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mahatmakanejeeves's JournalCash-strapped Taliban selling tickets to ruins of Buddhas it blew up
Cash-strapped Taliban selling tickets to ruins of Buddhas it blew up
By Rick Noack
June 15, 2023 at 2:00 a.m. EDT
A tattered Taliban flag flies from the roof of a hotel in Bamian, Afghanistan. The recesses that once sheltered giant figures of the Buddha can be seen in the cliff face beyond. (Elise Blanchard for The Washington Post)
BAMIAN, Afghanistan The three Taliban soldiers gazed down at the gaping hole in the 125-foot cliff where one of Afghanistans two great Buddhas once stood and wondered aloud who was to blame for its destruction 22 years ago. ... This is the identity of our country, said Kheyal Mohammad, 44, wearing a camouflage cap as he bent over a railing at the top of the giant cavity. It shouldnt have been bombed. ... The soldiers, taking a rare day off from military training to visit the site, agreed that the people who had destroyed the work were careless, and it should be rebuilt. If God wills, Mohammad exclaimed.
In 2001, Taliban founder Mohammad Omar declared the Buddhas false gods and announced plans to destroy them. Ignoring pleas from around the world, Taliban fighters detonated explosives and fired antiaircraft guns to smash the immense sixth-century reliefs to pieces. ... The attack on the treasured ancient monument stunned the international community and cemented the Talibans reputation as uncompromising extremists.
A young guard sits last month near the cavity where one of the two 1,500-year-old Buddhas stood before the Taliban destroyed them in 2001. (Elise Blanchard for The Washington Post)
Taliban soldiers visit the site in May. (Elise Blanchard for The Washington Post)
The soldiers survey the site from the top of one of the recesses. (Elise Blanchard for The Washington Post)
With the group now back in power, Bamian holds new symbolic and economic importance to the cash-strapped region: Officials see the Buddha remnants as a potentially lucrative source of revenue and are working to draw tourism around the site. They suggest their efforts are not only a gesture to archaeologists, but also reflect a regime thats more pragmatic now than when it first ruled from 1996 to 2001.
Bamian and the Buddhas in particular are of great importance to our government, just as they are to the world, Atiqullah Azizi, the Talibans deputy culture minister, said in an interview. He said more than 1,000 guards have been assigned to protect cultural heritage across Afghanistan, restricting access and overseeing ticket sales. Staffers at Kabuls national museum were surprised last month to see senior Taliban officials at the inauguration of a prominent museum section dedicated to Buddhist artifacts.
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Pamela Constable in Islamabad, Pakistan, contributed to this report.
By Rick Noack
Rick Noack is a Paris-based correspondent covering France for The Washington Post. Previously, he was a foreign affairs reporter for The Post based in Berlin. He also worked for The Post from Washington, Britain, Australia and New Zealand. Twitter https://twitter.com/rick_n
Documents show how conservative doctors influenced abortion, trans rights
By Lauren Weber, Caitlin Gilbert and Taylor Lorenz
June 15, 2023 at 6:00 a.m. EDT
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More than 10,000 confidential files from the American College of Pediatricians were exposed after the organization left the contents of its Google Drive publicly accessible. (Washington Post illustration)
A small group of conservative doctors has sought to shape the nations most contentious policies on abortion and transgender rights by promoting views rejected by the medical establishment as scientific fact, according to documents reviewed by The Washington Post that describe the groups internal strategies. ... The records show that after long struggling to attract members, the American College of Pediatricians gained outsize political influence in recent years, primarily by using conservative media as a megaphone in its quest to position the group as a reputable source of information.
The organization has successfully lobbied since 2021 for laws in more than a half-dozen states that ban gender-affirming care for transgender youths, with its representatives testifying before state legislatures against the guidelines recommended by mainstream medical groups, according to its records. It gained further national prominence this year as one of the plaintiffs in the federal lawsuit to limit access to mifepristone, a key abortion drug.
Despite efforts to invoke the credibility of the medical profession, the American College of Pediatricians is viewed with skepticism by the medical establishment. For years, the group has presented statistics and talking points to state legislators, public school officials and the American public as settled science while internal documents emphasize how religion and morality influence its positions. Meeting minutes from 2021 describe how the organization worked with religious groups to affect the idea makers through the high courts, professional literature, and legislatures.
It promotes conversion therapy, a discredited practice intended to change the sexual orientation or gender identity of LGBTQ people that most medical societies warn can result in harm. (1) Pediatric experts deemed a June 2022 report crafted by the group that undergirds a new Florida policy banning transgender care for Medicaid recipients as unscientific. Francis Collins, former longtime director of the National Institutes of Health, accused the group in 2010 of distorting his research to make a point against homosexuality.
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Kevin Crowe contributed to this report.
Gift Article
https://wapo.st/462Z2t4
By Lauren Weber
Lauren Weber joined The Washington Post in 2023 as an accountability reporter focused on the forces promoting scientific and medical disinformation. She previously investigated the decimated public health system and covid disparities for Kaiser Health News. Twitter https://twitter.com/LaurenWeberHP
By Caitlin Gilbert
Caitlin Gilbert is a Well+Being data reporter at The Washington Post, where she uses data analysis and statistics to report stories. Before joining The Post, she worked as a U.S.-based data journalist at the Financial Times. Twitter https://twitter.com/caitlinsgilbert
By Taylor Lorenz
Taylor Lorenz is a columnist at The Washington Post covering technology and online culture. Before joining The Post, she was a technology reporter for the New York Times' business section. She was also previously a technology reporter at the Atlantic and the Daily Beast. Twitter https://twitter.com/TaylorLorenz
(1) https://web.archive.org/web/20221001022932/https://factsaboutyouth.com/change-therapy/change-therapy/
On June 14, 2017, there was a shooting during practice for a congressional baseball game.
I completely forgot the anniversary. I had taken the day off. It happened not far away from me. The shooter and I used to show up at the same library. I shop at the Aldi across the street.
There were many threads at DU that day and on the days following.
https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=archives&date=2017x6x14
Wed Jun 14, 2017, 08:01 AM: Reports: 'Multiple shooting' at congressional baseball game practice field
Montana calls UN climate report "hearsay" at landmark youth-led climate trial
Montana calls UN climate report hearsay at landmark youth-led climate trial
Official: Montanas emissions are simply too minuscule to make any difference."
ASHLEY BELANGER - 6/13/2023, 4:00 PM
Yesterday, a landmark climate trial kicked off in Montana, with 16 young residents demanding that the state be ordered to do more to protect residents' constitutional rights by reducing emissions and tossing out state policies promoting the fossil fuels industry.
The trial comes shortly after the state legislature passed a new law that "explicitly prohibits" greenhouse gas emissions and climate effects to be considered in state agencies' environmental impact reviews, The Wall Street Journal reported. Critics argue that means that new power plants or factories can be developed in Montana without considering climate impacts.
A victory for the young plaintiffs could potentially set important legal precedent for how courts can hold states accountable for climate inaction. The trial will take place over the next two weeks, ending on June 23. It will soon be followed by similar challenges by young people in other states, including Oregon and Hawaii.
Young people in Montana have alleged that policies promoting the fossil fuels industry in the statelike the State Energy Policyviolate their constitutional environmental rights. Unlike most states, Montana's constitution explicitly promises that the state "shall maintain and improve a clean and healthful environment in Montana for present and future generations." Other states with similar constitutional environmental protections include Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and New Yorkbut most state constitutions don't include those protections.
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George Vaill, the 'Free Advice' guy, is a source of wisdom in Harvard Square - The Boston Globe
George Vaill, the Free Advice guy, is a source of wisdom in Harvard Square - The Boston Globe
For three years, George Vaill has been offering counsel to passersby in Harvard Square from his folding chair, to which he attaches a large sign offering FREE
https://twitter.com/tribelaw/status/1669025731727302660
"Don't assume that Judge Cannon, if she presides over the trial, will be constrained by fear of ..."
Michael Beschloss Retweetedis right: Cannons reputation is already ruined except with Trumpers and the MAGA crowd, so playing to them to become Associate Justice Aileen Cannon in a GOP administration is her likeliest path. Id love to be proved wrong, but dont count on it. 28 USC Sec 455!
https://twitter.com/tribelaw/status/1668952223613632513
No Labels is helping a firm that raises money for right-wing extremists
Michael Beschloss RetweetedNo Labels is helping a firm that raises money for right-wing extremists
The self-proclaimed centrist group is using a vendor that assists election deniers and the radical Trump right.
https://twitter.com/DavidCornDC/status/1668988337942589440
Grizzly bear mauls hunter, who fatally shoots animal in Alaska, officials say
Grizzly bear mauls hunter, who fatally shoots animal in Alaska, officials say
A 34-year-old Alaska hunter fatally shot the animal after being attacked, officials said. The female bear was accompanied by cubs.
https://twitter.com/freep/status/1668979110205349888
On this day, June 14, 1948, Steve Hunter was born.
Hat tip, This Day in Music
American guitarist, and session player Steve Hunter who has worked with Lou Reed, Aerosmith and Alice Cooper. He played the acoustic intro on Peter Gabriel's 1977 hit 'Solsbury Hill'.
Hunter in March 2013
Background information
Birth name: Stephen John Hunter
Also known as: The Deacon
Born: June 14, 1948 (age 75); Decatur, Illinois
Website: Official website
Stephen John Hunter (born June 14, 1948) is an American guitarist, primarily a session player. He has worked with Lou Reed and Alice Cooper, acquiring the moniker "The Deacon". Hunter first played with Mitch Ryder's Detroit, beginning a long association with record producer Bob Ezrin who has said Steve Hunter has contributed so much to rock music in general that he truly deserves the designation of "Guitar Hero". Steve Hunter has played some of the greatest riffs in rock history - the first solo in Aerosmith's "Train Kept A Rollin'", the acoustic intro on Peter Gabriel's "Solsbury Hill" and he wrote the intro interlude on Lou Reed's live version of "Sweet Jane" on Reed's first gold record (the Rock 'N' Roll Animal live set).
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dg0557
6.57K subscribers
5,508,408 views Feb 4, 2009
Sweet Jane from Rock n Roll Animal. The best version of Sweet Jane out there.
At least 78 migrants dead and dozens feared missing after fishing boat sinks off Greece
Source: Associated Press, via PBS
At least 78 migrants dead and dozens feared missing after fishing boat sinks off Greece
World Jun 14, 2023 9:32 AM EDT
ATHENS, Greece (AP) At least 78 people have died and dozens are feared missing off the coast of southern Greece after a fishing boat carrying migrants capsized and sank, authorities said Wednesday. ... A large search and rescue operation was launched in the area. Authorities said 104 people have been rescued so far following the nighttime incident some 75 kilometers (46 miles) southwest of Greeces southern Peloponnese region. ... Four of the survivors were hospitalized with symptoms of hypothermia. It was unclear how many passengers might remain missing at sea after the Greek coast guard reported 78 dead.
Six coast guard vessels, a navy frigate, a military transport plane, an air force helicopter, several private vessels and a drone from the European Union border protection agency, Frontex, were taking part in the ongoing search. ... The Italy-bound boat is believed to have sailed from the Tobruk area in eastern Libya. The Italian coast guard first alerted Greek authorities and Frontex about the approaching vessel on Tuesday. ... At the southern port of Kalamata, dozens of rescued migrants were taken to sheltered areas set up by the ambulance services and the United Nations Refugee Agency to receive dry clothes and medical attention.
Libyan authorities have launched a major crackdown on migrants earlier this month across eastern Libya. Activists have said several thousand migrants, including Egyptians, Syrians, Sudanese and Pakistanis, have been detained. Libyan authorities deported many Egyptians to their home country through a land crossing point.
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Read more: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/at-least-78-migrants-dead-and-dozens-feared-missing-after-fishing-boat-sinks-off-greece
At least 78 people have died and dozens are feared missing off the coast of southern Greece after a fishing boat carrying migrants capsized and sank, authorities said Wednesday.
pbs.org
At least 78 migrants dead and dozens feared missing after fishing boat sinks off Greece
Authorities said 104 people have been rescued so far following the nighttime incident some 75 kilometers southwest of Greece's southern
https://twitter.com/NewsHour/status/1669007037827612673
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