Mashable: This emerging country is getting unhappier by the year

According to last year's report, India witnessed the steepest declines in happiness levels between 2005-07 and 2013-15. And this, despite its gross domestic product (GDP) growing faster than most developed countries of the world. (The World Happiness Report bases its data on six parameters: GDP per capita, life expectancy, social support, trust, freedom to make life decisions, and generosity.) [...]

One in five international cases of honor killing every year comes from India, according to the United Nations. In fact, India reported an inglorious 800 percent rise in honor killings last year.

The rate of malnutrition cases among children in India is almost five times more than in China and twice than in Sub-Saharan Africa, according to World Bank. Malnutrition is often dubbed as India's 'silent emergency'.

Over 35 million children in India are deprived of education and have to work as laborers, according to the 2011 Census. And there's more.

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Mashable: Rebuilding Dresden

Over two days and nights in February 1945, American and British bombers dropped 2,400 tons of high explosives and 1,500 tons of incendiary bombs on the German city of Dresden.

The barrage turned the cultural jewel of Saxony into a hellish inferno. A firestorm raged across the city, generating hurricane-force winds and temperatures near 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Civilians sheltering in basements suffocated as the city above them was consumed by flame.

When the fires were finally extinguished, an estimated 25,000 people had died and the baroque city center had been reduced to rubble.

A few months later, the war in Europe ended. Under Soviet occupation, the survivors began the daunting task of cleaning and rebuilding their city.

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Mashable: Same-sex marriage in the Philippines gets personal support from a top government official

Pantaleon Alvarez, Speaker of the House of Representatives, said Monday he will file a bill legalising same-sex marriage in the Philippines. He intends to sponsor it himself too, and his staff has already begun drafting it, he told local press.

The Speaker of the House is a powerful position — third in line to the presidency, behind the vice president. The post is an elected role by the majority of the representatives in congress.

He was reported saying: "If you look at the Constitution, there is a provision guaranteeing happiness for the Filipinos. Why would we deprive them of that? If they are happy with that, shouldn’t we support them?" [...]

Still, Alvarez is confident that his bill isn't asking for the Church to bend. "My proposal is about civil union. We do not meddle with the affairs of the Church. There’s no problem if they don’t want it," he was quoted saying in a press conference.

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Mashable: LGBTQ people hold 'kiss-in' after couple ejected from supermarket

Last Monday, Thomas Rees and his boyfriend Joshua Bradwell were reprimanded by a security guard at the store after a customer complained about the couple's handholding.

According to Michael Segalov — who organised the "kiss-in" — the couple were told by a security guard that "holding hands was 'inappropriate,'and they’d need to stop right away or leave the store." [...]

During the kiss-in, Rees and Bradwell took to a microphone and delivered an "emotional address," stating “no matter how you identify, or who you love, it’s your human right to express that love as you see fit”.

Drag queen Rodent Decay began the countdown, and after ten seconds, the mass kissing began inside the store, continuing out into the street. 

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Mashable: Britain has its next prime minister to thank for mass surveillance bill

In June, as the campaigns to Remain or Leave the European Union were at the final stage, Parliament overwhelmingly approved a bill that critics believe is the most intrusive piece of legislation on mass surveillance in the West.

Just 69 MPs voted against the Investigatory Powers Bill — dubbed the "Snoopers' Charter" by critics — which is now with the House of Lords for further consideration.

Privacy campaigners pointed the finger at measures that would give the government bulk powers to collect citizens' web records, monitor, intercept and even hack smartphones under warrants authorised by ministers.

A recent report by House of Lords peers warned that the charter could endanger journalists and their sources as computer hacking could allow the state to access a journalist's notes or video footage.

It's worth noting that the legislation is the brainchild of Theresa May, the "steely" and "hard-working" Home Secretary who is poised to become the first woman prime minister since Margaret Thatcher. [...]

Over six years as Home Secretary, she didn't shy away from controversy, taking on police corruption and rolling out billboards telling illegal immigrants to "go home or face arrest."

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Mashable: GPS maps show the wild adventures your cat goes on night

More than one dozen cats were fitted with GPS trackers to show the distance they roam from their homes. The end result was a series of maps, which provide fascinating insight into the travelling habits of felines.

The project started in mid-March with 25 cats enrolled, but by the time the project ended in mid-May, only 14 cats remained. This was due to some GPS trackers disappearing or felines struggling to wear the harness with the tracker attached.

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Mashable: How a popular politician boosted an unpopular party in Scotland

Ruth Davidson, who comfortably won Edinburgh Central, an area where the Conservatives previously placed fourth, has become the driving force of the Tories in Scotland, winning over voters and inspiring others to join to the party along the way. [...]

Young, working class, Christian, openly gay and driven by liberal values, she famously described herself as a “tough old bird” but she has an affability that charms most who meet her. She also has in bucket loads that elusive characteristic – relatability – that so many politicians would give their second homes for.

On top of that she has some real world experience, having served in the Territorial Army, making it out to Kosovo and injuring her back at one point. Her stint as a producer and presenter for the BBC at the start of her career, meanwhile, has gifted her the gab essential to succeed in politics.

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