#hence 19 supremacy

[terrainofheartfelt]

Adele

Do I know them already?: yes | no 

Favourite Song: One and Only (said it before and I'll say it again. its her Aretha Moment. and I love it)

Least Favourite Song: Someone Like You has been overplayed for me. unless it's that tiktok of that kid singing it like Patti LuPone

Favourite Album: 19 - I just love how raw it is in comparision to her following albums, which seem to get more and more polished with each turn. I know 21 is when she made it big, but there's just something about 19 that has me reaching for it more than the rest.

Least Favourite Album: 30. just didn't Hit like the rest.

Song that got me into them: like most girls in 2011, it was Rolling in the Deep :)

Seen Live?: no :( but again, if I had a time machine I would track her down playing a cafe in London in 2009

Rate: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 

[sliipppy]

Because I am insane and sleep deprived, here is my attempt to make sense of the batfamily ages and what I believe they are currently at, with full explanations. Fair warning, although I have done like, legit research and have reasonings, some of these still fit into headcanons.

Bruce - 45

Dick - 28

Babs - 30

Jason - 23

Tim - 21

Steph - 22

Cass - 23

Damian - 14

Duke - 17

Bruce is the oldest, obviously. However, when he first adopts Dick he is still young himself. Hence why along with their father-son relationship, they sorta have a brotherly relationship. (Specfically in classic comics, Bruce would often refer to him as a brother. ) I like how it complicates their relationship and how it shows he wasn't really ready to nessicarily handle a child. I like to hc that he got adopted at 8, which would make Bruce 25 when he adopted him.

It was difficult to settle on this age because the age in which Dick became Robin has been changed so many times. Originally, he was 7. New Teen Titans says he was 8. Other comics say he was 10, 12, and even 15. I feel like most people say 8, and for the sake of my own agenda, I'm saying 8, and you can not stop me.

I think 28 is a good age for Dick. Babs similarly should be around his age as they grew up together (at least in newer canon since she used to be quite a bit older.), but she's always been portrayed as older even when around her age, and to kinda account for the weirdness surrounding her age I put her as 30. She becomes Batgirl at 18, and likely becomes Oracle when she's in her 20s, probably around 23.

Batman tells Cass multiple times in Batgirl 2000 that she and Jason were the same age, so that makes it easier to rule the two together. Addiontally, Cass, Steph, and Tim are all around the same age range, Cass being the oldest, so that makes things easier too. Cass starts operating as Batgirl at 18 which would make Tim around 16 when she takes the cowl. This works since Tim became Robin at around 13 and he had been Robin for a good amount of time before Cass became Batgirl. I think it's a litttle longer than I'd like. But whatever. I was considering ignoring canon and saying he becomes Robin at 14, because I think 2 years as Robin before Cass rather than 3 is more fitting but whatever. It does fit since Tim was introduced way earlier than Cass, however real time doesn't really affect these ages. Anyways, big sister Cass supremacy I think people forget she's one of the oldest. I think she might have been de-aged to be around Tim's age but FUCK that she was originally Jason's age and this is my headcanon and I like to thing N52 didn't fuck everything up in my happy Tumblr space.

We know Steph is 1 year older than Tim because she's a freshman in college during Batgirl 2009, and he's a high-school dropout in Red Robin 2009 as he searches for Bruce. Stephanie becomes Spoiler at 15, and Robin at 16. She comes back when she's around 17-18. This lands our 2000s trio with ages at 23(Cass), 22(Steph), and 21(Tim).

Jason is a mess. At least I thought he would be, but it actually turned out kinda perfect. We know Jason and Cass are the same age, so he's at 23 with her. He becomes Robin at 12, and dies at 15. He comes back as Red Hood at 18 and was dead for around 3 years. Jason Todd is 18 when he comes back to life because right before War Games, Bruce takes Cass to Jason's grave, on his 18th birthday!!! and of course the event that acts as a sort of aftermath to War Games is Under the Red Hood so Jason is 18 when he first becomes Red Hood. Cass is still a fairly new character when UTRH happens, so i think her being 18-19 when he comes back fits well. Tim being around 16 kinda fits nice too as hes around the same age as Jason when he died. I think Steph being so close in age also helps since so many parallels are drawn between the two.

Detective Comics #790

Duke is still a teenager, and he is regarded to be one of the youngest bats, but still quite a bit older than Damian. In We are Robin, Duke is 16, as shown in the who are the robins bonus art. He is still a newer character and hasn't been Signal for long. I assume that by the time Batman and the Signal rolls around, he's 17 and is still currently 17.

We are Robin #4

I'm pretty sure Damian was 14 in Robin (2021) but I could be wrong it's been a while since I've read it and I never finished it so idk if he ever aged since then. He became Robin at 10, so in those 4 years, he's obviously grown and matured a lot, but I mean, who doesn't those are formative years. I was gonna bump him up to 15. However, this doesn't work. He is supposed to be 10 while Tim is 17. (Babs says he's ten during Batgirl 2009, and we established Tim is 17 during this.) To keep it consistent with the others, I'm keeping Damian at 14.

Batgirl 2009 #17

Feel free to correct anything I said here if it's incorrect. I am not perfect nor all-knowing. Also I'm horrible with math and numbers so I probably fucked something up here so feel free to make fun of me for that. Or you can make fun of the issues I have below.

Issues :

Dick can't be Robin at 8 if I stick with these ages because that would mean at the time Tim is 1 which means he wouldn't even be able to remember the show which means he would never be Robin.

I would've liked Bruce to be a little younger when first taking Dick in, but also I think Bruce is at his best when he's a middle aged man and I didn't want him to be below 45 because I wanted him to be on his late 40's.

It's hard to characterized Duke after We Are Robin because he's supposed to he a teenager, however he was 16 in We Are Robin and it feels like he should have been Signal for a bit longer than that. This isn't as big of a deal, because I still think it's believable for him to have only been signal for about a year, and it's mainly just DC inconsistency, but it still bugs me.

Damian's entire age is sorta messy and there's definitely issues with it lol.

I think Cass' age is around the same as Tim's post 52 to fit with him since their the same generation. But i chose to ignore that, and you can't stop me I choose what canon I want.

ヽ(o´3`o)ﾉ

Anyways, if you've read all of this, I fear you might be a little crazy. However, thank you!!!!!! Feel free to like leave your own opinion/headcanons. I LOVE hearing them. Thank you! Bye!

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

By: Aida Cerundolo

Published: Nov 16, 2023

What do forced sterilizations, the Tuskegee experiment, and the Holocaust have in common? They all demonstrate doctors forgetting their commitment to heal humans.

When doctors redirect their priorities to political matters outside the exam room, patient care suffers. That’s why doctors pledging to further social justice initiatives while treating individual humans may be blinded to the risk of harm.

We’ve seen this time and again throughout history. Social Darwinism in the early 20th century, for example, inspired doctors to pursue a genetically fit society through forced sterilizations of the “feeble-minded.” Doctors conducting the Tuskegee experiment to better understand syphilis caused suffering and death by withholding treatment from impoverished black patients. And German doctors motivated by the Nazis’ twisted idea of a better society marked prisoners for death in the mass extermination of Jews.

Why would people trained to heal inflict such pain on their fellow man?

Emboldened by a faith in the latest science and an assumption that certain humans hold less value than others, these doctors overlooked the harm to individuals while zeroing in on a perceived greater good to society. A shift in focus away from the sanctity of every individual is the Achilles' heel of medicine that makes doctors vulnerable to repeating the same mistakes. As Dr. Ashley K. Fernandes explains in " Why Did So Many Doctors Become Nazis? ," “Society is created for the person, not the person for society, and hence the dignity and integrity of the person and her freedom cannot be sacrificed for the sake of society.” Prioritizing the individual is the guardrail that steers medicine away from future carnage.

But it is exactly this shift in focus from the individual to society that social justice advocates demand in the medical field. The American Medical Association carries the social justice torch in its " Organizational Strategic Plan to Embed Racial Justice and Advance Health Equity ," declaring, “Inequities cannot be understood or adequately addressed if we focus only on individuals, their behavior or their biology.” Doctors are told to “confront inequities and dismantle white supremacy, racism, and other forms of exclusion and structured oppression, as well as embed racial justice and advance equity within and across all aspects of health systems.”

Reducing barriers to treatment is necessary to improve healthcare delivery and minimize disparities. But linking immutable characteristics such as skin color with power and privilege in the medical setting rationalizes the distribution of care based on arbitrary factors in the name of a greater good called social justice. This hazards some patients with negatively designated characteristics as being viewed as less valuable than others, potentially impeding the care they need.

The New York State Department of Health prioritized immutable characteristics when recommending that monoclonal antibodies and antivirals to treat COVID-19 be fast-tracked for those of “non-white race or Hispanic/Latino ethnicity” because “longstanding systemic health and social inequities have contributed to an increased risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19.” This approach bypassed patients at risk for severe disease simply because they were born the wrong color.

Despite the illogic of immutable characteristics dictating healthcare, some state medical boards have taken heed of the AMA’s call for mandatory anti-racism lessons and require implicit bias training for doctors to obtain or renew their medical license. Similar courses in medical schools ensure dissemination of the idea that patients be viewed through a racial lens.

The AMA’s strategic plan goes so far as to dissect the white population into even more specific subgroups of oppressors, calling out those who are “wealthy, hetero-, able-bodied, male, Christian, U.S.-born” as keepers of a system that permits their own success at the expense of non-whites and non-Christians. Social power dynamics are described in painstaking detail, while the most important power differential in the exam room — that between the doctor and the patient — is ignored.

Patients must trust that doctors are objective and sincere in their mission to heal, no matter the characteristics of the humans in front of them. Categorizing people as oppressors or oppressed, privileged or deprived, based on skin color, ethnicity, religion, or otherwise, is the start of normalizing their dehumanization, a dangerous practice that has historically resulted in unspeakable horrors. A rejection of labels and a focus on the sanctity of every individual is the only insurance against future barbarity in the name of societal gains.

==

This is what systemic racism and systemic sexism look like. Activists call it "equity," and it comes with a death toll.

Needs lawsuits.

[whocookedthelastsupper]

“Men, however, were persecuted for extrinsic reasons, not simply because they were men. And in the nature of things, the system afforded opportunities for them to improve upon, or even reverse, their lowly position in the patriarchal pecking order. Enemies of the faith could convert, and did, in huge numbers, hence the worldwide success of the father god religions. With even less difficulty young men turned into old men; sons became fathers; servants became senior servants; and even slaves could become free. None of these options was open to the female of the species. Under patriarchal monotheism, womanhood was a life sentence of second-order existence.

For woman could never recover from one primal, overwhelming disability— she was not male. The ensuing syllogism represented a triumph of masculine logic. If God was male and woman was not male, then whatever God was, woman was not. St. Augustine spelled it out: "For woman is not the image of God, whereas the man alone is the image of God." As man stands beneath God in the hierarchy, so the woman, as further removed, comes below him: in practical terms, then, setting every man over every woman, father over mother, husband over wife, brother over sister, grandson over grandmother. In every one of these new systems, God freed man from slavery and took him into partnership for eternity, while women were never even apprenticed to the celestial corporation. Man could progress to become each-his-own-paterfamilias while women remained trapped in their perpetual inferiority. Muhammad explained it with his usual clarity, along with the traditional patriarchal penalties for disaffected subordinates:

Men are in charge of women because Allah has made one to exceed the other. So good women are obedient, guarding in secret that which Allah has guarded, As for those from whom you fear rebellion, admonish them, banish them to beds apart and scourge them.

Under the father god, only man attains full adult freedom and con-trol. Woman in diametric contrast is sentenced to a double subordination, to God and to man, as St. Paul instructed the Corinthians; because "man is the image and glory of God, but the woman is the glory of man... neither was the man created for the woman, but the woman for the man."

As this shows, male supremacy does more than imply female inferiority: it demands it. How then was that demand brought home to each and every woman? The first step had to be the eradication of all traces of women's previous superiority. This meant a wholesale onslaught on the worship of the Mother Goddess, on her devotees, and by extension on women's right to rule or command. A laconic account in Il Chronicles gives us a gynoclast at full tilt:

And also concerning Maachah the mother of Asa the king, he removed her from being queen because she had made an idol in a grove: and Asa cut down her idol and stamped on it and burned it at the brook Kidron... and the heart of Asa was perfect all his days.

This was only one of many such attacks on the Goddess, her temples, scriptures, rituals and followers. These are detailed in both Old and New Testaments of the Bible, since Christianity no less than Judaism declared from the outset that the Great Goddess "whom Asia and all the world worshippeth" must be persecuted, "and all her magnificence destroyed" (Acts 19, 27).

The women resisted, of course. Over a thousand years after the events related by the chronicer, Muhammad almost paid with his life for his insistence that his "One God" should usurp "the Lady, "the Queen of Heaven," "the Mother of Life and Death." Indeed, barricaded in his house by a raging mob of Goddess-worshipers, he was favored with the timely revelation that the trinity of the old goddesses Al-Uzza, Al-Manat and Al-Uzzat, the Great Goddess in her threefold incarnation, still existed alongside the new boy, his Allah. As indeed she did—but only for as long as it took Muhammad to regroup his forces, cancel that revelation, and renew the assault.”

-Rosalind Miles; Who Cooked The Last Supper? The Women’s History of the World

[600shekels]

2 Chronicles 25: 17-24. "The Thistle vs. The Cedar."

17 After Amaziah king of Judah consulted his advisers, he sent this challenge to Jehoash[c] son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel: “Come, let us face each other in battle.”

18 But Jehoash king of Israel replied to Amaziah king of Judah: “A thistle in Lebanon sent a message to a cedar in Lebanon, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ Then a wild beast in Lebanon came along and trampled the thistle underfoot. 

19 You say to yourself that you have defeated Edom, and now you are arrogant and proud. But stay at home! Why ask for trouble and cause your own downfall and that of Judah also?”

Amaziah= "getting stronger" and it seemed like he was at first, but now his ego is out of control. He challenges the King of Israel:

Jehoash= to grasp, to make happiness

Jehoahaz= to grasp the sound, to listen, to enclose it

Jehu, the King of Irael= to pophesy, to utter prophecies

This fight is doomed as the King of Israel states: A monster is waiting for him if he tries to conquer Israel. The Gematria for this verse returns 9073, טאֶפֶסזג‎ ‎tapeszag which means to "capture the greater stretch of field. erase its past, and turn it into a place where flocks can graze or orchards can be planeted."

The thistle is the sharp edge of a thorn that repeatedly bothers others; the cedar a symbol of a righteous person. The wild beasts refers to the frogs and flies that God unleashed on the Egyptians for being foolish.

The King is trying to tell Amaziah, he should meditate, clear his mind and reconsider his path.

20 Amaziah, however, would not listen, for God so worked that he might deliver them into the hands of Jehoash, because they sought the gods of Edom, "The Commitments", see Vayishlach.

 21 So Jehoash king of Israel attacked. He and Amaziah king of Judah faced each other at Beth Shemesh in Judah. 

22 Judah was routed by Israel, and every man fled to his home. 

23 Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Ahaziah,[d] at Beth Shemesh. Then Jehoash brought him to Jerusalem and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate—a section about four hundred cubits[e] long. 

24 He took all the gold and silver and all the articles found in the temple of God that had been in the care of Obed-Edom, "someone who works from a slave to the hired expert" together with the palace treasures and the hostages, and returned to Samaria "placed under guard".

Beth Shemesh is the House of the Sun, defined as:

בית

The noun בית (bayit) means house. It sometimes merely denotes a domestic building, but mostly it denotes the realm of authority of the house-father, or אב (ab). This ab is commonly the living alpha male of a household, but may very well be a founding ancestor (as in the familiar term the "house of Israel"). The אב (ab) may also be a deity, in which case the בית (bayit) is that which we know as a temple.

In the larger economy, a house interacts with other houses. These interactions are governed by the אב (ab), or "father" and executed by the בנים (benim), or "sons": those people living in the house, irrespective of any biological relation with the אב (ab). The "sons" combined add up to אם ('em), which means both "mother" and "tribe".

שמש

The noun שמש (shemesh) is the Biblical word for sun. Many ancient societies recognized that the sun rules life on earth, but few understood that even the sun is a mere creature, also firmly subjected to the laws of nature and ultimately the unchallenged sovereignty of the Creator.

Hence to many societies the sun became the symbol of divine supremacy and the divinity of human kings, and to few it became the symbol of satanic grand delusion and existential deceit. Pretty much all great empires identified in some way or form with the sun, but the periods of humanity's deepest darkness were triggered by folks who imagined the sun to be supreme.

So the Ego, Getting Stronger, refuses to accept its erasure at the hands of a superior enemy, fights for its delusory happiness in order to get out of its commitments.

The fight is resolved in Jerusalem, the Teaching City, where the objects of the ego are kept. They are subsquently removed to higher ground, Samaria, in v. 23.

The break down the wall is to use the Trumpet, the Authoritative Voice of God found within oneself, barring that, in one's parents, boss or the law. Meditation is highly recommended instead.

The Ephraim Gate= leads to Benjamin, "Intelligence".

The Corner Gate= Northwest, "Enlightened by what is Hidden by Bod."

400 Cubits= 404 in Gematria= דאֶפֶסד‎, dopsad, "the desert in the breast".

The Gematria for this verse is 11-654 יאוהד, Yohad, ‎"Fire of Yah", "the hand of God."

=

The secret to challenging the ego is to move the objects of one's commitments from the Teaching Place where they are hidden, into the chest and thus into one's mind and memory, acted out under the watchful eye of one's intelligence.

This is how the Hand of God freed the Israelites from Egypt, how it can free anyone who needs to better understand their priorities and capabilities and those of the Kingdom around them. It is called the Torah.

[boldlybrightsun]

Jungwon's Natal chart analysis

I am not a professional astrologer and I am still studying astrology so these are based on my opinions and do take them with a grain of salt. This post is not meant to send hate to the idol in any way and is intended only for entertainment purposes and based solely on astrology.

Note: Jungwon's birth time is not released hence this reading will be updated once he provides his correct birth time.

Jungwon has Aquarius sun at 19 degrees. Sun is detrimental in Aquarius hence he might struggle with expressing his self and might have had to work a lot to express his individuality. He has his sun at a degree ruled by Libra. Air sun ruled by air degree so expect him to be very detached. Ruled by Libra he might also be the people pleasing type like Heeseung but less since Aquarius is all about breaking conventional rules and standing out.

Just like Heeseung the sign in which his moon is in might change according his birth time so I'll not touch more on it but focus on its aspects in this post. Also Heeseung and him have a moon-moon conjunction which is a soulmate connection so Heewon supremacy

Aquarius mercury at 2 degrees is such a strong placement in my opinion. Mercury is exalted in Aquarius and he has it at 2 degree which is ruled by Taurus another fixed sign. Its no wonder that he is known for his "unique"(Aquarius) and "soothing"(Taurus) voice. 2 degree in astrology is also known as the degree of power and a huge Leadership placement. But one of the cons of having this placement would be being stubborn. This reminds me of the letter written by his Taekwando instructor to him after debut or Iland? So he was basically saying how hard it was to convince him to join the class when he was only a 7 year old. Expect him to be really stubborn in the way he speaks and thinks. This is not really a bad thing necessarily since he is the leader and has to stand his ground in times where it is needed.

He has Aries Venus at 0 degree which is the purest expression of the placement. But Venus is detrimental in Aries so he might face a lot of troubles in his personal relationships where he might have acted a little too rashly or impulsively. But this also gives him a child like curiosity in learning any kind of art. Aries Venus wants to expressed in things like extreme sports and martial arts. He might have really, really enjoyed doing Taekwando.

Coming to his Taurus Mars at 3 degrees, again another detrimental placement. But his Taurus Mars is in mutual reception with his Aries Venus so that might ease a little bit of tension with both these placements. Taurus mars has a tough time standing up and being assertive and showing anger since they are ruled by Venus, a planet focusing on pleasing others and feeling validated. However when mastered, it is a really strong placement and has the natural ability capture people's attention and respect. Ruled by a Gemini degree, he is the type to internalize his anger instead of showing it out.

So moving on to his Virgo Jupiter at 16 degrees, again another placement that is weak since Jupiter is at fall in Virgo. Jupiter rules beliefs and expansion, but being ruled by Mercury his beliefs are only limited to his thinking and he might have a tough time accepting beliefs and ideas from others. This is further exaggerated since he has a fixed dominant chart. Expect him to be one of the most rigid thinking members in Enhypen. Ruled by a Cancer degree, his beliefs might have been mostly shaped through what has been taught by his family or what he learnt in his childhood.

Thanks for making it till here! :) ❤️

[treesaap]

Character info post for this guy!!

Mostly because @pyro-archer-supremacy mentioned they wanted to know more about him(sorry for the tag)

Name: none yet, nickname Starry

Age: around 18-19

Weapon: polearm

Vision: anemo

Special dish: iced coffee (gives a stamina boost)

Personality: creative and energetic, the latter mostly due to his caffeine addiction. He’s a bit chaotic and a bit of a dreamer, but he’s still quite reliable. He highly values his freedom, hence he lives in Mondstadt. He’s a little all over the place, and very disorganized. He’s also quite easily flustered

That’s all I really have so far, hope y’all like it!!

[inick4u]

Tame the Dragon

It was on 9 November 1989, five days after half a million people gathered in East Berlin in a mass protest the Berlin Wall dividing communist East Germany from West Germany crumbled. It culminated in one of the most famous scenes in recent history - the fall of the Berlin Wall. An end to the Cold War was declared at the Malta Summit three weeks later, and the reunification of Germany took place in October the following year. It took US (and west) around 45 years after world war-2 to claim the triumph over mighty Soviet Union when it got dissolved in Dec 1991. The similarities between communist USSR and present day China in their hegemonic, expansionist, tyrannical, authoritarian, Orwellian regimes are not unfathomable.

Rise of China, its Military and Economical Potency

Rise of china started in 1980, due to initiation of economic reforms and trade liberalization with real annual gross domestic product (GDP) growth averaging 9.5% through 2018, a pace described by the World Bank as “the fastest sustained expansion by a major economy in history.” Such growth has enabled China, on average, to double its GDP every eight years and helped raise an estimated 800 million people out of poverty and becoming second highest GDP around 13.41 trillion USD in 2018.

In terms of Military strength, Second only to the U.S. and Russia, the Chinese military continues to grow alongside a local burgeoning Military-Industrial Complex with around 21 lakhs active personnel and around 175 billion USD budget.

Threat of China to India and stability of world at large

Chinese leadership interpreted 2008 financial crisis as decline of US supremacy & inadequacy to maintain stability in economy. First manifestation of China asserting its belligerent policies started in March 2010 with its expansive claim over South China Sea. Chinese claim over South China Sea was projected as their core interest and non-negotiable like Tibet and Taiwan. In November 2012 at 18th Party Congress of CCP ,Hu Jintao who was loathe to be seen as weak in foreign policy, especially in the context of a rapidly growing concern about social stability and regime legitimacy was succeed by Xi Jinping. After that number of steps undertook by PRC to increase their stakes in world stability. In series of that, Launching of Belt and road initiative in 2013 widely seen as agenda  to threaten sovereignty, export sub-standard norms and practices, ensnaring developing countries with debt dependence and then translating that dependence into geopolitical influence. China’s actions in Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and Malaysia are central to the “debt trap diplomacy” debates. This was followed by numerous controversies over dubious cyber activities, maritime and land disputes with its neighbor (such as India, Vietnam, Japan, Taiwan, and Philippines), ethnic atrocities on Uighur Muslims in Xinxiang, curbing anti-china protest in Hong Kong and Trade war with US.

By any parameters, one can safely conclude that china has been overtly challenging US and west domination on world affairs in all facets over a decade now and pose severe threat to regional & world stability.

On domestic front, New Delhi has been very skeptical and apprehensive about Beijing and its hawkish polices after trauma of 1962 war. The event of Doklam, raising Kashmir issue in UN, blocking India’s entry into NSG (Nuclear Supplier Group), Supporting jihadi terrorist on international forums, pact with Pakistan for CPEC with an aim to undermine India’s sovereignty and now killing of 20 Indian soldiers in Ladakh by PLA has unsurprisingly conveyed the devious plot of evil Xi-Jinping regime to destabilize India.  China is also following the strategy of containing India in maritime region by establishing bases for the forward deployment of their naval assets and to gain relative advantage and leverage Indo-pacific region.

Now, outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic allegedly originated in wet markets of Chinese city of Wuhan and its information suppressed by China has really triggered the conflict between world and China wide open. The world is now badly suffering with devastating effect of Covid-19 at all fronts and wants to hold the Chinese government responsible for hiding the information unscrupulously.

Infiltration of China in Indian Economy

We need to understand few basic facts about infiltration of China in Indian economy before going into the debate of boycott China campaign. India is running biggest single trade deficit with China comparing to any other country. The imbalance has continuously been widening year after year to reach USD 58.04 billion in 2018. Over time, our raw material-based export commodities of largely agricultural and pharmaceutical products have been overshadowed by Chinese exports of machinery, power-related equipment, telecom, organic chemicals, and fertilizers. Many Chinese electronic, IT and hardware manufacturing companies are also having operations in India. These include Huawei Technologies, ZTE, TCL, Haier etc. Chinese mobile handset companies Xiaomi, Vivo and Oppo, Realme occupy nearly 75% of Indian mobile handset market.

Apart from the bilateral trade, Chinese investments in a country come through direct, routed and through corporate penetration in technology and infrastructure sectors. Officially, China's FDI in India stands at over $2.34 billion. Some observers and think tanks report a higher investment including rerouted ones. They put the Chinese investments in India at over $4 billion. Some of our shining brands having massive Chinese investment are Ola, Flipkart, Swiggy, Paytm, Snapdeal, Zomato etc.

 Can Boycotting Chinese Product help?

Any people movement of boycotting Chinese Product is not only going to be very futile engagement with very less dividend but shows our approach of banalisation of very complex international matter with united  jingoism. Almost every experts are opining to the contrary and also we don’t have any history of such successful attempt or study of consumer boycotting in attaining self-reliance or penalizing the “enemy” nation.

The range of goods that we import from China is immense: consumer durables such as electronic goods, smartphones, industrial goods, vehicles, solar cells, and essential pharmaceutical products including tuberculosis and leprosy drugs and antibiotics, among many others. It needs to be acknowledged that China has increased its export to Africa, Europe, US and its dependence on export to India is not great (2% of its total exports). So even if Indians boycott all the goods imported from China, it will not make as big an impact on China. On the other hand sudden throwing out Chinese firms may impact Indian industries and tech startups due to lack of investment, raw material and low cost capital investment. Another impact could be further worsen of unemployment rate which currently stands at alarming 24% rate.

USP of Chinese goods has been its affordability and availability. With a careful study of global society’s multi-cultural needs – some of the cheapest saris, toys, Diwali firecrackers and god idols in India come from China.  In our country where 75% of population only managed to earn Rs. 33 per day, consumer eventually prefer to go for the cheapest available option in the market. So call for boycotting anyways going to diminish sooner or later without achieving its goal.

 Ways to counter the bully

To quote great ancient Chinese General and Military Strategist Sun Tzu “The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.”

Conventional warfare cannot be a viable option to counter a nation which is 5 times bigger in GDP and 3 times bigger in terms of military spending. Hence opening remarks of this article about history explains why India needs a long term, stable, prudent multilateral strategy to counter china and can be classified as follows.

a) Economic Reforms, bilateral and multilateral Trade agreement – It’s not intricate to understand that reason China is able to challenge US is because of their sustained economic growth. And this is an undisputed opinion in the world that India has failed to reach its potential after forced Liberalization of 1991 (explanation needs another article).  

An efficient government is one that draws down its intervention where it is distortionary and goes big where it needs to—is a better goal. The Indian state has made the wrong call too often. We have already lost a decade for structural economic reforms and cannot be further delayed. The Clarion call of Atmanirbar Bharat should not be misconstrued to the policy of protectionism and disruption. Though it’s impossible to suggest any magic wand to overturn India’s economic woes (going on now from long time) in few paragraphs but let’s discuss some basic concepts.

India is inadequately formalized, financialised, urbanized, industrialized and skilled. There are fundamentally two different part of economy i.e. Rural and Urban economy. Rural economy is mostly based on agriculture and constitute 65% of population. Agricultural reforms should ensure easier access to inputs like seeds, technology, power, finance and insurance. They should effect greater connectivity, both virtual and through logistic networks, of the farmer to warehouses, rural industry and final consumers.

Some bold steps for Land and labor reforms need to be undertaken. Though some states like MP and UP made some labor reforms but union government’s formulation with wider consultation of industry and trade unions required.

India, with its massive domestic consumption, can hunker down and resolve to boost domestic demand in the coming months. Government must put more money in people’s hands by creating more jobs through huge public investment projects that bring about new national assets. The government also needs to go further in reforming the banking sector & financial institute, including stricter regulations over lending and enhanced supervision from regulators. Government must work on issue like Simplification of GST, elimination of red tapism, avoiding crony capitalism, low tariffs to attract foreign investment, encouragement to startups etc.

India’s Spending on R&D is very low. In the process of self-reliance, it becomes paramount that along with improvement in our education systems we must spend on R&D of technological development. Eg. India has quadrupled its imports of lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries. 175 million such batteries were imported in 2016, 313 million in 2017, 712 million in 2018 and 450 million in 2019. About ¾ of this import comes from China causing surge in our import bill. With Robust R&D Infrastructure, increasing import tariffs and assisting our indigenous industry, this can be easily overturned in a span of 3-4 years. Same can be applied to electronics industry, mobile handset industry and some low cost equipment’s which now heavily depending on China.

Trade agreements with like-minded countries in non-sensitive sector will also help in much needed infusion of funds and making our products competitive globally and exportable.

This is long haul process and needs stable, strong vision and may not get us the headlines but surely will help to transform our economy.

(In April, the United Nations’ World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) reported that for the first time in 40 years, China had applied for more patent applications than the U.S. including artificial intelligence, brain science, dark matter, genetic engineering and quantum computing and communications. These are areas at the cutting edge of science. No wonder why China’s firm Huawei is pioneer of 5G technology.)

 Most of things mentioned here are very conceptual, subjective and aspirational. The downturn of Business friendly Chief Minister to the Prime Minister governing with heavy centralization, rhetoric, popular slogans, Communal division is tragic and still anew in our mind. But hope some sanity prevails because history won’t be as forgiving as present day electorate.

 b) Military & strategic Co-operation with World Powers & Alliance with geo-political Anti-China Forces – Well the good news is that in the post COVID era, threats of rise of hegemonic China are acknowledged by all. Many countries including US like Australia, UK, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan have started aggressive opposition of Chinese polices. Hence analogy of Cold war -2 is not mere catchphrase. And threats posed by Beijing demand a ‘more global approach’.

India should realize that higgledy-piggledy strategy against China and non-alignment wouldn’t give the desired result. Strategic military co-operation without compromising the autonomy would play the most vital part in foreign relations. The expansion of G7 is being deliberated and UK is keen to have India join the D10 alliance. India already participates in the Quad (with Australia, Japan, and the U.S.) and in the Indo-Pacific Strategy, both U.S.-led anti-China platforms. Alliances would help to promote a coordinated response between friendly states to challenges posed by the present conduct and future ambitions of the People’s Republic of China. By developing a common set of principles and frameworks (diplomatically and militarily) that transcend conservatism will be able achieve the goals.

Regional players like Taiwan, Japan and South Korea are challenging Beijing draconian approach in the region. India should join their voices and the first step would be recognizing Taiwan and setting up diplomatic relation with them. India should also raise the concerns of Chinese policy towards Uighurs , Hong Kong and Tibet on international forums more often than not.

 c) Peace on Domestic front – In pursuit of competing with a giant china and its proxies like Pakistan, the importance of peace and law & order on domestic front cannot be over emphasized. The prospects of being a democratic country is our biggest strength vis-a-vis China. However our insidious political class across the country has been indulged in sabotaging the democracy and interested in only grabbing the power.  Without really going into the narrative of our Indian ethos and ancient culture of accommodating people of all beliefs, I want to underlay that the basic principle of wealth and prosperity is peace. Dangerous religious and Caste trends could destroy the social fabric of the nation in the long run. Alienation of Minorities should be reversed. Instances of communal riots across states, violent agitation of Jats in Haryana, perpetual violence in Bengal demonstrate very grim portrait of our society. The soft power of demography, importance of communal-social harmony and the need of unity against foreign enemy cannot be overlooked. Though it seems very trivial but in my opinion this is very crucial and hardest step of all.

 Lastly it’s not a question of belling the cat, its how well world take snipe shots to kill this beast.

(Views expressed here are mine while source of most figures is google search)

[orgasmiccontagion]

In light of recent events and the pouring out of despair that I’ve seen on here among the various anarchist/insurrectionists/anti-civ individuals for the inevitably reformist recuperation of the uprisings in response to police brutality and white supremacy in America, I want to highlight a passage that I read in ‘ Critique of Chrisso and Odeteo’s Barbarians” by Frére Dupont, one of the authors responsible for writing “Nihilist Communism”. It may not be something we want to hear right now in response to what is transpiring, but there are some crucial points of critique being expounded here: “On what level does the militancy that C+O (Chrisso and Odeteo) validate signify to the self yes, we feel good to come off best after an encounter with the authorities, but to the authorities themselves and beyond them, to the existing structure, what value does any instance have? A burnt-out bank is a boon for builders, cleaning companies, cops, security advisers, property developers. A riot, like a forest fire, is good for business, cleans out the old, shock and awe. Capitalism makes capital out of conflict and disaster. Rioters and insurrectionists are not the most resistant elements in society, they are perhaps the most conscious, the most confrontational but they are also the most spectacular, the most self-conscious, the most prey to delusions of ‘people power.’ The insurrectionist is fine in his moment, and so many of them fall away exhausted, but they act only for themselves, they are not creating a better world, they are not at the front. They act for themselves, the extreme acts of a few will never be a substitute for the small acts of becoming human of the many. to acknowledge this, to accept the essentially selfish and subjective nature of the ‘black block’ is not to say we must not resist. On the contrary, we must continue. It is only to say, that there is no necessary connection with the outside through our desire for it. It is likely that our resistance, in the end counts in favor of existing authority and against the possibility for revolution. All we can say with certainty is that we can recognize what is not outside.” At a first glance of course we could dismiss this as counter-insurgency misrepresentation of insurrectionist action that has no purpose but to undermine the efforts made by the anarchists really out there throwing down. However, I think what Dupont is doing here is highlighting the burnout that anarchists feel time and time again is due to their failure to acknowledge that a few intensely radical individuals simply cannot through their own will annihilate a system as all encompassing as capitalism (and by extension the state and civilization) without acknowledging the efforts needed from those who are not already radicalized. Throughout my time spent on here the last couple of weeks I see pro-insurrectionist anarchists (myself included) giddy with excitement that because of riots/looting/precincts being burned down that we were on the cusp of a true apeshit moment in America. Unfortunately, within just over a week corporations, media, and the innumerable activist/careerist/opportunist rackets captured the virulent rage spreading throughout the metropolitan areas of America and beyond in order to reform us back in line once again. Due to the fact that (as is all too obvious) the vast majority of people do not have any ideas of a world “outside” the one which has ensconced all life within its totality (insert discussions on domestication, spectacles, the hyperreal, desire etc etc), the reformists are gaining the upper hand and the radical potentials are fizzling out due to counter-insurgency propaganda and worries among leftists and centrists of “de-legitimizing the movement”. However, getting excited about violent rebellion is one thing, but the subsequent crash into the reformist rackets shouldn’t lead anarchists into disappointment and defeatism, but rather revaluating and transparent criticism. Hence, this is why I want to launch deeper into what’s being said here. For one, the beginning of the passage discusses the emotional high radicals get off of clashes directly with the state and the institutions that protect them. Of course, this is a predictable reaction and one that should inspire more and more people to embrace their rage against the state. However, if the only places where these actions take place is in a few dozen large urban territories around the country, and if only an isolated number of businesses/police stations/institutions are attacked, how can we expect that this wound sundered in the death machines of capital will not close up in the blink of an eye? @corvid420​ pointed out that cops that are resigning from large city police forces (NYPD for example) will likely move into the suburbs or smaller districts and be hired as cops there, suburbs which house the petit-bourgeois/bourgeois sectors of society (not to mention majorly white). These places have seen far less action in comparison but still encompass many of the characteristics as the big cities (shopping malls, police stations, jails, courthouses), and while these spaces of society still remain untouched there will not be any significant strides in working towards an abolition of capital.

To build off the previous point, insurrectionists run the risk of spectaclizing their efforts as we have already seen the media continue to use the rioting/looting argument to discredit the most angry portions of the revolt. The ontological problem of “becoming-imperceptible” in an age of smart phones, mass surveillance and police helicopters continues to pose an immense obstacle in struggles such as these. Isolated incidents of a burned AutoZone or shoe stores being looted in New York make it easy to highlight and demonize a subset of “unlawful individuals” who are “not paying honor to the legacy” of the state sanctioned murders of black people in America. More importantly, due to the ways in which people in capitalist society create identities based on brands and commodities, they will empathize with business that have suffered from the riots and looting first. They will mostly ignore the economic crisis brought on by COVID-19 that is influencing a lot of this action in the first place (and even if this devastating crisis wasn’t occurring, why should we care if we deny the surplus value from corporations and engage in our own excess?). Insurrection needs to be treated as an all or nothing affair, otherwise its integration into the spectacle is only a matter of time. Of course, as Dupont points out later in this passage, he doesn’t want the banks to stop burning, but rather wishes to point out that smaller actions against the logic of capital by the majority will do far more than a few insurrectionists trashing a Target (or other similar large displays of disobedience). Fortunately, I have seen more and more anarchists highlighting the importance of this lately on here as of late, although at times like these those suggestions get buried under the desire to go out and break shit (I’m guilty of this as well).

Finally, and perhaps the most controversial portion of this excerpt, is Dupont’s discussion on the insurrectionist’s position in the overall revolutionary potential against capitalism. They highlight the individualistic nature of insurrectionists, and how in the moment they act mostly for their own desires. They are not, as Dupont argues, the “most resistance group” among those that suffer under capitalism, but rather the “most conscious”. This consciousness is perhaps the greatest strength insurrectionists have, in that these anarchists will embrace the most violent and extreme measures to go to in order for the current order to collapse. However, it is what also leads anarchists to feeling burnout when revolts and protests continue to get recuperated. This is where I agree the most with Dupont and see this passage as mostly coming across from a point of empathy rather than contempt. However, wanting to attack the state/capitalism/civilization from an individualist perspective is a necessary means to act within the context of the current struggle. This I think is a misunderstanding on Dupont’s part. The individualist tendencies of insurrectionary anarchists does not stop at the singular level but creates trajectories toward molecular forms. Through individuals enunciating their own struggles in the various spaces of the capitalist world, we can found relationships unmediated by the haunting specters of civilized life and use each other to the advantage of all. However, to the credit of Dupont, the desires of most people do not align with a revolutionary trajectory and therefore those individualistic tendencies can come across as impotent and ineffective. This of course is where future struggles and crises will have to compound on each other in order to make a push toward a different direction. The sobering observation of the crisis still being out of sight for most of those around us does not mean it can always be pushed to the periphery forever. Insurrectionists cannot be at a “front” because simply put there is nothing to be in front of, and they cannot create a better world because it isn’t up to them alone to create it. This is the real struggle not just for anarchists but anyone who rejects the current state of things. It is the struggle to form a movement, a revolutionary trajectory, when at the present there is hardly anything to mobilize. 

Overall, I find Dupont’s insights to be valuable at a time like this, despite some of the points I found a bit off. Using this passage as a way to focus on the response to not only what’s going on now but the inevitable crises of tomorrow will allow some necessary reflections on how things went down undesirably. I welcome any positive or negative feedback/commentary to this response and how it fits with the unrest going on currently in the United States and abroad. I do not wish to speak on behalf of anyone else, only from my own perspective and how I see the current movement unfolding and how other anarchists around me (who have much more experience in this than I) are reacting.

[givetimsomerest]

Top 5 Alben Cucina Povera - Hilja Anna von Hausswolff - Dead Magic The Hirs Collective - Friends. Lovers. Favorites Mark Kozelek - self-titled Oren Ambarchi / Jim O’Rourke / U-Zhaan - Hence

Top 5 Singles Self Defense Family - “The Supremacy of Pure Artistic Feeling” Ian William Craig - “The Last Wesbrook Lament” These New Puritans - “Into the Fire” Steve Gunn - “Stonehurst Cowboy” Maurice Louca - “The Leper”

Top 5 Konzerte Anna von Hausswolff im Gebäude 9, Köln (7. März) Dummy Toys in der Temple Bar, Peking (19. April) Exploded View im Britney, Köln (22. Mai) Male im Zakk, Düsseldorf (8. Dezember) Tomoko Sauvage im Kulturaufbesserungswerk, Leverkusen (29. Dezember)

2018 zum ersten Mal gesehene Filme (von gut bis schlecht) Stroszek (1977) Mein liebster Feind (1999) Ride In the Whirlwind (1966) Restrepo (2010) Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht (1979) Jenseits des Krieges (1996) Marnie (1964) Lady Bird (2017) Way Out West (1937) Fitzcarraldo (1982) The Hills Have Eyes (2006) The House That Jack Built (2018) Valmont (1989) We Own the Night (2007) Event Horizon (1997) Atomic Blonde (2017) Tangerine (2015) Kreuzweg (2014) Annihilation (2018) Herz aus Glas (1976) Interstellar (2014) Menu Total (1986) The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) Bad Day for the Cut (2017) Miral (2010) The Housemaid (2010) Alien: Covenant (2017) Detroit (2017) The Returned (2013) Terror 2000 – Intensivstation Deutschland (1992) 100 Jahre Adolf Hitler – Die letzte Stunde im Führerbunker (1989) Wie würden Sie entscheiden? (1982) Fucking In Love (2015) Frenzy (1972) A Second Chance (2014) The Cloverfield Paradox (2018)

2018 gesehene Serien (gut bis schlecht) Babylon Berlin, Seasons 1-2 Homeland, Seasons 6-7 B: The Beginning, Season 1 Peaky Blinders, Seasons 1-4 The Sinner, Season 1 Dark, Season 1

[foodsindustry]

Cattle Feed Market Leading Player Analysis, Global Market Size with COVID-19 Update

Overview:

The cattle feed market is witnessing a surge in the business opportunity as the demand for animal products is rising high. The surge is linked interminably with the change in lifestyle. Dairy products and meat products are shaping the consumption pattern of the commons in many ways which require a better understanding of the nutrients for the well-being of all. Hence, the need for products that can act like perfect dietary plans. Various additives are getting amply supplied to the animal feed manufacturers for a better production that can sufficiently back the demand generated by fast-tracked urbanization. The global cattle feed market is expecting outstanding growth during the forecast period (2017-2023). Market Research Future (MRFR) recently published a report that, while claiming such a rise in the market, integrated segmental analysis and drivers that can significantly impact the market in the foreseeable future.

Among the major factors, demand for hygienic products and feed enriched with valuable nutrients are playing pivotal roles in shaping the cattle feed market. Animal feed is directly linked with human health. Hence, the governments, across the globe, try to maintain stringent laws that can sieve the products at the inception. This is also providing scope to the manufacturers to come up with innovative products which would comply with the government policies, yet would outperform the rival products. Various countries are also investing substantially for research and development to get better results. Bakery and beverage sectors are also generating substantial traction for the cattle feed market.  

Segmentation:

The global cattle feed market, for a better grip over the future market, can be segmented by feed ingredients, application, and additive.

Based on the feed ingredients, the cattle feed market can be segmented into corn, soybean meal, wheat, oilseeds, and others. Corn accounts for the maximum amount of market share and the forecast period would not see any change in the scenario.

Based on the application, the cattle feed market comprises dairy, beef, calf, swine, and others. Dairy has the maximum market share under its purview.

Based on the additive, the cattle feed market consists vitamins, minerals, amino acids, feed antibiotics, feed acidifiers, feed enzymes, antioxidants, and others.

Regional Analysis:

For a detailed region-specific analysis of the global cattle feed market, the report includes namely North America, Europe, Asia Pacific (APAC), and Rest-of-the-World (RoW).

North America, at present, is helming the market and is expected to do so in the coming years. The global supremacy of the regional market can be attributed to the presence of several market behemoths who indulge in strategic decisions to promote the market further. The region spends substantially on research and development and aided by technological brilliance; the region is registering tremendous growth.

Europe’s market can be a decisive one for the growth of the organically produced cattle feed as the region follows serious laws to lessen the impact of harmful chemicals in the manufacturing process. The APAC market is about to witness an unprecedented rise owing to the presence of countries such as China and India. These two countries, with their huge population, are emerging as alluring destinations for market expansion.

To get more info: https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/press-release/global-cattle-feed-market

Competitive Landscape:

The key players profiled in the cattle feed market are Archer Daniels Midland Company (U.S.), BASF SE (Germany), Cargill, Incorporated (U.S.), Royal DSM N.V. (Netherlands), Nutreco N.V. (Netherlands), Charoen Pokphand Group (Thailand), Land O’lakes Inc. (U.S.), and others.

In 2018, India emerged as a substantial cattle feed industrial space, and that can be determined from the surge in the use of corn and soybean intake as cattle feed. The country can start importing corn which can be a huge boost for the regional cattle feed market.

In 2018, Leiber, a Germany-based yeast company, announced their marketing strategy for brewer’s yeast for animals and non-grain sourced fibers that can be drawn from plants. The same year will also see Palital launching Rumen-Ready that can stimulate rumen re-development in dairy cows.  

NOTE: Our Team of Researchers are Studying Covid19 and its Impact on Various Industry Verticals and wherever required we will be considering Covid19 Footprints for Better Analysis of Market and Industries. Cordially get in Touch for More Details.

[speedystarlightdinosaur]

Supreme Universal to develop ultra-luxury housing project

Supreme Universal infrastructure epitomizes modern-day architecture and contemporary design. Each home built is a classic composition with a unique concept, giving access to space that redefines the notion of luxury and sophistication. New age residences with state-of-the-art facilities and amenities, Prime location with excellent connectivity options, and Residences that offer the best in terms of comfort and privacy, are Supreme’s supremacy. Supreme Developers is amongst the top builders building infrastructure developments such as Supreme 19, Supreme Amador, Lake Homes, Supreme Badrinath, Supreme Signature, Supreme Palacio, and many more yet to come, offering all the prerequisites needed to lead a luxurious life. The residential projects by Supreme Group seek to provide a holistic and wholesome lifestyle sprawled over vast acres of land with different types of flora that boasts a tranquil atmosphere perfect for the family. Going for long walks, jogging, cycling, or just sitting, to enjoy nature, Supreme Developers delivers it all by creating architectural marvels that combine nature and engineering, giving variant housing options to pick.

An exclusive living space

The magnificent apartments provide enough space where you can live, work and play, and have a great time together. Spacious residences with contemporary interiors and premium fittings and furnishings, the units integrate class and sophistication. Almost all the luxury projects are configured to make way for you to lead and experience an uncompromised lifestyle. Keeping in mind your preference for prime residences offering the best in terms of security and privacy, Supreme Universal presents you with an unmatched living experience.

Homes that offer great views

Feast your eyes to the serene views of the surrounding landscape from your luxurious homes that further revive the senses of calm and peace. Great views of the terrains and the enclosing areas near your home welcome you with fresh air and positivity from the monotony of day-to-day life. You often seek enthusiasm in nature and with a home set in a pristine area; it implies a raw new beginning relishing your mind, body, and soul.

World-Class Amenities

Homes by Supreme Developers are crafted meticulously to deliver amenities that are rare to find in modern homes today. A squash court, multipurpose hall, gym, outdoor party area, indoor games room, a library, playgrounds, a tennis court, swimming pool, reflexology walkway, fitness garden, a children’s play area, conference room, etc. It also provides space for community events and meetings that boast public relations among the inhabitants. The in-detail planned amenities are incorporated so that all homes prevail in self-sustainability especially in times of covid, an integral asset in modern homes.

Hence, Supreme Developers creates homes with ultra-luxury ensuring all the key essential elements of a home are well equipped into the architectural design of every space so that it can reap the best value for your money

Reference - This article is already published on Medium.com

[indianpolsoc]

Indian Vaccine Diplomacy in South Asia

The following piece has been written by contributor Pratham Maheshwari.

International politics has witnessed ample diplomacies throughout the times. Along with the traditional hard power diplomatic tools surrounding economic and military supremacy, the existence of unique and eccentric diplomacies such as panda diplomacy, elephant diplomacy, ping-pong diplomacy, koala diplomacy, and gastro-diplomacy has also paved its way into the utilization of symbolic elements which appeal to the cultural and public elements of countries. The existence of these diplomacies was, however, short-lived and often exercised by specific countries.

Global perception continues to lie in the support and practice of hard power diplomacies due to their (relatively) apparent effectiveness and universality. However, a scope of such non-traditional diplomacy was witnessed in the midst of the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. India was one of the few countries which exercised the means of this ‘Vaccine Diplomacy’ and cemented an imperative diplomatic position on the global stage, especially in the South-Asian region.

India's vaccine manufacturing capability plays a key role in practicing vaccine diplomacy. Several experts and international organizations have depicted the need for India's participation in alleviating the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic throughout the world, including the United Nations. Furthermore, the United Nations has also appreciated India's vaccine aid to several countries throughout the world. This aid addresses, both, the issue of unequal access to vaccines amongst developed and under-developed nations, as well as the feasibility of vaccines (due to the Indian-made vaccines being comparatively cheaper). It is noteworthy that before producing vaccines, India had already begun the initiative of providing aid through the means of pharmaceuticals, testing kits, and other medical assistance to other nations.

India's Vaccine Maitri (Vaccine Friendship) is also construed as a significant aspect in the discourse regarding Vaccine Nationalism and Global Health Diplomacy. The question of the high domestic need for vaccines has been raised quite often as, even in the midst of such demand, India was exporting vaccines and playing a pivotal role on the global stage. However, a counterargument is presented, considering the foundational basis of globalization and foreign exchange. For international trade to recover, it is essential for the countries' domestic economies to grow and economic activities to rise which is only possible if the outbreak of pandemic is mitigated. Along with mortality rates, lockdowns due to the pandemic also hinder economic growth as we have witnessed in several countries. Moreover, governments’ obligatory responsibility is also visible in sustaining the overall health standards of the population. Hence, a global perspective and consideration are needed whilst preventing the outbreak of the pandemic. Such an approach is a prerequisite for economic recovery, and this is rigorously followed by India.

Nepal, Bhutan, Maldives, Myanmar, and Bangladesh are some of the countries which have received vaccines from India. These countries also lie in the purview of an Indian policy known as 'Neighbourhood First' wherein India's relations with its neighbours are primarily considered, especially in such situations of providing aid. India's existing relationships with these countries have unequivocally witnessed progress. Nepal, whose relationship with India was strained due to the Kalapani territorial dispute in 2020, has also appreciated the step taken by India. It depicts the importance of vaccines in Nepal and, proportionally, the amelioration of India-Nepal Relations. A country such as the Maldives, which already has good relations with India, has also appreciated the step adding solidity to the relations between the countries. It could also be considered as one of the secondary reasons behind the recent signing of Infrastructural, Defence, and Security pacts between the two countries.

On the political front, the South-Asian region has been majorly sceptical of growing Chinese influence. Policies such as the 'Belt and Road Initiative' and 'String of Pearls' have been a concern for the international community with regard to the stability of the region. Hence, any diplomatic practice existing in this region would directly be a contender against said Chinese influence. Although, as mentioned previously, vaccine diplomacy is largely based upon building the international goodwill of India, which cannot be an apt choice to contain the Chinese influence in the region. Despite this, vaccine diplomacy has made strides against the influence.

For instance, relations between Bangladesh and India have been strained due to the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act and a promise of $40 Billion investment by China. Nevertheless, Bangladesh became a recipient of Indian vaccines when the negotiations between China and Bangladesh regarding sharing of the cost of vaccine trials fell through. Sri Lanka, which could also be considered as a bearer of 'one of the Pearls' as per the theory of the String of Pearls, has also received the Indian vaccines. Certainly, it signifies the tussle between Chinese and Indian diplomacies in Sri Lanka. Moreover, countries are opting for Indian vaccines over Chinese vaccines due to issues regarding vaccine efficiency. These instances depict the formation of Indian benevolence at the international stage, which, while unable to counter the Chinese influence, would certainly open the Indian doors of reliance for the aforementioned nations.

Analysts have argued that impacts of such diplomacies are transient in nature, as we have already discussed the preference for traditional means of diplomacies amongst nations. However, it could possibly be considered an imperative step in the trajectory of strengthening India's relations with South-Asian countries. It would also add gravity to the aspiration of India being a 'Giant' of the region. Even though it is expected to achieve the status of significance through the means of economic or political supremacy, this initiative will build an image based upon international goodwill, aligning with the driving factors of Indian Foreign Policy. Hence, this initiative shall be considered as a different means to achieve the expected ends of Indian Foreign Policy, for the foreseeable future.

Vaccines are perceived as an inseparable element of any health framework striving to eradicate a particular disease. In comparison to other diplomatic tools, the necessity of vaccines stands out. It caters itself to one of the most important elements of a country, i.e., health. Moreover, the world has witnessed the health and social frameworks of numerous countries being unsuccessful in containing the spread or mitigating the adverse effects of COVID-19 during the period of non-availability of a vaccine. The countries are in dire need of fulfilling the prevailing lacunae in their respective health structures, especially developing countries, and this is only possible through the provision of vaccines. With respect to the prevailing international conditions, the receipt of vaccines would be considered much more than just a symbolic diplomatic tool. Hence, the strengthening of relations during the current time frame shall be relatively less transient and inclined towards a more efficient permanence in the near future–a sentiment that is reflected in the appreciation received by India.

To achieve the zenith of success in this initiative, India needs to deliver upon the opportunities cultivated because of the usage of vaccine diplomacy. As discussed above, the transient and unconventional nature of this diplomacy could only play a minor role in the development of Indian Foreign Policy with respect to the time frame. However, it would be the role of the Indian Government in creating this diplomatic practice an imperative phase in Indian Foreign policy during this limited period of time. This diplomacy does possess the potential of aiding the Indian Government in achieving its Foreign Policy expectations in the South-Asian region. India could proceed towards a significant step towards a dominant position with the element of multilateralism embedded in it.

As India seeks economic recovery, it has the potential of opening doors of economic prosperity with South-Asian countries and vice-versa. Gratitude in the international community is transient in terms of international relations, and vaccine diplomacy might not be able to resolve all of India’s strained relations. However, it could possibly open the doors for resolving the prevalent bilateral issues as well as adding significant potency to other stable diplomatic relations with South-Asian countries.

Sources:

Dhar, Biswajit. "India’s Vaccine Diplomacy." Global Policy Journal (April 2021) https://www.globalpolicyjournal.com/blog/08/04/2021/indias-vaccine-diplomacy

Iyer, Ramita, and Karthik Nachiappan. "India’s Vaccine Diplomacy." Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore (January 2021) https://www.isas.nus.edu.sg/papers/indias-vaccine-diplomacy/

Pant, Harsh, and Aarshi Tirkey. "India’s Vaccine Diplomacy." Observer Research Foundation (January 2021) https://www.orfonline.org/research/indias-vaccine-diplomacy/

Rai, Vinod. "India Extends ‘Vaccine Maitri’ to its Neighbours." Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore (February 2021) https://www.isas.nus.edu.sg/papers/india-extends-vaccine-maitri-to-its-neighbours/

Ramachandran, Sudha. "India’s Vaccine Diplomacy: A Potent Card?" The Diplomat, January 26, 2021. https://thediplomat.com/2021/01/indias-vaccine-diplomacy-a-potent-card/

[market-research-industry]

Global nutraceuticals market rides high on rising inclination for natural ingredients

With a handful of companies commanding more than half market share, the global nutraceuticals market features a largely consolidated vendor landscape. Key players, namely BASF SE, Royal DSM N.V., Groupe Danone S.A., and Nestle S.A. held more than 52.1% of the overall market in 2014. These companies hold large shares as they offer an array of products including functional food, functional beverages, and nutritional supplements. Strategic collaborations and mergers and acquisitions adopted by these companies to expand their product offerings and geographical outreach are also factors behind the prominence of these companies.

As per a business and market intelligence study by Transparency Market Research (TMR), the global nutraceuticals market is predicted to expand at a CAGR of 7.3% between 2015 and 2021. Expanding at this pace, the market’s valuation of US$ 165.62 bn in 2014 will become US$278.96 bn by 2021-end. Vis-à-vis revenue, functional food product type segment held the commanding share of the market in 2014. This is mainly because of surging demand for an array of foods such as fortified foods, probiotics, and branded ionized salt as individuals vie to attain wellness through diet. Dairy-based functional beverage segment commands the leading share as dairy-absed beverages are consumed widely in Asia. Region-wise, North America holds supremacy in the nutraceuticals market due to the presence of a large health-savvy population; the growth of this market is mainly driven by persistent demand for nutraceuticals in the U.S. and Canada.

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Rising Spending on Health-benefitting Foods Fuels Growth

“Demand for nutraceuticals is expected to rise on the back of rising incidence of non-communicable diseases and rising healthcare expenses,” says the author of the study. Changing lifestyle and rising consumption of packaged food in emerging economies have been reasons for the increasing incidence of lifestyle diseases such as cardiovascular ailments and diabetes. This, along with rising healthcare expenses are stoking demand for nutraceuticals in emerging nations.

The rising demand for milk and meat is leading animal feed manufacturers to add nutraceuticals in animal feed. This is boosting the nutraceuticals market. Besides this, a high level of awareness among consumers in developed countries regarding the benefits of nutritional diet and rising demand for natural beauty products are aiding the growth of nutraceuticals market.  Consumers in developed countries have a high degree of awareness about the side-effects of pharmaceuticals, hence are increasingly opting for natural foods and health-benefitting supplements derived from products derived from natural ingredients.

Apart from this, unlike pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals are available over-the-counter without prescription. This makes another reason for their increased adoption as a natural supplement for well-being.

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Relatively High Price Factor of Nutraceuticals Limits Uptake

Despite a host of positive factors, increasing prices of nutraceuticals are limiting their uptake especially in less developed economies. Nutraceuticals prices are generally higher than pharmaceuticals. Substantial difference between the prices of nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals is compelling consumers to opt for low price medicines.

Low awareness about nutraceuticals is another factor challenging the growth of nutraceuticals market. A large population worldwide are yet to realize the benefits of nutraceuticals. Nevertheless, rising healthcare spending in Asia Pacific is likely to offer lucrative growth opportunities to global nutraceuticals market.

The review presented here is based on the findings of a TMR report, titled “Nutraceuticals Market (Product type – Functional Food, Functional Beverages, Dietary Supplements, and Personal Care and Pharmaceutical) – Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecast 2015 – 2021.”

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The global nutraceuticals market is segmented as follows;

Global nutraceuticals market, by product type

Functional Food

Functional Beverages

Dietary Supplements Segment

Personal Care and Pharmaceutical

Probiotics Fortified Food

Omega Fatty Acid Fortified Food

Branded Ionized Salt

Branded Wheat Flour Market

Others (nuts, grains, garlic)

Fruit & Vegetable Juices and Drinks

Dairy & Dairy Alternative Drinks

Noncarbonated Drinks (bottled water, tea and coffee)

Other (herbal tea, sports drinks, energy drinks)

Proteins & Peptides

Vitamins & Minerals

Herbals ( Ayurvedic extracts, plant extracts, algal extracts, phytochemicals)

Other (fatty acids, fiber)

By Region

North America

Europe

Asia Pacific

RoW

The world has undergone a major shift in the way of living since the COVID-19 pandemic struck. A notable change in the functioning of various businesses and sectors has influenced their working mechanisms extensively. The food and beverage sector is no stranger to this change. Transparency Market Research (TMR) has studied many aspects concerning the difference between the trends in the pre-pandemic and post-pandemic world across the food and beverage industry.

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[californiaprelawland]

What Are The Legal Implications Of A Domestic Terrorism Bill?

By Sydney George, Occidental College Class of 2023

January 22, 2021

On January 6th, 2021, a mob of extremist President Trump supporters invaded the U.S. Capitol as Congress planned to verify the Electoral College results of the 2020 Presidential Election. Some of the rioters brought zip-tie handcuffs, and multiple explosive devices were discovered near the Republican and Democratic national committee offices. Five people died from the events and many more were injured.

The insurrection event is only one of many episodes of violence by right-wing extremists in recent years. Incidents of right-wing violence have been escalating on the national level for some time. In 2019, the number of hate crimes in the U.S. reached levels unseen in over a decade. [1] It is estimated that in 2019, far-right extremist attacks and plots constituted nearly two-thirds of terrorist activity in the United States and were responsible for more than 90% of annual fatalities from acts of terrorism within the U.S. [2] Similarly, an October 2020 report from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security concluded that "racially and ethnically motivated violent extremists—specifically white supremacist extremists (WSEs)—will remain the most persistent and lethal threat in the Homeland." [3]

Newly inaugurated President Joe Biden has condemned these outbreaks of violence and vowed to prioritize passing a statute to combat domestic terrorism. Currently, there are no specific federal laws against domestic terrorism, leaving law enforcement agencies to convict violent extremists on the basis of other related statutes, like laws against hate crimes, assault and battery, organized crime, and illegal firearms. [4] Hence, passing a statute against domestic terrorism would expand the entire legal framework for convicting crimes of this nature. It would also majorly shift the priorities of federal agencies who tend to focus security resources on global terror threats rather than domestic ones.

The bill known as the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act of 2019, which aimed to prevent domestic terrorism, was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives last fall with bipartisan support but was blocked in the Senate by Senator Ron Johnson. As stated in the language of the bill, the bill was intended to "authorize dedicated domestic terrorism offices within the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to analyze and monitor domestic terrorist activity and require the Federal Government to take steps to prevent domestic terrorism" [5] in response to the growing threat of white supremacists and other right-wing terrorist groups.

On January 19th, 2021, in response to the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, several members of Congress introduced a similar bill called the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act (DTPA) of 2021. The legislation is nearly identical to the previous bill as it authorizes federal agencies to "analyze and monitor domestic terrorist activity and require the Federal Government to take steps to prevent domestic terrorism" [6].

More specifically, the DTPA would bolster federal efforts in assessing threats and supply more resources to state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies in order to prevent terrorist activity. It would allow offices within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to investigate and prosecute cases of domestic terrorism and report to Congress with threat assessments, with a particular emphasis on white supremacist groups. The DTPA further structures a Domestic Terrorism Executive Committee to "coordinate with United States Attorneys and other key public safety officials across the country to promote information sharing and ensure an effective, responsive, and organized joint effort to combat domestic terrorism." [7]

"America must be vigilant to combat those radicalized to violence, and the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act gives our government the tools to identify, monitor and thwart their illegal activities," said one of its co-sponsors, Rep. Brad Schneider (IL-10). [7]

Many current and former national security officials have echoed the support for a federal crackdown on domestic terrorist activity and for a specific law against domestic terrorism. The FBI Agents Association has stated their support for making "domestic terrorism a federal crime" to "ensure that FBI Agents and prosecutors have the best tools to fight domestic terrorism." [8]

Others are not so confident in the possible ramifications of the bill. On January 19th, 2021, a coalition of 220 national civil rights organizations, called the The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, wrote a letter to Congress expressing their deep concern about the "proposed expansion of terrorism-related legal authority." [9] The letter, undersigned by 135 organizations, wrote, "We must meet the challenge of addressing white nationalist and far-right militia violence without causing further harm to communities already disproportionately impacted by the criminal-legal system," specifically Black and brown communities, who have historically been targeted by similar provisions. The bill could give broad legal authority to federal agencies to target activists and religious minorities.

The letter further points out that the DOJ already "has over 50 terrorism-related statutes it can use to investigate and prosecute criminal conduct" and that the present failure to manage the violence of white supremacists stems from a failure to properly use the legal tools already in place.

Rather than pass a domestic terrorism bill, this coalition suggests that Congress should publicize current federal efforts to fight white supremacist violence, investigate the FBI-documented infiltration of law enforcement by white supremacist groups, require public hate crime data, and "regularly hold hearings featuring communities that are experiencing white nationalist violence" to ensure accountability from Congress. The letter was signed by many prominent non-profit organizations, such as the American Civil Liberties Union, the NAACP, and the Human Rights Watch.

Political strategist and organizer Akin Olla expressed similar concerns in a recent article for the Guardian. [10] He reflected on how after 9/11, the USA PATRIOT Act was intended to fight terrorism but was used more broadly to "monitor and interfere with the work of activists – leading to violations of civil liberties such as the placement of undercover NYPD officers in Muslim student groups across the north-east." [11] A law against domestic terrorism might similarly endanger civil liberties.

The potential for increased measures against domestic terrorism has many serious legal implications for both public safety and civil liberties. How Congress and President Biden will proceed will likely have major ramifications for years to come.

______________________________________________________________

[1] Balsamo, M. (2020, November 16). Hate crimes in US reach highest level in more than a decade. AP NEWS. https://apnews.com/article/hate-crimes-rise-fbi-data-ebbcadca8458aba96575da905650120d

[2] Jones, S. G., Doxsee, C., & Harrington, N. (2020, June 17). The Escalating Terrorism Problem in the United States. Center for Strategic and International Studies. https://www.csis.org/analysis/escalating-terrorism-problem-united-states

[3] Department of Homeland Security. (2020, October). Homeland Threat Assessment. Retrieved January 21, 2021, from https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/2020_10_06_homeland-threat-assessment.pdf

[4] Collins, A. C. (2020). The Need for a Specific Law Against Domestic Terrorism. GW Program on Extremism, 6. https://extremism.gwu.edu/sites/g/files/zaxdzs2191/f/The%20Need%20for%20a%20Specific%20Law%20Against%20Domestic%20Terrorism.pdf

[5] 116th Congress. (2019, March 27). Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act of 2019 [Screenshot Photograph]. Congress.Gov. https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/894/text?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22white+supremacy%22%5D%7D&r=1&s=2

[6] 117th Congress. (2021, January 12). Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act of 2021 [Screenshot Photograph]. Congressman Brad Schneider. https://schneider.house.gov/sites/schneider.house.gov/files/DTPA%20of%202021.pdf

[7] Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act (DTPA) of 2021 Introduced in House. (2021, January 19). Congressman Brad Schneider. https://schneider.house.gov/media/press-releases/domestic-terrorism-prevention-act-dtpa-2021-introduced-house#:%7E:text=The%20Domestic%20Terrorism%20Prevention%20Act%20of%202021%20would%20strengthen%20the,threat%3B%20and%20providing%20training%20and

[8] FBI Agents Association, [@FBIAgentsAssoc]. (2019, August 6). FBI Agents Association on [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/FBIAgentsAssoc/status/1158748525263511558

[9] The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. (2021, January 19). 135 Civil Rights Organizations Oppose a New Domestic Terrorism Charge. https://civilrights.org/resource/135-civil-rights-organizations-oppose-a-new-domestic-terrorism-charge/

[10] Reporter, G. S. (2021, January 21). The US Capitol riot risks supercharging a new age of political repression. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jan/14/biden-protest-surveillance-repression

[11] Hawley, C. (2016, December 20). NYPD monitored Muslim students all over Northeast. Associated Press. https://www.ap.org/ap-in-the-news/2012/nypd-monitored-muslim-students-all-over-northeast

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