Contributor’s Links post for January 6th, 2019

Daily Links Post graphic

Each day at just after midnight Eastern, a post like this one is created for contributors and readers of this site to upload news links and video links on the issues that concern this site. Most notably, Islam and its effects on Classical Civilization, and various forms of leftism from Soviet era communism, to postmodernism and all the flavours of galloping statism and totalitarianism such as Nazism and Fascism which are increasingly snuffing out the classical liberalism which created our near, miraculous civilization the West has been building since the time of Socrates.

This document was written around the time this site was created, for those who wish to understand what this site is about. And while our understanding of the world and events has grown since then, the basic ideas remain sound and true to the purpose.

So please post all links, thoughts and ideas that you feel will benefit the readers of this site to the comments under this post each day. And thank you all for your contributions.

This is the new Samizdat. We muse use it while we can.

About Eeyore

Canadian artist and counter-jihad and freedom of speech activist as well as devout Schrödinger's catholic

71 Replies to “Contributor’s Links post for January 6th, 2019”

  1. ‘Vast areas of impunity’ for people trafficking: UN report (france24, Jan 6, 2019)
    https://www.france24.com/en/20190107-vast-areas-impunity-people-trafficking-un-report

    “A UN report has warned that “vast areas of impunity” remain globally for people traffickers, with victims subjected to crimes ranging from sexual exploitation to organ removal.

    Despite a recent trend towards more people trafficking convictions in many African and Middle Eastern countries, the report from the UN Office and Drugs and Crime (UNODC) pointed out that “the total numbers in these areas remain very low”.

    “There appears to be hardly any risk for traffickers to face justice,” it said.

    The report said 100 cases of organ removal had been reported over the period 2014-17, mostly in the Middle East and North Africa, with cases also reported in Europe and Central and South America.

    It cites research saying that in some cases there is evidence of traffickers colluding “with medical professionals, relying on corrupt and fraudulent practices”.

    Perpetrators of this form of trafficking take advantage of “severe levels of vulnerability”, the UNODC says, for example people in refugee camps who are recruited “with false promises of receiving payments and/or transport to safer locations”.

    However, trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation was by far the most common form found in the data compiled by the report, accounting for 59 per cent of victims detected in 2016.

    The UNODC underlined the role of groups involved in various armed conflicts in using human trafficking “to finance activities or increase their workforce”, as well as for sexual slavery.

    It highlighted the case of the thousands of girls and women from the Yazidi minority enslaved by the so-called Islamic State group in Iraq.

    One of them, Nadia Murad, was one of the winners of the Nobel Peace Prize last year in recognition of her activism on behalf of other victims.

    The UNODC said the overwhelming number of detected victims of trafficking globally were female, with just under half being adult women.

    A further 23 percent being girls and the report warns that their share of the total is increasing.

    After sexual exploitation, the next most common reason for trafficking was forced labour, accounting for a third of victims covered by the data and especially prevalent in sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East.

    A number of other patterns are also mentioned, such as trafficking for forced marriage, more commonly detected in South East Asia.

    The total number of victims reported to the UNODC in 2016 stood at just under 25,000, an increase of more than 10,000 since 2011, with increases “more pronounced in the Americas and in Asia”.

    However, the report cautions that the increase may be down to more efficient identification of victims, rather than an increase in the numbers of people being trafficked.

    While Europe and the Middle East attract many victims from other parts of the world, the authors found that the majority of victims are detected in their countries of citizenship.”

  2. OBAMA 2020? Michelle Obama tipped for 2020 White House win with ‘sky high’ approval ratings

    Polls regularly put the Democrat above Donald Trump in the eyes of American voters

    Michelle Obama is being hotly tipped for the 2020 Presidential race with her global book tour helping spike approval ratings.

    Her memoir Becoming has topped the bestseller list since being published in November in a £51million deal, and her live appearances sold out in minutes

    Some polls are rating the Democrat above Donald Trump in the eyes of American voters.

    Pundits predict Michelle, 54, could be just as influential, becoming the first female POTUS.

    Democratic hopeful, Mike Huckabee, fanned flames of speculation by endorsing Michelle on his website.

    He wrote: “Now that Michelle Obama has been named Most Admired Woman for 2018, it’s time for me to make a prediction for 2019: the former First Lady will toss her hat in the ring for 2020, and she will get her party’s nomination.

    “Her PR machine, which has quietly percolated ever since Hillary lost, went full-tilt in September with the November 13 release of her book, Becoming. (One might ask, ‘Becoming what?’ I say, ‘Becoming a presidential nominee’)”.

    Michelle’s own book does dampen the mood somewhat.

    Dame Karen Brady has hailed Michelle as “inspirational” saying “it’s her moment”.

    Meghan Markle held a power meeting with Michelle backstage at the former First Lady’s London talk.

    https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/8130549/michelle-obama-2020-white-house-approval-ratings/