Still ‘Je suis Charlie’ Two Years On
[Editors (Zach) note: This was originally posted on Sarah’s facebook page and she thankfully allowed me to share it with you. Sarah is a human rights lawyer based in Paris and London. You can read her piece on Erik Prince’s plan for the refugee crisis in Europe here.] Those who knew and/or followed me then remember how difficult that day was for me; some have ended friendships over it, some have started one, some have disagreed but respected my grief. I was present on the scene and I have lost friends. I have lost journalists. I have peered across the…
Blackwater’s Erik Prince Has a Solution for the Refugee Crisis
The last thing the refugee crisis needs is Erik Prince. Last we heard from Erik Prince, he had set up sail for the new shores of Abu Dhabi, away from pesky congressional hearings about unlawful killings in Iraq, and close to the security-laden borderlands of the Horn of Africa. His new venture, Frontier Services Group, provides logistical and material support in conflict zones as well as aid delivery. We’d like to seize the opportunity of a new year to wish the former Blackwater CEO the best in his new endeavours. In an opinion-piece penned for the respectable Financial Times, the…
The Weekend Off – News You Missed
Alaska ADN – State pushing feds to allow Western Arctic caribou hunt Alaska’s biggest caribou herd, one that has swelled and crashed over the past four decades, now is stirring conflict between state and federal managers over who should get to hunt the animals. The Federal Subsistence Board decided in April to close federal lands where the Western Arctic caribou herd is hunted — except to locals, those hunters federally qualified for subsistence. The year-long closure to other caribou hunters would begin July 1. Alaska Public Media – Young, Murkowski to do ‘double whammy’ on energy bill Alaska Congressman Don Young will…
The Weekend Off – News You Missed
Alaska The Daily Beast – The Keystone Bill’s Most Hilarious Amendment: Protecting Chicken, Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan’s (R-Alaska) first amendment as a lawmaker sent a clear message to the federal government: Nobody messes with Chicken, Alaska. Nobody. Sullivan’s amendment to the Keystone XL Pipeline bill—expected to be voted as soon as Monday— bars officials from Environmental Protection Agency from carrying guns, a direct result of a “raid” conducted in a tiny gold mining town in 2013. A town called Chicken. ADN – Alaska health department investigates possible measles case The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services is investigating a possible…
Photos from France: Je suis Charlie
Vigils and rallies are springing up all around the world in support of the murdered cartoonists at Charlie Hebdo. These stunning photos are sent to us from the south of France, Aix en Provence to be exact. Taken by Smaranda Tolosano, a photographer based in France but currently going to school in Boston. You can follow her work on Twitter, Tumblr or at her portfolio site.
UPDATE: “We are journalists, and we will continue to do what we do.”
Update [Wednesday 11pm AK Time]: A suspect placed in custody on Wednesday night has been identified as Abdelhakim Dekhar, and a DNA sample collected after the arrest matched with that collected on a crime scene. The shooter, currently hospitalized after being “in a semi-conscious state” – apparently due to medication- would have been suicidal, according to early reports. Dekhar is known to police for having been arrested in 1998 in connection to the Rey-Maupin case, and charged with criminal organization. However his arrest predated the DNA database, which didn’t allow for an immediate match. The photographer wounded during the shooting has resurfaced…