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memorylang · 2 years

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Southeast Asia in Malaysia and Singapore | #56 | August 2022

Less than two months from now I’ll be back in Mongolia, serving again with the United States Peace Corps. It won’t be long now.

The noble Vanessa from humble beginnings sang “It Won’t Be Long Now” during Lin Manuel-Miranda’s “In the Heights.” I saw his film adaptation June 3, 2O22 aboard my first transatlantic flight since Peace Corps Mongolia’s evacuation 2O2O. The flight saw me from Paris to Detroit, on a particularly bizarre itinerary from Prague through Paris, Detroit and Nashville, ultimately to Kansas City. Thankfully it was affordable!

I’ve nine months of tales to share with you since I last blogged on this site. So much has changed.

On a much needed walk yesterday evening (Aug. 17, 2O22) in the Vegas heat, I pictured as though stretching my hand to a dark, crystalline wall. When my fingers touched its central indent, the crystals' darkness illuminated at once with a multitude of possibilities for future versions of me playing out across the shining walls. I claimed one of these crystal stories and held it close to my heart. From this shard grew more. Before long I was suited in a shimmering armor of cyan, teal and aquamarine. The road ahead would not be easy, yet I felt protected against woes that would attempt to demoralize. I chose the ‘foreign service’ path.

I share this anecdote because I think it suits the ultimate decision from these past nine months of development. In the time since I last wrote here, I have at last become aware again of my sanity’s need for me to log what I find, perhaps to make sense of it. I share the fruits of that sense-making with you.

Consider this blog entry a “Part I of II.” This entry will tackle the winter and spring from here to abroad, December 2O2I through the mid-May 2O22. Part II pick up overseas from May 2O22 through my reacclimating to then leaving again America amid summer’s end.

Why Write Now?

I have another story for you. Earlier that night (Aug. 17), before my walk, I was catching up on “The Chosen,” a series recommended to me by the kind American Christian couple I’d known when I’d lived in Erdenet, Mongolia, fall 2OI9 to spring 2O2O. The next episode for me that night was season 2, episode 2. Coincidentally, I had already seen clips from this one three weekends prior on a Jesuit vocational retreat at their novitiate in Culver City, near Los Angeles. Fr. Radmar Agana Jao, SJ, who led the retreat, played for my fellow nine retreatants and me clips conveying the call of Nathanael.

In that night’s watching, Philip’s kindness to Matthew spoke more to me. Matthew in the series is a writer, who records what happens on the journey. In Matthew I recognized me, who writes because that’s what I do. (Or at least, that’s what I had been doing.) I’m grateful that “The Chosen” Season 3 is in development.

Call to Mission | December 2O2I

Dec. 3, 2O2I, on the Feast of St. Francis Xavier, I received an invitation to serve in Asia with the St. Francis Xavier Lay Missionary Society. As I had written last Nov. 2O2I, I’d been singing first tenor in the Reno Philharmonic Chorus for "Spirit of the Season" concerts at the downtown Pioneer Center for the Performing Arts. I still remember having just parked before our opening night show, sitting with my tuxedo on in the ol’ silver 2OO5 Camry LE when I saw that email they invited me.

Later that December, as I’d written last November, I wound up attending the wedding of my Knights of Columbus mentor Worthy Phillip, who had helped teach me to drive when I was an undergrad. Since flight prices rose too high before my friend Halley had purchased, she couldn’t make it. Serendipitously, the sister of my fellow Knight Thomas had also wanted to attend the wedding. So I attended with Worthy Thomas and two of his sisters. Interestingly, the sister with whom I went attended Benedictine College in Kansas, from where my Dad’s family comes.

I enjoyed staying that weekend on the ranch of my Worthy Brother and attending my first Tridentine Mass with his family the following Sunday. We attended Saint Joseph's Catholic Church in Modesto, Calif. Turns out that Latin I studied during the pandemic’s first autumn came in handy! I hadn’t recalled whether I’d received Holy Communion on my tongue prior to this, so that felt new to me. The kind community reminded me of fellowship at the St. Vincent de Paul parish in which I grew up in southern Indiana till our family’s 2OO8 move.

Extended Family Adventures

Following these, and according to plan, I returned to Vegas for Christmas and headed to Kansas for my first Lang Christmas get-together since perhaps December 2OI4 when I was a senior in high school. For the trip, I stayed with my youngest brother’s godparents, who were also my most Bavarian German and Austrian culturally-inclined uncle and aunt. We spoke so much about the faith I have come to know as a young adult. My uncle had also worked in Singapore and recommended I check out the Bird Park there.

I felt such love among our relatives. We gathered at an older aunt’s home where I still recall having learned to play the card game War as a first grader from my slightly cousin Sarah nearly 2O years ago. (The reason why in June 2O22 I would fly into Kansas City would be to attend her wedding reception in Topeka.) Some relatives were into wearing masks against COVID-19, and others weren’t. Regardless, I kept safe!

Resolution and Formation | January 2O22

Back in Vegas after that heartwarming trip to see my Kansan family, I reunited with ol’ classmates from my high school Class of 2OI5. Of particular delight was reuniting with my friend from even earlier, middle school Class of 2OII, Damaris, who was performing with her band on New Year’s Eve atop Taverna Costera in the Arts District. There I met her rad boyfriend and bandmates, too! I’d driven Dad’s gigantic pick-up again, since my Camry was up in Reno.

My new year’s 2O22 theme was “rhythm.” I quickly realized that rooting my unstructured days and weeks in prayer certainly helped me to have something familiar each day. I began to realize soon how many lovely feast days happen every season!

With the New Year, I was getting back into the swing of attending weekday Masses at my home parish of St. John Neumann. In addition to celebrating the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, I was even present for other Christmastide Masses, including our parish feast day on Jan. 5. After the SJNC feast day Mass, we enjoyed a light reception in the familiar fellowship room.

At fellowship I got to catch up with Mary Santos. A couple years ago, she and I chatted in this very room as I applied to volunteer with the Diocese of Las Vegas as a music minister in our parish. She too recalled our conversation, how we'd chatted chatted about my being a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer fluent in both Mandarin Chinese and Mongolian. Nearly two years later, as a lay missionary postulant tasked with fundraising for my journey back to Asia, Mary was a huge advocate. She recorded me to introduce myself and our cause to the parish through video announcements.

Later that Jan. 5 feast day, I noticed “Violet Evergarden: Echo Through Eternity” on Netflix. I devoured the film at once. I felt deep feels, tearing up on five occasions. To this day, I still listen to Evan Call's music on its soundtrack. I still recall deeply words from its protagonist Violet in her final letter of thanks.

From Austin, Tex. to Los Angeles, Calif.

The next week met again with musician and videographer friend Damaris. I taped with her a Lunar New Year’s piece not long before she would leave for Austin, Tex. Then I left for Austin.

I enjoyed a bittersweet wrap-up of my work at Modern Intelligence with childhood friend Joe. I met new hires since my coming aboard. In Austin I also reunited with one of Damaris’ and my mutual friends from high school, Brian, as well as his kind girlfriend Sofi. (I hadn’t seen them since a fall 2OI8 conference there!) I saw more friends in Austin, too including fellow evacuated Returned Peace Corps Volunteer Malin! I began as well my monthly participation online with the Springtide Ambassador Program in the sociology of religion.

When our week ended, I flew straight to Los Angeles for a National Park trip to Channel Islands with pals Victor, Jared and more. On my flight from Austin to L.A. I felt as though entering the start of a new book, as I return overseas. (Now to finish typing its 2OI7–2O2O predecessor…) In L.A., I took in their Natural History Museum and realized it was the architecturally pretty building that stood across from sister Becky’s campus at graduation May 2O2I, some six months before. The trip with my buddies became my sort of farewell trip, after having for months embarked with them on such travels.

From Reno, Nev. to San Francisco, Calif.

From L.A. I flew back to Reno for a surgery on my remaining health insurance, gave a talk at a local Kiwanis Club virtually, packed what I needed for mission formation, then boarded an Amtrak bus to San Francisco. I arrived that Jan. 2O night. Upon seating for dinner, I found from my director that instead of heading to Hong Kong, for which I was originally invited, we were instead likely to serve in Singapore. The amount of times life has redirected me from China prepared me for this.

The parish with which I stayed in San Francisco happened to be pastored by the same Fr. Illo who had presided before in Modesto. So the family with whom I stayed in December also knew him. To my great amazement, teachers I met at the parish had also been childhood friends of my Brother Knight Thomas, at whose home I'd stayed the month before, in December!

On a weeknight Mass in the parish, we also received Communion on the tongue, which now felt a little more familiar. I loved gazing at the fresco of Mary in this Stella Maris “Star of the Sea” shrine church. I loved access to perpetual adoration there, too.

Preparations and Patience | February and March 2O22

After formation with the lovely Dominicans of St. Dominic’s, Salesians at St. Peter’s and Paul’s, Missionaries of Charity in Pacifica and Franciscans at Stella Maris, I frantically caught a Greyhound back to Reno. Events led me to feel the great inspiration to continue learning about St. Teresa of Ávila, among my heroes. I also felt curious to investigate this St. Edith Stein about whom I kept hearing.

I continued my formation practices of the Divine Office and Eucharist weekday mornings. A morning at our local Carmelite Monastery, gazing down at my brown scapular labeled “Our Lady of Mt. Carmel,” I inquired about St. Teresa. Sr. Cecelia delighted at my question and brought from the library St. Teresa’s “The Life.” Sr. Cecelia also mentioned to me that St. Edith Stein had read this very story and converted. What a patron!

I took time in Reno to drive where I used to live in Sparks on Wildcreek Drive. The week after, I packed all my Reno belongings and drove the farewell road with my Camry down to Vegas. ‘Twas my first and only time to make the solo trip. Days later, Feb. 2I, 2O22, I sold my Camry to my youngest stepsister at the price for which I bought it. I was a grateful steward of the venerable machine. I’d retrieved from it my phone mount and Bluetooth connector and transferred these to Dad’s truck.

Having Sold My Possession

Throughout March, I prayed with local Third Order Carmelites in formation at my home parish, St. John Neumann, as I waited to go on mission. Three times I had to rebook my Southwest flight from Vegas to California. International delays postponed my flight from Vegas to Singapore, which would land ultimately in Malaysia, where our trip would begin. In the meantime, I finished, with generous support from parishioners and Knights of Columbus, my fundraising. What a relief.

Since my beloved pastor Fr. Nathan in Reno announced his retirement, I returned to Reno after students’ spring break, riding with the undergraduate Glee Club president, a friendly Lutheran senior. I stayed with an Australian friend and his family, hearing stories from travel to Malaysia and Singapore years ago. In Reno, I witnessed the dress rehearsal of this year’s Living Stations of the Cross. This was the first performance in person since 2O2O. I also spoke with Fr. Nathan, who suggested I consider after mission priesthood with the Society of Jesus.

During my last days in Vegas before mission, I had the opportunity to attend the funeral of a beloved priest, Fr. Philip O'Donnell. Apparently he had been a champion of the Tridentine Mass in Vegas. I felt stunned to hear in our auxiliary bishop’s homily that Fr. O'Donnell had also frequented both St. Dominic’s in SF and the Carmel of Reno. During my night before mission departure, I attended the Chrism Mass and saw again old friends, including, to my amazement, the Deacon Dan who presided over my mother’s funeral five years ago.

Malaysia and Singapore | April and May 2O22

I left Vegas for Los Angeles on April 1, no joke. Getting through LAX with the COVID-19 PCR test was nuts. I made it aboard. Getting to know two flight attendants on Singapore Airlines felt touching.

I arrived in Kuala Lumpur then Petaling Jaya (PJ), Selangor, Malaysia. (I later learned that a high school classmate of mine was born in PJ!) In PJ, my director and I attended a Congregatio Discipulorum Domini (CDD, Congregation of the Disciples of the Lord) parish St. Ignatius.

Turns out the father of the host family with which we stayed is a Kiwanian, wow! I loved the Chinese Catholic communities overseas. My director and I also served in KL with a street ministry. And Ramadan was going on while we were there. I found hearing the call to prayer so different. I loved how by sundown the whole city came alive with celebration.

For Holy Triduum, my director and I celebrated in Melaka. In Melaka I felt amazed to walk the hallowed grounds of a 152I church named for my confirmation St. Paul, where our patron St. Francis Xavier once frequented in life. I bartered for a lovely short-sleeve dark blue Chinese-style shirt and bought postcards to write as thank-yous, too. During Eastertide we traveled to Johor Bahru, through the Woodlands and into Singapore.

Singapore

In Singapore, my director and I stayed with a Franciscan parish, St. Mary of the Angels. We frequented a Jesuit parish St. Ignatius on Sundays to present to and sing with their youthful De Vita Christi music ministry. I supported a diocesan parish group on the east side certain days too.

I spent time also with a Carmelite parish that celebrated the Tridentine Mass. So that May I’d gotten to celebrate the Latin Mass for my second time, since Modesto, Calif.! (Coincidentally, 'twas May 8 in the U.S., the fifth anniversary of Mother's passing.)

On my first week's day of rest, I checked out the Bird Park recommended to me by my Kansan uncle. Other days off saw me by the Bay as functions reopened for the first time since pandemic closures. I loved the musical-themed Garden Rhapsody, the peculiar Merlion and other opportunities for witness. I felt surprised to learn the Marina Bay Sands was owned by the same Sands as that in Vegas! Singaporeans knew 'Vegas' when I said that's where I'm from.

I’ve plenty more to share about mission, but I’m still processing. I published five stories overseas, though:

From Vegas to Asia - Daniel Lang on a mission for God (April 22, 2O22)

Chinese ancestry, Mum’s death and first journey to Asia (April 3O, 2O22)

God’s authorship, spanning generations and places (May 7, 2O22)

Companions in Mary, St Paul and Matteo Ricci (May 2O, 2O22)

To Thank and Encourage People We Served (June 2, 2O22)

Leaving Singapore

Toward the end of mission, my director said a campus outreach minister role at Purdue University in my childhood state of Indiana may be possible for me with a Dominican. I took this to prayer on my first silent retreat during my final mission weekend. The retreat curiously took place at the same retreat centre where I first went for a recollection on my first Singapore weekend.

By late May, on my last day in Singapore, my friends Murshed and Sarah (who wed December 2OI9) arrived from Bangladesh. We saw the Spectra light show on the Bay then took what I think was a Grab (Uber/Lyft equivalent) to the airport. Then began Day 1 the pilgrimage, travel to Munich, Germany, where we would meet up with Fr. Nathan, parishioners from Reno and others.

Day 2, having landed amid the sandy skies of Doha, Qatar, I boarded for Germany. Turns out my luggage got lost somewhere between Qatar and Germany, though. I found this out after at last getting through immigration in Germany. So, those first nights I had just my backpack. I thrifted a sleek white button-up, at least!

Up Next: Germany and Austria

Here are enough stories for now. Thursday morning, Aug. 18 (today, in fact), I made the executive decision to separate the back half of this blog from the front. I’d already finished 2OOO words last night and figured more would come. Indeed, I put in another 2OOO this afternoon at the Aliante Public Library in North Las Vegas. So I came home to flesh out the rest, which you've read here. Now you have the more to anticipate when September starts!

I look forward to bringing back the blog when I'm in Mongolia again.

You can read more from me here at DanielLang.me :)

#Peace Corps #Mongolia #memoir #story #Catholic #God #memoryLang #USA #Germany #Las Vegas #summer #Austria #Singapore #Coronavirus #COVID-19 #Nevada #culture shock #Malaysia #WithMe #pilgrimage

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piosplayhouse · 5 months

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I too watched the hbomberguy video and went straight to Twitter, whereupon I found that James Somerton had mentioned danmei in one of his videos and it made everyone mad, so I went looking and. yeah here's a full transcription of his just completely incorrect coverage of cql and mdzs from "Hollywood's (Gay) China Problem" so you don't have to watch it and give him views:

"The 2019 fantasy series The Untamed, featuring an unlikely bond between a man with magic powers and a stoic prince, started an online craze over the pair's implicit romance, but the show's promotion focused on its portrayal of Chinese traditional culture, a push consistent with Chinese communist party propaganda.

The show was... Queerbait-y. But the novel on which it was based [shows a picture of the fanmade cover for The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation made by fan translator team Exiled Rebels] certainly was not. That featured a very explicit love story between the two main characters, but was self-censored when adapted to meet the censorship guidelines of the Xi Jinping government. But it didn't matter. Like so much queerbaiting before, people saw through the weak veneer of heterosexuality. They "took the bait", so to speak. The series has accumulated a total of 9.5 billion views in China as of this summer, and had also received an international release via Netflix. It was described as a global phenomenon, taking off like no BL series before it, making its way all around Asia and with the Netflix deal, all across Europe and North America as well.

Tencent, the Chinese streaming platform it originated on, saw 2.6 million new subscribers to the service when it was released. And WeTV, an app that lets you watch BL content anywhere in the world, saw growth of 250% while the show was airing. In January of 2020, the cast members planned to embark on a multi-city, worldwide fan meeting tour. Cities included Bangkok, Singapore, Tokyo, Seoul, Macau, Kuala Lumpur, Toronto, Los Angeles, New York... But it was cancelled due to COVID-19.

Even the Chinese government has endorsed it. The overseas popularity of these romantic sword-wielding heroes is often highlighted in Chinese media coverage focusing on the massive overseas streaming numbers and its ability to build a growing appreciation of the charm of Chinese culture."

#hbomberguy #james somerton #cql #mdzs

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krazyshoppy · 2 years

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सिंगापुर के उप प्रधानमंत्री जर्मनी में कोरोना वायरस से संक्रमित हुए, आधिकारिक दौरा किया रद्द

सिंगापुर: सिंगापुर (Singapore) के उप प्रधानमंत्री (Deputy Prime Minister) हेंग स्वी कीट (Heng Swee Keat) ने रविवार को बताया कि जर्मनी (Germany) में कोविड-19 (COVID-19) जांच के दौरान उनमें संक्रमण की पुष्टि हुई है और चूंकि वह आइसोलेशन (Isolation) में रह रहे हैं, इसलिए यूरोप का अपना आधिकारिक दौरा जारी नहीं रख सकते. 61 वर्षीय हेंग ने फेसबुक पर लिखा कि यूरोप दौरे के दौरान उन्होंने न सिर्फ हर समय…

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#Coronavirus #COVID-19 #deputy cm #Europe #germany #Singapore #कोरोनावायरस #कोविड-19 #जर्मनी #डिप्टी सीएम #यूरोप #सिंगापुर

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hanhomesno · 2 years

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Trào lưu nuôi kiến bùng nổ tại Singapore trong đại dịch COVID-19

Bài viết mới nhất: https://hanhomesno08maichitho.com/trao-luu-nuoi-kien-bung-no-tai-singapore-trong-dai-dich-covid-19/

Trào lưu nuôi kiến bùng nổ tại Singapore trong đại dịch COVID-19

Cửa hàng Just Ants, cơ sở kinh doanh kiến như một loài thú cưng. Ảnh: vulcanpost Theo hãng tin Reuters (Anh), anh John Ye, 41 tuổi, đã mở cửa hàng “Just Ants”, cơ sở kinh doanh kiến như một loài thú cưng đầu tiên trong thành phố vào cuối tháng 2, khi các biện pháp …

#covid 19 #nuoi kien #Trao luu nuoi kien tai Singapore

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bharatlivenewsmedia · 2 years

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Singapore court orders father not to influence India-born daughters on COVID-19 vaccines

Singapore court orders father not to influence India-born daughters on COVID-19 vaccines The report did not identify the couple and also did not name the children. The judge noted that the father has an asymptomatic medical condition. The report did not identify the couple and also did not name the children. The judge noted that the father has an asymptomatic medical condition. Go to Source

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#court #covid-19 #daughters #father #india-born #influence #not #orders #singapore #vaccines #world

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reportwire · 2 years

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Tears and chocolate as New Zealand opens its borders to 60 more countries

WELLINGTON: New Zealand welcomed thousands of travellers from around the globe on Wednesday as the country opened its borders to visitors from around 60 nations including the United States, Britain and Singapore for the first time since Covid-19 hit in early 2020. Maori cultural performers sang songs at the arrivals gate in Auckland and travellers were handed popular locally made chocolate bars…

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#auckland #covid-19 #Jacinda Ardern #omicron #Singapore

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fatehbaz · 1 year

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If you wanted to know more about the saga of protests and resistance against Canada’s open-pit copper mining in Panama:

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Screenshot and headline from: “Canadian firm blames Panama for closure of copper mine.” AP News. 16 December 2022.

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Headline from: “Panama: Canadian mining company First Quantum denied to expand copper exploitation area for alleged failure with environmental commitments.” Business & Human Rights Resource Centre. 26 January 2023.

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Headline from: Valentine Hilaire. “Panama won’t allow Canada’s First Quantum to expand its copper mine operations.” Reuters. 26 January 2023.

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Headline by: The Associated Press. “Panama reaches 20-year deal with Canadian copper mine.” As republished at ABC News. 8 March 2023.

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An excerpt and explanation:

In Panama, a dispute has emerged of a type that is common to countries in Central and South America: a huge transnational company has invested in the country’s resource wealth, resulting in a conflict over suitable payments to the government that draws in officials from the company’s nation of origin in defence of corporate profits. In this case, the company in question is First Quantum Minerals, a mining giant with lucrative investments across the Global South -- and the country of origin is Canada.

This summer [2022], Panamanians rose up in nationwide protests against the neoliberal status quo imposed on the country by the government of Laurentino Cortizo. Beginning on July 1, these protests brought together diverse groups including teachers, students, trade unionists, farmers, and Indigenous organizations [...]. The causes of the summer 2022 protests go back decades and help illustrate the dynamics of the current conflict between First Quantum (and their backers in Ottawa) and the Panamanian state.

Throughout the 1990s, Canada aggressively pushed for states in Central and South America to adopt neoliberal reforms that would permit more foreign investment and fewer regulations for transnational companies. [...]

Several protest movements emerged in Panama in the 2010s in opposition to the effects of free market reforms generally and the predominance of Canadian mining specifically. At the heart of these resistance movements is the Canadian-owned Cobre Panamá mine, which is the largest foreign investment in the country [...].

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Cobre Panamá was owned by the Toronto-headquartered Inmet Mining until 2013, at which point it was acquired by Vancouver-based First Quantum. In 2011, the Martinelli government attempted to limit the Indigenous Ngäbe-Buglé nation’s rights to autonomy and self-government in order to grant mining companies access to minerals on their land. Meanwhile, Martinelli repealed a law that prevented foreign governments from investing in the mining sector -- a gift to Canada’s Inmet Mining, which at the time was seeking financing from the sovereign wealth funds of Singapore and South Korea.

These moves sparked protests that continued into 2012. Martinelli responded to demands for the annulment of mining and hydroelectric concessions on Indigenous territory with violence by dispatching riot police. The police killed one protestor, injured thirty-two, and detained forty. The protestors did not budge; instead, they blocked the entrances to Cobre Panamá and another mine owned by the Canada’s Petaquilla Minerals. Eventually Martinelli relented and vowed not to approve mining projects on or near Ngäbe-Buglé lands.’

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During the 2011-2012 conflict, nobody in the Canadian government issued a single statement on the matter. When protestors took to the streets again in 2022, Ottawa released a statement that totally omitted the reasons behind the uprising.

Following the economic shock of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Cortizo government declared that Panama’s recovery would rely on incentivizing foreign investment in the mining sector. Social movements have by and large rejected this new arrangement due to the history of corrupt collaboration between state officials and foreign companies and the weakness of environmental protections.

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For example, in April 2022 the Panama Worth More Without Mining Movement -- which arose in opposition to the Canadian-owned Cobre Panamá mine -- released a report that found over 200 “serious” breaches of environmental commitments by the project managers, including the breaking of reforestation promises, “the felling of 876 hectares… in an area of high biodiversity and international importance,” and “the discharge of waste from the tailings tank into natural bodies of water without official endorsement.”

Following the summer 2022 protests, the Cortizo government announced plans to reform the mining sector by instituting greater regulations on foreign companies. In the meantime, the Panamanian state and First Quantum were in the process of negotiating a renewed contract. Jason Simpson, CEO of Canada’s Orla Mining (which is hoping to begin extraction at its Cerro Quema gold project), said, “The biggest story in Panama is Cobre Panamá, so as the government works through their renewed contract law for First Quantum’s asset there, that’ll take priority… We’ll be patient for that to be resolved and then we hope to get working on construction in Panama.”

The negotiations for the renewal of the Cobre Panamá contract began in September 2021. The two parties agreed that First Quantum would provide Panama with between 12 and 16 percent of its gross profit, a new rate that would replace the previous two percent revenue royalty. [...]

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Much like Ottawa jumped to the defence of Centerra Gold following Kyrgyzstan’s nationalization of the Kumtor gold mine last year, the Trudeau government has taken a keen interest in Cobre Panamá and, according to the unnamed Reuters source, is actively backing the mining company’s position. Given Canada’s long history of support for neoliberal reforms and transnational investment in Central and South America, Ottawa’s support for First Quantum in these negotiations should come as no surprise.

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Headline and text by: Owen Schalk. “Ottawa backs Canadian mining giant in dispute with Panama.” Canadian Dimension. 26 December 2022. [Bold emphasis and some paragraph contractions added by me.]

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iwan1979 · 2 years

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SINGAPORE: Singapore reported 11,504 new COVID-19 cases as of noon on Tuesday (Jun 28), comprising 10,732 local infections and 772 imported cases. There was one fatality, taking the death toll from coronavirus complications to 1,410. Cases tend to increase on Tuesdays, with Health Mini

#Singapore reports 11 #504 new COVID-19 cases #highest daily number of infections in more than 3 months

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buffetlicious · 6 months

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As Singapore economy started to revive from the COVID-19 pandemic, the once shuttered stalls at Yishun Bus Interchange get a new lease of life. Took noticed of this relatively new stall - Mei Kee Bakery (美記餅家) by Bakery Cuisine selling baked buns and pastries as I often walked pass it to board the bus home. The Portuguese Egg Tart (S$1) with the burnt surface of the custard was gorgeous looking. Like the taro tart above, the crust was buttery thin and filled with golden egg custard that filled the mouth with sweet creamy eggy taste and nutty caramel flavours.

I was attracted to their Ginkgo Taro Tart (S$1.50) filled with lavender coloured yam paste. The tart shell is thin and crumbly which fall apart as I sliced into it to reveal a single ginkgo nut. I enjoyed the buttery crust but the mildly sweet paste do seem to be creamy/floury and lack the prominent yam flavour I am expecting. Maybe replacing the ginkgo nut with a few cubes of yam would have make this a better yam tart.

The Apple Tart (S$1.50) with its cinnamon-scented apples that are sweet and carry hint of tartness came topped with sandy crumbles. I would enjoy this over a cup of hot tea for a late afternoon snack.

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mariacallous · 28 days

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Conspiracists and far-right extremists are blaming just about everything and everyone for Tuesday morning’s Baltimore bridge collapse.

A non-exhaustive list of things that are getting blamed for the bridge collapse on Telegram and X include President Biden, Hamas, ISIS, P. Diddy, Nickelodeon, India, former president Barack Obama, Islam, aliens, Sri Lanka, the World Economic Forum, the United Nations, Wokeness, Ukraine, foreign aid, the CIA, Jewish people, Israel, Russia, China, Iran, Covid vaccines, DEI, immigrants, Black people, and lockdowns.

The Francis Scott Key truss bridge collapsed when the MV Dali cargo ship collided with one of the bridge supports. Six construction workers, who were filling potholes on the bridge’s roadway at the time, are presumed dead. The ship is owned by Singapore-based Grace Ocean Private Ltd., and the 22-person crew were all Indian. The ship was en route to Colombo, Sri Lanka, at the time of the accident.

This did not stop people from “asking questions” about the incident, a frequent conspiracist response to major events. And though conspiracy theorists are having a hard time pinpointing exactly what conspiracy caused the collapse, the one thing they do agree on is that this incident is a “black swan event.”

The term black swan event has been around for decades and is used to describe a major global event (typically in the financial markets) that can cause significant damage to a country’s economy. But in recent years, the term has been co-opted by the conspiracy-minded to explain an event triggered by the so-called deep state that would signal an imminent revolution, a third world war, or some other apocalyptic catastrophe.

One of the first people to call the bridge collapse a black swan event was disgraced former US national security adviser Michael Flynn. “This is a BLACK SWAN event,” he wrote on X. “Black swans normally come out of the world of finance (not military) … There are harbor masters for every single one of these transit points in America that are in charge of assuring the safety of navigation … start there.” Flynn’s post has been viewed 7.2 million times.

Misogynist influencer Andrew Tate, who has been charged in Romania with rape and human trafficking, also posted on X early on Tuesday morning, writing: “Nothing is safe. Black Swan Event imminent.” The post has been viewed almost 19 million times.

The term black swan quickly began trending on X, and soon conspiracists, extremists, and right-wing lawmakers began coming up with explanations for what or who triggered this “black swan event.”

One post claiming a link between the bridge collapse and the film Leave the World Behind has been viewed more than 1.2 million times. The post claimed that because the ship was headed to Sri Lanka, which has a lion on its flag, then the situation was linked to the ship that runs aground at the beginning of the film which was called White Lion. The post also points out that the film was produced by Obama.

A post from Anthony Sabatini, a former Florida state congressman, declared, without evidence, that “DEI did this”—and its been viewed over 2.2 million times.

Some politicians have boosted the conspiracy as well. “Is this an intentional attack or an accident?” Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, an influential and conspiracy-minded member of the GOP, posted on X above a video shared by a prominent QAnon conspiracist.

Under previous iterations of X, formerly Twitter, such speculation would typically have gained little traction, as the algorithm would have prioritized trusted news sources and primary evidence. But under Elon Musk’s reign, anyone willing to pay for a blue check can have their posts artificially boosted by the algorithm. This means that conspiracies like this are ending up in the news feeds of millions of people.

On Telegram, one prominent election denier claimed the incident was linked to the fact that the bridge was named after Francis Scott Key, who wrote the words for the Star Spangled Banner, and was thus an attempt to undermine America.

“Don't let them erase our history,” the conspiracist wrote.

Investigators are looking into the cause of the tragic incident, but William DelBagno, the FBI special agent in charge, said on Tuesday that there are no indications of terrorism.

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