#71: MACRON'S FAR-LEFT OPPONENT WANTS A REVOLUTION TO FIGHT CLIMATE CHANGE
Spanish bishops warn about re-electing a socialist government + BBC apologizes for asking about Morocco's LGBT rights + International experts challenge child gender transition claims + MORE!
FAR-LEFT LEADER IN FRANCE SAYS REVOLUTION NECESSARY TO FIGHT CLIMATE CHANGE
Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the leader of the far-left party La France Insoumise (LFI), has urged for a radical overthrow of capitalism to avoid a climate catastrophe.
He made this statement on Tuesday, during the “People’s Summit” in Brussels, where he met with other Marxist and communist representatives from across the world.
Mélenchon argued that capitalism is “incapable of correcting itself, of controlling itself” and that it “feeds on the destruction it causes.”
He said that only a “revolutionary and subversive action” can pull humanity out of the deadlock and prevent “the continuation of an absurd system which, as Marx said, exhausts man and nature”.
He also claimed that climate change is already so “irreversible” that humanity will “enter an era of absolute uncertainty about the climate.”
Mélenchon is expected to run again in France’s next federal election. He has been a vocal critic of President Emmanuel Macron’s policies, especially on social and environmental issues.
BBC APOLOGIZES FOR ASKING MOROCCAN FOOTBALLER ABOUT LGBT RIGHTS
The BBC has apologized for asking a Moroccan footballer about the situation of gay rights in her country, where homosexuality is illegal.
The question was posed during a press conference at the World Cup, where Morocco is competing in the women’s tournament.
Ghizlane Chebbak, the captain of the Moroccan team, was asked if she had any gay players on her team and how they lived in Morocco. The BBC reporter referred to Article 489 of the Moroccan Penal Code, which bans homosexuality under the threat of prison.
The question sparked coach Reynald Pedros’ ire who accused the journalist of asking a “very political” question.”
The BBC later admitted that the question was inappropriate and that it had no intention of causing harm or distress.
“We agree that the question was inappropriate. We had no intention of causing harm or distress,” a BBC spokesperson told CNN.
SPANISH BISHOPS WARN OF RE-ELECTING SOCIALIST GOVERNMENT
The Spanish Episcopal Conference (CEE), the body that represents the Catholic bishops of Spain, has issued a document in which it criticizes the legislative projects of the Pedro Sánchez government.
In the document, the bishops claim that the government “puts freedom at risk and hinders the essential unity” of the country.
Titled “Faithful to the missionary mission”, the report was approved by the Plenary Assembly of the Spanish bishops and contains the guidelines and lines of action for the Episcopal Conference for the next four pastoral courses (2021-2025). The document was published on the CEE website on Tuesday.
“The questioning of the Constitution, the monarchy, the judiciary, together with the strong tensions for independence in the midst of an unprecedented economic crisis, fill Spanish society with concern and uncertainty. The confrontations are growing,” wrote the CEE.
“This situation is supported by the legislative initiatives of the coalition government on education, euthanasia, abortion, democratic memory, the General Council of the Judiciary, which are in line with the aforementioned deconstruction project on a global scale.”
The conference also blasted global attempts to "disassemble, specifrically, the Christian worldview.”
“It seems that there is a well-drawn script with tremendous calendar and purposes. A neo-pagan proposal emerges, remotely controlled, which seeks to build a new society, for which it is necessary to ‘deconstruct’,” wrote the CEE.
Although the conservative Popular Party came out ahead in Spain’s snap elections earlier this month, it is looking unlikely that they will have the necessary support to form government.
20 INTERNATIONAL EXPERTS CHALLENGE CHILD GENDER TRANSITIONING CLAIMS
A group of 20 doctors and researchers from nine countries has challenged the claims of the Endocrine Society, a leading international organization for endocrinology, about the benefits of gender-affirming care for children.
In an article published in the Wall Street Journal, they argue that there is a lack of scientific consensus and rigorous evidence for hormonal and surgical treatments for young people with diverse gender identities.
The Endocrine Society, which represents more than 18,000 members from over 120 countries, issued a statement on July 5 that claimed “more than 2000 studies published since 1975 form a clear picture: gender-affirming care improves the well-being of transgender and gender-diverse people and reduces the risk of suicide.”
However, the doctors and researchers who signed the article in the Wall Street Journal disputed this claim.
They said that the studies cited by the Endocrine Society are mostly observational, retrospective, and based on self-reported outcomes. They also pointed out that many of these studies have methodological flaws, such as small sample sizes, high dropout rates, and lack of control groups.
SWEDISH ARMED FORCES LOWERS PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS TO DEAL WITH RECRUITMENT CRISIS
The Swedish Armed Forces have decided to lower the physical requirements for some conscripts, according to the outlet P4 Värmland.
The move is aimed at increasing the number of young people who can join the military service, which has a goal of recruiting a thousand more conscripts by 2025.
Michael Cherinet, head of the implementation unit at the Armed Forces, told P4 Värmland that the current requirements are too high and exclude many young people who could otherwise serve in the military.
He said that the requirements will be adjusted based on the specific tasks and environments of different roles.
However, he clarified that the requirements will not be lowered for “those who have to carry heavy loads and walk long distances, for example hunting soldiers”. He said that these roles require a high level of physical fitness and endurance.
The Swedish Armed Forces reintroduced mandatory military service in 2017, after suspending it in 2010. The conscription is based on a lottery system, where eligible men and women between the ages of 18 and 29 are randomly selected to undergo an assessment.
Those who pass the assessment are then assigned to a military unit for basic training and service. The duration of the service varies from nine to 12 months.
