Anti-government protests in Iran continued into a fourth day, with demonstrators confronting the security forces of the regime. President Hassan Rouhani warned protesters that although disagreement was allowed, there would be no tolerance of violence and law-breaking.
In other news: Happy New Year!
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Thanks to Charles Low, Dean, DV, JD, Reader from Chicago, Red Mike, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.
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Man Prosecuted for Anti-Islam Posts
California has leveled misdemeanor charges against 41-year-old Mark Feigin after he sent five anti-Muslim posts to the Islamic Center of Southern California’s (ICSC) Facebook page in 2016.
The California Attorney General’s office argues that his comments constituted “repeated contact by means of an electronic communication device” with “intent to annoy or harass,” a misdemeanor under California law, Reason.com reported Friday. California courts are scheduled to begin the trial Jan. 2, according to court records.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The Latest: Shooting Leaves 1 Deputy Dead in Suburban Denver
DENVER — The Latest on shooting in suburban Denver that left one sheriff’s deputy dead, four deputies and two civilians wounded (all times local):
9:50 a.m.
Authorities in Colorado say one deputy has died and four others were wounded, along with two civilians, in a shooting in suburban Denver.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said via Twitter that the shooting happened after deputies were called to the scene of a domestic disturbance in Highlands Ranch early Sunday. The suspected gunman was also shot and is believed to be dead and “no longer a threat.”
The shootings happened at an apartment complex 16 miles (28 kilometers) south of Denver.
A hospital where three people were taken for treatment says those people suffered noncritical injuries. Another nearby hospital said it received four patients but wouldn’t release their conditions…
| — Hat tip: Dean | [Return to headlines] |
Weiner Laptop Doc: Assange Warrant Issued 2 Weeks After Swedish Election Leaks Warning
A confidential document found on Anthony Weiner’s laptop reveals that the United States Embassy in Stockholm, Sweden expressed concerns in 2010 that WikiLeaks would release classified US documents related to Sweden ahead of the September 19 Swedish election, tipping the vote towards the Pirate Party. The subject of the cable reads “Wikileaks: The Pirate Party’s White Horse Into Sweden’s Parliament?”
On June 29, 2010 a US diplomat met with three members of the Pirate Party — which is described in the cable as a “mixture between communism and libertarianism,” yet whose members are “well-salaried professionals, independent from the party for income.” Two of the “pirates,” according to the report, were active in the “youth branch of the conservative party currently leading government.”
The Embassy cable notes the “grim electoral outlook for Pirates” — as confirmed by a Pirate party member interviewed by the US diplomat, “Unless WikiLeaks Saves the Day.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France Sets Up Tax Dept to Investigate Jews
In Paris’s 12th arrondissement, on Bercy Street by the banks of the River Seine, on the 13th floor of the Ministry of Finance is France’s tax authority headquarters. Something has been afoot there recently that is liable to upset French Jews and spook their relations with the country in which they live. Under the radar, a secret department has been created with the sole purpose of handling tax evasion by French Jews. “Globes” can reveal for the first time the details of the secret department that is targeting Jews in France and new immigrants from France in Israel…
| — Hat tip: Dean | [Return to headlines] |
London Police ‘Could be Sitting on a Rotherham Style Sexual Grooming Gang Situation’
The Metropolitan Police force “could be sitting on a Rotherham-style sexual grooming gang situation”, a London Assembly Member has claimed.
The accusation, from UKIP group leader Peter Whittle, comes as a report by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services reveals that Scotland Yard failed to properly handle 90 per cent of recent child protection cases.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Macron Warns Against Nationalism, Skepticism in New Year’s Message
French President Emmanuel Macron delivered the traditional New Year’s Eve address from the Élysée Palace on Sunday, calling for a renewed spirit of unity within France and warning against falling prey to nationalism and scepticism.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Merkel Declares Europe Top Priority for New Government
Chancellor Angela Merkel will tell Germans that European co-operation is “the decisive question of the coming years” in a New Year’s Eve broadcast Sunday, as her conservatives eye tricky coalition talks.
| — Hat tip: Charles Low | [Return to headlines] |
‘Safe Zone’ For Women Aims to Stop New Year’s Refugee Sex Attacks in Berlin
New Year’s Eve celebrations in Berlin will see a “safe zone” for women for the first time in the city’s history.
Organizers of the Brandenburg Gate party are hoping to prevent mob attacks similar to those that occurred in Cologne two years ago.
Hundreds of women were attacked by gangs of men with migrant backgrounds during New Year’s Eve celebrations in 2015.
The incident happened after Germany had accepted a record influx of more than one million migrants.
The German capital will this year have a “safety zone” where Red Cross helpers will look after women who feel harassed or threatened.
Additional safety precautions, including a ban on large bags, rucksacks, glass bottles and alcoholic drinks, will also be enforced.
Berlin police have issued advice to women attending the celebrations, encouraging them to seek help if they feel threatened and to avoid carrying a valuable bag.
About 500 security personnel will be at the Brandenburg Gate party, as well as more than 1,000 extra police officers patrolling the city.
Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to turn out for the celebrations.
| — Hat tip: Dean | [Return to headlines] |
Yiannopoulos to Open Hungary Government Conference
Serial provocateur and former Breitbart editor Milo Yiannopoulos is due to open a conference next month organised by the Hungarian government that also features a prominent German right-wing activist.
Budapest describes the three-day event called “The Future of Europe” beginning January 23, as an “opportunity to analyse the full array of political and cultural processes”.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Iran’s President Rowhani Rejects Violence But Vows ‘Space for Criticism’ As Protests Continue
Iran’s President Hassan Rowhani said Sunday that government bodies must provide “space for criticism” as he sought to head off days of unrest, but also warned protesters that violence was unacceptable.
Hundreds of protesters marched through Tehran and other cities in a fourth day of demonstrations as authorities cut access to social media.
Rowhani finally broke his silence on the protests that mark the biggest test for the regime since mass protests in 2009.
They began as demonstrations against economic conditions in second city Mashhad on Thursday, but quickly turned against the Islamic regime as a whole with thousands marching in towns across Iran amid chants of “death to the dictator”.
“The people are absolutely free in expressing their criticisms and even protests,” Rowhani said at a cabinet meeting, according to the state broadcaster.
“But criticism is different to violence and destroying public property.”…
| — Hat tip: DV | [Return to headlines] |
Preview 2018: After a String of Defeats in Iraq and Syria What 2018 Means for ISIS
Isis has been defeated in Iraq and Syria. The caliphate declared in 2014, which was once the size of Great Britain, is no more. Its de facto capitals, Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria, were captured after long and bloody sieges in the second half of 2017.
But Isis was always more than a murderous religious cult. What made it so dangerous at the height of its fortunes was that its commanders also possessed a high degree of military skill, developed in a decade of ferocious warfare.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Trump: Iranian People Realizing Their Money is ‘Squandered on Terrorism’
NEW YORK — The Trump administration weighed in on a dramatic wave of protests gripping Iran this week with forceful rhetoric, warning the Islamist government that the world is watching its treatment of demonstrators three days after they began taking to the streets.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
St. Petersburg Supermarket Bombing Suspect Charged With Terrorism
Russia’s Investigative Committee says it has indicted the suspect in the St. Petersburg supermarket bombing earlier this week on terrorism charges.
In a statement on December 31, the committee said the suspect — Dmitry Lukyanenko — “deliberately made and planted a homemade explosive device” used in the December 27 attack that left 13 people injured.
Lukyanenko told investigators that he had been motivated by “hatred toward the organizers and participants” of mind-set training sessions that he had attended, the committee said without disclosing further details.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
15-Year-Old-Girl Stabbed to Death by ‘Child Migrant’ In Drug Store
A 15-year-old girl in the German town of Kandel was stabbed to death by her Afghan ex-boyfriend in a local drug store, shocking locals.
The attack occurred earlier this week and saw Afghan asylum seeker Abdul D. stab 15-year-old Mia repeatedly with a kitchen knife until customers were able to drag him off her and hold him until police arrived, Bild reports.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Israel: Ministers Push Plan to Imprison Illegal Migrants Who Won’t Leave
Interior Minister Aryeh Deri and Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan announced on Sunday they were launching an “intensive effort” to ensure undocumented asylum seekers leave the country “voluntarily” by imprisoning those who refuse to leave.The move follows a new law passed earlier this month that imposed tough new restrictions on illegal migrants and ordered the shuttering of the Holot detention facility in southern Israel by February.
In their joint statement Sunday, Erdan and Deri said the Interior Ministry’s Population and Migration Authority would produce a public statement in the coming days clarifying the options available to the roughly 1,200 migrants currently housed at Holot.
“The plan will present infiltrators with only two options: leave voluntarily or sit in jail,” Sunday’s statement explained…
| — Hat tip: Red Mike | [Return to headlines] |
Startup Societies UN’s Newest Scheme for Re-Engineering Society’s Future
The Startup Societies Foundation (SSF) believes that “a green infrastructure must be built in Puerto Rico and the population must be made wealthier in knowledge, skill, and resources.” Humanitarian aid and financial help coming from U.S. taxpayers is expected.
Proposing to decentralize Puerto Rico, SSF suggests using special economic zones, eco-conscious societies, sea steading, and other means to control the island.
“Sea steading is a concept of creating permanent dwellings at sea, called sea steads, outside of the territory claimed by a government.” Proposed sea steads are modified cruising vessels, refitted oil platforms, decommissioned anti-aircraft platforms, and custom-built floating islands.
“Eco-conscious societies” are environmentally friendly, nature-friendly, and green societies where sustainable development (SD), the lynch-pin of United Nations Agenda 2030, governs all decisions about human activity, services, laws, policies, and business activity, with reduced, minimal, or no harm upon ecosystems or the environment.
The immediate assessed needs for Puerto Rico were as follows:…
[Comment: Essentially theft of nation state territory and make it subject to UN control — and the nation state pays for this…classic globalist strategy…get the host nation to pay for the handcuffs…]
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Visualizing the 7 Most Important Scientific Breakthroughs of 2017
The pace of technological change is accelerating — and every new year seems to bring a more incredible list of scientific breakthroughs than the last.
2017 is no exception, and as Visual Capitalist’s Jeff Desjardins notes, the year was filled with game-changing innovations that are on the cutting edge of science. These breakthroughs will surely alter how we think of the world, and they will likely also translate into future unknown technologies that will affect how our society operates.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Be the New Year free,
full of free speech liberty.
Prosit New Year to all my conservative non-liberal friends!
The mullahs will be hoping the energy in the protests will fizz out before long. They will be cautious, knowing heavy handedness may actually provoke more protests. So things are delicately balanced and could go either way.
12 protesters killed by the Iranian government so far. So, unfortunately, there is not much caution or delicacy being expressed by the Mullahs.
Happy New Year to all conservatives in general out there, the great people of Hungary and Poland in particular.
And they have North Korea in their toolbox too. Whenever US turns his head to NK, Iran launches a missile; and when US talks to Iran, NK launches one. I was waiting for Mr. Un to wag his tail and he didn’t disappoint me: “Nuclear Button always on my desk”