In 47 U.S. states, the Gay Trans Panic Defense is a law which states that it is possible for a defendant to be sentenced to a lighter prison term after having killed a gay or transgender person simply by claiming the victim flirted with or hit on them, therefore triggering a legally justifiable beating and/or murder
The AK47 firearm is named as such because it was an automatically firing rifle, designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov, in 1947, hence the letter “A” standing for “automatic”, the letter “K” standing for “Kalishnikov”, and the number “47” standing for “1947”
U.S. law enforcement uses a database referred to as “CODIS” when attempting to resolve criminal cases using deoxyribonucleic acid. The term CODIS is an acronym which stands for “combined deoxyribonucleic acid index system”. CODIS involves multiple databases including missing persons, convicted offenders, and forensic samples collected from crime scenes. Although U.S. law enforcements databases are not directly connected to any other nation in any official capacity, the underlying CODIS system is used by law enforcement agencies around the world. As of 2016, the CODIS system is currently used by 90 international laboratories within 50 countries. CODIS is maintained by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation
It’s estimated that as much as $220,000,000 ($220 million) in counterfeit currency is circulating in the United States of America at any given time. In an effort to combat those who produce counterfeit currency, the U.S. government introduced a new form of $100.00 bills in 1996. This new currency featured the most sophisticated security features in the world including a security strip running down the left hand side of Benjamin Franklin’s portrait which is activated by ultraviolet light causing the strip to turn pink, a watermark in which Franklin’s face appears on the right hand side of the bill when held up to light, color shifting technology which changed the color of the “100” text at the bottom right hand corner of the bill which shifts from green to black when tilted, microprinting of the “100” text at the bottom left hand corner which states “USA100” and on the left hand side of Franklin’s lapel which states “The United States of America”
The most successful pirate in human history was Ching Shih (pronounced “ching-she”) colloquially known as “Cheng I Sao” (pronounced “jung-ee-ss-ow”) which means “wife of Cheng I” in Mandarin. During the 19th century, Ching commanded 80,000 sailors, 1500 ships, and was able to talk herself out of imprisonment when finally captured by the Chinese monarchy. After acquiring amnesty from the Chinese state, Ching opened a casino, moving from notorious and infamous pirate, to legitimate business mogul in one swift motion
In 2019, the state of Utah, United States of America legalized sexual intercourse outside of marriage. Up until this point, sexual relations outside of a husband and wife scenario were illegal, and referred to within the state law as “fornication”
In the art collectibles world, the pencil is referred to as the “forgers tool”. Forgers prefer using pencil as it’s nearly impossible to date its age and it displays upon pieces without being obtrusive which allows it to go undetected for longer than if the autograph were done in pen, paint, or some other medium
India has the highest amount of children who work of any country in the world. Thousands of children are trafficked into domestic slavery each year in India but due to India’s vast population of 1,300,000,000 (1.3 billion) people, these children go largely unnoticed. In India, every hour, 8 children are trafficked however 5 of these children are never found after having gone missing. Traffickers are paid 5000 – 6000 Indian Rupees ($95.00 – $110.00) per child. Indian society seems to permiss children working and it is deeply ingrained within society as it is viewed as poor children working because their families cannot afford to send them to attend an educational institution. It is viewed as better to work than to do nothing at all. It’s ironic because a buffalo will sell for 200,000 Indian Rupees ($3700.00) but a young girl for 10,000 Indian Rupees ($185.00). The value of a human life does not seem to count for much as prices are set in terms of how much work a person or animal can perform before collapsing. Kailash Satyarthi, a man who has spent his life freeing children from slavery, his organization freeing close to 100,000 children in the last 3 decades as of 2018. Satyarthi who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 for his efforts to eradicate slavery states. Satyarthi often educates that there is a triangular relationship between poverty, child labor, and illiteracy with each forming a chicken and egg relationship with the other as each factor is a consequence of the other factors. When child labor is permitted, it allows child illiteracy and poverty to continue. Child labor is the largest factor preventing education and literacy for children around the world. This places children at an enormous disadvantage because they cannot become equal partners in the globalized economy. It’s not only the traffickers of organized crime who need to be suppressed. It is also the middle class families in large cities like Delhi who do not consider the consequences before hiring a young person to watch their children, clean their home, and cook their meals. Suppressing both of these ties to slavery will drastically help reduce the number of children who are trafficked each year. Law enforcement has been known to resort to medical examinations to provide an accurate age when documentation is unavailable or thought to be fraudulent. Indian law however clearly states that if a school certificate is used as proof of age, then no medical examination shall commence. This is used by traffickers as leverage to ensure that they’re never culpable for having a person below the age of 18 under their supervision
When Vladimir Putin sent Russian military soldiers into Crimea, Ukraine, he was adamant to ensure they bore no insignia on their uniforms which allowed him to deny the status of the soldiers and their relation to the Russian military
Many North Koreans decide to work abroad but foreign work programs do not work the same way in North Korea as they do in the western world. Workers go abroad to places which will take them, with Russia and China being the primary location to migrate, and then work in industries which require cheap labor, typically in construction or factory work. Workers are forced to pay a mandatory fee to the North Korean state as crippling sanctions by the United Nations has hobbled North Korea’s ability to advance its nuclear program(s). This fee is referred to as “party duty” and is typically $300.00 – $900.00 per month which is why many workers end up giving up and returning home, often in debt. Workers are paid in a form of food stamps as all financial pay goes to the team leaders of the band of workers. These leaders arrange for part of the money to be paid to the worker, part of the money to be kept for themselves, and part of the money to be paid to the North Korean government. Workers have reported earning as little as 7% of their gross income after the immense fees which were imposed upon them. Many workers work during the day at their primary job, and then again during the night with private construction jobs which they acquire most often by bribing their team leader. The night construction jobs pay much better than the state sanctioned jobs because doing so is completely “off the books” meaning that no taxes or fees are imposed allowing workers to keep the entire payment for themselves and their families. These migrant workers are often referred to as “dollar heroes” within North Korean culture and there are approximately 40,000 of these types of workers in Russia alone. At its core, this system is essentially forced labor which is equitable to slavery. The North Korean state is dependent upon this system as many of its legitimate exports are now blocked from world trade making income generation substantially more difficult. The demand for North Korean labor is intense because Chinese laborers now earn enough that their wages are no longer competitive with North Korea. The Chinese government often sets up conventions which function as career fairs, placing perspective employers in touch with those looking for work. These work fairs are established so that North Korean workers can be brought to China to help meet the demand of laborers needed to build new projects, primarily in construction. North Korea has put laws in place so that employers and employees can never directly exchange payment for services rendered. Any employee demanding payment is dismissed and sent back to North Korea. Workers are closely guarded and watched by North Korean managers who report back anything suspicious to the North Korean government. China is North Korea’s most important trading partner and it is estimated that in China alone, North Korean workers earn hundreds of millions of dollars each year. Before workers are allowed to go abroad, they must pass an ideological examination which is essentially a background check of ones family. Workers are required to have 1 spouse and 1 child in North Korea before migrating for work so that those who go abroad cannot engage in rogue activities. The North Korean government leverages these families left behind to manipulate workers into complying with the harsh system setup abroad, as many are unaware just how bad conditions are until they arrive to their worksite for the first time. The United Nations estimates that North Korean workers earn over $1,000,000,000 ($1 billion) annually for the North Korean state. Reports indicate that there are approximately 150,000 North Korean workers working abroad in total with 100,000 in China, 40,000 in Russia, and the remaining 10,000 working in Africa, Cambodia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Myanmar, and Poland. The United Nations has predicted that because western sanctions have put such immense pressure upon North Korea and its future financial growth, Kim Jong Un, North Korea’s leader whose technical title is the “Chairman of the Workers Party”, will be looking to increase the number of workers North Korea sends abroad as well as ratchet up the pressure placed upon these workers to generate even more foreign exchange income. Because of the insatiable drive to fulfill ever lower wages, it seems the rest of the industrialized world is complicit in helping North Korea’s Supreme Leader fulfill his ambition