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FORMER US PRESIDENT Barack Obama has called on Americans to reject language that normalises racism and creates a “climate of fear”.
The intervention comes after 31 people were killed in the US in two mass shootings over the weekend.
“We should soundly reject language coming out of the mouths of any of our leaders that feeds a climate of fear and hatred or normalizes racist sentiments,” Obama said in a rare statement.
He did not specifically name President Donald Trump, who has been accused in the wake of the massacres in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio of fanning the flames of intolerance through his anti-immigrant rhetoric.
In 2015, Obama told the BBC that his failure to pass “common sense gun laws” was one of the biggest regrets of his presidency.
Obama singled out leaders who “demonize those who don’t look like us, or suggest that other people, including immigrants, threaten our way of life, or refer to other people as sub-human, or imply that America belongs to just one certain type of people”.
Trump has faced criticism and accusations that his anti-immigrant rhetoric has fueled white supremacist beliefs.
A gunman killed 20 people as they shopped at a crowded Walmart in El Paso on Saturday morning, while nine more people were shot dead outside a bar in a popular nightlife district in Dayton just 13 hours later.
A 21-year-old from Allen, a suburb of Dallas, surrendered to police outside the El Paso Walmart. US media identified him as Patrick Crusius, who is white.
Crusius wrote that the attack “is a response to the Hispanic invasion of Texas,” and made references to the Christchurch shootings in New Zealand, where a white gunman killed 51 mosque worshippers in March.
In the wake of the shootings, Trump said that “these barbaric slaughters are… an attack upon a nation, and a crime against all of humanity”.
In a speech, he proposed almost nothing in respect to tightening access in the United States to the kind of powerful weapons routinely used in the ever more frequent mass shootings.
Trump had tweeted earlier on Monday that increased background checks at the time of gun purchases should be considered
“Our nation must condemn racism, bigotry, and white supremacy,” he said, adding that he had directed the FBI to use all resources to combat “hate crimes and domestic terrorism”.
“We must reform our mental health laws to better identify mentally disturbed individuals who may commit acts of violence and make sure those people not only get treatment, but when necessary, involuntary confinement,” Trump said. “Mental illness and hatred pulls the trigger, not the gun.”
Additional reporting from Dominic McGrath
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4 hours?? The ones in Mayo have been burning for 2 full days now!!
The fires in Erris co mayo last night were one of the scariest things I’ve ever seen. People were even evacuated from their homes.
I’m on Achill for the week and we’ve seen smoke from the same area for 3 days now, nothing under control about the fires down here.
4 days now!
How are these fires starting? It’s not like we have had weeks of dry weather and scorching sunshine. I’m not being sarcastic, I’m just really curious as to how these fires are happening.
I kid you not , last year I rang the local Garda station about fires in our area. This is what the Garda said, no joke……
Garda – sir have you ever heard or NASA
Me – yes
Garda – well they told us that a meteor was about to land in Ireland somewhere this evening
Me – really , I heard nothing in any radio station , news , think that would be quite news worthy
Garda – well it’s just in
Me – really
Garda – yes , so it may have hit your area and that is causing the fires
Me – you are taking the piss !
Garda – no that is the truth
Me – right…….. Thanks ……. So it not a local farmer setting off the fires to burn the gorse !
Garda – no a meteor
Me – right ………thanks ………. Hung up ……… WTF!!
So in short , no one really cares if your house is burned down!
They are burning the heather and clearing land. But killing thousands and thousands of wildlife in the process. Normally the fire wouldn’t spread but because the weather is so dry it’s rampant. Only 3 fire engines battling 4 large fires in Mayo. They haven’t the resources to calm these fires.
Considering it was a fire would it not have been more appropriate to ring the fire brigade!!!
Why would you ring the gardai about a fire. Would u ring them when your sick as well???
Peter everybody knows that you ring the guards when you’re sick, you are locked out of your house, there is a fire, there’s an object in the sky which may be a flare or even a UFO, when there’s a smell of gas, when your sister gets sunburned, when you find a dog, when people communicate with you through their televisions, when you see a ghost, when you get crap food in a restaurant, when you are refused entry to a night club because you’re pissed and most of all when there is any sort of noise RING THE GUARDS they are trained in all of the above!
The fires were happening every night for 2 weeks ,hence rang the Garda as its illegal to light fires in public areas …………
its a gorse fire not a forest fire.
Could it be farmers clearing land for sheep?
They should ban this outright and start throwing people in jail for it before some one loses their home or worse.
Idiot farmers burning land they have no intention of using anyway because of some old notion that belongs with the fairy forts and leprechauns.
This state has a divison of the Civil Defence that is called the Auxiliary Fire Service. If all retained or FT unots are stretched then they should be utilised.
That fire in the Silvermines mountains last night was pretty terrifying, it stretched the whole length of the mountain, was a sight to see.
I was on my way home from Shannon. The smoke could be seen at the toll bridge on the Shannon side of Limerick and I could still see it from Borrisokane. From the Limerick side, it looked like the whole mountain was about to erupt. It was an amazing sight. Nowhere to pull up to take pics though. I can’t imagine the smell that must have lingered in those houses in its path. Everything must be destroyed.
Can be something stupid like someone throwing a cigarette butt to a spark from a chimney .
Love how they only let farmers burn before the 1st of march, great burning weather that time of the year!
Its shatters fault for trying to cut wages come on people open your eyes don’t be sheep
Not sure if troll….or complete idiot…. :|
I’m thinking both!
Not to worry, the rains making a swift return.
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