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Celerity
Celerity's Journal
Celerity's Journal
April 8, 2019
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/apr/08/windrush-victim-compensation-scheme-government-scandal
Sajid Javid, the home secretary, promised to make things right by the victims of the so-called Windrush scandal. He now has his chance to live up to the promise – but the much-needed and welcome compensation scheme announced on Wednesday has some potentially serious flaws.
Guidance, which runs to 45 pages, details all the documents that the people affected will have to present to apply for compensation for the hardships they have endured over many years: loss of jobs and income, debt, homelessness, stress, physical and mental health problems, detention and even deportation.
The fundamental problems within the Home Office that contributed to the Windrush scandal in the first place – the disproportionate amount of evidence required, the difficulties of application processes and the lack of support for completing applications – appear to be reflected once again in this scheme. Not to mention the continuing “hostile environment” that generates a culture of disbelief and antagonism towards applicants.
There is no legal aid being made available to provide specialist support to fill in the lengthy application form, help people quantify their losses or track down the evidence required. The burden of proof is still disproportionately placed on the individual. To access compensation, people are again required to provide evidence that might not exist – for example, to prove their attempts to contact the Home Office to resolve the problems that the Home Office was itself responsible for creating. The cost of applications to the Home Office to secure some form of evidence of status – in the face of its refusal to recognise their existing rights – will not be reimbursed, though they can cost individuals hundreds or even thousands of pounds in fees (and debt).
snip
No Windrush victim will feel 'compensated' by this bungled scheme
Complex, expensive and with derisory payouts, the government’s attempts to atone for this scandal are an insulthttps://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/apr/08/windrush-victim-compensation-scheme-government-scandal
Sajid Javid, the home secretary, promised to make things right by the victims of the so-called Windrush scandal. He now has his chance to live up to the promise – but the much-needed and welcome compensation scheme announced on Wednesday has some potentially serious flaws.
Guidance, which runs to 45 pages, details all the documents that the people affected will have to present to apply for compensation for the hardships they have endured over many years: loss of jobs and income, debt, homelessness, stress, physical and mental health problems, detention and even deportation.
The fundamental problems within the Home Office that contributed to the Windrush scandal in the first place – the disproportionate amount of evidence required, the difficulties of application processes and the lack of support for completing applications – appear to be reflected once again in this scheme. Not to mention the continuing “hostile environment” that generates a culture of disbelief and antagonism towards applicants.
There is no legal aid being made available to provide specialist support to fill in the lengthy application form, help people quantify their losses or track down the evidence required. The burden of proof is still disproportionately placed on the individual. To access compensation, people are again required to provide evidence that might not exist – for example, to prove their attempts to contact the Home Office to resolve the problems that the Home Office was itself responsible for creating. The cost of applications to the Home Office to secure some form of evidence of status – in the face of its refusal to recognise their existing rights – will not be reimbursed, though they can cost individuals hundreds or even thousands of pounds in fees (and debt).
snip
April 8, 2019
Midwestern mayor Buttigieg wows progressive Dems in San Francisco
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/03/29/pete-buttigieg-san-francisco-1243203
Pete Buttigieg, the first openly gay major presidential candidate, took his campaign Thursday to San Francisco — a heartland of progressive gay politics — but said he is running “not to be a candidate for the LGBTQ community alone, or for any one group,’’ but to speak to all Americans.
“I’m proud of who I am, I am proud of my husband and our marriage,’’ said the Democratic mayor of South Bend, Ind., whose spouse, Chasten, sat nearby as he addressed reporters here prior to a sold-out speech before hundreds at the Commonwealth Club. “It might just be the most normal thing in my life.’’ His husband, Buttigieg said, will have a role in his upstart campaign for the White House because he is “somebody who’s passionate about education, passionate about family ... and his story is part of my story.’’
When asked how he will get past what many believe could be his greatest hurdle in running for the presidency — his status as a married gay man — Buttigieg told POLITICO, “I don’t know how it plays in San Francisco. But I can tell you I came out, during a reelection campaign, in Indiana, while Mike Pence was the governor. And I wound up winning reelection by 80 percent."
Buttigieg was greeted by a rousing standing ovation, whoops and cheers from the audience in the progressive bastion of San Francisco, the hometown of fellow Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris, who served as district attorney in the city before becoming the state’s attorney general.
Asked about competing with Harris, Buttigieg said, “I don’t think I’m running against any individual, especially when there’s like 20 of us. I admire a lot of the people in this process, but each of us has a different message.’’
snip
Clara Jeffery interviews Pete Buttigieg, Inforum, Commonwealth Club, 3/28
Midwestern mayor Buttigieg wows progressive Dems in San Francisco
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/03/29/pete-buttigieg-san-francisco-1243203
Pete Buttigieg, the first openly gay major presidential candidate, took his campaign Thursday to San Francisco — a heartland of progressive gay politics — but said he is running “not to be a candidate for the LGBTQ community alone, or for any one group,’’ but to speak to all Americans.
“I’m proud of who I am, I am proud of my husband and our marriage,’’ said the Democratic mayor of South Bend, Ind., whose spouse, Chasten, sat nearby as he addressed reporters here prior to a sold-out speech before hundreds at the Commonwealth Club. “It might just be the most normal thing in my life.’’ His husband, Buttigieg said, will have a role in his upstart campaign for the White House because he is “somebody who’s passionate about education, passionate about family ... and his story is part of my story.’’
When asked how he will get past what many believe could be his greatest hurdle in running for the presidency — his status as a married gay man — Buttigieg told POLITICO, “I don’t know how it plays in San Francisco. But I can tell you I came out, during a reelection campaign, in Indiana, while Mike Pence was the governor. And I wound up winning reelection by 80 percent."
Buttigieg was greeted by a rousing standing ovation, whoops and cheers from the audience in the progressive bastion of San Francisco, the hometown of fellow Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris, who served as district attorney in the city before becoming the state’s attorney general.
Asked about competing with Harris, Buttigieg said, “I don’t think I’m running against any individual, especially when there’s like 20 of us. I admire a lot of the people in this process, but each of us has a different message.’’
snip
April 7, 2019
His most crystalline, laser-focused short-form interview I have seen to date. He has taken it up to another level yet again.
Meet The Press April 7th, 2019: Pete Buttigieg, Full Interview
His most crystalline, laser-focused short-form interview I have seen to date. He has taken it up to another level yet again.
April 7, 2019
Pete Buttigieg rallies against white nationalism, calls climate security a 'life and death issue'
April 5, 2019
Stacey Abrams is an African American woman, of “sturdy build” she says, from the South who barely lost the Georgia governor’s race, has made voting rights her passion and knocked it out of the ballpark in her response to this year’s State of the Union. Pete Buttigieg is a white, gay man of slight build from the Midwest who’s spent eight years as mayor of South Bend, Ind., a mid-sized city, served in the military and is a genuine intellectual. They couldn’t be more different, right?
Not exactly. Both are quite progressive but do well in red states and both have made a giant impression on the media and among those voters who know who they are. What’s the secret of their success? I’d argue they have important ingredients rarely found in a single politician.
First, both are crazy-smart. She’s a Yale Law School grad, he’s a Harvard grad and Rhodes scholar. They don’t simply have credentials, however. They have nimble, curious minds and are voracious readers. That makes them interesting to listen to and makes them sound somehow different, more serious than traditional politicians who rely on buzzwords and catchphrases.
Second, while quite young (he is 37, she is 45) they can be almost eerily calm and composed. They speak with deliberation and don’t stumble over words, fill in gaps with a series of ahs and uh-huhs. They rarely raise their voices yet command the room.
Third, they are very still when speaking. No arm gestures, no fidgeting, no nervous habits. That also helps convey a sense of command and purposefulness.
Fourth, they present progressive ideas as common sense solutions without inflammatory language and labels. They explain what voters need (e.g. Abrams on broadband and health care in rural areas, Buttigieg on economic development.) If Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) aims to define himself as a socialist, they embrace humane capitalism, and thereby don’t scare away more conservative voters.
snip
Things Stacey Abrams and Pete Buttigieg get that most other pols don't
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/04/05/five-things-stacey-abrams-pete-buttigieg-get-than-most-pols-dont/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.849508f8a59bStacey Abrams is an African American woman, of “sturdy build” she says, from the South who barely lost the Georgia governor’s race, has made voting rights her passion and knocked it out of the ballpark in her response to this year’s State of the Union. Pete Buttigieg is a white, gay man of slight build from the Midwest who’s spent eight years as mayor of South Bend, Ind., a mid-sized city, served in the military and is a genuine intellectual. They couldn’t be more different, right?
Not exactly. Both are quite progressive but do well in red states and both have made a giant impression on the media and among those voters who know who they are. What’s the secret of their success? I’d argue they have important ingredients rarely found in a single politician.
First, both are crazy-smart. She’s a Yale Law School grad, he’s a Harvard grad and Rhodes scholar. They don’t simply have credentials, however. They have nimble, curious minds and are voracious readers. That makes them interesting to listen to and makes them sound somehow different, more serious than traditional politicians who rely on buzzwords and catchphrases.
Second, while quite young (he is 37, she is 45) they can be almost eerily calm and composed. They speak with deliberation and don’t stumble over words, fill in gaps with a series of ahs and uh-huhs. They rarely raise their voices yet command the room.
Third, they are very still when speaking. No arm gestures, no fidgeting, no nervous habits. That also helps convey a sense of command and purposefulness.
Fourth, they present progressive ideas as common sense solutions without inflammatory language and labels. They explain what voters need (e.g. Abrams on broadband and health care in rural areas, Buttigieg on economic development.) If Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) aims to define himself as a socialist, they embrace humane capitalism, and thereby don’t scare away more conservative voters.
snip
April 4, 2019
Thank you for your support over the last two months. In that short amount of time, this community met the 65,000-donor threshold to get invited to the DNC debate, raised more than $7,000,000 in the first quarter, and introduced us to voters all across the country.
I’m making an announcement in South Bend on April 14th and would be honored if you would join me.
Whether you’ll be supporting us from home through our livestream or joining us in person, we want you to be a part of the special day.
Probably his official launch.
Pete Buttigieg: Join me in South Bend on April 14th for a special announcement
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=361805897864971Thank you for your support over the last two months. In that short amount of time, this community met the 65,000-donor threshold to get invited to the DNC debate, raised more than $7,000,000 in the first quarter, and introduced us to voters all across the country.
I’m making an announcement in South Bend on April 14th and would be honored if you would join me.
Whether you’ll be supporting us from home through our livestream or joining us in person, we want you to be a part of the special day.
Probably his official launch.
April 3, 2019
https://www.ebony.com/exclusive/is-pete-buttigieg-black-voters-2020-presidential-dark-horse/
From Black women to Black LGBTQ millennials, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg’s messages on economic opportunity and gun violence are resonating with the Democratic Party’s base—Black voters.
The openly gay Democrat running the city of South Bend, Indiana, was a lesser-known 2020 presidential candidate until his acclaimed town hall performance on CNN on March 10. Since then, the midwestern mayor has captured the attention of Black voters and David Axelrod, the former campaign manager for Barack Obama.
https://twitter.com/davidaxelrod/status/1104922963386630144
Buttigieg, 37, contends that every candidate “brings a different profile and a different life experience,” but the conversation around intersectionality and his personal experience as a member of a marginalized community helps him find “new sources of solidarity” across identity groups.
South Bend might not be known for having a large Black population. But, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Black community represents over a quarter of the city’s population.
Before “Pete for America” officially launched, Mark Meier ran the “Draft Mayor Pete” political action committee in an effort to bolster nationwide name recognition for the Afghanistan War veteran. Meier who like Buttigieg is a millennial member of the LGBTQ community, said on the PAC’s website that Buttigieg is a uniquely suited candidate to bring together Democrats from every part of our big tent party.”
snip
South Bend is overall 45% minority btw and Pete was re-elected with 80% of the vote
https://www.wndu.com/home/headlines/Buttigieg-vies-for-second-term-as-South-Bend-mayor-340002362.html
During his 8 year tenure, African American wages, wealth, home ownership rates, and employment rates are all up, and although they still lag under the national average, but they were far worse before he was initially elected.
He also has dealt with a diverse South Bend City Council, and even often has gotten the Republicans (at present there is only one) to go along with the city's initiatives.
https://southbendin.gov/department/common-council/
here is his interview with Charlamagne Tha God and The Breakfast Club
Pete Buttigieg On Political Honesty, His Black Agenda, Open Homosexuality + More
Ebony Magazine: Is Pete Buttigieg Black Voters' 2020 Presidential Dark Horse?
The midwestern mayor has captured the attention of Black voters and David Axelrod, Obama’s former campaign manager.https://www.ebony.com/exclusive/is-pete-buttigieg-black-voters-2020-presidential-dark-horse/
From Black women to Black LGBTQ millennials, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg’s messages on economic opportunity and gun violence are resonating with the Democratic Party’s base—Black voters.
The openly gay Democrat running the city of South Bend, Indiana, was a lesser-known 2020 presidential candidate until his acclaimed town hall performance on CNN on March 10. Since then, the midwestern mayor has captured the attention of Black voters and David Axelrod, the former campaign manager for Barack Obama.
https://twitter.com/davidaxelrod/status/1104922963386630144
Buttigieg, 37, contends that every candidate “brings a different profile and a different life experience,” but the conversation around intersectionality and his personal experience as a member of a marginalized community helps him find “new sources of solidarity” across identity groups.
South Bend might not be known for having a large Black population. But, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Black community represents over a quarter of the city’s population.
Before “Pete for America” officially launched, Mark Meier ran the “Draft Mayor Pete” political action committee in an effort to bolster nationwide name recognition for the Afghanistan War veteran. Meier who like Buttigieg is a millennial member of the LGBTQ community, said on the PAC’s website that Buttigieg is a uniquely suited candidate to bring together Democrats from every part of our big tent party.”
snip
South Bend is overall 45% minority btw and Pete was re-elected with 80% of the vote
https://www.wndu.com/home/headlines/Buttigieg-vies-for-second-term-as-South-Bend-mayor-340002362.html
During his 8 year tenure, African American wages, wealth, home ownership rates, and employment rates are all up, and although they still lag under the national average, but they were far worse before he was initially elected.
He also has dealt with a diverse South Bend City Council, and even often has gotten the Republicans (at present there is only one) to go along with the city's initiatives.
https://southbendin.gov/department/common-council/
here is his interview with Charlamagne Tha God and The Breakfast Club
Pete Buttigieg On Political Honesty, His Black Agenda, Open Homosexuality + More
April 2, 2019
https://www.socialeurope.eu/pis-attacks-lgbt-rights-in-poland
In the run-up to this year’s European and national parliamentary elections, LGBT+ rights are dividing Polish politics. Speaking recently against their extension, the leader of the ruling, right-wing Law and Justice Party (PiS), Jarosław Kaczyński, said: “This is not about tolerance. This is about the affirmation of same-sex unions, about their marriage, and their right to adopt children. We want to say it clearly. We are saying No!, especially when it concerns children. Stay away from our children!’
This renewed campaign by PiS against LGBT+ rights was launched in the wake of the recent decision by the mayor of Warsaw, Rafał Trzaskowski—from the main opposition party, Citizens’ Platform (PO)—to sign a declaration protecting LGBT+ rights in the capital. The declaration guarantees the basic needs of Warsaw’s LGBT+ community and commits the local government to delivering such things as hostels, a crisis-intervention system and anti-discrimination education in schools.
The conservative right has responded by whipping up an atmosphere of homophobia and hostility towards the LGBT+ community. The public media (and those parts of the private media sympathetic to PiS) have engaged in a barrage of propaganda against the LGBT+ community. Demonstrations have been organised by the conservative and nationalist right outside the Warsaw local-government offices, in protest against the declaration, and banners with homophobic slogans have been displayed in football stadia.
‘Dangerous diseases’
The tactic of finding an enemy, against whom its supporters can unite, has been deployed before by PiS. During the 2015 parliamentary elections, the party ran a strongly negative campaign against refugees, with Kaczyński spreading fear that asylum-seekers could carry ‘very dangerous diseases long absent from Europe’ and that Poland might be forced to resettle more than 100,000 Muslims in the country. PiS argued that it was defending Poland against an attempt by the European Union to impose multicultural values and lifestyles upon it.
The party tried to repeat this strategy during last year’s local election campaigns, contending that PO would allow a wave of refugees to come into those areas where it won power. This negative propaganda resulted in a sharp increase in the number of those opposing Poland taking in refugees.
Such rhetoric is now being repeated against LGBT+ rights, with the conservative and nationalist right maintaining that they are protecting the traditional Polish family and values. A leading PiS candidate in the European elections has said: ‘I think that Poland will be a region free from LGBT. I hope so.’ Some on the right have even absurdly argued that Muslims and the LGBT+ community represent a combined threat: the editor of the right-wing weekly DoRzeczy has claimed that the west faces the choice between becoming a ‘caliphate or a homoland’.
snip
PiS attacks LGBT+ rights in Poland, as elections loom
Amid simmering social discontent and with the Catholic Church wracked by sex-abuse scandals, Poland’s clerical-nationalist party is exploiting homophobia to drive a wedge into the opposition.https://www.socialeurope.eu/pis-attacks-lgbt-rights-in-poland
In the run-up to this year’s European and national parliamentary elections, LGBT+ rights are dividing Polish politics. Speaking recently against their extension, the leader of the ruling, right-wing Law and Justice Party (PiS), Jarosław Kaczyński, said: “This is not about tolerance. This is about the affirmation of same-sex unions, about their marriage, and their right to adopt children. We want to say it clearly. We are saying No!, especially when it concerns children. Stay away from our children!’
This renewed campaign by PiS against LGBT+ rights was launched in the wake of the recent decision by the mayor of Warsaw, Rafał Trzaskowski—from the main opposition party, Citizens’ Platform (PO)—to sign a declaration protecting LGBT+ rights in the capital. The declaration guarantees the basic needs of Warsaw’s LGBT+ community and commits the local government to delivering such things as hostels, a crisis-intervention system and anti-discrimination education in schools.
The conservative right has responded by whipping up an atmosphere of homophobia and hostility towards the LGBT+ community. The public media (and those parts of the private media sympathetic to PiS) have engaged in a barrage of propaganda against the LGBT+ community. Demonstrations have been organised by the conservative and nationalist right outside the Warsaw local-government offices, in protest against the declaration, and banners with homophobic slogans have been displayed in football stadia.
‘Dangerous diseases’
The tactic of finding an enemy, against whom its supporters can unite, has been deployed before by PiS. During the 2015 parliamentary elections, the party ran a strongly negative campaign against refugees, with Kaczyński spreading fear that asylum-seekers could carry ‘very dangerous diseases long absent from Europe’ and that Poland might be forced to resettle more than 100,000 Muslims in the country. PiS argued that it was defending Poland against an attempt by the European Union to impose multicultural values and lifestyles upon it.
The party tried to repeat this strategy during last year’s local election campaigns, contending that PO would allow a wave of refugees to come into those areas where it won power. This negative propaganda resulted in a sharp increase in the number of those opposing Poland taking in refugees.
Such rhetoric is now being repeated against LGBT+ rights, with the conservative and nationalist right maintaining that they are protecting the traditional Polish family and values. A leading PiS candidate in the European elections has said: ‘I think that Poland will be a region free from LGBT. I hope so.’ Some on the right have even absurdly argued that Muslims and the LGBT+ community represent a combined threat: the editor of the right-wing weekly DoRzeczy has claimed that the west faces the choice between becoming a ‘caliphate or a homoland’.
snip
April 2, 2019
Frikandel Speciaal, Bitterballen, and something called “smulrol” are a few favorites on the menu at Wendy’s in the Dutch city of Goes. There are no 4 for 4€ deals, no Baconators or Son of Baconators, no Frostys to dip your fries. There’s not even an adorable, freckle-faced mascot. Instead, it’s the glorious mullet of the chain-smoking man behind the counter, Albert van der Hoek.
This is what Wendy’s looks like in Europe: A hole-in-the-wall chippie run by some brute Dutch sailors with a serious case of stick-it-to-the-man-itis. It’s the reason a certain billion-dollar, red-headed American fast food chain has been kicked off the continent.
From the corner of Koningstraat, a sign advertising the crispy chicken burger, chicken strips, and crispy hot wings stands among pristine cobblestone streets and gabled facades from the Dutch Golden Age. It’s a setting straight out of Amsterdam, except rather than museums, prostitutes, and panicked Brits on ‘shrooms, the town’s lure is a steam train that takes you… right out of the town.
Unlike most European cities, though, the romantic setting in Goes has yet to be infiltrated by commercial taste-buds. There’s no Burger King, no McDonald’s in the shadow of the town’s gothic cathedral De Grote Kerk. Instead of Starbucks, Old World cafes serve up unpronounceable delicacies like ontbijtkoek, or the unfortunately-named pastry “Zeeuwse Bolus.”
snip
How This Tiny Dutch Restaurant Is Keeping Wendy's Out of Europe
https://www.thrillist.com/travel/nation/wendys-locations-europe-netherlands-goes-restaurantFrikandel Speciaal, Bitterballen, and something called “smulrol” are a few favorites on the menu at Wendy’s in the Dutch city of Goes. There are no 4 for 4€ deals, no Baconators or Son of Baconators, no Frostys to dip your fries. There’s not even an adorable, freckle-faced mascot. Instead, it’s the glorious mullet of the chain-smoking man behind the counter, Albert van der Hoek.
This is what Wendy’s looks like in Europe: A hole-in-the-wall chippie run by some brute Dutch sailors with a serious case of stick-it-to-the-man-itis. It’s the reason a certain billion-dollar, red-headed American fast food chain has been kicked off the continent.
From the corner of Koningstraat, a sign advertising the crispy chicken burger, chicken strips, and crispy hot wings stands among pristine cobblestone streets and gabled facades from the Dutch Golden Age. It’s a setting straight out of Amsterdam, except rather than museums, prostitutes, and panicked Brits on ‘shrooms, the town’s lure is a steam train that takes you… right out of the town.
Unlike most European cities, though, the romantic setting in Goes has yet to be infiltrated by commercial taste-buds. There’s no Burger King, no McDonald’s in the shadow of the town’s gothic cathedral De Grote Kerk. Instead of Starbucks, Old World cafes serve up unpronounceable delicacies like ontbijtkoek, or the unfortunately-named pastry “Zeeuwse Bolus.”
snip
April 1, 2019
Scripps Presents: Pete Buttigieg
Profile Information
Gender: FemaleHometown: London
Home country: US/UK/Sweden
Current location: Stockholm, Sweden
Member since: Sun Jul 1, 2018, 07:25 PM
Number of posts: 43,534
