Some things that caught my attention when I browsed the Internet for news today:

• A New study suggests thirty per cent of gay black men in Chicago are HIV-positive. “A quarter of blacks aged 18-24 tested positive. More than 37 percent of blacks aged 25-34—the highest of any age group—tested positive. The numbers are similar to national figures.” Shocking.
• Local media reports about yet another case of devout Christian molesting children in Western Australia. I’m only mentioning it because homophobic Christians are so eager to blame all gay men for every case of “homosexual paedophilia”. The truth is that all communities and all societies host individuals who are sexually aroused by children. What makes the Christian communities so vulnerable is their anti-sex theology.
• If you like peace, then New Zealand is the place for you. According to the Global Peace Index, it is the most peaceful nation in the world.
• The municipality of Östhammar won the bid to store radioactive waste from Sweden’s nuclear industry. The waste must be kept safely underground for at least 100,000 years. Why would anyone want to store the most dangerous waste imaginable? One mistake and cancer will kill people in generations. Apparently the locals think its worth the risk because it will “create new jobs” for this generation. Stupidity.
• Israel’s demographic is changing, and by 2030 the secular Jews will be a minority. This could be the end of the State of Israel as the ultra-Orthodox Haredim are exempt from military service and do not produce anything of economic value. “The growth in the haredi population troubles secular Jews for a whole host of reasons, most of them economic, “Richard Cincotta and Eric Kaufmann write in their Foreign Policy article. “Ultra-Orthodox young men obtain draft deferments and student stipends by extending their study—for decades—in religious schools (yeshiva), which are also subsidized by the government. Because they don’t work or develop job skills, haredim contribute little to tax revenues and tend to be poor, qualifying them for welfare assistance. And because haredi family sizes are large, they receive government-sponsored child allowances.” Read the full article here.

Today’s picture is of the blue summery sky I’m looking at right now.