Category Archives: Government Oppression

Sajithra works as an IT Product Delivery Manager in an international FMCG Company. She has published two books, The Innovation Imperative a book on Innovation co-authored with Ranga Shetty for Mid-level Technical Professionals and Trees from dirty seeds, an anthology of her poems. Sajithra has a Master's degree in Business Administration and a Bachelor's degree in Electronics and Communications Engineering. She is certified on SAFe Agile, DevOps, and ITIL. Her papers on Social media are referenced by Authors worldwide in papers, PhD thesis, and books.

You have different identities in multiple platforms Author, Performer, Start-up founder, Odissi dancer, Pageant winner, Political critic, an IT Delivery manager. What drives you?

I am purpose driven. My values surpass my survival instincts.

Freedom. Generosity. Equality. Innovation. Authenticity.

Breaking sacrosanct ideals is important to uphold these values.

If you were to look at my work, it has always been about Innovation. Change excites me. I have 16 years of experience leading IT Innovation from the perspective of People, Process, and Product. My book is a roadmap on identifying a predictable structure to innovating at work. The practice that I believe in is Agile that is about collaboration across different worlds, adding voice where there was none, and keeping your teams flat. This gives power to the ones closest to the data, not on top of it. Its servant leadership. I loathe peacocking at work. When people only use the tools and do not understand that the heart of it is equality and intrinsic motivation, the practice becomes shallow. One would end up force fitting it to the traditional practices and retain hierarchy. Nothing smothers Innovation like hierarchies can. Theres a lot of unlearning to happen. Else, it will be tokenism and it compromises the outcomes.

At home, its about not adhering to gender norms. My children have a surname thats an amalgamation of our first names. I dont believe that the woman is the natural caretaker of home. I dont believe in the format of the mans home being the primary one. Its inane and sounds like a property exchange between men. My art reflects these values as well. I am working on a movie that is all about breaking the sacrosanct ideals of gender with the core theme on the rights of subalterns.

Socially, my focus is on reducing suffering. I grew up in a Panchayat town and since my world has expanded, its an obligation to do my part. When I first started working, I set aside 10% to support people who are less fortunate. Its breaching 15% now. Over the years, I have seen marriages organised, medical bills paid, education funded with it. Thats the only reason I need work. I had my own start up but then I went back to work because I needed a constant stream of income. I should have enough so that I could give enough. I am working on building better passive income streams so that I am not constrained by this. Else, it has to be a NGO. Perhaps, that's something for 2023.

My political philosophy is about resisting oppression in all forms. I believe that we all are political. When people say that they are neutral, that comes from a place of privilege. That's invariably standing with the oppressor. There's no neutral stand in a world rife with injustice. I have the courage to be open about my political stand.

Words are important to me. I try to not engage in even white lies. It's not really about innocence though. Maybe I am like those witches you see on TV. I can hide the truth but I will not use words that are untrue. I will take the short term costs and suffer for it because I value my words more. Perhaps, I should explore that practice of becoming an Aes Sedai haha. Jokes apart, I enjoy writing because I believe in the power of words. It's ideas that change the world. Words can give life. Words can kill too.

I dont believe in an anthropomorphic god ideal and I am not a sycophant who believes in brown nosing to get ahead. So, the only thing within my control is doing good with the belief that the universe will balance itself. Periyar said that he is against oppression in all forms. Everything I think, speak, and do resonates with that. I believe all this comes from a place of love.

Who is your mentor?

I dont have a circle of people who I am constantly in touch with for mentorship. There are people I inform of my choices and take advice occasionally. Iam fortunate to have a strong network of people who are shaping the world Industrialists, People from the Government, Writers, Artists not taking names. Its very sporadic though. Periyar famously said that people should not follow something he says if that goes against reason. He didnt want followers. The ideology is to follow the thoughts of a person that make sense to you and encourage you to think more, not to be a follower of the person. I am an introvert. I only connect if I feel the need to, but I am always available to friends if I am needed. I resist all forms of control and I dont expect anyone to defer to me either. People who know me understand that.

What are you working on right now?

I am working on a book for Manushyaputhirans Uyirmai publications, a movie with a dream team, and I am partnering to invest in a bicycle company that professes green living. These are all connected to the purpose in life I most identify with being a catalyst of change and it resonates with my values. I look forward to seeing the fruition of this. I dont want to limit myself to one platform. I want to be a catalyst and hence I should be agnostic of formats to make a difference.

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Sajithra K Wins The Mrs. India Earth Stylish Diva 2021 Title In The World Finals - Outlook India

On March 2, the mayor of Kherson, Ukraine, announced that it is the first major city to be taken by Russian forces since their invasion began last Thursday (February 24). Several other Ukrainian cities have endured heavy shelling in the days since the invasion began, while a million people are said to have fled their home country. Ukraine reports that more than 2,000 civilians have died in the last week of conflict, and the death toll among soldiers and volunteers on both sides continues to rise.

In Russia, too, many citizens are feeling the indirect effects of a war waged by their president, Vladimir Putin, though many maintain that they are appalled, embarrassed and hurt by the aggressive actions of their government. Thousands have queued at ATMs in a bid to withdraw cash in the face of severe economic sanctions, while thousands more have been arrested for bravely opposing the war in public protests.

The international community has also rallied in support of Ukraine, providing arms and aid, issuing official demands via the UN, cutting economic ties, and calling for peace on city streets. However, many have pointed out the double standards of the wests response, which has been particularly obvious in the racist angle of recent news coverage.

On February 27, as Russian forces closed in on Kyiv, an ITV journalist echoed international fears for the Ukrainian citizens trapped in the city. Now the unthinkable has happened to them, she said. And this is not a developing, Third World nation. This is Europe!

In the US, a February 26 CBS news segment saw a reporter declare: This isnt a place, with all due respect, like Iraq or Afghanistan, that has seen conflict raging for decades. This is a relatively civilised, relatively European [...] city, one where you wouldnt expect that, or hope that its going to happen.

On social media, these comments and many, many more have deservedly caused outrage, exhibiting the wests exceptionalist attitude toward the war in Europe, which has seen people with blue eyes and blonde hair lose their lives. Unfortunately, the wests biased response is also reflected in its material impact on those suffering the consequences of conflict in places such as Afghanistan or Yemen.

Earlier this week, it was announced that Britain could welcome more than 200,000 Ukrainian refugees after easing its visa requirements, yet in recent years its been named one of the worst places in western Europe for refugees from beyond the continents borders, with dismal approval rates for asylum seeker claims. Even people of colour who live in Ukraine have reported shocking racism experienced during their attempts to find safety across the border.

Of course, Ukraine is still in desperate need of aid amid the Russian invasion of its land, but this shouldnt come at the expense of those who western states have often regarded with a detached sense of apathy (or even complicity in their suffering). Below is an incomplete list of other major conflicts that you should be aware of while continuing to campaign for peace in Ukraine.

The south-east Asian country of Myanmar has been engulfed in internal conflicts of varying severities since 1948, the year that the country then named Burma gained independence from the UK. However, the country has seen an increase in fatal combat in the last year, according to data from Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (via the BBC).

This increase stems from the February 2021 coup that saw Myanmars military assume power, with security forces immediately cracking down on protesting civilians. Since then, civilians many of them young people have taken up arms in revolt, with rough figures suggesting that around 12,000 people have been killed as a result of the political violence.

As detailed in a January 2022 statement by the UK government, 49.4 million has been provided to those in need of humanitarian assistance, with sanctions brought against the military regime. However, UK ministers have previously been criticised for their hesitant response and insufficient sanctions, which have allowed Myanmar firms that bankroll the military to remain in operation.

Beginning in 2011, in the wake of an uprising that ousted the countrys authoritarian president, the Yemeni crisis is one of the most deadly armed conflicts currently taking place around the world. According to a UN projection from November 2021, the overall death toll reached 377,000 by the start of this year, while the civil war that started in 2014 continues to contribute to acute poverty and food insecurity in one of Asias poorest countries.

Last year, however, the UK announced a significant reduction in the aid it sends to Yemen, down to at least 87 million in 2021/22 (or around 54 per cent of the 160 million it announced for 2020/21). Even worse, as explained by Owen Jones in January this year, the UK government is directly complicit with these atrocities, supplying bombs and allyship to the Saudi-led coalition that is responsible for airstrikes that have killed dozens of civilians this year alone.

Joe Biden announced the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan in April 2021, with the UK following suit later that year, ending a 20-year military involvement in the country. This doesnt mean peace for the region, however, as the Taliban rapidly seized territory over the course of 2021 and took control of the capital, Kabul, by August.

The country is now back to square one being ruled by a terrorist group who have proven to deny basic human rights and necessities to the people of Afghanistan, the Afghan Youth Associations Shokryah Mohammadi told Dazed in the wake of the Talibans takeover.

Many watching the Islamist group fear for the rights of women and girls living in Afghanistan, as well as increasing internal stability, continued violence and oppression, and economic collapse an ongoing crisis that has historically been exacerbated, rather than improved, by opportunist states such as the US and the UK. According to the Council on Foreign Relations Global Conflict Tracker, this crisis is only worsening.

Combat between forces from the Tigray region of Ethiopia, and the countrys authorities including the Ethiopian National Defence Force, federal police, and forces from neighbouring Eritrea broke out on November 4, 2020, after months of opposition between Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and leaders of Tigrays main political party, which opposed reforms to the countrys system of government.

In the intervening years, as many as 100,000 people have been killed (according to rough estimates reported by the Guardian in November 2021). Ethiopia is also accused of a variety of human rights violations amid the war, including mass killings, sexual violence and military targeting of civilians.

In April 2021, a parliamentary select committee published a report that stated: The international community has a narrowing window of opportunity to stop this suffering and manage the risk of conflict spreading or becoming protracted. So far, this hasnt happened, and the conflict continues to contribute to desperate shortages of food, fuel, and medical supplies.

The ongoing violence against and oppression of the Palestinian people by the state of Israel is well-documented. In most European countries, ordinary people have gathered in cities to protest Israels bombardment of Gaza and dispossession of its residents, alongside high-profile artists and activist groups.Nevertheless, the UK and many other Western countries continue to provide diplomatic and military assistance to support the colonisation efforts, while profiting from a significant arms trade.

Besides the longstanding treatment of Palestinians as second-class citizens, the Israeli-Palestinian hostilities have caused tens of thousands of fatalities over the decades since they began. Most recently, they flared in May 2021, with freedom protests escalating into 11 days of airstrikes and bombings that reportedly claimed the lives of more than 250 Palestinians, and 13 people in Israel.

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The ongoing conflicts that expose the wests double standards - Dazed

SOUTH Belfast MP Claire Hanna has called on UK Home Secretary Priti Patel to lift visa requirements for Ukranian citizens fleeing the Russian invasion of their country similar to those made by the Irish government.The SDLP woman said that the UK Government has been hard on rhetoric but soft on support for refugees.At the Irish Echo 40 Under 40 awards in New York at the weekend the Consul General of Ireland Helena Nolan told those gathered that Ireland had opened free access for all Ukrainian citizens who wish to come to Ireland.

Claire Hanna has tabled a written question to the British Home Secretary seeking an assessment of a potential fast track scheme for refugees seeking shelter from the conflict in Ukraine.The invasion of Ukraine is a violation of a sovereign European democracy in the name of Putins aggressive imperialist agenda, said Ms Hanna. Millions of people are going to bed every night not knowing if they or their family will survive, not knowing if their town or city will be levelled by indiscriminate Russian airstrikes, not knowing when this oppression will finally end.The implementation of the most robust economic sanctions has been a clear example of how the international community can mobilise quickly and effectively to squeeze oppressors.Freezing the assets of oligarchs, however, will not bring the kind of immediate relief that frightened families in Kyiv and Kharkiv need. The humanitarian response to this crisis has, in comparison to the sanctions effort, been bitterly disappointing.

The Home Office approach to visas for refugees attempting to escape the conflict, in particular, has been utterly heartless. To see Ministers suggest that Ukrainian citizens desperate for their lives should apply to become seasonal fruit pickers on UK farms, for example, is ghoulish and galling. It stands in stark contrast to the Irish Government which has lifted visa requirements for Ukrainians seeking sanctuary.On Friday morning, I tabled questions to Priti Patel seeking the introduction of a fast-track process for people fleeing conflict in Ukraine and Russia. The action taken by the Home Office to date is deficient, it has left people in danger and it must be addressed immediately. This is a moment to demonstrate the real value of European solidarity beyond warm words.

Do you have something to say on this issue?If so, why not submit a letter to the editor via this link?

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Ukraine: Hanna calls on British government to follow Irish lead - Belfast Media

Today is Maha Shivaratri

Shiva, like many gods and goddesses across South Asia, is known by a staggering variety of names and forms.

Some of these names are popular: Ardhanarishwara (half-woman lord), Maheshwara (the great lord), Gangadhara (bearer of the Ganga).

Some names are unique to sacred sites: at Ujjain, he is Mahakaleshwar (great lord of time), at Varanasi he is Vishwanath (lord of the universe), in Tiruchirappalli, he is Thayumanavar (lord who came as a mother).

This Maha Shivaratri, Id like to draw attention to a few names and forms of Shiva which are perhaps less popular.

Rather than originating in elite texts or well-known pilgrimage centres, these names of Shiva were coined by individuals whom we can describe as coming from the margins of what we now call Hindu society: a 12th-century sex worker in Karnataka, the anti-caste activist and educator Savitribai Phule, and a community of Sindhi refugees in Gujarat.

At a time when Hindu deities and traditions are being weaponised by the intertwined forces of Hindutva (Hindu nationalism) and caste oppression, I suggest these forms of Shiva offer us an alternative vision of peace and justice for all.

These names of Shiva were coined by individuals who we can describe as coming from the margins of what we now call Hindu society. Photo: romana klee/Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Nirlajjeshwara, Lord Without Shame

For Sule Sankavva, a sex worker who lived in modern-day Karnataka around 900 years ago, Shiva was her beloved Nirlajjeshwara lord without shame.

Sankavva was a member of the Lingayat/Virashaiva tradition, founded in the 12th century CE by Basavanna and characterised by the monotheistic worship of Shiva and its rejection of caste practices and hierarchies. The vachana is a free verse poetic form in Kannada that was developed by poet-saints of this tradition, most famously Akka Mahadevi, Basavanna, Jedara Dasimayya, and others.

Today, we know of only one vachana attributed to Sule Sankavva. In it, she boldly names the violence she faces at the hands of menthreats of bodily mutilation and death. Centuries later, we know that sex workers like Sankavva continue to face deadly violence, not to mention deep-rooted social stigma and discrimination. A 2015 survey found that on average, around a fifth of female sex workers in India were attacked four times a month, and a 2013 report noted that 37% of female sex workers in India reported being physically abused by police.

Given the ostracisation and violence that Sule Sankavva must have faced during her life, it is striking that she addresses Shiva as Nirlajjeshwara, meaning lord without shame.

Based on her sole surviving vachana, it seems that she chose to take refuge in a deity who rejects the notion of shame, thus affirming her self-worth and dignity. In India and across the world, men in positions of power use ideas of shame and honour to police womens bodies and choices.

What would it look like for each of us, no matter our gender identity, to reject shame itself? To both reject internalised shame, but also challenge ourselves not to shame others?

A world in which people of all genders are able to enjoy autonomy and dignity may sound like a far-fetched dream today; but Shiva in the form of Sule Sankavves Nirlajjeshwara encourages us to aspire towards this reality.

Savitribai Phules Destroyer of Ignorance

Centuries after Sule Sankavve, in the neighbouring region of present-day Maharashtra, another remarkable woman invoked Shiva as the destroyer of ignorance. This was none other than Savitribai Phule (1831-1897 CE), remembered as a key figure for modern anti-caste movements and as Indias first woman teacher.

A portrait of Savitribai Phule. Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Savitribai was born into the Mali caste, which is classified today as an Other Backward Caste (OBC) by the Indian government. Along with her husband Jyotirao Phule, she was a pioneering social reformer, committed to girls education, womens rights, and equal rights for Dalits and oppressed castes.

In 1848, when she was just 17 years old, Savitribai, Jyotirao, and her colleague Fatima Sheikh opened the first girls school in India.

In 1854, at the age of 23, Savitribai composed a collection of Marathi poems titled Kavya Phule. In one of these poems, Shiva Prarthana (a prayer to Shiva), she expresses a heartfelt devotion to Shiva.

In this poem, Savitribai includes common epithets of Shiva: Neelakantha, the blue-throated one, and Trilochan, the three-eyed one. However, she also addresses Shiva in a more unexpected way: as the destroyer of ignorance. Near the end of the poem, she declares that He bestows complete knowledge on the ignorant (ajns jn dee pra) and in the final line, she calls out to him: Bless us with the boon of annihilating our ignorance. This is Savitris prayer (ajn na kr, var sarva lbho / prrthan h svitrc).

Hindu theologian Anantanand Rambachan writes that It is easy and temptingto represent ignorance as an abstract, distant and ethereal phenomenon, disconnected from the concrete realities of human life.

Throughout her life, Savitribai Phule challenged ignorance in the forms of caste oppression and patriarchy. And the consequences she faced were anything but abstract: upper caste Hindus would pelt Savitribai and Fatima Sheikh with stones, mud, and cow dung as they would walk to school, to the point where they had to carry clean saris to change into once they reached the school premises.

Also read:The Annihilation of Caste Requires Dismantling Hinduisms Code of Ordinances

With this in mind, Savitribai Phules prayer to Shiva to annihilate our ignorance takes on a concrete dimension, serving as a call to action for each of us to do our part in pushing back against caste and patriarchy.

Shri Nirvasiteshwar, Lord of Refugees

Around 100 years after Savitribai wrote her poem to Shiva, a group of Sindhi refugees created their own vision of Shiva. Displaced from their homeland of Sindh due to the violence of Partition in 1947, a group of Hindu refugees settled in the Kutch district of Gujarat. In 1951, they constructed a temple to Shiva in the town of Adipur, where he is worshiped as Shri Nirvasiteshwar, Lord of Refugees.

These refugees found solace in the story of Shiva after the death of his first wife Sati, when he roamed the universe as a grief-stricken wanderer. Seeing parallels to their own situation, they decided that they would worship Shiva as the god of all displaced peoples.

To this day, there are plaques displayed outside the Shri Nirvasiteshwar temple in Hindi and Sindhi, which historian Uttara Shahani translates as saying: This is a special manifestation of Shiva who expresses the feelings of crores of uprooted people in these times who have no homes and have had to scatter themselves, hither and thither.

Women sift through ashes to find any of their valuables after fire broke out at Rohingya refugee camp in Haryanas Nuh.

According to United Nations estimates, there are over 80 million displaced people all over the world. India is one of the few countries that has not signed the UNs 1951 Refugee Convention or the 1967 Protocol, meaning that the Indian government sees no legal obligation to recognise or shelter refugees.

Despite this, India is home to nearly 200,000 refugees from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Tibet, and other locations. Sadly, even as some Indian communities have welcomed refugees, Hindu nationalist politicians and leaders have vilified Muslim refugees such as the Rohingya while also weaponising the plight of Hindu and Sikh refugees from neighbouring countries to further animosity towards Indian Muslims.

As India continues to see an influx of refugees from Myanmar, and the countries around the world prepare to welcome Ukrainian refugees, the example of Shiva as Lord of Refugees not just Hindu refugees, but all uprooted people feels more poignant than ever.

The hosts of the podcast Keeping it 101: A Killjoys Introduction to Religion argue that Religion is what people do. Concretely, this means that religion is, and always has been, political. Our gods and goddesses, prayers, customs, and festivals have been shaped by the unique social, economic, and political contexts in which they arose.

Devotees gather at Har Ki Pauri Ghat to offer prayers during Kumbh Mela 2021, in Haridwar, Sunday, April 11, 2021. Photo: PTI

Thus, it would be inaccurate to claim that the politicisation of Hindu traditions under the Modi government is a new phenomenon. And the long history of caste oppression within many Hindu religious traditions is undeniable. But, it is safe to say that over the last few years, Hindu identity and practices are being transformed into tools of majoritarian violence at an unprecedented rate. Add to this the shameful silence of most Hindu religious leaders when it comes to caste violence and religious hatred, and we arrive at a rather bleak picture.

What does this mean for ordinary Hindus today? What does it mean to celebrate Shivaratri when Narendra Modi campaigns from Shivas sacred city of Varanasi and broadcasts his worship of Kashi Vishwanath on national television?

For Hindus who are religious and believe in social justice and peace, we have a choice. Either we can give up on our traditions, leaving them in the hands of the BJP and RSS; or we can get creative. To me, this latter option means to follow in the footsteps of Sule Sankavve, Savitribai Phule, and the Sindhi refugees in Kutch, each of whom imaginatively infused their devotion with their progressive values and politics even if they may not have phrased it that way.

Lets continue to celebrate Shiva in his forms of Ardhanarishwara, Nataraja, and so many others. But starting this Maha Shivaratri, lets also take time to remember him as Lord Without Shame; as the Destroyer of Ignorance in all its forms, primarily caste and patriarchy; and as Lord of Refugees, lover of all displaced peoples.

Let these names and forms inspire us to fight for pluralism, justice, and peace for all beings.

Nikhil Mandalaparthy is the advocacy director at Hindus for Human Rights and a board member of Sadhana: Coalition of Progressive Hindus. He is on Instagram @voicesofbhakti, where he showcases South Asian poetry on religion, caste, and gender, and his Twitter handle is @nikhiletc.

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What Shiva Meant to a Sex Worker, to Savitribai Phule, and to Partition's Refugees - The Wire

Cyber conflicts are fought in the shadows, but in the case of Russias invasion of Ukraine, it is a group that calls itself Anonymous that has made the most public declaration of war. Late on Thursday the hacker collective tweeted from an account linked to Anonymous, @YourAnonOne, that it had Vladimir Putins regime in its sights.

In the days since, the group has claimed credit for several cyber incidents including distributed denial of service attacks where a site is rendered unreachable by being bombarded with traffic that have brought down government websites and that of Russia Today, the state-backed news service. The DDoS attacks still appeared to be working on Sunday afternoon, with the official sites for the Kremlin and Ministry of Defence still inaccessible.

Anonymous also said it had hacked the Ministry of Defence database, while on Sunday it was claimed the group had hacked Russian state TV channels, posting pro-Ukraine content including patriotic songs and images from the invasion.

The groups nature as an informal collective makes it difficult to attribute these attacks to Anonymous definitively. Jamie Collier, a consultant at US cybersecurity firm Mandiant, said: It can be difficult to directly tie this activity to Anonymous, as targeted entities will likely be reluctant to publish related technical data. However, the Anonymous collective has a track record of conducting this sort of activity and it is very much in line with their capabilities.

Its targets in the past have included the CIA, the Church of Scientology and Islamic State, and although the collective was left reeling by a number of arrests in the US in the early 2010s, it revived activity after the murder of George Floyd. One former Anonymous member has described its guiding principle as anti-oppression.

Russia Today openly attributed the problems with its website to Anonymous, and claimed the attacks came from the US after the group had published its declaration of war. A spokesperson for the channel said: After the statement by Anonymous, RTs websites became the subject of massive DDoS attacks from some 100 million devices, mostly based in the US.

By contrast, cyber activity against Ukraine has been muted so far, despite widespread predictions that a Russian military assault on the country would be combined with digital shock and awe. Ukrainian websites were hit with DDoS attacks ahead of the offensive, including the Ukrainian defence ministry and PrivatBank, Ukraines largest commercial bank, but there has been nothing on the scale of the NotPetya assault in 2017 when a devastating malware attack attributed to Russia destroyed computers in Ukraine and around the world. Cloudflare, a US tech firm that protects companies against DDoS attacks, described the initial denial of service sorties last week as relatively modest. The UK and US governments have already blamed an earlier set of DDoS attacks against Ukrainian websites, on 15 and 16 February, on Moscow.

As with the attacks claimed by Anonymous, DDoS salvos are designed to sow confusion and damage morale, whereas malware can cause serious and irreparable damage. NotPetya, a so-called wiper virus that was inserted into tax accounting software used by Ukrainian firms but spilled into other countries, caused $10bn (7.5bn) of damage worldwide by encrypting computers permanently.

Last week Ukraine was hit by an attempted wiper attack, via a new strain of malware dubbed HermeticWiper that prevented computers from rebooting. However, the scale of the attack left only several hundred machines affected and its geographic reach beyond Ukraine has been limited to Latvia and Lithuania.

There have been cyber skirmishes elsewhere in the conflict. Partial restrictions have been imposed on Facebook by the Russian government after officials accused the social network of censoring state-backed media on the platform, prompting Facebook to ban ads from Russian state media. Googles YouTube platform has also banned state media adverts. Another US tech titan, Elon Musk, is providing satellite internet access to Ukraine via his Starlink satellites, while the Ukrainian government is openly seeking international donations in cryptocurrency and has reportedly received millions of dollars in response.

Nonetheless, the cyber dimension to the Ukraine conflict has been low-key up to this point. Ciaran Martin, professor of practice at the Blavatnik school of government at Oxford University and former head of the UKs National Cyber Security Centre, says cyber has played remarkably little part in the conflict, at least so far.

The cyber activity from Russia against Ukraine has been there, but is consistent with Russias cyber harassment of the country going back years. Similarly, from what we can see, the response against Russia from the west has not had a strong cyber component so far it has been about stringent sanctions. All of this might change, and the west is right to remain on high alert for increased cyber activity.

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Anonymous: the hacker collective that has declared cyberwar on Russia - The Guardian

Russia and its ally Belarus marched into Ukraine, its sovereign neighbor, bombing cities and townships and killing brave Ukrainian troops and frightened civilians. Debates rage across the political landscape in the United States and around the globe concerning what steps each nation should take to protect the people in Eastern Europe and their own national economic and security self-interests.

On the far right of the Republican Party in the U.S., many have taken an isolationist stance, with some coming out in support of the autocratic Russian dictator, Vladimir Putin.

Related:The GOP is bragging on Twitter about reaching out to minority voters & its not going over well

For example, the twice impeached and disgraced former President of the United States, Donald Trump, continues to heap praise on his alleged friend and fellow narcissistic sociopath in the Kremlin.

Regarding Putins actions, Trump was downright giddy with praise.

I said, This is genius, Trumpsaid on a right-wing podcastafter the dictator invaded. Putin declared a big portion of Ukraine as independent. Oh, thats wonderful. I said, How smart is that? And hes going to go in and be a peacekeeper.We could use that on our southern border. Thats the strongest peace force Ive ever seen. There were more army tanks than Ive ever seen. Theyre going to keep the peace all right. Heres a guy whos very savvy I know him very well. Very, very well.

Trump is still lauding Putin, but hes not alone. Theres always Tucker Carlson, who seems to be auditioning for a primetime spot on Russian television (which hes already getting). In the days leading up the invasion, the Fox News commentator said he had nothing against Putinsince Putin had never tried to get him fired, unlike the demonic libs.

GOP Senate candidate from Ohio, J.D. Vance said on an episode of Steve Bannons War Room show,I gotta be honest with you, I dont really care what happens to Ukraine one way or another.

I do care, he continued, about the fact that in my community right now the leading cause of death among 18-45-year-olds is Mexican fentanyl thats coming across the southern border.

Missouri Senator Josh Hawley (R) took an isolationist stance regarding Ukraine on Tucker Carlsons Fox Network broadcast, And right now, weve got to put American security interests first. And that means weve got to focus on China, and weve got to focus on our own borders. We need to ask our European allies to do more.

Carlson on his own show considered Putin a member of his home team: Why shouldnt I root for Russia? Because I am! And he dismissed what he considered the hyperbole over Putins intention to gobble up more territory stating: Whatever [Putins] many faults, [he] has no intention of invading Western Europe.

Isolationism on the matter of Ukrainian sovereignty, unfortunately, can also be found on the left side of the political spectrum in the U.S. Rather than challenging Putin, supported by his tight circle of oligarchs and kleptocrats patently illegal and immoral incursion into Ukraine, some on the left in the U.S. are playing the dangerous game of Whataboutism:

It is time to rally together and root out the evils of the American oligarchical system, the atrocity that is American imperialist foreign policy, the inherent racism engrained in American institutions and the corruption of American government. -Name withheld, Real Progressives Facebook Group

On the Real Progressives Facebook Group, I posted a picture of the Ukrainian flag I painted on a poster board and placed in a stake on my front lawn. Above the posted picture, I wrote on Facebook:

I painted a Ukrainian Flag for my home. Hopefully, others will do the same, as well as support the brave people in Eastern Europe any and every way you can. Lobby legislators and executives to impose THE most severe sanctions possible on Belarusian and Russian oligarchs and Putin himself. Call out conservative Republicans in the U.S. who are siding with fascist autocrats. Write letters to the editor. Open your homes to refugees. Donate to Ukraine through reputable relief organizations. Protest in the streets. Boycott all goods from Russia and Belarus. Inform yourselves. Keep vigilant. STUDY HISTORY!!!!

Within an hour, several participants wrote messages challenging my assumption that most if not all progressives would welcome my posting and that they were concerned with suffering around the globe and would come to the aid of innocents in Ukraine and the sovereignty of their nation.

Though I have been a member of the group for many years, regarding my latest posting, one participant wrote that it was not appropriate for me to place it on that Facebook group.

Another referred to President Joe Biden as a war criminal and an anti-humanitarian by supporting continuing wars and oppressive governments in places like Yemen and Guatemala.

Yes, the United States has sided with the Saudis and Emirates and against the Iranians in the multilateral Yemeni Civil War since 2014 between the Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi-led government and the Houthi armed insurgency.

This has caused extreme hardships and deaths as a direct result of war with ensuing famine and malnutrition upon civilian populations, which we have been calling out for years with little response on the part of the proxy governments supporting the war efforts. And yes, most likely because the people highest at risk are black and brown people, the world has turned its gaze elsewhere allowing the horrors to continue.

This point is in line with another participant who challenged my posting about Ukraine who argued that the world only takes notice when white people are terrorized, but forgets and turns away its gaze when people of color need aid, like the massive number of refuges from Syria.

To be clear, I fully appreciate and agree with these participants concerns, which I too share. We must perceive injustice as intersectional, and that when any group based on their social identities are targets of oppression, then no group is free.

Concern must never depend on skin color, or gender, or sexual identity, or socioeconomic background, or ethnicity, or ability, or age, or any another other identifying factors.

Though I do not personalize the force of the fury directed against my plea for the Ukrainian people, I do, however, have deep fears in what appeared to be this Facebook participants challenges, or more likely, their list of conditions for taking concerted actions against the Russian and Belarusian regimes.

Basically, they were at least implying that when the world begins to take notice of suffering in areas of the world in addition to Europe, then and only then will they join in efforts to bring down oppressive regimes and mitigate suffering in Europe.

This is not only self-defeating, but it is anti-humanitarian. It inhibits chances for coalitions and alliances to improve all the many troubled spots around the world.

And this is how the far left and far right come together in hand-held closed circles of inaction (isolationism) in times of impending genocide.

In the end, Whataboutism is a form of isolationism used to justify inaction in the face of oppression.

Continued here:

American right wing isolationism & left wing whataboutism are fueling the Ukrainian war - LGBTQ Nation

//= do_shortcode('[in-content-square]')?> Picture by the Senedd Commission of the Senedd lit up in the colours of the Ukrainian flag

A rally will be held at 6pm this evening on the steps of the Senedd in Cardiff Bay to show solidarity with the people of Ukraine and to call for an end to the war.

Speakers at the rally will include Svitlana Phillips, of Voice of Ukraine Wales, Adam Price MS, leader of Plaid Cymru, and Mick Antoniw MS, the Welsh Governments Counsel General, who is of Ukrainian descent.

Adam Price and Mick Antoniw recently returned from a delegation to Ukraine, in which they discussed the realities facing the people of Ukraine.

The rally comes after Russia invaded Ukraine on Thursday of last week.

Speaking ahead of the rallySvitlana Phillips, of Voice of Ukraine Wales, said: I would like to urge people to come to the rally tonight at the Senedd. Our main concern, around the world, is that we stand together against what Putin is doing in Ukraine.

The resistance to what Putin is doing can be seen on the streets of Ukraine, but Putin must also see that we are all pulling together around the world against him.

In recent days, I have received calls from family saying that tanks on the border are moving through people are terrified, people are not looking for explanation, they just want to see an end to the invasion.

People in Ukraine are grateful for all the support from UK. If we stand together, we can prevent the horrible events that might happen. So, Id like to appeal for people to not watch the news this evening, but to make it.

Cancel Ukraines debt

Plaid Cymru leader, Adam Price, said that in Kyiv last week he had heard harrowing stories of those who have already been living under Putins fascist regime.

He called on the UK Government to tighten the embargo on Russia and to help Ukraine financially.

Now, he has declared war not just on the right of the Ukrainian nation to exist but on freedom, democracy and human rights everywhere.

By gathering tonight, we in Wales will show that we stand in complete solidarity with the people of Ukraine and against Putins war.

We call upon the UK Government to impose a total economic embargo on Putins government including on oil and gas sales, cancel Ukraines foreign debt, and provide a visa-waiver and fast-track residency status to all Ukrainians fleeing war.

Finally, we should signal our intention to bring an indictment against Putin, Lavrov and others for the crime of aggression so that one day they will be held accountable at the Hague.

Mick Antoniw MS, said that the war in Ukraine has become a peoples war against Russian oppression and for freedom.

We must ensure a total economic, political and cultural boycott of Russia and from Wales give full support to those refugees who want to come to Wales for safety, he said.

We must all protest against Russias attack on democracy.

I thank all Welsh people for their support so far, but there is much more to do over the coming dark days ahead. Ukraine will be free!

For the price of a cup of coffee a month you can help us create an independent, not-for-profit, national news service for the people of Wales, by the people of Wales.

See more here:

Rally to be held on the steps of the Senedd to show solidarity with Ukraine - Nation.Cymru

As news reports reveal that Ukrainians have adopted Twisted Sister's defiant anthem We're Not Gonna Take It as their rallying cry in resisting Russian military aggression in their country, the band's former frontman Dee Snider has taken to Twitter to offer his thoughts.

I absolutely approve of Ukrainians using Were Not Gonna Take It as their battlecry" the musician wrote.

"My grandfather was Ukrainian, before it was swallowed up by the USSR after WW2. This cant happen to these people again! #FUCKRUSSIA.

Shortly after the tweet was posted, Snider received some backlash for blaming Russia and its people, not Russian leader Vladimir Putin, for the invasion of Ukraine, and for disallowing the use of the same song for anti-maskers protesting Covid mandates.

Engaging in back and forth discussions with fans, Snider wrote "Understood (though they are claiming 60 percent of Russians support this invasion). But the Russian people (many who are already protesting) need to take responsibility for the piece of shit they have allowed to stay in power for 22 years.

Clarifying his statistical comment, he adds: Unfortunately they are being fed a stream of propaganda by the Russian government telling them that the Ukraine is the aggressor.

Revealing why he did not condone anti-maskers using the song, he wrote "People are asking me why I endorsed the use of Were Not Gonna Take It for the Ukrainian people and did not for the anti-maskers.

"Well, one use is for a righteous battle against oppression; the other is a infantile feet stomping against an inconvenience.

Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an attack on Ukraine on February 24. According to Ukraine's Health Minister, there has been nearly 200 deaths so far, including civilians and children.

We're Not Gonna Take It was written by Snider and was released on Twisted Sister's 1984 album Stay Hungry.

More:

Dee Snider says he "absolutely" approves of Ukrainians using Twisted Sister's We're Not Gonna Take It as their battlecry - Louder

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In January, the government suffered a huge number of defeats on the bill in the Lords. Some last-minute amendments it introduced such as making locking on a criminal offence andgiving police the right to stop and search without suspicion were removed by the Lords and can only be re-introduced in a separate piece of legislation.

But a number of amendments inserted by the Lords will be in front of parliament today. Two anti-protest measures are of particular significance, with MPs given the opportunity to decide whether to keep these watering-down amendments or scrap them.

The original bill gave police power to impose noise restrictions on protests but the Lords added an amendment to remove this. The Commons will now vote on whether to put the power back in by rejecting the Lords amendment.

MPs will also decide whether to agree to limit the offence of wilful obstruction of highway. The bill would, in effect, make blocking roads punishable by up to 51 weeks in prison. The Lords passed amendment 88 to limit this offence to the Strategic Road Network mostly motorways and A-roads rather than all roads.

Non-protest measures will also be voted on today, including making sex for rent a crime, making misogyny a hate crime, and imposing a duty of transparency, candour and frankness on the police. The government is expected to vote against these.

Take action today and join a movement to create a better future for today.

The Police, Crime, Sentencing, and Courts bill is at its final stage before it receives royal assent and becomes law.

The bill and its amendments totalling nearly 400 pages do not mention the word protest but the measures are being dubbed the biggest restriction on the right to protest in our lifetimes.

After todays votes, the Lords can decide whether to accept or reject what the Commons has decided. The convention is that they defer to the Commons, as it is the elected house, rather than dig their heels in. They can also offer watered down versions of their amendments in the hope MPs will accept these.

The government has a huge parliamentary majority so, barring a huge Conservative rebellion, votes will almost certainly go the way it wants. Beginning just after 3.30pm, with six hours of debate and votes scheduled, it is the main piece of business in the Commons today.

A protest, the latest in the long line of Kill the Bill protests against the legislation, is planned for this evening.

Scheduled for 6-8pm in Abingdon Street Gardens, outside the Lords, the protests organisers promise lots of music, and say we need your voice to amplify the movement.

The Kill the Bill official Twitter account wrote: We fully intend to express ourselves and have fun as we protest. Oppression is miserable and violent, but we can resist through joy and creativity.

Read the original here:

MPs to vote on keeping 'draconian' anti-protest measures in the Policing Bill today - Big Issue

War is here. We are all Ukrainians now.

Once again, we have to oil the jaws of the war machine and feed it with our babies. In the fields, the bodies are burning as the war machine keeps turning.

As shocking, appalling and troubling as this is not least because a wider nuclear war in Europe is not the least likely outcome we need to use it as a corrective moment. To stop walking down this long road out of Eden and take a different direction. Obviously, this relies on the whole of western Europe not being a smouldering wasteland in the near future. And football looks small and puny in the shadow of mass destruction so maybe this isnt the time to talk about this. Yet it feels apposite.

Behind every great fortune there is a crime. That is the epigraph to The Godfather, by Mario Puzo, adapted from Balzac and illustrated every day by the modern football ecosystem with its litany of super-wealthy people, their companies, their countries, their states all buying up high-profile English and European football clubs to use for their own malign purposes.

Roman Abramovichs acquisition of Chelsea was the Premier Leagues first hit of the hard gear, injected into the games arteries, soon making the whole body of football addicted to Big Money. His vague, meaningless statement of Saturday nightwas an attempt to preserve ownership of an asset that, at last, the government believes is unacceptable.

It always has been. Pity the government and the football authorities did not think that before he was allowed to buy Chelsea. Pity they did not think that super wealthy foreign nationals, oligarchs, sheikhs and states owning our football clubs and much of the infrastructure and utilities of this country was actually surrendering our nation to powers who do not have our best interests at heart. Vladimir Putin wanted to destabilise and weaken the EU and he used Brexit and Donald Trump to do it. It made Putins self-belief stronger. Look at how he could manipulate the western fools. Now look where that has led.

The love of money and of football have been mated and spawned a monster. And we have laid down and let it happen, supine in the face of wealth, exactly as we have been taught to be by capitalisms false promise of contentment for those obedient to its dogma.

We were told we could not serve both God and mammon, so we made a choice and got into bed with the demon and, like an insatiable succubus, tried to f**k our way to football heaven.

We replaced community with cash. We sold footballs soul to whomever would buy it for the most money and we gained absolutely nothing by doing this, but were told time and again we had and so eventually many believed the myth. We tugged our forelock and got down on our knees and we fellated our oppressors, swallowing their seed like it was holy water.

As players wages and fees went ever upwards, did we get ever happier or content? No, of course not. Football doesnt work like that. Rather the opposite. A taste of the devils nectar just makes you want more and makes you feel like youre missing out on the real sweetness. Happiness is replaced with discontent as we seek ever more money to make ever bigger transfers and pay ever bigger wages. It could never deliver what it promised to deliver.

Moneys glow blinds us or, more specifically, weve allowed it to blind us. It sends us onto social media to defend it and to do, not merely its dirty work, but the foetid work of Beelzebub. Weve seen this time and again with fans of club after club.

It has been a lust for money that goes right to the top of government with oligarchs and petrodollar families funding political parties, buying up property all over Londongrad, putting their kids into expensive private schools, largely unaccountable and anonymous but shot through the whole of society like a poisonous mycelium.

Given this, its not surprising that the best league in the world is the sordid playground for crony capitalism and other repressive regimes. They never wanted our cultural assets for good reasons. And it should surprise no-one that people who actively support, or will not stand against murderous regimes, can also do altruistic things with their money. They can give to charity and back a warmonger at the same time. Mass murderers can have lovely manners, but they are still killers and they laugh at our slack-jawed obeisance.

Thats another habit we have to shed once the fog of war clears.

Now is the time to stop this madness. Kick the habit and return football to a more sane, modest financial regime. I know it is hard to stop this bingeing once you get a taste, but we must decouple from the mindset. Look at who we have hitched our wagon to to feed it.

After all, most of football in the UK is not part of this. It is only in the top flight and a few clubs further down that are so intoxicated by perverted wealth and prepared to overlook things that should never be overlooked in return for transfer money. Can we overlook war, murder and death for a higher league finish? If we can, we need to fix that.

Football is a simple business and it need not be a big business attracting money from the darkest corners of hell. Many, indeed most clubs are still run as community organisations by decent people for the enjoyment of decent people. The lives of those who watch these clubs are no less rewarding than those watching teams built with the bloodiest hands. If we think otherwise, we need to fix that as well.

Let this vile, irrational, insane war give us a new perspective. No more leveraging wealth to create success because that success is no success at all when it is intravenously connected to the economics and morality of evil people. We should not feel good if our team wins on the back of dirty money. And Big Money is always, always, always the dirtiest money.

The calls for Abramovich to be dethroned from Chelsea and his assets taken off him are right, but it will make no difference if the same mindset exists afterwards. Say goodbye to one monster, say hello to another. Oh, they may have a cleaner veneer or more honeyed words but remember: Behind every great fortune there is a great crime. We dont want football invested in that great crime and for too long, at the highest levels, it has been. We need to fix that.

On Friday, the UAE abstained along with China and India from a vote at the US Security Council demanding Moscow withdraw its troops. Saudi Arabia has not reacted to the Ukrainian invasion, much like the UAE, Bahrain and Oman. Kuwait and Qatar have only denounced the violence, stopping short of criticising Moscow. But some of our football clubs are dancing to these peoples tunes. On top of that, Gianni Infantino, President of FIFA, is so far in blood with Putin that he ruled Russia must play World Cup play-offs in a neutral venue, under a different name, without anthem, fans or flag. That will obviously not be acceptable to anyone and shows how FIFA is not fit for purpose and its president is a corrupt and compromised idiot.

It is the desperate craving for cash that has led football down the wrong road. It has led it into the arms of bloody dictators and their pals. It has led us into the arms of exploitative sports investment portfolios, into the death grip of middle-eastern autocracies, into Russian oligarchs who support war against the innocent and steal money from their own people. We have accepted Chinese capi-communists whose state has a vested interest in undermining ours. And then theres the out and out corporate profiteers for whom only the bottom line matters, no matter the economic collateral damage.

It has led to welcoming money from the energy supplier of an oppressive state, from global corporate brands whose products come with a side order of political and economic oppression. The sports governing bodies have been riddled from top to bottom with corruption of every flavour, all bending over backwards to accommodate the super-wealthy and the powerful. We need to fix that.

This mindset has got us all into this crippled, addicted state. So crippled and addicted that clubs and their fans will take money from literally anyone, even from people who are known to be violent, bloody oppressors and supporters of war mongers who will happily kill us, the way they are murdering our Ukrainian sisters and brothers. And why are we craven to them? To buy more expensive players and pay them ever more money. Thats a terrible deal. We need to fix that, too.

Familiarity may breed contempt but more often it breeds complacency. When something is so common, we stop seeing it for what it really is. Now it doesnt even seem weird if a gulf state buys a football club. We just shrug. But underneath, most of us know its wrong.

When this is over, lets start again. Let us call for and support fundamental change in the governance and finance of football. Lets put a different head on. Lets stop craving Big Money. Let us defenestrate the oligarchs, petrodollar states, international finance groups, sports portfolio investment groups and murdering bastards, enact a fundamental restructuring of the game without the stench of rotting and corrupt institutions like UEFA and FIFA. Replace them with an open, democratic, accountable, transparent, modern organisation. Introduce sensible financial levels, limited by legislation to ensure footballs finances resemble a grapefruit instead of a very tall pyramid.

With fairness, equality and togetherness as our motto, after the war, we can rebuild in a more modest fashion, not craven to the next friend of a bloody warmonger. Because it still is the peoples game. Fixing it requires fixing our attitude to money. I might be a nave idealist, but profound change is possible. A new world can emerge from the ashes of the old. That is one thing that war teaches us, one big thing we can fix. So lets fix it.

View original post here:

Once the fog of war clears, football must decouple from Big Money and rebuild - Football365