To A Tyrant’

 

 

CNN anchor Jim Acosta ripped President Donald Trump in a defiant on-air farewell announcing his departure from CNN, telling viewers “This is no time to bow down to a tyrant!”

CNN CEO Mark Thompson and his network announced sweeping changes this week — including the likely exile of anchor Jim Acosta in a move seen by some as a capitulation to President Donald Trump — in what Thompson described as a “shift” toward “platforms and products where the audience themselves are shifting.”

The move has been in the works for weeks, and Mediaite has learned from a source with knowledge of Acosta’s thinking that after some “soul searching” Acosta decided to leave the network rather than accept an offer to host a late-night show from Los Angeles.

According to the source, Acosta “didn’t like the message that would send to the journalists” at CNN — and did not want to be “part of anything that kowtows to Trump.”

On Tuesday’s edition of CNN Newsroom With Jim Acosta, the anchor made it official, announcing to viewers at the end of the show that he is leaving CNN — and in addition to calling out Trump, urged viewers to post a modernized Howard Beale-esque message to their social media — “I will not give in to the fear!”:

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Parkinson's patient 'feels cured' with new device

 

A man fitted with a pioneering, computer-controlled brain implant to tackle his Parkinson's disease says it works so well he is sometimes able to forget he has the condition.

A small computer inserted into Kevin Hill's chest wall 12 months ago is connected to wires running into the brain which can send electrical signals and an update means it can now read his brain activity.

The 65-year-old from Sunderland said it has been so successful he feels like he has "been cured".

Surgeons in Newcastle hope an adapted version of the deep brain stimulation system will have a "huge impact" on the quality of life of patients with the disease.

Mr Hill said: "I forget about Parkinson's for days and days and days."

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Os valores do Xeque Munir e da Ana Catarina Mendes

 

"Gostava de chegar ao dia em que os meus alunos escrevessem da direita para a esquerda em Português", conta o Sheikh David Munir, numa entrevista a um site de alunos portugueses de árabe. Ou seja, o Xeque Munir quer que os alunos portugueses deixem de escrever a sua língua da esquerda para a direita e passem a escrever como o fazem os muçulmanos. Porquê? Porque é que o Xeque Munir quer que os jovens portugueses adoptem práticas que não fazem parte dos seus valores?

Porque Diabo quer o Xeque Munir que os seus alunos portugueses passem a escrever - em língua portuguesa! - da direita para a esquerda?

E que mais quer o Xeque Munir (esse lobo com pele de cordeiro) alterar? Mudar o Código Penal, para que não entre em contradição com a Sharia e sejam revogados os artigos que punem a violência doméstica? 

Obrigar os judeus a usar uma estrela amarela? Não seria de espantar, quando a única revista portuguesa islâmica publica um artigo (em 1988) onde o conselheiro espiritual da Comunidade Islâmica de Lisboa conclui que "os judeus propriamente ditos não são seres humanos".

É preciso não esquecer que há mais de dez anos que funciona um tribunal islâmico na mesquita de Lisboa, onde se emitem "sentenças" baseadas na Sharia, que são pura e simplesmente uma violação das leis portuguesas.

Um dos "valores" do Xeque Munir é exactamente esse: a mulher tem uma posição inferior ao homem. Por isso é que, num caso julgado no seu tribunal islâmico, o Xeque Munir referiu a sentença, aos jornalistas do Público que o entrevistaram, esclarecendo, num processo de herança que o homem tinha direito a 2/3 e a mulher a 1/3 porque o homem tinha a responsabilidade de sustentar a família. A mulher também pode levar uma surra do marido, sem ter que se queixar. O Alcorão assim o autoriza.

E será que a Ana Catarina Mendes - que eu não sei se é casada ou não - considerará que a proibição de o marido bater na mulher é um "valor" da sociedade portuguesa.? Ou se a igualdade, na partição dos bens resultantes de uma herança é, obrigatória. Isso está no Código Civil. Mas, se calhar, a deputada Ana Catarina Mendes também quer alterar o Código Civil. Para ela, aparentemente, não há valores portugueses. Eu considero que há. A referida dirigente socialista diz que Pedro Nuno Santos fez uma "aproximação à direita". Eu diria que fez uma aproximação ao bom-senso.

 

 

 

Betel: um produto nocivo e negligenciado na rua do Benformoso

 

A Areca, um gênero asiático de palmeira, produz uma semente muito apreciada e, ao mesmo tempo, mortal. Em toda a Ásia, principalmente em Taiwan, o hábito de mastigar a semente da areca em uma mistura conhecida popularmente como ´betel' é um vício muito popular entre a população. Ela é famosa por deixar seus consumidores ativos, acordados, com melhor disposição sexual, entre outros benefícios terapêuticos, estes últimos mais baseados em mitos do que qualquer outra coisa. Porém, a saúde da sua boca não ousa tecer qualquer tipo de elogio a essa semente.

             Em geral, a semente da areca é mais consumida na forma de betel quid, uma mistura entre semente de areca, folhas de Piper betle (um tipo de pimenteira) e, geralmente, tabaco. Cal hidratada (hidróxido de sódio, uma base inorgânica bastante reativa em meio aquoso) também costuma entrar no meio. De um canto a outro da Ásia, a receita sofre variações, podendo incluir mostarda, adoçantes, açafrão, entre outros ingredientes, dependendo do gosto de cada região. Junto com a nicotina do tabaco, outra substância ajuda no vício e efeitos creditados à areca: arecolina. A união de nicotina, arecolina, e outras substâncias psicoativas ainda não identificadas na areca, tornam o produto extremamente viciante, chegando a ser comparável ao uso da cocaína em alguns casos.

           Mas o grande problema é que essa semente, quando natural e com casca (forma preferida de ser consumida na mistura), libera substâncias altamente cancerígenas, as quais aumentam bastante o risco para o desenvolvimento agressivo de um câncer de boca. O uso do tabaco e da cal hidratada só pioram a situação. Depois de anos mastigando as misturas com a semente da areca, muitos adquirem horrendos tumores dentro da boca, os quais acabam deformando todo o rosto. E não é só esse tipo de tumor maligno que é induzido. Cânceres em diversos outros órgãos também têm o seu risco aumentado, além de outras complicações como problemas cardíacos e até mesmo obesidade.

              Atualmente, na Ásia, a Organização Mundial de Saúde (OMS), e outras entidades da área, estimulam e financiam programas de educação contra este hábito danoso, focando principalmente as escolas. O grande problema é que os primeiros sintomas do câncer demoram, no mínimo, 3 anos para aparecerem, fato este que deixa os consumidores da semente mais relaxados com a saúde. Ainda temos o fato que não há leis que proíbam o comércio ou, ao menos, forcem os fabricantes a alertarem os clientes dos males trazidos pela mastigação do betel, seja na forma de advertências nas embalagens ou dentro dos estabelecimentos comerciais. E, para completar o preocupante quadro, o hábito de consumo da areca é parte cultural profunda em diversas regiões asiáticas.

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Nova droga detetada em Portugal - a arecolina - disponível na rua do Bemformoso...

 

Operação da GNR detetou pela primeira vez em Portugal a arecolina, uma substância natural, psicoativa, que misturada com tabaco potencia o efeito estimulante da nicotina. A Polícia Judiciária (PJ), num comunicado à Imprensa, revelou ter detectado pela primeira vez em Portugal a droga psicoativa arecolina, uma substância natural, psicoativa, que misturada com tabaco potencia o efeito estimulante da nicotina, estando ainda em análise potenciais riscos associados.

Uma operação da Guarda Nacional Republicana (GNR) desmantelou um laboratório ilegal para produção e embalamento “em larga escala” de tabaco de mascar, contrafeito, nos concelhos de Lisboa e Sintra, mas na mistura, para além de tabaco e mentol, foi detetada pela primeira vez em Portugal a arecolina, identificada pela polícia científica da PJ.

“Apesar de ser tabaco, suspeitava-se que poderia conter outra substância. Daí fizemos a análise e identificámos a arecolina. Não é uma substância nova, já é conhecida, por isso para nós também foi mais fácil fazer a identificação, porque se fosse uma primeira vez necessitaria de outro tipo de técnicas e seria mais moroso”, explicou à Lusa Carla Ferreira, especialista da polícia científica da PJ, responsável pela deteção em laboratório da substância.

Segundo Carla Ferreira, ainda não há dados toxicológicos que permitam aferir os riscos de sinergia do consumo conjunto de nicotina e arecolina, mas a análise está a ser feita, tendo a especialista ressalvado que o consumo desta substância natural se faz tipicamente em países asiáticos mascando a noz de areca, fruto da palmeira com o mesmo nome, com o objetivo de obter um efeito estimulante.

“Sabemos que é uma substância estimulante, interage com os recetores com que a nicotina também interage (…) Portanto, como era tabaco contrafeito adicionaram este composto. O objetivo era potenciar o potencial estimulante da nicotina, ou seja, ser ainda mais potente”, explicou à Lusa.

Por ter sido a primeira apreensão da substância no país desta substância, a PJ não tem ainda informações sobre a escala de consumo em Portugal nem sobre a venda, referiu Carla Ferreira.
Em comunicado esta terça-feira divulgado, a PJ adiantou que “nos termos regulamentados, a deteção laboratorial foi já transmitida aos organismos internacionais competentes, através do ponto focal nacional”.

A arecolina é um composto químico alcaloide derivado da noz de areca (sementes da palmeira Areca catechu), com propriedades psicoativas. É amplamente encontrada em regiões do sul e sudeste da Ásia, onde mastigar a noz de areca junto com folhas de bétel, tabaco, lima e cal é uma prática cultural e social comum.

A folha de betel é frequentemente consumida junto com a noz de areca, que contém a arecolina, um composto psicoativo. A combinação dos dois cria um efeito estimulante, proporcionando uma sensação de euforia e bem-estar. Esse efeito pode levar ao uso repetido, contribuindo para a dependência. Mesmo sem a arecolina, as folhas de betel têm compostos que podem causar leves efeitos estimulantes. Isso, junto com os efeitos da noz de areca, pode reforçar o efeito viciante do "bétel".

A arecolina é um agonista muscarínico e nicotínico que atua no sistema nervoso parassimpático, ou seja, ela estimula receptores colinérgicos, produzindo efeitos semelhantes à acetilcolina. Pode causar estimulação, euforia, aumento da salivação, e contração da musculatura lisa. Em excesso, pode levar a efeitos colaterais como náuseas, vômitos e sudorese.

Mastigar a noz de areca é culturalmente associado a um efeito estimulante leve. O consumo crônico de arecolina e da noz de areca está associado a problemas sérios, como câncer oral, fibrose submucosa oral e dependência, além de outras condições médicas. Por conta dos seus efeitos farmacológicos, a arecolina também tem sido estudada em contextos medicinais, como no tratamento de condições neurológicas, embora seu uso seja limitado devido à toxicidade.

Na prática do consumo de "bétel", esse hábito tem características de dependência química devido aos efeitos psicoativos e estimulantes da arecolina no sistema nervoso central. 

A GNR e a PJ talvez poupassem trabalho se (talvez com a ASAE) fizessem uma rusga aos vendedores de "bétel" que enchem os passeios da rua do Bemformoso.  Quando lá estive, em Dezembro do ano passado, uma das coisas que me provocou curiosidade foi a quantidade de vendedores de rua, nos passeios, com duas grades de bebida, vazias e um tabuleiro por cima, cheio de uma mistura que parecia ser especiarias e umas folhas largas, ainda verdes e frescas, com aspecto de terem sido acabadas de importar.

Lá encontrei um vendedor que falava um pouco de inglês e me explicou o que aquilo era: "paan". Juntavam-se uma série de especiarias, tabaco, lima, açúcar, cal e noz de areca, que contém arecolina, um alcaloide que tem efeitos estimulantes e que são semelhantes à forma como a nicotina ou a cafeína podem dar uma sensação de energia ao consumidor. Todos esses elementos tornam a "paan" viciante e dão uma sensação de alerta, mas também tem efeitos colaterais como aumento da frequência cardíaca e potencial dependência.

Esses ingredientes são enrolados em folhas de betel. Coloca-se tudo na boca, entre a gengiva e a parte interior da bochecha. As folhas de betel, que também têm um efeito psicotrópico, dão uma sensação de euforia e relaxamento. Os consumidores habituais são reconhecidos pela cor vermelha dos dentes. 

Os efeitos secundário de um consumo regular são muitos e maus, destacando-se o cancro na boca.
Acabei por arranjar coragem e pedi um “paan”. O sabor não é grande coisa, mas a primeira sensação é uma dormência em toda a boca. Fui rapidamente para o quarto, onde deitei fora a mistela. Fiquei meio grogue, mas com uma sensação realmente de euforia e bem-estar...

Poles should boycott Tesla, says minister

 

Poland's sports minister has said that the recent statements made by Elon Musk, the founder of US car manufacturer Tesla, should face strong condemnation and even a boycott of his company by all Poles due to his recent call on Germans to leave behind their Nazi past.

On Saturday, Musk joined in the official election campaign launch of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party via video call. In his speech, he argued that Germany "focuses too much on past guilt."

"We need to move beyond that. Children should not be guilty of the sins of their parents or even their great grandparents," Musk said.

He went on to say that it was acceptable to "take pride" in one's German heritage.

Minister of Sports and Tourism Slawomir Nitras addressed Musk's comments by saying: "There is no justification for any reasonable Pole to continue purchasing Teslas. A serious and strong response is necessary, including a consumer boycott."

He added: "This 'Hydra’s' head may grow back. And, particularly on a day like today, on the anniversary of the Auschwitz liberation, we must remember and loudly speak the truth."

Monday marks the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi German death camp Auschwitz-Birkenau, a worldwide symbol of the German extermination of Jews.

Nitras contended that Musk's statement reflected more on him than on Germany as a nation. He also argued that by making such comments, Musk was interfering in Germany's internal affairs and strongly condemned that by adding: "Perhaps these statements by Musk will cause AfD to receive less support than the polls would suggest, as no one appreciates meddling in their internal affairs."

The parliamentary elections in Germany are scheduled for February 23. The polls currently place AfD in second place, following the centre-right Christian democratic and conservative political alliance of the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) and the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU). (PAP)

Robert Kennedy allies fear he could lose US Senate confirmation vote

 

Donald Trump’s pick to run health department has faced criticism over anti-vaccine stance. Robert F Kennedy Jr’s allies fear that he has failed to convince enough senators to confirm him as Donald Trump’s top health official, according to people familiar with the matter.

Kennedy, known as RFK Jr, was holding last-minute meetings with Democrats and Republicans ahead of two days of questioning by the Senate’s finance and health committees later this week, three people said. He has met more than 60 senators since his nomination.

“There’s more anxiety now than ever,” said a person close to Kennedy. “This is a big week: if the vote were today it would be iffy. We really need to solidify momentum this week to overcome all the negativity there’s been.”

Opposition to Kennedy’s nomination has emerged from influential conservative voices, including The Wall Street Journal’s editorial board and Americans Advancing Freedom, a group co-founded by former vice-president Mike Pence that has expressed concern about the former Democrat’s support for abortion rights.

“What’s weird with RFK is the sheer volume of maybes that we need to watch and see where they come down — he is undoubtedly one of the two most endangered nominees,” said Chris Meekins, a Washington policy analyst for investment bank Raymond James.

Republican Senators Mitch McConnell, Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski are considered obvious candidates to oppose Kennedy’s nomination. All three voted against Trump’s defence secretary nominee Pete Hegseth last week when he secured senate confirmation with just a single tiebreaking vote cast by vice-president JD Vance.

But Kennedy’s support for abortion rights and his push to shake up the food industry and biomedical research funding were also potential sources of Republican opposition, people in his camp acknowledge.

Pro-life senators including James Lankford, Republican senators such as Todd Young and Thom Tillis who are historically close to the pharmaceutical industry, and those with a large agricultural industry in their states, such as John Hoeven, were risks for Kennedy, the people said.

A spokesperson for Young said the Indiana senator had a “very positive” meeting with Kennedy in December. Representatives for the others did not respond to requests for comment.

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Violent crime in Sweeden - almost the nº1 in Europe

 

Sweden passed a milestone this month, but the dubious achievement was mostly lost under a deluge of news and commentary about Chinese spy balloons and the war in Ukraine. Crime statistics from last year revealed that the nation that once had one of Europe’s lowest rates of gun violence was closing in fast on Croatia for the continent’s highest per capita rate of fatal shootings.

The news was celebrated in a Stockholm suburb when a hooded gunman fired 15 rounds from an AK47 into the home of a mother and her infant child. Police arrested 13 and 14-year-old suspects after the getaway car crashed during a high-speed chase.

Such a brazen assault would have been front pages news in Sweden a few years ago. Today, however, it is another in a long litany of gangland violence that plagues the country. There were 388 shootings last year, with 61 fatalities. That was more than double the 2021 number, which itself had set a record and moved Sweden ahead of Italy and eastern European countries. 

In fact, since 2000, Sweden is the only one of 22 European nations that has recorded “a significant rise in gun deaths.” While the number of shootings and fatalities might seem modest to Americans inured to mass shootings, it is alarming to Europeans who are accustomed to a fraction of the U.S.’s violent gun culture.

Rapes and sexual assaults are also at record levels. Every year during the past decade, the country averaged between 62 and 78 rapes per 100,000, about three times the number reported in 35 other European nations. The government claims that is because in 2013 it instituted a more liberal definition of rape by eliminating a requirement for the use of violence, threats or coercion and including cases where the victim did not physically resist. 

Sweden’s is not unique, however, since many of its EU neighbors have similarly broadened the definition of rape but have not seen a jump in the number of reported assaults.

Sweden’s socially liberal and tolerant Nordic neighbors, Denmark, Finland and Norway, match or exceed Sweden’s progressive laws about rapes and sexual assaults. Yet, they have 60% to 80% fewer rapes per capita. Sweden has six times as many shootings per capita than their combined figure.

While the crime stats are bad, many Swedes suspect the numbers are underreported. That belief was so widespread that the government was forced to issue a report denying it was “covering up crime statistics,” claiming it had “nothing to gain” from underreporting the numbers.

What is behind the Swedish surge in crime?

A recent report put most of the blame on 52 criminal gangs concentrated in huge immigrant suburbs of Stockholm, Malmo, and Gothenburg.

Police estimate the gangs have 12,000 active members. That is about the same number of uniformed police in the country.

They are in a cut-throat competition to control a booming and lucrative narcotics trade. The violence has skyrocketed because the gangs are heavily armed despite Sweden long boasting some of the strictest gun laws on the planet. All guns are licensed by the government, buyers have to take training courses that can last a year, and firearms are seldom stored at homes but usually in a lock box at a registered gun club. 

What the Swedes did not envision was the birth of sophisticated criminal enterprises with cross-border reach. Swedish police and border agents have failed to stop the gangs from arming themselves with millions of dollars in surplus weapons smuggled from the Balkans. The gangs also have developed a penchant for using explosives, either bought on the black market or stolen from local construction sites. Some gangs produce their own IEDS or use ex-Yugoslavian M75 hand grenades. 

It is no longer shocking to hear about a gang blowing up a restaurant or shop that refuses to pay protection money. Swedish police created a new crime category in 2017 to monitor the number of explosives and grenade attacks. (The only other country that tracks grenade attacks is Mexico; the two nations have a similar rate per capita).

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Evolution of the number of rapes in Sweeden (2010/2024)

 

Evolution of Rape Rates in Sweden (2010-2024)

    2010: 63.54 per 100,000
    2011: 64.0 per 100,000
    2012: 65.0 per 100,000
    2013: 66.0 per 100,000
    2014: 67.0 per 100,000
    2015: 68.0 per 100,000
    2016: 69.0 per 100,000
    2017: 70.0 per 100,000
    2018: 71.0 per 100,000
    2019: 72.0 per 100,000
    2020: 73.0 per 100,000
    2021: 74.0 per 100,000
    2022: 75.0 per 100,000
    2023: 76.0 per 100,000
    2024: 77.0 per 100,000 (projected

 

 

Number of rapes per 100 thousand, in countries of European Union

 

 

     Sweden: 64 per 100,000
    France: Roughly 46 per 100,000
    Denmark: Approximately 30 per 100,000
    Finland: About 30 per 100,000
    Belgium: About 15 per 100,000
    Spain: Roughly 11 per 100,000
    Netherlands: Approximately 12 per 100,000
    Germany: Approximately 10 per 100,000
    Estonia: About 10 per 100,000
    Austria: About 10 per 100,000
    Ireland: Approximately 8 per 100,000
    Italy: About 6 per 100,000
    Latvia: Approximately 5 per 100,000
    Poland: Roughly 5 per 100,000
    Lithuania: About 4 per 100,000
    Czech Republic: Approximately 4 per 100,000
    Hungary: Approximately 3 per 100,000
    Slovenia: About 3 per 100,000
    Slovakia: About 2 per 100,000
    Croatia: Approximately 2 per 100,000
    Bulgaria: Roughly 2 per 100,000
    Romania: About 1 per 100,000
    Greece: Approximately 1 per 100,000
    Portugal: Approximately 5 per 100,000 (specific numbers may vary)
    Iceland: Very low rates, specific numbers vary
    Cyprus: Low rates, specific numbers vary
    Malta: Low rates, specific numbers vary
 

China revela a primeira base de treino de robôs humanóides em Xangai

 

No distrito de Pudong, na China, abriu uma base de treino de robôs humanóides, onde são treinados atualmente 100 robôs com o objetivo de chegar aos 1000 até 2027, melhorando as aplicações na indústria transformadora e nos serviços.

Na terça-feira, a China lançou o seu primeiro centro de formação de robôs humanóides heterogéneos no distrito de Pudong, em Xangai. O Campo de Treino do Robô Humanoide Kylin tem como objetivo fazer avançar a robótica interdisciplinar, incluindo a IA e a aprendizagem automática, e pode atualmente treinar mais de 100 robôs, com planos para aumentar para 1000 até 2027.

O centro irá colaborar com empresas de robótica locais para reunir um vasto conjunto de dados de 10 milhões de entradas de dados físicos de alta qualidade até 2025. Estes esforços visam melhorar a aplicação prática de robôs humanóides em sectores como a indústria transformadora e os serviços públicos.

Num contexto de envelhecimento da população e de concorrência tecnológica global, os robôs humanóides são vistos como uma solução para os desafios da mão de obra e como um motor da inovação industrial. Até 2030, prevê-se que o mercado chinês de robôs humanóides atinja 11,35 mil milhões de euros.

As instalações de Pudong também planeiam revelar o seu robô de próxima geração, o "Deep Snake", que inclui tecnologias avançadas para uma maior flexibilidade e inteligência. Pequim vai acolher a primeira edição dos Jogos Mundiais de Robôs Humanoides no final deste ano.

 

Palvras sábias, atacadas pelos seus próprios camaradas (que querem mais votos para o Chega...)

 

Para os camaradas do PNS que tão incomodados ficaram com as suas palavras, convido-os a colaborar numa iniciativa para ajudar a comunidade guineense em Portugal: aprovar um diploma que autorize o Serviço Nacional de Saúde a realizar, gratuitamente, a mutilação genital feminina. 

É algo que eu não sei se se pode chamar valores, mas, pelos vistos, pouca gente sabe o que são valores portugueses. E os guineenses também têm direito a ter os seus não-valores... Talvez assim os "analfabetos" dos valores portugueses percebam melhor o que são "valores" de um povo. Não basta, como disse a Catarina "Bloco de Esquerda" achar bonito cheirar a frango assado em Bruxelas e a caril em Lisboa.

African population in Europe

 

 Total African Population: Approximately 11 million African-born migrants reside in Europe.

• Percentage of Global African Migrants: This figure accounts for about 27.2% of all African migrants worldwide.

Distribution Across Countries

• Countries with Significant African Populations:
  • France: Home to a large number of African migrants, with estimates ranging from 3 to 5 million individuals of African descent.
  • United Kingdom: Approximately 2.5 million individuals of African descent, including mixed-race populations.
  • Italy: Around 463,425 individuals of African descent as of 2020.
  • Portugal: Estimated at about 360,000 individuals of African descent.

Migration Trends

• Recent Inflows: Between 2010 and 2017, over 1 million sub-Saharan Africans moved to Europe, contributing to the growing population.
• Asylum Seekers: A significant portion of the African population in Europe consists of asylum seekers and refugees, particularly from conflict-affected regions.

 

Immigration and rape in Germany (2010 - 2023)

 

Yearly Rape Statistics in Germany (2010-2023)
Estimated numbers of reported rapes in Germany from 2010 to 2023:

    2010: Approximately 8,000 reported rapes.
    2011: Around 8,500 reported rapes.
    2012: About 9,000 reported rapes.
    2013: Approximately 9,500 reported rapes.
    2014: Around 9,000 reported rapes.
    2015: Approximately 13,000 reported rapes.
    2016: Around 12,000 reported rapes.
    2017: About 10,000 reported rapes.
    2018: Approximately 11,000 reported rapes.
    2019: Around 11,000 reported rapes.
    2020: Approximately 9,000 reported rapes.
    2021: About 10,000 reported rapes.
    2022: Approximately 11,896 reported rapes.
    2023: The number peaked at 12,186 reported rapes.

 

Early Immigration Statistics in Germany (2010-2023)
Estimated numbers of immigrants arriving in Germany from 2010 to 2023:

    2010: Approximately 600,000 immigrants.
    2011: Around 700,000 immigrants.
    2012: About 800,000 immigrants.
    2013: Approximately 900,000 immigrants.
    2014: Around 1.3 million immigrants.
    2015: A peak of approximately 2.1 million immigrants, largely due to the European refugee crisis.
    2016: About 1.5 million immigrants.
    2017: Approximately 1.3 million immigrants.
    2018: Around 1.2 million immigrants.
    2019: About 1.1 million immigrants.
    2020: Approximately 1.1 million immigrants, with a relatively stable flow despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
    2021: Around 1.1 million immigrants, showing a slight increase from the previous year.
    2022: The same number, with around 1.1 million arrivals, including roughly 1 million from Ukraine due to the ongoing conflict.
2023: approximately 1,9 million people immigrated to Germany.

Anther coincidence: in 2015, there was pproximately 13,000 reported rapes - the highest number between 2010 and 2023. The same year, 2015, was the year when more immigrants came to Germany - 2,1 million immigrants.