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Search RuthAndJohn.com NOTE: click on the link then put your search words inside the quotes on Google
Kitties
This months blog has John's photos of the cats, neighborhood architecture, the ducks and our new window doll -
Leonardo da Vinci! The neighbors regularly visit the dolls and cats. Little kids are especially thrilled by them.
The duckies babies are half grown now and still very cute. John and I walk more these days (summer) and we frequently
see new art and buildings. Even our small local park has regular surprises for us. All of these bring us a great deal of pleasure,
entertainment and feelings of purpose and belonging.
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| Our three boys. |
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| In the Republic Square in Rennes the Palais du Commerce (the old Brittany stock exchange) is due to be converted into a shopping center. | Still loving the variety of architecture in Rennes. | Summer blossoms in our courtyard. |
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| The mansion of the Oberthür. | Morning ducks visit us on our walk. | This little guy ran up to us to beg for some food. |
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| He posed a bit for the camera. | The flowering trees and bushes are well maintained in Oberthür Park. | Beautiful. |
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| A bumble bee butt poking out of the flower. | Leonardo da Vinci | Leo and his new family. |
NOTE: all French articles below can be translated by right-clicking on the web page and selecting "translate to".
COVID in France
The new variants have caused the cases of Covid in France and the US to be on the rise, now higher than in April.
Here in France January 2022 had the largest number of cases of COVID ever. The number of cases now is less than half
of what we had in January - still very high.
Fête de la Musique 2022
World music day (June 21) originated in France in 1982 (and is now celebrated in more than 80 countries). The Fête de la Musique,
Make Music Day or World Music Day, is an annual music celebration. On Music Day, citizens and residents are urged to play music outside
in their neighborhoods or in public spaces and parks. Parc Thabor (six blocks from our home), Parliament Square, St Anne's Square,
several other public squares, historic sites, neighborhood centers, bars and other parks offered a wide rage of events and varied types
of music. Fête de la Musique 2022 program.
U.S. EPA SCOTUS Ruling
WEST VIRGINIA v. EPA Syllabus
Justice Elena Kagan said the Court is making up new rules that contradict nearly a
century of regulatory law. Supreme Court 'does not have a clue about how to address climate change' as it limits EPA's authority on greenhouse gases'
It also sets a "dangerous precedent," she said, in that the decision says "we don't need governments to
regulate industry" and that more federal policies and regulations could be dismantled.
"Having this type of ruling is actually saying that it's a free-for-all oil and gas... we can
actually unapologetically support the polluting of our communities in the United States," scientist Sweta
Chakraborty, president of climate solutions group said. "And that's an extremely dangerous path to go down."
Abortion Laws in U.S.
Where abortion is prohibited (free/gift article from NY Times). The list is updated as situations change.
You can use this link repeatedly. Feel free to share it.
AMA says Dobbs ruling is an assault on reproductive health, safe medical practice.
Progressive prosecutors in red states are refusing to enforce abortion laws because doing so is a discretionary waste of legal
resources. "We are a group of elected prosecutors representing communities across every region of the country.
Over the past few years, we have watched with increasing concern as the constitutional right to abortion has been
threatened and eroded. We stand together in our firm belief that prosecutors have a responsibility to refrain from using
limited criminal legal system resources to criminalize personal medical decisions. As such, we decline to use our offices'
resources to criminalize reproductive health decisions and commit to exercise our well settled discretion and refrain from
prosecuting those who seek, provide, or support abortions. Prosecutors are entrusted with immense discretion. With this
discretion comes the obligation to seek justice. And at the heart of the pursuit of justice is the furtherance of policies and
practices that protect the well-being and safety of all members of our community."
Avoid crisis pregnancy centers. Refer to this map for locations in the U.S.
The Crisis Pregnancy Center Map, an academic project from the University of Georgia, identifies more than 2,500 such centers across the US.
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) is a federal law that required the creation of
national standards to protect sensitive patient health information from being disclosed without the patient's consent or
knowledge. HIPAA doesn't apply to all groups that might seem to be providing medical care. The risk is particularly acute
at crisis pregnancy centers: sites operated by anti-abortion activists that work to guide women to abortion alternatives
in the guise of providing healthcare. These sites can collect information on the pregnancies of anyone who walks through
the door and tie it to contact information and other data. Because these centers offer counseling rather than medical care,
they are generally not subject to restrictions on health data - and because they're run with the explicit goal of discouraging
women from getting abortions, they may be eager to collaborate with investigations when they suspect a person has sought care elsewhere.
"THE FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE IS NOT SHARING INFORMATION UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY"
Tubal ligation. Decades ago I tried for years to get a tubal but was denied (in Texas and in California)
because I was under 30 and had no children. The situation got better years ago but today, in many states,
the situation is as bad or worse than it was 45 years ago This list is of physicians who are willing to perform a tubal ligation on any patient, 18-21+, no matter their marital status or number of children.
Abortion is now illegal in 16 states
in the U.S. And will be banned in at least 6 more states. Most laws do not include
exceptions for rape and incest. And exceptions for the life of the mother are vague.
Abortion funds you can donate to
How to be an Abortion clinic escort
Future SCOTUS cases
In his concurrence statement for Dobbs vs Jackson Women's Health, Clarence Thomas stated he wants to try to end protections for same sex marriage, adoption by gays, sodomy and contraception.
Texas Senator John Cornyn says "Now do Brown vs Board of Education" to remove protections for equal education (at least to the extent that we have it today).
Next session SCOTUS Election case
In their next session Supreme Court could allow state legislators almost total power over elections
Protections against partisan gerrymandering established through the state courts could essentially vanish. The ability to
challenge new voting laws at the state level could be reduced. And the theory underpinning the case could open the door to
state legislatures sending their own slates of electors.
Thom Hartmann's Twitter posts about the Supreme court's nightmare scenario over elections is a popular and valuable read.
State Department
Election interference by Foreign entities
The State Department offers up to $10M reward for info on foreign election interference.
NATO and Putin
A Department of Defense official strongly urged the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to quickly approve the request of Finland and Sweden to join NATO. The fact that Sweden and Finland petitioned to join the defensive
alliance is a sign of how much the security environment has changed with Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
Both nations have been partners with NATO for decades, but really saw no need to join the treaty organization.
The Baltic States bordering Russia are terrified of their futures after Putin announced that he wants all of Ukraine and will invade other neighbors starting with Moldova. And
Russia's former prime minister warned that if
Ukraine falls to Russia, Putin will attack the Baltic States next.
Putin is also influencing US politics and fomenting discord there including aiding several secessionist movements.
Putin also funded Trump's 2016 and 2020 presidential runs and ancillary operations including hacking, social media
disinformation and more. Things are getting close to how they were in the 50's and it is scary. Living in France brings
the Ukraine war to my mind often. I know the media has reported extensively on the invasion by Russia in the US and around
the world but being in Europe brings the crisis home for us.
Putin has sought to project Russian power in corrupt but resource-rich African countries through the Wagner Group.
Russia has used Wagner operatives to provide a security shield for African despots in exchange for access to precious natural resources.
He is using this process to offset western sanctions. He is using the grain shortage he created by the war in Ukraine for propaganda
purposes claiming the sanctions are responsible for the shortages. More on Wagner group in Africa.
Putin is trying similar operations in the Balkan countries. It's a good thing that the Ukraine invasion is a significant drain on Russia's military.
The contribution by the US to defending Ukraine has been immense. The US economy is huge and U.S. contributions to Ukraine
equal those of the rest of the western countries involved.
France to Nationalize Power Company EDF to Help It Combat Europe's Energy Crisis
The French government said Wednesday that it plans to fully take over its largest electricity provider Electricity de France(EDF), a move that shows the long-lasting effects of Russia's invasion of Ukraine destabilizing Europe's energy market.
EDF has been tasked by Macron with building six new nuclear reactors in France in the coming years at an estimated cost of about €52bn.
A Pro-Macron MP becomes France's first woman speaker.
France's lower house of parliament has agreed to pick an MP from President Emmanuel Macron's centrist coalition as the first woman speaker, despite the ruling
alliance losing its majority in legislative elections.