Bits and Bites from Around the World > MLK's Daughter Rips Pr William; Smollett gets 5 months in jail; 22-yr Trip Around the World

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Prince William Slammed by Martin Luther King's Daughter

for 'Horrific' Ukraine Comment

BY JACK ROYSTON, Newsweek

ON 3/10/22 AT 4:15 AM EST

Prince William was accused of "horrific comments" by Martin Luther King's daughter in the aftermath of a Ukrainian community event where he was partially misquoted.

Bernice King linked the Duke of Cambridge's remarks to colonialism after William and Kate Middleton visited the Ukrainian Cultural Centre in London to support the relief effort on March 9.

Footage from the event showed Prince William said: "Everyone is horrified by what they are seeing. The news every day, it's almost unfathomable to actually witness it, to see it. For our generation, it's very alien to see this in Europe. We're all right behind you."

The Press Association originally reported William also suggested Britons were more used to seeing conflict in Africa and Asia—though footage released by ITV of the royal's full comments suggested he, in fact, made no explicit reference to the two continents.

However, some maintained their criticism of the Duke based on the reference to war in Europe feeling "very alien."

King, the chief executive of the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, condemned the prince having seen the original, misleading account.

She wrote on Twitter: "Horrific comment. European people ran roughshod over the continent of Africa, pillaging communities, raping women, enslaving human beings, colonizing for profit and power, stealing resources, causing generational devastation. And European nations continue to harm Africa."

After the new footage emerged, King wrote: "I believe that we have a great deal of work to do globally to eradicate what my father called the Triple Evils of Militarism, Racism and Poverty.

"I believe that language matters in that work. And that it is harmful for a global figure to express war as 'alien to Europe.'"

European people ran roughshod over not just the continent of Africa, but on every continent but Antarctica. The list of grievances is unfortunately both accurate and incomplete. America is guilty of the same horrors in Central and South America and the Caribbean. The effects of which are now resulting in the massive migration from Latin America to the USA. In Europe, the migration comes from Africa and Asia, and it comes for the same reason - Colonialists stole all their natural resources and now the people are following the trail of those thefts.

Shola Mos-Shogbamimu, a prominent commentator on race in Britain, told Newsweek the remarks about war in Europe feeling alien were offensive on their own.

She said: "William says it's alien in Europe. This is on the back of two weeks of western media also saying it's alien in Europe, also saying Western countries are civilized. I'm sorry, if it's alien in Europe, where is he referring to it as being normal?"

The outcry heaps new pressure on the royals just days after the one-year anniversary of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's Oprah Winfrey interview, during which they accused an unnamed royal of racism.

And it comes little more than a week before William and Kate are due to tour the Caribbean from March 19 to March 26.

Prince William and Kate Middleton visit the Ukrainian Cultural Centre, in London, on March 9, 2022.

During the meeting, the Duke of Cambridge suggested it felt alien to see conflict in Europe.

IAN VOGLER-WPA POOL/GETTY IMAGES

After the original misquote, human rights lawyer Qasim Rashid wrote on Twitter: "Prince William says conflict is 'very alien' to Europe, unlike Asia & Africa.

"How do you have a 1,000 year history of colonialism, a literal 100 year war, launch 2 World Wars, allow multiple genocides, & bomb a dozen nations since 9/11 alone—yet make this type of a statement."

1000 year history of colonialism? I think it's half that.

Also before the footage emerged, royal biographer Omid Scobie, author of Finding Freedom, wrote on Twitter: "Unsurprised to see backlash against Prince William's ignorant remark (reported by@PA).

"Europe has seen some of the bloodiest conflict in the past two centuries—Balkans, Yugoslavia, Germany and Kosovo to name a few. But sure, let's normalise war and death in Africa and Asia."

It is not the first time Prince William has been accused of colonial comments, after he linked the pressure on wildlife in Africa to the human population in a November speech.

The duke said: "The increasing pressure on Africa's wildlife and wild spaces as a result of human population presents a huge challenge for conservationists, as it does the world over."

I'm hard-pressed to see anything wrong with this statement. If you do, please let me know what I am missing.

And a photo of Prince William being carried on a throne went viral in the aftermath of the Oprah interview in 2021.

In the famous interview, Meghan told CBS how an unnamed royal family member had made disparaging comments about how dark their child's skin might be before Archie was born.

She said: "So we have in tandem the conversation of 'He won't be given security, he's not going to be given a title' and also concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he's born."

The queen released a statement saying the royals took the comments seriously but acknowledging "some recollections may vary."

William was the first to comment in person, telling journalists days after broadcast: "We are very much not a racist family."

Britain's empire covered a quarter of the world at its height, including India and most of South Asia as well as much of Africa and the Caribbean.

The new backlash comes as William and Kate prepare for a tour of the Caribbean as part of celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee.

Among the countries on their schedule is Jamaica, where there have been recent debates about removing the monarch as head of state, with one party in the 2020 elections pledging to hold a referendum on the subject.

The latest episode of Newsweek's The Royal Report podcast discussed the possibility of a backlash against the Cambridges during their tour.

A recent editorial in Jamaican newspaper The Gleaner read: "First, this newspaper is deeply uncomfortable, which we believe is the disposition of the majority of Jamaicans, of having the monarch of Great Britain, which, at this time is Queen Elizabeth II, as our country's head of state.

"Who holds this position is no meaningless symbolism. It ought to be an important reference point of who we are, and the aspirations we hold as a sovereign nation and people.

"The patriarch of a dysfunctional family in the United Kingdom that defined Jamaica's long colonial experience is not, therefore, an appropriate symbol."

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Jussie Smollett starts 150-day jail term in protected status

This booking photo provided by the Cook County Sheriff's Office shows Jussie Smollett. A judge sentenced Jussie Smollett to 150 days in jail Thursday, March 10, 2022, branding the Black and gay actor a charlatan for staging a hate crime against himself while the nation struggled with wrenching issues of racial injustice. (Cook County Sheriff's Office via AP)

  

Don Babwin And Kathleen Foody, The Associated Press

Published Friday, March 11, 2022 7:45PM EST

CHICAGO (AP) - Jussie Smollett began a 150-day jail sentence for staging a hate crime against himself in protective custody, separated from other detainees and watched by security cameras and an officer, jail authorities said Friday.

Sheriff's deputies immediately took Smollett to the Cook County Jail on Thursday night after Judge James Linn sentenced the Black and gay actor to 30 months of felony probation - starting with a five-month term in jail - for lying to police that he had been the target of a racist and homophobic attack.

Smollett loudly maintained his innocence and suggested he could be killed in jail.

“Your honor, I respect you and I respect the jury, but I did not do this,” Smollett said Thursday. “And I am not suicidal. And if anything happens to me when I go in there, I did not do it to myself.”

Smollett's sentence may put an end - pending appeals - to more than three years of legal drama following the actor's report to police that two men wearing ski masks beat him, and hurled racial and homophobic slurs at him on a dark Chicago street and ran off.

Smollett's attorneys filed an emergency injunction Friday seeking Smollett's release pending his appeal. An appellate court judge ruled prosecutors have five days to respond to the emergency motion, WMAQ-TV reported.

His attorneys also filed a notice of appeal in Cook County Criminal Court. They had said Thursday night that they plan to appeal both the jury's guilty verdict and the judge's sentence.

One day earlier, a judge sentenced Smollett to 150 days in Cook County Jail following his conviction for lying to police about being the victim of a hoax hate crime in 2019. Smollett was also sentenced to 30 months of felony probation, ordered to pay more than $120,000 in restitution to the city of Chicago and was fined $25,000.

He began his sentence immediately after learning his fate Thursday.

In a statement on Friday, the Cook County Sheriff's Office said Smollett is being held in protective custody - typical for people “who may potentially be at risk of harm due to the nature of their charges, their professions, or their noteworthy status.”

Oh, good. Like Jeffrey Epstein!

Smollett has his own cell, monitored by security cameras and an officer stationed at the door and wearing a body camera, the sheriff's office said. Smollett is able to have “substantial time” in common areas to use the phone, watch TV and interact with staff but other detainees won't be in common areas with him.

Smollett faced up to three years in prison for each of the five felony counts of disorderly conduct - the charge filed for lying to police - of which he was convicted. He was acquitted on a sixth count.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot praised the sentence, saying it sends a message that “false claims and allegations” would not be tolerated.

“The city feels vindicated in today's ruling that he is being held accountable and that we will appropriately receive restitution for his actions,” she said in a statement.

Smollett's sentence includes a payment of $120,106 in restitution to the city and a $25,000 fine.

Smollett was convicted in a December jury trial, where witnesses included two brothers who told jurors Smollett paid them to carry out the attack and gave specific directions on what to do and say.

Smollett, who knew the men from his work on the television show “Empire” that filmed in Chicago, testified that he did not recognize them and did not know they were the men attacking him.

Argentine family comes home after 22-year drive around the world

Issued on: 12/03/2022 - 19:32

France24

Members of the Zapp family of Argentina open up a canvas that acts as a tent atop their 1928 Graham-Paige car near Gualeguaychu, Argentina, on March 10 JUAN MABROMATA AFP

Gualeguaychu (Argentina) (AFP) – An Argentine family is about to finish the trip of a lifetime: they have covered five continents in a 1928 jalopy on an adventure that began in 2000, while bringing into the world and raising four kids who are now adolescents.

The Zapp family -- Herman and Candelaria and those children -- have driven a total of 362,000 kilometers (225,000 miles) and have now stopped off in this town on the border with Uruguay before their scheduled arrival Sunday back where they started on January 25, 2000 at the Obelisk, a monument in downtown Buenos Aires.

"I have very mixed feelings. We are ending a dream, or fulfilling a dream," Herman told AFP. "What will come now? Thousands of changes, thousands of options," said the 53-year-old, who is already thinking of sailing around the world.

Candelaria, who was 29 when the trip began and is now 51, said her biggest and best discovery was the people encountered along the way.

"People are wonderful. Humanity is incredible," said Candelaria.

She said the family visited no fewer than 102 countries, although sometimes they had to take detours because of wars or other kinds of conflict.

'Good in cities'

The couple had been married six years, had good jobs and had just built a house, with plans to have kids, too, when wanderlust hit. Their round-the-world journey began with a backpacking trip in Alaska.

And somebody offered them a car, a 1928 model of an American make called Graham-Paige. The engine was bad and the paint looked terrible. "It would not even start," said Candelaria Zapp.

"The seats are not great, nor is the muffler. It does not have air conditioning, either. It is a car that you have to keep your eye on. It does not look comfortable, but it was marvelous," said Herman.

"It was good in cities, in mud and on sand," he added.

They went through only eight sets of tires in 22 years and only twice needed to do major engine work.

Herman shows off the roadster by opening up a canvas on the top that forms a sort of tent for the kids to sleep under when it was time to camp out.

"It is nicer now than when it first came out," he said of the modified uber-vintage vehicle.

While out on the road, and with the first two kids born -- Pampa, now 19, came into this world in the US and Tehue, 16, during a visit back to Argentina -- they enlarged the car by actually cutting it in half and adding 40 cm (16 inches) of length and another seat.

That made room for the arrival of Paloma, now 14 and born in Canada, and Wallaby, 12, down under in Australia.

The last additions to the family were a dog named Timon and a cat called Hakuna during a stay in Brazil, where the Zapps were stranded for a while in 2020 because of Covid-19.

More on that car, which looks like something out of a gangster movie: the trunk acts like a kitchen storage area, and the heat of the engine is used to cook or heat water. Clothes and tools are stored under the seats. And for all these years, it was home sweet home.

"It is a small house but with a huge backyard, with beaches, mountains and lakes. If you do not like the view, you can change it," Herman quipped.

On the side of the car is a sign that reads "A family traveling around the world."

The Zapps usually stayed as guests at people's houses -- they estimate around 2,000 altogether.

"Humanity is incredible," Candelaria said of people's hospitality. "Many helped just to be part of a dream."

But it was not all easy going. Herman once caught malaria, the family drove across Asia during the bird flu outbreak, and had to deal with Ebola in Africa and dengue fever in Central America.

- 'A lot of friends'-

Here on the streets of Gualeguaychu, people honk their horns when they see the Zapps' old Graham-Paige. Vintage car buffs have their picture taken with it.

And some buy a copy of the book the Zapps have written about their adventure, entitled "Catching a Dream." They have sold about 100,000 copies and say this is their main source of revenue for all this traveling.

For the record, they did the Americas, Africa, Oceania, Asia and Europe.

They touched Mount Everest, ate duck eggs in Asia, danced with native people in Namibia, entered the tomb of King Tut in Egypt and sailed across many a sea.

For the kids, it was an unforgettable experience. They did their studies remotely and with home learning with Candelaria.

The Zapp family is now almost back home after traveling on five continents for 22 years JUAN MABROMATA AFP

Now, in-person classes await them in Argentina.

"What I most want to do is make a lot of friends," said Paloma, the 14-year-old.

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Ex-South Korean President Convicted of More Charges

Corruption is Everywhere - Definitely in previous Seoul administration 

By Yonhap News Agency 

SEOUL, July 20 (UPI) -- A Seoul court convicted ousted President Park Geun-hye of additional charges and sentenced her to eight more years in prison Friday, raising her total jail term to 32 years.

Televised live, the Seoul Central District Court meted out the guilty verdict on Park, 66, and ordered her to forfeit 3.3 billion won (U.S. $2.91 million). Prosecutors had demanded 15 years.

Friday's sentence adds to the 24-year jail term she's been serving on 18 counts of corruption in a nation-rocking influence-peddling scandal that led to her ousting last year. She was arrested in late March, three weeks after she was removed from office by the Constitutional Court.

In early January, prosecutors indicted Park on charges that include bribery, embezzlement and loss of state funds for illegally accepting 3.5 billion won from the National Intelligence Service between May 2013 and September 2016.

She's also been indicted for interfering in the then-ruling Saenuri Party's candidate nominations for the 2016 general elections.

She was not present at Friday's trial, as she has been boycotting all her trials, which she said "are politically motivated," accusing the judiciary and prosecution of being unfair.

The court on Friday acquitted her of the bribery charges, ruling that the NIS provisions of its funds to Park's office were not paid in return for any favors. But it found her guilty of embezzlement and causing losses to state funds, as the money was delivered upon her request and was partly misappropriated by her for personal use.

The court acknowledged that it has been customary for the spy agency to provide funds as a supplementary budget to the presidential office from its own state coffers, known as the untraceable special activities fund.

The fact that the then-spy chiefs had delivered the funds to Park's Cheong Wa Dae in a fixed amount, and on a regular basis, is far from the conventional way of paying someone a bribe, which usually comes in a lump sum payment at one time.

Park is accused of spending some of the money to cover the bills for secret phones, maintenance costs for her private residence in southern Seoul and medical treatment. The funds were also used for incentives and bonuses for Park's close aides.

The court also found Park guilty of violating the election law. It said she abused her power to meddle in local politics and undermined the basic value of democracy and autonomy of political parties.

The court ruling is in line with last week's verdict in a separate trial on her three former aides, who were indicted alongside her for their involvement in the NIS bribery case. The court cleared them of bribery charges, ruling the NIS provisions to Park's office were not bribes.

No, they were obviously gifts because the NIS budget was too big!!!

Pharma Bro now Prison Bro as Shkreli Sentenced to 7 Years

'Pharma Bro' Martin Shkreli gets 7 years

in securities fraud case

Judge ruled earlier this week that Shkreli would have to forfeit more than $7.3M

The Associated Press 

Martin Shkreli, who became notorious for raising the price of a life-saving drug by 5,000 per cent and trolling critics on the internet with his snarky "Pharma Bro" persona, was given a seven-year prison sentence on Friday for securities fraud.

Martin Shkreli, who became notorious for raising the price of a life-saving drug by 5,000 per cent and trolling critics on the internet with his snarky "Pharma Bro" persona, was given a seven-year prison sentence on Friday for securities fraud. (Seth Wenig/Associated Press)

The smirk wiped off his face, a crying Martin Shkreli was sentenced to seven years in prison for securities fraud Friday in a hard fall for the pharmaceutical-industry bad boy vilified for jacking up the price of a lifesaving drug.

Shkreli, the boyish-looking, 34-year-old entrepreneur dubbed the "Pharma Bro" for his loutish behaviour, was handed his punishment after a hearing in which he and his attorney struggled with limited success to make him a sympathetic figure. His own lawyer confessed to wanting to punch him in the face sometimes.

The defendant hung his head and choked up as he admitted to many mistakes and apologized to the investors he was convicted of defrauding. At one point, a clerk handed him a box of tissues.

"I want the people who came here today to support me to understand one thing: The only person to blame for me being here today is me," he said. "There is no conspiracy to take down Martin Shkreli. I took down Martin Shkreli."

In the end, U.S. District Judge Kiyo Matsumoto gave him a sentence that fell well short of the 15 years prosecutors wanted but was a lot longer than the 18 months his lawyer asked for. He was also fined $75,000 US.

Shkreli was found guilty in August of lying to investors in two failed hedged funds and cheating them out of millions. The case was unrelated to the 2015 furor in which he was accused of price-gouging, but his arrest was seen as rough justice by the many enemies he made with his smug and abrasive behavior online and off.

The judge insisted that the punishment was not about Shkreli's online antics or his raising the cost of the drug. "This case is not about Mr. Shkreli's self-cultivated public persona ... nor his controversial statements about politics or culture," Matsumoto said.

This courtroom sketch shows former pharmaceutical CEO Martin Shkreli, left, seated next to his lawyer Ben Brafman in U.S. federal court in New York on Friday. (Elizabeth Williams via Associated Press)

But she did say his conduct after the verdict made her doubt the sincerity of his remorse. She cited his bragging after the verdict that he would be sentenced to time served. And she quoted one piece of correspondence in which he wrote: "F—- the feds."

The judge ruled earlier that Shkreli would have to forfeit more than $7.3 million in a brokerage account and personal assets, including a one-of-a-kind Wu-Tang Clan album that he boasted of buying for $2 million.

Defense attorney Benjamin Brafman described Shkreli as a misunderstood eccentric who used unconventional means to make his defrauded investors even wealthier. He told the court that he sometimes wants to hug Shkreli and sometimes wants to punch him, but that his outspokenness shouldn't be held against him.

"It's like the kids today who hit send before they really understand what they texted," Brafman said.

Prosecutors rejected that notion.

"Mr. Shkreli is not a child," federal prosecutor Jacquelyn Kasulis said. "He's not a teenager who just needs some mentoring. He is a man who needs to take responsibility for his actions."

Shkreli became the face of pharmaceutical industry evil in 2015 when he increased by 5,000 percent the price of Daraprim, a previously cheap drug used to treat toxoplasmosis, a parasitic infection that can be fatal to people with the AIDS virus or other immune system disorders.

Shkreli seemed to treat the case like a big joke. After his arrest in December 2015, he taunted prosecutors, got kicked off of Twitter for harassing a female journalist, heckled Hillary Clinton from the sidewalk outside her daughter's home, gave speeches with the conservative provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos and spent countless hours livestreaming himself from his apartment.

He also infuriated members of Congress at a Capitol Hill hearing on drug prices when he repeatedly cited his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. Afterward, he tweeted that the lawmakers were "imbeciles."

Last fall, the judge revoked his bail and threw him in jail after he jokingly offered his online followers a $5,000 bounty to anyone who could get a lock of Clinton's hair.

Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. Prov 16:18.

Court Orders Halal Supermarket in Paris to Close Because it Sells No Pork or Wine

Islamization - in France

 © Loic Venance / AFP

A French court has ordered a halal grocery store in Paris to shut down because it did not sell pork and alcohol, and failed to cater for the needs of the customers.

The Court of Nanterre ruled on Monday that the “Good Price” mini-market in Colombes failed to comply with the conditions of its lease, according to which the grocery must act as a "general food store,” La Liberation reported.

The court ordered the termination of the store's lease and the eviction of the tenants. In addition, the owner must pay €4,000 to the local authority in respect of legal costs.

The court ruled that the owner of the store had failed to meet “the needs of all inhabitants of the residential area.” The products that the shop stocked were "restrictive and did not fit the broad concept of general goods,” it added.

Local residents complained that after the halal mini-market replaced a regular supermarket they were not being served properly, with halal products constituting 96 percent of what the grocery shop sold.

The landlord said it was impossible to find bottles of wine or pork on the shelves, even though the lease had been granted for a "general food store." When the owner of the store was questioned at the time, he said, as cited by 20minutes.fr: "It's business. I look around me and I target what I see."

The grocery store’s owner and his lawyer argued that, while being “accused of not selling wine, wine is not part of the general diet." The store has “no obligations to sell it, as it was only a complement to food,” the lawyer said. 

That's almost blasphemy in France! This story fits into Dr. Peter Hammond's scale of effects of an increasingly Muslim society: 

From 5% on, they exercise an inordinate influence in proportion to their percentage of the population. For example, they will push for the introduction of halal (clean by Islamic standards) food, thereby securing food preparation jobs for Muslims. They will increase pressure on supermarket chains to feature halal on their shelves — along with threats for failure to comply.

Canada Revenue Goes Soft on Qatar-Funded Mosque with Dark Story

Opposition wants government to look into B.C. charity’s links to Qatar group

By Stewart Bell  National Online Journalist, Investigative Global News

A Jewish advocacy group said it was “shocked” the government had allowed a Canadian charity to remain registered despite a federal audit that alleged it was “controlled or influenced” by a group in Qatar accused of having ties to Hamas.

The Conservatives also called the matter “deeply troubling” and said they expected the government to look into the findings of the Canada Revenue Agency audit of the Islamic Society of British Columbia, which runs a Vancouver-area mosque.

Canada Revenue Agency’s national headquarters in Ottawa, Ont., on July 4, 2016. 

THE CANADIAN PRESS IMAGES/Lars Hagberg

Documents obtained by Global News show the CRA audit concerned the charity’s operations between October 2010 and September 2013, the month its then-president Saadeldin Bahr was arrested for a sexual assault in the mosque building.

In a letter last year, the CRA raised concerns about the B.C. charity’s “connection to and possible control by” Qatar’s Eid Foundation, which auditors said was “alleged to have provided support to terrorism.”

The Eid Foundation is a member of the Union of Good, the CRA said. The U.S. Treasury calls the Union of Good “an organization created by Hamas leadership in late-2000 to transfer funds to the terrorist organization” and says it provides payments to the families of suicide bombers.

Hamas has been an outlawed terrorist group in Canada since 2002.

“The CRA established that a mosque in Canada is under the control of a foreign organization linked to a global coalition of charities operated by Hamas, a designated terrorist organization,” said Shimon Koffler Fogel, CEO of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs.

“Given these links, we are shocked that the mosque’s charitable status was not revoked. All Canadians should be concerned about the flow of foreign funds into Canadian religious institutions. Clearly, the CRA’s disturbing findings require further investigation.”

Through its lawyer, Sebastian Elawny, the Islamic Society said it had responded to the CRA’s concerns and “the evidence was unequivocal in proving that the organization was not involved in any activities involving terrorism.”

Islamic Society directors was notified in June 2016 that there were “sufficient grounds” to revoke their charity status. But in a May 2017 letter, the CRA noted the charity had vowed to remove Bahr from the board and improve its record-keeping and internal controls.

The CRA imposed a $9,000 penalty for improperly issuing donation receipts, but did not penalize the charity for what the audit documents called the “relationship” with the Qatar group, which has itself denied financing terrorism.

Another source says that CRA could have fined the mosque $126,000, but settled for $9,000. We Canadians are so nice.

The auditors said the Eid Foundation had been contributing financially to the Islamic Society since 2005. During the period covered by the audit the Qatar group transferred almost $80,000 to the Islamic Society, the CRA said. Auditors also found transfers in February and July 2010 of $68,000, which the CRA said showed “an ongoing pattern of funding” from Qatar.

Qatar has been under pressure from its Arab neighbours in recent months over its alleged bankrolling of extremist groups in the Middle East.

“The CRA’s finding that a Canadian charity accepted funds from an organization with connections to terror financing is deeply troubling. ‎I expect the Liberal government to look into the matter,” said Pat Kelly, the Conservative national revenue critic.

Auditors also said charity funds had paid for $126,000 worth of personal spending by Bahr on items such as a spa, jewelry, video games and hair dye. Bahr is currently imprisoned for a 2013 sexual assault that occurred in the mosque building.

Brazilian Company Fined $3.2B Over Bribery of 1900 Politicians

Will this extraordinary fine actually begin to clean up corruption in Brazil? Let us hope so.

The economy seems to run well enough when the money is not being pilfered left, right and center.

But 1900 politicians on the take is not a criminal case but a way of life.

By Andrew V. Pestano

The J&F Participações, which is the controlling shareholder of the JBS SA meat-packing giant, 

has 25 years starting in December to pay the Brazilian government a $3.2 billion fine over

a large bribery scheme. Photo courtesy of JBS SA

UPI -- Brazil's public prosecutor said J&F Participações, the controlling shareholder of the JBS SA meat-packing giant, will pay a $3.2 billion fine for its role in corruption.

The Federal Public Prosecutor's Office late Tuesday said the J&F group has agreed to a leniency deal that will be signed in the coming days. J&F will begin making payments in December and has 25 years to pay the fine, which will be adjusted for inflation, prosecutors said.

About a fourth of the fine payments will be used in social projects for education, health and corruption prevention.

J&F will still need to face U.S. courts where anti-corruption laws are tougher and carry heavier fines and sanctions, Jornal O Globo reported.

The deal struck by the prosecutor's office and J&F is related to the Bullish and Weak Flesh investigations that uncovered bribes paid by JBS to Brazilian politicians and meat inspectors. JBS also received loans -- by using a subsidiary -- considered questionable from Brazil's National Economic and Social Development Bank, prosecutors said.

1,900 politicians, including presidents

Brazilian President Michel Temer is linked to the scandal; the owners of J&F, Joesley and Wesley Batista, told prosecutors as part of a plea bargain agreement that they've paid millions of dollars in bribes to nearly 1,900 politicians, including presidents.

Temer also purportedly endorsed Joesley Batistas' hush money payments to silence jailed politician Eduardo Cuhna as a potential witness in a corruption investigation in a secret recording that was later leaked.

Temer replaced former President Dilma Rousseff in August 2016 when the Federal Senate voted to remove her from office over accusations she broke budget laws.

In November, she accused Temer of taking a $295,000 bribe she was initially accused of taking. Her lawyers said documents showed the bribe was transferred directly into the general campaign finance fund of the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party, to which Temer belongs.

Swede Fined $500 for Pointing Out Flaw in US Traffic Lights

Instead of thanking the engineer, Oregon circled the wagons and shot him with a $500 fine, an absurdity of the first order

Libertarians defend Swede fined $500 for pointing out flaw in US traffic lights

© InstituteForJustice / YouTube

An engineer fined for disclosing the results of his independent investigation into the formula that regulates traffic lights has received legal backing from a law group claiming a violation of his First Amendment free speech rights.

In early 2015 Mats Järlström discovered a flaw in the mathematical formula used to regulate the timing of US traffic lights but was handed a $500 fine after disclosing his findings to authorities.

The Swedish electronics engineer, who has lived in the US for over 20 years, realized the flaw in the traffic systems after his wife received a fine from an automated traffic camera in Oregon.

Upon digging into the intriguing world of traffic light timing mathematics, Järlström concluded that a formula designed in 1959 accounted for only two yellow light scenarios: driving straight through, or stopping.

Following his discovery, the Swede set about trying to improve the formula by managing the transition time from yellow to red, so that a driver can travel through an intersection with a yellow light to slow down, without the system thinking they have broken a red light.

In 2015, Järlström decided it would be a good idea to share his findings with the media, policymakers and those interested in traffic technology but this is where the engineer ran into some difficulty.

On the back of Järlström’s discovery, the Oregon State Board of Examiners for Engineering and Land Surveying opened an investigation in August 2016 and announced that the curious Swede had engaged in unlicensed engineering and handed him a $500 fine which he duly paid.

Every state in the US regulates the practice of engineering and as Järlström isn’t licensed in the state he received the fine. He now fears that his ongoing interest in traffic light timing may land him with more fines or even jail time.

What is the purpose of the practice of ensuring engineers are licensed? Isn't it so that structures are not created that are unsafe? Since nothing was created here, how can Järlström's work be of any threat to anyone. The only threat is that his work might cause some work and expense for municipalities in Oregan which would result in fairer policing at intersections. 

It's a bit ridiculous that an engineer licensed in one state cannot practice in another, anyway. Are there really significant differences in standards? Is there one state that allows half-wits to be licensed engineers? Is this simply a money-grabbing construct for state authorities?

The engineer, buoyed by positive feedback after presenting his radical traffic light theories at a 2016 Institute of Transportation Engineers meeting, is now working on a potentially fine-inducing paper, though this time he has back up.

On his behalf, the Institute for Justice, a libertarian public interest legal group, filed a federal lawsuit last week in Portland’s US District Court, challenging the Beaver State’s Professional Engineer Registration Act.

The lawsuit claims that the act is in violation of Järlström's First Amendment right to free speech.

“Criticizing the government’s engineering isn’t a crime; it’s a constitutional right,” Sam Gedge, an attorney at the Institute for Justice, said in a press release.

“Under the First Amendment, you don’t need to be a licensed lawyer to write an article critical of a Supreme Court decision, you don’t need to be a licensed landscape architect to create a gardening blog, and you don’t need to be a licensed engineer to talk about traffic lights.”

“Whether or not you use math, criticizing the government is a core constitutional right that cannot be hampered by onerous licensing requirements,” said Gedge.

In an interview with The Register, Järlström said he felt “violated that I can't state who I am by saying 'I'm an engineer' and I can't even talk about traffic signals."

“I have this information I want to get out, however, I am literally blocked. I can be punished, even jailed for sharing this information and I think it's outrageous. We need to have freedom of speech to promote innovation," he added.

Belgian Catholic Nursing Home has No Right to Refuse Euthanasia

Slippery slope for Christians when it comes to euthanasia

Conscientious objection gives way to godless ideology

Andy Walton CHRISTIAN TODAY CONTRIBUTING WRITER        


Reuters

A Catholic nursing home in Belgium is reported to have fallen foul of the country's courts after refusing to permit a resident to access euthanasia.

The incident happened in 2011 when Huize Sint-Augustinus home in Diest refused to allow an elderly woman's doctor access to see her – when it was thought she was about to be given a lethal injection.

The home has been ordered to pay €6,000 (approx $6,600 or £5,000) in damaged to the family of the woman.

The civil court in Louvain ruled that "the nursing home did not have the right to refuse euthanasia on the grounds of conscientious objection."

In this case, the 74-year-old who had terminal cancer received the injection in her own house, rather than in the nursing home.

Euthanasia has been legal in Belgium since 2002 and the country is said to have the most liberal assisted suicide laws anywhere in the world. Belgium is held up as an example by campaigners on both sides of the debate over assisted suicide in the UK, US and elsewhere.

Local Archbishop Jozef De Kesel, of the diocese of Mechelen-Brussels, had previously said Catholic institutions have a right to refuse abortion and euthanasia.