A day inside Britain’s ‘embarrassing’ courts system - "sentencing for the second case of the day can’t go ahead. The probation officer tasked with writing a pre-sentencing report went on holiday and nobody bothered to tell anyone, prompting the presiding magistrate to apologise to the convicted criminal for his wasted £150 round trip from Birmingham. “He is the one who has pleaded guilty and she is the one apologising,” says Stephenson, formerly commissioner of the Metropolitan Police. The exchange is, he says, a “humiliation” and a “reversal” of what should happen in a court when a judge confronts a convicted criminal. The day doesn’t get any better. Out of 14 cases listed for sentencing, just four defendants get their comeuppance. The rest comprise no shows – either of the criminals or of the necessary bits of paper and information needed to mete out justice. At a low ebb, Stephenson, 72, the one-time deputy chief constable of Lancashire and former Met Commissioner, describes the proceedings as a “celebration of chaos” and wonders if public money is being well spent. Official figures show a criminal court system in crisis. The backlog in the Crown courts has hit a record high of almost 75,000 cases (almost double the number five years ago) while in the lower, magistrates’ courts, the backlog is close to a third of a million. The official figures encouraged The Telegraph to go back to court to see the system at work. Stephenson and The Telegraph had performed the exercise at Westminster Magistrates once before, back in 2012, when his verdict then was that “he had seen nothing to show that the courts are anything other than slow, bureaucratic and hugely frustrating”. More than a decade on – after further funding cuts and the long tail of Covid lockdowns, there’s no happy ending. “Isn’t it embarrassing that so many years after we first did this, the system has actually got worse,” he says... It is now 90 minutes into what was intended to be a day of sentencing, and no one has been sentenced. “This is a very distressing experience for the victim,” says Stephenson. “This is a court system predicated on delays. It doesn’t make sense. At the moment, this is more of an exercise in futility.”... It’s now lunch and at the end of a morning session in the sentencing court, just one criminal has been fully dealt with from a morning list of eight people. That includes three no-shows."
Time to arrest even more people for mean tweets to keep the public safe
Ted Morton: Save our democracy by exercising the notwithstanding clause - "there would be no Charter of Rights without the notwithstanding clause. When it was being debated in the early 1980s, the only way Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau could get the provincial premiers to accept the Charter was to include Section 33. The debate then — and still today — is not about rights versus no rights, but who gets the final word on the meaning and scope of rights on complex issues on which reasonable people can reasonably disagree. In cases like these, where the nine judges on the Supreme Court themselves are often divided, why shouldn’t a government be able to choose the dissenting judges’ interpretation? The provincial demand for a notwithstanding power was also based on their desire to protect policies that fall under provincial jurisdiction. Some premiers already thought the Supreme Court — under then-chief justice Bora Laskin — had a pro-Ottawa bias in federalism cases. The premiers saw — correctly — that Trudeau’s Charter could further exacerbate this risk. They understood that when the Supreme Court strikes down one province’s law for an alleged Charter violation, it effectively imposes a new, one-size-fits-all rule for all 10 provinces. They feared that the Charter could facilitate a form of disallowance in disguise, a policy veto exercised by judges rather than by the federal cabinet. Forty years later, these fears have been realized. In practice, the Charter means what the Supreme Court judges say it means. Over the past half century, the majority of them have been appointed by Liberal prime ministers. The Court Challenges Program funds the litigation costs of interest groups that the Liberals support, and who in turn support the Liberals. (The Harper government defunded the program, but it was resurrected by government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.) It’s a tidy and efficient little circle... judicial policymaking under the guise of legal interpretation has not stopped at the boundaries of bilingual education. The Charter winners’ circle includes almost all rights-advocacy groups promoting the new “progressive” agenda. In policies dealing with DEI, Aboriginal or climate-change issues, provincial governments that do not accede to the new woke priorities can now expect to be hauled into court by federally funded interest groups and the case decided by federally appointed judges. The losers in Charter politics have been the provinces, and by extension, the voters who elect provincial governments. Remember: federalism is itself a way of protecting minority rights. Each province is a minority — Quebec first and foremost because of its unique linguistic and ethnic heritage, but the other provinces, as well... As illustrated by our sister parliamentary democracies in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, constitutional supremacy does not require judicial supremacy; and the rule of law need not entail the rule of lawyers"
Ontario to loosen internal trade, remove barriers on alcohol and labour mobility - "Ontario's bill would make it the first government in Canada to unconditionally remove all current exceptions to interprovincial free trade, provincial officials said. Examples include a requirement that real estate services providers in Ontario have a local presence, limiting trapping and hunting guide licences and mandating the use of locally grown grapes in wine production... currently some trucks have to stop at provincial borders to change signage, so harmonizing those requirements would save those companies time and money. On alcohol, long a point of contention in interprovincial trade talks, the legislation would introduce an interprovincial direct-to-consumer sales model so that Ontario residents could buy directly from producers in other provinces, and Ontario producers could sell directly to consumers elsewhere in Canada... Trade barriers within Canada cost the economy up to $200 billion a year, Ford said... As well, the bill is set to remove barriers that make it difficult for people in certain jobs to work in different provinces. The government is also looking at additional, specific measures to allow health professionals to more easily work in Ontario, officials said. That includes consulting on allowing American-licensed physicians and nurses to be allowed to work in the province "as of right" and automatically recognizing the credentials of other provinces and territories for doctors and nurses.
Lot - FRITZ DARGES - "(1913 - 2009) Lieutenant Colonel in the Waffen-SS, personal adjutant to Adolf Hitler, awarded the Knight's Cross. On July 18, 1944, during a strategy conference in the Wolfsschanze, a fly began buzzing around the room, allegedly landing on Hitler's shoulder and on the surface of a map several times. Irritated, Hitler ordered Darges to dispatch the nuisance. Darges suggested that, as it was an airborne pest, the job should go to the Luftwaffe adjutant. Enraged, Hitler dismissed Darges on the spot and had him banished to the Eastern Front"
Mila Joy on X - "Elon Musk has figured out the Soros racket. It doesn’t involve Soros spending his own money. It involves Soros making a seed investment so he can get his hands on your money. He then makes you pay, through the government, to fund your own destruction"
Car ramming suspect should have never been free in the first place - "If the suspect, Kai-ji Adam Lo, 30, is found not criminally responsible and sentenced to psychiatric care, instead of prison, he will be institutionalized, like he should have been in the first place. In this case, the outcome of our more “compassionate” approach to mental health is disturbing... The root cause here is the dismantlement of Canada’s large psychiatric hospitals — a process popularly known as “deinstitutionalization.” These asylums were shuttered, especially in the 1980s and 1990s, under the belief that their conditions were inhumane and that patients would benefit from living in regular communities while receiving outpatient support. While not unreasonable in theory, Canadian deinstitutionalization abjectly failed because the mental health services that were supposed to replace these shuttered asylums were never adequately funded. Oftentimes, discharged patients were abandoned without adequate shelter or care, and ended up homeless or imprisoned. Because of this movement and its philosophical baggage, we now have a status quo where, although involuntary care is still available, our capacity to provide it is limited. We have a status quo where this care is frowned upon as a violation of civil rights, and where its use is dominated by crisis management, rather than proactive healing. Under this system, people like Lo do not get help until it is too late. Dr. Julian Somers, a clinical psychologist and distinguished professor at Simon Fraser University, argues that the federal government bears some responsibility here, as “there are really no good reasons not to change, other than a lapse of leadership and an unwillingness to alter the status quo.”"
Andrew Lilico on X - "Since 2005 the UK has, in a selfless act to help other countries & future generations, researched the question: If your economy's very strong at the start, for how long can you consistently do ~everything wrong before you're totally screwed. The answer's apparently: ~20 years."
Joey Viljoen on X - "It depends. In reality, it can actually take a bit longer. South Africa has only recently reached the point where things have really badly deteriorated, 30 years after the change to an ANC government. It happens slowly, with deterioration happening at different rates to different parts of the economy, infrastructure and institutions."
Boy, 16, shot by Toronto police in North York has died in hospital: SIU : r/Toronto_Ontario - "Title should read "Gang banger gets smoked by police after trying to kill a cop during traffic stop on Easter weekend.""
Boy, 16, shot by Toronto police in North York has died in hospital: SIU : r/Toronto_Ontario - "play stupid games, win stupid prizes. in the body cam footage, the suspect was climbing out of the clown car while pulling out a pistol, getting a few shots off before police pulled out their guns. for the footage go to r/torontology. whats even more silly is that the bodycam footage was posted on instagram and the family had the gall to leave a comment and say their son was a good boy and the police are in the wrong here."
Gerrymandering in Singapore - "I was honestly surprised by the results, which I would summarise as showing no significant bias in the electoral boundaries in Singapore in 2020 and 2015. I think the surprise comes because the process of boundary delimitation is so opaque, and thus the conclusion one tends to jump to is that it favours the PAP. However, in terms of actual election results, no clear bias can be seen."
Black Hawk pilot failed to heed flight instructor before DCA plane crash: report - "The pilot of the Army Black Hawk helicopter that crashed into a passenger airplane near Reagan Airport in January ignored instructions to change course before the crash, according to a new report. In a report published by the New York Times on Sunday, Black Hawk pilot Capt. Rebecca Lobach was conducting her annual flight evaluation with Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves serving as her flight instructor. Air traffic controllers informed Lobach and Eaves that there was a passenger airplane nearby; the pair acknowledged the message and requested to fly by "visual separation" which allows aircraft to avoid collisions by navigating themselves around other aircraft and not relying on air traffic control for guidance. "The Black Hawk was 15 seconds away from crossing paths with the jet. Warrant Officer Eaves then turned his attention to Captain Lobach. He told her he believed that air traffic control wanted them to turn left, toward the east river bank," the Times wrote. "Turning left would have opened up more space between the helicopter and Flight 5342, which was heading for Runway 33 at an altitude of roughly 300 feet. She did not turn left," the report said."
When you hate mansplaining so much
Clear proof it was Trump's fault
Meme - Indian user: "here in denmark indian men are loved by everyone, indians are considered the most attractive males, its over for us whitecels"
American user: "Forgot vpn"
Indian user: "how do i delete a thread"
Chinese woman dies in hospital plunge after tooth extraction blunder causes ‘immense’ pain | South China Morning Post - "A woman in China who suffered ongoing pain after having the wrong tooth extracted then reinserted has been found dead after plunging from a hospital roof. The 34-year-old woman, surnamed Wu, from Anhui province in eastern China, underwent a wisdom tooth extraction at the Anqing Municipal Hospital on March 12... Doctors mistakenly removed a healthy tooth then forcibly stuffed the incorrectly extracted tooth back in place. Wu’s brother told the mainland media outlet Jimu News that the doctor used wire to tie the wrong tooth along with several others. “For an hour and a half of the surgery, they did not use anaesthesia, and my sister endured it,” he added. As a result, Wu’s teeth were damaged, her face swollen, and she was unable to eat, only managing to drink water for days. The pain also kept her up at night. Her brother said Wu had reported the issue to the authorities several times, but no one responded... She said the doctor apologised after realising the wrong tooth was removed but later denied his mistake when she returned to the hospital to confront him. Wu accused the doctor of altering her medical records to avoid blame and suggesting a dental implant to “save the tooth”. She also said that the hospital repeatedly asked her to delete the video. In the video, Wu said: “No one really addressed this incident. The hospital lied to me from start to finish, causing me immense suffering. Who will save me? Because of the harm this hospital caused, I will die here.” On March 17, Wu returned to the hospital to negotiate the matter, but later fell from the 11th floor, resulting in her death. Wu’s husband told China Newsweek that the police had ruled out any criminal charges. One of Wu’s relatives said she was generally in good physical and mental health. “Wu had repeatedly reported the issue to the hospital and authorities, but nothing was done. This broke her psychological defences, and she said she would use death to prove her innocence,” the relative said."
Meme - "INSIDE OF YOU THERE ARE TWO GREEKS. One is from Sparta. One is from Athens. BOTH ARE GAY"
Almost Every Driver Assist System Actually Sucks - "The vast majority of automated driving systems received either marginal or poor scores in a new Insurance Institute for Highway Safety rating system that is designed to figure out just how safe these systems are and how much they distract drivers. Lexus's system, called Teammate with Advanced Driver, was the only system out of the fourteen tested to get an "acceptable" rating. This makes sense. I've used this system, and it is very good. The test evaluated driver monitoring, involvement and encouragement of safety feature usage"
Tehran’s Plasco collapse: A tragedy for my nation and my family - "The mission to put out the fire that engulfed the iconic Plasco building in central Tehran ended in the sudden collapse of the 17-story structure and the deaths of more than 20 firefighters. The towering inferno of death and destruction shocked and saddened Iranians and exiles around the world."
Reflecting on the Hengyang Fire Tragedy - "When fire broke out in an eight-story building in Hengyang City, Hunan Province on Nov. 3 it left 20 firemen dead, 18 people injured and over 400 homeless... On Nov. 3, the burning building at Hengzhou Plaza in Hengyang collapsed suddenly while a team of fire fighters was working inside."
São Paulo: deadly fire in squatted tower block sheds light on dire housing crisis - "It took Adriana dos Santos and her six children 20 minutes to scramble to safety, feeling their way down seven dark flights of stairs as the flames spread around them. An hour later, the 24-story building where they’d been living in downtown São Paulo collapsed"
Someone claimed that the World Trade Center buildings were "The only 3 steel structured buildings in history to collapse from fire"
Meme - Noah Smith 🐇 @Noahpinion: "A lot of what Americans think of as other countries' ancient traditional food and clothing was actually invented in the 20th century. This type of dress, for example, was invented in China in the late 1910s:" *white woman in cheongsam/qipao*
4KT WHO YOU HATE on X - "dog shelters: don't buy puppies, consider adoption instead
also dog shelters: this is pissfingers. she's 19 years old and can't live in a home with children, books or electricity. pissfingers is nervous around hair and needs 400 acres of land and an orchard of extinct fruits."
Instagram - "Mcdonald’s Big Mac sauce secret revealed 😲 Now you can make it at home! 🍔✨ #Mcdonalds #Trending #Bigmacsauce"
Opinion: What’s the price we’re willing to pay for Canada? - The Globe and Mail - "fixing these economic challenges has become essential to our survival. If our productivity keeps going backward, while U.S. productivity keeps going forward, the gap between Canadian and American standards of living will widen into an abyss. As Canadian historian Michael Bliss has pointed out, our future as a country depends on the promise that an independent Canada can give our people a standard of living roughly comparable to that enjoyed to the south. If the productivity gap between our two economies continues to widen, our people will start moving south, as they did in the 19th century when Quebeckers left farms and factories for New England, which explains why so many names in the Boston phone book – when it had one – were Quebecois names. If a future U.S. government were to bar the door to this Canadian outmigration, as it might, then a Canadian population trapped inside a failing economy might well begin to call for annexation. That’s why fixing our economy is the precondition for the survival of the Canadian experiment itself."
Time to "tax the 'rich'", regulate businesses even more and restrict fossil fuels even more harshly, then mock those who move for being unpatriotic (even though the country was populated by many unpatriotic people who left their original countries)
Libs of TikTok on X - "First Ilhan Omar called Americans dumb and cried that we have free speech, now she's telling Americans to "F*ck off." This is what elected Democrats think of you."
Meme - Dr. Abby Kramer: "Imagine being upset about a plan to remove toxins from our food, that many other countries have already banned, simply because you don't like the guy banning them. Make it make sense."
Usually the US gets bashed for not banning many additives "other countries" (i.e. Europe) have. But interestingly, the US bans some things the EU hasn't (sheep lung is another), but no one bashes the EU for that
RFK Jr. will require shift in how new vaccines are tested, HHS says - The Washington Post (aka "RFK Jr. will order placebo testing for new vaccines, alarming health experts")
Thread by @calleymeans on Thread Reader App – Thread Reader App - "Can someone please explain to me why "health experts" would be alarmed at conducting science on new drugs?
This is bankrupt logic: The medical community argues that *conducting science* on *new vaccines* will increase "doubt" about vaccines. No - the medical community lying during COVID and saying mRNA was a panacea for infants increased doubt. More science will reduce doubt."
Weird. Left wingers usually love more regulations to "protect the public" and they usually claim to love research
Amusingly, iFunny blocked a version of this
Indian woman with pacemaker dies during attempt to scale Mt Everest - "A 59-year-old Indian climber, aiming to set a new world record by becoming Asia's first woman on a pacemaker to scale Mt Everest, died on Thursday after falling sick at the base camp of the world's highest peak in Nepal. Suzanne Leopoldina Jesus was admitted to a hospital in the Lukla town of Solukhumbu district after facing difficulties during the acclimatisation exercises at the Mt Everest base camp, and died on Thursday, Yuvaraj Khatiwada, Director at the Tourism Department of Nepal, said. Suzanne, fitted with a pacemaker, was asked to abandon the attempt to summit Mt Everest after failing to maintain a normal speed during the acclimatisation exercise on the base camp and showing difficulty climbing, Khatiwada said. Suzanne adamantly refused the advice, asserting that she had to climb the 8,848.86 metres-high peak as she had already paid the fee for acquiring permission to climb the mountain... "We had to take her back to Lukla forcibly," Sherpa said, adding that they hired a helicopter to evacuate her... “However, she wanted to set a new world record by becoming the first Asian woman to summit Everest with a pacemaker,” he said, adding that she was having difficulties in her throat and could not even swallow food easily."
It's all mental! She was just too weak-willed
Huge Study Finds Teens' Porn Use Has Little Impact on Sexual Behavior or Mental Health : r/psychologyofsex - "The PROBIOPS study was a massive 6-wave longitudinal research project from Croatia that followed over 3,500 adolescents for 3 years. Published last month, the paper
Longitudinal relationship between pornography use and adolescent sexual behaviours, well-being, and attitudes: insights from the PROBIOPS (Prospective Biopsychosocial Study of the Effects of Sexually Explicit Material on Young People’s Sexual Socialization and Health) research project
provides a comprehensive summary of the entire project’s findings. In short:
[T]he overall findings suggest that pornography use presents no major negative, or positive, factor in the sexual socialization and sexual lives of most adolescents.
The images attached to this post (Table 1) give an overview of the key results from each of the 24 longitudinal papers it draws on.
Key findings:
Porn use didn't lead to more risky sex (like early sexual debut, not using condoms, or having multiple partners).
No evidence that it causes sexual aggression.
No consistent link to anxiety, depression, or low self-esteem.
No impact on school performance or sexual satisfaction.
A minority (~5%) reported problematic porn use, which was related to impulsivity and moral shame (especially among religious teens)."
Clearly porn is addictive and bad for you
Female solo traveler finds man hiding under her bed in Tokyo hotel - "Natalisi Taksisi took to Instagram to share a creepy experience she had while staying in a Tokyo hotel. In the post, Natalisi explained how she returned to her room after exploring the city, only to find a “weird smell” was coming from underneath her bed. “After a day of sightseeing, I came back [to the hotel room] at around 7:30 pm. I unlocked my room like usual, took off my clothes, lay down on the bed, and then I noticed a weird smell.” ... After being found, the man climbed out from underneath the bed and briefly stared at Natalisi before screaming and running out of the room... Upon their arrival, authorities searched the room and discovered a power bank and a USB cable, which were left underneath the bed. According to Natalisi, the hotel staff explained that the police wouldn’t be able to find the intruder due to the lack of CCTV within the building. Natalisi revealed she chose APA Hotel, a well-known hotel chain that has over 300 properties across Japan, as it looked “legit” and had keycard entry. However, following the disturbing incident, the model chose to check out early and requested a refund due to safety concerns."