Gates of Vienna News Feed 2/19/2019

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders announced that he will run for president again in 2020. Mr. Sanders’ electoral chances are not rated as good, since he will be running as a straight, cis-gendered white male.

In other news, according to the latest polls, the Lega — the party of Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini — is set to become the second-largest party in the European Parliament after the elections in May.

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

Thanks to C. Cantoni, Dean, Dora, JD, Reader from Chicago, SS, Vlad Tepes, 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
» “I’m Committing Professional Suicide”: CBS Star Reporter Admits “Mostly Liberal” Journalists Are Now “Political Activists”
» 23 Hate Crimes Blamed on Trump Since His Inauguration… Every Incident Turned Out to be a Hoax
» Aurora Officials Update on Fundraising Efforts, Officers After Workplace Shooting
» Barr and Mueller, Eradicating Our Fourth Amendment Rights
» Bernie Sanders Announces Second US Presidential Bid
» Body Cam Video They Don’t Want You to See: Arizona Cop Takes Down Knife-Wielding Jihadist
» Brothers at Center of Jussie Smollett Case Seen in Ride Share Near Location of Attack, Sources Say
» Data-Spewing Spectre Chip Flaws Can’t be Killed by Software Alone, Google Boffins Conclude
» Facebook Still Championing Blasphemy Laws
» Former CIA Officer: “We Have a Crisis in America… the System is Rigged… Political, Economic, Social”
» In Ilhan Omar’s District, Gangland Islamists and “No Talking to ‘Infidels’“ Rule Too Common
» It’s Coming: The Case for Russia Collusion — Against the Democrats.
» Jussie Smollett Was Involved in Creating Racist Letter, Which Later Led to Attack, Sources Say
» Marsupial Lived Among Arctic Dinosaurs
» Public Health Warning Issued for Fluoride Toothpaste
» ‘Shoot the President’: School Cancels Assassination Party Game for Kids After Public Outcry
» The Democrat Party: No Wall, No Jobs, No Babies
» What Did Turbonerds Do Before the Internet? 41 Years Ago, A Load of BBS
 
Canada
» 7 Children in Syrian Refugee Family Dead in Halifax House Fire
 
Europe and the EU
» 2,000 Islamists ‘Ready to Carry Out Attacks at Any Time’ Says Former German Spy Chief
» 95 Percent of Pickpockets on Brussels’ Public Transport Are Foreigners
» EU Commission Deletes Article 13 Post Because ‘Mob’ Understood it Incorrectly
» EU Launches Chemical Sales Crackdown as ISIS Jihadis Flock Back to Europe
» EU Parliament’s Centrist Coalition Set to Lose Majority, Poll Finds
» Eurofanatic Verhofstadt Warms Up for EU Elections With Anti-Populist Video
» France: Marseille Attack: Man Injures Four in Frenzied Stabbing Spree — Police Shoot Knifeman Dead
» French Blogger Avner Solal in Movie: “I’m Not European, I’m French”
» If UK Wants Brexit Extension it ‘Has Only to Ask’
» Projection: Populist Lega Set to Become Second Largest Party in EU Parliament
» Shamima Begum: ISIS Teenager to Lose UK Citizenship
» ‘Yellow Vest’ Islamist Caught Hurling Anti-Semitic Abuse at French Jewish Intellectual
 
Middle East
» Post-Caliphate ISIS
» The Birth of Shi’a Islam
 
Australia — Pacific
» Is the Great Chinese Takeaway Over? Foreign Investment in Australian Real Estate Plunges by 83 Per Cent as Beijing-Based Millionaires Buy Fewer Homes
 
Immigration
» “Refugee” In Germany Committed Over 100 Crimes Before He Was Monitored and Put in Deportation Detention
» Australia’s Immigration Level Soars to a Record High in 2018 — With 832,560 New Arrivals Calling the Country Home — After the Government Promised Cuts
» Female German Teacher on Trial for Raping Underage Asylum Seeker
» France: Activists Accused of Helping Calais Migrants Block Traffic
» Hungary: “Budapest Process to Become Symbol for Stopping Pro-Migration Forces”
» Six Undocumented “Democrat Guests” Linked to Massive Mexican Drug Cartel Arrested in NC
» Switzerland’s Prison Inmate Population is 80% Foreigner
» The Border Wars Plot to Destabilize and Transform America
 
Culture Wars
» The Frenzied Search for Racism
 
General
» Neuroscientists Discover ‘Wireless’ Human Neural Communication
 

“I’m Committing Professional Suicide”: CBS Star Reporter Admits “Mostly Liberal” Journalists Are Now “Political Activists”

CBS News chief foreign affairs correspondent Lara Logan has broken ranks and admitted that journalists have lost their objectivity and become “political activists.”

During an appearance on the Mike Drop podcast with retired Navy SEAL Mike Ritland, Logan admitted that “the media everywhere is mostly liberal, not just the U.S.,” adding that it was nearly impossible for viewers to decipher if they were being told the truth at any given time.

“85% of journalists are registered Democrats,” Logan said. “How do you know you’re being lied to? How do you know you’re being manipulated? How do you know there’s something not right with the coverage? When they simplify it all [and] there’s no grey. It’s all one way. Well, life isn’t like that. If it doesn’t match real life, it’s probably not. Something’s wrong. For example, all the coverage on Trump all the time is negative. … That’s a distortion of the way things go in real life.”

“There’s no grey. It’s all one way,” said Logan.

Logan says that the heavy bias has warped people’s ability to know what’s really true.

“When you turn on your computer, or you walk past the TV, or you see a newspaper headline in the grocery store If they’re all saying the same thing, the weight of that convinces you that it’s true,” said Logan. “You don’t question it, because everyone is saying it.”

She also admitted that journalists today are more or less lobbyists for liberal interests, adding that the weight of the liberal media machine overwhelms “the other side” unless people actively seek outlets such as Breitbart.

Noting recent comments by former New York Times executive editor Jill Abramson, Logan said “Although the media has historically always been left-leaning, we’ve abandoned our pretense — or at least the effort — to be objective, today. … We’ve become political activists, and some could argue propagandists, and there’s some merit to that.”

Logan said that MSM reports using anonymous or single government sources are bunk.

“That’s not journalism, it’s horsesh*t,” she said — demanding more accountability.

“Responsibility for fake news begins with us.”

Watch the entire interview below (relevant part begins at 2:16:00):

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

23 Hate Crimes Blamed on Trump Since His Inauguration… Every Incident Turned Out to be a Hoax

Americans are reeling over what appears to be yet another “Trump inspired” hate crime hoax. This time, it appears that the hoax was orchestrated by the popular black Empire actor, Jussie Smollett.

Last week, Smollett accused two white men of wearing MAGA hats and yelling racial slurs during a racially motivated attack outside of his luxury Chicago apartment. Smollett claimed that the two white men also dumped bleach on him and tied a noose around his neck. The two suspects ended up being friends of Smolletts who admitted to rehearsing the attack with Smollett, who they say orchestrated the attack and paid them both to participate in the hoax. The media gave the story wall-to-wall coverage. Democrat leaders piled on, calling for urgent anti-lynching legislation.

Today, in a lengthy thread, independent journalist Andy Ngo listed multiple accounts of fake hate crimes that have been committed since President Trump’s inauguration. We’ve included the fake hate crimes that were blamed on President Trump and his supporters, as well as some additional details to along with Ngo’s extensive and important reporting.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Aurora Officials Update on Fundraising Efforts, Officers After Workplace Shooting

CHICAGO (CBS)— Aurora officials provided updates on the police officers who rushed into danger during Friday’s workplace shooting as well as the fundraising efforts for the victims.

Aurora Police Chief Kristen Ziman said one of the wounded officers remains in the hospital, four days after the incident.

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

Barr and Mueller, Eradicating Our Fourth Amendment Rights

The last thing we need is another swamp creature, but it appears that is what we’re getting with our new Attorney General (AG). Bill Barr is a DC insider who praised Comey, Rosenstein and Mueller during his confirmation hearings — how is President Trump going to drain the swamp if Mueller’s best friend is running the DOJ? Barr and Mueller worked together when Barr was Bush’s attorney general from 1991 to 1993 and Mueller oversaw the department’s criminal division.

During William Barr’s confirmation hearings, Senator Lindsey Graham asked the nominee several questions. Barr said he didn’t think Robert Mueller was on a witch hunt, and thought he’d be fair to the country as a whole. He also said he had no reason to stop Mueller’s investigation or terminate it for cause. Barr told Senator Graham that he was committed to allowing Robert Mueller to finish his job, and that he has a very high opinion of Deputy AG (DAG) Rod Rosenstein. Link

Barr has now asked Rod Rosenstein to stay on for a while, and he has said he would. How special. Fired former Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe, and two other people who have testified to Congress, claim Mr. Rosenstein repeatedly offered to wear a wire when meeting with Mr. Trump. McCabe also stated that he and other officials, including DAG Rosenstein, did headcounts of which cabinet officials might vote to declare the president “unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office” under the 25th Amendment. Rosenstein never actually denied McCabe’s claims.

The very suspicion of impropriety should be reason for Rosenstein’s termination.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Bernie Sanders Announces Second US Presidential Bid

US Senator Bernie Sanders says he will run again for president in 2020, making a second attempt to win the Democratic Party’s nomination.

The 77-year-old Vermont senator became a progressive political star in 2016 although he lost his candidacy bid.

His campaign says it raised $1m (£777,000) within three and half hours of launching.

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

Body Cam Video They Don’t Want You to See: Arizona Cop Takes Down Knife-Wielding Jihadist

Sensitive Images

The media is quick to pounce on narratives that serve their agenda, but when it comes to actual news stories about the dangers of real hate and terrorism in America they are often silent.

This is the case with the following report, which apparently was so damaging to the mainstream agenda that not only did they refuse to cover it, but Maricopa refused to release the video until they were sued.

In the video, an individual is confronted by a Maricopa County, Arizona officer. The individual, as seen below, first indicates to the officer that he wants to “talk about” political issues.

All seems well for about 20 seconds, when the man seems to completely lose his marbles when asked to produce identification. He first begins throwing rocks at the officer, then pulls a knife, at which point things take a turn for the worse for this peaceful protester:…

Ismail Ahmed stated he wanted to do something in protest on behalf of the people in Palestine & Middle East

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Brothers at Center of Jussie Smollett Case Seen in Ride Share Near Location of Attack, Sources Say

CHICAGO (CBS) — The two brothers at the center of the Jussie Smollett case were captured on a ride share camera before the alleged attack on the ‘Empire’ actor, according to sources close to the investigation.

This news comes on the same day that the brothers were seen leaving the grand jury room at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse. They were hiding under hoods, surrounded by what appeared to be law enforcement. The two men met with prosecutors but did not appear before the grand jury, sources tell CBS 2’s Charlie De Mar.

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

Data-Spewing Spectre Chip Flaws Can’t be Killed by Software Alone, Google Boffins Conclude

While browsers have got their act together, any other apps interpreting user-supplied code need to be aware of this

Google security researchers have analyzed the impact of the data-leaking Spectre vulnerabilities afflicting today’s processor cores, and concluded software alone cannot prevent exploitation.

The Chocolate Factory brainiacs — Ross Mcilroy, Jaroslav Sevcik, Tobias Tebbi, Ben L. Titzer, Toon Verwaest — show that they can construct what’s dubbed a universal gadget to exploit the spectre gang of speculative-execution flaws present in various CPU families, allowing attacker-supplied code running in a thread to read all memory in the same address space…

“We now believe that speculative vulnerabilities on today’s hardware defeat all language-enforced confidentiality with no known comprehensive software mitigations, as we have discovered that untrusted code can construct a universal read gadget to read all memory in the same address space through side-channels,” the researchers say in a paper distributed through pre-print service ArXiv.

The paper is titled “Spectre is here to stay: An analysis of side-channels and speculative execution.”

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Facebook Still Championing Blasphemy Laws

Recent events illustrate how Facebook — which has previously championed blasphemy laws — continues its “sharia censorship” regarding content it apparently deems contrary to its “Community Standards”.

A report published in the Wall Street Journal on January 8, noted that Facebook — and Twitter — executives removed activist Laura Loomer from their platforms after Zahra Billoo, the executive director of the Council on American Islamic Relations’ (CAIR) San Francisco Bay Area chapter, complained to them. What Facebook fails to disclose is that CAIR was an unindicted co-conspirator in the largest terror-financing case in US history. CAIR has also been designated a terror organization by the United Arab Emirates.

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

Former CIA Officer: “We Have a Crisis in America… the System is Rigged… Political, Economic, Social”

President Trump is known for firing people, so we asked Mr. Steele about the likelihood that Trump would actually fire Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.

Not only is that scenario realistic, but the Federal Reserve is bankrupt, and Trump recently took the action of stopping them from printing anymore money, according to Robert David Steele.

What we have right now is an economic crisis in the United States, according to Robert David Steele, and the President is doing everything he can to go towards a gold-backed dollar and to recover some of the $43 trillion that has been stolen from the public treasury by the banks with the collaboration of the Federal Reserve.

The bottom line is that the Chairman of the Federal Reserve can be fired if the President puts enough pressure on him, just like we took out the IMF Chairman. In addition, according to Robert David Steele, the President can appoint more Federal Reserve Board members so that they end up having a Trump majority.

The fact is, President Trump is in control and the Federal Reserve knows that, according to Robert David Steele. And when the President said that the system is rigged, he’s absolutely right: it’s not only the political system but economic and social systems as well.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

In Ilhan Omar’s District, Gangland Islamists and “No Talking to ‘Infidels’“ Rule Too Common

Is it any surprise that the Minneapolis neighborhood dubbed “Little Mogadishu” would seem an awful lot like the real, big Mogadishu?

In Muslim Democrat Representative Ilhan Omar’s district — which has become “the terrorist recruitment capital of the US,” as Fox News puts it — police are struggling with murders, Muslim gangs, and a “tight-lipped” “Somali” community that’s reluctant to talk to law enforcement. Officially, police say the problem is that authorities need better community “outreach.” But a prominent anti-jihadism crusader contends the issue is deeper: Koranic injunctions against trusting non-Muslims.

As Fox News reports, opening their piece with a story about a young “Somali” man who was shot but refused to talk to police:

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

It’s Coming: The Case for Russia Collusion — Against the Democrats.

After two years and 200 interviews, the committee is approaching the end of its investigation, political operatives were unable to produce any actual evidence or documentation of any coordination between Trump associates and ‘The Russians!’ — neither before, during or after DNC and Clinton campaign emails were leaked to online journalists WikiLeaks. The investigation is sure to go down in history as one of the most expensive witch-hunts ever, but also the biggest political hoax in US history. For the legions of #Resistance journalists in and across the US media, the penny has not yet dropped, although reality is approaching faster than many realize.

By contrast, the case against the Clintons and their foundation is damning — and with a plethora of real evidence of actual collusion and pay-to-play financial pay-offs between not only the Russian government, but also with intelligence firms, oligarchs and energy firms, too.

Journalist John Solomon from The Hill reported earlier this week:

With Republicans on both House and Senate investigative committees having found no evidence of Donald Trump being guilty of Democrat-inspired allegations of Russian collusion, it is worth revisiting one anecdote that escaped significant attention during the hysteria but continues to have U.S. security implications.

As secretary of State, Hillary Clinton worked with Russian leaders, including Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and then-President Dmitri Medvedev, to create U.S. technology partnerships with Moscow’s version of Silicon Valley, a sprawling high-tech campus known as Skolkovo.

Clinton’s handprint was everywhere on the 2009-2010 project, the tip of a diplomatic spear to reboot U.S.-Russian relations after years of hostility prompted by Vladimir Putin’s military action against the former Soviet republic and now U.S. ally Georgia.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Jussie Smollett Was Involved in Creating Racist Letter, Which Later Led to Attack, Sources Say

CHICAGO (CBS) — The two brothers involved in the Jussie Smollett attack told police that Smollett was behind creating a racist letter that was sent to the actor on the set of his show, “Empire,” according to two sources with first-hand knowledge of the investigation.

And when that letter did not get a “bigger reaction,” Smollett orchestrated the attack a week later with the two men—Ola and Abel Osundairo, sources said. Also Tuesday, sources said the two brothers were seen on a ride share video camera before being dropped off near the location of the attack.

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

Marsupial Lived Among Arctic Dinosaurs

A research team has discovered a previously unknown species of marsupial that lived in Alaska’s Arctic during the era of dinosaurs, adding a vivid new detail to a complex ancient landscape.

The thumb-sized animal, named Unnuakomys hutchisoni, lived in the Arctic about 69 million years ago during the late Cretaceous Period. Its discovery, led by scientists from the University of Colorado and University of Alaska Fairbanks, is outlined in an article published in the Journal of Systematic Palaeontology.

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

Public Health Warning Issued for Fluoride Toothpaste

Too Much Fluoride Causes Dental Fluorosis

The fact of the matter is that fluoride is a toxic substance with no known biological imperative. Researchers have even questioned its efficacy as a topical anticaries prophylactic.3

Dental caries is caused by demineralization of your teeth by the acids formed during the bacterial fermentation of dietary sugars. Demineralization is countered by the deposit of minerals from your saliva. However, the remineralization process is a slow one, and fluoride is said to prevent dental caries by enhancing this remineralization.

The problem is, your teeth do not actually rely on fluoride for remineralization. What’s more, research4 has concluded that the protective shield fluoride forms on teeth is up to 100 times thinner than previously believed. It has long been believed that fluoride changes the main mineral in tooth enamel, hydroxyapatite, into a more-decay resistant material called fluorapatite.

However, the researchers found that the fluorapatite layer formed in this way is only 6 nanometers thick — meaning it would take almost 10,000 such layers to span the width of a human hair. As noted by the authors, “it has to be asked whether such narrow … layers really can act as protective layers for the enamel.”

Meanwhile, fluoride has been shown to cause significant systemic harm when ingested, which is part and parcel of the CDC’s new warning against using too much toothpaste. As reported by the Chicago Sun Times:5

“Brushing with too much toothpaste can damage enamel, as children could

swallow too much fluoride while their teeth are developing, the CDC says.

This can cause dental fluorosis, white marks and discoloration of teeth.”

However, dental fluorosis is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to fluoride damage. For example, evidence shows fluoride is an endocrine disruptor that can affect your bones, brain, thyroid gland, pineal gland and even your blood sugar level.6 Importantly, it’s a known neurotoxin, shown to lower IQ in children.7

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

‘Shoot the President’: School Cancels Assassination Party Game for Kids After Public Outcry

A school running a community arts center in Ohio was forced to stop advertising a party game where kids are instructed to ‘eliminate’ the president with toy guns, after it sparked national outrage.The game entitled ‘President’ had been advertised as a part of Nerf gun-themed party organized by the Olmsted Performing Arts community center in Berea, a suburb of Cleveland.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

The Democrat Party: No Wall, No Jobs, No Babies

The Democrat Party cannot cheer for the success of America, nor can they support proposals for the good of the country, for that undermines their very existence and purpose: to divide, conquer, and rule over every aspect of American’s lives. The Democrat Party knows full well that when America does well and prospers, there is less need for government, that is — less need for them, to be the providers and fixers of problems. Thus, the Democrat Party often stands for things harmful to the nation, with the pretense that they are the party of caring, ideas, and inclusion.

The Democrat Party is the party of obstruction and socialism, which stands for ideas and proposals detrimental to America, so as to advance the cause of further empowering themselves as things progressively get worse in the nation, to be the fixers of the societal problems that they themselves created.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

What Did Turbonerds Do Before the Internet? 41 Years Ago, A Load of BBS

Prior to the internet, enthusiasts seeking to exchange files, read news and postings, send messages or simply chat to each other would reach for their acoustic modem, and dial up a computer running BBS software.

Those computers — effectively servers in modern parlance — could (in many cases) host as many users as phone lines could be connected. Certainly, this hack can remember the annoyance of attempting to connect and listening to an engaged tone as other eager nerds filled the virtual rooms of the BBS discussing how to get hold of bootleg VHS cassettes of Star Trek: The Next Generation from the US before UK broadcast.

Kind-of BBS systems had been floating around during the 1970s in the form of mainframe software, but it was Chicago techies Ward Christensen and Randy Suess who kicked things off for enthusiasts on 16 Feb 1978 with the launch of the very first BBS. In an interview with Byte (PDF), the duo explained the project took 30 days to put together an assembler in a box rocking an Intel 8080 CPU and 24K of RAM.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

7 Children in Syrian Refugee Family Dead in Halifax House Fire

Seven children, ranging in age from four months old to 14 years old, are dead following a fire early Tuesday — the deadliest house fire in recent Nova Scotia history.

Seven children are dead following a fire early Tuesday that swept through the Halifax home of a Syrian refugee family, the deadliest house fire in recent Nova Scotia history.

Halifax police confirmed the deaths at the house on Quartz Drive in the community of Spryfield.

Ebraheim and Kawthar Barho arrived in Nova Scotia with their children in September 2017 and moved to Spryfield last summer, neighbours and friends said.

           — Hat tip: Vlad Tepes [Return to headlines]
 

2,000 Islamists ‘Ready to Carry Out Attacks at Any Time’ Says Former German Spy Chief

The security threat posed by more than 2,000 Islamist terror suspects is just one example of how Angela Merkel’s “mistake” to throw open the borders continues to haunt Germany daily, the country’s former spy chief has said.

Hans-Georg Maassen, who was forced to retire as Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) chief last year after voicing skepticism over antifa-promoted footage used to claim Germans had carried out a ‘pogrom’ against migrants, said domestic security has been compromised since the Chancellor moved to welcome well over a million migrants in 2015.

Having been a co-author of German residence laws emphasising the state’s role and duty to ensure the “control and limitation of immigration”, Maassen “felt chills” when he saw that “thousands of [third world migrants] were allowed to enter just like that”, he told the tabloid newspaper Bild.

[Comment: Merkel owns this.]

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

95 Percent of Pickpockets on Brussels’ Public Transport Are Foreigners

Some 95 percent of pickpockets operating on or near public transportation in Brussels are foreigners, according to figures obtained by a member of parliament.

Belgian MP Brecht Vermeulen reportedly requested information regarding the nationalities of petty thieves from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and shared his findings with local outlet Sceptr.

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

EU Commission Deletes Article 13 Post Because ‘Mob’ Understood it Incorrectly

On Friday, the EU Commission published a piece on Medium that suggested that Google has taken over the minds of millions of citizens, rendering them incapable of thinking for themselves in their opposition of Article 13. The piece was later deleted with a note implying that people simply aren’t capable of understanding the subtle nuances of the English language.

Last week the European Parliament and European Council agreed on the final text of the EU Copyright Directive.

Supporters of Article 13 say this will lead to a better deal for the entertainment industries at the expense of Google’s YouTube, since it will have to obtain proper licenses for content uploaded to platform, while taking responsibility for infringing uploads.

Opponents, on the other hand, believe that the Article 13 proposals will be bad news for the Internet as a whole, since they have the potential to stifle free speech and expression, at the very least.

It’s important to note that Article 13 opponents come in all shapes and sizes, some more militant than others. However, last Friday the EU Commission took the ‘one size fits all approach’ by labeling every dissenting voice as being part of a “mob”, one groomed, misinformed and misled by Google.

[Comment: More like the “mob” saw through it.]

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

EU Launches Chemical Sales Crackdown as ISIS Jihadis Flock Back to Europe

EU authorities are tightening up restrictions on chemical sales in a bid to stop returning ISIS militants from blowing up Europeans with homemade explosives.

Proposed changes to 2013 restrictions on the marketing and use of explosives precursors were introduced following a European Commission review which noted bombs cooked up by Islamists had been used in the “vast majority of terrorist attacks in the EU” including Madrid in 2004, London in 2005, Paris in 2015, Brussels in 2016, and Manchester and Parsons Green in 2017.

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

EU Parliament’s Centrist Coalition Set to Lose Majority, Poll Finds

European People’s party and Socialists & Democrats have run parliament for 40 years

The “grand coalition” of centre-right and centre-left that has run the European parliament for 40 years is set to lose its majority for the first time following elections in May, according to the institution’s internal forecasts.

The centre-right European People’s party and centre-left Socialists & Democrats have long called the shots in the EU parliament, but polls suggest the two big groups will win only 45% of seats, down from 53%.

The far-right and other rightwing Eurosceptic groups are likely to make gains, although pro-EU parties will still command a majority in the parliament once Liberal and Greens seats are counted…

           — Hat tip: C. Cantoni [Return to headlines]
 

Eurofanatic Verhofstadt Warms Up for EU Elections With Anti-Populist Video

The European Union’s Brexit coordinator has released a fresh attack on populists he claims are working to destroy Europe, telling viewers they should be proud to call themselves Europeans in the run up to the bloc’s May elections.

Speaking from the European Parliament, loyal Euro-federalist Guy Verhofstadt continued his personal campaign against Euroscepticism in a video where he attacked what he called populists for wanting to “destroy Europe”.

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

France: Marseille Attack: Man Injures Four in Frenzied Stabbing Spree — Police Shoot Knifeman Dead

FRENCH police have shot a man in central Marseille after he began stabbing bystanders, according to local media reports.

At least four people were injured in the horrific attack as the suspect began knifing people in the Canebière area of the city, French news site actu17 reports. Police rushed to the scene at around 3.45pm GMT (4.45pm local time) and shot the man dead after he drew a gun and pointed it at officers, according to a police source. One of the victims is said to be in a serious condition after being knifed in the neck…

           — Hat tip: Dean [Return to headlines]
 

French Blogger Avner Solal in Movie: “I’m Not European, I’m French”

French blogger Avner Solal published a movie about his feelings towards the European Union and France.

“It hurts me to admit it, but France is no longer France”, he says.

He quoted Edgar Quinet: “True exile isn’t being torn away from one’s country. It is to live there, and find nothing that used to make you love it.”

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

If UK Wants Brexit Extension it ‘Has Only to Ask’

None of the other 27 EU states would oppose an extension to the Brexit deadline, the EU Commission president has said — Britain only has to ask.

Without an extension, and with no sign on the horizon at present of the UK parliament agreeing to the negotiated deal, Britain risks an abrupt exit without a deal in just over a month’s time

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

Projection: Populist Lega Set to Become Second Largest Party in EU Parliament

A newly released projection has revealed that sovereigntist parties are likely to score huge gains in the European Parliament elections in May and that the populist Italian Lega could become the second largest political party.

The projections, released by the European Parliament, show the conservative European People’s Party (EPP) parliamentary group are likely to be the overall winners with 183 seats but the various sovereigntist and populist factions will grow to 153 seats and would form the second largest force in the parliament behind the EPP, Il Giornale reports.

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

Shamima Begum: ISIS Teenager to Lose UK Citizenship

Shamima Begum, who joined the Islamic State group in Syria aged 15, is to lose her UK citizenship.

Whitehall sources said it was possible to strip the 19-year-old of British nationality as she was eligible for citizenship of another country.

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

‘Yellow Vest’ Islamist Caught Hurling Anti-Semitic Abuse at French Jewish Intellectual

A “Yellow Vest” protestor who hurled anti-semitic abuse at French intellectual Alain Finkielkraut over the weekend has been identified as a radical Islamic extremist known to French intelligence agencies.

The abuse of Alain Finkielkraut, a Jewish intellectual who has railed against the policies of multiculturalism in the past, was caught on video and showed a man with shouting, “You racist, you’re a hater, you’re going to die, you’re going to hell, you Zionist,” Le Parisien reports.

The video provoked mass condemnation across the French political spectrum from French President Emmanuel Macron to populist leader Marine Le Pen who wrote on Twitter that is was “a detestable and shocking act, which illustrates the attempted infiltration of the Gilets Jaunes (Yellow Vests) by the anti-Semitic extreme-left movement.”

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

Post-Caliphate ISIS

The disintegration of the Islamic State’s Caliphate — which once included large portions of Iraq and Syria — may be a strategic defeat for ISIS, yet the jihadi terrorist group is very much alive. Its ideology, tactics and objectives have not altered. ISIS remains steeped in the ideology of “salafiya jihadiyah“ (Salafi jihad), which requires every Muslim to wage “holy war” in some fashion against the “infidel.”

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

The Birth of Shi’a Islam

This Islamic war on the religion of peace is not confined to the Shiite-Sunni divide. There are so many internal divisions within each side that listing and exposing them meticulously would be an encyclopedic work.

Study of vast Islamic literature illustrates that the present sect of Shi’a Islam has evolved from a mix of cultural, political, economic, and religious influences.

The Twelver or Imami Shi’a Islam or Twelve-Imamates (ithna ashariyya) is the largest branch of Shi’a Islam. Adherents of Twelver Shi’ism are commonly referred to as Twelvers, which is derived from their belief in twelve divinely ordained leaders and mediators between Allah and Man. These are Christ-like figures on earth, also known as the Twelve Imams. The Twelver’s’ central belief is that the Mahdi is expected to appear and save the world when it has reached the depth of deprivation and despair. Nearly 85% of Shi’ites are Twelvers, and the term Shi’a Muslim commonly refers to Twelver Shi’a Muslims only. (Ismailis sometimes are called the “Seveners” instead).

The Shi’as believe in the infallibility of the twelve Imams and in their divine inspiration—vision that the Sunnis consider as contrary to the traditions of Islam.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Is the Great Chinese Takeaway Over? Foreign Investment in Australian Real Estate Plunges by 83 Per Cent as Beijing-Based Millionaires Buy Fewer Homes

Foreign investment in Australian residential real estate plunged by 83 per cent in less than two years to the 2017/2018 financial year.

           — Hat tip: SS [Return to headlines]
 

“Refugee” In Germany Committed Over 100 Crimes Before He Was Monitored and Put in Deportation Detention

Germany finally wants to deport a 20-year-old Nigerian asylum seeker in Burg and all it took was far over 100 crimes since he entered the country in March 2017.

The list of crimes is too long to include all but assault, insults, damaging property and animal cruelty are just a few examples.

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

Australia’s Immigration Level Soars to a Record High in 2018 — With 832,560 New Arrivals Calling the Country Home — After the Government Promised Cuts

In 2018, a record 832,560 permanent and long-term migrants decided to call Australia home, marking a 7.1 per cent increase compared with 2017. The net immigration pace was 291,250, a four-year high.

           — Hat tip: SS [Return to headlines]
 

Female German Teacher on Trial for Raping Underage Asylum Seeker

A 45-year-old female German teacher in the city of Landshut has been put on trial after being accused of raping a 15-year-old Afghan asylum seeker boy, a charge which she has denied.

The 45-year-old woman is said to have met the Afghan asylum seeker at a shelter for migrants in the municipality of Kumhausen just outside of Landshut at the height of the migrant crisis in 2015 Die Welt reports.

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

France: Activists Accused of Helping Calais Migrants Block Traffic

Residents of the French port city of Calais have claimed that pro-migrant activists have given migrants equipment to cut down trees to block traffic in order to sneak on to lorries headed for the UK.

The port city still sees around three thousand migrants attempt to stow themselves away lorries or ships per month, around 100 per day, despite the closure of the formerly infamous Calais Jungle migrant camp, Le Figaro reports.

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

Hungary: “Budapest Process to Become Symbol for Stopping Pro-Migration Forces”

The Budapest Process interregional forum on migration will become a symbol for stopping pro-migration forces, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said.

At next meeting, tomorrow in Istanbul, the Hungarian government will not allow the forum named after Budapest to become a platform for bringing more migrants to Europe, Szijjarto told MTI. The meeting will see a fight between pro-migration and anti-migration forces, as usual in the recent period, he added.

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

Six Undocumented “Democrat Guests” Linked to Massive Mexican Drug Cartel Arrested in NC

Today, it was announced that six members of a powerful, violent Mexican drug cartel, (we’ll call them “undocumented Democrat guests,” since the term criminal illegal aliens offends Democrat lawmakers) have been arrested in North Carolina.

Fox News reports — Six illegal immigrants with ties to a Mexican drug cartel — a rival of the powerful Sinaloa cartel, whose notorious leader Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman was convicted last week— were arrested in an elaborate drug trafficking operation in North Carolina, according to reports.

The massive drug operation included transporting large amounts of cocaine and methamphetamine across state lines — for instance, from Texas to Georgia and North Carolina, WSOC reported.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Switzerland’s Prison Inmate Population is 80% Foreigner

In Hindsight: Had they built a wall to keep them out, a wall wouldn’t be necessary to keep them in now.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

The Border Wars Plot to Destabilize and Transform America

The Center for a Secure Free Society held a news conference the other day about the roles of Russia, China, Venezuela, and other countries in flooding the U.S. with illegal aliens. Mario Duarte, Secretary of Strategic Intelligence for the Republic of Guatemala, spoke at the event, calling the caravans and their impact on U.S. border security the “weaponization” of refugees.

The term, “weaponization,” was also used by NATO’s top commander in Europe, Philip Breedlove, to describe what the Russians and Syrians were doing in the Middle East with the Islamic refugees there. Germany’s Angela Merkel welcomed them, destabilizing Europe. Here, President Trump campaigned for office on the basis of stopping this flow into the U.S. Objectively speaking, Merkel and not Trump has been serving Russian interests…

One of the key players in Russia-gate was Obama’s CIA director John Brennan, who, interestingly enough, had voted for the Communist Party when it was funded by Moscow. Finding out how this security risk was hired by the CIA and how he became CIA director would go a long way toward understanding the nature of the Deep State and why Trump is today suspicious of findings from intelligence agencies such as the CIA. See Trump address Venezuelans in Miami…

The Democrats, of course, had another motive for going along with the Russia-gate ploy. Their “Brown is the New White” political strategy involves bringing in more people from Latin America to vote for them in U.S. elections. By doing so, they diminish the importance and power of conservative voters. In this context, largely because of the impact of illegal immigration, California has become a socialist one-party state within the U.S. It’s a model for what they intend to do to America as a whole.

This was predicted back in 1962 by Karl Prussion, a former FBI informant, in his booklet, “California Dynasty of Communism.” He wrote, “To all communists in the United States, California is the pilot area. The Golden State has been chosen to be the model Soviet state.”

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

The Frenzied Search for Racism

Elites bought Jussie Smollett’s story because it confirmed their cherished narrative about a hateful America.

by Heather Mac Donald

The Jussie Smollett case, in which a young black, gay actor has apparently concocted a tale of being attacked by two white men wearing MAGA hats and shouting anti-gay slurs, is just the latest example of how desperately media elites want to confirm their favored narrative about America: that the country is endemically and lethally racist, sexist, and homophobic, and that the election of Donald Trump both proves and reinforces such bigotry.

The truth: as instances of actual racism get harder and harder to find, the search to find such bigotry becomes increasingly frenzied and unmoored from reality.

Smollett made a not-irrational wager that a patently preposterous narrative about an anti-black, anti-gay hate crime at 2 A.M. in subzero Chicago would be embraced by virtually the entirety of the mainstream media, leading Democratic politicians, Hollywood, and academia, with no one in these cohorts bothering to fact-check his narrative or entertain even armchair skepticism toward it. He also presumed, again with good reason, that to claim victim status would catapult him to the highest echelons of public admiration and accomplishment. And he was right. Kamala Harris and Cory Booker called it a “modern-day lynching.” Joe Biden warned that “we must no longer give this hate safe harbor,” his implication being that we need to stop winking at such racist attacks. If Beale Street Could Talk’s Barry Jenkins lamented, “This what all that hateful mongering has wrought. Are you PROUD???” Good Morning America interviewed Smollett without asking a single critical question about his story.

The examples are as numerous as the retractions will be minimal.

Even the Chicago Police Department was reluctant to express any skepticism toward the Smollett narrative until it had overwhelming evidence of the hoax, since to question the ubiquity of racism today is to invite accusations of racism. […]

[Go to URL for the numbers. Heather Mac Donald follows the stats carefully.]

           — Hat tip: Dora [Return to headlines]
 

Neuroscientists Discover ‘Wireless’ Human Neural Communication

This latest scientific breakthrough has wide-ranging implications. With this provisional discovery of human ability to transmit ‘ wireless’ communication researchers will no doubt be looking towards areas like natural extra-sensory perception.

It’s likely that transhumanist enthusiasts and other techno-fetish movements will be viewing this discovery through the framework of directing artificial digital signals and data directly to the human brain. Certainly, this would have serious implications with regards to human augmentation, and also in relation to the emerging 5G network which is being aggressive pushed in Europe and North America at present.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

8 thoughts on “Gates of Vienna News Feed 2/19/2019

  1. “Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders announced that he will run for president again in 2020. Mr. Sanders’ electoral chances are not rated as good, since he will be running as a straight, cis-gendered white male.” it made me laugh when I read this news yesterday. He’s going to be 79 by then, it’s just ridiculous to think he will have the stamina for the most important job of the country!

  2. re: What Did Turbonerds Do Before the Internet? 41 Years Ago, A Load of BBS

    Oh, does that ever bring back memories ! While living in the Washington DC area around ’84 – ’86 I had a ball exploring bulletin board systems (BBS). Used to pick up copies of the monthly magazine ‘Boardwatch’ whenever I could.

    Then I worked for a time at the Washington Times, and had access to the ‘Nexus’ on-line, and thought I was really in seventh heaven. And then there was Netscape !

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