Upvote
0
-
Starting today August 7th, 2024, in order to post in the Married Couples, Courting Couples, or Singles forums, you will not be allowed to post if you have your Marital status designated as private. Announcements will be made in the respective forums as well but please note that if yours is currently listed as Private, you will need to submit a ticket in the Support Area to have yours changed.
-
CF has always been a site that welcomes people from different backgrounds and beliefs to participate in discussion and even debate. That is the nature of its ministry. In view of recent events emotions are running very high. We need to remind people of some basic principles in debating on this site. We need to be civil when we express differences in opinion. No personal attacks. Avoid you, your statements. Don't characterize an entire political party with comparisons to Fascism or Communism or other extreme movements that committed atrocities. CF is not the place for broad brush or blanket statements about groups and political parties. Put the broad brushes and blankets away when you come to CF, better yet, put them in the incinerator. Debate had no place for them. We need to remember that people that commit acts of violence represent themselves or a small extreme faction.
Upvote
0
Greta Thunberg alleges torture in Israeli detention after Gaza flotilla arrest
- By JosephZ
- News & Current Events (Articles Required)
- 33 Replies
Here are a couple of articles. One mentions 500 tons was collected, but it appears not all of it could be carried on the boats, and another puts the value of the aid that was on the boats at $110,000.
How the Gaza aid flotilla used cameras and data to win global attention
The organisation had huge support from the start. When it sent out an invitation for people to participate, it received 20,000 applications, Faras said. In Italy, a charity called Music 4 Peace began collecting aid donations, with a target of 40 tons. In five days they collected more than 500 tons.
Across Europe, missions started to prepare. The Greek contingent sourced 25 boats from across Europe. When it asked for donations, it received more than it could carry.
Gaza Aid Flotilla Says IDF Intercepted Its Boats; Israel Vows Activists' Swift Deportation
The flotilla reportedly carried humanitarian aid worth over $110,000, including medicines, respiratory equipment, and nutritional supplies, intended for Gaza hospitals.
Israel claims it was only 2 tons.
Israel deports Greta Thunberg and 170 other Gaza flotilla activists
Israeli authorities said they enforced a legal blockade and called the flotilla a "publicity stunt" because it was transporting only two tons of aid in total.
A few images from the file I shared:
According to Israel's Foreign Minister, the aid will likely be delivered to Gaza, so not all may be lost.
'Greta and her friends are safe and healthy,' ministry says as Israel intercepts Gaza aid flotilla
Prior to the interception, Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar called the flotilla a provocation and warned them to stop and transfer their aid through other channels into Gaza.
"Greta and her friends are safe and healthy," the ministry stated. It reiterated its offer to transfer the aid to Gaza through other channels.
The odds of successfully breaching Israel's blockade were slim at best, but this attempt and others like it do make the headlines and bring attention to the blockade and its role in adding to the suffering of the Palestinians in Gaza.
I don't know, activists with name recognition are more likely to get news coverage than those without, which in turn brings more attention to the cause. For example, there have been more than a dozen flotillas that have attempted to breach Israel's blockade since 2007. Most people probably didn't hear about a majority of them, but a lot of people have heard about the last two because of Greta Thunberg's involvement.
There have been a few humanitarian projects that I've devoted my time and money to in the past that I knew going in had little chance of achieving the desired results, so I would seriously consider giving to a project that I'm passionate about regardless of what the chance of success is. Even failed attempts at helping others have value in my opinion.
Attachments
Upvote
0
Upvote
0
NSPM-7
- News & Current Events (Articles Required)
- 12 Replies
Maybe this counts as anti-Christian?
In Chicago, clergy and faith-based protesters say ICE is threatening their religious freedom
(RNS) — Despite potential danger, religious leaders and faith activists have been a visible presence at Chicago-area ICE protests, some waving signs with slogans such as ‘Love thy neighbor’ and ‘Who would Jesus deport?’
Last month, the Rev. David Black stood in front of a Chicago-area U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility and spread his arms wide. Adorned in all black and wearing a clerical collar, the pastor looked up at a group of masked, heavily armed ICE agents on the roof and began to pray.
“I invited them to repentance,” Black, a minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA), said in an interview. “I basically offered an altar call. I invited them to come and receive that salvation, and be part of the kingdom that is coming.”
But when Black began to lower his arms a few seconds later, the agents responded to his spiritual plea by firing pepper balls, or chemical agents that cause eye irritation and respiratory distress, video footage shows. One struck Black in the head, exploding into a puff of white pepper smoke and forcing him to his knees. Fellow demonstrators rushed to his aid, and as the pastor rubbed his face in pain, the agents continued to fire.
“We could hear them laughing,” Black said.
Dozens of faith groups and denominations have also filed lawsuits challenging Trump’s various immigration policies, and the treatment of religious demonstrators at the Chicago facility has become a legal flashpoint. Black is listed as a plaintiff in a lawsuitfiled this week against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem alleging violations of the First and Fourth Amendments. Although most of the plaintiffs are journalists, Black is named as one of multiple clergy and faith-based demonstrators who, lawyers argue, have fallen victim to violence that violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
But DHS continued its negative characterization of protesters on Friday (Oct. 3), when Noem visited the Broadview facility. In a speech to agents recorded by right-wing activist Benny Johnson, the secretary argued the protesters outside the facility were “advocating for violence against the American people” and were “victimizing people every day by the way that they’re talking, speaking, who they’re affiliated with, (and) who they’re funded (by).” [I note that none of those things are violent acts that 'victimize' anybody.]
[same guy, but apparently a different incident]
Upvote
0
Upvote
0
The displaying of violence
- By peter2
- The Kitchen Sink
- 14 Replies
I just completed a new version of my work/hobby, that aims at finding balance for an articulated tricycle. The concept of cathedral guided my researches, as you can see on the following picture, which i hope can reach both balance and stability.
The tricycle should, i hope, perform gardening or leisuring functions.
i hope, too, this device can allow healthy competition at human scale, without fossil fuel in the equation. May be you would share this hope
Upvote
0
Upvote
0
