The Russian military has been pounding rebel-held areas near the city of Aleppo in Syria, and it appears as if the government of President Assad will ultimately encircle and retake the city. In response to this possibility, thousands of people are fleeing this city that once housed 2 million inhabitants. Thousands of refugees are massing at the Bab al-Salam crossing on the Turkish border and it is unclear whether those refugees will be granted sanctuary. The European Union has asked Turkey not to allow any more refugees to leave that country, aggravating the plight of the refugees.
A Syrian child at the Bab al-Salam border crossing
Reforestation has always been considered one possible way to partially combat climate change since trees are considered to be efficient sinks for carbon dioxide. Interestingly, researchers have found, however, that not all trees are created equal in that respect. Dark conifer forests tend to absorb heat while light-colored deciduous trees reflect heat. So while all trees do in fact absorb carbon dioxide, dark trees do not necessarily aid in preventing climate change.
PEGIDA (Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West), the German anti-immigrant group, has joined together with like-minded groups in 14 European countries and has issued what is being called “The Prague Declaration.” Part of that declaration reads as follows:
Being aware of the fact that the thousand-year history of Western civilization could soon come to an end through Islam conquering Europe, and the fact that the political elites have betrayed us, we, representatives of different European nations, declare the following:
We will not surrender Europe to our enemies. We are prepared to stand up and oppose political Islam, extreme Islamic regimes, and their European collaborators.
We are prepared to risk our freedoms, properties, jobs and careers and maybe even to put our lives at stakes, as it was done by the generations before us. It is our duty to future generations.
We refuse to submit to the Central European government. The rules of the global elites have brought only poverty, unemployment, corruption, chaos and moral collapse. It is about time to end this.
We fully respect the sovereignty of European nations and the right of the people of every European country to govern their matters as they see fit.
We esteem as sacred the right of the citizens of every European country to protect the borders of their country and their right to decide which immigrants to accept and which not to accept into their country.
We refer to our common European roots, traditions and values as well as the historic alliances of our nations. We are determined to protect Europe, the freedom of speech and other civic freedoms as well as our way of life together.
We will manifest this determination by our participation in a joint demonstration which will take place in many European cities on February 6, 2016
World Politics News 
Leave a comment