News from elsewhere, Dec 17-18, 2013
Last night I watched the sun set and the moon rise.
Today I wake into happiness again. The sun is shining, a cicada chorus spills from a distance, a hare hops down the driveway, two kangaroos are grazing and an Osprey flies right overhead with a fish in its talons– we can’t take happiness for granted when today’s news elsewhere is . . .
Afghanistan: 6 US troops die in helicopter crash.
Angola: Police Sappers Deactivate Explosive Devices in Ganda.
Brazil: A Boom Town of ‘Eternal Beauty’ Faces Its Troubled Side. Salvador has experienced a surge in violent crime, chaotic traffic, and the metamorphosis of once-elegant seaside districts into crime-ridden areas.
Central African Republic: the U.N. high commissioner for refugees reported more than 600 deaths and 159,000 people displaced in the impoverished landlocked nation because of sectarian violence involving Muslim and Christian militias.
China: Amnesty report: China’s abolition of labour camps a ‘cosmetic change’.
China: 16 killed in clash in China’s restive Xinjiang region.
Congo: UN report points to use of child soldiers, executions and sexual violence while M23 rebels still actively recruit in Rwanda.
Croatia: Croatia’s Simunic, born in Australia, gets World Cup ban for ‘pro-Nazi’ chants.
Egypt: Bomb Explosion in Cairo Leaves No Injuries.
India: One dead, 17 injured in bomb blast in Assam.
Iraq: Attacks across Baghdad and northern Iraq kill 70.
Israel: Study finds post-trauma symptoms in 83% of detained migrant children and parents.
Kenya: Grenade attack in Nairobi injures 15.
Lebanon: Suicide bomber hits Hezbollah checkpoint, casualties reported.
Libya: Ansar Al-Sharia homes attacked in revenge for Benghazi killing.
Mali: 2 U.N. soldiers killed in Mali car bomb blast.
Mexico: Mexican authorities found the bodies of eight kidnap victims, some dismembered, on a highway in the troubled southern state of Guerrero.
Nigeria: Pirates abduct Greek, Ukrainian from ship off Nigeria.
North Korea: Stability fears after execution.
Northern Ireland: Leaders condemn Belfast bomb blast.
Paraguay: The Paraguayan People’s Army, a shadowy rebel group, is evolving into a broader security threat as it carries out attack after attack on police and army posts.
Russia: A new intercontinental ballistic missile, Sarmat, is being created to replace cold war-era missiles approaching end of their life.
Russia: 4 Die in North Caucasus Raid.
Rwanda: Court Raises Jail Term for Ex-Mayor Found Guilty of Church Massacre.
Rwanda: Court Increases Ingabire’s Genocide Sentence.
Somalia: Defence Minister Says the Government Will Eradicate Alshabab By 2014.
South Sudan: Hit by clashes for second day, death toll at least 26. South Sudan is the world’s newest country, but has been plagued by ethnic tensions since it broke away from Sudan in 2011.
Sweden: Neo-Nazis attack anti-racism demonstrators
Syria: Regime helicopters dropped another wave of barrel bombs on rebel-held parts of Aleppo.
USA: Carjackers kill lawyer at upscale New Jersey mall.
Uzbekistan: Forced Labour Lives On in Uzbekistan’s Cotton Fields. The government drafts about a million people — including doctors, teachers and other professionals — to pick cotton.
Zimbabwe: 2.2 Million Zimbabweans Expected to Need Food Assistance.
And this morning the ordinary attracted, the shells of insects and one live one.
A scarab beetle similar to (or identical to) the Christmas Beetle (Anoplognathus pallidicollis) generally a light brown all over. They lay their eggs in the soil and the grubs develop for a year feeding on organic matter and plant roots. The larvae pupate in late winter emerging as adults a few weeks later to feed on summer’s eucalypt leaves.
