@NunavutBirder That's great. When I was younger I used to collect stamps, so now I would love to see a picture of this one. Do you have a pic or a link?
Complementary and Disparate: Conceptualising Female and Male Genital Cutting in Northern Tanzania
Mary-Anne Victoria Decatur, PhD dissertation, U of London 2023.
Yes, I do read your dissertations!
"It is the normal, functioning cells of all foreskins that are deemed dangerous. And yet it is specifically Black male bodies that are being constructed as promiscuous sources of infection in need of medical intervention."
"Does the concept of “genital integrity”, which is one of the most potent reasons put forward for opposition to female genital mutilation, apply also to men’s genitals, even if there would be public health benefit from removing men’s foreskins en masse?’. Rather than engage with this ethical question, the consultation’s report advised policy makers and programme developers to emphasise ‘that male circumcision is very different from female genital mutilation’."
"Integral to this appears to be the assumption that if medicalised, (male) genital cutting will be consensual and safe."
Doctors have conflated medicalization with consent and safety. Just because you are using sterile instruments does not mean that your surgery is consensual nor does it guarantee that the patient is safe from iatrogenic harm.
@Woodswalked More northern than most. A number of years back I calculated that only about 4000 people lived further north. That number has undoubtedly grown but it still isn’t huge.
So, this was released today. My third stamp with Canada Post. Qarlinngua (The pants). And technically my second stamp with a family member in it, as the tiny figure in it is my son Travis. Now for one with Hilary in it.
I’ve very proud of all of these, beyond the cache. They are about my home, and family. And also my family has a long history with the Post Office, 101 years. My grandfather, father, and brother were all postmasters in Roblin. #Nunavut#Arctic#Stamps#philately#CanadaPost
New News: A new lawsuit alleges that people in the US with longstanding ties to Hamas have formed shell groups that are supporting US campus protests.
The lawsuit is filled with explosive allegations and seeks compensatory damages.
DEFENDANTS: The two groups named in the lawsuit -- American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) and National Students for Justice in Palestine (NSJP) -- are being sued by 9 American and Israeli victims. The lawsuit alleges that AMP and NSJP are effectively the same entity -- and, unbeknownst to many US student activists, are acting as a propaganda arm to Hamas.
It was filed by a legit law firm.
They claim to have written, admissible-in-court evidence of one of the groups acknowledging they have to be careful not to be seen supporting terrorism.
Through this lawsuit we could learn more about sources of funding tied to student protests.
We already know that the VA AG is investigating one of the defendants in question for allegedly supporting terrorists.
The suit alleges that “defendants act as Hamas’s public relations division and recruit domestic foot soldiers not only to disseminate Hamas’s propaganda but also to foment violence, chaos, and fear across the United States to intimidate citizens and coerce change in American policy. This is all in support Hamas’s short & long-term goals for its international terrorist activities.”
ALLEGATION: The suit claims that in 2014 AMP hosted a discussion on “navigating the line between legal activism and material support for terrorism.”
PLAINTIFFS LAWYERS: The global #law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP, the National Jewish Advocacy Center, the Schoen Law Firm & the Holtzman Vogel law firm filed the lawsuit against American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) and National Students for Justice in Palestine (NSJP) in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
The Russia-Hamas link. Putin's stalled invasion of Ukraine, Russia had agreed to help Hamas, with the strategic purpose of opening up a costly second front for Western states supporting Ukraine.
The evidence not only documents Russia’s long-term political support of Hamas, which it does not recognize as a terrorist group, but the meetings with Hamas & Iran also offer circumstantial evidence of engagement on the military side, as reflected by the suggestive timing of the March 16 Moscow meetings with Hamas convened by the Kremlin, & Shoigu’s meeting with Iran just ahead of the Hamas attack.
Use of Russian proxies to assist Hamas.
Did the Russian government through proxies — Iran, Syria— provide weapons, military training, financial support, terrorist finance facilitation, or the provision of intelligence and/or strategic or tactical advice to Hamas ahead of its brutal Oct.7 terrorist attack on Putin's birthday? Implicit or explicit approval for the attack before it occurred?
"The United States strongly condemns the attack (Friday) from Rwanda Defense Forces and M23 positions on the Mugunga camp for internally displaced persons in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement"
Good old Rwanda, that very safe country ( because the UK says so). Of course, the UK won't condemn this, as it's part of the Rwanda deportation deal not to.