Maybe they thought this was what that whole 'transparency' thing was about?

More than 2,000 people gathered outside Romania's government offices in Bucharest on May 3 to protest a move by lawmakers to pardon acts of corruption.  Demonstrators waved Romanian, EU, NATO, and U.S. flags, chanting, "Resign," "This can't go on anymore," and "We have to defend the country from thieves!"  Radio Free Europe

Biting the hand that feeds

North Korea issues direct criticism of China amid nuke dispute.  North Korea has issued a rare direct criticism of China through a commentary saying its “reckless remarks” on the North’s nuclear program are testing its patience and could trigger unspecified “grave” consequences.    WTOP

Could be dementia...

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe is denying his country is in a fragile state and insists it is one of Africa's most developed despite its plunging economy.  The 93-year-old was speaking Thursday at the Africa leg of the World Economic Forum.  New York Times

Dystopia Redux

As Afghanistan slides back into chaos, with a resurgent Taliban and dwindling international aid, many fear that the country's women's shelters could be forced to close, leaving those who rely on them at the mercy of an often harshly conservative society.  Nearly 30 shelters across the country - a legacy of the 2001 U.S.-led invasion that toppled the Taliban - provide food, refuge and education for women abused by their husbands or male relatives. The shelters also offer safety to women at risk of so-called honor killings, or of being sold into marriage to repay debts, a still-common practice.  Associated Press

Recycling is not a good idea in all cases

Africa's former child soldiers used as cheap labor in Iraq, Afghanistan.  Former child soldiers from Sierra Leone and Uganda are being used as cheap labor for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to a new documentary on Al Jazeera.  Child Soldiers Reloaded features interviews with several of these former child soldiers, most of who were recruited to work for Aegis, the private military company that signed an estimated $293 million deal with the United States (US) Department of Defense in 2004 to execute operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.   News24

Was OKCupid/DC really so awful?

An FBI translator with a top-secret security clearance traveled to Syria in 2014 and married a key ISIS operative she had been assigned to investigate, CNN has learned.  The rogue employee, Daniela Greene, lied to the FBI about where she was going and warned her new husband he was under investigation, according to federal court records.  CNN

Because there aren't jobs for accountants anywhere else in the world?

North Korea on Wednesday confirmed the detention of another American citizen for alleged acts of hostility aimed at overthrowing the country.  Kim Sang Dok, an accounting instructor at Pyongyang University of Science and Technology, was "intercepted" at Pyongyang International Airport on April 22, according to the Korean Central News Agency. It said he was being detained while authorities conduct a detailed investigation into his alleged crime.  Associated Press

Wait, what century is it?

Indian police have detained three members of a Hindu militia for suspected involvement in the killing of a Muslim man who they blamed for helping an interfaith couple elope.  Police officer Muni Raj said Wednesday that Ghulam Mohammad was beaten to death in Uttar Pradesh state a day earlier. The killing came days after a man related to Mohammad eloped with a Hindu girl.  Washington Post

So, not quite the end of history.

In fairness to Dr. Fukuyama, he has recently admitted that he may have called that one too soon. Russia has succeeded in sowing political discord in the United States by interfering in the 2016 presidential election, which will likely prompt Moscow to try it again, two former top U.S. intelligence figures say.  Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and former House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers agreed during a Harvard University panel discussion that Russia likely has concluded it achieved its goals and could attempt to repeat its success in elections in France and Germany this year.  Radio Free Europe

Guns, people...Good grief.

Police shot and killed a 49-year-old man suspected of shooting seven people Sunday at a birthday pool party in an apartment complex near the University of California, San Diego, authorities said.  Authorities said the suspect, a white man identified as Peter Selis, shot four black women, two black men and one Latino man, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported. Associated Press​

Tights and a cape are definitely called for. A mask might be titch too much...

Tony Blair announces return to politics to fight Brexit.  Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced on Monday his comeback into domestic politics in order to fight against Brexit.  Blair, who led the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007, will not be standing in the June 8 general election.  But he said he wanted to build a political movement to shape the policy debate as Britain starts its negotiations to leave the European Union.  Daily Times

Lookin' good (for nothing)!

Tensions rise between Turkey, US along Syrian border.  Tensions rose Saturday along the Turkish-Syrian border as both Turkey and the U.S. moved armored vehicles to the region and Turkey’s leader once again demanded that the United States stop supporting the Syrian Kurdish militants there.  The relocation of Turkish troops to an area near the border with Syria comes a day after U.S. troops were seen patrolling the tense border in Syria. Those patrols followed a Turkish airstrike against bases of Syrian Kurdish militia, Washington’s main ally in combating Islamic State militants in Syria.  WTOP

Not enough Pepto in the world for that bellyache

Dozens detained as protesters say 'sick of Putin.'  Police detained over 100 activists in Saint Petersburg on Saturday as hundreds of Russian opposition supporters turned out to protest against President Vladimir Putin's expected candidacy in elections next year.  Protests in several cities were called by the Open Russia movement founded by arch-Putin foe and former oil magnate Mikhail Khodorkovsky.  News24

There's a reason you weren't authorized to share with the media, sir

A security clearance well-deserved, clearly. America's CIA director is making an unannounced visit to South Korea, the U.S. Embassy in Seoul confirmed Monday, amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula.  An embassy official said Mike Pompeo and his wife were in the South Korean capital on Monday, but wouldn't say for how long. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.  Associated Press

Voting: The least-appreciated human right

Algeria voter apathy could mar legislative election.  Algerians go to the polls on Thursday to elect a new parliament amid concerns that a low turnout will mar a vote which officials say is necessary to maintain stability.  The election comes as the North African country grapples with a deep financial crisis because of a drop in oil revenues and amid criticism from people who say the government has failed to keep its promises.   News24

(Could not be a less) Fine day for a new constitution

Venezuela's Maduro calls for new constitution as protests rage.  Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro called for a new constitution on Monday in a bid to quell a crisis that has led to more than a month of protests against him and deadly street violence.  His announcement, to thousands of supporters in Caracas marking May Day, came as security forces sprayed tear gas and water cannon at anti-government demonstrators elsewhere in the capital.  News24

Good luck with that

A new database compiled by a Washington, DC-based advocacy group aims to increase transparency surrounding US security assistance programs across Latin America, with the hope that this will lead to improved monitoring and evaluation of those initiatives.  The Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) has created the "Defense Oversight Research Database," a platform that lists the programs the United States is currently implementing to assist military and police forces abroad in an effort to help assess their impact in Latin America.  Insight Crime

Cabo Blah-o

Shootout leaves eight dead near Mexico's Los Cabos tourist hub.  A shootout near the Mexican beach resort of Los Cabos early on Monday between suspected gang members and navy forces has left eight dead, including one soldier.  The incident took place before dawn on the outskirts of San Jose del Cabo, about 20 miles (30 km) northeast of the area's main tourist hub of Cabo San Lucas. Security forces later recovered unspecified drugs, vehicles, communications equipment, military-issued weapons and uniforms, the navy said in a statement.   Reuters

For some better news: Hungary. No, really.

Thousands of Hungarians marched across central Budapest on May 1 in a show of support for the European Union, protesting against what they described as a rise in Russian influence under Prime Minister Viktor Orban.  The rally follows a series of major demonstrations in Budapest in recent weeks, triggered by a new law inspired by Russia that would drive out of Hungary a top university founded by U.S. financier George Soros.  Radio Free Europe

Glad someone noticed this is a real thing

Germany pledges $76m to aid Somalia fight hunger.  Germany says it will double the $76m it has already pledged to help Somalia cope with the severe drought and hunger that is threatening millions of people across this Horn of Africa nation.  The promise was made during a surprise visit by Germany's Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel to the Somali capital, Mogadishu, on Monday.  News24

For those who really, really want a fresh Parisian baguette, but may not have read the news in the past two years

The U.S. State Department issued a travel alert for Europe on May 1, saying U.S. citizens should be aware of a continued threat of terrorist attacks throughout the continent.  In the alert, the State Department cited recent incidents in France, Russia, Sweden, and the United Kingdom and said Islamic State and Al-Qaeda "have the ability to plan and execute terrorist attacks in Europe."  Radio Free Europe

Seriously, you arrested NPR? At least they bothered to show up...

Journalist freed in South Sudan after 3 nights in jail.  South Sudan detained an NPR journalist for nearly four days before releasing him on Monday, a spokesperson for the organization said.  Eyder Peralta has returned to his base in Kenya but his South Sudanese assistant is still being held by authorities, Isabel Lara told The Associated Press in an email.   News24

Think of this next time you think registering to vote is no big deal

DRC postpones voter registration in 2 provinces after 'brutal' killing.  The Democratic Republic of Congo said on Monday it had indefinitely postponed voter registration in two provinces of its troubled central Kasai region after the brutal killing of an electoral official.  On April 3, Philippe Iyidimbe, of the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI), "was decapitated by militias of Chief Kamwina Nsapu in Ndekesha", in central DRC, the CENI said in a statement.   News24

It's not like he needs it, but God bless Pope Francis

Pope Francis is brushing off security concerns to forge ahead on Friday with a two-day trip to Egypt aimed at presenting a united Christian-Muslim front that repudiates violence committed in God's name.  Three weeks after Islamic militants staged twin Palm Sunday church attacks, Francis is to lands in Cairo in the early afternoon for a series of deeply symbolic encounters with Egypt's religious and political leadership.  Associated Press

With friends like these...

The Turkish government gave the United States less than an hour’s notice before conducting strikes on partner forces in Iraq and Syria, the U.S. military said on Wednesday, stepping up its criticism of airstrikes the United States said endangered American personnel.  Col. John Dorrian, a U.S. military spokesman, said the lead time failed to provide adequate notice to reposition American forces or warn Kurdish groups with whom the United States is partnering against the Islamic States.  “That’s not enough time. And this was notification, certainly not coordination as you would expect from a partner and an ally in the fight against ISIS,” he said, using an acronym for the Islamic State.  The Washington Post

Fighting graft -- good. Having masked, armed men whisk people out of government buildings -- little weird.

Moldovan Transport and Roads Infrastructure Minister Lurie Chirinciuc has been detained on corruption charges, the latest in a string of arrests on suspicion of graft in the economically struggling country.  Masked officers from Moldova's National Anticorruption Center removed Chirinciuc from the ministry building in the capital, Chisinau, on April 27.  Radio Free Europe

'Dangit, the Game of Thrones extras went to the wrong location!'

Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov called an emergency meeting of political leaders Friday, hours after demonstrators - mostly supporters of the country's dominant conservative party - invaded parliament and assaulted opposition lawmakers.  But it was unclear whether opposition leaders would attend, and political tension remained high after the riot in which 77 people were injured, mostly lightly.  Associated Press

Are we sure this wasn't a really poorly thought-out LARP?

A 23-year-old man, alleged founder of the Anti-State Capture Death Squad Alliance, has been arrested by the Hawks police unit. The man is accused of appealing to donors to fund an operation to assassinate Cabinet ministers using undercover coup plot snipers.  All Africa

Neverending/How many lives does it take?

Two U.S. service members were killed during operations against the Islamic State in eastern Afghanistan, the U.S. military said Thursday, the latest sign of the security challenges the Trump administration faces in America’s longest and most costly war.  Military officials said the deaths occurred during a joint U.S.-Afghan raid on Wednesday evening in Nangahar province, where a small but virulent Islamic State cell poses a threat to Afghan and U.S. coalition forces.  A third service member was wounded in the same operation, the U.S. military command in Afghanistan said in a statement. The Pentagon declined to immediately identify those killed.  Washington Post At least 20 people were killed in ethnic clashes last week in Democratic Republic of Congo's troubled Kasai region, according to the United Nations. The UN's DR Congo mission said in a statement on Wednesday that the clashes took place in the central region, east of the Kasai capital, Tshikapa.  Al Jazeera Tens of thousands of South Sudanese have fled their homes and are now trapped under intense sun without food, water or medical care, aid agencies said on Thursday after fierce fighting forced them to pull out of the region.  Almost 40,000 thirsty people are camped out in temperatures of about 40 degrees centigrade in Aburoc village, near the border with Sudan, said Marcus Bachmann, South Sudan head of mission for the medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).  The quantity of water is not enough to survive in this environment," he told a news briefing via Skype from Juba.  With so many people squeezed in one place, the risk of an outbreak of cholera is extremely high. It puts the exhausted population at highest risk of death."  Reuters Human Rights Watch says armed groups targeting civilians in Central African Republic have killed at least 45 people and displaced 11,000 in the past three months.  The rights group said Tuesday that two factions are vying for control of the central part of the country. It says one predominantly Peul faction of the mostly Muslim Seleka group has been fighting since late 2016 with another faction that has aligned itself with the Christian anti-Balaka group.  Associated Press Violent conflict between rebel groups has been raging in the Central African Republic for years. Aid agencies are warning that the humanitarian situation is worsening dramatically.  Holding a hammer, Marcel Hamat walks through his house, or what remains of it. For the first time, the 52-year-old has returned to his hometown, Iyeda, after it was attacked and nearly razed to the ground in October 2016.  All Africa

Spring has sprung?

Afghanistan's Taliban announced the start of their spring offensive Friday, promising to build their political base in the country while focusing military assaults on coalition and Afghan security forces.  Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid announced the launch of the offensive in an email statement that boasted Taliban control over more than half of the country, referencing a February report issued by Washington's special inspector general for Afghan reconstruction.  Associated Press

Nothing can make this comical

“We will kill all trans people here”, El Salvador's trans community lives in fear “They’ve put out an order to get rid of all of us,” according to Sebastian Cerritos, a coordinator for Astrans LGBTI, an LGBTI charity based in El Salvador. “The gangs in one area here have said: We will kill all trans people here.” Vice News

MOAB meh?

On 13 April the US dropped one of its largest non-nuclear bombs on a tunnel complex used by so-called Islamic State militants in eastern Afghanistan. It was the first time such a weapon had been used in battle.  The BBC's Auliya Atrafi has been to the area to see if it really had any impact in the battle against IS.  BBC

Oh, well!

US troops hunting LRA warlord Kony begin Central Africa pullout.  US Special Forces on Wednesday began to pull out from Central Africa, ending a five-year hunt for brutal LRA warlord Joseph Kony, who is wanted for crimes against humanity.  The departure of the troops sent in to support an African Union regional force "will be completed a short while after it begins on April 26", Charles Prichard, spokesperson for the US Africa Command (AFRICOM), told AFP.   News24

And what happened after him?

Final verdict for Chad's Habre on war crimes appeal.  Chad's former president Hissene Habre will learn on Thursday if his lawyers' appeal against sentences for war crimes, crimes against humanity and rape has been successful, following his landmark conviction by a special court last year.   News24

We get it -- you're big fat jerks -- no subterfuge necessary, thanks.

ISIS executes at least 15 civilians in Mosul.  15 civilians who welcomed Islamic State militants posing as liberating security forces in central Mosul were killed, officials said on Tuesday.  Wearing police uniforms, they entered parts of the Old City on Monday to trick residents into showing their support for the federal forces, the Joint Operations Command (JOC) and a local official said.  “Da’ish (IS) gangs committed a brutal crime yesterday morning in an area of Mosul’s Old City,” the JOC said in a statement.   WTOP

Everyone knows if you say it three times, it must be true

Who speaks for Islam and reform? Debate heats up in Egypt.  It was a startling collision of religion and politics. Egypt’s president proposed a new law that would prevent Muslim men from ending their marriages simply by saying “divorce” three times. The country’s top institution of Islamic clerics, Al-Azhar, bluntly rejected the idea, saying Islam gives men that right and nothing can change that.  In the months since, that confrontation escalated into a blistering feud over who speaks for Islam and how to bring reforms.   WTOP

Next up: Ankle monitors for all!

Turkey arrests 1,000 in raids targeting Gulen suspects.  Police have arrested 1,000 people suspected of being part of a movement blamed for the failed 2016 coup.  Another 2,200 were being sought as authorities targeted what they said was a secret structure within Turkey's police force.  BBC

Easy, there.

A senior Russian politician responded aggressively Monday to comments by the U.K.'s defense minister suggesting pre-emptive use of nuclear weapons against Russia is an option for London, claiming the U.K. would be completely annihilated by Russia's nukes in response.  Russia's Frants Klintsevich, who heads the defense and security committee in Moscow's upper house of parliament, said the U.K. would be "literally wiped off the face of the Earth by a counter strike." Earlier that day, U.K. Defense Minister Michael Fallon said during a radio show that the U.K. could consider a preemptive nuclear attack amid recent political tensions between Russia and Western governments, according to The Moscow Times. Fallon said the U.K.'s military would only make combat use of its Trident nuclear program in extenuating circumstances, but refused to say exactly what those conditions would be.  Newsweek

'You can keep our criminals, thanks.'

Cambodia suspends repatriation agreement with US -- Cambodia told Washington Tuesday it would no longer accept convicted criminals with Cambodian heritage being deported to the Southeast Asian nation, the latest blow to ties between the two countries.  For the last 15 years, the two nations have had a repatriation agreement allowing them to forcibly deport criminals with ties to the other country. ​  AFP via Yahoo!​ Not sure if they've considered that this means they'll have to keep all of the U.S. pedophiles lurking about -- ya know, the ones that they actually bother to catch...

First MoneyGram, next the Federal Reserve

If only that was a joke... Chinese Takeover Bid for US-based MoneyGram Scrutinized.  The financial industry is closely watching Alibaba affiliate Ant Financial's attempt to acquire Dallas-based MoneyGram International, the world's second biggest money transfer company after Western Union.  Ant is offering $1.2 billion, more than U.S.-based competitor Euronet Worldwide.  If successful, the deal would turn Ant Financial into a financial behemoth with access to MoneyGram's vast network of 350,000 outlets of retail shops, post offices and banks across 200 countries. At present, Ant's business is largely based on the Chinese yuan.  The acquisition would also give it access to U.S. dollar funds and escrow accounts for managing the funds.  “If you look at MoneyGram, what they might be doing here (to Ant Financial) is bringing a unique extra key that has much to do with that escrow account surplus and be able to hold a lot of dollars,” Jacob Cooke, chief executive officer of Web Presence in China, told VOA. “That, of course, will give them access to a whole bunch more opportunities to Ant's financial services.” VOA

Sure to be well-received

Netanyahu gives German FM ‘ultimatum’ over meeting with NGOs.   Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has threatened to cancel an upcoming meeting with Germany’s foreign minister unless the visiting diplomat cancels an appointment with two groups critical of Israel’s actions in the West Bank.  A senior Israeli official confirmed that the prime minister issued an ultimatum to Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel that he would scrap their meeting scheduled for Tuesday if Gabriel met with members of non-governmental organizations Breaking the Silence and B’Tselem.   WTOP

Reason for grim satisfaction, if not celebration

Iraqi troops capture largest neighborhood in western Mosul.  Iraqi troops on Tuesday drove out Islamic State militants from the largest neighborhood in the western half of the city of Mosul, a senior military commander said, a major development in the months-long fight to recapture the country’s second-largest city.  U.S.-backed Iraqi forces declared eastern Mosul “fully liberated” in January, after officially launching the operation to retake the city in October.   WTOP

Who's on first??

So, everyone is against IS, but Turkey and the US are against Assad and Russia is for, and Turkey is against all Kurds, but the US is for -- totally clear. Turkey hits Kurdish areas in Iraq’s Sinjar, northeast Syria.  Turkish warplanes carried out airstrikes on Tuesday against suspected Kurdish rebel positions in northern Iraq and in northeastern Syria, the military said, in a bid to prevent militants from smuggling fighters and weapons into Turkey.  The attack killed at least 18 Syrian Kurdish troops, according to a monitoring group, as well as five members of the Iraqi Kurdish militia known as the Peshmerga and drew swift condemnation from Baghdad.  WTOP

There really is a boat this time...probably

North Korea tensions: US submarine arrives in South Korea.  A US submarine has arrived in South Korea, amid worries of another North Korean missile or nuclear test.  The missile-armed USS Michigan is set to join an incoming group of warships led by aircraft carrier Carl Vinson.  North Korea is celebrating its army's 85th founding anniversary on Tuesday. It marked the event with a large-scale firing drill, South Korea said.  Tensions have risen in the area in recent weeks, with the US and North Korea exchanging heated rhetoric.    Daily Times

'Mind your own war!'

South Sudan hosting rebels to 'extend war' in Sudan: security.  Sudan's powerful security agency on Monday accused breakaway South Sudan of staging talks with rebels fighting Khartoum's forces in two southern states, with the goal of "extending the war" there.  In a statement, the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) said South Sudanese President Salva Kiir, his deputy Taban Deng and top army commanders held meetings last week with the SPLM-N rebel group. News24

The despot dinner table continues to empty...

Angola to hold election on August 23.  Angola's cabinet said on Monday that elections will be held on August 23 to choose a successor to President Eduardo dos Santos after 38 years of iron-fisted rule.   Dos Santos, 74, has been in power since 1979 and has announced that he will not contest the election. His ruling party's presidential candidate will be the current defense minister.   News24

History turned inside out

US general in Afghanistan suggests Russia arming the Taliban.  The United States must confront Russia for providing weapons to the Taliban for use against American-backed forces in Afghanistan, top US military officials said on Monday.  At a news conference with Defense Secretary Jim Mattis at his side, General John Nicholson, the American commander in Afghanistan, wouldn't provide specifics about Russia's role in Afghanistan.   News24

Don't feel bad, Mexico, it's not just you

Permit requested to build wall around Trump resort in Ireland It has emerged that the US President has applied to Clare County Council for permission for the wall which will stretch for up to four kilometres and be over three metres high.

In case you weren't sure, people really will do anything for money

Alleged Semen Smuggler Had Visited Cambodia The Cambodia Daily A man arrested by Thai border police for allegedly trying to smuggle human semen into Laos on Thursday had made several trips to Cambodia over ...

The REAL difference between futbol and football: Soccer hoodlums form organized crime rings, the NFL just recruits hoodlums

A high-level soccer official in Uruguay said recently that the country's organized fan clubs have begun operating like criminal organizations, indicating the evolution of these so-called "barras bravas" mirrors that of their counterparts in neighboring Argentina.  The barras bravas "have transformed themselves into true cartels that even fight for [control of] territory and the criminal activity they are involved in," said Rafael Peña, head of security for the Uruguayan Soccer Association (Asociación Uruguaya de Fútbol - AUF). Peña made the remarks during a hearing before Uruguay's Parliament in early February, reported El País.  Insight Crime

Goes well with fava beans and a nice chianti

Duterte on terrorists: I'll eat their liver.  The Philippine president has warned that he can be 50 times more brutal than Muslim extremists, saying he'd even eat them if they're captured alive by troops.  President Rodrigo Duterte has repeatedly threatened drug suspects with death, but he raised his shock rhetoric to a new level on Sunday when he said in a speech during the opening of a national sports tournament what he could do to terrorists who have staged beheadings and other gruesome attacks.   News24

'Oh, you were serious about that?'

An international rights group says dozens of global clothing companies are not complying with a plan to ensure better safety in Bangladesh garment factories following the deadly collapse of a building four years ago.  Human Rights Watch said in a report Monday that only 29 out of 72 recently contacted companies are releasing information about how they source their products in Bangladesh. It said many brands have held out completely.  Associated Press

How refreshing -- old fashioned cops and robbers violence, no ideologies, no hate crimes...

In case you're new to sarcasm, this still sucks.

Three Seattle police officers were shot and injured during an exchange of gunfire with a suspect, who later died, after a robbery at a downtown convenience store.  Three people are suspected in the Thursday robbery at a 7-Eleven store near Pioneer Square, the city's oldest neighborhood, said Deputy Police Chief Carmen Best.  Associated Press​ 

She's a bad mama-jama -- we just won't say how bad

US won’t reveal ‘mother of all bombs’ toll.  The ear-splitting explosion from America’s “mother of all bombs” has been followed by calculated silence about the damage it inflicted.  U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Thursday he does not intend to discuss damage estimates from last week’s use of the military’s most powerful non-nuclear bomb on an Islamic State stronghold in Afghanistan.   WTOP  

Yes, that's why the UN has not been allowed to investigate...

Syria formally asks UN to probe chemical attack.  Syrian President Bashar Assad says the Syrian government has formally approached the United Nations, asking it to send in the experts to investigate the April 4 suspected chemical attack.  Assad said in an interview with the Russian state-owned RIA Novosti news agency on Thursday that the U.N. has not sent anyone yet and blamed Western nations and the United States in particular for not allowing the experts to travel to Syria.   WTOP

Diplo-what???

U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said on Friday that Syria had dispersed its warplanes in recent days and that it retained chemical weapons, an issue he said would have to be taken up diplomatically.  The United States launched dozens of missiles earlier this month against a Syrian air base in response to a chemical attack that killed 90 people, including 30 children. It says the Syrian government launched the attack from the Shayrat air base.  Reuters

Numbers may not lie, but sometimes they stun

Where USG money comes from (hint: it's mostly peons!) and where it goes: USAFacts And read this article for info on how this came about (a smart rich dude with time on his hands who wanted to prove his wife wrong about social spending -- he didn't, btw) and how you can use it: Steve Ballmer Serves Up a Fascinating Data Trove

'Now could you just give me all of your personal information -- for your own protection, of course?'

Homeland Security hotline number used in phone scam. A fraud alert has been issued by the Homeland Security Department’s Office of Inspector General after scammers altered caller ID systems to make it appear they were calling from an official phone number. The callers claimed to be from “U.S. Immigration,” told victims they had been affected by identity theft, and then asked victims to provide or confirm personal information. The calls were made to appear as if they were coming from the hotline number for Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General, 1-800-323-8603. (The office is the department’s independent oversight arm, and the hotline is used to receive calls about fraud, waste, abuse and mismanagement.) “This came to our attention from individuals who had actually been victims of this scam,” said the office’s Diana Shaw. She said the hotline received a flood of calls in mid-March, with the callers asking why they had been contacted and asked personal questions. People throughout the country were targeted.WTOP

'Maybe I will let you send me to Mexican jail, maybe I won't...'

Mexican ex-governor stalls fast-track extradition from Guatemala.  Javier Duarte, the former state governor of Mexico's ruling party who was arrested in Guatemala at the weekend, said in court on Wednesday he would not agree to be extradited until his lawyers were able to study a formal extradition request.  "At this time, I can't agree (to extradition) until the formal extradition request arrives, and it can be studied by my defense team" said Duarte. "This doesn't mean I won't accept it, though."  Reuters

Ditto

Russia denies it is moving troops close to North Korea.  Russian authorities are denying reports that they are moving troops to the border with North Korea over growing tensions in the Korean peninsula.  The Interfax news agency on Friday quoted Alexander Gordeyev, spokesman for the Far Eastern Military district, as saying that the movement of heavy weaponry, caught on film and widely distributed on social media, is part of “absolutely scheduled maneuvers of combat readiness.” Gordeyev said the military hardware was on its way back from drills elsewhere and denied any connection to the tensions around North Korea’s nuclear program   WTOP

Nothing to see here...

No reason to believe gays abused in Chechnya.  Vladimir Putin’s spokesman says the Russian president has no reason to disbelieve the Chechen leader’s assurances that reports of detentions and killings of gay men in Chechnya have no basis in fact.  Dmitry Peskov also told journalists on Thursday that investigators have found no evidence to back up reports by the respected newspaper Novaya Gazeta that police in the predominantly Muslim republic rounded up more than 100 men suspected of homosexuality and that at least three of them were killed.   WTOP

Super-something...

North Korea warns of 'super-mighty preemptive strike' as U.S. plans next move.  North Korean state media warned the United States of a "super-mighty preemptive strike" after U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the United States was looking at ways to bring pressure to bear on North Korea over its nuclear programmer.  U.S. President Donald Trump has taken a hard line with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who has rebuffed admonitions from sole major ally China and proceeded with nuclear and missile programmed in defiance of U.N. Security Council sanctions.  Reuters  Perhaps inspired by:  https://www.mightytaco.com/OurFood  (check out the super-mighty taco -- mmmm!)

Shaping young minds, for good or ill

Anger, confusion as Japan revives militaristic edict.  Japan's century-old imperial proclamation urging people to be willing to die for the emperor was consigned to history books until video surfaced showing children in an Osaka kindergarten enthusiastically reciting it.   News24

I had not considered this angle

Trump, the second horseman of the apocalypse

Donald Trump did not even wait three months into his term to show signs that he may be the imperial character referred to in the Apocalypse because he has already put world peace in jeopardy by attacking Syria, and then bombing Afghanistan. He has also said he could attack North Korea. CoLatino

Because Nigeria doesn't have more important things to worry about

Nigeria 'gay wedding' bust leads to charges. Prosecutors in the northern Nigeria state of Kaduna have charged a group of 53 people with conspiring to celebrate a gay wedding.  The accused, arrested last Saturday, have denied the allegations, with their lawyers saying they were illegally detained.  The court released the group on bail and the case was remanded to 8 May.  BBC

Trying something new

Oh, my blog, how I have missed thee.  My grown-up job still discourages writing about myself, but I realized the other day that news headlines are WAY more interesting than my life anyhow.  So I'm going to share some tidbits from here, with a bit of my own snark thrown in -- b/c, ya know, it just wouldn't be my blog without some snark...

So maybe this is it....?

A few years ago, I came across a two-page essay I had written in my junior-year history class.  The grade was an A, but the comment was something to the effect of, 'Surely, Julie, this is too cynical, even for you.  You can't really believe this, do you?'  And a few years ago I looked at that with some blushing and thought, 'Wow.  I was pretty cheeky/sassy/full of it.'

But now, I think that perspective, the one I wrote so long ago while, so full of unfounded (in that I had had little first-hand experience) cynicism may have had the right idea.  I still blush to think about the strictly negative view I took at that time -- I have since come to appreciate small victories in a way that was foreign at that moment -- but I have also come full-circle, through up-close and personal experience, to think that I was not so far off the mark.  But now instead of feeling smart, as I did then, I feel tired.  I do not want to think that I am so often right about the things I know so much about now, from academic study and personal experience.  I take no comfort in my correct assessment.

So I now do the best I can, waiting for a moment to make a difference.  And while things are not at all bad, I am awful enough to wish for more.  But even more often, I wish I could write more.

City Rats and Inappropriate Office Behavior

The other day as I was walking into the building, I encountered some incredibly bizarre elevator etiquette, which reminded me of two other stories I've been meaning to post.

It's Not a Now-or-Never Thing...
The other morning, I was talking to Stephane on the phone as I came into my office building.  I went through security, waited for the elevator, and got on board.  Just before the doors closed, a very tall, very young man jumped (truly) on to the elevator and proceeded to physically barge into me in his hurry to push the button for his floor.  I laughed immediately b/c I was so surprised at being bum-rushed on a State Department elevator, but I was still talking to Stephane, so I looked up at the guy with a clear 'You are a nutjob' expression and pointed at the other side of the elevator door -- where there is a second keypad (i.e., this dude could easily have just pushed a button over there and gotten to his destination without running me over).  He looked at the keypad and looked back at me, still standing sort of close, and said, 'Oh.  Sorry -- I guess I was a little too excited.'  Because I am reasonably sure this person was an intern, I decided not to be too mean and just laughed at him again.

It's Not a Peephole
A few months ago, I was in the ladies room, doing what one does in the bathroom.  I heard someone come into the bathroom and attempt to open my stall door (which was, of course, locked).  Since there were two other unoccupied stalls available, I assumed the person would move on when they realized my stall was occupied.  Imagine my surprise, then, when I looked up to see an eyeball peering through the crack between the stall door and the wall!  The person said, 'OH!  Sorry,' and moved on to the next stall.  Just goes to show that passing a background check is not evidence of being a normal human being.

I Hate College Kids on the Sidewalk, Too.
Late last summer, I was taking my usual route from the office to the Metro, via the GWU campus.  Which really just means I was walking through the streets of DC near my office, but since the campus is in the middle of Foggy Bottom, all pedestrians must suffer the throngs of college kids milling around the sidewalk.  Apparently, the rats suffer, too.  And one of them had had enough.  As I was walking up the street, I saw a young college woman jogging and, just ahead of her, I saw what I thought was a squirrel with a tail problem. As I got closer, I saw that it was in fact a rat, which was sort of interesting b/c I had never seen a rat just out on the sidewalk like that.  The girl jogger kept coming, the rat maintained his ground, and either girl jogger didn't notice the rat, or she thought he would move (I did), but either way, she just kept coming.  Just as she reached the point where the rat needed to move or risk getting squashed, he jumped -- *toward*girl*jogger*.  Not in a rabid, trying-to-bite way, but just in a I-was-here-first-and-I'm-not-scurrying-into-that-bush way.  Girl jogger squealed and executed a highly entertaining series of hops and flails, while the rat gave chase for a good 5 feet or so, much to the delight of everyone except girl jogger.  His job done, the rat finally did scurry into the bushes and, I presume, spent a happy evening tell all of his rat friends what he'd been up to.