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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X--lW839tmU

Pope Francis has been slammed by church officials and sex abuse survivors for cutting penalties for paedophile priests. The Pope is said to be applying his vision of a 'merciful church' to sex offenders by reducing punishments to weaker sentences, such as a lifetime of prayer and penance. It has been revealed by church officials that Pope Francis overruled advice given to him by the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith about two priests - allowing them to be punished by a lifetime of prayer.

Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe on Tuesday vetoed a bill that would have blocked funding for Planned Parenthood, which provides abortions and other health services. The bill passed by the Republican-controlled legislature would have barred the state from providing funds to clinics that perform abortions not covered by Medicaid, the federal healthcare program for the poor.

The wreck of a World War I German submarine has been discovered off the coast of Scotland by marine engineers surveying the route of an undersea power cable. Researchers said they think the wreck is one of two German U-boats sunk by British patrol ships in the Irish Sea in 1918 — including one that was supposedly attacked by a sea monster, according to an internet legend.

Egypt's Antiquities Ministry announced this morning that a team of underwater archaeologists had discovered that remains of a large Egyptian army from the 14th century BC, at the bottom of the Gulf of Suez, 1.5 kilometers offshore from the modern city of Ras Gharib. The team was searching for the remains of ancient ships and artifacts related to Stone Age and Bronze Age trade in the Red Sea area, when they stumbled upon a gigantic mass of human bones darkened by age. The scientists lead by Professor Abdel Muhammad Gader and associated with Cairo University's Faculty of Archaeology, have already...

While initial reports indicated that the smell originated from a chemical plant, the source has yet to be definitively determined.

A professor at Georgetown University is teaching his students that men do not need consent to have sex with women, and that slavery is justifiable under Islamic teachings. Islamic Studies professor Jonathan Brown recently lectured at the International Institute of Islamic Thought, where he shared his alarming beliefs with students in attendance in his lecture, “Islam and the Problem of Slavery.” Freelance writer Umar Lee expressed his shock over the 90-minute lecture, which included explicit endorsements of rape and slavery.

PHOENIX — The Phoenix City Council will be asked to vote in two weeks on the issue of becoming a sanctuary city, a councilman said Wednesday. “A citizen dropped off a petition requiring a public vote on whether or not the city of Phoenix is going to vote on becoming a sanctuary city,” Councilman Sal DiCiccio said, who also tweeted the news.

President-elect Donald Trump will swear in as president on a Bible used by Abraham Lincoln during his first inauguration as president. The Lincoln Bible is currently part of the Library of Congress collection and was used by Obama to swear in as president after the 2008 and 2012 elections. Only Obama and Lincoln have used that copy of the Bible to swear the oath of office.

RAISING $500,000 TO DEFEND CIVIL LIBERTIES The future of civil liberties in the United States is in our hands. Now is the time to step up. That’s why we’re coming together to raise $500,000 for organizations that will fight for our most marginalized communities over the next four years.

Four people are in custody in Chicago over what police say is a beating live-streamed on Facebook in which a man was tied up, hit and cut with a knife by several assailants.

Swedes looking forward to a six-hour workday just got some bad news: the costs outweigh the benefits. A two-year experiment cutting working hours while maintaining pay levels for nurses at Svartedalen old people’s home in the Swedish city of Gothenburg is now nearing the end. The take away was largely positive, with nurses at the home feeling healthier, which reduced sick-leave, and patient care improving.

(Infowars) The Washington Post reported Friday that the U.S. power grid had been hacked by the same Russian actors accused of breaching the DNC – the only problem, the grid wasn’t hacked.

Trump confidant Roger Stone talks about what one of his "operatives" uncovered by attending a planning session for one of the groups planning to protest Donald Trump's inauguration. "Secret Service take notice," Stone said. "I'm happy to share this with anyone from the service who takes notice." "January 8, they have their next meeting to plan this disruption. January 14, they are going to be training their shock troops for violence. January 14-20, they converge on Washington in an effort to paralyze the city."

After four years, Phoenix has cut ties with a law firm that lobbied on the city’s behalf at the state Legislature. The politics involving former Gov. Jan Brewer played a role in the votes of at least two councilmembers. Many roll-call votes at Phoenix City Council meetings are straightforward, but when they involve contracts with consultants and lobbyists, the roll call typically slows as Councilmen Jim Waring and Sal DiCiccio voice their ongoing opposition to such deals. That’s what happened on Dec. 14.

Freep this poll: Q: Has the Obama Administration made the US stronger over the past eight years? https://twitter.com/intlspectator/status/809900443400859648

Donald Trump has drawn ‘first blood’ in the search for his incoming administration's senior arts role - by tapping up Rambo legend Sylvester Stallone. Sources have told DailyMail.com the president-elect sees Hollywood icon Stallone as the perfect choice to make art great again. The likely position would be Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency that doles out funds to aspiring artists and creative projects. If Stallone is formally offered that job, his appointment will have to be approved by Congress. Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4037802/Donald-Trump-taps-Sylvester-Stallone-arts-role.html#ixzz4SwZoeGZo Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

A “feminist” strategy for clearing the roads of snow in Stockholm ended in failure as the city ground to a halt in recent days. A new system, suggested by progressive politicians in the Swedish city, tore up tried and tested snow plow routes and diverted them to areas said to be used more by women. But the inevitable consequence was that other spaces – like main roads – were clogged up for longer, and it became impossible to get around.

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