A ‘Ghost Disease’ Is Causing Children To Be Born Without Anuses, Toes, Or Hands

North Korean children are being born without anuses, toes, or hands, as a bizarre illness dubbed ‘ghost disease’ spreads near Kim Jong-un’s nuke testing site, according to a North Korean defector.

Youngran Lee, who lived near the Punggye-ri test area before she escaped in 2015 said in a chilling first-hand testimony that a horrifying disease has swept the region, killing and deforming infant children with doctors powerless to diagnose or treat it.

Mrs Lee said: ‘In Kilju County, civilians are suffering from diseases, not knowing why. In hospitals, doctors cannot diagnose it, and the patients are dying slowly with lingering illness.

‘It is not too drastic to say that having a child without an anus, toes, or hands was normalised in Kilju. There are patients with various cancers in every other house.’

The defector shared a rare insight into life inside the ‘Hermit Kingdom’, voicing concerns about living so near to a nuclear testing zone. She described her house shaking, and furniture falling from the walls as the military tested its weapons. 

Mrs Lee counts her only son among the victims of ghost disease.

She said that in North Korea, medication supplied by the UN is hoarded by senior government officials, and despite the promise of free healthcare, ‘the shelves are empty in pharmacies’.

So when her son developed a mild fever in October 2014, aged 27, she turned to black-market medication, smuggled in from China, but it failed to help and she took him to the hospital.

She said: ‘A tuberculosis doctor told us that my son had holes in his lungs, measuring as big as 1.5cm and 2.7cm.

‘She also said he did not know why an increasing number of young adults were coming to the hospital.

‘I could not understand why this had happened to my son and felt so helpless.

‘Furthermore, she had eight close friends, and they were all diagnosed with tuberculosis one by one from 2012, and died within four years.’

Mrs Lee spent her life savings purchasing medications for her son, before fleeing to China in February 2015, hoping to find employment to send more money home.

By August of that year, she’d arrived in South Korea, where she underwent mandatory training to prepare her for life in a free society.

She said: ‘As soon as I was released, I contacted my son to tell him to go to Pyongyang Hospital.

‘But the next day, he called back and said there had been official instructions to stop Kilju County tuberculosis and hepatitis patients from entering Pyongyang.

‘The only reason given was that this was for Kim Jong-un’s safety, and there was no proper explanation.’

She continued: ‘For two years, I transferred money to my son through brokers, believing that he was getting adequate care.

‘However, in May 2018, I lost my boy, my pride and joy.

‘My son died without ever reaching the hospital to receive a proper diagnosis.’

Mrs Lee said she had lived near a nuclear testing site before its demolition in 2018.

She said: ‘On the day the third nuclear test took place, a wall clock fell, and light bulbs shook. I thought it was an earthquake and ran outside.

‘All my neighbours were out as well. Shortly after that, at midday, the main broadcasting system announced that the third nuclear test was successful.

‘Then we realised that the military-controlled area in Punggye-ri was a test site.’

Locals danced in the street in celebration, but they would be among the first victims of North Korea’s nuclear programme.

Experts think that radiation is the real reason for what’s been dubbed ‘ghost disease’.

Nuclear scientist Joohyun Moon of Dankook University, in South Korea, described how radiation from the underground blasts could reach local communities.

He said: ‘As shock waves travel, they break the layers of the earth or create cracks.

‘After a while, a mixture of melted rock and radioactive material will cool down and solidify.

‘Radioactive materials contained in this compound can infiltrate into gaps or cracks caused by the explosion and flow to the surface, soil or groundwater.

‘If it rains near the test site, the rain can carry these radioactive materials into the groundwater.

‘Groundwater is connected to rivers, streams and surface water, releasing these radioactive materials into the outside world.

‘As it is part of natural circulation, it is very difficult to intervene and prevent it.’

Dr Moon said there were a number of ways for radioactive materials to then infiltrate the food chain.

People could drink the irradiated water or eat seafood from it, eat crops grown with the water, or consume milk or meat from cattle fed by contaminated grass.

The nuclear test site sits on the banks of the Changhung River, which itself feeds the Namdae River – the main water source for Kilju County.

‘Every household in Kilju gets their water supply from there,’ said Mrs Lee.

Dr Moon calculated over a million inhabitants within a 40km radius of the test site could be affected.

He said: ‘It is safe to say that the residents near the test site will be under the influence of radiation for about 200 years.

‘The time period will increase if more nuclear tests are conducted in the same location.’

He added: ‘If the situation continues without adequate protection, these people will have a higher chance of having cancer, leukaemia, chromosomal aberration etc. than people in other regions.’

Youngran still lives with the damage in South Korea.

She was one of five North Korean defectors from Kilju County tested for radiation in the South in 2016.

She said: ‘The test showed that the exposure level was very high, and the white blood cells were very low.

‘One of the group had an unbearable headache – they could not even lift their head, but in every test carried out in A&E, no cause was found.’

Her own situation is no better.

She continued: ‘I feel aches everywhere and cannot walk very well due to pain in my legs, and I was hospitalised six times in a year because of headaches.

‘The hospital could not find any reason behind it, but I cannot even open my eyes when I have a headache; I feel restless and suicidal.

‘I know many people from Kilju who are experiencing the same symptoms as me.’

Allegedly, this was near a nuke testing site, so it’s not much of a mystery then, is it? Nevertheless, they will continue to test nuclear weapons and show scant respect for their citizens, and the world is still sending aid and their government is hoarding it for themselves.

There is no mystery here, I’m afraid, just experimentation with nukes, and what a dreadful country North Korea is, and so sad for the citizens living there, but most dictators don’t give a damn about the country, the world or the people, all they care about is amassing money for their own benefit.

The head of this country has no regard for his people, and no one is safe under his leadership.

This is all extremely cruel, but nobody cares about what’s going on, and if this story is correct, it will be forgotten by lunchtime.

Shocking Moment: A Jewish Man Is Denied Service At Officeworks

A shocking video has revealed the moment an Officeworks manager declined to laminate a Jewish man’s newspaper because she is ‘pro-Palestine’.

The customer, who was sporting a yarmulke at the time of the happening, took an article from the Australian Jewish News newspaper to an Officeworks store at Elsternwick, in Melbourne’s east, on March 4.

The article was titled ‘The indomitable spirit of our people’, and featured a picture of a group holding Australian and Israeli flags.

After seeing the newspaper, the Officeworks manager declined to serve the Jewish man, stating: ‘I’m pro-Palestine.’

She argued Officeworks’ policies gave her the right to refuse the man service based on her political views. Officeworks has since clarified that this is inaccurate.

‘I’m not comfortable proceeding with it (the job),’ the manager told the man.

The customer asked: ‘Maybe there’s another staff member that’s comfortable doing it.’

The employee replied: ‘You can wait for another staff member and see if she’s comfortable doing it, but I know I’m not.

‘I’m pro-Palestine and, for political reasons, I’m not comfortable.’

The customer asked whether Officeworks’ policies gave employees the discretion to decline service based on their personal views. 

Embarrassingly, the staff member failed to find the words to explain her position when asked to clarify her actions. 

‘We have the right to deny jobs because I’m not comfortable proceeding with it,’ she said.

‘Israel and Judaism can be completely separate.

The customer asked: ‘From what?’

The employee answered: ‘From religion and … um, I can’t find the word right now but you can separate the two.’

The employee then asked if she was being recorded by the man and threatened to call the police if he did not leave the store.

The customer has since lodged a complaint with the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, claiming Officeworks discriminated against his ethnicity and faith by denying him service.

‘This incident has caused my family and me significant distress and has raised concerns about whether it is safe to visit our local stores and conduct our usual activities,’ he stated.

‘None of the staff intervened during the situation with the manager, and the embarrassment and harassment we experienced have left a lasting impact.’

Officeworks has since apologised but will not sack the manager, instead sending her for ‘education and training’, including a stop at the Melbourne Holocaust Museum.

‘We can confirm that we have taken this matter extremely seriously and, since the matter occurred, have investigated internally and taken the appropriate action to ensure this doesn’t take place again,’ they said.

‘In this particular incident, our policies were incorrectly applied and in accordance with our Officeworks’ policies, the laminating should have taken place.

‘Additionally, we have provided ongoing training and education to our team members so they are aware of the legal requirements in respect of discrimination and of Officeworks’ policies and procedures.’

Dr Dvir Abramovich, Chairman of the Anti-Defamation Commission, slammed the worker.

‘Who would have thought that in Melbourne 2024, people would be denied a service because of their faith and for Israel?’ he stated.

‘We should have zero tolerance for this kind of profiling and indefensible prejudice.

‘No one should be singled out or denied service because of their ethnic origin, the country they support, gender, creed, faith, or sexual orientation.

‘Being different should be a cause for celebration, not a liability that makes one subject to bias.’

Under the circumstances, the company should feel ashamed paying the workers wages, and I do not doubt that there will be an abundance of people who will not shop at Officeworks ever again, as there are plenty of other options.

Her racist disgust for the man was fairly evident. For Officeworks to favour this conduct by continuing to employ her is appalling.

If this is their mindset, then I too wouldn’t feel very uncomfortable shopping at one of their stores.

Both Officeworks and this employee need to be sued for discrimination since this employee has not lost their job. This is racist and religious bigotry. She stated in the video she doesn’t like Jewish culture. How is this acceptable?

Tears Shed By Gay Waiter

A Kansas waiter has told how a slur scribbled on a receipt instead of a tip raised thousands of dollars.

Noah Bierig, a 19-year-old waitperson at Bubba’s 33 in Wichita, said the incident happened on a Sunday two weeks ago.

He was serving a group of young men when he felt at least one seemed like he was staring at his painted nails and pride bracelet, giving him glaring looks.

But it was what occurred when they left that left him in tears: not only did they not tip, but one wrote a homophobic insult instead of an amount.

One of Bierig’s friends shared the receipt online, setting off a dramatic chain of events. Emblazoned with the man’s name in print and script, it prompted a full-blown apology.

‘The first time I went up to the table, they were just shooting me a couple dirty looks,’ Bierig told KAKE News of the initial encounter. 

‘And every time I would walk away, they would kind of just start laughing a little bit.’

He said it was one man in particular who seemed put off by his painted nails—a gift from his mum when he came out. 

He said he felt like the customer and his party were not friendly. It did not bother him though, he told the local news station, sitting down with them at the eatery as he worked another shift.

He recalled how he did his best to serve the table like any other, despite being uncomfortable.

After they left, he was astounded to discover one of the group’s receipts had no tip and that the line was instead filled in with the word ‘f*g’.

He said the slur left him beside himself, even as he did the best he could to contain it.

‘That hurt me a lot,’ he said. 

‘I’m not the type to cry at work, but I got to say—that was definitely the first time that had happened to me.’

But after the bill got posted by one of his friends, with the offender’s name in full view, some peace came when a flock of outraged observers attacked the customer with messages that circulated their distaste.

Befuddled, the customer came forward to apologise but also said he did not receive good service.

‘I know it was wrong of me to write what I did,’ James Blick wrote on Facebook before deleting his accounts. ‘[A]nd for that, I am very sorry.

‘The overall dining experience wasn’t that great,’ he added.

‘I shouldn’t have dealt with it by saying what I did.

‘I did try to call the restaurant to apologise to the guy but couldn’t contact him. I am very sorry to anyone who was affected or hurt by my words.

‘I have learned a valuable lesson in all of this and nothing like this will ever happen again.’

The man went on to complain about the ‘hateful comments, messages, and phone calls’ he and his spouse have received since, before scrubbing himself from social media.

But not before something good came from all the attention garnered by the incident.

Bierig’s friends set up an online fundraiser through the town’s LGBTQ+ chamber of commerce that’s raised thousands of dollars.

There, anyone can contribute an amount that’s treated and tabulated as the appropriate tip he should have received.

‘Whatever comes out comes from that; it’s going to be donated,’ Bierig explained as the tips continue to come in.

Of the support he’s seen, he added, ‘It’s absolutely insane. I never thought anything like this would happen based off just a couple Facebook posts from my friends and family.’

He said Bubba’s 33 is matching his donation going to GLSEN, a firm that works to stop discrimination, harassment, and bullying towards those with different sexual orientations.

This guy was not broadcasting his sexuality. He might have had black nail polish on, but he might have been a Goth or into Heavy Metal. He was just assumed to be gay, which was their folly. I wonder if they think about if they had somebody they loved being dissed like that, no they wouldn’t like it either.

Nobody would say anything about a woman having painted nails and jeans, but if a man does it, then it’s shunned. Does this mean that women should no longer where jeans or trousers because they are deemed only suitable for a man? It’s a free society, well evidently it is, and you should feel free or wear or dress however you want. I bet if the server had been female with her knockers out nothing would have been said, and she would have definitely been given a tip!

What is good enough for the goose is good enough for the gander!

Preparing For Life Outside Prison

Prisoners who are close to being released are being allowed to host dinner parties in an experiment that has lasted years but has only just been exposed.

Four ‘lifers’ are living in a ‘hostel’ where they reportedly cook for governors with meal kits from Hello Fresh and Gusto – a claim the Ministry of Justice has denied.

It is supposed to be a ‘stepping stone’ for prisoners serving life or IPP sentences who are considered to pose a considerable threat of serious harm to the public.

The prisoners, who go shopping at the jail store. have 24-hour access to a kitchen and shower and have rooms with a wardrobe and mattress, must behave well or face being returned to the normal wing of the unnamed Category C prison in England.

The experiment was established when the previous government tightened rules stopping most ‘lifers’ from finishing their sentences in open prisons over fears they could escape.

The move was exposed at the annual conference of the British Psychological Society’s Division of Forensic Psychology in Cardiff, Wales.

Prison and probation psychologist Katy Burgess is evaluating the experiment.

One of the inmates told Ms Burgess it was ‘a bit weird because you’re in jail, so you know you should not be walking around the prison, really, at lunchtime,’ prison outlet Inside Time reported.

Another prisoner said: ‘Not having to be escorted or unlocked – it just makes you feel a bit more normal, human, less controlled.’

Ms Burgess added: ‘Some staff thought it was a little bit of a step too far in a closed prison and didn’t quite understand the benefit it may bring.’

A Prison Service spokesperson said: ‘This small pilot aims to cut reoffending by better preparing certain prisoners for their eventual resettlement in the community.

‘It’s completely wrong to suggest offenders in the unit can access external food services.’

Gusto refused to comment. 

MailOnline has reached out to HelloFresh for comment. 

If these prisoners are a grave risk, why are they being readied for release?

It appears we have nut cases running in this country. There’s no money to build more prisons, and prisoners are going to be let out early due to lack of funds, and now prisoners in jail are going shopping to host a dinner party. It’s hilarious, if not absurd. Who’s even going to be invited to these dinner parties?

Life should mean life, but life is now a word used to make our government and judiciary feel better about themselves, but it in no way mirrors the punishment.

Once again we are being lied to by proficient liars known as politicians, and also those who laughingly call themselves and each other ‘right honourable.’

Rehabilitation doesn’t always work, so why continue the farce? Prisons should be prisons, hard work, but now they are like hotels, and they don’t deter the criminals.

We don’t really have rehabilitation for prisoners though, because the previous government couldn’t afford it, or so they say! They just tend to throw the released prisoner into a hostel or B&B who have no life skills and there are no alternative options for them, so of course, they go back to what they know.

Neither Labour nor the Tories represent their citizens, they just represent their pockets!

And what about the victims, where is their support? These victims spend the rest of their lives looking over their shoulders for fear it will happen again.

I do identify that prisoners who are going to be released need some fundamental skills, particularly life skills and education so that when they’re released they have something to look forward to, like employment, and less probability of them reaffending.

Katie Price Must Give Up Five Cars, Including Her Pink Range Rover

A judge issued an arrest warrant for Katie Price when she failed to appear in court, and she was ordered to give up her pink Range Rover along with five other vehicles.

The 46-year-old former glamour model purportedly flew overseas and did not show up for her £760,000 bankruptcy court appearance.

The six cars include a Volkswagen Beetle, a Nissan Elgrand, a Range Rover Vogue (black), a Suzuki Vitara, an Infiniti FX50, and another Range Rover (pink).

Derragh O’Connell, on behalf of the trustees, said he was ‘seeking effectively the delivery of some six vehicles.

‘Trustees specifically seek an order requiring Ms Price to identify the current location of each of those vehicles.

‘The second application deals with again the trustee’s request for a warrant to authorise trustees and agents to seize vehicles and relevant log books and relevant car keys for those vehicles.’

Price is thought to have travelled to Turkey for another round of cosmetic surgery, despite ‘very clear warnings’ that she needed to attend court.

A jet-setting Price appeared to share a snap of herself on a plane munching a sandwich just hours before her looming court hearing. 

Posting on Instagram, the debt-riddled beauty model shared a picture of her snack, adding: ‘Crisp sandwich is the best.’

It’s believed Price – whose £2 million ‘mucky mansion’ was recently repossessed – was joined on the jaunt by pal Lou Anderson.

Mr O’Connell said that the court had received ‘inconsistent and contradictory’ information from Ms Price about her alleged ownership of the vehicles.

‘If she doesn’t comply, I’ll be seeking to have certain orders made as a consequence of that penal notice’, he said.

Ms Price’s ex-husband Alex Reid – former MMA fighter and Celebrity Big Brother star – attended the hearing and was invited to address the court as one of Ms Price’s creditors.

He stood up to read a pre-prepared statement into the microphone in which he announced that he was a ‘creditor and ex-husband of Katie Price’ who was ‘not just owed money, but owed peace of mind.’

Holding a two-litre bottle of Lipton’s Green Iced Tea, Mr Reid said: ‘She has failed to pay small businesses, some of which have been forced to close due to losses.

‘I myself have suffered not only financial loss but the wellbeing of my own family and mental health.

‘(She) showed explicit footage, private footage to a live television audience – forcing me to take her to court in 2019 for revenge porn.

‘When I went to court in 2019 and was clearly going to win, Price herself went bankrupt literally the day before.

‘This isn’t the action of a woman who is remorseful or wants to pay her debts to society.’

This is a woman who claims she can’t pay for her disabled son’s care but has enough money for more and more cosmetic surgeries. She needs to get her priorities right.

If we look at Katie’s eldest son, Harvey, who is 21 years old and can apply for his own benefit package, but because he’s disabled Katie would likely have his money paid into her account because she is classed as his caretaker, so where is all his cash going?

Harvey has Prader-Willi Syndrome and autism, and would not be able to look after himself. He would need carers for the rest of his life. Katie adores her son, but she needs to consider him, not squander away her cash on pointless procedures on her body. Having your hair done by the hairdresser, eyebrows, nails and lashes well nobody is saying she can’t have those done, but she’s living above her lifestyle. It’s okay to grow old gracefully. Nothing wrong with a bit of grey hair. Did anybody tell her, she’s not really a celebrity anymore?

What Taxes Will Rachel Reeves Hike In The Budget?

Fears are mounting about looming tax hikes for Brits after Rachel Reeves raided pensioners and warned of pain to come in the Budget.

The Chancellor has been defending her remarkable political gamble after declaring the Tories had left a £22 billion black hole in the finances.

She used the accusation as cover to virtually tear up Labour’s election platform—stripping winter fuel payments from 10 million pensioners, ditching the long-awaited social care cap and shelving major road projects.

Pundits pointed out that almost half of the alleged funding gap was down to Ms Reeves choosing to ‘cave in’ to union demands for public sector pay increases, with an eye-watering 22 percent over two years for striking junior doctors and 5 percent for many other workers.

Nevertheless, the Treasury review showed that even after the emergency action, Ms Reeves, there is still a £16.4 billion gulf in the books.

Keir Starmer has ruled out modifications to the main income tax rates, national insurance, and VAT. 

The Labour manifesto dedicated itself to scrapping non-dom status, adding VAT to private school costs and raising stamp duty on buyers from abroad. 

However, that was offset by additional spending, with the party calculating they would bring in £2.5 billion by 2028.

Another opportunity to bring in money could be inheritance tax. The Treasury’s ‘ready reckoner’ suggests that improving the headline IHT rate from 40 percent to 45 per cent could bring in an additional £1 billion.

She could come under pressure to clobber more than 30 million drivers to help fill the void, potentially by allowing the 5p fuel duty cut to expire next March.

The reduction was introduced in March 2022 by then-Chancellor Rishi Sunak to reduce the cost-of-living burden on families amid skyrocketing oil costs.

Though costs at the petrol pumps have since dropped greatly. Ms Reeves could look at restoring the link between duty and inflation in the coming years.

The previous Tory government froze the Fuel Duty Escalator for 14 years, meaning the levy stayed at 57.95p a litre between 2011 and 2022 and has been 52.95p since the 5p cut.

Research indicates the subsequent freezes have been worth at least £80 billion to motorists collectively.

Reversing the 5p cut and allowing the Escalator to increase with inflation would add around £100 to the annual fuel bill of the average motorist, of which there are about 33 million in the UK. 

Hopefully, Labour will be able to fill that black hole, and then we should be able to get back on track. We might have to suffer for a while but once Labour fills that void they can hopefully bring back the things they would have axed for the time being. It was the Tories who created this situation, and it’s going to be a rough ride for a while.

It will look like less Robin Hood and more Robbing Reeves, but they have a difficult job, and it’s not going to be easy. However, targeting pensioners is not the way to go about it. Target the rich instead, they can afford it!

Many pensioners suffer during the freezing winter months and have to choose whether to heat or eat and they need both!

It does make one think about spending money, particularly on the fun things in life. Which, of course, you are entitled to do. It’s money that you earn, but later on in life, you’re not going to be looked after. If you’re over 50 years old, can’t work and are not of childbearing years, the state doesn’t give a damn about you because you’re not profitable anymore, and of course, it’s all about making money.

The thing that bugs me, and presumably everyone else is that most politicians don’t do what they say they’re going to do, so why do politicians break their promises?

Not all politicians are bad people or chronic fibbers, but they are good old-fashioned bullshitters.

I don’t think that politicians lie on purpose. I believe that they mostly articulate with the best of intentions. They believe what they say when they say it, but then things go amiss.

They want to deliver what they promise, but they fail to deliver, and not always their fault, and that is what makes the public disillusioned. The absence of delivery and the lack of ability to deliver on their promises.

Sadly, some people vote tribally, but some people do read party manifestos like myself and make informed decisions founded on what the party put out in their manifesto. Have you noticed that politicians also like to use the word ‘pledge’ instead of ‘promise.’

When people hear the word ‘promise’ they really do believe that politicians will fulfil the duties that they promised, but when they say ‘pledge’ it doesn’t sound the same, and let’s face it, if they started saying ‘I promise’ and didn’t deliver, they would look so much worse.

Elections are usually descended into an auction of undeliverable or utopian promises, and it’s extremely tempting for politicians to play the auction of bullshit. Some know they’re talking bullshit and see it as a means to an end, some don’t and suffer the electoral consequences.

Is it the voter’s fault? Maybe it’s the media’s fault. Perhaps voters should be more pragmatic in their expectations and not believe what politicians promise them, I don’t. Either way, it’s all bullshit!

CELINE DION AND RENE ANGELIL: WAS IT LOVE?

Rene Angelil met Celine Dion when she was 12 years old. He was hooked on her singing abilities and he instantly signed her.

The following year, he mortgaged his home to finance Celine’s first album, and the album turned out to be triumphant.

Celine was born in Quebec, Canada, so she didn’t understand the English language because Quebec is a French-speaking part of Canada, but René ensured that she took English language classes until she became skilled in the language. He needed her to sing in English to be able to break into the US market.

René’s efforts paid off and she was signed by Epic Records. Her first English album debuted in 1993.

René doubled as her manager and husband, and they got married in 1994. Their relationship turned romantic when she was 19 years old; René was 26 years older than Celine Dion.

Celine Dion stayed devoted to Rene even when she became extremely successful, and she didn’t let hypergamy get in the way of her relationship with Rene. She even cancelled her concert several times when René was battling cancer.

René was diagnosed with cancer three times, but he eventually succumbed to the disease and passed away in 2016. They were married for 22 years.

Celine never once turned her back on her husband in all those 22 years. He was a man who took a gamble on her, and she remained with him even after she became successful.

Celine Marie Claudette Dion (Celine Dion), often referred to as the ‘Queen of Power Ballads’, is noted for her strong and technically skilled vocals.

She was discovered by René Angelil and emerged as a teen star in her home country with a string of French language albums during the 1980s.

She was raised a Roman Catholic in a poor but, by her own account, happy home in Charlemagne.

She suffered several accidents as a young child, including an incident at five years old when she was hit by an automobile as her father and brother Clement looked on. She was hospitalised briefly with a concussion.

From an early age, she had dreamed of being a performer, and she said that she didn’t miss having lost her youth. She said she had one dream: she wanted to be a singer, and she got her dream.

Celine Dion first met René Angelil, her future husband and manager, in 1980, when she was 12 and he was 38, after her brother, Michel Dondalinger Dion, had sent him a demonstration recording of “Ce n’était qu’un rêve,” a song she, her mother Therese, and her brother Jacques Dion had together written. Over the following years, René guided her to fame.

After the dissolution of René’s marriage in about 1985, he and Celine took a break from each other professionally, and he spent a significant part of the year in Las Vegas, while Celine was learning English and taking dance and vocal lessons in Montreal.

Upon his return, René avoided being alone with Celine for too long, but she was falling in love with him and would keep a photograph of René under her pillow for fear that her mother, who always shared a room with her, would see it.

Less and less could she conceal the fact that she was falling in love with René. She had all the signs, and she was in love with a man that she couldn’t love and who didn’t want her to love him.

Celine’s mother would travel everywhere with her until she was 19 years old but she was initially wary of her growing fixation with a much older and twice divorced René. Celine was insistent, telling her mother that she was not a child anymore, that it was a free country, and that no one had the right to stop her from loving whoever she wanted to.

Celine and Rene’s professional relationship finally turned romantic after Celine’s win at the Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin in 1988, when she was 20. The romance was known to only family and friends for five years, though Celine almost revealed it in a tearful 1992 interview with journalist Lise Payette.

In May 2000, Celine had two small operations at a fertility clinic in New York to improve her chances of conceiving, after choosing to use in vitro fertilisation because of years of failed endeavours to conceive. Their first son, Rene-Charles Angelil, was born on 25 January 2001. Celine suffered a miscarriage in 2009. In May 2010, she revealed that she was 14 weeks pregnant with twins after a sixth treatment of in vitro fertilisation. On Saturday, 23 October 2010, at 11:11 and 11:12 am respectively, she gave birth to fraternal twins by Caesarean section.

On 14 January 2016, Rene passed away at the age of 73 years old from throat cancer.

His funeral was held on 22 January 2016, in Notre Dame Basilica in Montreal, where he and Celine married 21 years earlier.

Following Rene’s death, Celine became the sole owner and president of her management and production companies, including CDA Productions and Les Productions Feelings.

There have been numerous speculations on Rene and Celine’s relationship. Some say that he groomed her, some say not. Some might say that the circumstances were odd, but people fall in love, it doesn’t always mean that they were groomed.

It was an unusual situation. She was isolated from boys her own age and Rene became the centre of her universe, and I do believe that they loved each other very much. He might have seen her as an investment in the beginning, but I believe that ultimately, the love conquered all.

No one really knows what goes on in someone else’s relationship, but the marriage between Celine Dion and Rene Angelil has presented its fair share of questions over the years, however, Celine has remained devoted to Rene even years after his demise. This level of commitment expresses how deeply Celine must have loved her husband. Nonetheless, the couple’s life together has been marked by controversy from the beginning.

Their union’s murky beginnings have generated grooming accusations, mainly due to the age difference between Rene and Celine, and it’s difficult for many people to believe that someone as young as Celine could feel a genuine connection to the more experienced Rene.

Hey, I’ve known couples to marry, the man much older that have gone to have extremely successful marriages, with no grooming, unless you’re a horse of course!

Whatever the reason, it is none of our business, unless you’re a nosey so-and-so, which many people are. Celine Dion was successful, which is the one thing that she wanted, she wanted to be a singer. She fulfilled that dream, had three wonderful children, and was married for a extremely long to one man. That’s more than I can say for some people!

SAFE SLEEPING PODS FOR THE HOMELESS

These are Safe Sleeping Pods for the Homeless in Ulm, Germany. These are for folks without a roof over their heads who can now find shelter in newly installed sleeping pods around the metropolis.

These aren’t just any pods; they’re called Ulmer Nests, made of wood and steel to protect against the cold, wind, and humidity.

Each pod fits up to two people and is designed without cameras for privacy. Instead, motion sensors warn social workers when the pods are in use, ensuring they’re cleaned and ready for the next person and that anyone using them gets the support they need.

What’s even cooler? These nests are fitted with solar panels and a radio network, so occupants can communicate without needing a mobile phone.

These pods aren’t meant to replace conventional housing but act as an emergency last resort to evade the risks of sleeping outdoors. This is such an innovative and compassionate step forward and it’s a shame our government in the UK did not think of something like this. Of course not; that would take brains!

The team behind the pods has said that they are still in the early stages of testing and that there will be a lot of work to improve the capsules and how they function. However, the response to the pods in Ulm has been very positive so far.

Sadly, because they are made out of wood, some nasty people might come along and set them on fire. The UK would definitely have to find an alternative material other than wood, and they would be vandalised faster than they could pitch them, perhaps even encouraging more illegal immigrants.

Apparently, in Ulm, Germany, people are better behaved than in the UK.

It’s a remarkably smart idea, but I worry that they will be abused, and in the UK, maybe not Germany, they would end up as drug-taking pods covered in urine. But to be honest, if I were homeless, I’d rather sleep in one of these pods than sleep out in the cold, and I’m right behind it. Hopefully, it will work.

Numerous individuals who are homeless have drug and drink habits, so I can’t imagine the state afterwards, but I am guessing that Germany has a plan. Maybe a manned pod force, which, in effect, will give the unemployed employment.

I am assuming that these pods will be maintained, again giving the unemployed a job, but there will be numerous other people who will just diss the idea; have they any other ideas? In Germany, they give them somewhere warm; in the UK, they just let them sleep on the streets!

Southend Hospital: Claims Patients ‘Dumped On Wards’

A nurse has described chaos at Southend Hospital as staff are “left in tears” after leaving patients in “the middle of wards” with “no privacy or dignity” due to a shortage of beds.

The Southend Hospital worker, who asked to remain nameless, has claimed staff feel “powerless and distressed” after seeing patients “dumped on wards” despite no beds being available.

According to the nurse, patients are sent to “non-existent bed spaces” and placed in the centre of a ward in a chair or bed.

She claimed this means the patient is still recorded as being admitted “in a bed,” but “in reality, they are exposed with no privacy.”

In response, the Mid and South Essex NHS Trust has said that in times of high demand, patients can be transferred from the emergency department to a ward where a patient is due to be discharged.

The nurse described one incident where a colleague was “crying because she was so upset at having to dump her patient in the middle of a ward without a bed space.”

She said, “They are left exposed with no privacy in the centre of a ward.

“All the staff are disgusted as it is not safe. But we feel powerless to do anything about it.

“Patients also get distressed over it when they are dumped just in the middle of other beds in a ward. Some are embarrassed and it is upsetting for nurses too.

“I know they don’t have enough beds, but they can’t treat people like this.”

The trust stated the procedure is part of the trust’s full capacity protocol, used by all trusts across the country, allowing hospitals to regulate patient flow during busy periods.

Dena Marshall, interim managing director for Southend Hospital, added: “At times of high demand, patients can be safely moved from a busy Emergency Department (ED) to a ward where a patient is due to be discharged as an extra patient.

“This allows us to continue to offload ambulances and start our patients’ treatment sooner than otherwise would be possible.

“Extra patients receive the same high-quality care as any other patient on the ward, including medication, observations, and food. They are moved into a bed as soon as another patient is discharged.”

This is the price we pay for decades of superiority and ignorance. Up until fairly recently, we in this country still believed that we had the world’s best health service, but in fact, we now have the worst. If we whine too much, our government will privatise it! Hopefully, our new Prime Minister will work this chaos out, but in all fairness, it will be difficult for Keir Starmer to undo 24 years of Tory mess—it’s going to take a long time.

It said that the staff were in tears. What about the patients who are in tears? These hospitals are hell holes because the Conservatives wouldn’t put money into the care of patients, and as for the elderly, they would rather have them die than spend money making them well.

Southend Hospital used to be such a good hospital back in the day, but that was before the Conservatives got control.

Labour Set To Overhaul Planning Laws To Build The ‘Biggest Wave Of Social And Affordable Housing In A Generation’

Labour will overhaul planning rules to build the ‘biggest wave of social and affordable housing in a generation’, the Deputy Prime Minister has said.

Angela Rayner, who is also the Housing Secretary, said delivering the homes at scale is her ‘No 1 priority’ after accusing the previous government of giving up on building.

Echoing the Chancellor’s warnings around the public finances, Ms Rayner said ministers had discovered a their ‘frankly scandalous legacy’ lurking ‘under each stone we lift’.

The Deputy Prime Minister told the Observer: ‘We simply do not have enough homes.

‘In the death throes of the clapped-out Conservative government, they gave up on governing and compounded their housing failure. In the first three months of this year, work started on 41 per cent fewer homes compared to the same period in 2023.’

She is anticipated to announce the changes before MPs go on summer recess. 

These will include bringing back mandatory housing targets that were discarded by the previous Government and introducing ‘golden rules’ to ensure development works for local people and protects nature.

In its manifesto, Labour pledged to build 1.5million homes over the next parliament, including on green belt land if required. 

This will involve increasing mandatory housing targets by 50 per cent, meaning thousands more homes will need to be constructed in most places.

The move will probably be welcomed by the new Labour Growth Group, made up of 54 MPs, who have urged the leadership to ‘back the builders and not the blockers’ and ‘make tough choices’ over building homes.

‘A failure to act will not be forgiven by the public,’ they wrote. ‘Britain has a housing crisis and a huge infrastructure deficit – without strong and immediate action, this will only worsen.’

Earlier this month Conservative leader Rishi Sunak said Labour’s proposals will ‘damage public consent for more housing in the long-term’.

Housing minister Matthew Pennycook said last night: ‘Labour was given a clear mandate at the election to get Britain building again and kickstart economic growth.

‘We are determined to grasp the nettle of planning reform so we can build the homes and infrastructure our country needs.’

What Labour seem to overlook is that we have numerous derelict homes that are empty and in need of overhaul. Instead of leaving them standing to become more derelict, why don’t they salvage those while building more housing?

Councils leave houses and flats empty for a lengthy time before going in to make them good. Councils that do this should be fined for every week that a home is left abandoned. They should be fined the rental amount of that building that has been left empty until the Council decides to get off their posterior and make that building good for someone to move into.

Now they’re building hundreds of blocks of flats, stack and pack structures that you can’t swing a cat around. It will be the end of housing estates – it’s indeed the end of community living. No one knows each other anymore, and we are all strangers in our own neighbourhood, and we all know who the new homes will be given to.

This will be Labour’s race to concrete over what’s left, but do we have a choice if we want and need more housing? Immigration is at its highest, but let’s face it, we import food, so why not import human beings? And before anyone says that I’m a racist, I AM NOT! If we had the space to invite migrants to our country, then that would be fine, but we are a small country with limited room – actually no room now!

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