Hanoi’s Authorities Begin Enforcing Closure Of Train Track Coffee Shops
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2022
Vietnam News
Since Thursday, Barriers And Warning Signs In Both Vietnamese And English Have Been Erected And Police Officers Have Been Deployed To Enforce The Closure Of The Famous Train Street In Downtown Hanoi.
Tourists seeking the unique sight are also turned away.
Hoan Kiem District says it will close and revoke the licences of all coffee shops lining the rail line by September 17 over safety concerns.
Some sections of track along the Ha Noi-Dong Dang railway line, where trains pass close to residential houses, have been popular with foreign tourists for many years. However, the spot’s popularity also poses a major safety hazard.
The warning sign is available in both Vietnamese and English.
The move has received understanding from most people.
Nguyen Thi Huong, a resident in Dien Bien Phu District, thinks it’s a good idea and welcomes the move to improve safety.
She said: “When the coffee shops are open, this railway is packed with people, including foreigners and locals, especially when the train is coming. They stand beside the railway line, and I have to stop them from gathering around to prevent any accidents caused by the trains.
Student Do Dinh Vu agreed: “I usually come here to have a cup of coffee. However, I think it is necessary to ban coffee shops here because the pavement is very small, and some people even sit on the railway, which is very dangerous for them when there’s a train.”
The once crowded area has become deserted following the closure order.
While many tourists who came to take photos and videos of the famous cafe were quite disappointed, Australian Jamie Williams doesn’t think it will affect tourism much in the long run.
She said: “I think the closure of the coffee shops will impact tourism a little bit, but I don’t think it will be a huge countrywide.”
The street was ordered to close in late 2019, but after Vietnam reopened in March this year following two years of border closure, the coffee shops opened too and foreign tourists have been flocking to ‘train street’ once more.
“It Felt Like Star Wars”; World’s First Flying Bike Makes US Debut
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2022
The Future Was On Full Display, Soaring Above The Ground At The Detroit Auto Show Thursday, With The World’s First Flying Bike Making Its United States Debut.
Japanese startup AERWINS Technologies created the XTURISMO hoverbike, a vehicle capable of flying for 40 minutes and reaching speeds of up to 62 miles per hour.
“I feel like I’m literally 15 years old and I just got out of Star Wars and jumped on their bike,” said Thad Szott, co-chair of the Motor City’s auto show and one of the first Americans to take a test drive on the XTURISMO hoverbike. “I mean, it’s awesome! Of course, you have a little apprehension, but I was just so amped. I literally had goosebumps and feel like a little kid.”
Shuhei Komatsu, founder and CEO of AERWINS Technologies, says the company started out making drones and unmanned aerial vehicles.
The hoverbike is already on sale in Japan. Komatsu said plans are underway to sell a smaller version of the XTURISMO hoverbike in the U.S. in 2023.
The estimated price for the American version is $777,000.
Komatsu said the company hopes to get the cost down to $50,000 for a smaller, electric model by 2025.
AERWIN technologies representatives say the company also plans to go public and will make a stock offering on the NASDAQ exchange in November.
Being The New Princess Of Wales – A Look At Kate In Her New Role
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2022
Kate Middleton, Wife Of The New Heir To The Throne Prince William, Has Grown From A Commoner Who Captivated The Future Monarch To The Beating Heart Of The British Royal Family, As It Faces A Future Without The Beloved Queen At Its Helm.
Born Catherine Middleton, the eldest of three children of middle-class, self-made entrepreneurs is now the Princess of Wales, a title last held by William’s late mother Diana whose celebrity power and charity work eclipsed the royals around her.
Kate, by contrast, has kept a lower profile, fulfilling an increasingly busy diary of royal engagements quietly and without controversy while also earning a reputation as a global fashion icon who regularly graces the front pages of glossy magazines.
Comparisons with Diana, whose oval sapphire and diamond engagement ring Kate now wears, will be inevitable, but commentators, aides and William himself say she will not try to emulate her famous predecessor.
“I think that now that Catherine has the same title that Diana had, Princess of Wales, there’ll be all kinds of comparisons. It’s a different age, a different time…I think Catherine will do her own thing,” said royal biographer, Andrew Morton.
“Both, of course, were beautiful and are beautiful, glamourous women. Both were and are women that are aware of their position and how they can use their position to affect change for the causes that they espouse. You’ve seen that with Catherine and early learning, saw it with Diana and AIDS and landmines,” he added.
Her combination of glamour and hard graft has contributed to the popularity of the 40-year-old, who, along with William, is now regarded by Britons as the modern face of the 1,000-year-old institution that thrived for decades under the late queen.
“I think Catherine is someone who has instinctively understood that becoming a member of the royal family is a long game, it doesn’t happen overnight, and she spent many years adapting herself to life inside the royal family. I think that when you compare her behaviour today with her behaviour in the past, she’s far more self-assured, far more articulate, and far more aware of her position than she was at the beginning when she was rather nervous, understandably, and rather shy. he’s someone who has, as it were, grown into the cloak of monarchy and grown into the cloak of being a princess, and now she will grow into the position of being Princess of Wales,” Morton said.
While comparisons with Diana abound, commentators say Kate does things her own way. Ironically, if she looks for a role model now, it may be Camilla, Charles’s second wife and now Queen Consort who Diana blamed for the break-up of their marriage.
Pope Says Supplying Weapons To Ukraine Is Morally Acceptable For Self-Defence
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2022
Pope Francis On Thursday Said It Was Morally Legitimate For Nations To Supply Weapons To Ukraine To Help The Country Defend Itself From Russian Aggression.
Speaking to reporters aboard a plane returning from a three-day trip to Kazakhstan, Francis also urged Kyiv to be open to eventual dialogue, even though it may “stink,” because it would be difficult for the Ukrainian side.
The war in Ukraine, which Russia invaded on February 24, provided the backdrop to the pope’s visit to Kazakhstan, where he attended a congress of religious leaders from around the world.
In a 45-minute-long airborne news conference, a reporter asked if it was morally right for countries to send weapons to Ukraine.
He expounded on the Roman Catholic Church’s “Just War” principles, which allow for the proportional use of deadly weapons for self-defence against an aggressor nation.
Explaining the difference between when it is moral or immoral to supply weapons to another country, Francis said:
“It can be immoral if the intention is provoking more war, or to sell arms or dump arms that (a country) no longer needs… Defending yourself is not only something licit, but it is also an expression of love for your country,” he said.
The pope, who for the second time on an international trip sat through the news conference instead of standing because of a lingering knee ailment, was asked whether Ukraine should negotiate with the country that invaded it and if there was a “red line” Ukraine should draw, depending on Russian activities, after which it could refuse to negotiate.
“I don’t exclude dialogue with any power that is in war, even if it’s the aggressor. It stinks, but you have to do it” he said.
The pope used the Italian word “puzza” (smell or stink), colloquially equivalent to the English “holding your nose” to describe doing something one would prefer not to do.
“It (dialogue) is always a step forward, with an outstretched hand, always,” Francis said.
World Bank Predicts Rising Risk Of Global Recession In 2023 Amid Simultaneous Rate Hikes
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2022
THE NATION
The World Bank On Thursday Said The World May Be Edging Toward A Global Recession In 2023 And A String Of Financial Crises In Emerging Market And Developing Economies That Would Do Them Lasting Harm, As Central Banks Across The World Simultaneously Hike Interest Rates In Response To Inflation.
The bank cited its latest study that highlights need for policies to curb inflation without exacerbating recession risk.
Central banks around the world have been raising interest rates this year with a degree of synchronicity not seen over the past five decades—a trend that is likely to continue well into next year, according to the report. Yet the currently expected trajectory of interest-rate increases and other policy actions may not be sufficient to bring global inflation back down to levels seen before the pandemic. Investors expect central banks to raise global monetary-policy rates to almost 4 percent through 2023—an increase of more than 2 percentage points over their 2021 average.
Unless supply disruptions and labor-market pressures subside, those interest-rate increases could leave the global core inflation rate (excluding energy) at about 5 percent in 2023—nearly double the five-year average before the pandemic, the study finds. To cut global inflation to a rate consistent with their targets, central banks may need to raise interest rates by an additional 2 percentage points, according to the report’s model. If this were accompanied by financial-market stress, global GDP growth would slow to 0.5 percent in 2023—a 0.4 percent contraction in per–capita terms that would meet the technical definition of a global recession.
“Global growth is slowing sharply, with further slowing likely as more countries fall into recession. My deep concern is that these trends will persist, with long-lasting consequences that are devastating for people in emerging market and developing economies,” said World Bank Group President David Malpass. “To achieve low inflation rates, currency stability and faster growth, policymakers could shift their focus from reducing consumption to boosting production. Policies should seek to generate additional investment and improve productivity and capital allocation, which are critical for growth and poverty reduction.”
The study highlights the unusually fraught circumstances under which central banks are fighting inflation today. Several historical indicators of global recessions are already flashing warnings. The global economy is now in its steepest slowdown following a post-recession recovery since 1970. Global consumer confidence has already suffered a much sharper decline than in the run-up to previous global recessions. The world’s three largest economies—the United States, China, and the euro area—have been slowing sharply. Under the circumstances, even a moderate hit to the global economy over the next year could tip it into recession.
The study relies on insights from previous global recessions to analyze the recent evolution of economic activity and presents scenarios for 2022–24. A slowdown—such that the one now underway—typically calls for countercyclical policy to support activity. However, the threat of inflation and limited fiscal space are spurring policymakers in many countries to withdraw policy support even as the global economy slows sharply.
The experience of the 1970s, the policy responses to the 1975 global recession, the subsequent period of stagflation, and the global recession of 1982 illustrate the risk of allowing inflation to remain elevated for long while growth is weak. The 1982 global recession coincided with the second-lowest growth rate in developing economies over the past five decades, second only to 2020. It triggered more than 40 debt crises] and was followed by a decade of lost growth in many developing economies.
“Recent tightening of monetary and fiscal policies will likely prove helpful in reducing inflation,” said Ayhan Kose, the World Bank’s Acting Vice President for Equitable Growth, Finance, and Institutions. “But because they are highly synchronous across countries, they could be mutually compounding in tightening financial conditions and steepening the global growth slowdown. Policymakers in emerging market and developing economies need to stand ready to manage the potential spillovers from globally synchronous tightening of policies.”
Central banks should persist in their efforts to control inflation—and it can be done without touching off a global recession, the study finds. But it will require concerted action by a variety of policymakers:
– Central banks must communicate policy decisions clearly while safeguarding their independence. This could help anchor inflation expectations and reduce the degree of tightening needed. In advanced economies, central banks should keep in mind the cross-border spillover effects of monetary tightening. In emerging market and developing economies, they should strengthen macroprudential regulations and build foreign-exchange reserves.
– Fiscal authorities will need to carefully calibrate the withdrawal of fiscal support measures while ensuring consistency with monetary-policy objectives. The fraction of countries tightening fiscal policies next year is expected to reach its highest level since the early 1990s. This could amplify the effects of monetary policy on growth. Policymakers should also put in place credible medium-term fiscal plans and provide targeted relief to vulnerable households.
– Other economic policymakers will need to join in the fight against inflation—particularly by taking strong steps to boost global supply. These include:
o Easing labor-market constraints. Policy measures need to help increase labor-force participation and reduce price pressures. Labor-market policies can facilitate the reallocation of displaced workers.
o Boosting the global supply of commodities. Global coordination can go a long way in increasing food and energy supply. For energy commodities, policymakers should accelerate the transition to low–carbon energy sources and introduce measures to reduce energy consumption.
o Strengthening global trade networks. Policymakers should cooperate to alleviate global supply bottlenecks. They should support a rules-based international economic order, one that guards against the threat of protectionism and fragmentation that could further disrupt trade networks.
Poundbury Suburb Showcases King Charles’s Vision Of British Life
THU, SEPTEMBER 15, 2022
Anyone Seeking Insights Into The Values Of King Charles, Who As Prince Caused Controversy By Expressing Strong Opinions And Sometimes Seeking To Act On Them, Can Head To The Quaint Urban Development Of Poundbury, His Pet Project.
An extension to the town of Dorchester in southwest England, the community was designed according to his architectural principles and demonstrates how different his approach to public life has been from that of his mother, Queen Elizabeth, who died on September 8, aged 96.
The late queen gave little away about her opinions and preferences and was careful to avoid controversy.
As Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall, Charles shared his views on subjects that interest him such as architecture, environmental protection and alternative medicine.
He signalled in his first address as king last week that he would be more reserved from now on, but Poundbury stands as a physical, populated testimonial to his lifelong passions.
The land on which Poundbury is built is part of the Duchy of Cornwall.
As Duke of Cornwall before ascending to the throne, Charles owned the land, so when it was designated for the expansion of Dorchester, Charles saw an opportunity to put his ideas about architecture into practice, commissioning architects and developers to realise his vision.
“I was told it was completely uneconomic. So everybody was against it, from the Treasury to everybody else,” Charles told an ITV documentary in 2019.
“In the end, I was determined to stick to my guns. I got on regardless of the endless criticism and carping and shouting and screaming. Because I’ve always believed in the long term.”
Critics say that with its lack of road signs and oddly curved streets, Poundbury is more like a toy town than a real place, betraying an amateurish approach.
But others admire Charles for sticking to his convictions and facing down naysayers for over 30 years, to create a community that is popular with its roughly 4,500 residents and attractive to newcomers.
Construction of Poundbury began in 1993 after Prince Charles had set out his ideas in the 1989 picture book “A Vision of Britain: A Personal View of Architecture”.
He expressed his preference for “buildings that have grown out of our architectural tradition and that are in harmony with nature,” deriding post-war architecture and modern urban planning for its “sheer unadulterated ugliness and mediocrity.”
A single road sign, indicating that roundabout rules apply to the area around a statue of Charles’s maternal grandmother, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, is the one concession made to traffic signage.
Along with the wonky roads, the absence of signs is supposed to force drivers to slow down and give way to pedestrians.
The unusual approach to traffic management, along with the variety of building styles that draw on different aspects of Britain’s architectural heritage, contribute to Poundbury’s distinctive look.
Businesses are integrated into the design, with about 2,500 jobs in shops, cafes, offices and factories.
A local chocolate maker is among the development’s success stories.
For a time, a cereal manufacturer clogged up the genteel streets with lorries, but it has since moved.
Despite initial scepticism, locals are warming to Poundbury, said 64-year-old Chris Moyle, from nearby Weymouth, whose mother is considering moving to the development.
Rising house prices show Poundbury’s appeal, though critics say it is unaffordable for many people.
The average property price in Poundbury over the last year was over 400,000 pounds ($463,000), according to property website Rightmove.
The Duchy of Cornwall office which manages the development says it meets official targets for social housing.
Local councillor Richard Biggs said the Poundbury has a “Marmite effect” on most people, referring to a famously divisive yeast spread that people tend to either love or hate.
Biggs told Reuters that while some things have “worked brilliantly” others have been less effective as the vision of the king and the architect’s clashes with planning rules and restrictions.
With Charles becoming king, his son William now succeeded him as Duke of Cornwall and comes into possession of the land.
William has not shown the same interest in architecture previously, and planners expect no interference from him as the building continues.
Poundbury’s former estate director, Simon Conibear, said that despite small modifications to the original plan, the development was on course to being completed while upholding the king’s original principles.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr Has Approved The Import Of Up To 150,000 Metric Tonnes (MT) Of Sugar To Address A Shortage Of Supply And Curb Rising Prices In The Philippines.
Half of the total import, or 75,000 MT, would be allocated to industrial users or companies using sugar in their manufacturing process, while the other half would be given to consumers or the market, according to the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) website.
“After due consultation, stakeholders in the sugar industry have submitted their respective positions and letters of endorsement recognising the need for an importation programme for crop year 2022 to 2023,” an order signed by Marcos and other Department of Agriculture and SRA officials dated September 13 said.
Before the order, there were controversies involving sugar imports after the president stopped the SRA’s Sugar Order No 4, which was signed on his behalf and mandated the import of 300,000 MT of sugar amid an impending shortage.
Marcos contradicted the order, saying that while there may be a need to import sugar, it would definitely be lower than 300,000 MT. The current administration has vowed to investigate the issue, saying Department of Agriculture undersecretary for Operations Leocadio Sebastian and other DA and SRA officials who signed Sugar Order No 4 are under investigation.
Panels in both the House of Representatives and the Senate are currently investigating the issue. After the revelation of an attempt to import sugar, there have been assessments that the shortage may be artificial, considering that some inspections have shown sugar being stocked in warehouses.
Also, a cargo vessel carrying imported sugar was stopped by the Bureau of Customs at a Subic port due to allegations that the import documents presented were merely recycled.
The Malacañang Palace said “heads may roll” at the bureau after a possible “attempt to smuggle over 7,000 metric tonnes of sugar into the country”.
With India’s Recent Rice Export Restrictions, Vietnamese Exporters Expect To Increase Shipments And Hike Prices, Industry Insiders Have Said.
Nguyen Quang Hoa, director of Duong Vu Co Ltd (Long An Province), said India has imposed a 20 per cent export tax on the grain and banned shipments of broken rice to soften domestic prices following a significant decline in production due to a poor monsoon.
The move would affect the global market for one of the most commonly eaten staple foods amid a surge in commodity prices following the prolonged Russia-Ukraine conflict.
It would also encourage buyers to shift to rivals such as Vietnam and Thailand, which have been struggling to increase exports and prices, he said.
“Vietnamese rice exporters are holding off on deals, expecting the price to rise.”
Nguyen Van Don, director of Viet Hung Co Ltd (Tien Giang Province), said the prices of rice of all kinds have already gone up by an average of VNĐ300 per kilo compared to before the Indian restrictions.
Nguyen Van Hieu, export director of Loc Troi Group, said shipments of the grain are also expected to increase in the remaining months’ thanks largely to high demand from countries such as the Philippines, China and the EU.
The prolonged Russia-Ukraine conflict has led to a shortage of wheat and escalating food prices in the EU. European and South American countries are also in the midst of production difficulties.
To make up for this shortfall, European countries are likely to buy rice from Vietnam and other rice producers, according to Hiếu.
Nguyen Dang Nghia, director of the Southern Centre for Soil Fertiliser and Environmental Research, said global demand for rice is set to keep rising this year.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien said Vietnam is expected to export 6.5- 6.7 million tonnes in 2022 for $3.3 billion.
Buyers shift to Viet Nam
B.V. Krishna Rao, president of the All India Rice Exporters Association, has been quoted by Reuters as saying: “The [export] duty will affect white and brown rice, which account for more than 60 per cent of India’s exports.
“With this duty, Indian rice shipments will become uncompetitive. Buyers will shift to Vietnam and Thailand.”
India accounts for more than 40 per cent of global rice exports and competes with Vietnam, Thailand, Pakistan, and Myanmar in the global market.
Its exports hit a record 21.5 million tonnes last year, more than the combined volumes of the next four largest exporters, Thailand, Vietnam, Pakistan, and the US.
Vijay Setia, former president of the All India Rice Exporters Association, told the Indian Express newspaper, “A 20 per cent duty is not going to render Indian rice uncompetitive.”
He said India currently exports 5 per cent broken white rice for $340 a tonne (as compared to $380 for Pakistan, $395 for Vietnam and $430 for Thailand).
India exports rice to more than 150 countries, and so any reduction in shipments by it would increase food prices, which are already too high due to drought, heat waves and the Russia- Ukraine conflict.
Ukraine and Russia are also two major suppliers of wheat, whose global prices have risen substantially recently.
In its August report, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) lowered its global rice production forecast for the 2022-23 crop to 512.4 million tonnes, down 2.3 million tonnes from its original forecast and 1.2 million tonnes compared to the previous crop.
But it increased projections for global consumption following the crop by up more than two million tonnes.
Hero Dog’s Death Reignites Debates On Animal Cruelty
THU, SEPTEMBER 15, 2022
With Rising Awareness Of Animal Rights In South Korea, There Has Been A Series Of Efforts To Cover The Legal And Systematic Blind Spots Concerning Cruelty Against Animals.
Boksun was once hailed as a hero for helping save her owner while he was experiencing a stroke three years ago.
Last month, she was found bleeding heavily at her home in Jeongeup, North Jeolla Province, having been brutally injured by an abuser. Her owner took her to a vet, but after learning about the hefty medical costs, gave up on saving her. She was later found dead inside a refrigerator of a dog meat restaurant.
The tragic story of Boksun, made public by a local animal rights group, raised some hard questions about how South Korea treats animals. Between animal cruelty and the dog meat trade to a money-spinning pet industry and an ever-growing number of households living with pets, where does the country really stand?
Animal abuse rising but rarely punished
Last week, the Beagle Rescue Network, which reported Boksun’s case to the public, asked police to investigate the initial attacker as well as the dog’s owner for animal abuse. It said that the unidentified owner, too, should be held responsible for the dog’s death, claiming that the person handed over Boksun, who was still alive, to a dog meat trader. The dog owner refuted the claim, saying Boksun was already dead by that time.
The debate over the owner’s liability aside, animal abusers in South Korea often get away with fines, if ever convicted, although the Animal Protection Act prescribes maximum three-year imprisonment for animal cruelty.
According to data obtained by the office of Rep. Song Ki-hun of the opposition Democratic Party of Korea, only 2.9 per cent of a total of 4,221 persons accused of abusing animals between 2017 and March this year were indicted for a full trial.
About 47 per cent did not face any criminal charges at all, while 32 per cent of the accused were subjected to a summary judgement – a procedure in which the court, without a full trial, rules on a case of simple or minor subject matter typically resulting in a fine or penalty.
Of the 346 who have received any form of punishment, nearly 60 per cent received fines. Only 5.5 per cent, or 19 persons, were given a jail sentence.
Under the current law, a person who kills an animal via abuse can be punished with up three years in prison or 30 million won ($21,581) in fines.
“There has been a significant improvement in public awareness of animal rights and protection but the court hasn’t caught up with the change,” Rep. Song said.
National Police Agency data released by the office of Rep. Lee Myeong-soo of the ruling People Power Party shows animal abuse cases have grown sharply in recent years.
In 2011, there were 98 violations of the animal protection law, but the number rose to 398 in 2017 and 992 in 2020.
In July, police nabbed two men suspected of operating an open chat room sharing photos and videos of violence against animals, wrapping up a four-month investigation. The case was dubbed the “animal Nth Room case,” in reference to the infamous digital sexual exploitation crime that took place on open mobile and online chat rooms.
“An increase in animal cruelty is becoming a severe social issue. Such acts (against animals) must be stopped, particularly since there is a real risk that such violent acts could target not only animals but also humans,” Rep. Lee said.
Why do people abuse animals?
With an increase of harrowing cases of animal cruelty popping up in the news, there have been efforts to understand the psychology of animal abusers. Some experts in criminal psychology point to similarities between animal abusers and violent criminals, as both groups of people, lack empathy toward their victims.
Song Byung-ho, the head of the Korean Association of Criminal Psychology, pointed out that varying levels of antisocial personality disorder can be observed in animal abusers, such as a lack of empathy toward other beings and being unable to restrain one’s urge for violence.
“If (animal abusers) are unable to satiate the stimulus they desire through abusing animals, there is a substantial possibility that they might target humans, particularly those who are relatively weak like women or children,” Song said.
Lee Soo-jung, a forensic psychology professor at Kyonggi University, also pointed out the relatively high correlation between violent crimes and animal abuse.
Some of Korea’s worst criminals were found to have abused animals in the past. Infamous serial killer Yoo Young-chul, sentenced to death for killing 20 people from 2003 to 2004, stabbed or struck dogs to death prior to going on his killing spree.
This Aug.26 photo provided by the Jeju City shows an operation on a dog who was found with an arrow piercing out of his body. (Yonhap)
Serial killer Kang Ho-sun, who is on death row for taking the lives of 10 people, reportedly killed dogs that he raised between 2003 and 2006, mostly via cruel means. “Killing dogs made me less sensitive toward killing, and I couldn’t resist the urge to kill,” he was quoted as saying during his trial.
There have been studies across the world about the connection between violence against animals and against humans. A 2008 report from the Michigan State University College of Law pointed out a correlation between animal abuse, family violence, and other forms of community violence.
“Cruelty to animals can be a warning sign of future violent behaviour. A child’s aggressive, abusive behaviour towards animals may predict later violence towards people,” the paper said, adding that a child abusing an animal can be considered a red flag in identifying other violent behaviours. Researchers noted how the Federal Bureau of Investigation considers past animal abuse when profiling serial killers.
John Douglas, a retired criminal profiler for the FBI, was quoted as saying that sadistic behaviour toward animals is among the major similarities shared by many serial killers and that the biggest indicator of future crimes was animal cruelty and torturing. He wrote in his book “Mindhunter: Inside the FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit” that many serial killers’ earliest acts of violence are often torture and/or killing of animals.
Animals are not property
With rising awareness of animal rights in Korea, there has been a series of efforts to cover the legal and systematic blind spots concerning cruelty against animals. While there are various issues on multiple fronts being discussed, animal rights groups have zeroed in on the nation’s Civil Act, which recognizes animals merely as the property of the owner, as the most fundamental problem.
For instance, because animals are just objects, a person who kills someone else’s pet is mandated to compensate for the purchasing price of said animal, just like a neighbour compensating for a broken window.
To address this problem, there is an ongoing legislative procedure to give animals a legal status, by adding the clause “animals are not property” in the Civil Act. If enacted, this will mark a symbolic breakthrough in the promotion of animal rights, although legal experts stress that revisions of other related clauses need to take place for it to be effective.
For example, being compensated for the psychological wounds suffered after losing a pet due to another person’s abuse is expected to be much easier, compared to when pets are legally defined as property.
A flurry of talks is currently underway on related issues.
The Justice Ministry said it was mulling a revision of the clause that will exclude animals from forcible seizures of properties. Rep. Shin Jung-hoon of the main opposition Democratic Party proposed a revision bill on the same matter in July. Other possible revisions include expanding the legal definition of pets, which now only refers to dogs, cats, rabbits, ferrets, guinea pigs and hamsters.
“Civic Act is a basic law that can be the foundation to revise other laws. For example, efforts to exclude pets from items that can be forcibly seizure of properties by the court had been thwarted in the past, because it conflicted with the current Civic Act (that recognizes animals as property),” lawyer Jo Hae-in of the Korean Animal Welfare Association was quoted as saying. “Procuring animal rights doesn’t end with revising the Civic Act, but begins with it.”
A revision of the Animal Protection Act will take effect on April 27, 2023, which will introduce heavier punishments to animal cruelty offenders.
Neglecting a pet which results in its death would be punishable by the same penalty as killing an animal via abuse — maximum three-year imprisonment.
The new law will also ban convicted animal abusers from having pets and mandate the regional governments to confiscate and care for pets whose owners have been forfeited by the owners.
Biden Announces Funds For EV Charging Stations In 35 States
THU, SEPTEMBER 15, 2022
President Joe Biden Took A Victory Lap On Wednesday At The Detroit Auto Show, Highlighting Automakers’ Increasing Shift To Electric Vehicles And Billions Of Dollars In New Investments In Battery Plants.
During a speech, Biden announced the approval of the first $900 million in U.S. funding to build EV charging stations in 35 states as part of a $1 trillion infrastructure law approved last November.
Detroit’s Big Three automakers are showing off a number of new EVs at the car show. The U.S. Congress and Biden, a self-described “car guy,” have pledged tens of billions of dollars in loans, manufacturing and consumer tax credits and grants to speed the transition away from internal combustion vehicles to cleaner EVs.
Still, gasoline-powered vehicles, like the V-8 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Biden got on, are well-represented at the exhibition.
A significant majority of new vehicles sold by the Detroit Three are still gas-powered models and Tesla dominates the U.S. electric vehicle market and outsells the Detroit Three automakers combined on EVs.
White House National Climate Adviser Ali Zaidi told Reuters automakers and battery firms in 2022 have announced “$13 billion into EV manufacturing” as they accelerate “the pace of their investment into capital projects here in the United States.”
In August 2021, Biden set a goal that EVs or plug-in hybrid vehicles represent 50% of all U.S. new vehicle sales by 2030.
The Detroit Three back the nonbinding goal of 50%.
The trip to the Detroit auto show, the largest such event in North America, is part of stepped-up travel in advance of the midterm elections to highlight his party’s agenda. Democrat Biden sought to refocus voter attention on the strides the nation is making in the transition to electric vehicles under his leadership and the role unions will play in the industry’s future.
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