One of Sweden’s most popular comediens has died. I belonged to my parents’ generation, and his humour wasn’t always mine. But i remember with fondness the many evening with my parents laughing in front of the TV until they both cried.
The Guardian shares Veronika’s story:
The months before the war were the best of my life. I was in my second year at university and one of the best students on the course. But the thing that brought my life true meaning was playing ice hockey. It was what I woke for every morning. On 23 February our coach told me of plans to set up a women’s hockey team to try and reach the professional league. I went to bed so happy, looking forward to the next day.
The next morning when I woke at 5.30am I didn’t immediately understand that it was explosions, and not my alarm clock, that had woken me up. My bed was shaking from the shockwaves.
It continues below.
My mum and I came out of our bedrooms, barely understanding what was happening. For the first few hours we sat together, waiting for it all to finish, but the bombing just got worse. So we packed a suitcase and ran to my grandparents’ basement.
As soon as I got into the basement I realised my life as I had known it was over. Hockey, work, friends, a man with whom I was very much in love, all of these things finished that day. That is probably why I do not feel anything any more: no fear, no pain, no anger, no desire to live. I feel like I died at 5.30am on 24 February.
Inflation is always bad news. At least we can find some comfort in the fact that things are worse for Russia.
Well, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but one bizarre thing about this sad tale is that Ursula Haverbeck has become known as “Nazi Grandma” in German newspapers. Jeebus!
The Hungarians are today voting in a referendum on a law that bans information about homosexuality to children. As always when intolerant people want to hit at minorities, the use “children’s rights”.
The result of the referendum is expected later tonight.
Not enough Hungarians voted in yesterday’s referendum on a proposal to legally discriminate against gay people on the basis of “Child Protection”.
Putin’s friend, Viktor Orbán, has won yesterday’s election in Hungary. With the help of his near-monopoly of media channels, obviously. And the fist thing the he did was to attack European democracy. Not Putin’s war in neighbouring Ukraine.
| The five most popular presidential candidates | |
|---|---|
| Emmanuel Macron | 28% |
| Marine Le Pen | 21.5% |
| Jean-Luc Mélenchon | 15% |
| Éric Zemmour | 11% |
| Valérie Pécresse | 9.5% |
Photos appear to prove that the Russian forces carried out targeted, organised killings of civilians in the Kyiv suburb of Bucha.
Sometimes I wish I never learned how to use the internet. Like now, when I see the Guardian’s images of Russia’s slaughter of innocent civilians in Bucha is heartbreaking.
I’ve completely missed France’s plan to ban online pornography. It’s a stupid idea, for many reasons. A court will look at the law in May.
Avocado’s high level of fibre and unsaturated fats could be behind the its impact on indicators such as cholesterol, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
And 🥑 is delicious, too.
Now we just have to figure out what to do with all information. But it’s amazing how much we now know about what makes us.
The new study was published in the journal Science.
This new study, published by Acta Palaeontologica Polonica, makes some sense in all the absurdity of a top predator being a target. But hey, if short arms keeps you alive…
The constant argument among liberal and orthodox movements is tiresome, so this is a welcome trend. Yonat Shimron reports that a growing number of Jews who don’t feel a kinship to any one wing of Jewish life are choosing independent or post-denominational seminaries.
People must stop evaluating people of the past after current ethical norms. Yes, Picasso was probably a sexist. Wagner was definitely an anti-Semite. Not to mention all artists who at some point thought Stalin and Hitler were great. We need to learn from their mistakes, but not ignore them nor their work.
Drama in Swedish politics today. The not-so-liberal Nyamko Sabuni quits and the not-liberal-at-all Johan Pehrson takes her place. The most liberal part of the Liberal Party is its name.
After today’s first round in the French presidential election, it’s clear that Emmanuel Macron will face the Marine Le Pen in the run-off on 24 April.
It was a beautiful day in Copenhagen yesterday. I spent it walking through the city after enjoying what might be the most horrific play ever written. And not horrific in being bad, but rather the theme of brutal revenge for broken promises and abandonment. Don’t mess with a desperate mother.
The Canary News runs an interesting story. If islands can better use the ocean for energy, it would solve many energy issues.
Well, Grace Hall has some points, but there is a problem when everyone in a profession are clones.
A pro-Russian cavalcade in Dublin led by a car with the “Z” symbol has provoked astonishment and condemnation in Ireland. Same thing happened in Berlin a few days ago. Some people know no shame.
Deutsche Welle: “The head of the UN’s children’s agency told the Security Council that in more than three decades of humanitarian work, he had never seen so many children uprooted in so short a timeframe.”
Canada’s finance minister has described the rise in housing prices as an “intergenerational injustice”. I have never heard that description before and wonder if not all generations have suffered similar injustice. I mean, not long ago, everything was handed down to the eldest son. Everyone else belonging to the next generation had to fend for themselves. Was that more just?
This is good news! Democratic Europe must unite against the threats from Russia. Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin today said that her country is likely to decide on joining NATO within weeks. Now Sweden must decide, too.
I think this is healthy.
It’s a bit late, but welcome.
Millions of people have viewed posts committed to portraying Putin as smiling, benevolent, and peace-loving. These are Putin’s superfans. BBC has been tracking what they do and where they come from.
Had never heard of it before, but this article about New Zealand glaciers is quite read-worthy.
It’s never too late. Apparently, she’s now the oldest woman to get inked. Good for her!
Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece, The Last Supper, is rarely seen for what it is by Christians. It shows Jesus celebrating his final Seder with his closest friends.
Please God, let this be true! From Deutsche Welle: “An Ipsos-Sopra Steria survey found that Macron enjoys support of around 55.5% of the respondents. Marine Le Pen could count on 44.5% of the vote, with the voter turnout expected to be 72% in the runoff.”
I think the Guardian’s Rupert Neate is on to something. I’ve always liked to see other men wear the suit, but I mostly feel comfortable doing so myself. Also, I think I’m too fat to make it look nice.
This according to the Guardian. But it’s not over yet. Sunday will be an intense day for a politics junkie like myself.
The latest wave of homophobic legislation in some sates is enough to make any sane person cry.
Ishaan Tharoor of the Washington Post writes about an aspect of Russian propaganda that might be more harmful than anything else.
One thing I really dislike about American culture is tipping. I’m never comfortable about this, and it doesn’t get easier with the percentage seeming to increase at every visit. Yesterday, the New York Times ran an article about it. I mean, 35%—that’s ridiculous.
Russia tests new intercontinental ballistic missile with warheads that have potential to eliminate an area the size of France or Texas.
I’m watching the main presidential debate before the French vote on Sunday. They just talked about purchasing power, but none of them seems to understand that handing out free money will create inflation, which has the negative effect the grants are meant to curb.
The debate between Macron and Le Pen once again show how intolerance is camouflaged as defending children. Le Pen wants to ban hijabs and kippas because the Muslim girls and Jewish boys can’t decide for themselves. No! Governments should stay out of people’s wardrobes.
Find the courage! ✊ “They are too afraid to say it publicly but some among Russia’s political and business elite are beginning to worry that they have a Putin problem,” Bloomberg reports.
Taking from this article in Politico, the young French aren’t very eurosceptic at all. That is very good news for everyone who want Europe to belong to the Europeans. Too bad, though, that they are so fond of extremist who hates the EU.
The nightmare just won’t stop. Meanwhile, in Russia, Putin makes schools to give lessons in patriotism to justify the invasion.
Deutsche Welle runs an article about why, but the answer is quite simple and predictable. The Arab nations are all dictatorships that cares little for the values of the West. That, plus the egocentric nature of Middle Eastern politics—no matter the subject, you can be sure they’ll bring “Palestine” into it. The propaganda machine is not unlike the Russian. So, instead of facts, the authoritarian rulers feed their subjects trash about the invented enemy, being it Israel or Ukraine. That’s how cowardly “strongman leaders” operate.
When all votes had been counted, this was the result.
| Candidate | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Macron | 18,779,641 | 58.54% |
| Le Pen | 13,297,760 | 41.46% |
I was really, really worried about the French election. I think I had nightmares about Le Pen becoming president. Had she succeeded, it would have been a huge blow to Europe and a great win for Putin. Now Europe can remain united against Russian aggression and continue to make the EU better.
In the conservative sphere, some American politicians have really lost all sense.
“Here 40% is normal,” an Argentinian shopkeeper tells the Wall Street Journal. “And when we get past 50%, it doesn’t scare us, it simply bothers us.”
The new normal?
Some days I think to myself, “Perhaps I’d better not look at the news.” Then I can’t stop myself. So, I read through the Guardian’s summary of the latest information from the war. I wish I didn’t gave in to the urge.
I first learned about the author Kristian Lundberg when I bought his flat in Malmö. After that, I read his poetry, and I liked some of it. Today, his family told media that he’s dead.
The Sun is not the most reliable source, but everything in this chilling article has been reported elsewhere. We knew Putin is mad, but reading about it still scary.
This according to satellite images seen by the United States Naval Institute.
It’s true. NATO has messed things up for the dictators who wish to rule their neighbours. That’s bad for Russia and China, but it’s a good thing for democracies in Europe and Asia.
שבת שלום
The King of Sweden celebrates his 76th birthday today. I’m a liberal in all matters but one—I like Sweden’s system of ceremonial-only monarchy. Only Sweden and Japan has this strictly non-political constitutional monarchy, and there’s something pleasing about it that I can’t resist. However, I do realise that is goes against the ideas of meritocracy. On the other hand, few people have proven more qualified to act as symbols without power than those who were born into it. Presidents in countries such as Switzerland and Italy tend to think they’re more than what their role allows them.