UN
Furious, US Boycotts UN Cabal Bashing Israel Over 'Human Rights' breakingisraelnews
Mark Toner, the department’s spokesman, posted a statement state.gov on the department’s website, saying that not only will the US boycott the meeting, but it intends to vote against all five the council intends to pass this week.
Also see Trump Admin To Boycott U.N. Council Over Anti-Israel Agenda freebeacon
Antisemitism
'Beware of Jews' sign appears in Stamford Hill bbc
The sign depicts the silhouette of an orthodox Jewish man wearing a traditional Fedora hat and was spotted on a lamppost in Stamford Hill on Tuesday.
Politics
Trump Wants to Make Churches the New Super PACs theatlantic
Trump has promised to repeal the so-called Johnson Amendment wikipedia, a 1954 provision that prohibits tax-exempt organizations from participating in political activities. Proposed by then-Senator Lyndon B. Johnson and later revised by Congress, it keeps churches and other non-profits from lobbying for specific causes, campaigning on behalf of politicians, and supporting or opposing candidates for office.
Society
Montreal photographer allegedly refuses to shoot gay wedding ctvnews.ca
“I mentioned that there’s only going to be one house, since we already live with each other, and I said there is no bride: we’re two guys.”
I haven't yet seen a less biased story, but I believe that this is the company's site: Premiere Production premiereproduction.net
Genetics
The FDA Is Cracking Down On Rogue Genetic Engineers gizmodo
Since the DIY bio community first developed in the early aughts, it has largely avoided government regulation. But in 2017, cheaper equipment and simpler genetic engineering technologies mean that garage scientists can dream much bigger than simply turning yellow yeast red. We now live in a world where anyone can order custom DNA sequences on the internet to tinker with in their home. And the rules that govern genetic engineering today were not written with the foresight that it would one day be possible for 30-year-old hobbyists in Mississippi to try their hand at genetically engineering dogs.
Philippines
Russian warships visit Philippines; admiral suggests wider exercises cnn v
There were differing reports from Russian media as to the exact nature of the visit by the Russian destroyer Admiral Tributs and the sea tanker Boris Butomato, which arrived in Manila on Tuesday.
According to a report from Russia's state-run Sputnik News, Russian Navy Rear Adm. Eduard Mikhailov said the Russian ships would be conducting joint exercises with Philippine forces to fight maritime piracy and terrorism.
A report from the Russian website RT.com however said the "Russian marines are expected to discuss and share tactics to help combat terrorism and piracy in the region" with an eye toward future joint exercises.
Also see Russian warships on five-day visit to Philippines navaltoday
Abortion
Ohio Gov. Kasich Signs 20-Week Abortion Limit, Rejects 'Heartbeat Bill' npr.org
The so-called heartbeat bill, which Kasich rejected, was considered more vulnerable to legal challenge. Provisions of the measure would have essentially limited the period during which women could get an abortion to about six weeks, when many women don't even realize they're pregnant, reports the Associated Press.
Government
Pentagon buries evidence of $125 billion in bureaucratic waste washingtonpost
Pentagon leaders had requested the study to help make their enormous back-office bureaucracy more efficient and reinvest any savings in combat power. But after the project documented far more wasteful spending than expected, senior defense officials moved swiftly to kill it by discrediting and suppressing the results.
Peace
Jimmy Carter to Obama: Before you leave office, recognize Palestinian state cnn
"I am convinced that the United States can still shape the future of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict before a change in presidents, but time is very short, " Carter wrote. "The simple but vital step this administration must take before its term expires on Jan. 20 is to grant American diplomatic recognition to the state of Palestine."
Also see Carter's Op-Ed piece: Jimmy Carter: America Must Recognize Palestine nytimes
Russia-Japan
Japan pledges response to 'serious' Russian missile deployment on disputed islands independent.co.uk
The countries are trying to arrange a meeting between President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe next month to settle a 70-year dispute over the islands, which were claimed by the Soviets after Second World War and lie just north of Japan.
Also see Military build-up in the Kuril Islands: Bad timing or a signal from Moscow? rbth
Israel
Netanyahu tells settlers of worries of possible U.S. action at U.N. in.reuters
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday expressed concern that U.S. President Barack Obama, during the final days of his term in office, might take diplomatic steps that could harm the fate of Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Obama's strong opposition to settlement building on land Palestinians seek for a future state has also raised speculation in Israel that he might try to define parameters for a final peace agreement that has eluded Israel and the Palestinians since interim deals were signed in the early 1990s.
Privacy
Half of US adults are recorded in police facial recognition databases, study says theguardian
A report from Georgetown Law’s Center on Privacy and Technology georgetown.edu found that more than 117 million adults are captured in a “virtual, perpetual lineup”, which means law enforcement offices across the US can scan their photos and use unregulated software to track law-abiding citizens in government datasets.
Also see the report: The Perpetual Line-up perpetuallineup.org
Syria
Russia Vetoes UN Resolution Demanding End to Aleppo Bombing abcnews.go
French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault had warned before the vote that the continued bombing of Aleppo was killing civilians and destroying hospitals and schools — "and has nothing to do with combatting terrorism."
"It is the annihilation of Aleppo," he said.
Society
In Fear of Public Scrutiny, Chicago Officer Didn’t Use Gun While She Was Beaten ktla v
While wrestling on the ground, the the man allegedly grabbed the officer's head and slammed her face into the pavement repeatedly until she lost consciousness, [the superintendent] said.
Privacy
Yahoo 'secretly monitored emails on behalf of the US government' theguardian
The company complied with a classified US government directive, scanning hundreds of millions of Yahoo Mail accounts at the behest of the National Security Agency (NSA nsa.gov) or FBI fbi.gov, two former employees and a third person who knew about the program told Reuters.
Some surveillance experts said this represents the first known case of a US internet company agreeing to a spy agency’s demand by searching all arriving messages, as opposed to examining stored messages or scanning a small number of accounts in real time.
Israel
[OPIONION] A historic moment may be looming on the horizon for Israel. jpost
Now...we hear a different tone in the Arab world. Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah Sisi has revealed that he talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “a lot.” Israel is evidently cooperating with Egypt in the battle against Islamic fundamentalists in the Sinai. In July Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry visited Israel and declared that Israelis are not guilty of terrorism in the region. In August Sisi said that relations with Israel were “important” to Egypt and declared Egypt wanted close security ties with Israel.
Israel
PM: World silent as Palestinians seek ‘ethnic cleansing’ of Jews in West Bank timesofisrael v
Speaking in English in a video message posted on his Facebook page, Netanyahu asked whether people in other parts of the world would accept such demands in their own countries.
See also Netanyahu 'ethnic cleansing' comment against Palestinians draws U.S. rebuke reuters
