Maedhros

Yes...all part of our übermensch-plan. No one can withstand our blonde blue-eyed nation!! You make it seem like there's this big conspiracy to recruit future "Norwegians", but it's more about people not doing their job properly. There's nothing wrong with the guidelines, or the idea behind Barnevernet - it's just that way too many of the people who work there lack the relevant skills and education to do so. That being said, I wouldn't be surprised if barnevernet were more lenient with African immigrants. I often meet attitudes of "they don't know any better, we need to help them" in my line of work when it comes to African parents, while more is expected of our Eastern european immigrants. Maybe that could be how that "we only kidnap Norwegian-looking children" story originated. In any case, conspiracy theories like that are silly.

I'd imagine it reflects well on a country that it takes children's welfare seriously. There are other things I'm more embarrassed about when it comes to Norway. The "scandals" have led to huge discussions about how Barnevernet should be reformed, and what can be improved. There's no doubt the children's welfare institution in the country have been understaffed and lacked the competence to do their jobs properly, but the controversy is gonna lead to (hopefully) positive change, without abandoning the principle of prioritizing children's rights. One suggestion is to increase the % (from 8 to 80)of workers with Master's degree, making it obligatory to have competent people working in the sector in the long run. There have been to many social workers without proper education manning the sector. @Guard Dog Long story short...the children's welfare service here have been overly zealous in taking children away from their allegedly abusive parents. Some of the cases have been justified, some have not. Norway has stricter laws than most countries when it comes to a child's welfare (even spanking is illegal here), so that leads to more cases of potential abuse than in other countries. Norway lost several cases in European courts. Half of us think that doesn't matter because we're better equipped to deal with what's right or wrong than a court in Strasbourg, and the other half wants a huge revamp of the sector. Edit: and just for the record. You won't have your child taken away if you spank them. In 99% of the cases the Children's welfare services offer guidance and help.

No elephants poached for a whole year in African park: https://www.fauna-flora.org/news/zero-no-elephants-poached-whole-year-african-park

The government reflects the people in the country. You get the government you deserve. If you don't fight for a good government, you won't get it. I agree that it's better to have a "weak" government rather than a strong one if that's the case. My government doesn't love me, but the opportunities it gives derives from the people. The people here WANT to pay more taxes so that everyone gets the same benefits. Free healthcare, education, longer paid holidays, paid sick leave etc. If any government tried to do something about that, they'd simply lose the next election, which is why the system is intact. Even the rightwingers that has been in power now for a long time know better than to meddle with the system. Which is how it should be - the government should fear its people, not the other way around.

https://www.businessinsider.com/sen-loeffler-dumped-more-retail-stock-in-new-disclosures-coronavirus-2020-4?r=US&IR=T Is this not insider trading? Why do I have a feeling nothing's gonna happen here?

Watched the Castlevania series on Netflix. Pretty entertaining, if you can force your brain not to care too much about the dumb stuff.

Trump doesn't want voting to be easy: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/mar/30/trump-republican-party-voting-reform-coronavirus

You could also flip it around. Cowardice is when fear prevents you from making a decision, but he went through with it. A coward wouldn't have the guts to kill themselves. But that's also a simplification. Generally I don't believe it's either brave or cowardly, it's usually just a result of mental illness. People killing themselves often think they're doing the ones around them a favour, or that people won't care that they're gone. Can't speak for this case in particular as I didn't read the article. -- Going to be interesting to see the results in Sweden. They seem to be hinging it all on Tegnell's strategy.

The importance of (great) music.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-says-he-told-mike-pence-to-ignore-governors-in-hard-hit-areas-if-they-are-not-appreciative?ref=home Be appreciative, and don't complain - or you won't get any help.

Ozon layer repairing itself: https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/as-ozone-layer-repairs-itself-global-wind-trends-are-reversing/

https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/03/25/sanders-demands-trump-rescind-truly-outrageous-decision-hand-gilead-exclusive-rights?cd-origin=rss I'm with Sanders here. Incidentally, Joseph Grogan, member of the Coronavirus task force, was "Head of Federal Affairs" for Gilead Sciences 2011-2017. Draining the swamp!

Governments should not pay a dime to companies who do huge shareholder payouts in these times.

I laughed out loud at the guy asking about recess all the time.

Yeah Nynaeve actually gets better along the way, and is even somewhat sympathetic. Two predictions: 1. Rosamund Pike will do well as Moiraine. 2. They'll misunderstand what makes Mat funny, and make him into a generic comic relief character with "funny" oneliners all the time (and people will love it).

https://www.businessinsider.com/aoc-burr-resign-sold-stock-before-markets-fell-coronavirus-2020-3?r=US&IR=T What a crook. Unsurprisingly he was one of the few to vote nay on the Stock Act back in 2012: https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=112&session=2&vote=00014

Spending a lot of time with my son due to the virus (kindergartens are closed). Watched My Neighbour Totoro with him, which we both liked. I love that Netflix added so many Miyazaki-films.

475 new deaths reported in Italy today, deadliest day there so far https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/world/italy-reports-475-new-coronavirus-deaths-highest-one-day-toll-12553828 -- Interesting interview with Tucker Carlson (who apparently is the reason why Trump takes this seriously now?) https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/03/tucker-carlson-on-how-he-brought-coronavirus-message-to-mar-a-lago

Warning given to Norwegian students abroad. Thought this was pretty funny, although it's wrong. The US has great health services. if you can afford it Also

Which ones did you like the most? I've seen Spirited Away, Mononoke, Howl's Moving Castle and Kiki's Delivery Service. Liked them all, and in that order pretty much.

Why does having a welfare state mean government gets more powerful? I just don't see the correlation. Again, the most democratic countries in this world are countries with strong welfare systems in place. A government should serve its people. Not just a minor % of it that happens to be rich. As for your last point, that sounds better than the system you have now - but I'd still argue that free(ish) healthcare should simply be a human right in a modern country. We can afford it.

We need reasonable conservatives tempering the fire of those who want to change too much too fast, but this is pretty defeatist stuff. Let's never progress because we might step wrong? The most democratic countres in the world are welfare states with "free stuff": https://www.eiu.com/topic/democracy-index I don't think the US would have more issues with authoritarianism if it built a more functional welfare state for the people (whereas now "socialism" over there only seems to apply for the rich). It's weird for me that you worry about "collectivist authoritarianism" when it's something very different that plagues the US, with inequality begetting more inequality, and your country moving more and more towards becoming an oligarchy. The fact that Bloomberg could buy himself into the fold so easily says much. But we'll never agree on this!

Like the article says - Denmark, not Cuba. It's fully possible to have good welfare systems without abandoning democracy or capitalism. If anything, I think helping the lower and middle class economically would indirectly give less power to the government and more power to the people.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-election/bear-attack-allena-hansen-face-bernie-sanders-healthcare-insurance-2020-election-super-tuesday-a9370156.html "Literally, as I was being eaten by a wild beast, I wasn't thinking about Jesus or my family or my son. I was thinking my insurance was not going to pay for this,"

"Just pull yourself together"- success stories are nice and all, but as you say, you can do everything right and still not get the outcome you hope for. The state's job is to maximise the chance of positive outcomes. Edit: @Guard Dog