Gates of Vienna News Feed 5/28/2020

The governor of Minnesota has activated the National Guard to deal with unrest triggered by the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, while in police custody. Activists from Black Lives Matter and Antifa took to the streets of Minneapolis to protest the injustice of Mr. Floyd’s death by looting stores and burning down buildings.

In other news, this year’s Boston Marathon was cancelled for the first time in its history due to the Wuhan Coronavirus.

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

Thanks to Caroline Glick, JD, Reader from Chicago, 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.

Financial Crisis
» Jobless Claims Rise by 2.1 Million, 300,000 Drop From Previous Week
 
USA
» Amy Klobuchar Didn’t Prosecute Officer at Center of George Floyd’s Death After Previous Conduct Complaints
» Anthony Fauci Calls on Christians to ‘Forestall’ Receiving Communion to Prevent Virus Spread
» Are Stay-at-Home Orders Decimating Vitamin D Levels?
» As Twitter Editorializes the President, Alternative Gab Experiences Record Growth
» Boston Marathon Canceled for First Time in 124-Year History
» Colin Kaepernick Calls for Violence in Wake of George Floyd’s Death
» Facebook and Twitter CEOs Trade Jabs Over “Fact-Check” Policy
» Far-Left Antifa and BLM Protesters Loot Stores, Attack Police, And Set Fire to Buildings (Video)
» Fauci Says He Wears Face Mask as a ‘Symbol of What You Should be Doing’
» Floyd Girlfriend, Family Ask for Peaceful Protests: “He Loved the City”
» Footage: Hospital Patients Complain About Waiting While Nurses Film Tik Tok Video
» Hollywood Vapids Celebrate POTUS Being Censored by Twitter
» How Much of Our Country Does China Own?
» Knife Wielding Woman in Wheelchair Attacked During Night of Chaos in Minneapolis
» L.A. County Will Require Face Masks for All Students and Faculty This Fall
» Laura Loomer Prepared to Take Social Media Censorship Case to the Supreme Court After Losing Appeal
» Minneapolis Mayor, Others Call for Officers in George Floyd Death to be Charged With Murder
» More Than a Quarter of Blacks Say Blacks Who Vote for Trump Over Biden Are Not Really Black
» Nearly Every Mass. Coronavirus Death Was Patient With Underlying Medical Condition, Data Shows
» Oregon Churches Sue in Federal Court Over Limits on Religious Gatherings
» Prof Who Says ‘MAGA Equals Nazi’ Advocates Elections ‘Where Whites Don’t Vote’
» Rioting in Minneapolis Was So Bad, The Fires Show Up on Air Quality Maps
» Ruminations of a Baby Boomer: More of Us Understand Realities of Washington DC
» SpaceX’s Historic Astronaut Launch Try Draws Huge Crowds Despite NASA Warnings
» Texas Supreme Court Rules Lack of COVID-19 Immunity Not Enough to Qualify for Mail-in Voting
» Trump Signs Social Media Executive Order That Calls for Removal of Liability Protections Over ‘Censoring’
» Trump Administration to Expel Chinese Graduate Students Linked to China’s Military Schools
» Twitter Stock Moves Lower After Trump Threatens Section 230 Action
» U.S. House Conducts 1st Proxy Vote in Its 231-Year History
» UN Human Rights Chief Demands US Takes “Serious Action” To Stop Killing of Unarmed African-Americans
» Video Shows Minneapolis Rioter Demanding “Shoot the White Folks!”
» Video: Black Woman Complains About Rioters: “They Motherf**kers Need to Go Home!”
» Watch Live: Minnesota National Guard Activated in Response to Social Unrest
» YouTube Cancels Michael Moore’s Green-Energy Doc (Surprised?)
» YouTube Removes Video From Free Speech Union’s Toby Young After He Criticized Coronavirus Lockdown Measures
» YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki Admits Media Coverage Influences Which Censored Videos Get Reinstated
 
Europe and the EU
» Austrian Police Publish Honey-Trap Photos in Strache Inquiry
» Czech Republic Has Removed Most Border Controls With Austria and Germany
» Firm Secures Deal to Supply 15 Countries With Coronavirus Digital “Health Passports”
» Gang of Swedes Speaking Arabic Robs and Humiliates Boy
» Germany: Praying Muslims Take Over Massive Pedestrian Street in Herne (Video)
» Germany: U.S. Ambassador Richard Grenell’s Legacy of Success
» German Brothel Operator Files Lawsuit Over Coronavirus Restrictions
» Hungarian Justice Minister Tells EU: ‘Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word’
» On This Day May 29, 1453: The Fall of Constantinople
» UK: BBC Bias: No Apology From Maitlis for Anti-Cummings Rant, But ‘Big Thank You’ To Supporters
» UK: Boris to Take Command at Brexit Talks, Tells Remainers to ‘Move on’ Over Cummings
 
Israel and the Palestinians
» Caroline Glick: Yamina’s Great Opportunity to Seize the Reins
 
Middle East
» 14-Year-Old Iranian Girl Beheaded by Father in “Honor Killing, “ Sparking Outrage
 
South Asia
» Indonesia, Major Advocate of Hydroxychloroquine, Told by WHO to Stop Using it
 
Far East
» China Devours Hong Kong
» Chinese Lawmakers Endorse Hong Kong National Security Law
» Coronavirus: Sweeping, Strict Manila Lockdown Ends on June 1, After Three Months
» Google Deletes Nearly 7 Million Negative Reviews From Play Store in a Week to Improve the Rating of TikTok
» Meet Terry-Cotta, The New Animated Face of China’s Propaganda Campaign on Western Social Media
» Senator to Google: ‘Kowtowing to Communist China is Unacceptable’
» Taiwan Pledges Help for Fleeing Hong Kongers, Riles China
» US Lawmaker Introduces a Bill in Congress to Declare Tibet as an Independent Country
 
Australia — Pacific
» Largest Haul of New Species of Carnivorous Sponges Found
» New Zealand: No New Cases of COVID-19 29 May
» New Zealand’s New Censorship Bill Would Give Police Power to Order Content Removal
 
Sub-Saharan Africa
» Suspected Islamist Group Kills at Least 17 in Northeast Congo
 
Immigration
» 77% Want UK Businesses to Get Britons Back to Work Rather Than Importing Immigrant Labour
» France: Elderly Couple Attacked and Robbed by Migrants (Video)
» Germany: Greens Want to Make it Easier for Migrants to Naturalise
» UK: Farage Predicts ‘Massive Influx’ of Migrants Before Brexit
» Venezuelan Asylum-Seekers Compare Lockdown-Era America to Socialism
» Why Do Over 400,000 Migrants in Germany Have Their Birthday on January 1st?
 
Culture Wars
» Barna: 58% of Americans Reject Moral Absolutes, Including Some Who Identify as Christians
» CT Transgender Athlete Policy Violates Title IX, Department of Education Rules
» Facebook Soft-Censors the Babylon Bee, Starts Forcing Users to Confirm That They Actually Want to Share Posts
» German Court Rejects Non-Binary Classification Without Medical Certificate
» Stuck on Stupid
» Swedish Journalist Declares ‘Soy Boys’ Are the Future
 

Jobless Claims Rise by 2.1 Million, 300,000 Drop From Previous Week

Just over 2 million new jobless claims were filed in the United States last week, bringing the total number filed since the coronavirus pandemic struck to a staggering 41 million.

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

Amy Klobuchar Didn’t Prosecute Officer at Center of George Floyd’s Death After Previous Conduct Complaints

George Floyd’s death in police custody is renewing criticism of Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s (D-Minn.) prosecutorial record.

Before she became a senator and a top contender for former Vice President Joe Biden’s vice presidential spot, Klobuchar spent eight years as the Hennepin County attorney, in charge of prosecution for Minneapolis. And while in that position, Klobuchar declined to prosecute multiple police officers cited for excessive force, and did not prosecute the officer who kneeled on Floyd’s neck as he protested, The Guardian reports.

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

Anthony Fauci Calls on Christians to ‘Forestall’ Receiving Communion to Prevent Virus Spread

Dr. Anthony Fauci has urged Christians to wear masks, practice social distancing, and forego singing and receiving communion during worship services to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

In an interview with the Jesuit-run America magazine published Wednesday, Dr. Fauci said that churches should “limit the number of people, so that you don’t have people in the pews right next to each other,” and the faithful should “absolutely” wear masks.

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

Are Stay-at-Home Orders Decimating Vitamin D Levels?

Recent scientific papers have highlighted the role vitamin D may be playing in the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in severe cases. Considering researchers have also shown that SARS-CoV-2 is rapidly inactivated by sunlight,1 areas that are banning people from parks and beaches, are undoubtedly committing a grave error.

In fact, it has been nearly impossible to document outdoor transmission of the disease. This is because one factor for catching disease is dependent on the viral load — the amount of exposure which is quickly diluted outdoors and inactivated by sunlight.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

As Twitter Editorializes the President, Alternative Gab Experiences Record Growth

Twitter toyed with the idea it would “check world leaders’“ tweets for “untruthful” posts last month — but everybody with a spare brain cell knew this policy was eventually squarely aimed at Twitter’s biggest user, in terms of influence — love him or hate him — and that’s Donald Trump.

And as the November 2020 election in the US in nearing now — nobody should be surprised that the likes of Twitter are resurrecting some old lip-service rules, just to keep massive legacy media criticism off their back.

Coming hot on the heels of some recent mainstream media pressure that resulted in Twitter putting “fact-checking” label on a post by a serving US president — no wonder that alternatives to Twitter, the Big Tech’s influential, yet profit-wise ugly stepchild, are becoming a thing.

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

Boston Marathon Canceled for First Time in 124-Year History

For the first time in its 124-year history, the Boston Marathon has been canceled, dashing the dreams of thousands of runners and delivering an emotional and economic blow to a region hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.

More than two months after postponing the iconic race until mid-September, Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh said Thursday that the Marathon, which draws more than 30,000 runners from around the world, was “not feasible” this year

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

Colin Kaepernick Calls for Violence in Wake of George Floyd’s Death

Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick is calling for a revolt as a result of the death of George Floyd, who died after a Minneapolis police officer pinned him down on the street with a knee pressed against the back of his neck for nearly nine minutes.

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

Facebook and Twitter CEOs Trade Jabs Over “Fact-Check” Policy

In an interview with Fox News’ Dana Perino, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg took a shot at fellow social media platform Twitter for its controversial decision to slap a warning label on and provide a fact check of President Trump’s recent tweet about absentee voting.

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

Far-Left Antifa and BLM Protesters Loot Stores, Attack Police, And Set Fire to Buildings (Video)

Intense video footage has emerged out of Minneapolis, Minnesota which shows violent Black Lives Matter (BLM) protesters along with far-left Antifa members looting department stores, attacking police officers, and setting fire to buildings.

The protests and riots come after George Floyd, an unarmed black man, died on Monday after being handcuffed and having his neck pinned to the ground by an overzealous police officer’s knee. The entire incident was recorded on video and has sparked widespread outrage among the country’s African American community, a community which feels unjustly persecuted by police officers.

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

Fauci Says He Wears Face Mask as a ‘Symbol of What You Should be Doing’

Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, proclaimed Wednesday that he is wearing a face mask in order to virtue signal ‘respect’ to other people, and that he wants it to be seen as ‘a symbol’ of what everyone else should be doing.

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

Floyd Girlfriend, Family Ask for Peaceful Protests: “He Loved the City”

The family and girlfriend of the Minnesota man killed by police earlier this week are asking for residents to protest peacefully.

“Waking up this morning to see Minneapolis on fire would be something that would devastate Floyd,” said Courteney Ross, George Floyd’s fiance and resident of the city. “He loved the city. He came here [from Houston] and stayed here for the people and the opportunities. … Floyd was a gentle giant. He was about love and about peace.”

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

Footage: Hospital Patients Complain About Waiting While Nurses Film Tik Tok Video

Footage has emerged from inside a UK hospital showing patients asking for attention but being ignored because nurses are too busy filming a tik tok video.

The video is seemingly shot by a person waiting to be seen, while nurses congregate through the entire corridor, messing around with mops.

Several other hospital staff are seen in the video standing around watching or filming the action themselves.

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

Hollywood Vapids Celebrate POTUS Being Censored by Twitter

Hollywood braindeads celebrated Wednesday as it emerged that Twitter is actively censoring the President of The United States and directing anyone who reads Trump’s tweets to a barrage of leftist opinion overseen by a hardcore anti-trumper.

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

How Much of Our Country Does China Own?

What, exactly, are colleges and universities supposed to do for us? After all, they cost us hundreds of billions of dollars a year, and there are some 18 million students sitting in their classroom—who have paid handsomely, if not exorbitantly, for the privilege.

Since 2018 the U.S. Dept. of Education has been investigating hundreds of millions of dollars to Harvard and Yale “in foreign gifts and contracts”. Mostly from guess who? If you guessed anyone but communist China, you just aren’t with it. And the universities have been stonewalling Congress’ demands for facts and figures on their finances.

These “gifts” have been going to professors and administrators—some have already been formally charged with filing false tax returns, trying to hide these sometimes rather hefty gifts—who are suspected of serving China’s interests by means of intellectual property theft, spying, propaganda, and counterfeiting. It makes for quite an ugly picture.

But wait, there’s more!

Since 2013, the University of Pennsylvania has collected a cool $67 million in “gifts” from China; and Jolly Joe “Quid pro Quo” Biden, who’s running for president, has set up, at the university, the Biden Center for Diplomacy and Engagement—which has, since its establishment in 2017, raked in another $22 million in Chinese “gifts”. A very generous crew, the Chinese Communist Party.

We know the quid; so what’s the quo?

Red China owns a sizeable chunk of our country’s Higher Education. This is more of that stupid stuff that we really have to stop doing if we don’t want our country to collapse.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Knife Wielding Woman in Wheelchair Attacked During Night of Chaos in Minneapolis

A white woman in a wheelchair carrying a knife who tried to stop looting was attacked during the riot in Minneapolis last night, becoming one of the more bizarre faces of the chaos.

Video footage shows the woman, described as “elderly” but believed to be in her 30’s, blocking the door of a Target store as looters try to drag her away.

“She got a knife! She got a knife!” the crowd screams before someone blasts her in the face with the contents of a fire extinguisher.

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

L.A. County Will Require Face Masks for All Students and Faculty This Fall

L.A. County schools have revealed a number of changes that will be implemented this fall to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus, including wearing face masks, restricting class sizes, and spacing desks six feet apart.

A task force centered on reopening schools has released a 45-page document detailing changes and restrictions recommended for the 80 school districts in the county.

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

Laura Loomer Prepared to Take Social Media Censorship Case to the Supreme Court After Losing Appeal

The Court of Appeals in Washington dismissed a lawsuit by journalist and congressional candidate Laura Loomer against social media companies. The lawsuit claimed her getting banned from all of the major social media platforms is a violation of her rights.

According to the court, Loomer and Freedom Watch, a non-profit lobbying organization, failed to prove that the social platforms violated her rights.

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

Minneapolis Mayor, Others Call for Officers in George Floyd Death to be Charged With Murder

An increasing number of people have put pressure on officials to arrest the officer who killed George Floyd and charge him with murder, including Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey.

Frey asked during a Wednesday press conference why “the man who killed George Floyd is not in jail?”

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

More Than a Quarter of Blacks Say Blacks Who Vote for Trump Over Biden Are Not Really Black

More than a quarter of black voters say that black voters who choose President Trump over Joe Biden are not actually black, according to a new survey by Rasmussen Reports.

The survey follows Biden’s remarks last week, where he told a black talk show host that if he has “a problem figuring out whether you’re for me or Trump, then you ain’t black.”

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

Nearly Every Mass. Coronavirus Death Was Patient With Underlying Medical Condition, Data Shows

BOSTON (WHDH) — Nearly every coronavirus-related death in Massachusetts has been a patient with an underlying health condition or previous hospitalization, Massachusetts health data shows.

Data from deaths following completed investigations indicate 98.1 percent (1,289) of people who died after contracting the disease had an underlying condition, such as chronic lung disease, serious heart ailments, obesity, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, or liver disease.

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

Oregon Churches Sue in Federal Court Over Limits on Religious Gatherings

UPDATE (3:02 p.m. PT) — Two Southern Oregon churches filed a lawsuit in federal court Tuesday, arguing the state’s limits on the size of religious gatherings amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic violate their constitutionally protected rights to free speech and assembly.

Under an executive order, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown has limited the size of in-person religious gatherings to 25 people.

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

Prof Who Says ‘MAGA Equals Nazi’ Advocates Elections ‘Where Whites Don’t Vote’

A professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign recently referred to Trump supporters as Nazis and called for “an election cycle where whites don’t vote.”

“Bear with me while I make my push for two election cycles where whites don’t vote,” tweeted English Professor Catherine Prendergast. “I realize this is crazy and impossible, but I truly believe a demonstrative sacrifice is needed on behalf of whites to correct this dire course we’re on.”

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

Rioting in Minneapolis Was So Bad, The Fires Show Up on Air Quality Maps

The rioting in Minneapolis last night was so bad that the fires from the burning buildings show up on this morning’s air quality control maps.

Looters rampaged through nearby stores having earlier staged violent protests outside the 3rd Precinct police station in response to the death-by-cop of George Floyd.

Target, McDonalds, Dollar Tree, Wendy’s, two liquor stores and AutoZone were all attacked and looted.

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

Ruminations of a Baby Boomer: More of Us Understand Realities of Washington DC

First of all, thank you to the hundreds of baby boomers responding to this series. With SO many boomers responding, it may very well become a book. The fact remains: we all care about America. We care about what happens to our kids. We care about our culture, language and quality of life. We care about our choices, and, we dam*ed well will fight for them.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

SpaceX’s Historic Astronaut Launch Try Draws Huge Crowds Despite NASA Warnings

Despite warnings from NASA officials and the risks implied by the current pandemic, which has so far claimed over 100,000 lives in the U.S., approximately 150,000 people gathered on Florida’s space coast to watch SpaceX’s first attempt at launching astronauts to space yesterday (May 27).

SpaceX attempted to launch its Crew Dragon spacecraft with two veteran NASA astronauts from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center yesterday as part of the Demo-2 test flight to the International Space Station. Unfortunately, bad weather delayed the launch to no earlier than Saturday (May 30).

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

Texas Supreme Court Rules Lack of COVID-19 Immunity Not Enough to Qualify for Mail-in Voting

Authored by Katabella Roberts via The Epoch Times

The Texas Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that “a voter’s lack of immunity to COVID-19” is not a physical disability that qualifies people to vote by mail.

The court agreed with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who has argued that only a physical illness or disability that prevents voters from going to the polls should qualify an individual to vote by mail.

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

Trump Signs Social Media Executive Order That Calls for Removal of Liability Protections Over ‘Censoring’

Flanked by Attorney General Bill Barr, President Trump signed an executive order in the Oval Office on Thursday that interprets Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 (CDA) as not providing statutory liability protections for tech companies that engage in censorship and political conduct.

The president’s order, which also cuts federal funding for social media platforms that censor users’ political views, came just two days after Twitter took the unprecedented step of slapping a “misleading” warning label on two of Trump’s tweets concerning the fraud risks of nationwide mail-in balloting. The move immediately backfired: Experts disputed that Trump’s tweet was actually misleading, in part because mail-in balloting has been linked to ongoing fraud; Twitter’s fact-check itself contained false statements; and Twitter failed to apply the standard of review to other users.

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

Trump Administration to Expel Chinese Graduate Students Linked to China’s Military Schools

The Trump administration plans to revoke thousands of visas held by Chinese graduate students and researchers in the United States, escalating its crackdown on the Chinese government’s theft of intellectual property.

Those with direct ties to universities affiliated with the People’s Liberation Army will have their visas canceled, American officials with knowledge of the discussions told the New York Times. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo discussed the matter with President Trump on Tuesday at the White House.

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

Twitter Stock Moves Lower After Trump Threatens Section 230 Action

Twitter, Inc. (TWTR) shares fell more than 2% off of their reaction highs earlier this week after President Trump announced plans for an executive order that would enable regulators to rethink Section 230 — a law designed to protect tech companies from third-party content liability. The move comes shortly after Twitter flagged one of the president’s tweets about mail-in voting fraud with a fact-checking label, drawing a bout of criticism.

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

U.S. House Conducts 1st Proxy Vote in Its 231-Year History

The U.S. House of Representatives conducted its first proxy vote since Congress first met in 1789.

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

UN Human Rights Chief Demands US Takes “Serious Action” To Stop Killing of Unarmed African-Americans

The UN Human Rights Chief has demanded that authorities in the United States take “serious action” to stop the police killings of unarmed African-Americans following the death of George Floyd.

46-year-old Floyd died on May 25th after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for at least seven minutes, an incident that was caught on camera and caused outrage.

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

Video Shows Minneapolis Rioter Demanding “Shoot the White Folks!”

A video uploaded to Twitter from the scene of the riots in Minneapolis last night captures the audio of someone demanding the rioters “shoot the white folks.”

Minneapolis was engulfed in absolute bedlam last night as rioters and looters exploited anger of the death of George Floyd to tear apart the city.

Mask-wearing criminals began by ransacking Target before turning their attention to numerous other stores and businesses as police stood down.

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

Video: Black Woman Complains About Rioters: “They Motherf**kers Need to Go Home!”

A video clip shows a black woman and former NAACP chapter president trying to collect medication for her daughter outside a Target store in St. Paul telling rioters “these motherf**kers need to go home!”

The twin cities were hit with violent unrest last night as rioters looted stores in response to the police killing of George Floyd.

More looting is already unfolding in both Minneapolis and St. Paul today.

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

Watch Live: Minnesota National Guard Activated in Response to Social Unrest

Update (21:05 ET): No signs of the Minnesota National Guard yet — as large crowds gather around the 3rd Police Precinct on Thursday evening.

Protests are lighting cars on fire at the Target parking lot near the 3rd Police Precinct.

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

YouTube Cancels Michael Moore’s Green-Energy Doc (Surprised?)

Finally, YouTube has found the flimsy pretext it needed to cancel the controversial Michael Moore-produced eco-documentary which has been infuriating greenies with its anti-renewables message: ‘copyright infringement.’

Planet of the Humans, the documentary executive-produced by Moore and written and directed by his friend Jeff Gibbs has racked up over 8 million views on YouTube since its launch last month.

But now — in what Gibbs says is a “blatant act of censorship” — YouTube has taken down the video.

This follows a copyright infringement claim to YouTube by Toby Smith, a British environmental photographer, who doesn’t like the context in which his material was used and who claims a clip of his material was run without his approval.

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

YouTube Removes Video From Free Speech Union’s Toby Young After He Criticized Coronavirus Lockdown Measures

YouTube has censored a video from Toby Young, General Secretary of the Free Speech Union and a prominent critic of lockdown measures, for “violating YouTube’s Community Guidelines.”

The clip, which was titled “The Case Against Lockdowns,” features Young discussing why he believes lockdown measures are a mistake during a panel discussion organized by the Institute of Arts and Ideas and also shows Michael Levitt, a Professor of Structural Biology at Stanford and winner of the 2013 Nobel Prize for Chemistry, nodding enthusiastically.

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

YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki Admits Media Coverage Influences Which Censored Videos Get Reinstated

During an interview on Bloomberg’s Leadership Live With David Rubenstein, YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki clarified why the company has started to reinstate some coronavirus videos from doctors that were initially taken down and suggested that media coverage determines whether videos get restored.

Rubenstein asked Wojcicki about a doctor that recently got a lot of attention for his YouTube videos on healthcare and medicines related to COVID-19 and asked why some of his videos were taken down and then reinstated.

[Comment: President Trump should extend his executive order to YouTube.]

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

Austrian Police Publish Honey-Trap Photos in Strache Inquiry

A year after a scandal brought down Austria’s government and the country’s far-right leader, police have put out pictures of a woman who took part in the video sting that sparked it off.

Investigators want to speak to the mystery woman who chatted to then-FPÖ leader Heinz-Christian Strache in a villa on the Spanish island of Ibiza.

A special commission is leading the criminal inquiry and searching for her.

In the video, she poses as a Russian oligarch’s niece called Alyona Makarov.

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

Czech Republic Has Removed Most Border Controls With Austria and Germany

The Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic has decided to lift most of the border controls at the border crossings with Germany and Austria, which were introduced back in March this year, amid the Coronavirus outbreak.

The decision has been approved on May 25 by the government upon the proposal of the Minister of the Interior Jan Hamacek (CSSD) to change the regime on the borders with Germany and Austria.

As of May 26, comprehensive and systematic border controls have been put to an end, and all road and rail crossings have opened for both countries.

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

Firm Secures Deal to Supply 15 Countries With Coronavirus Digital “Health Passports”

COVI-Pass is almost official, at least in some countries. To manage public health amid the global pandemic, governments are eyeing this new “digital health passport” that tracks a lot of health-related data. Of course, there are privacy concerns.

COVI-pass is the brain-child of UK-based cybersecurity firm VST enterprises. This tool uses VCode, a proprietary technology, to track coronavirus test history, immunity, and a host of other personal and medical data. According to VST Enterprises, VCode is an “end-all tech” military-grade encryption software that can securely store sensitive personal data.

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

Gang of Swedes Speaking Arabic Robs and Humiliates Boy

A shocking video was posted to Instagram last Saturday showing a gang in Sweden forcing a Swedish boy to undress. They then proceeded to humiliate him. The gang can be heard speaking Arabic words in the video, one of them saying “kuksugare wallah,” or “I swear by Allah.” Unexpectedly, most members of the gang were native Swedes.

The video was originally made during a robbery attack on November 13, 2019, according to a report by Samhällsnytt, where the video can also be viewed. They report says that it took place in a forest in the Bålsta municipality of northwest Stockholm, which is also where the perpetrators reside.

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

Germany: Praying Muslims Take Over Massive Pedestrian Street in Herne (Video)

A video clip of a large group of Muslims taking over a massive pedestrian street in Herne, Germany to pray has surfaced and is circulating on social media.

The video clip, which was posted on Tuesday, has prompted strong reactions among some people. Outraged by what he saw in the video, Michael Doran, an American analyst of international politics of the Middle East and a Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute, took to Twitter, writing: “Today’s Germany is not your parents’ Germany.”

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

Germany: U.S. Ambassador Richard Grenell’s Legacy of Success

Richard Grenell is stepping down from his role as U.S. ambassador to Germany. The move ends one of the most effective American ambassadorships to Berlin in recent memory.

Grenell arguably has done more than any other American official, with the possible exception of U.S. President Donald J. Trump, to call out the duplicity, hypocrisy and recklessness of Germany’s foreign policy establishment.

On a wide range of geopolitical issues — from relations with China, Iran and Russia to anti-Semitism, climate change, defense spending (NATO), energy dependence (Nord Stream), globalism, Hezbollah, Huawei and mass migration — Grenell embarrassed German leaders by showing that their words and actions do not match.

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

German Brothel Operator Files Lawsuit Over Coronavirus Restrictions

Brothel operators in Saarland have launched a lawsuit aimed at the major restrictions on their businesses put in place by the German government’s Wuhan coronavirus lockdown.

The brothel owners argue that the government prohibition on prostitution and sex work facilities is not justified as it conflicts with freedom of professional activity. They argued that hairdressers, nail salons, and massage parlours have all been allowed to resume business.

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

Hungarian Justice Minister Tells EU: ‘Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word’

Hungarian Justice Minister Judit Varga confronted European Union officials over Hungary’s Wuhan coronavirus response, saying the globalist campaign against the country had no basis.

Minister Varga spoke at a meeting of European Union ministers by teleconference on Tuesday, stating that Hungary should expect an apology from critics who had argued Prime Minister Viktor Orban had become a “dictator”.

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On This Day May 29, 1453: The Fall of Constantinople

The Fall of Constantinople occurred on May 29, 1453, after a siege which began on April 6. The battle was part of the Byzantine-Ottoman Wars (1265-1453) and is referred to as one of the darkest days in Greek history.

Ascending to the Ottoman throne in 1451, Mehmed II began making preparations to reduce the Byzantine capital of Constantinople.

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UK: BBC Bias: No Apology From Maitlis for Anti-Cummings Rant, But ‘Big Thank You’ To Supporters

BBC anchor Emily Maitlis has not apologised for a rant against Dominic Cummings which the broadcaster admits broke the rules on impartiality.

The British Broadcasting Corporation, being funded by the public through a compulsorylicence fee which live television viewers must pay whether they consume BBC programming or not —or else face fines backed by the threat of imprisonment — is obliged maintain a neutral, balanced stance in its news reporting.

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UK: Boris to Take Command at Brexit Talks, Tells Remainers to ‘Move on’ Over Cummings

Prime Minister Boris Johnson will return to Brussels next month to take command at the trade negotiating table after tensions increased between the UK and EU in recent weeks.

Speaking to MPs at the Future Relationship with the European Union select committee on Wednesday, the UK’s chief negotiator David Frost suggested the prime minister would meet the presidents of the European Council and the European Commission to address the state of talks and to feel for whether there was room for compromise.

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Caroline Glick: Yamina’s Great Opportunity to Seize the Reins

The first casualty of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to form a governing coalition with left-leaning Defense Minister and Blue and White Party head Benny Gantz was Yamina. The five members of the ideological right-wing, national religious party were the odd men out. With his Likud party members braying for senior ministries, Netanyahu was unable to satisfy Yamina’s demands.

But there are advantages to being in the opposition. The coalition deal Netanyahu signed with Gantz massively constrains the freedom of coalition members to advance legislation. As a party in the opposition, Yamina lawmakers suffer no such constraints.

The media circus that accompanied the opening of Netanyahu’s criminal trial this week along with the Supreme Court’s scandalous decision to bar the IDF from carrying out the government’s order to destroy the home of the terrorist who murdered Dvir Sorek last summer both served to reinforce the urgent need to overhaul Israel’s legal system.

In three back-to-back elections, legal reform was Yamina’s central campaign issue. Now, as members of the opposition and led by former Defense Minister Naftali Bennet and former Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, Yamina is uniquely positioned to significantly advance the cause…

           — Hat tip: Caroline Glick [Return to headlines]
 

14-Year-Old Iranian Girl Beheaded by Father in “Honor Killing, “ Sparking Outrage

A 14-year-old Iranian girl was beheaded by her father last week after she ran away with a 34-year-old man. The honor killing has generated international outrage.

Romina Ashrafi, 14, ran away from her home in Iran’s Gilan province with 34-year old Bahamn Khavari after her father, Reza Ashrafi, objected to their marriage.

Local police found the pair five days later and escorted Romina Ashrafi back to her family despite warnings that her life would be in danger if she returned home.

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Indonesia, Major Advocate of Hydroxychloroquine, Told by WHO to Stop Using it

JAKARTA (REUTERS) — The World Health Organisation has urged Indonesia, one of the world’s biggest advocates of two malaria drugs to treat the coronavirus, to suspend such treatment over safety concerns, a source familiar with the advice told Reuters on Tuesday (May 26).

Any decision by Indonesia to halt use of the drugs, chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine, in coronavirus patients would mark a major global shift away from a treatment which has been touted for months by US President Donald Trump.

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China Devours Hong Kong

China’s imposition of a new security law on Hong Kong today is yet another attempt by the country’s communist rulers to make a blatant power grab by exploiting the coronavirus pandemic.

Ever since the deadly Covid-19 virus was first discovered in the Chinese city of Wuhan at the end of last year, China’s ruling communist party (CCP) has been busily exploiting the pandemic to further Beijing’s strategic goals.

The Chinese have, for example, been particularly busy in the South China Sea where, apart from harassing less powerful neighbours such as Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines, Beijing last month unilaterally passed measures to strengthen its control over a number of disputed territories, including the Spratly and Paracel Islands, where China’s People’s Liberation Army has constructed a network of illegal military bases.

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Chinese Lawmakers Endorse Hong Kong National Security Law

BEIJING (AP) — China’s legislature endorsed a national security law for Hong Kong on Thursday that has strained relations with the United States and Britain and prompted protests in the territory.

The National People’s Congress backed the bill as it wrapped up an annual session that was held under intensive anti-coronavirus controls. The vote was 2,878 to 1, in line with the high-profile but largely ceremonial body’s custom of near-unanimous approval of legal changes decided by the ruling Communist Party.

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Coronavirus: Sweeping, Strict Manila Lockdown Ends on June 1, After Three Months

MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte announced on Thursday (May 28) that he is lifting one of the strictest and longest lockdowns enforced in South-east Asia, as the Philippines pivots to rebuilding an economy devastated by the coronavirus pandemic.

“Let us move to the so-called new normal. Let’s see what develops ahead,” Mr Duterte said at a meeting of his ministers.

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Google Deletes Nearly 7 Million Negative Reviews From Play Store in a Week to Improve the Rating of TikTok

The tech-giant Google has come to the rescue of controversial Chinese social media platform TikTok by deleting millions of negative reviews from its Play Store, in an attempt to improve the rating of the application.

According to the reports, Google has removed nearly than 7 million negative reviews for TikTok which has ultimately improved its rating. Last week on May 20, the ratings of the controversial app had plunged to 1.3 starts after millions of social media users had massively downrated the Chinese app for enabling its users to promote and glorify various horrific crimes and anti-Hindu propaganda.

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

Meet Terry-Cotta, The New Animated Face of China’s Propaganda Campaign on Western Social Media

Ever since the coronavirus outbreak, China has been at the receiving end of backlash from several countries, and most notably the US for its censorship and oppression. In an effort to deflect the negative press and attention, China’s state news outlet Xinhua has come up with a new animated social media character addressing several recent issues and allegations surrounding China.

Named as Terry-cotta, the new animated character looks like a Periscope livestream with viewers and comments as well as little hearts floating around. These viewers and comments in the videos featuring the Terry-cotta character ask several questions surrounding the many controversies of the current times. The animated character then responds to these questions and speaks on behalf of China while presenting the state’s narrative around every issue.

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Senator to Google: ‘Kowtowing to Communist China is Unacceptable’

Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) penned a letter to Google this week asking for an explanation as to why the company censored YouTube comments that were critical of the Chinese Communist Party, rejecting a previous claim from Google that it was a ‘technical error’ they are trying to fix.

The case stems from a human-rights activist discovering that YouTube is seemingly censoring at least two Chinese-language phrases that the Communist government finds offensive.

The phrases are “communist bandit” and “50-cent party”.

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Taiwan Pledges Help for Fleeing Hong Kongers, Riles China

TAIPEI: Taiwan promised on Thursday (May 28) to settle Hong Kongers who flee the city for political reasons, offering help from employment to counselling, and prompting angry condemnation from Beijing as it pushes security legislation for Hong Kong.

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen this week became the first world leader to pledge specific measures to help people from Hong Kong who may leave the former British colony because of the new legislation.

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US Lawmaker Introduces a Bill in Congress to Declare Tibet as an Independent Country

Amidst the rising tension between the United States of America and China, a US lawmaker has tabled a bill in Congress to allow the American President to recognise Tibet as an independent nation.

In a decision which could escalate tensions between two countries, the US Congressman Scott Perry introduced a bill to declare the Tibet Autonomous Region as an independent country. Perry, a military veteran and a Republican from Pennsylvania, has moved a similar bill to declare another Chinese-ruled Hong Kong as an independent territory.

The two bills introduced by the Republican from Pennsylvania have been referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

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Largest Haul of New Species of Carnivorous Sponges Found

PARTNER RELEASE — Marine scientists from Queensland Museum and University of Munich have discovered the world’s largest number of new species of carnivorous sponges from a single deep-sea expedition off the East Coast of Australia.

Previously, only three species of carnivorous sponges were known in Australia — now there are 20, after more than two years of work to formally describe 17 new species found during the CSIRO RV Investigator Voyage in 2017 where the team discovered the sponges that live at depths of up to 4000 metres below the surface of the sea.

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New Zealand: No New Cases of COVID-19 29 May

For the seventh day in a row, there are no new cases of COVID-19 to report in New Zealand.

Our total number of confirmed cases remains at 1,154, which is the number we report to the World Health Organization.

Our combined total of confirmed and probable cases remains at 1,504.

There are seven additional recovered cases meaning this total is now 1,481. Only one case remains active.

There are no additional deaths to report.

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

New Zealand’s New Censorship Bill Would Give Police Power to Order Content Removal

1984 was the Year of the Rat in the Chinese zodiac, which I’m sure you didn’t know. Why would you? George Orwell made the number famous by putting it in the title of his classic novel about suppression and control over humanity and liberty, over freedom and fairness, for the sake of a world regulated by the powers that be — to a surreal and very harmful extent.

Also known as, “dystopia.”

But did you know that 2020 is also the Year of the Rat in that same zodiac? (“The Year of the Bat” is a bad pun, so — don’t even go there).

But to be sure — 2020 has not been working out great for most people by this point in time. Lives, jobs, and liberty are all in flux with comprehensive global economic chaos and no visible end in sight.

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

Suspected Islamist Group Kills at Least 17 in Northeast Congo

Suspected Islamist militia attacked and killed at least 17 people during a morning raid on a village in northeastern Congo, a local civil society leader said.

Around 5 a.m. local time Monday, the Allied Democratic Forces, who are loosely affiliated with the Islamic State group, ambushed the village of Makuntano in Ituri province, around 62 miles southwest of the city of Bunia.

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77% Want UK Businesses to Get Britons Back to Work Rather Than Importing Immigrant Labour

More than three-quarters of Britons want the interests of the UK workforce to be put ahead of employers seeking cheap labour from overseas.

According to Deltapoll, 77 per cent of respondents to a survey said they think British businesses should prioritise workers already in the UK in an effort to get people back to work following the coronavirus lockdown. Just eight per cent said that it should be “easier to bring in employees from abroad” (15 per cent “don’t know”).

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France: Elderly Couple Attacked and Robbed by Migrants (Video)

A gang of masked migrants attacked and robbed an elderly couple just outside of their residence in Paris over the weekend.

The attack, which took place on Sunday in the heart of Paris’s 13th arrondissement, was filmed from the window of the building, allowing for police to identify and arrest the perpetrators just one day later, the French newspaper Le Parisien reports.

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Germany: Greens Want to Make it Easier for Migrants to Naturalise

The Greens party in the German Bundestag wants to make it easier for migrants in the country to become naturalised citizens by modifying the current citizenship laws.

Among the policies the Greens in the Bundestag, the German Parliament, are proposing is for Germany to go to a “jus soli” concept of citizenship, by which a child born in Germany would automatically receive citizenship if at least one parent is a legal and habitual resident of the country, according to a report by Junge Freiheit.

This type of birthright citizenship is similar to what the United States already has in place. Most countries in Europe (including Germany at present), and throughout the world, base citizenship on the principle of jus sanguinis, in which citizenship is determined by ancestry and ethnicity.

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UK: Farage Predicts ‘Massive Influx’ of Migrants Before Brexit

Nigel Farage has warned that there may be a “massive influx” of boat migrants, with illegals trying to break into Britain before the country leaves the EU and can make its own laws on returning people not eligible for asylum.

The Brexit Party leader has led an explosive investigative campaign where he exposed the increase in boat migrant incursions. He also revealed that the French navy is escortingmigrant boats across the English Channel into British territorial waters and coordinatingwith UK Border Force on handing over the illegal aliens.

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

Venezuelan Asylum-Seekers Compare Lockdown-Era America to Socialism

Two Venezuelan asylum-seekers are warning that the shutdowns in response to the coronavirus outbreak are giving Americans a glimpse of socialism — the ideology that drove their country into economic and social despair.

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

Why Do Over 400,000 Migrants in Germany Have Their Birthday on January 1st?

For more than 400,000 Germany’s immigrants, Jan. 1 is marked as their birthday in the Central Register of Foreign Nationals, with the majority of this group coming from Syria, Turkey, and Afghanistan, according to data obtained by the immigration restrictionist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

According to the data from the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF), a quarter of the 416,420 migrants born on January 1 entered Germany in 2015, another 116,000 afterwards, and the rest of them before. AfD MP René Springer, who originally requested the information, has since released it to the public.

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Barna: 58% of Americans Reject Moral Absolutes, Including Some Who Identify as Christians

According to a new survey conducted by the Barna Group, 58% of Americans believe that moral absolutes are determined by the individual — a percentage that includes some who identify as Christians.

In January, the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University surveyed 2,000 adults for its American Worldview Inventory study, asking them questions pertaining to “perceptions of truth.”

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

CT Transgender Athlete Policy Violates Title IX, Department of Education Rules

The U.S. Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights ruled that a Connecticut policy allowing biologically male, transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports violates the civil rights of female athletes.

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

Facebook Soft-Censors the Babylon Bee, Starts Forcing Users to Confirm That They Actually Want to Share Posts

Facebook has started soft-censoring some posts linking to satirical news site The Babylon Bee by asking users to confirm whether they want to share posts after clicking the share button.

This “Do you want to share?” confirmation screen appears after users attempt to share some of The Babylon Bee’s posts including this satirical Bernie Sanders post.

On most Facebook posts, clicking or tapping the share button brings up the share menu straight away but this additional dialogue box is forcing users to take another action and confirm that they want to share before they can actually get to this menu.

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

German Court Rejects Non-Binary Classification Without Medical Certificate

Activists have become angered after a German court ruled that citizens would not be able to change their gender to “non-binary” without medical and other supporting documents.

The German Federal Court of Justice has refused to allow a person who identifies as having no gender or being intersex to change their official documents, saying “people with only perceived intersexuality are not covered” by the German Civil Status Act.

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Stuck on Stupid

America is sick. America hasn’t been normal for quite some time. Perhaps the “new normal” can be an America where the masses aren’t controlled by the hand-picked “experts” who are given a platform to advance an agenda that has brought us to the precipice of insanity.

           — Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]
 

Swedish Journalist Declares ‘Soy Boys’ Are the Future

“Soy boys”, who by-stereotype are effeminate, feminist, and “antithetical” to traditional patriarchal men, are the future and have a role to play in society, a Swedish newspaper has declared.

Swedish journalist Jenny Wennberg claimed that “toxic macho masculinity” has only given Sweden “shootings, boys who underperform in school, a gender-segregated labour market, and men who discriminate against women and beat them”.

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

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