Eight Roma suspects have been arrested in connection with a series of thefts at a children’s hospital in Genoa. Some of the gypsies who have been charged are parents of regular patients at the hospital. Items stolen include hand-held devices, small computers, and jewelry. The victims were child patients, their parents, and hospital staff. Much of the stolen material has been recovered, but one item that is still missing is an iPad which held the last photos taken by a little girl before she went blind.
In other news, a military advisor to the UN warns that 250,000 migrants will head to Italy from Libya this year if action is not taken to prevent them. This number would represent a 60% increase over last year’s total.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to C. Cantoni, Insubria, JD, KS, Srdja Trifkovic, 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.
Atlante Fund ‘An Interesting Approach’ — Lagarde
So new I reserve judgement
(ANSA) — Washington, April 14 — IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said Thursday Italy’s new private Atlante fund to shore up the banking sector showed “an interesting approach, limited in scope and amount, but interesting”. But she said “it is so recent that I have to reserve judgment”. Bad loans are a legacy of the financial crisis, she said, and Italian authorities have recognised it is a problem that must be addressed. The financial industry approved a government-backed plan Monday to set up the privately financed fund to buy up shares in struggling Italian lenders and to take on their non-performing loans.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
It seems the United States government needs to hire a new accountant. The current regime in Washington is just terrible at adding and subtracting, or running a budget.
According to data from the Treasury Department, federal tax revenues hit a record $1.48 trillion in just the first half of fiscal year 2016 (October to March). What’s even more astonishing is that Washington still ran a near half-trillion-dollar budget deficit in that same time frame.
The Treasury Department notes that tax revenue receipts stem from “individual income taxes, corporate income taxes, social insurance and retirement taxes, unemployment insurance taxes, excise taxes, estate and gift taxes, customs duties, and other miscellaneous items.”
Of the $1.48 trillion, a large chunk of it came from individual income taxes: $675 billion.
Despite the record amount of revenues in such a short amount of time, the government spent just under $2 trillion. Therefore, the budget deficit currently stands at $461 billion. Yikes!
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Bay Area Man Forced Out of His $400 Box Home
San Francisco officials deem micro-apartment a fire hazard
Illustrator Peter Berkowitz had been forced out of his $400-a-month box home in San Francisco after officials ruled it a fire hazard.
Berkowitz became a minor celebrity when he spoke to his local NBC station about his custom built pod in the living room of his friends’ house in Outer Sunset.
The rent is San Francisco is so high, he told the channel, that he hired a carpenter to build an 8ft by 3.5ft wooden box — which Berkowitz lives in at a fraction of the cost of a full room, with access to amenities. Currently, a bedroom in a shared house in SF costs between $1,300 and $3,000 (£700 to £2,100) a month.
Before he knew it, other media outlets came knocking and asked Berkowitz about everything from the box’s construction to his opportunities for onanism. Unfortunately for him, city officials were not as amused.
Having seen pictures online, they decided pretty quickly that not only did the box violate local housing laws but it was also a pretty significant fire hazard.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Drive to Remove ‘Anti-Islam’ Billboard in Florida Gains Steam
‘Paving the way for Shariah blasphemy laws’
One woman’s drive to get a billboard message critical of Islam removed from her hometown is picking up steam but so far the billboard advertiser and the company that rented him the space are standing their ground.
A billboard in St. Augustine Beach, Florida, popped up last week with the message “Islam Bloody Islam: DOOMED BY ITS DOCTRINE!”
Becky Williams, a nearby resident, didn’t like the message and has started an online Care2 petition to get it taken down. As of 5:30 p.m. Wednesday the petition has accumulated 17,409 supporters from around the world including 3,648 people who claim to be Florida residents.
Williams said she was driving down Highway A1A near Seashore Avenue with her daughter last Friday when she first noticed the sign.
She said she disagrees with the “ignorance” and “hate” contained in the message.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
GOP Delegate Who Vowed to Vote for Hillary Over Trump: The Donald is a “Racist Misogynist”
Claims harassment, death threats from Trump supporters
The GOP delegate who caused controversy yesterday by asserting she would rather vote for Hillary Clinton than Donald Trump launched into a Twitter tirade against the Donald, labeling him a “racist, misogynist flip-flopper”.
Rina Bharara, a DC delegate to the Republican National Convention, told Fox News’ Gretchen Carlson yesterday, “The truth is, I know what I’m getting with Clintonian policies, I don’t know what I’m getting with Donald Trump,” before accusing the billionaire of being “too far off the deep end”.
Bharara clarified that she would consider voting for Hillary if Trump became the Republican nominee.
After receiving a barrage of criticism from Trump supporters, Bharara doubled down and went on the offensive against Trump, invoking the language of typically leftist social justice warriors to label him a racist misogynist.
[Comment: Useful idiot. Clearly the delegate process has been subverted by communists.]
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
How Wealthy Are the Elite? Harvard Just Raised $6.5 Billion (More Than 2 Years Ahead of Plan)
Harvard has raised at least $6.5 billion in its capital campaign, breaking a higher education fundraising record after only two and half years of its planned five year-long public drive, reports the Harvard Crimson. With $6.5 billion raised, Harvard has surpassed its public goal and Stanford’s $6.2 billion capital campaign, which ended in late 2011 and set a higher education record.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
In Transparency Report, Uber Reveals it’s Sharing a Lot More Than Rides
Uber’s first-ever transparency report, released Tuesday, reveals that in the second half of 2015 alone, the popular ride-sharing app handed over information affecting more than 12 million riders and drivers to a number of U.S. regulators, and shared data about more than 400 users with federal and state law enforcement agencies.
In a blog post, the company said that while it had complied with the majority of law enforcement requests, it also pushed back on the scope of the regulatory inquiries from entities ranging from port officials to taxi commissions to utility regulators:
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Phyllis Schlafly’s Eagle Forum Torn Apart by Cruz Supporters
After Phyllis Schlafly’s endorsement of Donald J. Trump, a rift started in her organization, Eagle Forum (EF). The coup, which has emerged, is over Phyllis’s endorsement of Donald Trump, and her battle against a Constitutional Convention.
Eagle Forum is the parent organization that also includes the Eagle Forum Education and Legal Defense Fund and the Eagle Forum PAC. Eagle Forum has been primarily focused on social issues; it describes itself as pro-family and reports membership of 80,000.
In March, Schlafly introduced and endorsed Donald Trump at a rally in St. Louis, two months after many state and local Eagle Forum leaders had announced their support for Ted Cruz. She felt Trump was a strong conservative who really would make America great again. Here is the video of that endorsement.
In August of 2015, Schlafly named Ed Martin to take over her day-to-day duties as president of Eagle Forum, and she became chairperson and CEO of the organization.
This last weekend, Ed Martin emailed the group’s members about a recently uncovered “scheme to push Phyllis Schlafly out of Eagle Forum.” Phyllis endorsed the email prior to it being sent out. These six women are allegedly being led by Phyllis’s daughter, Ann Cori, and Cathie Adams.
Here’s a portion of what he said and the women behind this coup:
On Thursday, we received a tip from a longtime EF member in South Carolina that the Con-Con people are pursuing a scheme to push Phyllis Schlafly out of Eagle Forum.
Six directors of Eagle Forum are holding a rogue meeting in violation of the Bylaws unless they are stopped. The rogue group members have a hidden agenda, and most refused to return phone calls personally made to them by Phyllis to ask what their concerns are.
They are being guided by a big, liberal law firm that they refuse to identify, but the press has identified. They also refuse to say who is funding the high paid liberal lawyers.
Here are the six directors of this Gang of 6:…
These six women are against Schlafly’s opposition to a new push for a Constitutional Convention via Balanced Budget Amendment (BBA) as well as the Convention of States. Schlafly has always fought a Con-Con, and was at our side in the early 80s to defeat the call then when the same ruse of a BBA was used.
As of January, 27 states had passed resolutions calling for a constitutional convention, most relying on model legislation drafted by the American Legislative Exchange Council and the Convention of States, a little-known group founded by Michael Farris.
Five of these six women are also Cruz supporters, and Cruz is all for a Constitutional Convention. He needs a Convention in order to pass the North American Union which his wife, Heidi, so diligently worked on at the CFR for five years. Supporter Glenn Beck, and David Barton who heads up the Keep-the-Promise Cruz PAC, are both pushing a Con-Con.
From the Convention of States website come this: Ted Cruz immediately declared his support for Mark Levin’s book, The Liberty Amendments upon its release. He posted a link on his Facebook page and wrote, “Mark’s book sparks an important discussion about how to fix the problems that face our Republic.” As well, check out Ted’s article in the National Review where he promotes a Convention.
Really Ted Cruz? You really believe a Constitutional Convention will fix the problems our Republic faces? Excuse me Ted, but the founders gave us everything we need. The problem is that the legislative, executive and judicial branches of our government do not want to follow what they’ve sworn an oath to.
[Comment: Phyllis Schlafly is a real American heroine. She stands against TPP and the devious Con-Con. She sees through the wool. The people trying to force her out should be booted out of Eagle Forum. They are useful idiots or traitors. RINO’s (communists in disguise) are seeking to subvert the fine work of the Eagle Forum. ]
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Stalin’s Meditations Through the Writing of Dr. Watson
Stalin admitted that communists are dangerous like him because they have no ethics, no integrity, and recognize no moral law. They keep no promises or pledges
Struggling to survive on the $3.10 minimum wage of 1978 America, I never envied or blamed anyone for my state in life. I understood the work ethic and the fact that everybody had to start at the bottom and climb the ladder of success if they worked hard.
I came here for the opportunities America offered. I wished to study and earn my Ph.D., raise a family, and be free under capitalism. I did not want my whole life to be watched by the dreaded communist police state and to stand in line for hours every day for our food. I was tired of poverty, fear, misery, and exploitation.
I never really talked about my former life publicly because I had a healthy dose of fear of all the communist agents that had infiltrated the west. I knew they were everywhere, hiding in plain sight in American society. Every knock on the door threw me into a panic — I was reliving the dreaded 2 a.m. knock on our apartment door in Romania.
On the days when the drudgery of being a low-paid secretary was discouraging, I imagined the innocent and happy eyes of my future children who would grow up to experience freedom, parental love, no hunger, a nice home of their own, toys, books, abundant water and electricity, and plenty of clothes to keep them warm.
I can still see in my mind’s eyes the twinkle of happiness when my Dad would bring home something special, grapes in winter, a pear, a banana, or an orange. I wanted to be able to do that for my children every day, without having to stand in endless lines and then come home empty-handed.
Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin, Ceausescu, and all those who forced communism and its police state upon millions, were truly evil and Machiavellian tyrants thirsty for absolute power and control.
[Comment: Recommended reading.]
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
We bring you an abbreviated transcript of Srdja Trifkovic’s recent interview with Serbia’s Public Media Service on the U.S. election campaign. It was broadcast live on “Agora,” Belgrade Radio II flagship current affairs program primarily aimed at college-educated audience. (Audio. Translated from Serbian by ST)
ST: Hillary Clinton is immune from critical scrutiny by the American media. Its key players are ninety percent left-liberal oriented. She has so many skeletons in her closet that the offerings would provide plenty of material for any genuinely inquisitive journalist. If the media establishment were to scrutinize her record in detail, it would be hardly imaginable that she could win the presidency; but she remains protected by the tacit consensus of editors and commentators in the American public forum . . . At the same time, one of Trump’s problems is that the Republican establishment perceives him as a threat. Neoconservative hawks such as Bill Kristol would rather see [Hillary Clinton] as president than Trump because he is skeptical of America’s global engagement, and has even voiced doubt about the utility of NATO. He has also said that he’d find a common language with Putin. Such views are anathema for the duopoly which rules inside the Washington Beltway. That duopoly consists of the liberal-globalist interventionists, such as Hillary Clinton, Susan Rice and Samantha Power on the one side, and the more numerous neoconservative interventionists, embodied in the entire George W. Bush’s national security team on the other. These two culturally cosmopolitan camps have much more in common with each other than the Republican establishment has with the essentially anti-establishmentarian candidate Trump . . .
Q: Some of his comments have been called racist . . .
ST: Trump is accused of “racism” primarily because he has said that he would restrict the influx of Muslim immigrants into the United States, but that is not “racist”: there are Muslims of all color and hue. He is accused of “Islamophobia,” but his is an entirely rational position in the context of everything that has happened and is happening, from Brussels and Paris in recent months to the London underground, the Madrid suburban train, and the Boston marathon over the past decade. Such labels are routinely attached by the media establishment which is rooting for Hillary Clinton. He reflects the views of many Americans who are disgusted by the “political process” and see it as a game in which all cards are marked in advance, and where it does not really matter who gets elected. For them Trump is a dash of fresh air.
It is another question whether he can win the presidential election. The math is complex and unpromising. In some of the large states, such as California and New York, he does not have much of a chance. California has not supported a Republican presidential candidate since Reagan’s second victory in 1984, and New York has not done so since 1988, when Bush-senior was elected. There is a whole host of swing states which Trump would have to win: Iowa, Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Carolina, Florida . . . Bearing in mind how dirty the finale of this campaign will be, and how adamantly the media machine will support Hillary Clinton, this is a tall order. In addition, over the past eight years under Obama we’ve witnessed an accelerated naturalization drive which has made a large number of Latino immigrants eligible to vote. They vote overwhelmingly for Democrats by default, because of that party’s position on welfare programs and immigration. It is hard to tell how important this will be in the swing states, but in some of them a hundred thousand votes can decisively tip the balance. In Florida in 2000 the difference was only a few hundred . . .
Q: Angela Merkel, Nicolas Sarkozy and many other politicians in Europe have spoken against Donald Trump. Why such fear and loathing?…
| — Hat tip: Srdja Trifkovic | [Return to headlines] |
We have reached, at last, the John Kasich moment. The next six Republican primaries are in his kind of territory: blue states, Northeastern, moderate, exactly the sort of places where his positioning as the electable, reasonable Republican is designed to pay off big.
But unfortunately he’s not likely to win any of them. Which makes this Kasich moment a lot like the last Kasich moment, when the campaign moved to his native Midwest … and he lost Illinois and Michigan handily. And, for that matter, a lot like the Kasich moment before that, when he camped out in New Hampshire, the state that his campaign was obviously scripted to win … and finished 20 points behind Donald Trump.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
First it Was Sausages.Now Germany ‘Bans’ Sexy Women in Adverts After Cologne Sex Assaults
German Justice Minister Heiko Maas said the move to ban ads which “reduce women or men to sexual objects” is an attempt to create a “modern gender image”.
The proposal, if introduced later this year, would see courts decide on what qualifies as sexist.
The plan has been called political correctness gone mad by its critics, who said it was the first step towards a “nanny state”.
It comes following a controversy over claims made by a senior politician that schools and canteens in Germany are ‘banning’ the serving of pork to avoid offending Muslim migrants.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Hasan Dewachi ‘Hauled Off Easyjet Flight Over Terror Fears’
Iraq-born Hasan Dewachi found himself at the centre of a security alert after the woman passenger on the flight from Vienna to Gatwick claimed she saw ISIS-related messages on his phone…
He said: ‘One minute I was texting my wife on my mobile to tell her the plane was about to take off and I’d be home soon. The next a member of cabin crew came over to tell me I had to leave the plane.
‘It transpired a woman passenger had seen me texting my wife in Arabic, my mother language, and for some inexplicable reason suspected I was a terrorist.’
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Truck With Girl Pix Papered Over Before Entering Vatican
Topless woman on one side, girl in tiny bikini on the other
(ANSA) — Rome, April 11 — A truck driver was asked to paper over an image of a topless woman painted on the side of his cab before entering the Vatican City, sources said Monday.
The cab was decorated with an image of a girl in a tiny bikini on one side and the topless woman on the other.
The truck was allowed into the walls of the Holy See only after the images were covered up with paper and adhesive tape.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Patients’ Parents Steal on Children’s Ward
Cell phones, tablets, wedding rings in Genoa
(ANSA) — Genoa, April 12 — Police on Tuesday cited eight Roma people for stealing cell phones, tablets, and wedding rings from patients at a children’s hospital.
One of the suspects’ children is a regular patient at the Giannina Gaslini Institute, a pediatric hospital in Genoa. The suspects allegedly stole the items from other child patients and their parents as well as doctors and nurses.
Police are also investigating two hospital cleaning staff for theft, in a separate case.
Police recovered most of the stolen items and are still seeking a missing iPad containing the last pictures taken by a little girl just before she went blind.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Three RAI Officials Searched by Tax Cops for Graft
And 9 audio-lights companies in Rome, Milan, other cities
(ANSA) — Rome, April 14 — Italian tax police on Thursday searched the offices of three directors of photography in State broadcaster RAI under investigation for suspected bid-rigging in the audio and lighting sector. The three are suspected of taking bribes in the form of cash and trips to give work to businessman David Biancifiori, the main subject of the probe, who was arrested in December. Nine companies were searched in and around Rome, in and around Milan, in L’Aquila and the provinces of Brescia, Cremona and Rieti. Also under investigation are the owners of eight service companies, police said.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Terrorists Will Look to Attack London With Missiles Due to Strong Security Services
Militants will attack the capital from a longer range because security services have become so good at defending Britain from ‘conventional’ terror plots, an expert has warned.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Vigilante Teen Gang ‘Beat Darren Kelly to Death After Mistaking Him for a Paedophile’
A ‘vigilante’ gang of youths were spotted hiding in park bushes moments before luring a father-of-one to his death in the mistaken belief he was a paedophile.
Darren Kelly, 42, thought he was meeting with a woman he had been chatting via an online dating app in the week leading up to his murder.
But instead, the lorry driver was jumped upon and punched, kicked and then stabbed by a gang of four including Chris Carroll, 20, and three teenagers who cannot be named for legal reasons, a jury was told.
Off-duty police community support officer Emma Spurr told the court she was walking home shortly after 9pm when she saw a group of youths hiding in the park.
Some of them appeared to be concealing themselves behind trees and bushes.
‘It made me feel nervous and I wanted to get home as quickly as possible,’ she said.
Witnesses described seeing Mr Kelly running for his life as one of his attackers allegedly shouted ‘he’s a paedo’. But the gang are said to have caught up with him after chasing their alleged victim through the street.
Mr Kelly was stabbed six times, including two wounds to his lung, and died later in Basildon Hospital.
After the alleged attack, the group of youths are said to have gone into a house and ordered pizza.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
EU Parliament: Albania Not Ready for Accession Negotiations
Press freedom among concerns, as corruption and organised crime
(ANSA) — STRASBOURG, APRIL 14 — Key political and administrative reforms needed in Albania are progressing, but have yet to reach a stage at which EU accession negotiations could start, says the European Parliament in a resolution.
“Albania is on the right track towards EU membership” said the german rapporteur Knut Fleckenstein (S&D). “The country is currently preparing a very ambitious judiciary reform which will answer the most important concerns expressed by citizens and which will help to fight corruption in everyday life” he explained, adding that “Albania’s citizens want to get ready for EU membership.
Now, their political leaders must keep up the momentum and continue implementing the reforms”. The resolution says that if Tirana wants to start EU accession negotiations, it must intensify reforms in key priority areas, such as: rule of law, judicial reforms, the fight against corruption and organised crime, public administration reform and fundamental rights.
The European Parliament remains concerned about widespread corruption in education, healthcare, the judiciary and several other fields.
“Widespread self-censorship among journalists, who are sometimes physically obstructed from covering specific events, assaulted, or threatened because of their work” is also a cause for concern, the EU Assembly said.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
TIP CEO: Florida Anti-Boycott Law “Major Blow Against Anti-Israel Bigotry and Discrimination”
Florida’s recently signed law against anti-Israel boycotts is a “major blow against anti-Israel bigotry and discrimination,” The Israel Project’s CEO and President Josh Block wrote in an op-ed published Wednesday in the Orlando Sun Sentinel. The Israel Project publishes The Tower.
The legislation, SB 86, restricts the state from investing in companies that boycott Israel.
In his statement upon signing the bill last month, Gov. Rick Scott said that the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions campaign against Israel is “fueled by anti-Semitism, and has no place in Florida or any part of the world that values freedom and democracy.”
Block elaborated on this:…
| — Hat tip: KS | [Return to headlines] |
ISIS Sex Slaves Reveal the True Horror of What is Going on Over in the Middle East
[WARNING: * Disturbing Content *]
Could you imagine being kidnapped, being auctioned off like a piece of meat, and being endlessly gang-raped every day by some of the most evil men on the entire planet for months on end? This is what ISIS is doing to thousands upon thousands of women in Iraq and Syria, and some of their victims are as young as nine. The things that I am about to share with you are almost too nightmarish for words, but it is imperative that we understand what is going on. When ISIS conquers an area that is not Muslim, they believe that they can do whatever they want to the women because they are “infidels”. So innocent young women are being treated in some of the most horrible ways imaginable, and most of the rest of the world looks on with indifference. But of course what ISIS is doing is just the tip of a very big global iceberg. As you will see below, there are tens of millions of slaves in our world today, and sexual exploitation is involved in approximately 80 percent of those cases.
I came across a Daily Mail article earlier today that detailed what ISIS did to a young Yazidi woman named Khalida. When she was captured, she was brought to one of those infamous “auctions” where members of ISIS buy and sell women like trading cards…
A Yazidi woman sold as a sex-slave eight times by an ISIS jihadi says she was put on parade like she was being picked out in a ‘car showroom’.
Khalida, 20, was kidnapped and taken to Raqqa where she was put on display in a ‘meat market’ where women are purchased for as little as a mobile phone, or simply given away as ‘gifts’.
The most beautiful women are put into a separate ‘VIP’ room where leaders can take their time choosing their favourite three or four girls each.
Khalida and her sister were purchased initially by a very sick old man with a white beard that kept them locked away in a small room. From time to time he would rape them, and then afterwards his wife would beat them for “tempting” her husband.
Later she was sold to other owners, and she was gang-raped by ISIS fighters multiple times. Here is more of her story from the Daily Mail…
Raped up to three times a day her ‘slave master’ or gang-raped by groups of ISIS fighters, this quiet young woman was bought and sold by eight different men — each more brutal, callous and perverted than the last.
She told MailOnline she was force-fed contraceptive pills and once taken to hospital for a contraceptive injection after she was rendered unconscious by one particularly brutal gang rape.
‘They [ISIS] did not want me get pregnant, especially if there was more than one man because they would not know who the father of the baby was,’ she said.
This is going on day after day in the Middle East, and yet it doesn’t make a lot of headlines in the western world.
Perhaps we think that if we can ignore what is happening to them that we are justified in not doing anything about it.
Next, let me share with you the story of Nadia Murad. She was just 19 when ISIS conquered her town, and she saw ISIS kill all of the males in her family right in front of her eyes…
Murad and her mother and sisters watched out of the window, along with hundreds of other women and children from the Yazidi village of Kocho, as ISIS slaughtered their men and boys. “We could see outside-they were shooting the men and they were beheading them as well. They were also taking them away in buses.
“My six brothers were killed in this way.”
In the western world, we tend to think that such things could never happen to us. But in my new book I discuss how Christians all over the globe are eventually going to be facing this kind of persecution.
[Comment: Americans, NEVER relinquish your 2nd amendment! Communists will not hesitate to join with Islamists to kill patriotic and constitutional loving Americans and especially Christians.]
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Pakistan: Islamabad Bans Violent Demonstrations by Islamic Groups
The government took the decision yesterday to end violence by Muslim extremists who recently brought the capital to a standstill, following the execution of Mumtaz Qadri, the self-confessed murderer of Punjab Governor Salman Taseer.
Islamabad (AsiaNews/Agencies) — The Government of Pakistan has decided to ban all demonstrations in the capital Islamabad after rallies by Islamic extremists led to significant destruction of businesses and private property. Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said that the ban is limited to the capital.
Yesterday’s move comes weeks after radical Islamists descended on Islamabad, blocking roads and clashing with police, to protest against the execution of Mumtaz Qadri, the self-confessed murderer of Punjab Governor Salman Taseer.
Qadri was a member of Salman Taseer’ security detail. In 2011, he gunned down the governor as the latter was leaving a restaurant in Islamabad.
He justified the action because of the governor’s stance against the blasphemy law and support for Asia Bibi, a Christian mother jailed for allegedly insulting the Prophet.
His plea for clemency was rejected by Pakistani President Mamnoon Hussain. However, thousands of supporters praised him as a “national hero”, and swamped the heart of the capital, until they were dispersed by police. Interior Minister Khan said that the government would not allow a repeat of the experience.
At the same time, Mr Khan said he was willing to meet with opposition leader Imran Khan, who vowed to hold a rally outside the residence of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in the eastern city of Lahore if he did not resign over the Panama Papers scandal.
Millions of records and documents leaked from a Panama-based law firm suggest that important political and other figures have or had offshore accounts in tax havens, including the Sharif’s family.
In view of this, Prime Minister Sharif announced last week the establishment of an independent judicial commission, headed by a retired judge, to probe into his family’s alleged illegal offshore companies and property.
Unconvinced, Imran Khan called for the commission to be headed by Pakistan’s chief justice.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Pakistan’s Kalash Complain That Their Youth Are Forcibly Converted to Islam
The community of 3,000 is polytheistic, speaks an Indo-European language, and traces its origins to Alexander the Great’s army. With fair skin and light eyes, its members face an uphill battle to pass on their culture as many move to the city for work. In 2008, they applied to be added to the UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage List, but so far the government has been slow due to red tape.
Islamabad (AsiaNews/Agencies) — The Kalash, Pakistan’s smallest ethnoreligious group, are afraid that their distinct identity might disappear as their youth convert to Islam.
Concentrated mostly in the Chitral valleys, the community of 3,000 applied to the UNESCO to be added to its Intangible Cultural Heritage List in 2008, but remains mired in sluggish bureaucracy eight years on.
For this reason, the Kalash Peoples Development Network (KPDN) issued a dire warning that the ethnic group is facing extinction.
The polytheistic Kalash have very distinctive features. With their fair skin and light eyes, academics have speculated that they might be descended from soldiers of Alexander the Great’s army, which conquered the area in the fourth century BC.
They speak the Kalasha language, from the Dardic family of the Indo-Iranian branch, and celebrate their gods through music, dance, and alcohol, which they brew themselves.
Among them, the sexes mingle easily, marriage can be sealed with a dance, and women are free to change partners, a far cry from the rest of the country, where a strict Islamic code forbids such behaviour.
However, as the Kalash move away from their agrarian lifestyle and into trades, studying or working in the cities, their traditions have come under threat.
At school, their children are forced to take a compulsory class on Islam but not about their own traditions, which are becoming more and more difficult to follow.
Some face anger from Muslim neighbours, who believe that Allah is enraged by the tribe’s un-Islamic practises and has unleashed natural disasters — floods and earthquakes — on the area as punishment. Under such pressure, more and more end up converting to Islam.
“The Kalash are a living civilisation and need to be protected legally through the government of Pakistan,” said KPDN activist Luke Rehmat.
He accuses government officials of not taking the UNESCO bid seriously, adding that for the past eight years, “there is no positive work on this” file.
Consultations between UNESCO, the government and the Kalash were held in 2012 — but there has been no official communication since then, said Jawad Aziz, a cultural officer at UNESCO in Islamabad.
“The government of Pakistan has not submitted any dossier so far either for preservation of the Kalash cultural heritage or to safeguard any endangered part,” he said.
For their part, government officials warn the process takes time. “The procedure to be included in the UNESCO list is quite a lengthy one,” said Sajid Munir, a spokesman for the National Institute of Folk and Traditional Heritage, which has been working to preserve Kalash culture since the 1980s.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Bulgaria: Migrant-Hunter Questioned by Police
Following Youtube video showing civilians ‘arresting’ migrants
(ANSA) — TRIESTE — Bulgarian authorities detained for questioning one of the migrant-hunters responsible for the Youtube video showing the ‘arrest’ of migrants by civilians, local media reported. The video attracted international attention over the past days, resulting in condemnations by the Government officials, who had initially encouraged the activities of civilian volunteers along the national borders. The footage shows three migrants of probable Afghan origin lying on the ground with hands tied on their backs. Around them, there were Bulgarian civilians wearing mimetic clothes and shouting “No Bulgaria for you, go back to Turkey”. Following the spread of the video, the Minister of interior affairs, Rumyana Bachvarova, told one private TV channel that the authorities “appreciate the contribution of the citizens, but that the role of maintaining order along the border remained a responsibility of the police”. Bachvarova advised the citizens to call the emergency number 112 or the border police if they want to help the authorities.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Denmark: Migrants Trash Holiday Homes, Pee on Floor, Burn Carpets
The damages will cost DKK 1.3 million to repair
A completely devastated holiday resort near Varde in Brøns, Denmark. That is, according landlord Alice Lauridsen, the result of her renting out her holiday cabins to about 100 asylum seekers through the Immigration Service.
“The mattresses have been jumped on and urinated on. Bonfires have been made on my carpets, so there are large burn marks and there’s pee in the corners. My big dining table is broken into pieces as firewood. Everything is torn completely apart, and only the lamps have survived,” she says to the Danish newspaper BT.
When Alice Lauridsen decided to rent out her holiday center, it seemed like a win-win situation, but it ended as a nightmare.
“I felt both, I did a good deed, and I would also be able to earn some money, and I felt comfortable with it, since I only rented out to families with children. But after only five days all the furniture were destroyed. Friends have told me that on weekends asylum seekers came from centers nearby and held huge parties. The living room was used as a cycling track and for roller skating.”
The windows were shattered so often that we had to put in plexiglass, so they did not go to pieces again.
The landlord has rented out the house for about five months, and she has figured out that the damages will cost her DKK 1.3 million to repair, while the Immigration Service estimates that it is about half a million.
Right now, she struggles to recover all the damages. But that’s not the worst thing in the whole process, she says.
“I have cried many tears over it. It has been painful that I have been forced to see that my house was destroyed without being able to do anything about it. For I could not prevent them from destroying the house said the Immigration Service. I should just be happy that I got new furniture when they left, they said.”
According to Alice Lauridsen it came so far that she had to demand that the Immigration Sevice paid the rent, and she threatened to shut off the power if they did not pay. But the rent were many days late into her account.
“I sat down one day and cried down at the asylum center and told them that it hurts that they destroyed my house, but the staff down there just did not care when I told that I could not find my six leather sofas, which it turned out they had destroyed and moved into their rooms,” she says.
[Comment: Fool. Perhaps now she will understand a little about the kind of people she wants to help flood into Denmark. Don’t expect immigration services to pay the full cost…she’ll have to eat the rest and she’ll probably go bankrupt in the process.]
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Illegal Immigrant Fraudster Has His Deportation Blocked Because He Has a Son in the UK
Jude Onykwere, from Cameroon, has carried out a string of crimes stretching back more than a decade, and escaped justice by using false names when he was caught.
A fraudster from Cameroon who illegally entered Britain with a fake passport cannot be deported because he has a seven-year-old son, a judge ruled today.
Jude Onykwere, 40, has carried out a string of crimes stretching back more than a decade then escaped justice by using false names when he was caught.
The Home Office has been trying to deport him since 2005, but today the High Court ruled that officials must reconsider because it could be a breach of his son’s human rights.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
IRS Chief: Agency Encourages Illegal Immigrant Theft of SSNs to File Tax Returns
The head of the IRS said that the agency wants illegal immigrants to pay the taxes they are obligated to pay, even if they are using fraudulent Social Security numbers.
Um, what?
But it’s probably worse than many think. I wonder how much the “Amnesty Bonus” of up to $24,000 (it’s a tax credit one only gets if one files taxes) factors in here. I’ll bet it’s a factor.
Back in February of 2015 The Weekly Standard reported;
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Italy Agitation on Brenner ‘Incomprehensible — Vienna
Controls announced some time ago — interior minister
(ANSA) — Berlin, April 12 — Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner on Tuesday said Italian agitation at Vienna starting work on a border fence at the Brenner Pass was “incomprehensible”, according to the APA news agency.
Mikl-Leitner said Austria was “now punctually putting into practice what was announced weeks ago and put on the table in a clear way last week in Rome”. Austria is building a 250-metre fence at road links with Italy in view of an expected flow of migrants and refugees across the Mediterranean into Italy.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Libya: 250,000 Migrants Heading to Italy, UN Military Advisor
Support for contry’s reconstruction needed, 1 million could come
ROME — General Paolo Serra, the military advisor to the UN special representative for Libya Martin Kobler, said Wednesday the international community must act to prevent an estimated 250,000 people from being forced to flee from Libya by year’s end.
“Last year 154,000 migrants left Libya,” he told a joint parliamentary foreign and defence commissions hearing. “Of those, International Organization for Migration (OIM) figures show 120,000 headed to Italy. January 2016 saw migrant numbers almost double, from 3,000 to 5,200…(this means) we could reach 250,000 by year’s end if nothing is done”.
Serra also qualified earlier remarks about one million migrants now in Libya. “I did not mean to say that one million people ready to take off for Italy are now in Libya,” he told lawmakers.
“What I wanted to say is that before the (2011) revolution, Libya had the capacity to absorb up to a million new immigrants from Chad, Nigeria, the Sudan and so forth, who were prevalently employed in construction. Today, security conditions in Libya prevent the need for that workforce”.
Serra underscored that Libya needed support for reconstruction to prevent one million potential migrants from attempting to cross the Mediterranean. “In Libya there are one million potential migrants. “By helping the country to rebuild its economic, agricultural and industrial fabric, these people will no longer have cause to move”.
Serra also said there was a risk of terrorist sleeper cells disguising themselves among asylum seekers landing in Europe. He said that the flows of migrants from Libya could represent “a security risk, inside there could be sleeper cells”.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Switzerland Lifts Restraints for Romanian, Bulgarian Workers
Starting from June 1st
(ANSA) — BERNA — Switzerland will remove all labour market restrictions for the workers of Bulgarian and Romanian nationality as of June 1st. The Federal council will be able to reintroduce the restrictive measures if the influx of immigrants from the two countries exceeds by more than 10% the average of the last three years.
In that case, the restrictions will be extended until May 31st, 2019. At the end of the last year, the rate of Romanians and Bulgarians living in Switzerland was at 0.9% with a total of 18,364 permanent residents — a number below the imposed ceiling.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
In the earlier stages of my somewhat “public” life as a “conservative” commentator I used to spend valuable time trying to convince the email trolls of my virtue and the fact that they are mischaracterizing my character.
Eventually I grew tired of the rather boring ad nauseam, semi conjunctive apology for a trait that I didn’t possess. I finally figured out that trying to convince haters that I was not a hater was a waste of valuable time. After a bit of introspection I decided it was time to come clean and admit what all those who don’t know me had concluded they know about me.
I am a hater. I finally admit it. I am a hater. And a proud one, I might add.
I hate what homosexuality does to people. I hate the destructive nature of that debaucherous behavior and the impact it has on the individual. I hate the pain that it causes to innocent parents and siblings. I hate that it is taught to our children as normal behavior.
I hate abortion. I hate the fact that precious little babies created in the image of God never get the chance to have their pictures appear on a refrigerator. I hate that unsuspecting grandparents are having their grandchildren murdered without their knowledge. I hate that most women live a life of regret after they have killed their unborn child. I hate that Planned Parenthood which makes millions of dollars off of killing the innocent, is viewed as honorable. I hate that our government forces us to pay taxes to fund the slaughter. I hate that most Christians don’t do a darn thing to stop it.
I hate that my government lies to me. I hate that they spend money that they have no right to spend. I hate that the control of our money lies in the hands of a privately owned bank and that the people have no control over how the value of the money is regulated. I hate that the government sends our young people to fight and die in meaningless wars. I hate that they live by a different set of rules. I hate that the elections are pretty much rigged. I hate that I am forced to “voluntarily” pay an income tax for which I will be punished if I fail to “voluntarily” comply. I hate that crime has become big business for a corrupt injustice system.
I hate our “public” education system. I hate that the schools do not teach the values of the public but, instead, teach the values they want the public to hold.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
LGBT “National Day of Silence, “ Shutting Down All Other Voices?
Frst, let me make one thing clear. I am not a racist or a bigot or a homophobe or even an Islamaphobe. I believe in “Live and Let Live,” and I am a concerned American and a parent wondering what happened to MY rights? Why is one group being allowed to demand their rights while they stomp of the rights of everyone else. This is not “tolerance,” it is height of hypocrisy and “intolerance!”
Imagine my surprise when I recently discovered that my kid’s school was hosting a “Day of Silence,” that is being sponsored by a LGBT (lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender) group and has been condoned and fully supported by the school board and the superintendent of schools? To add insult to injury, I also discovered that this “Day of Silence” is a National event and is happening at all middle schools and high schools across the country. What, may you ask, is the problem? We have all been told over and over again that you are not allowed to wear T-shirts that represent the flag, NRA, gun rights, pro-life, Christianity or a litany of subjects that might just offend someone that attends our schools.
Kids that support this group, will wear stickers showing they support LGBT rights and are allowed to spend the day in school not speaking or participating in class. Teachers may also be allowed to show their support for this group by remaining silent or offering a study day or reading day in class. What does the “Day of Silence” mean? They want to stop discrimination and bullying against LGBT kids throughout the school system. We have been preached at regarding the separation of church and state. We have seen kids actually arrested for holding their hands in the shape of a gun or sent to the principals office for daring to hug a classmate resulting in charges of sexual abuse. However, for some reason, we are supposed to swallow the fact that the school system is now promoting, supporting and allowing the LGBT community to have a “Day of Silence” in our schools?
But aren’t there other groups who also are discriminated against and bullied? What about nerds, fat kids, autistic kids, acne laden kids, smart kids…are they not also discriminated against and bullied? Is there a reason why they are being excluded from this “Day of Silence?” Why is the LGBT group allowed to have their say and support their cause in our schools while the rest of us are told to “Sit Down and Shut Up?”
The audacity of our school leaders across this country thinking that it is okay to support one opinion yet stifling the opinions of others is outrageous! If you allow one group to have their say or moment in the sun, then it should be allowed for all groups regardless of what they support or believe. If you shut down the voices of some, claiming schools are no place for the promotion of your personal beliefs, then they should not allow ANY group to promote their cause within our school system.
When we allow our school systems to teach our kids what to think and not how to think, then we are a Nation doomed to fail.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Liberty Counsel Advises Churches Regarding Boy Scouts
ORLANDO, FL — Liberty Counsel has received questions from churches which have chosen to maintain their association with Boy Scouts of America (BSA) regarding whether their continued involvement with the organization requires them to admit an openly homosexual scout master or youth member. Liberty Counsel has provided model language to ensure that all church programs or uses of property, including scout troops, remain consistent with God’s Word.
For boys, BSA’s January 2014 membership standards require that “no youth may be denied membership in the Boy Scouts of America on the basis of sexual orientation or preference alone” and state that “any sexual conduct, whether homosexual or heterosexual, by youth of Scouting age is contrary to the virtues of Scouting. The BSA is not endorsing homosexual conduct nor is it forcing religious chartered organizations to do so.” Therefore, churches may define and enforce behavior and advocacy in chartered scout troops consistent with biblical teaching.
For adult leaders, BSA will not prevent churches from selecting leaders consistent with their religious beliefs. BSA’s legal memo concludes that its right to grant charters to religious organizations is strongly protected under the law. However, when churches are challenged about use of their facilities for same-sex ceremonies, use of restrooms, and other LGBT issues, they hurt their legal defense by allowing the BSA as a recognized group. A better alternative to the BSA is Trail Life USA, which was formed in response to the change in the BSA policy. See www.traillifeusa.com.
“The once great Boy Scotts of America has taken a great fall when it changes the longstanding policy to allow homosexual scout leaders and members. This change in policy is fraught with danger. While there are ways for churches to protect their integrity and the safety of their young boys, the best alternative is to abandon the scouts because the scouts abandoned them. Trail Life USA is the best alternative to the failed BSA program,” said Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver. “Liberty Counsel will continue to defend the right of churches to make employment and volunteer decisions based on church religious beliefs and the teachings of the Bible,” said Staver.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Muslims Are More Progressive Than Tories on Gay Rights, Says Baroness Warsi
Sayeeda Warsi hit out at claims that Muslims are failing to integrate into British life and attacked a former equalities chief who said many Muslims ‘do not accept the behaviours that make Britain what it is’.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Saying ‘America is a Melting Pot’ Is a Microaggression, Purdue Class Teaches
Additional microaggressions listed on the worksheet include: “Where are you from,” and “There is only one race, the human race.”
A business class at Purdue University teaches students the phrase “America is a melting pot” is a microaggression, according to class handouts obtained by The College Fix. That phrase is among at least a dozen examples students were recently instructed on in the Management 301 course.
Additional microaggressions listed on the worksheet include: “Where are you from,” “There is only one race, the human race,” “Everyone can succeed in society if they work hard enough” and “I believe the most qualified person should get the job.”
These phrases are problematic because they promote the “myth of meritocracy” or represent “statements which assert that race or gender does not play a role in life successes,” the handout stated. Others are said to be color blind, apparently a bad thing that indicates “that a white person does not want to or need to acknowledge race,” according to the handout.
The Spring 2016 class largely focuses on teaching undergads how to advance their overall professional career development, such as obtaining internships and jobs. But the recent lesson on microaggressions unsettled at least one student in the class.
“I felt I was being brainwashed with political correctness and shamed because of my race,” said the student, who asked to remain anonymous.
MicroaggressionMatchingExerciseHandoutThe information was presented to students in a lecture titled “Diversity Issues in the World of Work,” a presentation created by Alvin Lee Jr., a human resources training specialist at Purdue University.
It also included eight photos of students of color holding signs with “microaggression” examples, such as “you don’t act like a normal black person, ya know?” and “So what do you guys speak in Japan, Asian?”
The 31-page PowerPoint presentation, a copy of which was obtained by The College Fix, also warns students that there are hundreds of active hate groups operating in the U.S. today — a statistic pulled from the Southern Poverty Law Center.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Universities Are Singling Out White Students for ‘Education Sessions’
In just the latest instance of a taxpayer-funded university singling out white students for privilege-shaming “education sessions,” the University of Wisconsin-Madison hosted a special workshop on Tuesday for the purpose of getting white students to acknowledge and confront their own white privilege.
According to the university website, “The Privilege of Whiteness” workshop was designed for white people to “reflect on and name the ways their privilege impacts their beliefs and behaviors by gaining the skills to identify the historical roots of White privilege and how it manifests today.” Prospective attendees were informed that the workshop was “designed for a White audience,” although “People of color” were still welcome.
The workshop is one of a handful of “education sessions” offered through the university’s Morgridge Center for Public Service. Students wishing to participate in the university’s Badger Volunteers program are required to attend at least one of the education sessions.
The University of Wisconsin is just the latest university to single out white students for privilege-shaming workshops.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Cultural marxistic and feministic – allways ask before -sexlife in New Sweden
with English subtitles
https://youtu.be/rh2H6kBbH3I
https://youtu.be/AU9V6VwKwB4
“In other news, a military advisor to the UN warns that 250,000 migrants will head to Italy from Libya this year if action is not taken to prevent them.”
Is there no such thing as an Italian Navy? Stopping the boats is actually quite simple. You patrol on the 12 mile limit, intercept all boats, return them to Libya, towed if necessary. Australia has done this and broke up an entrenched smuggling operation that had involvement of Indonesian officials. But it will take political will and a back bone usually absent in European politicians.
No doubt they will all be left off with a gentle smack on the wrist as it was just a “cultural misunderstanding.)
The German government gives in to Turkish demand of prosecution of TV comic.
They end the press conference with a surprise though, saying that paragraph 103, on the basis of which the TV comic will be prosecuted, is behind the times and shall be abolished in the future.
http://www.focus.de/politik/deutschland/pressekonferenz-im-live-ticker-jetzt-verkuendet-merkel-ob-gegen-boehmermann-ermittelt-werden-darf_id_5440521.html#aktualisieren
“Universities singling out white students for ‘Education Sessions’ “.
Affirmative Action gone even madder. (it was mad from the start; a recipe for mediocrity)
Very racist of me, sorry, I have to learn that it was really moslems, blacks and all the world’s other non-white people who built up western civilization.
Curious though, that having built up western civilization, all those coloured people then moved back into their own backward countries….Weird.
Of course, Obama would say: “You (whites) didn’t build that society!”