Important new CitizenLab report: "We Chat, They Watch: How International Users Unwittingly Build up WeChat’s Chinese Censorship Apparatus"

(Supreme Court of California) - Held that a city's practice of annually transferring funds from a city-operated electric utility to the city's general fund did not run afoul of the California Constitution, which prohibits local governments from imposing any tax without voter approval. A citizen association brought this suit arguing that the city was, in effect, using utility rates to impose a tax without voter approval. Rejecting this contention, the California Supreme Court reversed the court of appeal.

(United States Fifth Circuit) - Affirmed. A conservation and reclamation district regulating groundwater was not subject to the one person, one vote principle of the Equal Protection Clause because they are a special purpose unit of the government. Its apportionment scheme had a rational basis.

(California Court of Appeal) - Held that the City of Pomona violated the terms of a 1993 ballot initiative prohibiting the construction of additional billboards within city limits. A citizen group challenged the city council's decision to extend a pre-existing agreement with an outdoor advertising company when the arrangement expired in 2014. Affirmed the granting of a writ of mandate.

(United States Fifth Circuit) - Affirmed. A conservation and reclamation district regulating groundwater was not subject to the one person, one vote principle of the Equal Protection Clause because they are a special purpose unit of the government. Its apportionment scheme had a rational basis.

(United States Second Circuit) - Denied. In a 6-5 vote, the panel majority declines to rehear the case en banc, holding that the Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980 creates a privately enforceable right for foster parents to sue states for costs related to child care. Five judges dissent.

It comes after white men with guns swarmed the state house.

It comes after white men with guns swarmed the state house.

As climate change accelerates, IBM is galvanizing the global science community with a massive infusion of computing resources, weather data, and cloud services to help researchers examine the effects of climate change, and explore strategies to mitigate its effects. IBM pledges to help direct the equivalent of up to $200 million for up to five climate-related projects judged to offer the greatest potential impact, and will then broadly share the experiments' results.

ENGIE, a global leader in energy transition, today announced a new initiative with IBM. This nonexclusive, technological and commercial alliance is designed to improve the management of cities by looking at patterns, event correlation, anomaly detection and real-time data across all parts of cities.

With a smartphone app and a little free time, citizen scientists can share coronavirus data that might help bring the COVID-19 pandemic under control.

Grand Duchy easing its lockdown this week

TWENTY-three British citizens left stranded in Morocco as a result of the coronavirus pandemic have been returned to their homes in Gibraltar on two specially commissioned vessels.

Volunteers serve as "citizen archivists" to help make their collections more accessible to the public.

The following article, BREAKING: CBS News Allegedly Staged Fake COVID19 Testing In MI…Makes Dem Gov Whitmer Look Like She’s Doing More To Help Citizens Than Fed Government [VIDEO], was first published on 100PercentFedUp.com.

Project Veritas founder James O’Keefe has done it again. He’s uncovered yet another deceitful piece of coverage on the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic in America by CBS News. O’Keefe begins his interview with a man whose identity is being hidden, “You’re telling me—you’re 100% certain, that CBS News, CBS News Corporation national—staged a fake event. They […]

Continue reading: BREAKING: CBS News Allegedly Staged Fake COVID19 Testing In MI…Makes Dem Gov Whitmer Look Like She’s Doing More To Help Citizens Than Fed Government [VIDEO] ...

The following article, BREAKING: Sen Marsha Blackburn Introduces Stop COVID Act…Allowing US Citizens To Sue Communist China For Damage They’ve Inflicted On Our Nation, was first published on 100PercentFedUp.com.

Yesterday, Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), along with Senator Martha McSally (R-AZ) introduced the Stop COVID Act, giving Americans the ability to sue Communist China for the damage they’ve inflicted on our nation. Senator Blackburn appeared on Fox News with host Judge Jeanine where she explained the act to Jeanine Pirro. Blackburn told the Fox News […]

Continue reading: BREAKING: Sen Marsha Blackburn Introduces Stop COVID Act…Allowing US Citizens To Sue Communist China For Damage They’ve Inflicted On Our Nation ...

16 March 2020

In these unprecedented times, we are all spending much more time at home and in our gardens. And, now that spring has well and truly arrived, it's the perfect time to get reacquainted with one of our country's busiest workers - the bee.

"Pollinators were the key," says Edgar Mora, reflecting on the decision to recognise every bee, bat, hummingbird and butterfly as a citizen of Curridabat during his 12-year spell as mayor.

What impact has the lockdown had on our mental health, and what determines how people cope with isolation?

16 March 2020

16 March 2020

This week we’re at the over diagnosis conference in Quebec Canada, Preventing overdiangosis is a forum to discuss the harms associated with using uncertain methods to look for disease in apparently healthy people - and is part of the BMJ’s too much medicine campaign. One of the ways in which the public’s attitudes and wishes around health is...

Even as the 1.8 million number swirls in the discussion of how many DREAMers would be placed on a path to citizenship, proposals debated in the Senate in February 2018 would have resulted in the legalization of smaller numbers, as this commentary explains. It offers estimates of potential beneficiaries of several Senate proposals, including one backed by the White House, and analysis of key criteria.

Approximately 11,500 unaccompanied children were apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border in May, putting this year on track to exceed 2014's surge. As the U.S. government struggles to care for these child migrants, with public outrage mounting over reports of unsafe, filthy conditions in initial Border Patrol custody, the failure of the executive branch and Congress to plan for increased shelter and care demands are increasingly apparent, as this article explores.

Even with the collapse of the Islamic State's "caliphate," thousands of Western foreign fighters are estimated to remain in the Middle East. Deciding how to handle the return of the radicalized—and their dependents—is no easy issue. Some countries seek to revoke their citizenship. Yet citizenship revocation has unclear impact and raises deep questions about the limits of a state’s responsibility to its citizens, as this article explores.

Noncitizens have long served in the U.S. military, often encouraged by the promise of a fast track to U.S. citizenship. In recent years, however, Congress and the Defense Department have made it more difficult for noncitizens to enlist. This brief give context to these policy changes and explores ways the military could better balance concerns about national security and the need for recruits with key cultural and professional skills.

The Modi government's push for a Citizenship Amendment Act and National Register of Citizens sparked deadly riots and chilled India's 200 million Muslims, who fear being relegated to second-class citizenship—and for some, even statelessness. This article explores actions by Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party, the significance of Bangladeshi illegal immigration as a driver, and what a register of citizens in Assam might mean for India.

WASHINGTON – While the new Trump administration public charge rule is likely to vastly reshape future legal immigration based on its test to assess if a person might ever use public benefits in the future, the universe of non-citizens who could be denied a green card based on current benefits use is quite small.

Advocates have plans to push more state legislatures to pass laws requiring high schoolers to pass a citizenship test in order to graduate in coming years.

Citizen science is a method of involving students and community members in scientific research and exploration using the same parameters as professional scientists. During the Huron River Watershed Council’s annual “Insect Identification Day” in Ann Arbor, Mich., students and volunteers identified insects to add to the group’s ecological survey. Such projects are part of a new wave of […]

Darin Isaac was elected on Wednesday as the new chief of the Selkirk First Nation in Yukon. Isaac also held the position for two terms from 2005 to 2011. He has also served as a councillor for three terms.

WELL that didn’t take long. Scotland’s latest experiment in direct democracy was all but killed off this week, barely two months after Nicola Sturgeon announced it.

Newborn screening (NBS) programs may store bloodspot samples and use them for secondary purposes, such as research. Recent public controversies and lawsuits over storage and secondary uses underscore the need to engage the public on these issues.

This public engagement study identifies values underlying citizens’ acceptance of and discomfort with research from NBS samples. Well-designed methods of public education and civic discourse on the risks and benefits of storage and secondary uses of NBS samples are required. (Read the full article)

US President Donald Trump says he plans to sign an executive order ending birthright citizenship for babies of non-citizens and unauthorised immigrants born on US soil.

Based on the data of the Australian Home Affairs Department the time to process applications seeking Australian citizenship was reduced by 10 percent during 2019. Achieving Substantial ProgressIt has moreover, confirmed that the number of approvals…

A Member of the Indian parliamentarian introduced a Bill seeking allowing the dual citizenship for overseas nationals who are of Indian origin. Under the present laws, Indians must renounce Indian citizenship when they acquire citizenship of a foreign…

Things aren’t great between Hong Kong Beijing, and scared residents are moving to a safer Taiwan, Hong Kong’s neighbor. Hong Kong has been under China’s rule for almost two decades now and is a major financial hub for the Asian country. According…

Presently, the United States is imposing severe rules regarding visas and immigration so that Indians remain away from arriving in the country.Canada is welcomingMoreover, Canada has continued to favour immigrants.  50 percent of Indians who migrated…

The immigration policies of President are Uncertain and there is a desire by the people to vote in the forthcoming elections in November 2020, which are forcing many immigrants who reside in the US to seek its citizenship.The Current Figures8.34 lakh…

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut says Maharashtra govt’s work will be based on issues, not Hindutva.

The Prime Minister said the dispute that has arisen over CAA has made the world take notice of the persecution of minorities in Pakistan.

Shah also launched a state-wide campaign, ‘Ar Noi Annay (No More Injustice)’, to take on Banerjee’s outreach programme, ‘Didi ke Bolo’.

Many national newspapers and NGOs like Rotary, industry bodies like Indian Merchants Chamber (IMC) and Population First (Laadli) will also play a role in disseminating information and counselling, where necessary.

The trial, starting the day before a momentous midterm election, could help rewrite the nation’s political map for a decade.