UNITED KINGDOM
Twitter ‘pedophiles’ probed
Police say they have arrested a man and a woman in relation to a probe into child abuse on Twitter. Metropolitan Police say the pair, both in their 40s, have been released to return in November pending further questioning. They were arrested at a London apartment on Friday. Police took action after receiving information from the Sunday Mirror newspaper, which carried out a probe into sex offenders operating on the social media network. The tabloid reported that it found 200 Twitter users who openly expressed interest in sexual images of children and that it passed on its findings to the Metropolitan Police’s unit tackling pedophiles.
UNITED STATES
Democrats OK gay marriage
The national Democratic Party’s platform committee has endorsed gay marriage for the first time. The platform committee met on Saturday in Detroit and let stand the work of a separate group that drafted the section two weeks ago in Minneapolis. The document says Democrats support “marriage equality” and the “movement to secure equal treatment under law for same-sex couples.” The platform is a broad statement of the party’s priorities and goes to the national convention next month in North Carolina. Platform committee member Scott Dibble of Minnesota says support for gay marriage will attract young people to the Democratic Party. In May, President Barack Obama said he personally supported same-sex unions. The platform also calls for repeal of a federal law that recognizes marriage as solely between a man and woman.
UNITED STATES
Nudist resort rejuvenates
Nudist resorts have a reputation for attracting older adults, but one Florida park is trying to change that. The South Florida Sun Sentinel reported that Sunsport Gardens will hold a weekend bash aimed at attracting nudists from ages 18 to 30. The Florida Young Naturist’s Fourth Annual End of Summer Naked Bash is slated to be a celebration of nudity and body acceptance. Sunsport Gardens’ principal shareholder Morley Schloss told the paper the park has been trying to bring in younger members with lower prices, 24-hour hot tubs and Friday night drum circles. The gathering at the 16 hectare Loxahatchee park is expected to attract several hundred young adults. Nudist resorts around the country have been working to attract a younger crowd.
CANADA
Protestants debate issues
The country’s largest Protestant denomination, the United Church of Canada, is urging congregants to stop gossiping, likening it to gambling and “other evils of society.” “Gossip can cause people to lose their jobs and their good reputations,” according to a motion under consideration at the church’s 41st general council, to be held from Saturday to Sunday in Ottawa. It can “lead to broken friendships and split families, and can be used as a malicious weapon against an opponent,” the resolution continues. The council will also take on issues of national and international interest, including national mining activities in the Philippines and Central America, climate change and a proposed oil pipeline in the west. As well, the church will consider a new report on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that drops a call for a general Israel boycott in favor of one directed exclusively against products that can be identified as produced in or related to Israeli settlements.
A string of rape and assault allegations against the son of Norway’s future queen have plunged the royal family into its “biggest scandal” ever, wrapping up an annus horribilis for the monarchy. The legal troubles surrounding Marius Borg Hoiby, the 27-year-old son born of a relationship before Norwegian Crown Princess Mette-Marit’s marriage to Norwegian Crown Prince Haakon, have dominated the Scandinavian country’s headlines since August. The tall strapping blond with a “bad boy” look — often photographed in tuxedos, slicked back hair, earrings and tattoos — was arrested in Oslo on Aug. 4 suspected of assaulting his girlfriend the previous night. A photograph
The US deployed a reconnaissance aircraft while Japan and the Philippines sent navy ships in a joint patrol in the disputed South China Sea yesterday, two days after the allied forces condemned actions by China Coast Guard vessels against Philippine patrol ships. The US Indo-Pacific Command said the joint patrol was conducted in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone by allies and partners to “uphold the right to freedom of navigation and overflight “ and “other lawful uses of the sea and international airspace.” Those phrases are used by the US, Japan and the Philippines to oppose China’s increasingly aggressive actions in the
‘GOOD POLITICS’: He is a ‘pragmatic radical’ and has moderated his rhetoric since the height of his radicalism in 2014, a lecturer in contemporary Islam said Abu Mohammed al-Jolani is the leader of the Islamist alliance that spearheaded an offensive that rebels say brought down Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and ended five decades of Baath Party rule in Syria. Al-Jolani heads Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is rooted in Syria’s branch of al-Qaeda. He is a former extremist who adopted a more moderate posture in order to achieve his goals. Yesterday, as the rebels entered Damascus, he ordered all military forces in the capital not to approach public institutions. Last week, he said the objective of his offensive, which saw city after city fall from government control, was to
‘KAMPAI’: It is said that people in Japan began brewing rice about 2,000 years ago, with a third-century Chinese chronicle describing the Japanese as fond of alcohol Traditional Japanese knowledge and skills used in the production of sake and shochu distilled spirits were approved on Wednesday for addition to UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list, a committee of the UN cultural body said It is believed people in the archipelago began brewing rice in a simple way about two millennia ago, with a third-century Chinese chronicle describing the Japanese as fond of alcohol. By about 1000 AD, the imperial palace had a department to supervise the manufacturing of sake and its use in rituals, the Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association said. The multi-staged brewing techniques still used today are
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