A German exodus from the church may be chalked up to a small bookkeeping change to federal tax rules. It begs some big questions.
Month: July 2015
ISRAELIS KILL PALESTINIAN TODDLER An 18-month-old Palestinian boy was burned to death overnight when Israeli settlers set his family’s home in the West Bank city of Duma ablaze, Haaretz reports. The toddler’s mother, father and 4-year-old brother were seriously injured in the attack, which occurred at 4 am. The two masked attackers painted Hebrew graffiti […]
With the expected rush of American tourists to the island, more and more Cubans are opening bed and breakfasts. This is most likely the most authentic way to see the island.
Le Quotidien de la Réunion, July 31, 2015 “The probe zeroes in,” reads Friday’s front-page of the French newspaper Le Quotidien de la Réunion after a piece of plane debris was found on the French island in the Indian Ocean that may be from the missing MH370 flight that disappeared 16 months ago. France’s air […]
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Forged In Roadside Fire
With only the most basic tools at his disposal, this roadside blacksmith in Jaisalmer, in the Indian state of Rajasthan, managed to forge very robust knives.
This week we shine the spotlight on Chile: PACT OF SILENCE Testimony provided by a former army conscript has turned national attention to a nearly three-decade-old human rights case and prompted Chilean President Michelle Bachelet to demand an end to the shroud of secrecy that has covered this and other crimes committed during the 17-year […]
Severe heat doesn’t just threaten the physically vulnerable such as babies and the elderly. It also poses a serious risk to those suffering from anxiety.
The treaty signed with Iran won’t eliminate the risk of global proliferation. Russia, China and North Korea in particular are building arsenals and see destabilization as strategy.
DANIA BEACH — On the stage are two large furry creatures — one pink, one green — examining, then admiring, a human-sized box that reads “Thwaxo’s strangely demented space fudge.” In the background is the soundtrack of Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. An astronaut then enters and approaches a microphone. “Before I begin my […]
Photo: Velar Grant/Zuma POSSIBLE MH370 DEBRIS FOUND A two-meter wing section of an aircraft has washed up on the French Island of Reunion in the Indian Ocean, local authorities announced today. Malaysia’s Transport Minister Abdul Aziz Kaprawi said the debris is “almost certainly” from a Boeing 777, meaning it could be a piece of the […]
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Holy Merchandising
The village of Fatima in central Portugal became known worldwide in 1917, when three young shepherds said the Virgin Mary appeared to them. Since then, she appears in various forms and packaging to whoever steps into one of Fatima’s religious shops.
-Analysis- BEIJING — Included among Fortune“s recently-published Global 500 rankings of the top corporations worldwide are 106 companies from China, a new record for the country, and now second only to the United States in terms of representation on the prestigious list. But it’s imporant to note that the Global 500 rankings only reflect revenues […]
MINGORA — Neelam Ibrar Chattan makes breakfast for her mother and younger brother, serving them and rushing out the door without eating anything. As the young woman leaves, her mother Mariam Bibi recites Koranic versus in the hope of protecting her. Her husband died of heart attack about 12 years ago. “I encouraged Neelam because it was her father’s dream to be a social worker,” Bibi says. “I want my daughter to play her role for the people of the area and also fulfill the dream of her father. I know people don’t like her going out of the house […]
GOMA — “They realized he wasn’t one of them because he didn’t speak Swahili. Then they pulled him off the bus he was traveling on, stoned him to death, opened his chest and ate his heart.” Hearing this story from a high-ranking United Nations official, one immediately asks if this is just a legend of […]
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How Italian Spritz Craze Conquered France
The Italian aperitif Aperol, served with sparkling wine, has now charmed France, a country with no shortage of its own spirits.
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Extra! Lebanon’s Waste Collection Crisis
Beirut has been facing a major trash collection crisis for nearly two weeks after the city’s primary landfill site was declared full and closed. Without a place to dispose of the 3,000 tons of trash generated daily in Lebanon’s capital, it’s everywhere. But as the situation begins to change, Lebenese daily Al-Mustaqbal”s Wednesday edition features […]
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Remembrance Of Odors Past
Looking at this shot of the open-air market in Medan, on the western Indonesian island of Sumatra, I distincly remember the incredibly strong smell of dry fish. Luckily for you, scentography has not yet been successfully developed.
The Egyptian regime and Islamic militants kill civilians every day. If they are killed by the militants, then they are victims of terrorism, and if they are killed by the military, they become terrorists.
Photo: Amazon/ZUMA MAN DIES AS MIGRANTS STORM CHUNNEL A Sudanese man died overnight in the French city of Calais after some 1,500 migrants tried to storm the Channel Tunnel, or Chunnel, to reach the UK, Le Monde reports. French police believe he may have been crushed by a truck exiting one of the shuttles that […]
Latin American-style populism is gaining traction in Europe, just when states like Cuba and Venezuela may be heading toward moderation and sensible economics.
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Modern Islam And The Disease Within
Even a country like Turkey can’t find its way into the modern era. What remains is a negative, aggressive “discount Islam” that creates problems around the world
It gives new meaning to the concept “community policing.” The explosion of smartphones is allowing people to fight crime from their pocket, wherever they may be. We take a look at five crime-fighting apps from around the world: ITALY: STANDING UP TO THE MAFIA Addiopizzo, a citizen’s organization founded a decade ago on the Italian […]
“Pictures: the mystical submarine discovery on the Swedish seabed,” reads Tuesday’s headline in Kvällsposten, a Southern Swedish daily. Icelandic salvage hunting company Ocean X says it has found a small sunken Russian submarine, 20 meters long (65 feet) and 3.5 meters wide (11 feet), some 1.7 miles away from the coast of central Sweden. Swedish […]
The Church is hugely wealthy and exempt from almost all taxes. But its charitable works are crucial in Greece, ravaged by financial crisis and an inept public sector.
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Pilgrim And Painter
The plastered façades of the mudbrick houses in and around Luxor, in eastern Egypt, are decorated with memorable episodes in the life of their owners. On many of the houses, one can see a large space devoted to the representation of the owners’ pilgrimage to Mecca, or Hajj, one of the most important experiences in […]
Photo: Hamza Turkia/Xinhua/ZUMA NATO DISCUSSES TURKEY BORDER CRISIS In an emergency meeting in Brussels today, NATO is holding talks to discuss Turkey’s campaign against both ISIS and Kurdish forces across its border in Syria.Reuters reports that both NATO and Turkey are downplaying the idea of a call for military help from the alliance. “Turkey requested […]
TIKRIT — A line of vehicles has formed in front of the checkpoint at the southern entrance to Tikrit. The nine members of the Mouslah family, their personal goods and some food are stuffed into their overcrowded car. As policemen give instructions, the father, Nasser, fills out a form on the hood of the car […]
Vast urban areas are home to much more animal and plant life than you might think, making their natural spaces crucial in the fight against global warming.
MUNICH — The old proverb that says, “beauty pulls more weight than oxen,” is getting some close investigation in the modern job market. The latest study from Germany found that not only do good-looking people have a better chance of finding a job, they also earn as much as 20% more. This “beauty bonus” appears […]
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The Lion’s Claw
The paws are all that remain of the Sigiriya, the “Lion Rock” in central Sri Lanka. The giant sculpture was meant to guard the entrance to a now-destroyed palace — and judging only by the size of one of its claw (this is my wife sitting next to it), one can imagine it was doing […]
New York Magazine, July 26, 2015 “Cosby: The Women, An Unwelcome Sisterhood,” the cover of New York Magazine‘s latest issue reads. In a striking black-and-white cover image, 35 women who say they were raped by comedian Bill Cosby are photographed together. The dates of their respective attacks are written below each woman. Among the alleged […]
The European Union’s failure to provide desperate asylum seekers with legal routes leaves them with no option but to risk their lives on smugglers’ boats.
Photo: Hani Ali/Xinhua/ZUMA TURKEY “CHANGING REGIONAL GAME” Recent Turkish strikes against both ISIS in Syria and Kurdistan Workers Party militants in northern Iraq have “changed the regional game,” Hürriyet quotes Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu as saying. But he insisted Turkey wouldn’t use ground troops in the fight against ISIS. According to The New York Times, […]
The bacterium Xylella has arrived in Italy, infecting thousands of olive trees in a stretch of the southeastern peninsula. Europe is powerless, with the region’s entire economy at risk.
WAIMEA — Everyday, Klayton Kubo, 49, does the same pilgrimage across his village of Waimea, on Kauai, an island in the Hawaiian archipelago. He takes the road along the river, parks his pickup on the roadside and climbs up the hill overlooking the agrochemicals factory. He stands there and observes. On the other side of […]
Two priests have recently accused a secret and vindictive “gay lobby” of undermining the Church, from the inside.
Protecting the environment is not about “reconciling” man and nature, it’s about giving each their due space. In large part, this means concentrating people in cities.
CAIRO — Questions abound in the wake of Egyptian Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb’s announcement that the government will build a 700-square kilometer business and administrative center called The Capital Cairo. Topping the list of queries is whether Egypt, which has millions of vacant property units as it stands, even needs this type of project. The […]
Military commanders in Finland want to beef up capabilities on the country’s eastern border with Russia amid the backdrop of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
Photo: T. Pyle/Jet Propulsion Laboratory/NASA/ZUMA TURKEY TARGETS ISIS IN SYRIA In a major escalation in the fight against ISIS, Turkey returned fire early today for the first time, sending F-16 fighter jets to bomb ISIS positions across the border with Syria, killing at least 35 ISIS militants. The retaliation comes after yesterday’s clashes near the […]