Friday, July 21, 2017

In the news, Tuesday, July 4, 2017


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JUL 03      INDEX      JUL 05
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Information from some sites may not be reliable, or may not be vetted.
Some sources may require subscription.

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from Douglas County Empire Press

Cooperation is key to 'Thinking Like a Community'
IRIS 2020 Legacy Project connects stories to shape our future
Most of us who live in North Central Washington came from someplace else. Except for tribal members whose roots go back hundreds of years, the rest of us either came from families who immigrated from other states and countries or we came here on our own.

Our Past | 1923: Farmers provide animal products for local population 
This article, originally from The Spokesman Review, was reprinted in the June 7, 1923 edition of the Waterville Empire-Press. It gives a picture of livestock-raising in the county.

Waterville Days is here!
It's time for two days of good times for young and old at Waterville Days July 7-8. The festivities will begin Friday with the annual spaghetti feed in Pioneer Park from 5 to 7 p.m., hosted by Douglas County Fire District 1 volunteer firefighters. Live music in the park will keep everyone’s toes tappin’ into the evening with the local band Jumpers Flats playing from 6 to 9 p.m. Group members are Dave Barnes, drums; Justin Grillo, guitar; Dean Longanecker, bass guitar; Josh Barnes, lead guitar; Jeff Smoke, keyboard and lead vocals; and Keith Jorgensen, harmonica and back-up vocals. The band will also open for Neal McCoy at next month’s NCW Fair.

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from FEE (Foundation for Economic Education)
[Information from this site may not be reliable.]

The Fight for Freedom Begins in Culture
To a first approximation, American political history before the 18th century is British political history. As most American schoolchildren know, in the 17th century, John Locke crystallized the idea that human law should reflect Natural Law, but the idea that Law must serve the well-being of the people on whom it is imposed goes back at least to the Anglo-Saxons. Throughout history, changing a country’s politics and statutes has been the final goal of forceful popular attempts to contain power, but mass refusal to accept political abuses has always begun in the culture.

The Myth of the Infrastructure Cure-All
America’s infrastructure is not crumbling, massive spending won’t create any permanent jobs, and productivity is not suffering because of our infrastructure. These are economic myths that lobbyists, infrastructure contractors, and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) perpetuate to get fat contracts. The idea that massive government spending on infrastructure will create jobs is another myth. If you recall the $787 billion 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), the Obama Administration told us that such fiscal stimulus would create jobs and promote economic recovery. There is simply no credible evidence that such Keynesian stimulus did anything to help economic recovery.

Crowdfunding Can Solve More Problems than Social Scientists
Democracy works best alongside civil society. However, civil society is built by solving local issues without relying on the remote hands of politicians and democracy. It may sound like a paradox, but in reality, the expansion of so-called civil society requires neither politicians or more elections, nor longer electoral programs. It is very unlikely to expect that we can create a civil society using those mechanisms which have gradually contributed to its diminution. Building a civil society from above does not work.  Luckily, the Internet is here to help.

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from The Guardian (UK)
[Information from this site may be unreliable.]

Why Roman concrete still stands strong while modern version decays
Their structures are still standing more than 1,500 years after the last centurion snuffed it: now the Romans’ secret of durable marine concrete has finally been cracked. The Roman recipe – a mix of volcanic ash, lime (calcium oxide), seawater and lumps of volcanic rock – held together piers, breakwaters and harbours. Moreover, in contrast to modern materials, the ancient water-based structures became stronger over time. Scientists say this is the result of seawater reacting with the volcanic material in the cement and creating new minerals that reinforced the concrete.

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from The Living Church

OVERCOMING ALIENATION: INCULTURATION, CHRISTOLOGY, AND PRAYER BOOK REVISION
In the Incarnation, God embraces human nature, and human nature embraces God. And there is no great leap from healthy Christology to ecclesiology and missiology, since the Church is not simply an association of like-minded folk, but folk who have the mind of Christ (1 Cor. 2:16), folk who are the body of Christ. In Christ’s Incarnation, God overcomes alienation; in the spread of the gospel, God likewise overcomes alienation.

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from New Statesman
"The leading voice of the British left, since 1913."

Grenfell shows the left behind have lost trust in the media – we need a proper watchdog
An effective regulator would help curb the excesses of a press that has failed the disenfranchised.

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from POLITICO
[Information from this site may not be reliable.]

Trump Wants a Do-Over in Europe
But the president’s upcoming trip offers ample opportunity for fresh trouble. President Donald Trump is hoping Europe will give him a second chance. This week, he heads to Poland at the invitation of its president and to participate in a regional infrastructure summit and to Hamburg, Germany, for the G-20 summit. The trip offers the chance for redemption after a catastrophic visit to Brussels in May that left the NATO alliance hanging by a thread because of his refusal to endorse Article 5, NATO’s mutual defense clause.

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from Reason Magazine
[Information from this site may not be reliable.]

241 Years of Independence in America, 20 Years of Chinese Rule in Hong Kong
Economic dynamism and concomitant abundance are best served by a good dollop of freedom, which, alas, we are in the process of slowly losing.

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from The Spokesman-Review

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from Sputnik
(Russian government-supported propaganda channel)

Turkey Issues Protest to Germany Over 'Kill Dictatorship' Installation in Berlin
The Turkish Foreign Ministry on Tuesday issued a diplomatic note to Germany protesting an installation set up by an artist in front of the German Chancellery in Berlin as calling for violence against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, media reported. On Monday, a car and a banner saying "Do you want to win this car? Then kill the dictatorship" with images of several world leaders, including Erdogan, were placed outside the German Chancellery. According to media reports, the installation was set up by artist Philipp Ruch. The Turkish Foreign Ministry condemned the incident saying that it encouraged violence and hatred.

French Senate Votes for Extension of State of Emergency for 3 Months
France’s upper house of parliament, the Senate, voted Tuesday for extension of the state of emergency in the country for three months, local media reported. The state of emergency was introduced in the follow-up to deadly terror attacks that hit Paris and its suburbs on November 13, 2015.

EU Lawmaker Calls EU 'Transatlantic Appendix' of US After Anti-Russia Sanctions
Udo Voigt, the European Parliament's lawmaker from the National Democratic Party of Germany, on Tuesday called the European Union a "transatlantic appendix" of the United States due to the 28-nation bloc's decision to prolong the sanctions imposed on Russia.

Azerbaijan Reports Casualties in Armenian Shelling of Nagorno-Karabakh
The Armenian armed forces opened fire on Tuesday at the settlements on the contact line in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, there are killed and wounded, Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry said. Azerbaijan's Armenian-dominated region of Nagorno-Karabakh proclaimed its independence in 1991, triggering a military conflict that led to Azerbaijan losing control over the region. The violence between Azerbaijani and Nagorno-Karabakh forces escalated on April 2, 2016, leading to multiple casualties. The sides agreed to a ceasefire on April 5, but clashes have continued.

Encouraged by Liberation of Aleppo, Students Join Syrian Arab Army En Masse
Employees of the central military commissariat of Aleppo state that the number of those wishing to join Syrian army units in order to fight terrorists is increasing every month as the liberation of the city has motivated hundreds of former students and school pupils to put on military uniforms.

US Energy Companies Risk Losing $100 Bln if Anti-Russian Sanctions Bill Approved
Concerns are growing among major US oil and gas companies over the a new bill imposing news sanctions against Russia. Russian economist Vladislav Gink estimated that US energy companies risk losing billions of dollars due to sanctions.

Scientists Reveal Secret Formula That Keeps Roman Buildings From Collapsing
The mystery behind the outstanding strength of the ancient Roman aqueducts and other concrete buildings that have survived several millennia has finally been resolved. The explanation lies in the unusual "chemistry" of its two main components — volcanic ash and sea water, an article published in the American Mineralogist journal says. "The Pozzolanic reaction of volcanic ash with hydrated lime is thought to have dominated the cementing fabric and durability of 2,000-year-old Roman harbor concrete," the study says.

Why US Cannot Win Its Longest Overseas War Without Moscow
The US hopes to win by proxy in Afghanistan, Ali Ahmad Karimi, an Afghani political observer told Sputnik. According to the observer, Washington should team up with the major players in the region, most notably with Russia, on the principles of justice and mutual respect to tackle the terror threat. The United States wants its allies and partners to pull its chestnuts out of the fire in Afghanistan, Ali Ahmad Karimi, an Afghani political observer told Sputnik, adding that it's obvious that Washington cannot tackle the terrorist threat posed by Taliban alone.

US Considers Giving Back Seized Russian Property Without Losing Face
Left to deal with the legacy of the Obama administration, which confiscated Russian diplomatic property last year, the White House is likely waiting for the right moment to undo the damage withou losing face at the same time, St. Petersburg-based political scientist Grigory Yarygin told Sputnik.

Turkey to Design Own Air Defense System With Help of 2 NATO Members
Turkey is planning to purchase Russian S-400 air defense systems, but is also determined to design its own air defense systems jointly with France and Italy, Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Isik said Tuesday.

Russian Senator Reveals How to Bust the Myth of 'Russian Threat'
The myth of a "Russian threat" has emerged as an intrinsic part of information wars in the current global geopolitical environment, Konstantin Kosachev, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee at the Russia’s Federation Council, wrote in an op-ed for the newspaper Izvestia.

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