Malta Votes on Whether to Legalize Divorce

Young women walk past a billboard reading
"Christ Yes, Divorce No" in Sliema, outside Valletta, May 6.

Malta votes on whether to legalize divorce
'The divorce referendum is a vote for modernity and an opportunity for those whose marriage has broken down to be able to start afresh' By Christopher Scicluna

The people of Malta started voting Saturday, May 28, in a referendum on whether or not to introduce divorce.

The Mediterranean island of 400,000 people is the only country in Europe that does not allow the practice.

Only divorce granted abroad is recognized in Malta.

Opinion polls suggest the result could go either way, with 40 percent of the electorate still undecided.

The vote is seen as a test of the influence of the Roman Catholic Church in a country where 72 percent of people still say they go to Mass on Sundays.

I am surprised to learn that a European country is so Catholic that it bans divorce.

10 Countries With The Highest Growth in Income Inequality

Here is an article, written by Harry Bradford, that reveals the results of an OECD study about the growth in income inequality among nations. 5-24-11

Of all the effects of the economic crisis, perhaps one of the least visible, but most consequential has been the rising rate of income inequality around the world.

A recent report, released by the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and entitled "Society at a Glance 2011 - OECD Social Indicators," shows exactly where the gap between rich and poor has grown widest.

Based on a measurement known as the Gini coefficient, which rates countries from 0 to 1, where zero indicates perfect equality and one indicates all wealth goes to a single individual, the report finds growing rates of income inequality everywhere from Oceania to Scandinavia. Between the mid-1980s and late 2000s, the average Gini coefficient for OECD countries rose annually by an average of 0.3 percent, and now sits at 0.31.

High rates of income inequality might be unsurprising in developing countries such as Portugal and Mexico. But countries with historically low levels of income inequality have experienced significant increases over the past decade, too, including Denmark, Sweden and Germany, the OECD recently reported.

Here are the nations with the worst income inequality growth(beginning with highest inequality)according to the OECD. The USA ranks 4th.

1. Chile
2. Mexico
3. Turkey
4. USA
5. Israel
6. Portugal
7. UK
8. Italy
9. Australia
10.New Zealand

Do any of these candidates surprise you? I was surprised that Israel makes the list.

Hasidic press protects men from getting aroused by 63-year old Hillary Clinton.

Actual and photoshopped photos of scene in the situation room.

The AP reports that a Hasidic newspaper removed Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and another woman from the now-iconic photo of the Obama national security team watching the raid that killed Osama bin Laden from the White House Situation Room.

The original photo, taken as the raid was occurring, famously shows Clinton in the center of the room, with her hand over her mouth. But the newspaper Der Tzitung, described by the Jewish Week as "ultra-Orthodox," has a policy of never printing photos of women in its pages because it thinks they could be sexually suggestive. Thus, Clinton and counterterrorism director Audrey Tomason, who was seen standing at the back of the room, were removed from the picture.

Here is the question: What would the Hasidic press have done with print and broadcast media if Hillary were POTUS????????????????????


Are they not obligated to report the news?

What is the largest ethnic group in the world without their own nation?

What is the largest ethnic group in the world without their own nation?

Answer: The Kurds, who number 20–25 million.

The Kurds have lived in a mountainous, roughly 74,000-square-mile region known as Kurdistan for the past two millennia. Throughout their history they have remained under the thumb of various conquerors and nations, even though they were promised their own country after WWI. Since the early 20th century, the Kurdish region has been divided between Turkey, Iran, Syria, and Iraq, all of which have repressed, often brutally, their Kurdish minority—even banning their Kurdish language in schools, political settings, and broadcasts.

Do you know how many countries have monarchies in 2011?

There are 45 countries besides Britain that still have a monarchy. Sixteen of them, all members of the Commonwealth, have Britain’s queen Windsor as head of state. They are Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Canada, Grenada, Jamaica, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, St. Christopher & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu.

Other countries which still have monarchies include the Netherlands, Morocco, Norway, Sweden, Japan, Denmark and Belgium. Liechtenstein has an absolute monarch by the name of Hans-Adam. In 1999 he was found by the European Court of Human Rights to have suppressed freedom of expression in his principality.

Why do Brazilians speak Portuguese instead of Spanish?

Do you know why Brazil, unlike the rest of South America (that speaks Spanish), has Portuguese has its mother language?

If you are watching the series The Borgias on Showtime, you are watching this history in the making.

When I recently visited Las Palmas in the Canary Islands, I toured the Columbus house museum where we were reminded of how Brazil became Portuguese instead of Spanish speaking.

At the time of Columbus’ (accidental) discovery of the “New World”, Rodrigo Borgia was Pope Alexander the VI (originally from Spain). In 1493, in order to enhance his influence with Spain and increase his net worth, the Pope took a pen, drew a line on a map, and divided the world. Spain was given everything west of line-370- leagues-west of Azores; and Portugal was awarded everything to the east. Hence, Spain got the “New World” (Americas) with the exception of Brazil (too far east) and Portugal got India, Africa, and the (east) Indies. Didn’t someone tell them there were already people living there?

And, that is why Brazilians speak Portuguese-- Brazil was given to Portugal by the (notoriously corrupt) Pope.

China smoking ban

I am shocked to see an era when the Chinese will soon ban smoking indoors. I am surprised because 1) cigarette taxes produce significant (1/10th) revenue for the Chinese government, 2) cigarette plants are major employers in many Chinese towns, and 3) smoking is widespread as 53 % of Chinese (men) smoke.

Other facts:

China is the world’s largest producer and consumer of tobacco. The Chinese tobacco market is dominated by the government monopoly China National Tobacco Corporation (CNTC). CNTC holds 98 percent of the Chinese market. CNTC sold more than 2.1 trillion cigarettes in 2008.

Over 400 brands of cigarettes are sold at China’s ubiquitous tobacco shops.

Although nearly 1.2 million Chinese people die from smoking-related diseases each year, the habit is deeply entrenched in public life. If current trends continue, China’s death toll from tobacco will reach 2 million per year by 2020.

Today, about one out of every three cigarettes smoked worldwide is smoked in China, close to 5 billion a day.

Among the Chinese population, most smokers are men. Few women have taken up the habit at least not yet.

Around three million Chinese begin smoking each year, most when they are in their teens. Among 14 year olds, 11 percent of boys and 3 percent of girls smoke.
More than half of all male Chinese doctors smoke.

Chinese cigarettes, among the cheapest in the world, are considered an important part of socializing. Cheap brands such as Bandling sell for about 10 to 20 cents a pack. Big Harvest, Little Panda and Yellow Pagoda cost less than 50 cents a pack. More expensive brands such as Red Pagoda cost around one dollar. Gold-filtered Chunghua cigarettes sell for $10 a pack.

Here’s is an AP article with highlights:

BEIJING | Wed Mar 23, 2011 11:09pm EDT

BEIJING (Reuters) - China will ban smoking at all indoor public venues from May in an effort to shield the world's most populous nation, and its largest cigarette producer, from the harmful effects of the habit, the health ministry said.

China, which has more than 300 million smokers, will require businesses to display prominent no-smoking signs, forbid vending machines from selling cigarettes and ensure that designated outdoor smoking zones not affect pedestrian traffic, according to a ministry statement reported in Chinese media on Thursday.

Businesses should educate customers about the health hazards of smoking and workers should attempt to stop smokers from lighting up, the ministry said.

The ministry did not state specific penalties -- a sign that the new ban might not be rigorously enforced.

China, the world's largest cigarette producer, has embarked on years of half-hearted campaigns to stub out the habit in some cities. The government previously it would ban smoking in all hospitals and medical facilities from 2011.

In 2008, Beijing formally pledged to restrict smoking in most public venues in the city, including government offices and public transport, but most of these venues remain choked with smoke and non-smoking signs are routinely ignored.

In the southern city of Guangzhou, smokers who light up in certain public places only have to pay a 50 Yuan ($7.625) fine, a limited deterrent in one of China's richest cities, even as state news agency Xinhua dubbed it "the nation's toughest smoking ban."

Less smoking could reduce smoking-related health costs, but would also hurt government revenue, as the tobacco industry provides nearly one-tenth of tax revenues. ($1 = 6.558 Chinese Yuan)

(Reporting by Sui-Lee Wee; Editing by Chris Lewis)