What a week again! Just the headlines and links to a few news:
France makes it legal for police, military, politicians, etc. to monitor the internet use of its citizens without any special reason.
Japan makes it impossible to provide the public with sensitive information - whistleblowers can face severe punishment. Not as if the government would get its authority from the people or anything, oh no! Not as if people would be worried about what is going on in Fukushima, oh no! ... argh.
China is adamant about making others accept its unilateral extension of military zones, thereby raising tensions in the region even higher.
Romania passes legislation whereby politicians do not count from now on as public officials, so cannot be charged with corruption under certain headings. Bravo!
Russia "manages" to make Ukraine back away from signing a contract of intent to join the EU later.
Some Republicans in the US still endorse quite mistaken views on Mandela voiced by their influential former party members decades ago.
The UK government insists on being poor and only able to support business and raise the salary of its MP's, so further plans of drawing money out of the welfare system are announced.
Aaaand the radical right wings and anti-EU people are still on the rise.
One would think that this is when we would need most people who are committed to, know a lot about, and spread the word convincingly about humanism, democracy, and the programme of Enlightenment. People who can work with institutions, inform the public, convince decision makers, oppose economic lobby and gather public support for implementing virtuous decisions.
Instead, but maybe not surprisingly, this is the time when politicians across the world are calling a halt to the engine of humanitarian and democratic development, by cutting the funding or closing down the humanities and the social sciences faculties.
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