One migrant died and eight others were injured when hundreds of Africans attempted to storm the border fence between Morocco and the Spanish enclave of Melilla in North Africa. The man who died fell off the top of the 16-foot fence.
In other news, Steve Bannon, Brian Kolfage, and two other people were arrested on charges of fraud in connection with the diversion of funds for Mr. Kolfage’s project, “We Build the Wall”.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to JD, Reader from Chicago, SS, Vlad Tepes, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.
Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.
Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. 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.
Economist: Total Jobs Lost in Louisiana Due to Coronavirus Now Nearly Double Total Lost From Katrina
The total number of jobs in Louisiana dropped by 11% in the first half of this year due to COVID-19, a mark that is nearly double the jobs lost due to Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Jobless Claims: Another 1.106 Million Americans Filed New Unemployment Claims Last Week
The number of individuals filing new unemployment insurance claims unexpectedly rose back above 1 million last week, reflecting a still-elevated level of joblessness in the US.
The Labor Department released its report on weekly unemployment insurance claims Thursday at 8:30 a.m. ET. Here were the main metrics from the report, compared to consensus estimates compiled by Bloomberg:
Initial jobless claims, week ended Aug. 15: 1.106 million vs. 920,000 expected vs. 971,000 during the prior week
Continuing claims, week ended Aug. 8: 14.844 million vs. 15 million expected vs. 15.48 million during the prior week
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Over 30 million people lost their jobs while the wealth of America’s 600-plus billionaires ballooned by $434 billion, to $3.4 trillion.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
World Bank Survey: Polish Companies Avoid Mass Layoffs During Coronavirus Crisis
Only 4 percent of Polish smaller companies needed to fire employees due to the coronavirus crisis, according to the “COVID-19 Business Pulse Survey — Poland” by the World Bank and the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP).
According to Lukasz Marc, an economist of the World Bank and the leader of the team responsible for the research, although the pandemic was a shock, Polish companies are not giving up and are actively looking for solutions which will help them survive the rough period.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
750 Million Genetically Modified Mosquitoes to be Released in the Florida Keys
With a coalition of environmental groups calling it an expensive “Jurassic Park experiment,” the Monroe County Mosquito Control District has given final approval to a decade-long plan to release genetically modified mosquitoes — 750 million of them — into the Florida Keys over the course of the next two years.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Accused Portland Attacker Marquise Love Has Lengthy Rap Sheet
The attacker being sought by Portland authorities for allegedly knocking a man out cold during a chaotic demonstration over the weekend has a lengthy criminal record that includes arrests for domestic assault and criminal trespass.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Americans Have Been Had and Don’t Even Know it
How did we allow most of our news media to morph into an arm of the Democratic Party, where conservatism, individual rights and the Republican Party are censored, maligned and vilified?
Why do we buy into the Democrat Platform that will force Medicare-for-all health care, the Green New Deal, free college tuition, forgiving all student debt and health care for illegal aliens upon us? Are we that stupid?
Where is it written that we must let the Democrats repeal our 2nd Amendment, the Electoral College and the Senate Filibuster Rule? That’s what they have sworn to do. We will only let them, if we vote them into office. Are we that stupid?
Why do we keep voting known socialists and communists to our federal, state and city legislatures? Big cities run by Democrats are the worst. Representative government is a direct reflection of the very people that vote politicians into office. Has the majority become socialists or communists? It would appear so.
How on earth could we believe that de-funding the police is a sane policy? As our population grows, especially in our big cities, we need more police, not less?
Why do we allow violent groups, like Black Lives Matter and ANTIFA, take over our cities, loot our stores and burn our businesses, while telling the police to stand down? Why are prosecutors not prosecuting these violent crimes and throwing the perpetrators in jail, the Coronavirus be damned?
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
American Airlines to Suspend Flights to 15 U.S. Cities
American Airlines announced on Thursday that it would suspend flights to 15 U.S. airports in October as Congress debates whether to provide additional payroll assistance.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Appeals Court Grants Uber, Lyft Temporary Injunction After Threats to Shut Down in CA
A California appeals court has extended the time ridesharing companies Uber and Lyft will have to comply with an order requiring them to classify their drivers as employees.
The extension gives Uber and Lyft until 5 p.m. PST on August 25 to file statements agreeing to the procedures in the order.
Lyft had announced earlier on Thursday that it would have to suspend operations in California due to a law requiring the company to classify its drivers as employees. While it is unclear if the extension will reverse Lyft’s suspension, Uber said it would continue to operate in the state.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
At Least 13 Shot as NYC Gun Violence Surge Continues
At 13 least people were shot in New York City on Wednesday and Thursday — continuing the recent surge in shootings citywide, authorities said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Black Lives Matter Speaker Declares War on ‘Filthy, Disgusting Animal’ Cops
A Black Lives Matter protestor told a cheering crowd in Portland that she wanted “filthy, disgusting animal” cops to “fry like bacon” — as she declared a “war” where militants should “shoot back” in a disturbing speech captured on video.
“This is a war, guys … We’re getting ready to get armored up around here,” declared Letha Winston, whose son, Patrick Kimmons, was shot dead by cops in 2018 as he charged toward them seconds after he shot two men.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
California Makes it Illegal for Students to Skip Anti-Racism Training
More universities demand students take mandatory ‘race and ethnicity’ courses.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
CDC Admits Hospital Incentives Drove Up COVID-19 Deaths
Four months ago, in early April 2020, Minnesota state senator and family physician Scott Jensen came out with a strong critique against the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s guidance for how doctors were to certify COVID-19 fatalities on the death certificate.
Jensen called the guidelines “ridiculous,” saying they could easily lead to unwarranted fear as it would make the disease appear deadlier than it actually is. According to the CDC guidelines:
“In cases where a definite diagnosis of COVID cannot be made but is suspected or likely (e.g. the circumstances are compelling with a reasonable degree of certainty) it is acceptable to report COVID-19 on a death certificate as ‘probable’ or ‘presumed.’“
Indeed, reporting deaths as COVID-19 deaths, without factual proof that the patient was in fact infected and actually died of the illness, is a clear manipulation of the statistics that drive up the perceived death rate.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Clinton Press Secretary “Rethinks” Limbaugh Cancer Well Wishes
Bill Clinton’s former press secretary tweeted earlier this week that he is “rethinking” having wished Rush Limbaugh well after it was revealed that the legendary talks radio host is battling lung cancer.
In a sickening tweet, Joe Lockhart, now a CNN pundit, essentially said he now thinks it might be better if Limbaugh dies.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
CNN Talking Head: “How is it That Bill Clinton Hasn’t Been Cancelled?”
A moment of clarity broke through the veil of bulls*** on CNN programming this week when a talking head interrupted vomit-inducing praise for Bill Clinton by asking how on earth one of the biggest ‘violators’ of leftist ‘rules’ hasn’t been cancelled.
The panel of brown-nosing CNN heads gushed about how much they were looking forward to hearing Clinton speaking at the second night of the DNC.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Our colleges and universities are poisoning our country. Look at the riots: multitudes of white middle-class college students, useful idiots. But let’s look at two examples of what the colleges are…uh, “teaching” them.
Syracuse University has brewed up a new policy to eradicate “hate” from the campus. From now on, bystanders and witnesses to any undefined “act of hate” are to be punished for “silence and inaction” if they fail to intervene.
What exactly is an “act of hate”? We are left to guess. Saying “All lives matter”? Wearing a “Re-elect President Trump” button? Failing to agree that some intensely disturbed man who has his business hacked off is now a “woman”? It probably won’t be declaring “All whites are evil, all whites are guilty,” blah-blah-blah. Because college professors all over the land proclaim this every day.
This is an astounding legal doctrine. “You saw it, so you did it!” Bystanders and witnesses are now as guilty as the perpetrator. Boy, that’d fill up the prisons in a hurry. Somebody snaps at somebody else in the student lounge—and you’re guilty, too, because you were there? You didn’t barge in to support the leftist side of an argument? How can this not be an exhortation to engage in some weird species of vigilantism? And what if you mis-heard or misunderstood an ordinary interaction, and were mistaken in deeming it an “act of hate”? And butted in, resulting in a punch-out.
Really, who wants to live like this? We’re gonna eradicate hate by hating the haters? Wouldn’t that brew up… more hate? Suddenly you’re responsible for everything that somebody else does.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Corrections Officer to Appeal After Getting Fired for Confederate Flag Facebook Posts
Corrections officer Jenna Showalter was fired from her Louisville, Kentucky, job on August 19 following an investigation that claimed she had made multiple offensive posts on Facebook.
Showalter had been suspended from her position as a corrections officer during the month of July while investigations were carried out into a series of Facebook posts she made.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Democrat Delegates Twice Omit “Under God” In the Pledge of Allegiance
During at least two caucus meetings held during the Democratic National Convention this week, the official leading the Pledge of Allegiance intentionally omitted the words”under God.”
To start the “Muslim Delegates and Allies Assembly” meeting, delegate A.J. Durrani skipped the two words, as did the unidentified individual holding up both the American flag and a rainbow flag while leading the pledge at the LGBT assembly.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
DPD to Restrict Lanes on Federal Boulevard Due to Recent Crowds, Violence
DENVER — The Denver Police Department (DPD) announced lane restrictions for a portion of Federal Boulevard to help increase safety along the roadway where there’s been a rash of large crowds and illegal activity.
Just one lane of Federal Boulevard will be open in each direction between 6th Avenue and West Evans Avenue beginning in the early evening on Sunday, Aug. 23.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Federal Judge Rules President Trump Must Turn Over Tax Returns to District Attorney
A federal judge on Thursday rejected President Trump’s most recent effort to prohibit the Manhattan district attorney from securing his tax returns.
Judge Victor Marrero of Federal District Court in Manhattan dismissed the president’s claims that Democratic District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr.’s subpoena was “wildly overbroad” and that it sought information well beyond a local district attorney’s jurisdiction.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Flu Vaccine Now Required for All Massachusetts Students by Dec. 31
Welcome to all the new homeschoolers!
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Steve Bannon, one-time leader of President Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, was arrested Thursday, along with three other people, and indicted on charges he defrauded donors to an effort billed as a fundraiser for Trump’s border wall.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced the arrests Thursday. Disabled Iraq war veteran Brian Kolfage, who started the We Build the Wall campaign on GoFundMe in 2018; Timothy Shea, who recently became the Acting Administrator of Drug Enforcement Administration; and a man named Andrew Badolato are the other people charged in the scheme.
The statement from the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of New York alleges that We Build the Wall raised $25 million from hundreds of thousands of donors “under the false pretense that all of that money would be spent on construction.”
Instead, Kolfage used large amounts of the donated funds personally. The other three men, the DOJ reports, helped funnel the money to him.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The Chicago Police Department has effectively banned protesters from demonstrating on Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s block in the Logan Square neighborhood, ordering officers to arrest anyone who refuses to leave, the Tribune has learned.
The directive surfaced in a July email from then-Shakespeare District Commander Melvin Roman to officers under his command. It did not distinguish between the peaceful protesters Lightfoot regularly says she supports and those who might intend to be destructive, but ordered that after a warning is given to demonstrators, “It should be locked down.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Goodyear Training Aligns With Black Lives Matters and Rebukes Police Support
A picture was leaked of a training session at a Goodyear plant in Topeka, KS on Thursday, August 18, 2020. It shows a slide from the presentation outlining their “zero tolerance” policy. On it you’ll find references to BLM and LGBTQ are acceptable, but references to Blue Lives Matter or All Lives Matter or MAGA are unacceptable.
I reached out to Goodyear, via their Corporate phone number [330.796.2121]. After being on hold for over thirty minutes, I was able to speak with a customer service representative. The representative was aware of the picture because she had fielded other calls about it. She indicated the headquarters at Akron, OH were looking into it. She seemed genuinely surprised and told me she had not had any training like that where she was.
When I asked for clarification of whether Goodyear still contracts the tires for the police departments, she assured me they did indeed. I said, “Well this isn’t going to go over well here.” She agreed and said, “It won’t go over well here either!”
After doing some local inquiries in Topeka, I was able to confirm this was a true picture of a very real training that workers at the Topeka Goodyear plant have been required to go through. I was told the local union (307) had endorsed the training, but has since (as of today) begun backpedaling over it. I have not gotten an official statement of that, but a worker there indicated that was his experience as an employee and union member there.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Google Play Removes Thousands of Apps Under Its Election “Misinformation” Rules
With less than three months to go until the 2020 US presidential election, Google has banned thousands of apps from its Play Store under its election “misinformation” rules.
Google wrote that the apps were banned for “engaging in deceptive behavior, generating manipulated content without the appropriate transparency measures or promoting demonstrably misleading claims.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Governor of Maine Orders Restaurant Staff to Wear COVID Visors Like Dog Cones
The Governor of Maine has ordered restaurant staff to wear anti-COVID visors upside down so they resemble dog cones in order to direct breath upwards.
Yes, really.
Governor Janet Mills’ decree states that “front-of-house staff in restaurants who choose to wear face shields must now wear them upside down so that they are attached at the collar instead of the forehead, so that their breath is directed up, not down,” reports Maine Public Radio.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Here Are the Antifa Groups Facebook Has Banned and the Ones That Are Still Active
Facebook announced its decision yesterday to ban Antifa and other “offline anarchist groups that support violent acts amidst protests,” updating the site’s Dangerous Individuals and Organizations policy towards violent networks in the United States. Under this policy expansion, these are the Antifa groups Facebook has banned so far and these the ones egregiously overlooked.
For militia organizations and those encouraging riots, “including some who may identify as Antifa,” Facebook reported that it initially removed over 980 groups, 520 Pages, and 160 ads from Facebook and restricted over 1,400 hashtags related to these groups and organizations on Instagram.
The Post Millennial‘s editor-at-large Andy Ngo prompted Facebook to purge a selective few of the those that are the most disruptive forces for inciting civil unrest across the nation.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Hunter Biden Speaks at DNC, Even as Ties to Chinese Private Equity Firm Loom Large
Hunter Biden, the son of Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, was invited to speak at Thursday night’s Democratic National Convention despite the fact that he still owns a controversial 10% stake in the private equity firm BHR Partners.
Hunter Biden, the son of Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, was invited to speak at Thursday night’s Democratic National Convention despite the fact that he still owns a controversial 10% stake in the private equity firm BHR Partners.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The Los Angeles Superior Court decided Thursday that John MacArthur and his Grace Community Church cannot be held in contempt of court for holding indoor church services in defiance of California state orders — a charge sought by Los Angeles County — because there is no court order barring them from holding such services.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Laura Loomer Pledges to “Burn Down Swamp” In First Primary Victory — Must Watch!
Watch & share this bombshell interview!
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Lyft Will Stop Operating in California at Midnight Over State’s Gig Economy Law
Lyft announced Thursday that it is suspending its service in California as of midnight local time due to a state injunction that requires the ridesharing company to reclassify its drivers as employees.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Man Allegedly Sold $2,700 Sweater Looted From Gold Coast Boutique
A man was charged with theft for allegedly trying to sell undercover officers a $2,700 sweater that had been looted from a Gold Coast boutique last week.
“I don’t know how a $2,000 sweater feels, but it must be immaculate, and feels very, very soft, I’m certain. But that’s a little too rich for my blood,” Cook County Judge John Lyke Jr. said Wednesday after hearing the allegations against Melvin Banks.
Banks told police he was asleep during the Aug. 10 looting, and that he got the sweater for free from his girlfriend, prosecutors said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Massachusetts Requiring All Students to be Vaccinated With Flu Shot This Year
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health for the first time has announced that all children enrolled in its school system — child care through college — will have to get a flu shot this year. Every student six months or older is required to receive the vaccine by December 31.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Michigan Gov. Whitmer is Reportedly Blocking University of Michigan Efforts to Still Play Football
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is reportedly blocking the University of Michigan from participating in a re-imagined Big Ten football season.
After the Big Ten Conference announced the postponement of their 2020 fall sports season, several member schools continued attempting to find a way to play. Ohio State Athletic Director Gene Smith has been spearheading the effort, with the full backing of the university’s president-elect.
The plan would involve six of the Big Ten schools playing a modified “home and home” schedule, meaning they would play the other five schools at home and also travel to the opponent’s stadium for a game. Each of the participating schools would play the other teams who are participating twice.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Movers in N.Y.C. Are So Busy They’re Turning People Away
Squeezing a 350-pound sofa down four flights of a narrow prewar staircase isn’t easy on the best of days. Doing so in a heat wave while wearing a mask is a lot harder.
“Sweat is dripping down your face, it slips,” said Vladislav Grigor, a foreman and dispatcher at Empire Movers in Manhattan. “It is just terrible.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
NBA Broadcaster Suspended Indefinitely for Accidentally Tweeting the N-Word
An inadvertent spelling error may have cost NBA broadcaster John Focke his job. The NBA’s Charlotte Hornets announced that they have suspended Focke, their play-by-play announcer, indefinitely for a tweet he sent Monday afternoon while watching a playoff game.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Shootings & violent crime soaring thanks to the prisons being emptied.
Riots, trash everywhere.
Open air drug use, masturbation & urination.
Everything shutting down.
A Mayor who has caved to BLM.
People fleeing in droves.
Thanks to De Blasio and Cuomo, New York City is a s***hole.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
NYC Teachers Union Threatens Strike if Safety Demands Are Not Met Prior to Schools Reopening
The head of New York City’s teacher union threatened a strike if safety demands amid the coronavirus crisis are not met before schools reopen in the fall.
United Federation of Teachers President Michael Mulgrew said in a press conference Wednesday that he is apprehensive about allowing students and teachers to return to schools under the current protocols established by Mayor Bill de Blasio.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Pentagon Anti-Bias Training Materials Filled With Anti-American Propaganda
The leader of one of the nation’s most successful public interest law forms announced in the middle of U.S. urban strife and violence that he and his legal team obtained 1,483 pages of training materials and 26 pages of budget records from the Department of Defense (DOD) that are used by DOD’s “equal opportunity advisors” to train service members about the importance of”diversity within the branches of the U.S. Armed Forces.
The documents — which were obtained in response to a Judicial Watch Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request — reveal how deeply entrenched in the U.S. government and the national security complex is the political-correctness orthodoxy.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Peter Strzok Panics as Kevin Clinesmith Pleads Guilty to Making False Statements in Russiagate Hoax
‘Today marks the corrupt transformation of our criminal justice system,’ he says.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Portland Businesses Fleeing Downtown Offices Over Nightly BLM Riots
Large companies are fleeing offices in downtown Portland — because nightly Black Lives Matter riots are making the heart of the Oregon city a no-go area, according to a report.
“Businesses are leaving,” Andrew Hoan, president and CEO of the Portland Business Alliance (PBA), told KATU.
“The financial consequences to the downtown corridor are a running calculation that is almost impossible to wrap your mind around,” he said — with one company already saying the riots have cost $20 million in damage and lost business.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Portland Protest ‘Press’ Seen Throwing Objects at Police, Reporter Says
People who purportedly identified themselves as “PRESS” on their clothing during the ongoing protests in Portland were seen throwing objects at law enforcement officers during demonstrations-turned-riots overnight, according to a reporter on the ground.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Portland Driver Adam Haner Believes He Was Attacked Because He is White
The driver kicked unconscious during a mob attack in Portland says he has previously marched in support of Black Lives Matter — and believes he was only targeted because he is white.
“I wasn’t trying to do anything but get a drink,” Adam Haner told KATU of the vicious attack that started outside a 7-Eleven and left him with head wounds, three broken ribs and two black eyes.
“I wasn’t the enemy, I’ll tell you that. I was just the guy standing there, and I was white, evidently,” he said of his brutal attack by BLM protesters.
While he was not part of the ongoing protests in Portland, Haner told KPTV that he had previously marched in BLM protests.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Reds Suspend Announcer Thom Brennaman After Hot Mic Catches Anti-Gay Slur
In an apparent hot mic moment, Cincinnati Reds broadcaster Thom Brennaman was caught uttering an anti-gay slur between innings on Wednesday. Less than two hours later, he was apologizing and exiting the booth.
By night’s end, the team announced Brennaman was suspended effective immediately, with a further decision on the Reds’ broadcast team due to follow in the coming days.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Revolutionary War Statue Doused in Red Paint at UVA
A statue of George Rogers Clark was found covered in red paint on the University of Virginia campus Monday morning.
University police discovered the vandalism just after 5 a.m. Monday, a spokesperson for UVA told Campus Reform in an email.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Ric Grenell Calls Trump “Most Pro-Gay President in American History” In Log Cabin Republicans Video
In a video released by the Log Cabin Republicans, former Ambassador to Germany Ric Grenell gave a litany of examples to buttress his claim that President Trump “is the most pro-gay president in American history.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Robert J. O’Neill Banned by Delta After Posting Maskless Selfie Tweet
Robert J. O’Neill, a former Navy SEAL Team Six member who claims to have shot Osama bin Laden, has been banned from Delta airlines after tweeting out an anti-mask photo.
O’Neill posted the selfie photo of himself without a mask to Twitter Wednesday along with the message: “I’m not a pussy.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Sheryl Sandberg Confirms Facebook Isn’t Afraid to Delete the President’s Statements
Facebook is ready to remove any post by President Trump that violates the platform’s “standards,” according to COO Sheryl Sandberg. The company has been facing immense pressure from the media and from Democrats to implement stricter “hate speech” and “misinformation” policies and Facebook has been willing to comply.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
South Dakota Bishop Says Catholics Must Go Back to Sunday Mass
The Roman Catholic bishop of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, has lifted a dispensation from Sunday Mass, telling his flock to return to weekly church attendance, the Washington Times reported Tuesday.
In normal times practicing Catholics are obliged to attend Mass on Sundays and “holy days of obligation” throughout the year, but were granted a dispensation during the coronavirus pandemic.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
St. Louis Barricading Some Downtown Streets to Combat Violence
ST. LOUIS — The famed streets of Downtown St. Louis were barricaded in some parts Thursday to combat ongoing mayhem and violence.
The trendy residential, business, and entertainment district on Washington Avenue was completely closed to vehicle traffic from 14th Street to Tucker Avenue with lane restrictions on other major routes across Downtown.
Residents’ videos show rapid gunfire and wrong-way driving on Broadway right outside the new, high-end, One Cardinal Way lofts in Ballpark Village; ATV riders speeding between lines of cars in traffic on Washington Avenue; and drivers burning rubber at intersections and in parking lots.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Teen Who Punched, Killed Man Over $1 Sentenced to ‘Anger Management, ‘ Probation
White man was killed at Maryland Fair after group of teens beat him after asking for a dollar.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
The Mask Nazis Have Blood on Their Hands
The Coronavirus, which includes the common cold, will come and go, but the government found out how easily the American people were manipulated and how easily they controlled your life. Remember what they took from us, every “non-essential” job, every sporting event, every school, every restaurant, and most importantly every church. And we allowed it.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Thousands of People Put Up “Jesus 2020” Signs After Movement Starts in Alabama
Thousands of people from numerous U.S. states are promoting a focus on Christ by displaying signs and other merchandise that bear the message “JESUS 2020.”
Joyce Hubbard and Martha Sikes, who both attend Sampey Memorial Baptist Church in Ramer, Alabama, developed the idea for the campaign together.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Threats of More Looting Leads to Concerns of Downtown Chicago Exodus
CHICAGO (CBS) — With the last effects of Chicago’s looting sprees, it’s a tense time near the Loop and the Magnificent Mile, not only for the businesses that were hit but also for everyone who lives and works in the city. Now more problems could lead people to leave these neighborhoods.
The city’s Second Ward alderman said he knows many people are on the edge and poised to leave, but it wouldn’t mean just empty units or storefronts. A mass exodus could gut Chicago’s tax base, causing a citywide ripple effect.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Trump Seeks to Distance Himself From Bannon Arrest, Calls Fundraising Project “Inappropriate”
President Trump and White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Thursday distanced the administration from former chief strategist Steve Bannon, who has been arrested on fraud charges.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey announced on Thursday that he was donating $10 million to Boston University’s Center for Antiracist Research, a project recently launched by the antiracist scholar Ibram X. Kendi.
Kendi is the author of the 2019 book How to Be An Antiracist, one of two books that attracted renewed attention following the death of George Floyd. (The other is Robin DiAngelo’s White Fragility.) In a tweet, he thanked Dorsey for the grant, which came with “no strings attached.”
Dorsey replied that he hoped the center’s research would inform and fuel “much needed and overdue policy change.”
The CEO of Twitter is more than welcome to spend his financial resources however he sees fit. He can give money to anyone he wants, for any reason. But since Kendi intends to have an impact on public policy—and since these funds presumably will help Kendi fulfill his goals—it’s worth scrutinizing what kinds of policy changes he has in mind.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
87 Democrat and Republicans (If you are caught up into the divide and conquer un-constitutional scheme— Mark 3:25) were exposed for the crimes against children!?
Democratic Illinois State Representative, Keith Farnham, has resigned and was charged with possession of child pornography and has been accused of bragging at an online site about sexually molesting a 6-year-old girl.
Democratic spokesperson for the Arkansas Democratic Party, Harold Moody, Jr, was charged with distribution and possession of child pornography.
Democratic Radnor Township Board of Commissioners member, Philip Ahr, resigned from his position after being charged with possession of child pornography and abusing children between 2 and 6 years-old.
Democratic activist and BLM organizer, Charles Wade, was arrested and charged with human trafficking and underage prostitution.
Democratic Texas attorney and activist, Mark Benavides, was charged with having sex with a minor, inducing a child under 18 to have sex and compelling prostitution of at least nine legal clients and possession of child pornography. He was found guilty on six counts of sex trafficking.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
“More Boots on the Ground”: Doug Ford Announces Hiring of 200 OPP Officers
Rather than defunding its provincial police force, the Ontario government announced it will be hiring 200 additional Ontario Provincial Police officers.
“As we help communities recover from the impacts of COVID-19, it’s absolutely critical we give our brave men and women in uniform the tools and resources they need to do their job, stay healthy, and keep us all safe,” said Ontario Premier Doug Ford in a news release.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The Security Guard Hit in Front of a Walmart in Sherbrooke is Dead
The security guard who was hit in the parking lot of a Walmart in Sherbrooke, Philippe Jean, died last night. It was his relatives who confirmed it Thursday on social networks.
“He fought like a true warrior until his last breath. A real fighter. He left tonight like a shooting star now shining in the sky. Phil, watch over us and your children, “his brother Guillaume wrote in a Facebook post.
Father of a family and 35 years old, Philippe Jean had been in an artificial coma for several months already. In early April, at the Galeries Quatre-Saisons in Sherbrooke, where he had been tasked with enforcing social distancing instructions, he was hit by a car after a verbal altercation with a customer at the entrance to Walmart.
The main suspect in this case, Nacime Kouddar, 25, has been charged with criminal negligence causing bodily harm with a vehicle, hit and run causing bodily harm and assault with a weapon and aggravated assault. His return to court is scheduled for the end of September.
| — Hat tip: Vlad Tepes | [Return to headlines] |
Whistleblower Details ‘Training Manual’ Used for Censorship on Facebook
On Wednesday’s episode of The Ezra Levant Show, former Facebook censor Ryan Hartwig joined the show to explain how the social media giant was involved in censoring Canadians during the 2019 federal election.
Ryan spoke to Ezra previously about a number of Facebook’s censorship subjects and tactics that were deployed by censors like himself that were tasked with policing what was, and more importantly, was not allowed to be posted on the platform during the lead-up to the federal election.
This time around, Ryan showed Ezra the handbook distributed to the company he worked for that had the principles which guided what would be censored.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Austrian Synagogue Vandalised With Pro-Palestinian Graffiti
Vandals targetted a synagogue in Graz, Austria, spray-painting pro-Palestinian slogans on it and another Jewish community building.
According to Jewish locals, the attack took place at both the synagogue and the Jewish community hall, with the phrases “our language and our country are red lines” and “Palestine is free” being graffitied on the buildings.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A 30-year-old Iraqi asylum seeker rammed motorcycles on the A100 highway in Berlin on Tuesday night in a terrorist attack that resulted in six people being injured, three of them seriously, according to German police and prosecutors.
A spokesman for the German prosecutor’s office later said that according to the investigators’ findings, the attack was “Islamist-motivated.”
The Iraqi male driver, identified as Samrad D., has been charged with three counts of attempted murder, according to Czech news portal Echo24.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Spanish populist MP Ivan Espinosa, a member of VOX, has claimed that social media companies are censoring his party, while the mainstream media often fail to report on far-left violence against VOX party members.
Mr Espinosa told Breitbart London the current undercurrent of tech censorship that conservatives are seeing in the United States and elsewhere was happening in Spain on a “much larger scale”, and said the party already faced near unilateral opposition from the mainstream media.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Sweden’s new Arab Party, established to champion the rights of the country’s Arab population, has vowed to assist integration “and protect the rights of Arabs” while denying any claims it might “Arabize Sweden.”
According to its website, the party assumes a “socialist orientation with certain capitalist elements” while highlighting that it is a “secular party and no religious symbols or clothing are allowed within the party’s representatives.”
At present, its stated aims are to combat “exclusion, anxiety about the future, division and lack of sense of community,” while also reducing “crime and unemployment within the same group.”
It is expected to release a detailed manifesto in September but, in the meantime, it has laid out several requirements for membership including: an Arab background from at least one parent dating back several generations, as well as a Swedish college education and clean criminal record.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Sweden’s Senior Epidemiologist: Wearing Face Masks is “Very Dangerous”
Sweden’s top expert on the coronavirus has warned that encouraging people to wear face masks is “very dangerous” because it gives a false sense of security but does not effectively stem the spread of the virus.
“It is very dangerous to believe face masks would change the game when it comes to COVID-19,” said Anders Tengell, who has overseen Sweden’s response to the pandemic while resisting any form of lockdown or mask mandate.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Swiss Protocol for COVID — Quercetin and Zinc
Many people have heard about hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19 and much of what they’ve heard recently in mainstream news is negative. That’s because the media have focused on negative outcomes from selected studies and subsequent warnings from the FDA.12
SPR contends, however, that those studies were marred by a delay in administering the drug, excessive doses of the drug, skewed data and contraindications that were ignored.13
According to notes which accompany the protocol, hydroxychloroquine and quercetin (which can be substituted for hydroxychloroquine) “support the cellular absorption of zinc and have additional anti-viral properties.”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
LONDON — The brother of Manchester Arena bomber Salman Abedi has been sentenced to at least 55 years in prison for his part in the atrocity.
There were audible gasps in court as Justice Baker jailed Hashem Abedi for life on each of the 22 counts of murder he was convicted of.
“The defendant should clearly understand the minimum term he should serve is 55 years. He may never be released,” he said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Black Lives Matter Protests ‘Contributed’ To a 38 Per Cent Rise in Attacks on London Police
Assaults on Metropolitan Police officers rose by nearly 40 per cent during the Chinese coronavirus lockdown in London, with Scotland Yard pointing to violent protests and street-parties-turned-riots as the main driver of the rise in attacks.
The Met said that between May and July, there were 2,027 attacks on officers in the British capital, representing a 38 per cent jump over the same period last year.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Britain risks “sleepwalking into a crisis” as the number of elderly women who are childless is set to triple in the coming years, official data has revealed.
In a report titled “Living longer: implications of childlessness among tomorrow’s older population” the Office for National Statistics (ONS) warned demand for formal social care is set to triple by 2045.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘Youth Gangs’ Terrorizing Families in Belgium Neighborhood
Locals living in fear as armed gangs battle in streets.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Czech President, Known for His Pro-Russian Stance, Joins V4 President’s Statement on Belarus
On Wednesday, the presidents of the Visegrad Four countries, including Czech President Milos Zeman, issued a joint statement on the situation in Belarus, supporting the right of Belarusians to free and democratic elections.
In the first version, originally published by Prague Castle, there was also a call for new elections, but this sentence has been later removed from the corrected text due to a translation error.
Zeman has been characterized by a number of Western media outlets as “pro-Russian” in the past and named by the Observer as the “most influential Kremlin ally in Central Europe”, leading to questions how regarding how he might react to the situation in Belarus.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Leading Russian Opposition Figure ‘Poisoned’
Spokespersons for Russia’s leading opposition activist, Alexei Navalny, have said he was poisoned after he fell unconscious on a flight from Tomsk in central Russia to Moscow on Wednesday morning. “We suspect Alexei was poisoned by something mixed into [his] tea … Doctors are saying that the toxic agent absorbed faster through the hot liquid,” Kira Yarmysh, his spokeswoman, tweeted. Russia has a history of poison attacks against regime opponents.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
For those fearing that all the prior state-enforced social distancing and lockdown protocol which hit a peak in early summer — from arresting surfers on empty beaches, to telling people they can’t even jog, to police detaining moms for merely letting their children play on taxpayer bought public playgrounds — would only too easily and hastily transition to a forced vaccination regimen the moment one is rushed out despite safety or the various potential long-term side effect ‘unknowns’… well,it’s happening
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Scott Morrison announced the government had signed a memorandum of understanding with AstraZeneca Australia to secure the promising Oxford University vaccine candidate.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Boat Migrant Found Dead on Beach Who Media Reported to be 16-Years-Old is Actually 28
The Sudanese migrant found dead on a beach in Calais after trying to reach the UK who the media reported was 16-years-old is actually 28-years-old according to travel documents seen by French authorities.
After their small dinghy capsized while trying to reach the UK, the migrant’s friend told rescuers that Abdulfatah Hamdallah was 16 and this became the main detail of the story when it was subsequently reported on by the media.
Now that all appears to have been a fabrication.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
DNC Airs Debunked Claim Trump Referred to Asylum Seekers as “Animals”
The Democratic National Convention aired an edited video montage Wednesday that showed President Trump referring to MS-13 gang members as “animals,” but spliced the footage between videos of asylum seekers and children held in detention centers.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Italian Minister Warns Incoming Illegal Migrants Will be Deported
Italian Foreign Minister Luigi di Maio has warned that Italy will no longer be accepting illegal migrants in a radical shift for the leftist coalition government.
Minister Di Maio met with Tunisian President Kais Saied this week alongside Interior Minister Luciana Lamorgese and two European Commissioners. Following the meeting, Di Maio stated that Italy would fully support Tunisia in fighting illegal migration.
[Comment: There must be an election coming soon.]
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Italy has been hit with a wave of rape allegations involving migrants, including victims ranging from a 15-year-old girl to a 69-year-old woman, which has prompted politicians from Matteo Salvini’s League party to call for “chemical castration” for those who are convicted of such crimes.
The high-profile sexual assaults comes at a time when Italy has already experienced a drastic 150 percent increase in illegal migrants arriving at the country’s coast. Seen as a major policy failure by Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte’s left-wing government, the lax border controls along with the rape allegations could add fuel to anti-migration sentiment before regional elections on Sept. 20 and 21, potentially dealing the ruling government a severe electoral blow.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
One man has died and eight people have been injured after 300 migrants tried to storm a border fence around the Spanish enclave of Melilla in north Africa.
The man, whose identity and nationality were not known, died after falling 16ft from the fence, and medics were not able to revive him.
‘It was dark, the area was unknown and it seems like he fell,’ the spokesman said, adding it was not clear if the migrant died from injuries sustained in his fall of from a heart attack.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
People Smuggler Jailed After Cramming Migrants on Inflatable Boat to Cross Channel
A people smuggler is behind bars after he crammed nine people including children into an inflatable boat before attempting to cross the Channel into the UK.
Altaib Mobarak, 43, was jailed for two years for his thwarted attempt to smuggle seven adults and two vulnerable children into the UK from France.
Mobarak, a Sudanese national, dodged French coastguards in the desperate bid to reach British shores, but a Border Force boat eventually intercepted him.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Protesters Vandalize ICE Building in Portland, Clash With Feds Again
Rioters in Portland vandalized an Immigration and Customs Enforcement building and clashed with federal agents during another violent night of protests Wednesday.
The Black Lives Matter mob spray-painted and broke windows in the ICE building in southwest Portland and lobbed glass bottles and rocks at police as they tried to break up the crowd, cops said in a press release.
Officers were hit with full cans of soda and a hammer, police said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Scotland: Asylum-Seeking Migrants Will be Housed in Hotels in Glasgow Until 2021
Asylum seeking migrants in Glasgow, Scotland, will be put up in hotels at taxpayers’ expense until 2021 due to overcrowding in standard accommodations, leaked documents have revealed.
During the Chinese coronavirus lockdown the housing and social care contracting company Mears began moving asylum-seeking migrants into hotels across North Britain’s second city. It is estimated that around 400 migrants are being housed in hotels by Mears, under a scheme that is being funded by the British government.
[Comment: This is insanity.]
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Tory MP Blasts French Politician for Blaming UK for Drowning Death of Boat Migrant
A Conservative MP has slammed France for trying to make their migrant crisis a “British problem”, after a French lawmaker blamed Britain’s lack of “humanity” for the death of an illegal migrant who tried to cross the English Channel.
On Wednesday, French authorities discovered the body of a Sudanese male migrant — said to be a child but later revealed to be a 28-year old adult — washed up on the beach of Sangatte in Calais, France. He had gone missing Tuesday evening, after believing to have gone out of the English Channel in a makeshift boat trying to reach the UK.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Two Moroccan Migrants Convicted of Arson Attack in Sweden Won’t be Deported
Two Moroccan citizens were sentenced to several years in Swedish prison for arson after they set a restaurant on the first floor of a residential building on fire, but a Swedish court refused to deport them despite the prosecutor’s explicit request.
The 23-year-old Moroccan Aissa Lyousri was sentenced by Skaraborg District Court to four and a half years in prison for a fire that was aimed at a barbecue restaurant in Mariestad. In the past, he has also committed a grenade attack on a restaurant in Gothenburg and was convicted of that crime as well.
The previous grenade attack was carried out by the 23-year-old together with three other Arabs, one of whom is a refugee from Syria. No motive for the grenade attack was ever clarified nor was there any known connection between the assailants and the pizzeria and its owners.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Farage: ‘Metro-Liberal’ Boris Govt Lacks Political Will to Turn Back Illegal Boat Migrants
Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage has said that the British government does not have the “political will” to turn back boat migrants, because it is led by “metro-liberal” Boris Johnson, who has openly backed amnesty for illegal aliens in the past.
Over 4,500 migrants have crossed the English Channel from France and landed on Britain’s shore this year alone — more than twice the 1,890 that arrived in the whole of 2019.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Netflix Apologizes for “Inappropriate” Cuties Movie Poster Criticized for Sexualizing Children
Netflix has issued a statement apologizing for an “inappropriate” movie postermarketing its upcoming original film “Cuties” after receiving criticism that the promotional material sexualized children.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
New Netflix Movie Celebrates 11-Year-Old Girls Twerking
A new Netflix movie set to be released next month celebrates 11-year-olds twerking, prompting condemnation about the film sexualizing children.
“Amy, 11, becomes fascinated with a twerking dance crew. Hoping to join them, she starts to explore her femininity, defying her family’s traditions,” read Netflix’s original description for the movie, which is called Cuties.
The trailer for the film shows ‘diverse’ children in a rough neighborhood learning to dance provocatively in preparation for a tournament.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Reddit Has Banned Over 7,000 Communities for “Hateful Content” In Just Two Months
Reddit has banned nearly 7,000 subreddits under its controversial new hate speech rules that were introduced on June 29.
Reddit was slammed when the rules were introduced because, while they protected minorities, they allowed “hate” against “majority” groups. After facing massive backlash, Reddit revised the policy but the new rules were still criticized for being too vague and open-ended.
2,000 subreddits were banned on the day Reddit announced its new hate speech rules, which means an additional 5,000 have been banned in the weeks following the introduction of the policy.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
In Israel, too: Gang-rape of 16-year-old girl by 30 men sparks outrage
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/202008211080231967-israeli-officials-demonstrators-express-outrage-over-alleged-30-man-gang-rape-of-minor/
No mention of what is known about ethnicity/religion of the perps…
Those ‘men’ were NOT Israelis. The description perfectly describes what Muslims savages do to women.
A 59-yr old killed by a bunch of “teens” after “asking him for a dollar”, and the murderer is punished by “anger control” courses… Unbelievable. Bye-bye USA.
“Russia has a history of poison attacks against regime opponents” – and Navalni has a history of cocaine use, he should have known that up in the air during flight it is not wise to hoover up in the lavatory.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8650483/amp/Mother-eight-avoids-jail-taking-nearly-100-000-illegal-benefit-claims.html?__twitter_impression=true
Wonderful.
Until recently, I supported the opposition in Belarus. Lukashenko is a disgusting dictator.
But then …
French writer, philosopher and journalist Bernard-Henri Levy, dubbed the “gray cardinal of liberalism” in the media, met with former presidential candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya. He announced this on Thursday, August 20, in his Instagram account, posting a joint photo with the Belarusian politician.
Youths again.
https://mobile.twitter.com/BasedPoland/status/1296772121327271936
https://mobile.twitter.com/BasedPoland
BasedPoland is the latest victim of cancel culture, unsurprisingly.
Since the OP link is dead, here is another one
https://mobile.twitter.com/adeolindaclara/status/1296427307289190401
“Riots following Bayern Munich’s win over Olympic Lyon” and the last time it was over a French victory. Win or lose, riots are assured.
https://mobile.twitter.com/PrisonPlanet/status/1296867154135076867
Wonderful news! (without irony for once)
https://mobile.twitter.com/BrettEverest/status/1296741248385069056
https://mobile.twitter.com/BrettEverest/status/1296743057795276801
An inside look at the same Bromsgrove hotel Nigel visited last month.
VERY IMPORTANT
CORONA WAS DEFINITELY ENGINEERED ttps://www.lifesitenews.com/blogs/renowned-european-scientist-covid-19-was-engineered-in-china-lab-effective-vaccine-unlikely
Denmark. I’ve never seen anything so disgusting in my life..
https://mobile.twitter.com/BrettEverest/status/1296195187165757440