33 votes

Regional news thread

Posted by unknown user (edited )

/// US states so far: California.
/// Countries/regions so far: Germany, Ireland, Myanmar, Hong Kong, Australia.
///

What's happening in your corner of the world recently?

Since the front page is frequently dominated by US news (understandably so with the site is mostly US users) I thought it'd be nice to have a place to highlight news from other countries.

To avoid this thread from becoming just a mirror of the frontpage though, here's something I think we can try, see if it works:

  • Start a top-level comment with the country name then post the news as reply (together with your commentary if any). Others can reply to that same top-level comment if they want to share other news, naturally grouping them according to countries.
  • English articles are nice but if the news you want to share is available in your language only, that's even better! The value of a thread like this is to highlight the local perspectives, which aren't necessarily well represented in English-speaking news outlets. You can also write a brief summary (in case autotranslate does poorly :p), as well as any context or biases that foreigners might not be aware of.
  • For our US friends, you can go one layer down and share state-local news (not all states got representation on the frontpage I'm sure). Same idea, start with the state name then reply with the news. But please keep them all under the "United States" top-level comment so it's easier for others to collapse and find news from other countries.
  • Anything you want to talk about other than news sharing can be posted under "Misc".

42 comments

  1. [9]
    chocobean
    Link
    Hong Kong

    Hong Kong

    4 votes
    1. [3]
      chocobean
      Link Parent
      Hong Kong private club closes pool for cleaning after dozens of monkeys spotted swimming, lounging poolside “[It has] turned into a swimming pool for monkeys… they are so happy,” a man is heard...

      Hong Kong private club closes pool for cleaning after dozens of monkeys spotted swimming, lounging poolside

      “[It has] turned into a swimming pool for monkeys… they are so happy,” a man is heard saying in a video filmed at Hill Top Country Club in Tsuen Wan.

      Worth clicking on the link to see the video of very happy monkeys playing, with side commentary from an uncle and Auntie 😂

      6 votes
      1. [2]
        unknown user
        Link Parent
        Oh this is more neat! Is it common to find wild monkeys on the street in Hong Kong? In Singapore you can frequently spots wild animals like monkeys, snakes, hogs, etc.

        Oh this is more neat! Is it common to find wild monkeys on the street in Hong Kong? In Singapore you can frequently spots wild animals like monkeys, snakes, hogs, etc.

        2 votes
        1. chocobean
          Link Parent
          Good question. It is NOT common to see monkeys outside of the water reservoir park or other mountainous/tree shrubbery dense areas. One can go their whole life in the urban area without seeing...

          Good question. It is NOT common to see monkeys outside of the water reservoir park or other mountainous/tree shrubbery dense areas. One can go their whole life in the urban area without seeing them. But they....do exist in large numbers and it's a tropical place so it's not crazy to see them at the park or bushy side of road either.

          In this particular instance I guess the people thought their membership fee club was a little more exclusive than that

          4 votes
    2. [5]
      lina
      Link Parent
      China Media Project: Long-Distance Resistance:

      China Media Project: Long-Distance Resistance:

      The latest bogeyman invoked by pro-establishment thought-leaders in Hong Kong, “long-distance resistance” refers to any activism carried out by Hong Kong people beyond the city’s borders — framing what was once normal political engagement as an imminent national security threat.

      Hong Kong has moved “from chaos to order” under the national security law imposed by Beijing in 2020, according to the city’s leaders. [...] Yet enemies of the state only seem to multiply.

      This mix of triumphalism and paranoia among Hong Kong’s Beijing-backed elites demands the creation of new threats to justify a crackdown with no end in sight. Zhang Zhigang, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and head of the One Country Two Systems Research Institute, has identified its latest target: “long-distance resistance” (遠對抗), a companion to the now frequently invoked threat of “soft resistance” (軟對抗).

      In a July 27 editorial for Hong Kong’s Ming Pao newspaper, Zhang wrote that “soft resistance” is like an amoeba; “long-distance resistance” is just one “genetic variation” thereof. Many self-exiled activists, he says, are continuing to oppose the government from their new bases abroad, beyond the reach of national security police. more

      4 votes
      1. [4]
        lina
        Link Parent
        Journalist, entrepreneur, and democracy activist Jimmy Lai Chee-ying has been spotted and photographs by AP from Stanley Prison. Western readers of a certain age may be familiar with Lai's NEXT...

        Journalist, entrepreneur, and democracy activist Jimmy Lai Chee-ying has been spotted and photographs by AP from Stanley Prison. Western readers of a certain age may be familiar with Lai's NEXT MEDIA's daily publication Apple Daily, known for its animated news videos.

        AP gets rare glimpse of jailed Hong Kong pro-democracy publisher Jimmy Lai

        HONG KONG (AP) — Jimmy Lai, a former newspaper publisher and one of Hong Kong’s most prominent pro-democracy activists, spends around 23 hours a day in solitary confinement in a maximum-security facility while he awaits a trial that could send him to prison for life.

        In exclusive photos taken by The Associated Press in recent weeks, the 75-year-old Lai can be seen with a book in his hands wearing shorts and sandals and accompanied by two guards at Stanley Prison. He looks thinner than when he was last photographed in February 2021.

        Lai is allowed out for 50 minutes a day to exercise. Unlike most other inmates, who play football or exercise in groups, Lai walks alone in what appears to be a 5-by-10-meter (16-by-30-foot) enclosure surrounded by barbed wire under Hong Kong’s punishing summer sun before returning to his unairconditioned cell in the prison.

        6 votes
        1. [3]
          chocobean
          (edited )
          Link Parent
          May God have mercy on Jimmy and restore to him years lost to injustice He gave so many of us the information and the courage to fight and to make it to safety. May he be richly blessed, for...

          May God have mercy on Jimmy and restore to him years eaten by the locust lost to injustice

          He gave so many of us the information and the courage to fight and to make it to safety. May he be richly blessed, for blesses are they who are persecuted for righteousness' sake.

          The barbarity of the CCP regime knows no shame.

          5 votes
          1. [2]
            lina
            Link Parent
            I hear you, but "locust" is polarising. : ( Some of my closest friends in the movement were once new arrivals or worked closely with them, helping them acclimate to HK. During Occupy I remember...

            I hear you, but "locust" is polarising. : ( Some of my closest friends in the movement were once new arrivals or worked closely with them, helping them acclimate to HK. During Occupy I remember one sharing in a support session that they supported the demonstrators but felt like they weren't wanted because they were born in Guangzhou and not Hong Kong. : (

            5 votes
            1. chocobean
              Link Parent
              I will amend what I said, thank you for being gracious. It was a reference to the prophecy according to the prophet Joel chapter 2, that after a period of tears and loss and mourning, of exile, of...

              I will amend what I said, thank you for being gracious.

              It was a reference to the prophecy according to the prophet Joel chapter 2, that after a period of tears and loss and mourning, of exile, of living under occupation and brutality, the Lord proclaims:

              “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten—
              the great locust and the young locust,
              the other locusts and the locust swarm—
              my great army that I sent among you.

              You will have plenty to eat, until you are full,
              and you will praise the name of the Lord your God,
              who has worked wonders for you;
              never again will my people be shamed.

              But I can also see that I was insensitive and there is a lot of personal bias and bitter feelings on my end. That it's taken me a few days to admit I am wrong is evident of my misplaced anger. Thank you.

              3 votes
  2. [2]
    lina
    Link
    Myanmar

    Myanmar

    3 votes
    1. lina
      Link Parent
      Life and death on the front lines of fighting in Myanmar:

      Life and death on the front lines of fighting in Myanmar:

      The Karenni have battled Myanmar's military for decades. Now, a new generation of fighters faces an intensifying conflict. A report from Kayah state.

      [...] Around Reh Du and his prophecy ritual, villagers in the conflict-torn township of Demoso celebrate Karenni new year, dancing under totem poles to the beat of traditional drums and the distant thunder of artillery shells.

      Like the other ethnic minorities of Myanmar’s borderlands, the Karenni have fought against persecution by the military for decades in Kayah state, which is located between Myanmar’s capital Naypyidaw and the border with Thailand to the east.

      Kayah has also witnessed one of the most coordinated rebellions in the country since Myanmar’s military seized power from an elected government in February 2021.

      The brutality of the crackdown on those protesting peacefully against the military’s power grab evoked outrage, which has since boiled into a nationwide revolt.

      5 votes
  3. [6]
    FarraigePlaisteach
    Link
    Ireland

    Ireland

    3 votes
    1. [5]
      FarraigePlaisteach
      Link Parent
      “Na hamhráin Ghaeilge a chan Sinéad O’Connor” Or, “the Irish language songs that Sineád Ó Connor sang” An article with embeds of the songs from Youtube and discussion of the songs....

      “Na hamhráin Ghaeilge a chan Sinéad O’Connor”
      Or, “the Irish language songs that Sineád Ó Connor sang”

      An article with embeds of the songs from Youtube and discussion of the songs.

      https://nos.ie/cultur/ceol/na-hamhrain-ghaeilge-a-chan-sinead-oconnor/

      Songs include some classics:
      Báidín Fheilimí
      Óró sé do bheatha abhaile
      Mná na hÉireann
      Róisín Dubh
      Never Get Old

      2 votes
      1. [4]
        unknown user
        Link Parent
        Ah I checked her Wikipedia and found out she passed away only recently. How was she remembered by Irish people?

        Ah I checked her Wikipedia and found out she passed away only recently. How was she remembered by Irish people?

        3 votes
        1. [3]
          FarraigePlaisteach
          Link Parent
          Shock and grief for many as she was a bastion of activism in a country that still needs it. She was maligned for going against institutions only to be proven right in later years so I think that...

          Shock and grief for many as she was a bastion of activism in a country that still needs it. She was maligned for going against institutions only to be proven right in later years so I think that there is a lot of respect for her.

          Edit: this thread was a great idea by the way

          4 votes
          1. [2]
            unknown user
            (edited )
            Link Parent
            Still going through her wiki and found this part quite interesting: If it's not too controversial, may I ask what she meant by that? I'm only vaguely aware that The Troubles was a very complex and...

            Still going through her wiki and found this part quite interesting:

            O'Connor said she wished that Ireland had remained under British rule (which ended after the Irish War of Independence, except for Northern Ireland), saying "the church took over and it was disastrous"

            If it's not too controversial, may I ask what she meant by that? I'm only vaguely aware that The Troubles was a very complex and sensitive topics so no need for details if it's hard to explain well in a comment (though if you can, I'm all ears :)

            Edit: also thanks, glad you like it :)

            3 votes
            1. FarraigePlaisteach
              Link Parent
              I’m happy to respond to that, although others might disagree in parts to what I say. But here goes!: The British colony was a brutal existence for non-British people. Eventually British occupation...

              I’m happy to respond to that, although others might disagree in parts to what I say. But here goes!:

              The British colony was a brutal existence for non-British people. Eventually British occupation recessed back to the North East area of the island and is called Northern Ireland today.

              It’s important to know how hard won that partial success was. In summary; even more death and suffering than usual.

              But when the British left there were other predators ready to fill the vacuum; among them was the Catholic Church. Under them, women arguably had it just as bad as when the British were here. I would argue that only men gained “independence” when the British left.

              Ó Connor was one of countless women incarcerated by the church and spoke out against the abuses there before Irish society was brave or organized enough to embrace her rather than ostracize her.

              There’s a great tribute to her here by one of our best journalists, Naomi O Leary here:
              “Farewell Sinéad, we didn’t deserve you” - https://podurama.com/episode/94821f3d-f9d5-5a6b-86d5-677a436eba57

              2 votes
  5. unknown user
    (edited )
    Link
    Australia (new), previous news: one, two

    Australia (new), previous news: one, two

    1 vote
  6. [2]
    elguero
    Link
    Germany

    Germany

    1 vote
    1. elguero
      Link Parent
      From dw.de

      A court in the German city of Munich on Friday convicted a politician from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party over remarks comparing a coronavirus vaccination campaign with Nazi-era anti-Jewish pogroms.

      The court ruled that the comments in question amounted to incitement and sentenced Jäger to pay a fine of €2,700 ($2,930). The amount was reduced from €5,400 due to the poor state of the politician's personal finances.

      From dw.de

      3 votes
  7. [18]
    Algernon_Asimov
    (edited )
    Link
    EDIT: This is NOT the "Australian" parent comment. Do NOT post your Australian news under this comment. Honestly, I'd prefer to post any Australian news I might have as its own topic in ~news (or...

    EDIT: This is NOT the "Australian" parent comment. Do NOT post your Australian news under this comment.

    Honestly, I'd prefer to post any Australian news I might have as its own topic in ~news (or wherever relevant), rather than bury it as a comment-to-a-comment in a general post. I feel like that would make it more visible to more people.

    https://tildes.net/~news?order=new&tag=australia&period=all

    12 votes
    1. [2]
      spit-evil-olive-tips
      Link Parent
      I think there's an important difference between two types of news: "this happened in Chicago (or Perth), but it's interesting enough that it might be relevant to people in general" vs "this...

      I think there's an important difference between two types of news:

      "this happened in Chicago (or Perth), but it's interesting enough that it might be relevant to people in general"

      vs

      "this happened in Chicago (or Perth), but it's probably not terribly interesting to people outside Illinois (or Western Australia)"

      the former goes into ~news. the latter doesn't really have a good home on Tildes at the moment. it could go to ~news but I don't think it necessarily fits well there.

      in previous "suggest new groups" threads in ~tildes, a ~local group has been suggested (for example) for the latter. (or, ~news with fine-grained geographical subgroups, eg ~news.usa.il.chicago and ~news.australia.wa.perth)

      I like the idea of ~local, but whenever new groups are proposed, we're always cautious about the imzy problem - is there enough content already being posted to justify creating that group?

      I think this thread could provide a good way to answer that question.

      7 votes
      1. Algernon_Asimov
        Link Parent
        Yeah, but the OP isn't asking only for local news in this topic. They're also asking for all news that's not in the USA. Your comment helped me realise that there might be a better way to do this.

        Yeah, but the OP isn't asking only for local news in this topic. They're also asking for all news that's not in the USA.

        Your comment helped me realise that there might be a better way to do this.

    2. [3]
      chocobean
      Link Parent
      https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/man-who-killed-and-attempted-to-cook-an-ibis-sentenced-to-prison/264putab1 [3 min read] I know he's suffering from the effects of drug addiction and mental...

      https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/man-who-killed-and-attempted-to-cook-an-ibis-sentenced-to-prison/264putab1 [3 min read]

      A man who stole an ibis from a Sydney park before attempting to cook it has been jailed

      "The accused told police that when he is high on meth he enjoys hurting the Australian white ibis, prior to cooking and eating the bird," court documents state.

      It's the second time Quach has been charged for attacking an ibis after he was arrested in March for allegedly tying a rope around the feet and neck of an ibis outside a Sydney train station before onlookers intervened.

      He was previously ordered to stay away from all Australian birdlife

      I know he's suffering from the effects of drug addiction and mental health challenges, and that at least one of those poor birds have died.....but it's still kind of a funny image to imagine some guy bonking a bird on the head and stuffing it in his backpack and taking it home to eat it. Maybe he really didn't think it was an issue.....buying a store chicken also means some other guy killed the chicken so why is it wrong when he does the same?

      Also from Wikipedia on the white ibis:

      Due to its increasing presence in the urban environment and its habit of rummaging in garbage, the species has acquired a variety of colloquial names such as "tip turkey"[6] and "bin chicken",[7] and in recent years has become an icon of Australia's popular culture, regarded with glee by some and passionate revulsion by others.[8][9]

      5 votes
      1. unknown user
        Link Parent
        Oh neat (not for the bird though)! Rummaging around I found another article that stated he said he can eat them in Queensland, so maybe the guy just got confused about different local laws?...

        Oh neat (not for the bird though)! Rummaging around I found another article that stated he said he can eat them in Queensland, so maybe the guy just got confused about different local laws? Hopefully there are Australians in the room who don't mind clarifying this.

        2 votes
      2. Algernon_Asimov
        Link Parent
        I think the idea is for you to create a top-level comment called "Australia", and then post your Australian stories under that top-level comment. This comment of mine is a meta-comment about the...

        I think the idea is for you to create a top-level comment called "Australia", and then post your Australian stories under that top-level comment.

        This comment of mine is a meta-comment about the process (and should therefore be labelled as 'Offtopic'), rather than being the top-level "Australia" comment for news.

        2 votes
    3. [2]
      lina
      Link Parent
      Ten hours of sunlight per year: Australian journalist Cheng Lei's first message from Chinese prison describes harsh conditions Lei's letter is shared in the article:

      Ten hours of sunlight per year: Australian journalist Cheng Lei's first message from Chinese prison describes harsh conditions

      Lei's letter is shared in the article:

      This is a love letter to 25 million people and 7 million square kilometres of land, land abundant in nature, beauty and space

      It is not the same in here, I haven't seen a tree in three years [...]

      I miss the sun. In my cell, the sunlight shines through the window but I can stand in it for only 10 hours a year

      Every year the bedding is taken into the sun for two hours to air. When it came back last time, I wrapped myself in the doona and pretended I was being hugged by my family under the sun

      I can't believe I used to avoid the sun when I was living back in Australia, although knowing Melbourne weather, it will probably rain for the first two weeks after I return [...]

      3 votes
      1. Algernon_Asimov
        Link Parent
        The idea is for you to create a top-level comment called "Australia", and then post your Australian stories under that top-level comment. This comment of mine is a meta-comment about the process...

        The idea is for you to create a top-level comment called "Australia", and then post your Australian stories under that top-level comment.

        This comment of mine is a meta-comment about the process (and should therefore be labelled as 'Offtopic'), rather than being the top-level "Australia" comment for news.

    4. [10]
      unknown user
      (edited )
      Link Parent
      Problem is US news come in faster and with more activity, quickly pushing other posts to the bottom. Also I'm not sure people on the frontpage would take it well if the link is to a foreign...

      Problem is US news come in faster and with more activity, quickly pushing other posts to the bottom. Also I'm not sure people on the frontpage would take it well if the link is to a foreign language news site, which I'm hoping this thread will encourage.

      Edit: please help me label this comment of mine as 'off-topic' and 'noise' so the meta discussion don't take center and bump the thread.

      4 votes
      1. [6]
        Algernon_Asimov
        Link Parent
        See... I think people should just have to deal with being confronted with foreign things on this here world-wide web. You're effectively leaving ~news to become ~usanews by default, and creating...

        See... I think people should just have to deal with being confronted with foreign things on this here world-wide web.

        You're effectively leaving ~news to become ~usanews by default, and creating ~restoftheworldnews in this post. I disagree with that approach. I discussed this principle in the context of creating a womens groups in the group suggestions thread back in June.

        16 votes
        1. [5]
          merry-cherry
          Link Parent
          This is a topic that all socials I'm on bring up. People demand equal representation of all nations in the generic news/politics threads. They lament the USA dominance but they aren't really...

          This is a topic that all socials I'm on bring up. People demand equal representation of all nations in the generic news/politics threads. They lament the USA dominance but they aren't really considering the reasons why it doesn't happen.

          The problem stems from language barriers. We're on an English site. All the socials I'm on are in English. Other languages could exist in the site, but I can't read them so they aren't interesting. Therefore I don't engage with the content and push it up. I'm not alone in this either as almost everyone else on English sites doesn't want to engage with non-English content. This means that type of content just doesn't gain traction and those that post it lose interest.

          So that means only English based content is going to thrive on English based socials. Ok, that's fine, we'll just post English content about other countries but the problem here is that it doesn't really exist. A Turkish paper isn't likely to write about a Turkish event in English. Same goes for all other, non-English first nations. This means you're stuck hoping an English nation based news station will write about a foreign issue. It does happen but they'll produce a lot more content about their home nation.

          So we're stuck with English content from English sources. But if you look at the population count, you'll find that the US is by far the largest English nation. That means most English news will be about the US. It also means most English users will be from the US.

          All that combined, it's just inevitable that any English social with global appeal will be saturated with US content. A UK based social could be primarily made for UK members, but it would need to purposely exclude US users and content. So it's not a problem of American Exceptionalism but more a simple numbers issue. A Mandarin based social wouldn't have the same US content issue but they'd have a similar one with China content.

          4 votes
          1. boxer_dogs_dance
            Link Parent
            This is precisely why r/anime_titties (the best imho world politics sub on reddit, named for reasons) specifically excludes US stories.

            This is precisely why r/anime_titties (the best imho world politics sub on reddit, named for reasons) specifically excludes US stories.

            3 votes
          2. [3]
            Algernon_Asimov
            Link Parent
            I don't see how restricting non-USA articles to a single thread improves their visibility. Although... This thread would get bumped every time someone posts a new article, from anywhere around the...

            I don't see how restricting non-USA articles to a single thread improves their visibility.

            Although...

            This thread would get bumped every time someone posts a new article, from anywhere around the world. That means it's going to stay at the top of the ~news group more than any single US-only news item. So, maybe that does improve the visibility of non-US news.

            Actually... that gives me an idea...

            1. [2]
              merry-cherry
              Link Parent
              That bumping is only the case on some sorting options. A pin would be the only way to have it persistent across all sorting options. Though it's still a bit awkward as its essentially a news topic...

              That bumping is only the case on some sorting options. A pin would be the only way to have it persistent across all sorting options. Though it's still a bit awkward as its essentially a news topic embedded in the official one.

              Idk, I'm not sold on a weekly post being an effective tool. Better would be country/regional sub topics, but that would require heavy moderation to keep on topic. Simply not feasible without more tooling built into the site.

              1. Algernon_Asimov
                Link Parent
                The 'Activity' sorting option is the default option, and would therefore be used by the majority of people on Tildes. The OP didn't mention this being a weekly post. I suspect this is intended to...

                The 'Activity' sorting option is the default option, and would therefore be used by the majority of people on Tildes.

                The OP didn't mention this being a weekly post. I suspect this is intended to be an ongoing post, with people continually adding new news items to it over time.

                I disagree with the OP's approach entirely. I think all news items should be posted as their own topics, directly in the ~news group. However, if the OP is going to take this approach, I agree that having a topic per country would be better than mixing all countries and all US states together in one topic.

                2 votes
      2. skybrian
        (edited )
        Link Parent
        I’m a fan of megathreads and good effort on giving this a try. We’ll see how it goes. But I expect this is one level too generic. Topics are a chance to be more specific than groups allow and “all...

        I’m a fan of megathreads and good effort on giving this a try. We’ll see how it goes.

        But I expect this is one level too generic. Topics are a chance to be more specific than groups allow and “all regional news” is very broad.

        Instead, for example, I think an Australia news topic might work. It takes one interested person to seed it, and then we can see how it does. But it looks like Australia news also does fine top level.

        Perhaps a Singapore news topic would work?

        4 votes
      3. boxer_dogs_dance
        Link Parent
        I'm not a moderator, but my understanding is there is policy here that the site does not support languages other than english because of moderation issues. My advice would be that if you publish a...

        I'm not a moderator, but my understanding is there is policy here that the site does not support languages other than english because of moderation issues. My advice would be that if you publish a non english news article that someone provide a translation. Appreciate the effort. Looking forward to seeing where this goes as a US subscriber to r/anime_titties, precisely because I'm interested in non US and anglosphere news.

        2 votes
      4. Algernon_Asimov
        Link Parent
        I know you're not replying here any more. However, I have a suggestion for you to consider (no reply necessary). There's an inconsistency here. This thread includes two types of news: All...

        I know you're not replying here any more. However, I have a suggestion for you to consider (no reply necessary).

        There's an inconsistency here. This thread includes two types of news:

        • All countries that aren't the USA.

        • States within the USA.

        I feel like these two categories should be in two different threads. I realised this when I thought about the title you were using: "Regional news thread". Which region?

        I suggest you make two of these threads:

        • One for non-USA news. Call it "Non-USA news" or something like that.

        • One for state-based news within the USA. Call it "Local US news" or something like that.

        I've realised that maybe having a single thread for all non-USA news might increase the visibility of that news (as I explained here). However, to assist with making non-USA news more visible, you need to call it "non-USA news", so people know what it's about. Calling it "regional news" doesn't make it clear what the content of this thread is.

        So: I suggest you split this into two threads, and title them accordingly.

        1 vote
  8. unknown user
    Link
    Misc (please label this "off-topic" so it's at the bottom)

    Misc (please label this "off-topic" so it's at the bottom)