England legalizes assisted suicide — former prime minister says government abuse will be prevented



Members of Parliament have voted to pass legislation that makes assisted suicide legal in England and Wales.

The new legislation will allow for the death of those in the two countries who are over the age of 18 and are registered with a general practitioner for at least 12 months.

The bill passed with a vote of 330 to 275 and will allow patients to expect to be killed within six months of their request.

'As a religious person, I understand and appreciate the deep moral and philosophical concerns that many people have about this issue.'

Other parameters, the BBC reported, included making sure the patient has the mental capacity to make the decision in a clear, settled, and informed manner that is free from coercion.

Two separate declarations must be made by the patient, with two "independent doctors" declaring the patient is eligible at least seven days apart.

Additionally, a High Court judge would have to rule each time a person makes a request to die, after which the patient has to wait another 14 days after the ruling to reflect on whether they want the government to kill them.

A doctor would reportedly prepare a substance that would kill the patient, but the patient has to ingest the substance themselves.

Conservative former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak wrote in the Darlington and Stockton Times that he agrees with the decision and voted in favor of it.

The "bill is sufficiently tightly drawn to prevent" abuse of the law by the government, Sunak wrote. "Pressuring someone into ending their life will be a criminal offence."

He added, "As a religious person, I understand and appreciate the deep moral and philosophical concerns that many people have about this issue."

Blaze News previously reported on the rise of government-assisted suicide across the world.

In the United States, euthanasia was first made legal in Oregon in 1997. California, Vermont, and Washington have also approved the death method, but it is not federally legalized.

Australia, Belgium, Canada, Ecuador, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland have all legalized assisted suicide. Switzerland has made headlines as of late due to an ongoing debate and investigation surrounding the use of suicide pods in the country.

In the Netherlands, assisted suicide is allowed for terminally ill children ages 1-12. Those who are 5-10 years old can be killed if they are determined to be suffering unbearably or have no hope of improvement.

“The end of life for this group is the only reasonable alternative to the child’s unbearable and hopeless suffering,” the government said in 2023, per the Guardian.

Canada, which boasts a robust suicide system, paused its program for those who are mentally ill in February 2024. In August, state-facilitated suicide was the leading cause of death in Canada.

In November 2011, Russia passed a law banning euthanasia, making it the only country in the world in which all forms of euthanasia are illegal.

As for the English and Welsh legislation, it will be illegal to use dishonesty, pressure, or coercion to encourage someone to end their life, with a 14-year prison sentence for those found guilty of doing so. It is unclear how that would be determined.

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Elizabethan Drama

The British author and satirist Craig Brown deserves credit for inventing a new style of royal biography in 2017 with his irresistibly readable Ninety-Nine Glimpses of Princess Margaret. (In his native country, it had the superior title Ma’am Darling.) This new genre, which might be called pointilliste biography, took its subject and, through a series of short, at times oblique essays and sketches, painted a picture that was far more revealing and humorous than a conventional cradle-to-grave life would have been.

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UK men get over 2 years in jail for social media posts deemed 'racist' — apparently in wake of deadly child stabbings



A pair of men in the United Kingdom each were sentenced to over two years in jail for posting what officials deemed "racist messages" on social media, the Cheshire Constabulary said Tuesday.

Officials said 36-year-old Christopher Taggart of Caesars Close, Runcorn, and 34-year-old Rhys McDonald of Oxford Road, Runcorn, appeared Tuesday at Chester Crown Court.

'This should serve as a stark reminder against posting abusive messages online — we are all responsible for our actions, including what we post on social media.'

Taggart was sentenced to 32 months — just four months shy of three years — and McDonald was sentenced to 28 months, officials said, adding that they both pleaded guilty to "publishing written material to stir up racial hatred." Officials also said Taggart pleaded guilty to possession of an offensive weapon in a private place.

Cheshire Police on Aug. 5 became aware of "concerning messages that were openly available to view on Facebook" that Taggart and McDonald posted, officials said, adding that multiple posts contained "racial abuse" and encouraged people to "engage in racial hatred."

Taggart posted messages between July 29 and Aug. 6; McDonald posted messages between July 29 and Aug. 5, officials said, adding that they were arrested Saturday. Officials added that officers found brass knuckles in Taggart’s home during a search.

July 29 was the day of a deadly mass stabbing at a Taylor Swift-themed children's dance class in Southport. A 17-year-old male was accused of killing three and injuring numerous other victims in the attack.

Pallbearers carry the coffin of 9-year-old Alice Da Silva Aguiar from St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Southport, Aug. 11, 2024, following a funeral service for her. Alice and Bebe King and Elsie Dot Stancombe were murdered during a July 29 knife attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance party that also left another 10 people injured.Photo by ANNABEL LEE-ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images

Officials initially said there was no evidence that terrorism was a motive in the deadly knife attack, which angered many who accused the government of covering up evidence. Police identified suspect Axel Rudakubana and charged him with three counts of murder and 10 counts of attempted murder. Officials identified him as being from Cardiff but also noted that his parents are Rwandan.

Unrest and violence erupted the day after the stabbings and have spread across the United Kingdom. Prime Minister Keir Starmer denounced the violence and blamed "far-right thuggery."

Counter-demonstrators march against an anti-immigration protest in London, Aug. 7, 2024. Nightly riots erupted after three children were murdered in Southport on July 29.Photo by BENJAMIN CREMEL/AFP via Getty Images

However, now-suspended U.K. Labour Party Councillor Ricky Jones reportedly was arrested last week on suspicion of encouraging murder of anti-immigration protesters after an outdoor speech in London in front of a rabid, far-left crowd during which he hollered, "They are disgusting, nasty fascists, and we need to cut all their throats and get rid of them all!" A video of the speech shows him sliding his finger across his neck as he spoke; he then led a “free, free Palestine!" chant.

Radio host Glenn Beck, co-founder of Blaze Media, last week opined that "two-tier justice" — in which police more or less ignore Muslim immigrant crime but come down hard on non-Muslims — has been laid bare in the U.K. in the wake of the deadly knife attack.

Also last week, Sir Mark Rowley, commissioner of London's Metropolitan Police, said "we will come after you" — even if you live in another country — if you post material online about the rioting in England that officials say incites racial hatred.

Indeed, U.K. police last week said they arrested a 55-year-old woman in connection with an "inaccurate social media post" in regard to the "identity of the attacker in the Southport murders," the Cheshire Constabulary said in a separate report.

Stephen Parkinson — director of public prosecutions of England and Wales — also said, "We do have dedicated police officers who are scouring social media. Their job is to look for this material, and then follow up with identification, arrests, and so forth."

In regard to the two jailed men, Chief Superintendent Alison Ross said, “Since the start of the recent disorder in other areas of the UK, we have been clear that we will not tolerate this kind of behavior in Cheshire, including those who post racial abuse online. Much of the violent disorder which has taken place across the UK in recent weeks has been fueled by malicious communications online, something which Taggart and McDonald decided to take part in. But they were not able to hide behind their devices and online accounts — they were soon identified and are now being held accountable. This should serve as a stark reminder against posting abusive messages online — we are all responsible for our actions, including what we post on social media.”

Anything else?

A 32-year-old Romanian citizen with no fixed address was charged last week with attempted murder after an 11-year-old girl was repeatedly stabbed in London's Leicester Square. She survived but needed plastic surgery. Officials said the attack was not terror-related.

Three males were arrested last week in connection with what Austrian officials said was a foiled terror plot targeting Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna — apparently fueled by radical Islam.

Swift is expected to perform five concerts at London’s Wembley Stadium starting Thursday through Aug. 20 to close the European leg of her Eras Tour.

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'I'm not as fat as I have been': UFC fighter Paddy Pimblett puts on impressive 42 pounds in just a week after victory



Newly ranked UFC fighter Paddy Pimblett showcased a remarkable weight gain within about a week of an impressive showing at UFC 304.

Pimblett choked out opponent Bobby Green in just three minutes and 22 seconds at the Manchester, England, event and noted that he quickly got to work putting weight back on after fighting at 156 pounds.

Sitting down at a restaurant with his wife, Pimblett admitted that the night of the fight he had a roast dinner at a birthday party just a few hours after his submission victory.

It should be noted that UFC 304 went past sunrise after the Pay-Per-View began at 3 a.m. local time to line up with the eastern time zone.

'Hopefully I'll never go above 90 kilos again.'

Pimblett said the feast happened after he took a one- to two-hour nap.

At breakfast, he ordered iced tea, a chicken wrap, a breakfast wrap, and two full plates of curly fries followed by a giant plate of pancakes covered with white chocolate, Nutella, Biscoff, and pistachios.

Following his family vacation, cameras caught up with Pimblett a week later on the way to his gym. His training partners and coaches quickly noticed his accelerated weight gain that was apparent on his face.

"He was having a meal, two desserts, and then an ice cream on the way home," one of his coaches said in the video.

Photo by Karwai Tang/WireImage

Pimblett then remarked on how his teammates tease him after every fight.

"Probably start getting called fat f*** by everyone. Didn't do too bad. Didn't do great, though, at the same time. Still a bit chubby. I'm not as fat as I have been but I'm still a bit chubby," the Liverpool native explained.

"We were eating all sorts, Chinese, Thai, steaks, burgers, and s***. But I just need to train, that's the main thing, lad. Obviously, eating copious amounts of food doesn't help with your weight, but when I don't train, I put weight on," he added.

The fighter was then forced by his friends to weigh himself, which revealed that he weighed 89.8 kilograms, or about 198 pounds. The shocking 42-pound increase is remarkable for such a short time, and critics often warn Pimblett that cutting weight will only get harder as he ages.

In July 2023, Pimblett actually remarked that he was going to slow down his eating between fights:

"Now I'm just walking around at about 84-85 kilos and not really watching what I'm eating, I'm just hobbling around at that weight, which is nice," he said, per TalkSport. "It plateaued around this weight, which is nice. Hopefully I'll never go above 90 kilos again."

It seems Pimblett was correct in his assessment, while also having predicted that he would become a ranked fighter before the end of 2024; he is now No. 15 in the world.

The 29-year-old explained that he tends to look heavier than he is because the weight seems to go right to his face.

"All to my face, though. That's why everyone does call me Chris Griffin. Right to my face. Know what did my head in the other day? Someone calling me a weight bully. 'He should move up in weight. He's a weight bully.' Are you mad?" Pimblett exclaimed.

Chris Griffin from "Family Guy"Photo by FOX Image Collection via Getty Images

Pimblett added that fighters in the next highest weight class, 170 pounds, are far too big for him to compete against.

"They f***ing massive!" he said.

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England goes FULL ORWELL: UK government JAILS citizens for social media posts!



The United Kingdom has resurrected a COVID-era measure to censor law-abiding citizens — which includes threatening them with jail time if they disobey.

One 55-year-old woman was arrested over a post because it contained inaccurate information about the identity of the suspect accused of the killings of three young girls in Southport.

Peter Gietl, the managing editor for Blaze Media’s Return, is horrified.

“This story has me riled up. I used to live in London; I really love England,” he tells Jill Savage and Matthew Peterson of "Blaze News Tonight." “Basically, what we’re seeing is it didn’t take long for the new Labour government to find an excuse to bring out draconian measures on dissent and free speech.”

“Where this is going is really concerning,” he continues, adding, “and it’s all happening very quickly.”

And the Crown Prosecution Service of England couldn’t have made it more obvious how concerning this really is.

A video posted to its social media contained the statement: “You can be PROSECUTED for posting material online which incites VIOLENCE or HATRED. You can also be PROSECUTED for sharing this material. Your online actions can have consequences.”

“These images you’re seeing on the screen, which you know the government is putting out, it’s Orwellian,” Peterson comments, noting that another post from gov.uk said, “Think before you post.”

“Well, we shouldn’t forget, Matt, that Winston Smith, '1984,' did take place in England. So there always has been this somewhat fascist streak,” Gietl says.


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Another UK stabbing: 11-year-old girl and woman, 34, wounded in London attack; male arrested



An 11-year-old girl and a 34-year-old woman were stabbed Monday in London's Leicester Square in the United Kingdom, police said on X.

A male has been arrested and is in custody, police said.

'I just saw a kid getting stabbed, and I just tried to save her.'

"At this stage, there is no suggestion that the incident is terror-related," police added.

The girl "will require hospital treatment, but her injuries are not life threatening," police said, adding that the woman — who also was taken to a hospital — "suffered more minor injuries."

Police also said, "We don't believe there are any outstanding suspects."

Police officers stand by a cordoned off area in London's famous Leicester Square after an 11-year-old girl and a 34-year-old were stabbed, Aug. 12, 2024.Photo by BENJAMIN CREMEL/AFP via Getty Images

Amid Monday's stabbing, a security guard told the Guardian he “jumped on” and took a knife from a male he said stabbed the child.

The paper added that the guard by the name of Abdullah, 29, told the PA news agency: “I heard a scream. At that moment I saw there was one person, roughly [in their] mid-30s or early 30s, and he was like stabbing a kid. I jumped on him, held the hand in which he was [carrying] a knife, and just put him down on the floor and just held him and took the knife away from him. Then a couple of more people joined as well, and we just held him until the police came; it took maybe three to four minutes for the police to arrive, and then they just took him into custody.”

You can view a video report about the incident here; it includes a clip of officers holding the apparent suspect — with his face blurred — as well as an interview with the security guard.

The Guardian reported that Joy Akan, another tour bus company worker, took video of the suspect after his arrest, and it showed he's a "lightly built man in a black T-shirt with an Abbey Road logo on the front. He was wearing black tracksuit trousers. The video was time stamped at 11.41 a.m." (6:41 a.m. EST). Numerous video clips posted to X show the purported suspect in custody without blurring his face.

The Guardian said a police cordon surrounded the double doors of the TWG Tea shop, and at least six police officers were at the scene.

Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images

Abdullah — who told the paper he's worked security at the TWG Tea shop for the past “seven to eight months” — said his colleagues gave first aid to the child before police arrived.

“I just saw a kid getting stabbed, and I just tried to save her," he told the Guardian. "It’s my duty to just save them."

Ezat Katerzis, who's with a tour bus company, told the paper the attacker appeared "mentally disturbed" and that "he just stabbed the girl out of the blue. She was with her family.”

Katerzis added to the Guardian that the girl appeared to have been stabbed near her right eye and that "blood was pouring out of her face" and that "she will survive. They picked her up, and she stood [on her] feet. They took her inside the [TWG Tea] shop, and the paramedic came.”

Katerzis also told the paper that the attacker "is only a skinny guy. He didn’t say anything when they arrested him and took him to the van. It was like he was on drugs or something. I don’t think it was a robbery. He just started stabbing her for no reason.”

Just two weeks ago, a 17-year-old male was accused of killing three and injuring numerous other victims in a July 29 mass stabbing at a Taylor Swift-themed children's dance class in U.K. seaside town of Southport.

Officials initially said there was no evidence that terrorism was a motive in the Southport knife attack, which angered many who accused the government of covering up evidence. Police identified suspect Axel Rudakubana and charged him with three counts of murder and 10 counts of attempted murder. Officials identified him as being from Cardiff but also noted that his parents are Rwandan. Unrest and violence erupted the day after the stabbings and have spread across the United Kingdom.

This is a developing news story; updates will be added.

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'Never again!' Dana White says surprise fight bonuses are over for good after 7 straight decisions at UFC 304



UFC President Dana White vowed never again to be convinced to increase fighter bonuses after he said fighters didn't try any harder to earn the extra cash over the weekend.

Specifically, White referred to the fact that he doubled fighter bonuses for UFC 304 to $100,000 — a semi-frequent pattern that has occurred in the last few years. Typically, fans, reporters, or fighters convince White to increase prize money for knockouts, submissions, or overall great performances during the week leading up to the fights.

This time, fighter Bobby Green convinced the UFC boss to double bonuses from the usual $50,000 for Saturday's event in Manchester, England.

'You can thank everybody on this card for that.'

At the end of the night — which was actually near sunrise in the U.K. — White was asked at a press conference if he would consider permanently increasing the bonuses: "You know, every time you get on a press conference the fighters manage to get you to up the bonuses; do you think there's an argument that maybe you should just up them [permanently]?"

White interrupted: "I think tonight showed that we should not, no. Upping them doesn't change anything; it doesn't make anybody fight any harder, it doesn't change anything!" White said, becoming increasingly annoyed.

The UFC head clarified that he still might increase the bonuses in a preplanned way, but not in the sense that he would be convinced at a press conference. "I'm not doing this again, ever. Today was the last day that I'm doing that, yeah. Not saying that in the future the bonuses couldn't get up, but I'm not going to be at a press conference to say '200! 300!' Never again, never again! So you can thank everybody on this card for that."

"Damn, dude," one of the reporters was heard saying.

"Nobody fought any harder, there was no sense of urgency, [no] 'Holy s**t, I want the $100,000.' Seven straight ..." White continued.

"It is 3 a.m.!" the same reporter complained.

"Who gives a f***?!" White came back. "It's 7 o'clock in Vegas, so whatever. Yeah, never again okay? Seven straight f***ing decisions, yeah the $100,000 was was was a real big f***ing 'woo hoo, let's get it boys!' F*** that, f***ing never again."

White says that tonight proved that upping the bonuses doesn't work.

"Upping them doesn't change anything, it doesn't make anybody fight any harder... I'm not doing this again, ever. Today was the last day I'm doing that."
— Aaron Bronsteter (@aaronbronsteter) July 28, 2024

The main event between Leon Edwards and Belal Muhammad also ended in a decision, leaving fans disappointed with its pace.

When asked about the performances, White shrugged at reporters and admitted that "it wasn't a barn-burner."

When a reporter asked White if he thought the late start time for the event was the reason for the lackluster bouts, White responded by saying, "I have no clue."

The Pay-Per-View event's official start time was 10 p.m. Eastern time, but it was taking place in Manchester, England, meaning the local start time was around 3:30 a.m..

Fighters Mick Parkin, Tom Aspinall, and Paddy Pimblett all received the fight bonuses, with Pimblett receiving $200,000.

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