Catalonia

(ZHE) — Catalonia’s High Court on Friday ordered Google to delete an application that it said Catalan separatists were using to spread information about a disputed independence vote this Sunday, Reuters reported.

Spain’s increasingly public crackdown on the planned October 1 secession referendum in Catalonia appears to be bringing the population of the northeastern region together. Reports say that the social indignation toward police action is spreading far from just the pro-secession crowd.

Spain seized control of Catalonia’s finances, confiscated ballots and campaign materials, and arrested senior officials to stop the referendum. [...]

(ANTIMEDIA) — In the latest development in the global secession trend, as many as one million Catalans marched in Barcelona this week, many asserting their right to break away from Spain. Their demands come amid pushback from the Spanish government, which is attempting to block the vote as the Catalan government refuses to back down.
The Guardian reported Monday:

By Vicent Partal | CounterPunch | September 8, 2017 Given the transcendent nature of this moment, we thought it would be a good time to summarize how we arrived at this point and to explain the special nature of the decision that Catalan Parliament took on Wednesday, September 6th. 1) Spain broke its own rules […]

I hadn’t initially given much thought to the vehicle/terror attack/massacre in Barcelona; aside from it basically feeling like ‘business as usual’ for Europe in this terror-dominated spell of the twenty-first century. And also aside from thinking that the attack in Barcelona happened at the right time to try to divert some of the attention from […]

MOSCOW, (Sputnik) – The recent terrorist attacks in the Spanish autonomous community of Catalonia will not have an impact on the regional government’s plan to hold a referendum on independence from Spain, local media reported Friday, citing Catalan President Carles Puigdemont.
On Thursday and early Friday, Barcelona and Cambrils in Catalonia were hit by two van ramming attacks, which have killed 15 people and left over 130 more injured. The Islamic State (IS, banned in Russia) terror group has claimed responsibility for Barcelona attack.

More wildlife are experiencing strange reproductive abnormalities, but why? In a study released last year, the U.S. Geological Survey and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFW) tested male smallmouth and largemouth bass from 19 National Wildlife Refuges. The researchers found that 85% of the smallmouth bass “had signs of female reproductive parts.” Of the largemouth bass, 27% were intersex. What could be causing this?

American arms, general purge and pocket politics + this day in history w/The Riot Act and our song of the day by Hot Hot Heat on your Morning Monarchy for August 1, 2016.