Gates of Vienna News Feed 2/9/2020

The number of official deaths in China from the Wuhan Coronavirus has risen above 900, and there are now more than 40,000 officially confirmed cases. Meanwhile, a crew member was found dead on a cruise ship in the Caribbean that is carrying several passengers who may be infected with the coronavirus.

In other news, a 25-year-old man carrying a knife was arrested in front of the White House when he told a Secret Service agent that he was there to assassinate President Trump.

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

Thanks to Dean, JD, JM, Reader from Chicago, SS, Upananda Brahmachari, 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. I 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
» “We Have Millions of Americans Whose Minds Are Poisoned by the Left and the Media” — Rep. Devin Nunes Rips Fake-News Mainstream Media (Video)
» Actor Orson Bean, Father-in-Law to Andrew Breitbart, Hit by Two Cars in Los Angeles and Killed
» Biden, In New Hampshire, Jokingly Calls Student ‘A Lying, Dog-Faced Pony Soldier’
» Bronx NYPD Shootings: Second Attack Reported as Gunman Opens Fire Inside Precinct
» Google Chrome to Block File Downloads — From .exe to .txt — Over HTTP by Default This Year.
» Ilhan Omar Blames America for All Global Disasters: “When We See Refugees — We Don’t Ever Pause to Think What American Policies Caused Them to Come Here?”
» Iowa Democrats: Buttigieg Edges Sanders for Delegates
» Man, 25, Is Arrested Outside the White House With a Knife After He Told a Secret Service Agent He Was There to ‘Assassinate Donald Trump’
» NY Legislator Introduces Bill to Study 5G Health Effects
» Pompeo Sounds Alarm Over China’s Attempt to Suppress Free Speech in America
» Portland Police Retreat From Protest Line After Antifa Thugs Throw Bottles, Eggs and Projectiles at Officers (Videos)
» School Cop Arrested for Sexually Assaulting at Least 7 Children He Was Supposed to Protect
» Second Shooting in Bronx: NYPD Cop Shot as Gunman Opens Fire in Precinct Hours After ‘Assassination Attempt’ On Patrol Car
» Trump’s Defense Team Offers Nancy Pelosi Some Fancy Souvenir Acquittal Pens
» University Poll Finds New Hampshire Democrats Choose Human Extinction Over Trump Re-Election
» Video: Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez Quotes Fake Economist ‘Milton Keynes’ Who Doesn’t Exist
» Virginia Democrats Vote to Advance Semi-Automatic Gun Ban, Eject Citizens From Room
 
Canada
» Social Justice Lunatics Celebrate Jordan Peterson’s Struggles
 
Europe and the EU
» Fear of Nazism Threatens Democracy Itself
» France Quietly Reintroducing the Crime of Blasphemy
» French Teen Girl Who Made Anti-Islam Statements “Absolutely Does Not Regret” It
» Germany AfD: Merkel Fires Minister Over Far Right Row
» Irish General Election: Sinn Féin Tops First Preference Poll
» Netherlands: Maastricht University Caved and Paid Ransom to Hackers
» Poll: French President Emmanuel Macron More Unpopular Than Ever
» Pope Francis Denounces ‘Plague’ of Human Trafficking
» Swedish Prof: Consider Goats Instead of Cats as Pets to Fight Climate Change
» Swedish Fire Engineer: Rescue Services Lack Training for Explosions Epidemic
» UK: 3 Young Defendants Have Been Convicted for Raping a 16 Year Old Schoolgirl
» V4 Group Has Lost Its Unity. Slovakian President Caputova is a George Soros Project
 
Russia
» Fungi That Eats Radiation Found Living Inside Chernobyl Nuclear Reactor
» Ukraine President Asks Pope Francis to Help Free Ukrainian POWs
 
South Asia
» Facebook Removes Thai Mass Shooter’s Facebook Account
» Pak PM Imran’s Party Suspends Leader for ‘Insulting Posters for Hindus’ After Huge Protest
 
Far East
» Bats Carry Many Viruses. So Why Don’t They Get Sick?
» China in Horrible Situation as Coronavirus Spreads, Major Financial Issues Loom and Hong Kong Protests Kick Off Again
» Citizen Journalist Chen Qiushi Covering Coronavirus Outbreak in China Goes Missing
» Coronavirus: China’s Death Toll Rises to 908 as Confirmed Cases Exceed 40,000
» Coronavirus Live Updates: China’s International Profile Could Diminish, Fitch Says as Death Toll Tops 900
» Optimism Fades as Virus Deaths Jump to 724; 190k Under Observation; Drop in New Cases Reverses Higher
» The Epidemic Recedes — Number of New Coronavirus Cases in Decline
 
Australia — Pacific
» Country Town Crippled by Drought Has Two Years Worth of Drinking Water Flow Into Its Dam as Farmers Across the Country Enjoy Torrential Downpour
» ‘Typhoon-Like’ Storm Leaves Trail of Destruction in Sydney as 80,000 Have Power Cut, Major Roads Are Cut and Suburban Streets Are Flooded in Biggest Downpour for 22 Years — and the Worst is Yet to Come
 
Latin America
» Crew Member Found Dead on Cruise Ship Where Dozens Tested for Coronavirus
 
Immigration
» Greek Minister: Asylum for So-Called Refugees Not ‘Indefinite’
» Illegal Migrants Mass Near Hungarian Border, Crossing Attempts Surge
» Lorry Migrants Tell French Guards They Want to Leave Britain
» Salvini Says He Was Defending Italy by Blocking Migrants: Stampa
» Survey: 65 Percent of Dutch Citizens Want Less Immigration
» UN Refugee Agency: Major Rise in Migrants Stopped Off Libya
 
Culture Wars
» New Tool “De-Mainstream” Allows YouTube Users to Blacklist Mainstream Media for a More Authentic Experience
» Ricky Gervais Mocks Oscars 2020 With Scathing Tweets in Hypothetical Opening Speech
 
General
» ‘Climate Change’ Blamed for Decimating Bumblebee Population
» Sperm Counts Continue to Drastically Drop in Western Men
 

“We Have Millions of Americans Whose Minds Are Poisoned by the Left and the Media” — Rep. Devin Nunes Rips Fake-News Mainstream Media (Video)

Rep. Nunes ripped the liberal media after their disastrous three years of lying and misleading the American public.

For over three years the Democrats mainstream media has been wrong on every major issue including the Mueller hoax, the Ukrainian impeachment sham, the vicious attacks on the Covington kids, the Jussie Smollett hoax, the Russia collusion nonsense, the economy, etc.

The leftie mainstream media TRULY is an enemy to Truth.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Actor Orson Bean, Father-in-Law to Andrew Breitbart, Hit by Two Cars in Los Angeles and Killed

Actor Orson Bean was killed Friday in Los Angeles. Orson was 91. The conservative actor and comedian was hit by two cars while crossing a street in the Venice neighborhood.

Orson was father-in-law to former conservative star Andrew Breitbart. Orson was filmed with Andrew in the film Hating Breitbart released in 2013 after Andrew’s death.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Biden, In New Hampshire, Jokingly Calls Student ‘A Lying, Dog-Faced Pony Soldier’

Presidential contender Joe Biden jokingly called a college student in New Hampshire a “lying, dog-faced pony soldier” during a campaign event on Sunday, just two months after he unloaded on an Iowa voter whom he called a “damn liar” and days after he dryly instructed a climate activist to “go vote for someone else.”

The campaign trail headscratchers came as Biden, 77, has gone on the offensive following his disappointing fourth-place finish in last week’s disastrous Iowa caucuses, well behind rivals Pete Buttigieg, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.

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

Bronx NYPD Shootings: Second Attack Reported as Gunman Opens Fire Inside Precinct

A man walked into a Bronx police precinct and opened fire Sunday morning — just hours after a pair of officers were ambushed in the same NYPD precinct, police sources told The Post.

Law enforcement sources believe the gunman was the same man from the Saturday night shooting of a Bronx cop.

The armed man walked into the station house Longwood Avenue in Huntspoint around 8 a.m. and started shooting, according to the sources.

One lieutenant was believed to be hit by gunfire in the arm, the sources said.

The shooting comes less than 12 hours after a pair of Bronx cops were shot at while sitting in a marked patrol van in the neighborhood. Only one of the officers was injured in the unprovoked attack.

The suspect, who was in custody, was injured somehow in the incident and was taken to the hospital for his injuries, sources said. The extent of his injuries was unknown…

           — Hat tip: Dean [Return to headlines]
 

Google Chrome to Block File Downloads — From .exe to .txt — Over HTTP by Default This Year.

Continuing to drop flame retardant on the dumpster fire that is web security, Google on Thursday said it will soon prevent Chrome users from downloading files over insecure, plain old, unencrypted HTTP.

“All insecure downloads are bad for privacy and security,” declared Joe DeBlasio, who works on the Chrome security team, in a Twitter thread. “An eavesdropper can see what a user is downloading, or an active attacker can swap the download for a malicious one.”…

In April, 2020, when Chrome 82 arrives, Chrome users will see a warning when trying to download executable files (e.g. .exe, .apx) served via HTTP. In Chrome 83, due in June, users will be prevented from downloading such files at all. The warning notice meanwhile will shift to the attempted download of insecure archive files (e.g. .zip, .iso).

Come Chrome 84, in August, insecure executables and archives get blocked by default and other types of insecurely served files will prompt download warnings (e.g. .pdf, .docx).

And by Chrome 85, out in September, the mixed content warning will shift to images, audio, video, and text (e.g. .png, .mp3), with blocking becoming the default behavior for the other files. With Chrome 86, in October 2020, the warnings will be gone and Chrome will refuse to download any mixed content…

Mark Amery, a software developer at biotech startup Shield Diagnostics, expressed concern about the implications for web developers.

“Warning is good, but blocking outright seems wrong to me, especially for non-executables,” he wrote. “I can’t magic HTTPS into existence on a site I don’t own if I’d like to link to a data file it hosts, so this effectively means I just can’t hyperlink to such a resource at all.”

DeBlasio acknowledged that web developers will need to fix their sites, even as he admitted that warning prompts don’t do much because most people just ignore them.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Ilhan Omar Blames America for All Global Disasters: “When We See Refugees — We Don’t Ever Pause to Think What American Policies Caused Them to Come Here?”

Once again, America-hater Ilhan Omar attacked the US for all of the global problems.

Ilhan and her family were refugees to America from Kenya after fleeing Somalia. Ilhan has never shown ANY gratitude to the country that saved her from a Kenyan refugee camp.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Iowa Democrats: Buttigieg Edges Sanders for Delegates

Pete Buttigieg has narrowly edged out Bernie Sanders for delegates from last week’s Iowa caucuses, according to an announcement late Sunday by the state Democratic Party.

Updated results from the party show Buttigieg with 26.2 percent of state delegate equivalents, compared to 26.1 percent for Sanders. Elizabeth Warren (18 percent) was third, and Joe Biden (15.8 percent) was fourth.

According to the state Democratic Party, Buttigieg is projected to win 14 delegates to the national convention this summer in Milwaukee, while Sanders will get 12 delegates. Warren will receive eight delegates, Joe Biden will get six, and Amy Klobuchar will receive a single delegate.

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

Man, 25, Is Arrested Outside the White House With a Knife After He Told a Secret Service Agent He Was There to ‘Assassinate Donald Trump’

A man carrying a knife was arrested outside the White House after he told a US Secret Service officer that he was there to kill President Donald Trump, police said.

Roger Hedgpeth, 25, was arrested Saturday afternoon on a charge of making threats to do bodily harm, the Metropolitan Police Department said.

Hedgpeth approached a Secret Service officer who was patrolling outside the White House and said he was there to ‘assassinate’ Trump.

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

NY Legislator Introduces Bill to Study 5G Health Effects

In 2018 5G was installed in some New York neighborhoods and residents and their pets immediately started experiencing symptoms from exposure. Some put their homes up for sale because of it. This was reported on social media by Dr. Naomi Wolf.

People getting sick from 5G isn’t exclusive to New York (see 1, 2, 3). In December, doctors, scientists, engineers, and public advocates asked President Trump for a moratorium on 5G because of serious biological, environmental, and safety risks (see 1, 2). Multiple 5G lawsuits have been filed (see 1, 2, 3, 4). Adding insult to injury, telecom companies have still provided NO SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE that 5G is even safe.

Because of increasing widespread 5G opposition, some state legislators are introducing bills to study biological and environmental effects of 5G. One of them is New York State Assemblyman, Thomas Abinanti.

From 5G Crisis:

New York State Assemblyman, Thomas Abinanti, has introduced a bill to study the health and environmental effects of evolving 5G technology. Your state should do the same! Send this sample 5G state law to your state representatives today and urge them to take action to protect the health and safety of their constituents from the greedy telecom industry!

Since New York City just approved more 5G in streetlamps, traffic poles and fiber, now seems to be a good time to actually study how much it’s going to hurt everybody and everything. It also sounds like the storyline from some kind of apocalyptic movie. Too bad Escape from New York has already been taken because some cities and countries have already banned 5G.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Pompeo Sounds Alarm Over China’s Attempt to Suppress Free Speech in America

Secretary of State warns nation’s governors to be wary of Communist Party’s influence.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Portland Police Retreat From Protest Line After Antifa Thugs Throw Bottles, Eggs and Projectiles at Officers (Videos)

Awakening from their winter hibernation, the Antifa terrorists who run the streets of Portland have resumed their well-reputed antics. Evidently a literal KKK rally was to take place in the city today, which the organizers had canceled by morning. This didn’t stop the throngs of masked Antifa, who showed up anyway to cause chaos.

“Law enforcement” officers from the Portland police bureau and Multnomah county Sheriff’s department can be seen retreating after Antifa pelts them with eggs and other debris.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

School Cop Arrested for Sexually Assaulting at Least 7 Children He Was Supposed to Protect

While most parents of school children in the United States will take comfort in knowing a police officer is at their child’s school, all too often, school cops are caught committing the vilest of offenses. Videos surface almost monthly of cops beating and abusing students for no reason, which is bad enough. But when they aren’t beating students, school cops are often times caught sexually abusing them. Case in point: a school resource officer in Wisconsin was arrested this week on multiple charges for sexually assaulting at least 7 students.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Second Shooting in Bronx: NYPD Cop Shot as Gunman Opens Fire in Precinct Hours After ‘Assassination Attempt’ On Patrol Car

Rising anti-cop violence driven by leftist social justice ideology.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Trump’s Defense Team Offers Nancy Pelosi Some Fancy Souvenir Acquittal Pens

Louisiana Rep. Mike Johnson offered Nancy Pelosi some souvenir acquittal pens after the Senate voted ‘not guilty’ on articles of impeachment Wednesday.

Johnson, a member of President Trump’s impeachment defense team, can apparently troll with the best of them.

“Just in case Speaker Pelosi is too torn up to hand out acquittal pens, I went ahead and picked some up for our exceptional impeachment defense team,” Johnson tweeted.

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

University Poll Finds New Hampshire Democrats Choose Human Extinction Over Trump Re-Election

He’s been in the 2020 Democratic race for president from the start. Now the Sweet Meteor O’Death is finding a receptive audience: New Hampshire Democrats.

The University of Massachusetts-Lowell Center for Public Opinion surveyed Democratic primary voters at the end of January and foundnearly two-thirds would rather a meteor hit the earth, “extinguishing all human life,” than President Trump win re-election on Nov. 3.

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

Video: Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez Quotes Fake Economist ‘Milton Keynes’ Who Doesn’t Exist

Hailed once as “the future” of the Democratic Party by DNC Chairman Tom Perez, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) took to Instagram on Saturday to analyze the state of the country’s economy.

The Boston University graduate, said she was recently reading how, in 1930, “famed economist Milton Keynes predicted that by 2030, GDP and technology would have advanced so much, that it would allow everyday people to work as little as FIFTEEN HOURS a week and provide for their families.”

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

Virginia Democrats Vote to Advance Semi-Automatic Gun Ban, Eject Citizens From Room

Left enacting their gun control agenda no matter what the citizenry thinks.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Social Justice Lunatics Celebrate Jordan Peterson’s Struggles

Dr. Jordan B. Peterson’s personal troubles are celebrated by his detractors. After his daughter, Mikhaila Peterson, opened up about the difficulties her father faced during this past year, a torrent of ill-wishes were released to social media.

A data scientist, engineer and social justice activist had this to say: “do I think he deserves sympathy despite him not extending it to others? Also no.”

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

Fear of Nazism Threatens Democracy Itself

by Elisabeth Pirsch

IT ISN’T often that a politician is elected one day and resigns the next, but that is what has happened in the German state of Thuringia. The drama has centred on Thomas Kemmerich, who was elected as state president on Wednesday and resigned on Thursday amidst an intense media storm. A member of the FDP, roughly equivalent to a more free market version of the Liberal Democrats, he is calling for a new election to replace himself.

What could have caused such an uproar? The answer is that Kemmerich was elected with the support of the ruling centre-Right CDU party and the more Right-wing AfD. Even though the latter has been democratically elected and has not been ruled an illegitimate political party by the German constitutional court, it is widely seen as far-Right. It has surged in recent years, with its hardline anti-immigration stance becoming more popular after the 2016 migrant crisis.

The AfD chose to back Kemmerich in the third round of voting, handing him a shock victory by 45 votes to 44. This edged out Bodo Ramelow, the previous state president and a member of the Left-wing Die Linke. Although the voting is secret, it didn’t take long for people to realise that Kemmerich could have won only with AfD support.

What happened next went viral across Germany. Susanne Hennig-Wellsow, a member of Die Linke and the Federal Party Whip, was supposed to hand Kemmerich a floral bouquet in congratulation as is convention. Instead, she threw it at his feet. The video of her petulance swept Right-wing social media.

           — Hat tip: JM [Return to headlines]
 

France Quietly Reintroducing the Crime of Blasphemy

France had just come out of the fifth anniversary of the massacre at its satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo than it was plunged into a similar case. On January 18, Mila O., a 16-year-old French girl, made insulting comments about Islam during an Instagram livestream.

“During her livestream, a Muslim boy asked her out in the comments, but she turned him down because she is gay. He responded by accusing her of racism and calling her a ‘dirty lesbian’. In an angry follow-up video, streamed immediately after she was insulted, Mila responded by saying that she ‘hates religion’“.

Mila continued, saying among other things:

“Are you familiar with freedom of expression? I didn’t hesitate to say what I thought. I hate religion. The Koran is a religion of hatred; there is only hatred in it. That’s what I think. I say what I think… Islam is sh*t… I’m not a racist at all. One cannot simply be racist against a religion… I say what I want, I say what I think. Your religion is sh*t. I’d stick a finger up your god’s a**h*le…”

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

French Teen Girl Who Made Anti-Islam Statements “Absolutely Does Not Regret” It

Mila, a 16-year-old French girl who received a slew of rape and death threats after she made anti-Islam statements on social media, said she did “absolutely does not regret” her remarks and defended her right to “blaspheme” on French television.

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

Germany AfD: Merkel Fires Minister Over Far Right Row

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has dismissed a minister for praising the election of a liberal candidate who was supported by the far right.

The candidate, Thomas Kemmerich, won an election in the state of Thuringia with the backing of the far-right AfD party.

Christian Hirte, who belongs to Mrs Merkel’s CDU party, tweeted his congratulations afterwards.

Mr Kemmerich’s victory with AfD support was seen as a political earthquake. Mrs Merkel said it was “unforgiveable”.

Wednesday’s election broke a taboo in German politics that mainstream parties do not work with the far right, and led to outrage among Ms Merkel’s centre-left coalition partners in the national government, the Social Democrats (SPD).

           — Hat tip: JM [Return to headlines]
 

Irish General Election: Sinn Féin Tops First Preference Poll

Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald has described the Irish general election as “something of a revolution in the ballot box”.

Counting is continuing and the first results have come in, with Sinn Féin winning the most first preference votes.

With all first preferences counted, it has 24.5% compared to 22.2% for Fianna Fail and 20.9% for Fine Gael.

No one party will win enough seats for an outright majority.

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

Netherlands: Maastricht University Caved and Paid Ransom to Hackers

On Christmas Day, we covered a ransomware attack that hit Maastricht University in the Netherlands.

Shortly after the new year, it was then reported that the university allegedly fixed their problem by paying over $100,000 to the hackers in order to regain access to their systems.

As it turns out, they did in fact take the route of paying the hackers, but the figure was closer to 200,000 than 100,000, or whatever 30 bitcoin was equivalent to back then.

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

Poll: French President Emmanuel Macron More Unpopular Than Ever

A new survey has revealed that French President Emmanuel Macron’s confidence rating is the lowest it’s ever been.

The poll, carried out by French daily newspaper Le Figaro with pollster Kantar-One Point, showed that the French people’s confidence in their Head of State continues to decline. Since last September, Macron has lost 8 points on his score, stooping to just 24 percent.

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

Pope Francis Denounces ‘Plague’ of Human Trafficking

ROME — Pope Francis condemned human trafficking as a “true plague” on Sunday, calling for an international effort to eradicate it.

Following his weekly prayer of the Angelus in Saint Peter’s Square, the pontiff recalled that Saturday was the World Day of Prayer and Reflection against Human Trafficking, set on the liturgical memory of Saint Josephine Bakhita, a former Sudanese slave who became a religious sister.

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

Swedish Prof: Consider Goats Instead of Cats as Pets to Fight Climate Change

A Swedish professor has called on people to adopt more “climate-friendly” animals such as goats or rabbits as pets, rather than cats, in order to fight climate change.

Sigrid Agenäs, professor at the Department of Animal Feeding and Care at the Swedish University of Agriculture, has called on those concerned about carbon emissions to reduce having animals like cats as pets due to the environmental effects of their carnivorous diets, newspaper Expressen reports.

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

Swedish Fire Engineer: Rescue Services Lack Training for Explosions Epidemic

Swedish fire engineer Samuel Andersson has called on rescue services to be given more training on bombings explosions in order to increase their safety while performing their duties.

Andersson, who works as a fire engineer at the rescue service of Östra Götaland, said that many rescue workers lack the knowledge to safely assess conditions of buildings that have undergone heavy explosions, Sveriges Radio reports.

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

UK: 3 Young Defendants Have Been Convicted for Raping a 16 Year Old Schoolgirl

Hilal Mohamed, 22, Abdisalam Mohamad, 21, and their friend Roberto French, 22 have been convicted for raping a 16-year-old schoolgirl, after one threatened her with a machete, robbed her and held her captive.

The three defendants, were all found guilty of rape at Wood Green Crown Court on Friday, with one further convicted of robbery and false imprisonment against the same victim.

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

V4 Group Has Lost Its Unity. Slovakian President Caputova is a George Soros Project

Visegrad group is the united group of four middle-European countries such as the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, and Hungary. It was established in 1991, but it really works since 1998. Each of these countries is usually underestimated by western top politics but as one united subject in the middle of Europe, their voice is heard.

All Visegrad group stands for 63 millions people. What these four countries have in common is their communistic past, Christian background, conservative thinking and despisement against everything socialist or defining freedom of speech. It’s safe to claim, that V4 is the only real opponent to European Union especially in the questions of migration, gender politics, political correctness and basically anything where common sense has been completely lost. One of the most important parts of united V4 politics is resistance against EU migration welcome politics.

Unfortunately, it has changed now.

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

Fungi That Eats Radiation Found Living Inside Chernobyl Nuclear Reactor

A type of black fungus that eats radiation was discovered inside the Chernobyl nuclear reactor.

In 1991, the strange fungus was found growing up the walls of the reactor, which baffled scientists due to the extreme, radiation-heavy environment.

Researchers eventually realized that not only was the fungi impervious to the deadly radiation, it seemed to be attracted to it.

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

Ukraine President Asks Pope Francis to Help Free Ukrainian POWs

ROME — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Pope Francis in the Vatican Saturday, during which Zelensky asked the pope to intervene to secure the release of Ukrainian prisoners of war.

While an official Vatican communiqué said that discussions between the Ukrainian leader and Vatican officials focused on “the humanitarian situation and the quest for peace,” President Volodymyr Zelensky became much more specific in a tweet he sent out to followers in both Ukrainian and Italian.

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

Facebook Removes Thai Mass Shooter’s Facebook Account

Earlier today, a junior officer in Thailand Jakraphanth Thomma murdered his commanding officer and stole weapons and a Humvee-type vehicle from a military camp, that he then used to wreak havoc on the Thai city of Nakhon Ratchasima.

The death count seems to be at 20 so far, according to Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, with another 30 injured.

As of the latest update, the shooter is holed up in the Terminal 21 shopping center, where the Thai special forces have been dispatched and have successfully evacuated hundreds of people.

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

Pak PM Imran’s Party Suspends Leader for ‘Insulting Posters for Hindus’ After Huge Protest

Pak psychology exposed: Imran Khan’s Party Member in Pakistan thinks: “Hindu baat se nahi, laat se maanta hai (Hindus cannot be reasoned with using words but only by kicking force.)”

Upinder Singh | HENB | New Delhi | February 8, 2020:: The anti-Hindu… anti-Indian psychology of Islamic State of Pakistan is exposed once again.

PM Imran Khan’s one party member in Pak Punjab thinks: “Hindu baat se nahi, laat se maanta hai (Hindus cannot be reasoned with using words but only by kicking.)”

The ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party led by Prime Minister Imran Khan has later suspended the general secretary of its Lahore chapter over posters that featured an insulting slogan targeting the minority Hindus after public backlash, a media report said on Saturday.

Mian Akram Usman put up the poster in connection with Kashmir Solidarity Day, which was observed across the country on February 5, with the slogan “Hindu baat se nahi, laat se maanta hai” (Hindus cannot be reasoned with using words but by kicking force). Usman, who came under fire from netizens and his party, apologized for the posters that were put up in public spaces in Lahore.

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party has suspended the general secretary of its Lahore chapter over a poster that had featured an insulting remark targeting Hindus, Geo News reported.

In the show-cause notice to Usman after his suspension, the party noted that the words that appeared on the posters violated the party’s policy, it said, adding that the notice was issued by party’s Lahore president Zuhair Abbas Khokhar. The matter has been referred to a special committee, it said.

Usman had blamed printer for the derogatory posters, saying he had wanted to target Prime Minister Narendra Modi but the printer “mistakenly” substituted Modi’s name with the word “Hindu”. “I apologise [to] all peaceful Hindus living on both sides of the border. All posters [were] removed immediately when they came [to] my notice. I’m not the one who [is] stuck on mistakes,” he tweeted…

           — Hat tip: Upananda Brahmachari [Return to headlines]
 

Bats Carry Many Viruses. So Why Don’t They Get Sick?

Like Ebola virus in Africa and the Nipah virus in Asia, the new coronavirus — 2019-nCoV — appears to have originated in bats.

Chinese researchers took samples of the coronavirus from patients in Wuhan, the city in central China where the outbreak was first detected.

They compared the genetic sequence of the new coronavirus — 2019-nCoV — to a library of known viruses and found a 96% match with a coronavirus found in horseshoe bats in southwest China. The findings were published in a study in Nature this week.

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

China in Horrible Situation as Coronavirus Spreads, Major Financial Issues Loom and Hong Kong Protests Kick Off Again

China is in a horrible position right now. The coronavirus is literally killing its people and its economy and the Hong Kong protests started up again.

The coronavirus is spreading with more people affected and more deaths. The tactics of local officials in China are leaking out and they are scary:…

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Citizen Journalist Chen Qiushi Covering Coronavirus Outbreak in China Goes Missing

Chen Qiushi, a human rights lawyer who has acted as a citizen journalist in Wuhan since the early days of the coronavirus outbreak, went missing Thursday night.

Qiushi posted multiple videos taken while he went roving between hospitals and empty streets to report on mismanagement of the epidemic by the Chinese government.

“I sent my location to a few friends in Wuhan yesterday,” he said on Jan 29 in a lengthy video that described a lack of medical supplies like masks, hazmat suits and other protective gear, and most importantly, a shortage of medical personnel and test kits for the virus.

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

Coronavirus: China’s Death Toll Rises to 908 as Confirmed Cases Exceed 40,000

BEIJING (AFP, REUTERS, BLOOMBERG, XINHUA) — The death toll from a coronavirus outbreak in mainland China rose to 908 as of the end of Sunday, the National Health Commission (NHC) said on Monday (Feb 10).

The number of new deaths on Sunday rose by 97, the NHC said in a statement on its website, another daily record increase.

The central Hubei province, the epicentre of the outbreak, earlier on Monday reported 91 deaths on Sunday, while in the provincial capital, Wuhan, 73 people had died.

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Coronavirus Live Updates: China’s International Profile Could Diminish, Fitch Says as Death Toll Tops 900

This is a live blog. Please check back for updates.

All times below are in Beijing time.

10:58 am: China’s international profile could diminish, Fitch Ratings says

The coronavirus outbreak could diminish China’s international profile for two reasons, according to ratings agency Fitch. First, China will turn inwards and second, foreigners will turn away, it said.

“China’s political priority will be developing a strategy and implementing tactics to confront the virus and its fallout so as to preserve the leadership credentials of the Party. This will be time-consuming and resource-intensive,” James McCormack, global head of sovereign ratings at Fitch, wrote in a note.

“Short of an unforeseen exogenous crisis, it is hard to imagine international events of any sort being given a higher priority in Beijing. In the short term, at least, an inward orientation among Chinese policymakers is inevitable,” he said.

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Optimism Fades as Virus Deaths Jump to 724; 190k Under Observation; Drop in New Cases Reverses Higher

Adding the 365 international cases, means that as of Saturday, there were a total of 34,911 global cases, resulting in 724 deaths — an increase of 86 on the day, the biggest one day rises since the pandemic started — and a mortality rate of 2.1%, which is where it has been stuck for the past ten days. At this rate of increase in officially reported (which is vastly different from the actual true number) cases, the coronavirus pandemic will claim more lives than SARS in under 24 hours.

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The Epidemic Recedes — Number of New Coronavirus Cases in Decline

In general, with the increase in isolation and treatment work, the number of new suspected cases nationwide has decreased, and the number of new confirmed cases outside Hubei has fallen for 4 consecutive days. The situation of the new coronavirus epidemic situation may have improved. On the 7th, the first confirmed case appeared in only one city, and the number of newly cured cases exceeded the number of new deaths for 9 consecutive days, indicating that the epidemic was under control.

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Country Town Crippled by Drought Has Two Years Worth of Drinking Water Flow Into Its Dam as Farmers Across the Country Enjoy Torrential Downpour

A southern Queensland town has had two years worth of drinking water flow into its dam.

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‘Typhoon-Like’ Storm Leaves Trail of Destruction in Sydney as 80,000 Have Power Cut, Major Roads Are Cut and Suburban Streets Are Flooded in Biggest Downpour for 22 Years — and the Worst is Yet to Come

Sydney is being battered by the strongest winds in 16 years and torrential rain that has felled trees, turned roads into rivers, and left 80,000 without power — and it’s only going to get worse.

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Crew Member Found Dead on Cruise Ship Where Dozens Tested for Coronavirus

A crew member has been found dead on a cruise ship where four people were tested for coronavirus amid fears of an outbreak.

The man’s body was found by staff on February 2 after the Royal Caribbean cruise ship The Anthem of the Seas had docked in St Lucia and the male employee had failed to show for his shift, A Port Authority spokesperson confirmed.

Days later, four passengers, who are Chinese nationals, were rushed to hospital on Friday after the vessel docked in Bayonne, New Jersey, over fears they had contracted coronavirus, The New York Post reported.

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Greek Minister: Asylum for So-Called Refugees Not ‘Indefinite’

ATHENS (AFP) — Greece will only grant refugee protection for three years as it struggles to integrate foreigners, the conservative government’s migration minister Notis Mitarachi said in remarks published Sunday.

Greece last year was the first EU port of entry for migrants and has struggled to manage the influx, with many kept in overcrowded camps on the Aegean Greek islands near the Turkish coast.

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Illegal Migrants Mass Near Hungarian Border, Crossing Attempts Surge

Hungarian authorities have seen a surge in attempted border crossings so far this year, with a recent attempt allegedly motivated by false information given to migrants in Serbia.

Hungary re-opened its border crossing at the town of Tompa on Friday, after roughly 500 migrants had gathered there and demanded to be let into the European Union, holding English-language signs claiming, “We are only refugees, not criminals.”

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Lorry Migrants Tell French Guards They Want to Leave Britain

SHOCKED border guards have caught a lorryload of illegal immigrants trying to flee the UK — saying they fear for their rights now Britain has left the EU. Calais customs found the 33 stowaways in a lorry from Dover — reversing the usual tide of migrants trying to reach the UK.

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Salvini Says He Was Defending Italy by Blocking Migrants: Stampa

(Bloomberg) — Matteo Salvini insisted that he defended Italy by refusing to let stranded migrants enter the country when he was interior minister, as parliament prepares to vote this week on whether he should be prosecuted.

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Survey: 65 Percent of Dutch Citizens Want Less Immigration

A new survey has revealed that an overwhelming majority of Dutch citizens think that present immigration levels need to be curbed.

According to representative research conducted by Kantar and commissioned by De Telegraaf, nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of Dutch citizens believe that immigration must be limited. The survey also revealed that close to one half (48 percent) of Dutch citizens with non-Western backgrounds hold the same view, De Telegraaf reports.

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UN Refugee Agency: Major Rise in Migrants Stopped Off Libya

CAIRO — The U.N. refugee agency reported Friday that the total number of migrants intercepted by the Libyan coast guard in the past month rose 121% from the same period last year.

The UNHCR said in January alone, it registered 1,040 refugees and migrants the coast guard stopped and brought back to Libyan shores, a dramatic increase from the 469 rescued that month the year before. It classified the population as 70% men, 18% women and 12% children.

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New Tool “De-Mainstream” Allows YouTube Users to Blacklist Mainstream Media for a More Authentic Experience

Over the last year, YouTube has made several sweeping changes to its algorithms to promote legacy media outlets at the expense of the independent creators.

Many of these changes involve classifying certain legacy media outlets as “authoritative sources” and then boosting them in search, Trending, and recommendations.

Now, a recently released browser extension, De-Mainstream YouTube, is allowing users to reverse some of this artificial boosting of mainstream media outlets and put the focus back on independent YouTube creators.

The extension works by blocking certain mainstream media outlets from YouTube search results and recommendations while also giving users “a truly unbiased Youtube Trending section” which shows the most popular videos from the last 24 hours based on view counts.

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Ricky Gervais Mocks Oscars 2020 With Scathing Tweets in Hypothetical Opening Speech

RICKY GERVAIS is back at it again with his controversial outbursts, as he delivered a fierce hypothetical Oscars 2020 opening speech which took aim at Hollywood’s elite.

Ricky Gervais, 58, is famous for his controversial points of view, most recently blasting Hollywood’s finest at the Golden Globe awards. But now he’s packed in his hosting duties, after five years at the prestigious awards ceremony, he couldn’t resist one more sly jibe at the elite stars in attendance at the 2020 Oscars tonight.

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‘Climate Change’ Blamed for Decimating Bumblebee Population

Climate change is causing bumblebees to disappear “at an incredibly alarming rate” across Europe and North America, climate alarmists assert this week.

While bumblebee populations appeared stable for a long time, their numbers began to drop precipitously in the year 2000 and have continued falling up to the present, with a total drop of some 30 percent compared to 1974 figures, one article suggested Saturday.

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Sperm Counts Continue to Drastically Drop in Western Men

A team of international researchers studied men in North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand and found that Western men were having a decline in their sperm count. They looked at the semen samples of 42,935 men from 50 countries from 1973 to 2011. Their findings revealed that sperm concentration, as in the total number of sperm per millilitre of semen had declined each year. Over time this has amounted to a 52.4 percent total decline.

The total sperm count among the same group of continued to drop each year for a total decline of 59.3 percent over an almost 40-year period.

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9 thoughts on “Gates of Vienna News Feed 2/9/2020

  1. From the Tajik site

    VIDEO: ARMED ATTACK ON TWO CITIZENS OF TAJIKISTAN IN THE MOSCOW REGION

    https://akhbor-rus.com/-p3721-103.htm

    ..conflict began in the Zvezdochka cafe, where “two groups of men rested at the neighboring tables” – “local” and “newcomers from Central Asia”.

    “Word for word, a fight has begun. They jumped out into the street, ”the source said, saying that one of the participants in the fight had a traumatic gun.

    Hearing the shots, eyewitnesses called the police, but only two injured citizens of Tajikistan remained in place at the arrival of law enforcement officers. They were hospitalized in serious condition.

  2. I was really rooting for 1917 to win at the oscars, but it lost to some korean movie, oh well. Liberal hollywood never changes

    • At this point it is still mostly symbolic, but there is power in symbols and eventually the loss of British money through extortion and through losses due to a more favorable business and tax regime on the border of the EU will hurt the bullies in Brussels far more than mere symbols.

      It remains to be seen whether Boris Johnson will do anything positive with regards to stopping the inflow of muslims and africans and starts deporting the undesirables already in the UK. I highly doubt it. That problem will eventually be resolved though, mark my words.

      Since a nonviolent solution is highly improbable politically and highly unlikely in any event, that only leaves submission to the invaders, which I also see as highly unlikely, or violent conflict leading to the forcible expulsion or killing of the vast majority of the invasive population which cannot be induced to leave peacefully. GoV contributor El Ingles has written an excellent series of articles which are archived on this site explaining the decision tree leading to this eventual resolution of the issue, and what the actual conflict would look like and why.

      • Borisk is a little fat man representing opposites and his own unkind. Biggest piece of PC to date.

  3. London is no longer an English city. It’s something well and truly Muslim Afro and becoming more so every day. Everything everywhere is contaminated. And half [derriered] now. Boris and family are a bunch of con artists and turkey rustlers. Any other concern is running a very distant second.

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