Pro gun law arguments

Thousands of people prepared to descend on Paris on Sunday (Oct 6) to protest a government plan to let single women and lesbians become pregnant with fertility treatments, the first major social reform since France legalised gay marriage in 2013. IVF treatment is currently only available to heterosexual couples in France. (Photo: AFP/Josep Lago) Organisers say they are hoping 100,000 will turn out against a law heading to the Senate this month, after it was approved by the lower house of parliament in September. President Emmanuel Macron pledged during his 2017 election campaign to push the law despite deep resistance among right-wing opponents as well as conservative Roman Catholics and other religious groups. They had mobilised massively in 2012 and 2013 against a move by Macron's Socialist predecessor Francois Hollande to legalise marriage for homosexual couples, with one Paris protest attracting 340,000 people according to police. But that law did not allow lesbian … [Read more...] about French to protest pro IVF law for single women, lesbians

It made the proposal in a draft of regulations related to the powers and duties of the traffic police that is being drawn up. Vu Do Anh Dung, the head of the ministry's Traffic Police Department, said traffic police officers need guns since drug crimes have escalated in recent times and more criminals are using guns against them when chased on the streets. "Once the proposal is approved, the ministry will analyze the situation to decide what weapons to give the traffic police." Existing regulations allow them to carry guns to shoot rubber bullets, tear gas, and stun batons. Major General Nguyen Mai Bo, member of the National Assembly’s Committee of National Defense and Security, said the traffic police are also police and therefore entitled to use weapons. The Law on Management and Use of Weapons, Explosives and Combat Gears makes it clear what kinds of weapon the police could use, and the ministry would decide what they would, he said. "It is regulated clearly in what situations … [Read more...] about Vietnamese traffic police could get guns soon

A Montana judge must decide whether to once again block the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline or side with U.S. government attorneys who want him to uphold President Donald Trump’s permit to cross the U.S.-Canada border.U.S. District Judge Brian Morris hears arguments Wednesday by environmental groups seeking to halt the 1,184-mile (1,900-kilometer) pipeline and by government attorneys who say the presidential permit isn’t subject to environmental laws.Last year, Morris blocked construction after ruling officials had not fully considered oil spills and other environmental effects.Trump signed the new permit in March, prompting the plaintiffs to accuse the president of trying to get around the judge’s previous order. A separate lawsuit by Native American tribes alleges Trump’s approval did not take into consideration the potential damage to cultural sites. … [Read more...] about Judge weighs renewed Keystone XL oil pipeline arguments

The father of a 9-year-old murder victim has been convicted of gun charges less than a week after two Chicago men were convicted in his son’s death.A Cook County judge on Wednesday found Tyshawn Lee’s father, Pierre Stokes, guilty of gun possession and aggravated battery. The charges stemmed from a 2014 argument in which witnesses said Stokes flashed a gun at a woman. At the time, the 29-year-old Stokes was barred from owning a firearm because of a robbery conviction.Dwright Boone-Doty shot Tyshawn in 2015 to avenge the murder of friend Corey Morgan’s brother and the wounding of Morgan’s mother. Boone-Doty and Morgan were convicted of Tyshawn’s murder.Stokes is awaiting trial on attempted murder charges stemming from a 2017 shooting that injured three. Prosecutors say the shooting was in retaliation for Tyshawn’s murder. … [Read more...] about Father of 9-year-old murder victim guilty of weapons charges

“People avoid talking about it,” said Jan Krause Greene, a writer, peace activist, and grandmother who moved to Bellingham five years ago. “It’s the first time in my life I’ve avoided talking about it. . . . I don’t bring it up unless I’m in a safe space.” The taboo topic, of course, is politics, and more specifically, President Trump, whose 2016 election uncloaked a chasm between voters all over the country, but here especially so. In Bellingham, residents turned out in force at the polls that day, mostly unaware of the rift within their ranks. When the votes were counted, Bellingham emerged as the most closely divided town in Massachusetts, a mere 26 votes out of almost 9,000 deciding the race locally in favor of Donald Trump. For a time, people tried to talk about it. Arguments flared; Facebook friends were un-friended. Soon, unspoken rules were laid down, and an uneasy quiet descended. Last month, as House Democrats … [Read more...] about What’s better left unsaid in Bellingham? Politics