Gates of Vienna News Feed 9/22/2017

North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un announced that his country is considering conducting a hydrogen bomb test over the Pacific Ocean. Save the Whales was unavailable for comment.

In other news, the foreign ministers of Bulgaria and Macedonia met in Skopje to discuss increased bilateral military cooperation.

To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.

Thanks to AF, Dean, DV, Insubria, Reader from Chicago, Seneca III, SS, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.

Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.

Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. We check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.

USA
» Hurricane Maria: San Juan Reeling After Storm Devastates Island
» Virginia Republican’s Ad Ties Opponent to Ms-13. Democrats Compare it to ‘Willie Horton’
 
Europe and the EU
» Europe: Muslim Reformers Need Police Protection
» Fresh Arrest in Barcelona Muslim Extremist Cell Terror Attack Investigation
» German Interior Minister, No Quick Access to Schengen
» Italy: Loyal Dog Keeps Vigil for Run-Down ‘Friend’ In Rome
» Romania: Transport Market Exceeds Eur 10bn in 2016
» Spain is Shipping in Police to Boost Forces in Catalonia…on a Looney Tunes Boat
» Terrorism Putting ‘Unsustainable’ Strain on British Police, Says Met Commissioner Cressida Dick
» UK: Parsons Green Attack: Man in Court Charged With Attempted Murder
» Vatican Gendarmeria Move on Homeless Around St Peter’s During Day
» Who Are the AfD? Far Right Populists to Enter German Parliament for First Time Since WW2
 
Balkans
» Bulgaria and Macedonia Discuss Military Cooperation
 
Far East
» North Korea Could Test Hydrogen Bomb Over Pacific Ocean, Says Foreign Minister
 
Australia — Pacific
» Heart Surgeon Who Was ‘Coward Punched After Asking a Man to Stop Smoking Outside a Hospital Thrashed Around and Tried to Get Up’ Before Collapsing and Dying Weeks Later
 
Immigration
» Benedict Cumberbatch Considered Housing Syrian Refugees But Didn’t as He Has a Baby
» EU Rebels Hungary and Poland Reaffirm Anti-Immigrant Alliance
» EU: Delusions Without Borders
» Germans ‘Honor Luther’s Legacy’ By Welcoming Mass Migration
» ‘If in Doubt, Treat Them as a Minor’: European Body Orders End of Migrant Age Tests
» Mass-Migration: The Tiniest Dose of Reality Hits
» Pope Francis Says Concern for ‘Cultural Identity’ Doesn’t Justify Opposition to Mass Migration
 
Culture Wars
» Australia: Neighbours Rip Down Church’s ‘It’s OK to Say ‘No” To Same-Sex Marriage Sign Within Hours of it Being Displayed — and Then Hang Vote ‘Yes’ Signs in Surrounding Streets
» Common Sense on Campus
 
General
» Roger Ver Joins Other Libertarians in Announcing a New Nation
 

Hurricane Maria: San Juan Reeling After Storm Devastates Island

Left to fend for themselves a day after Hurricane Maria ravaged Puerto Rico and forced them into a primitive existence, San Juaneros took to the streets Thursday to do what they say Caribbean people do best: Inventar. Figure it out.

No electricity? A mustachioed man in a white undershirt played traffic cop at a Santurce intersection. No ambulances? A daughter borrowed her brother’s SUV to race her frail mother from the La Perla neighborhood to a hospital. No debris removal? A physician and two neighbors borrowed garden tools to clear main Condado thoroughfares on their own.

With the enormity of Maria’s destruction still unknown even to the overwhelmed Puerto Rican government, the capital’s storm-dazed residents ventured outside Thursday, clogging roadways while trying to bring some semblance of order to their bruised city.

Their task was so massive some just wandered the streets, gawking.

“Get busy!” implored Dr. Joseph Campos, a 52-year-old internist at the San Juan Veterans Administration hospital, tree-trimmer in hand as he and his neighbors cut down a tree partially blocking access to a highway. “Even if all you can do is pick up a single, little branch. I’m not eating, and I’m healthy, and I’m working. You don’t have to sit home stress-eating.”

Residents deal with navigating high water throughout San Juan as Hurricane Maria left many streets flooded and blocked by fallen power lines, trees, and debris while Puerto Rico tries to recover from the Category 4 storm on Thursday…

           — Hat tip: DV [Return to headlines]
 

Virginia Republican’s Ad Ties Opponent to Ms-13. Democrats Compare it to ‘Willie Horton’

RICHMOND — Hours after they were complimented for their civility by moderator Chuck Todd at a televised debate this week, Republican Ed Gillespie and Democrat Ralph Northam each unleashed negative ads that attacked the other guy as unworthy of becoming the next governor.

Gillespie, who for years pressed fellow Republicans to make their party more welcoming to minorities, unveiled a commercial that blames his Democratic rival for the resurgence of the MS-13 street gang.

As the MS-13 motto “Kill, Rape, Control” flashes across the screen, the ad criticizes Northam for voting against a bill that would have prohibited the establishment of “sanctuary cities” in the state.

“MS-13 is a menace, yet Ralph Northam voted in favor of sanctuary cities that let dangerous illegal immigrants back on the street, increasing the threat of MS-13,” a narrator says. “Ralph Northam’s policies are dangerous.”

The 30-second spot intersperses photos of Northam with the tattooed faces of men who, as it turns out, were photographed in a prison in El Salvador and were not MS-13 members but part of a rival gang, Barrio 18 — which ThinkProgress first reported and Spanish photographer Pau Coll later confirmed to The Washington Post.

“No matter if the image is MS-13 or Barrio 18, Ed is committed to eliminating the threat of gang violence to his fellow Virginians,” Gillespie spokesman David Abrams said. “Ed has made public safety and gang eradication a top priority.”

The text across the screen in the ad says: “Ralph Northam: Increasing the threat of MS-13.”…

           — Hat tip: Dean [Return to headlines]
 

Europe: Muslim Reformers Need Police Protection

by Giulio Meotti

[…]

Hamed Abdel-Samad, an Egyptian writer and author of the book Islamic Fascism, is protected by the German police. The German sociologist Bassam Tibi has been under police guard for two years for having sponsored a “Euro Islam”: how Muslims might be assimilated in Europe, a concept opposite to the Islamization of Europe that the fundamentalists are trying to accomplish. In an interview with the German magazine Cicero, Tibi admitted his defeat and “capitulation”.

Ekin Deligöz, a representative of Germany’s Social Democratic Party, is under police protection as well, for having asked women to reject the veil as being “a symbol of inferiority and subjection”. Fatma Bläser, a victim of forced marriage and the author of the novel Hennamond, is today protected by police. She travels from school to school among young Muslims to raise awareness. Mina Ahadi, who founded the Council of Former Muslims, is also under day-and-night government protection.

When Turkey’s most courageous journalist, Can Dündar, former editor of the Turkish newspaper Cumhuriyet — the only Turkish media that expressed solidarity with the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo — left Ankara for Germany, he most likely would never have imagined that he would need police protection in Berlin, as well. In Turkey, the police searched his house for emails and articles; in Berlin, the police have to guard his house against the Muslim fundamentalists who want him dead. In Turkey, they wanted to kill him for criticizing political Islam; Europe is no different.

These are the real “moderate” voices in the Islamic world — unlike many supposed “moderate Muslims” such as Tariq Ramadan, who was recently caught defending female genital mutilation (FGM). These heroic Muslim reformers are far from the Islamic officials of the mainstream Muslim organizations, often funded by oil-rich Islamic dictatorships. Qatar, according to a major enquiry by the French daily Libération, is the main source of funds for the Union of the Islamic Organizations of France (UOIF), the most prominent Islamic umbrella group there. The UOIF also evidently receives funding from Saudi Arabia and “benevolent associations” in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf.

           — Hat tip: AF [Return to headlines]
 

Fresh Arrest in Barcelona Muslim Extremist Cell Terror Attack Investigation

MADRID (AP) — A man was arrested Friday for alleged links to the extremist cell in last month’s attacks in Barcelona and a nearby town that killed 16 people, Spain’s Interior Ministry said.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

German Interior Minister, No Quick Access to Schengen

“Honestly, this is a long way” for Bulgaria and Romania

(ANSA) — TRIESTE — Germany’s Federal Minister for the Interior, Thomas de Maiziere, says that the accession of countries such as Bulgaria and Romania to the Schengen area “is a long way”.

In an interview with daily newspaper Die Berliner Zeitung, the German Minister affirmed that he shares the view of European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on the enlargement of the Schengen area, but added that he sees no quick accession: “Honestly, this is a long way”, the Minister affirmed.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Italy: Loyal Dog Keeps Vigil for Run-Down ‘Friend’ In Rome

Animal stayed beside dead companion for hours

(ANSA) — Rome, September 21 — The story of dog who sat beside a fellow canine for hours on Wednesday, keeping vigil after it was run down and killed on a Rome road, has moved animal lovers all over Italy.

“I was taking my daughter to school and got trapped in a jam.

At first I thought there was an accident but then I noticed the dog,” said Marco Milani of the Equi Diritti association.

“He was there in the middle of the road, still and looking after his friend, who had probably been killed in a hit-and-run”. Eye-witnesses reported that the dog started the vigil on Rome’s busy Via Tuscolana at 5am. “Here everyone recalls the two dogs often playing together in the street,” continued Milani.

“I published the photos on social media because I didn’t want him taken to a dog pound, but fortunately he has an owner.

“Dozens had offered to adopt him”.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Romania: Transport Market Exceeds Eur 10bn in 2016

34,000 companies with 156,000 employees

(ANSA) — BUCHAREST — Economic growth and the significant investments in the national transportation fleet have led the transport market in Romania to a historic high of more than EUR 10 billion last year, a KeysFin analysis reads, based on the figures delivered by the Finance Ministry and the Trade Registry.

Thus 34,000 companies with 156,000 employees ensure the goods transport in the country and abroad. In the past years, Romania has become one of the most active players in Europe.

The number of companies has increased by more than 5,000 from 28,914 companies in 2012 to 34,628 companies in 2016. According to The Romania Journal, the analysis reads that foreign investors are more interested in this sector, with 375 companies representing 22% of the market, having foreign majority shareholders (more than 50%).

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Spain is Shipping in Police to Boost Forces in Catalonia…on a Looney Tunes Boat

Spain’s interior ministry has chartered three ferries to house police sent to back up forces in Catalonia where Madrid is pulling out the stops to halt an outlawed independence referendum, authorities said.

“Three ships arrived and will stay in the ports of Barcelona and Tarragona, where police and Guardia Civil forces will stay,” said a source at the central government’s representative office in Catalonia, who declined to be named.

Two of the ferries are moored in the port of Barcelona while another is in Tarragona, some 100 kilometres (60 miles) south of the Catalan capital. One of them is decorated with giant cartoon characters representing Wile E Coyote, Tweety-Pie and Daffy Duck.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

Terrorism Putting ‘Unsustainable’ Strain on British Police, Says Met Commissioner Cressida Dick

Terrorism is putting an “unsustainable” strain on British police, the head of the UK’s largest police force has warned.

Cressida Dick, the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, said the four terror attacks to hit London so far this year had an impact on the entire force.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

UK: Parsons Green Attack: Man in Court Charged With Attempted Murder

Ahmed Hassan faces charges of attempted murder and causing an explosion likely to endanger life

An 18-year-old man has appeared in court charged with attempted murder in connection with the bomb attack on a London Tube at Parsons Green.

Ahmed Hassan, of Sunbury, Surrey, is also accused of causing an explosion likely to endanger life or cause serious injury on 15 September.

Hassan confirmed his name, date of birth and address at Westminster Magistrates’ Court.

He was remanded in custody and is due at the Old Bailey on 13 October.

A 17-year-old man who was arrested by counter-terrorism officers investigating the attack has been released with no further action, police said on Friday. Two other men had already been released without charge.

Two further men, aged 25 and 30, remain in custody.

Meanwhile, Suleman Sarwar, of Aladdins chicken shop in Hounslow, said his takeaway has received abuse and threats after an employee was arrested as part of the investigation.

           — Hat tip: Seneca III [Return to headlines]
 

Vatican Gendarmeria Move on Homeless Around St Peter’s During Day

Attempt to restore decorum, still allowed to sleep in area at night

(ANSA) — Vatican City, September 21 — The Vatican’s Gendarmeria have moved on the homeless people who sleep rough around St Peter’s Square, ANSA sources said Thursday. However, the homeless will be able to keep sleeping in the area at night, the sources said. The move is designed to restore decorum to the area, which has been hit by scenes of degradation recently, at least during the daytime. Pope Francis, who had bathrooms and showers put in the area for the homeless, has been informed of the move, the sources said. Many homeless set up bivouacs in the area and local police have reported frequent brawls between people there.

A photo of a homeless person urinating under Gian Lorenzo Bernini’s famous colonnade that was published on the Internet this summer sparked alarm about the situation.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Who Are the AfD? Far Right Populists to Enter German Parliament for First Time Since WW2

The Alternative for Germany (AfD) have seen a last-minute boost in the polls and could become Germany’s lead opposition party after the election on Sunday.

The anti-euro populist party has taken political advantage of anger over the migrant crisis and Angela Merkel’s decision to welcome refugees last year.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

Bulgaria and Macedonia Discuss Military Cooperation

Meeting between Defence ministers in Skopje

(ANSA) — TRIESTE — Bulgaria and Macedonia will discuss the development of military cooperation. Bulgarian Defence Minister Krasimir Karakachanov will meet Macedonia’s Defence Minister Radmila Sekerinska in Skopje today, Novinite reports.

The Bulgarian Minister is going to propose a joint exercise between the special forces of the two countries in 2018.

“With Minister Sekerinska, we will discuss the issues of bilateral military cooperation and the updating of the 1999 agreement between the two ministries. We are talking about cooperation at all levels,” said Karakachanov according to Novinite.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

North Korea Could Test Hydrogen Bomb Over Pacific Ocean, Says Foreign Minister

(CNN) North Korea could test a powerful nuclear weapon over the Pacific Ocean in response to US President Donald Trump’s threats of military action, the country’s foreign minister has warned.

Ri Yong Ho spoke to reporters in New York shortly after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made an unprecedented televised statement, accusing Trump of being “mentally deranged.”

The forceful rhetoric from Pyongyang came after Trump threatened to”totally destroy” North Korea in a speech to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday. Trump tweeted Friday that Kim was “obviously a madman” who would be “tested like never before.”

In a rare direct statement delivered straight to camera, Kim said that Trump would “pay dearly” for the threats, and that North Korea “will consider with seriousness exercising of a corresponding, highest level of hard-line countermeasure in history.”

“I am now thinking hard about what response he could have expected when he allowed such eccentric words to trip off his tongue,” Kim said. “I will surely and definitely tame the mentally deranged US dotard with fire…

           — Hat tip: Dean [Return to headlines]
 

Heart Surgeon Who Was ‘Coward Punched After Asking a Man to Stop Smoking Outside a Hospital Thrashed Around and Tried to Get Up’ Before Collapsing and Dying Weeks Later

Heart surgeon Patrick Pritzwald-Stegmann, who died after he was allegedly ‘coward punched’ at a Melbourne hospital, was ‘thrashing’ and tried to get up after the attack, a court heard.

           — Hat tip: SS [Return to headlines]
 

Benedict Cumberbatch Considered Housing Syrian Refugees But Didn’t as He Has a Baby

The Sherlock star, 41, famously launched an angry tirade in 2015 after a Hamlet performance at the Barbican, blasting the Government for refusing to accept 20,000 Syrian refugees over five years.

He stunned audience members as he shouted: ‘F*** the politicians!’

But when asked why he hadn’t led by example and housed destitute refugees himself, he said he was just “trying to raise awareness”.

[Comment: In the US, people like Benedict Cumberbatch are called ‘limousine liberals’.]

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

EU Rebels Hungary and Poland Reaffirm Anti-Immigrant Alliance

Hungary and Poland have vowed to stand firm against what they claim is an overbearing European Union, intent on eroding the sovereignty of member states and forcing them to accept quotas of refugees.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

EU: Delusions Without Borders

by Judith Bergman

[…]

This past year in Europe, a terrorist attack was attempted every seven days, on average. Juncker delivered his speech just two days before yet another terrorist attack, this time on the London underground, perpetrated by an 18-year old migrant. The European Commission, however, does not appear particularly concerned with such matters. Juncker mentioned terrorism only very briefly toward the very end of his long speech, almost as if it were an afterthought:

“The European Union must also be stronger in fighting terrorism. In the past three years, we have made real progress. But we still lack the means to act quickly in case of cross-border terrorist threats. This is why I call for a European intelligence unit that ensures data concerning terrorists and foreign fighters are automatically shared among intelligence services and with the police”.

“Real progress”? The last three years saw an enormous surge in large-scale terrorist attacks in European cities: The ISIS attacks in Paris in November 2015, the Brussels attacks in March 2016, the Nice attack in July 2016, the Berlin Christmas Market attack in December 2016, and the Manchester attack in May 2017 — and those are just the most spectacular ones. The hundreds of people killed and thousands more maimed would probably not subscribe to Juncker’s definition of “progress”.

           — Hat tip: AF [Return to headlines]
 

Germans ‘Honor Luther’s Legacy’ By Welcoming Mass Migration

During the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, Germans are turning to Martin Luther for inspiration in welcoming as many migrants as they can, even illegally, according to an article in Christianity Today.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

‘If in Doubt, Treat Them as a Minor’: European Body Orders End of Migrant Age Tests

The Council of Europe has spoken out against performing medical tests on migrants to determine their age, claiming youths could be “frightened and unsettled” by the process.

In a report published Wednesday on age tests, the children’s rights committee of the council said unless there is evidence that the person is an adult, asylum seekers claiming to be under 18 should “be given the benefit of the doubt and presumed to be a child”.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

Mass-Migration: The Tiniest Dose of Reality Hits

by Douglas Murray

[…]

The movement which the Canadian Prime Minister appears to be auditioning to lead is one which seeks (as protestors often put it) to “build bridges not walls”. It is an attractive slogan, although anyone who utters it cannot have been to London recently where (after attacks on Westminster and London Bridge within just a few weeks) the city’s bridges are covered in security walls and barricades. Which might suggest that the “walls and bridges issue” is not, after all, an either/or business, or even the central issue at all.

Yet, given this considerable grandstanding in the early part of the year, it would take a heart of stone not to laugh now at the situation in which Prime Minister Trudeau finds himself. In recent months, thousands of migrants, most of them from Haiti, have crossed the border — illegally — from the US into Canada. This influx — tiny by European standards — has already started to buckle the Canadian immigration system. Hundreds of migrants have had to be housed in emergency tent villages set up by the Canadian army and many have been temporarily housed at the old Olympic stadium in Montreal.

           — Hat tip: AF [Return to headlines]
 

Pope Francis Says Concern for ‘Cultural Identity’ Doesn’t Justify Opposition to Mass Migration

Pope Francis spoke out strongly Friday in favor of welcoming more migrants throughout Europe, telling his hearers to beware of the “intolerance, discrimination and xenophobia” that have sprung up around the continent.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

Australia: Neighbours Rip Down Church’s ‘It’s OK to Say ‘No” To Same-Sex Marriage Sign Within Hours of it Being Displayed — and Then Hang Vote ‘Yes’ Signs in Surrounding Streets

An anti-marriage equality poster erected outside a Sydney church has disappeared within hours of being posted prompting suspicions it was stolen by neighbours.

           — Hat tip: SS [Return to headlines]
 

Common Sense on Campus

by Denis MacEoin

[…]

George Leef, writing for Forbes magazine summed it up:

The pressure of an online petition with over 6,000 names was too much for Brandeis to bear. On April 8, the university released a statement announcing its cancellation of the honorary degree. In it, Brandeis said that although Ayaan Hirsi Ali is a “compelling public figure and advocate for women’s rights” it could not grant the honorary degree because some of her statements “are inconsistent with Brandeis University’s core values.”

Encouraging a clash of different opinions, however, is the most central value of any university, and without it such an institution would cease to be worthy of the name. Despite that, student bullies continue to rant and make demands that only serve to destroy the reputations of the schools they attend. Administrators cave in, speakers are banned, and students across the board who disagree with what is regarded by some as the latest politically correct dogma are attacked, scorned, bombarded with threats, and sometimes death threats.

Why do administrators cave in so easily? It pays to take a step back. From the 1960s onwards, university heads learned to take positive action on genuine issues that arose on campus as part of wider social change. It was considered noble to act against racism, to support women’s rights, to end discrimination against gay students, and to ensure that members of minority groups (Jews, Muslims, Blacks, Latinos, gays and so on) were protected and respected. Important steps were taken to end discrimination. Import codes of ethics were created, often in line with state or national legislation. It became difficult for college officials to appear to be weak when confronted by charges of racism, homophobia, and — a new and ill-defined concept — “Islamophobia”. As the Hirsi Ali case demonstrated, many serious-minded people simply could not distinguish between genuine, often racist, hatred for Muslims and informed criticism of Islam as an ideology.

           — Hat tip: AF [Return to headlines]
 

Roger Ver Joins Other Libertarians in Announcing a New Nation

If you thought ICO announcements were big news, just consider what was announced by Olivier Janssens, founder of Freedom Investments, and Roger Ver, of Bitcoin Foundation fame.

The team, along with a trove of attorneys and other professionals, is seeking to establish its own independent nation, governed by libertarian values, and invites anyone who shares their political views or are just ‘free thinkers’ to join them.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

12 thoughts on “Gates of Vienna News Feed 9/22/2017

  1. The full name of the Parsons Green bomb attacker is ‘Ahmed Hassan Mohammad Ali’.

    It appears he has been charged under Criminal Law rather than under Anti-Terrorist legislation.

    However, where appropriate, offences can be charged as having ‘a terrorist connection’. This can lead to some confusion about whether the person convicted is deemed a terrorist as they are not charged with an offence under terrorism legislation.

    “Schedule 18 of Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 contains a list of terrorism offences, which include crimes that have ‘a terrorist connection’. These include charges such as murder or causing an explosion. For example, the killings of Lee Rigby and Jo Cox MP were charged as murder but both amounted to a terrorism offence and those responsible for the 21/7 bombings were charged with conspiracy to cause explosions, which also amounted to terrorism offences. In all of these cases those convicted are considered terrorists, because even though they are covered by different legislation than the Terrorism Acts, the crimes committed clearly had terrorist aims.

    Section 236A of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 imposes special custodial sentences for offenders of particular concern who have committed offences under Schedule 18. Certain serious violent and terrorist offenders will not be entitled to automatic release at the half way point of their sentence and will only be released early if they do not present a risk to the public.”

    [ http://www.cps.gov.uk/news/fact_sheets/terrorism/ ]

    • Seneca, I don’t know if you can explain it to me, but do you understand what the point is of sentencing someone to a period of time, with a built-in automatic release at the freaking halfway point? Especially with crimes of violence? British lawmakers – and many American ones for that matter – should be used to decorate the lamp posts around Parliament (ours to be displayed around the Capitol building.

      • Seneca, this is _not_ disagreement with either you or your comment, it is disagreement with whatever fools wrote this policy into law.

      • There is no short answer to your question, RegT, as there has not been a sudden dramatic change in sentencing guidelines but rather an incremental diminution of their severity and effectiveness over a period of several decades – pretty much in parallel with the general moral and cultural deconstruction of what was once our strong, viable nation-state.

        There are many factors involved ranging from an ultimately fatal increase in the general population through the importation of vast numbers from essentially lawless cultures, a finite limit to the available funds and infrastructure needed to restrain and incarcerate them and last but not least the various distorted interpretations of what constitutes ‘Human Rights’ and punishment .

        It has been a long term process that is deep, interlinked and driven by dark motivations, one that has intrigued me for several years now and although it will take some time and lot of research I will see if I can string it all together in a comprehensible article for GoV in the not too distant future.

        Thanks for asking and no sweat; I fully understood that your question was rhetorical not personal. S III.

    • Unfortunately, I am sure there are many Canadians who didn’t want to suffer under this clown, but are stuck with him, anyway. Just as many of us here in America didn’t want Obama, but were forced to suffer his vile presence in our White House anyway.

      • Western Canadians absolutely despise Justin Trudeau and they weren’t all that in love with his dad,especially after 1968.”Trudeaumania” (as the Press of the time coined it) was pretty much over across the nation by late 1971 and Pierre almost lost the 1972 election. He was only saved by the support from Quebec.The thing is that the western provinces don’t have the population of central Canada and therefore don’t have enough parliamentary seats to make much of a difference. Ontario and Quebec pretty much determines the government in Canada. The Rest of Canada has to “go along”,although provincial premiers meet with the federal government and have a right to defend the rights of their provinces. Premiers like Brad Wall of Saskatchewan and now Manitoba’s Brian Pallister (two most popular premiers in Canada) do speak out against government policies although you never hear about them in the American media.

  2. A note on North Korea: I don’t believe they yet have a vehicle for their weapons that can reach America – unless launched from a ship in the middle of the Pacific Ocean – but it is possible that Iran has one that could travel that distance, and the two countries have done business before.

    If and when they do, North Korea could announce a “test” over the Pacific Ocean that would actually be aimed at our West Coast. I am sure that we would be watching closely in order to intercept and destroy such an attempt, but at what point would it be determined that interception was necessary – and would there be enough time to respond at that point?

  3. Interesting Stefan Molyneaux video. Most surprising claim I heard was Sweden funded terrorism in South Africa through the ANC. I don’t know what I really know or don’t about South Africa but it was interesting and has ramifications for Europe.

    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nOvmjs0J_QQ

    • I did listen to this video, all of it.

      Sweden’s role gives me a new perspective on the term ” virtue signalling.” It is not just silly posturing. It is belligerent and intrusive. Or it may sometimes be deniable belligerence and intrusion.

      I have always thought that other countries have much to teach. South Africa had a large presence in our media when we were telling them what they ought to do. And when they had done as we had insisted and because of that began to be a failing nation, our own virtue signallers lost all interest in South Africa.

      It may be that virtue signallers wish only to rule others, but seldom to learn.

      • Alec-

        Of course the virtue signallers are currently uninterested in SA.

        Why would they be interested in a country ruled by the virtuous?

  4. Sincerely speaking, we in Bulgaria pray not to become a Schengen country. This would only mean following in steps of Greece as our borders with Turkey are long and porous… and then there is the Black Sea. Even now, parts of the capital Sofia near the Central Mosque are uninhabitable by “aborigines” because of the thousands immigrants loitering around, intermixed with local “Roma” etc. Whole living quarters around have seen a severe trough in their value, so people cannot even escape selling property for a part of its value.

Comments are closed.