Nature’s Diversity is Captured in Minuscule Detail in the 2022 Close-Up Photographer of the Year Competition | Colossal

from thefreeomline on January 9, 2023 via agogo22 by KATE MOTHES at Colossal shared with thanks

Now in its fourth year, the competition attracted more than 9,000 entries in nine categories from 54 countries.

Nathan Benstead, “Hemitrichia calyculata,” Young Category Winner. All images © the photographers and Close-Up Photographer of the Year

Among the winning images of the Close-Up Photographer of the Year contest, frilly slime mold stems from leaves, elegant insects splay colorful wings, and microscopic patterns create vivid abstractions. Now in its fourth year, the competition attracted more than 9,000 entries from 54 countries.

Samantha Stephens, “Nature’s Pitfall,” Overall Winner and Animals Category Winner

The overall winner of this year’s competition was captured by Samantha Stephens and glimpses two tiny amphibians trapped inside a carnivorous plant. She explains, “Typically, these plants feast on invertebrates such as moths and flies, but recently, researchers at the Algonquin Wildlife Research Station discovered a surprising new item on the plant’s menu: juvenile Spotted Salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum).” It was a timely capture; by the following day, the creatures had sunk to the bottom of the pitcher.

See some more of our favorite captures below, and visit the contest’s website to view the Top 100 photographs of the year.

Viktor Lyagushkin, “Little Predator,” Underwater First Place

Mutulu Shakur Freed after 37 yrs! – Home with Family! – NYC Black Cross show his Film Dope is Death 0n Jan 21st-

from thefreeonline by NYC Anarchist Black Cross and Moguldom Newsletter on 8 January 2023

Tupac Shakur (2PAC)and his stepfather Dr. Mutulu Shakur, now freed at last

Dr. Shakur has finally been released on December 16, 2022 from federal prison after serving 37 years.

From Family & Friends of Mutulu Shakur:
Today, the morning of December 16th, 2022, Dr. Mutulu Shakur was released from prison on parole!

The decision to grant parole is based on federal law guidelines for “old law” prisoners, finding that Dr. Shakur poses no threat to the community, taking into consideration his exemplary conduct in prison, his medical condition and how much time he has served.

Mutulu is now with his family. This victory was secured by the steadfast support of his legal team, his family and his community comprised of all of you.

Family & Friends of Mutulu Shakur/(FFMS) is greatly appreciative of everyone’s support over the course of Mutulu’s decades in prison. We ask that everyone respect Dr. Shakur’s privacy while he spends the holidays with his family and concentrates on his health and healing.

Support Dr. Mutulu as he adjusts to life on the outside by donating to his support crew directly.

Letters and packages may be sent to:
Dr. Mutulu Shakur c/o
Hirano Acupuncture Clinic
1139 North Brand Boulevard, Unit B
Glendale, California 91202

https://dopeisdeath.com/ The Podcast

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BK/NY – Saturday, January 21st 2023 – Dope is Death film screening

Join NYC Anarchist Black Cross for our first installment of a winter film series. We’re starting off with a screening of Dope is Death, the 2020 documentary.

WHAT: Dope is Death film screening
WHEN: Saturday, January 21, 2023 at 8pm
WHERE: P.I.T. Brooklyn – 411 South 5th Street, Brooklyn, New York 11211 (Directions below)
COST: Free, but we will have information to donate to Mutulu Shakur’s release campaign

From IMDB: In 1973, Dr. Mutulu Shakur, along with fellow Black Panthers and the Young Lords, combined community health with radical politics to create the first acupuncture detoxification program in America.

This form of radical harm reduction was a revolutionary act toward the government programs that transfixed the lives of black and brown communities throughout the South Bronx.

Dope is Death utilizes an abundant archive while giving us insight into how the acupuncture clinic rose to prominence and, despite funding challenges, still functions to this day.

Some of those who benefited from the program became acupuncturists themselves. Dr. Mutulu’s legacy is cemented within this profound story of community healing and activism.

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10 Things To Know About Mutulu Shakur, Tupac’s Stepfather

by Ann Brown Nov 25, 2019 on Moguldom Newsletter

You may have heard of Mutulu Shakur because he was the stepfather to iconic rapper 2Pac. But there’s a lot more to Shakur’s story than that.

Yemen’s Ansarullah says will strike deep inside Saudi Arabia, UAE as no option left

from thefreeonline on 8 January 2023 UPROOTED PALESTINIANS via presstv.ir

Yemen’s Ansarullah resistance movement says the Saudi-led coalition has exploited a UN-sponsored truce to tighten the brutal blockade against the war-wracked country, stressing that it won’t allow the status quo to persist, and will inevitably launch missile strikes against the Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Troops from various units of the Yemeni Armed Forces participate in a massive military parade in the capital Sana’a, on September 21, 2022,

Ansarullah announced in a statement that even with the six-month truce that expired on October 2 last year and two rounds of negotiations to extend the ceasefire and lift the blockade on commercial airports and entry ports, the Riyadh-led alliance reneged on the terms of the ceasefire and did not honor previous agreements.

Nearly 2 years after Biden promised to End all American support for offensive operations in the war in Yemen, including relevant arms sales, his administration has yet to detail what forms of support the U.S. has cut off. Biden made the commitment in a February 2021 address

“The Saudi-led coalition’s main goal out of the truce was to stop the Houthi Ansarullah forces from carrying out retaliatory military operations against targets deep inside Saudi Arabia. Moreover, the crippling sea, land and air blockade on Yemen has created a humanitarian disaster in the country,” the statement read.

2022/12/30 In act of piracy, Saudi Arabia seizes 4 fuel ships bound for Yemen’s Hudaydah

Ansarullah described the famine and siege as criminal and cruel strategies of the Saudi-led coalition against Yemen, arguing that the practice amounts to mass murder under the United Nations Charter and principles.

Number of Germans Rejecting Military Service skyrockets – media – NO MORE WAR! –

from thefreeonline on 8th January 2023 by ‘Banned News’ Today

The Refusal figure has increased almost fivefold since the Ukraine conflict began, a news agency reports, citing officials

Bundeswehr soldiers on a training mission in Lest, Slovakia

The number of Germans rejecting military service has nearly quintupled since the start of the conflict in Ukraine, RND news agency reported on Friday, citing figures provided by the Federal Office of Family and Civil Affairs (BAFzA)..

“In 2021, the Federal Office of Family and Civil Affairs received 201 applications for exemption from military service, and in 2022 there were 951 such applications,” a BAFzA spokesman said.

The Defense Ministry provided slightly different numbers to RND, saying that last year’s applications came from 223 active-duty soldiers, 266 reservists, and 593 people who had not served in the military.

The ministry noted that not only active-duty soldiers are eligible to become conscientious objectors.

According to RND, many explained their applications by saying they did not expect the Ukraine conflict to occur.

“In #stuttgart demonstrieren an die 1000 Antifa…

Conscientious objectors still make up a small fraction of the roughly 183,000 people currently serving in the German Armed Forces (the Bundeswehr). But the rise in those refusing to serve is considered a growing problem, given that Germany suspended compulsory military service in 2011 and is now planning to boost its defensive capabilities.

The Bundeswehr’s personnel management office told RND that “the actual number of applicants for military service has been declining since the beginning of 2022.”

‘German army not meeting NATO obligations’ – media Shortages hamper the German Armed Forces’ ability to carry out tasks within NATO, say local media, citing a government

In 2018, Berlin announced plans to increase the number of troops to 203,000 over the course of seven years. After Russia launched its military operation in Ukraine in late February, Germany has been supplying Kiev with heavy weapons, including armored vehicles and self-propelled howitzers.

Germany to send armored carriers, Patriot battery to Ukraine

However, Berlin’s rush to aid Ukraine has also revealed several problems within the Bundeswehr, such as ammunition shortages and cases of faulty equipment. German media reported last month that the country was struggling to meet its commitments under NATO due to not having enough of certain types of weapons and munitions in stock.