When four home invaders entered a residence in Louisiana, the homeowner shot them, killing two. The two survivors will be charged with murder for the deaths of their comrades. No charges will be filed against the homeowner.
In other news, authorities are cracking down on COVID scofflaws in Michigan, Jamaica, Trinidad, Belgium, Wales, Spain, Singapore, and other locations across the globe.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to C. Cantoni, Insubria, JD, Reader from Chicago, SS, 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.
Killing the Economy: UK Sees Record Job Losses
LONDON (AP) — The number of people in the U.K. who lost their jobs hit a record high in the three months through October during the run-up to the planned ending of a government salary support scheme, official figures showed Tuesday.
The Office for National Statistics said redundancies reached 370,000 in the August to October period, a record for a three-month period. At the end of October, the British government had been planning to end the Job Retention Scheme, which saw it pay the majority of the salaries of people who had become idle due to the coronavirus pandemic but were kept on payroll by firms.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
“Put Your F**king Mask on!” Irate Man Stalks Woman in Department Store
A video uploaded to Twitter shows an irate man screeching at a woman to “put your f**king mask on!” while aggressively stalking her around a department store.
Despite insisting on making the woman wear a mask, the man’s own mask slips below his nose as he constantly tries to get in her face in complete violation of ‘social distancing’.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
9th Circuit: Nevada’s COVID-19 Church Attendance Cap Illegal
A U.S. appeals court agreed Tuesday with two Nevada churches that have argued for months that the state’s COVID-19 restrictions are unconstitutional because they place harsher attendance limits on religious gatherings than casinos and other secular businesses.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed earlier federal court rulings that upheld Nevada’s hard cap on the size of indoor worship services. It instructed the district judges to preliminarily enjoin Nevada from imposing attendance limits for churches stricter than those for other gatherings or businesses.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
At-Home COVID-19 Test Receives Emergency Approval by FDA
An at-home, over-the counter test for COVID-19 received emergency approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday.
The test includes a swab and an analyzer that will connect via Bluetooth to the user’s smart phone to report results within 15 minutes.
Ellume, the company behind the test, said that in people with symptoms of coronavirus, the test has correctly detected 96% of positives and 100% of negatives. In people without symptoms, the numbers are 91% of positives and 96% of negatives.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Breaking: Supreme Court Tosses Rulings Against Churches in Colorado, New Jersey
December 15, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) — The United States Supreme Court reversed a pair of lower court rulings that sided with COVID-19 restrictions over the religious liberty claims of churches on Tuesday, ordering the courts to reconsider the cases in light of its decision last month against similar health measures New York attempted to impose on religious institutions.
SCOTUSblog reports that the orders concern rulings against High Plains Harvest Church in Colorado and both Christian and Jewish houses of worship in New Jersey. Both cases contested attendance limits placed on religious institutions that were not equally applied to secular ones, with the latter case also arguing that New Jersey’s mask mandate was applied more strictly to religious gatherings than secular establishments.
The nation’s highest court ordered the lower courts to reconsider the cases in light of the Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision last month in favor of Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn against capacity limits imposed by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
COVID-19 Vaccine Produced by Moderna is “Highly Effective, “ FDA Says
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says the COVID-19 vaccine made by Massachusetts-based Moderna is “highly effective.”
The administration has published a Moderna document about the vaccine and plans to hold an advisory committee meeting on Thursday about its emergency use.
Like the vaccine by Pfizer and BioNTech that was recently approved, Moderna’s vaccine requires two doses.
Moderna studies report a 94.1% efficiency rate and show that the vaccine may begin preventing infections that do not come with symptoms, known as asymptomatic infections, after the first dose. There is no public data on whether the vaccine by Pfizer and BioNTech prevents asymptomatic cases of COVID-19. Pfizer said it hopes to release data on effectiveness against such cases in early 2021.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Dominion Voting System “Designed… to Create Systemic Fraud”
A forensic audit of voting equipment produced by Dominion Voting Systems and used in the State of Michigan for the 2020 election has found major irregularities in the tabulation of votes. The audit found a 68% error rate in Antrim County, where thousands of votes for U.S. President Donald J. Trump were wrongly “flipped” to former Vice President Joe Biden on November 3, 2020.
The high error rate was, according to the auditors, due to an algorithm placed inside the Dominion software that assigned different weights to votes cast for different candidates at a 2/3 to 1/3 ratio. This allowed election officials to apply a weighted numerical value to candidates and change the overall result. The declaration of winners was done on a basis of points, not votes, according to the auditors.
The audit also found that all server security logs prior to 11:03 pm on November 4, 2020 were wiped clean. As a result, all security logs for the day after the election, on election day, and prior to election day are missing. In addition, all vote adjudication log entries for the 2020 election cycle are missing. The adjudication process is the simplest way to manually manipulate votes, according to the auditors. Federal law requires that all election records must be preserved for a period of 22 months from the date of any general election.
[Comment: However, YouTuber Viva Frei, who is a Canadian attorney, points out that the auditor of the voting equipment was hired by the plaintiff in the court case.]
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Espionage Emergency: China ‘Floods’ America With Spies
Revelations this month about U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell, a California Democrat, highlight Beijing’s complete penetration of American society.
China’s influence, intelligence and infiltration attempts are overwhelming America. Given the emergency, Washington should immediately close down all of China’s bases of operation in the U.S., including its four remaining consulates.
Perhaps the most striking aspect of the news about Swalwell is that Fang Fang, a suspected Chinese Ministry of State Security agent also known as “Christine,” first contacted him not while he was sitting on the House Intelligence Committee but when he was a councilmember in Dublin City, California.
Fang followed and promoted his career as he was elected to the House of Representatives and assigned to a committee of great interest to China.
China has hundreds — perhaps thousands — of agents in the U.S. identifying, grooming, supporting, influencing, compromising, and corrupting Americans in politics and other fields of importance to it.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Gates Says Bars and Restaurants Need to Close Another 4 to 6 Months
If Microsoft founder Bill Gates gets his way, life as it was before the pandemic will not return until 2022 and possibly six months beyond that. He also wants certain businesses, such as bars and restaurants, to shut back down for another four to six months.
If that weren’t enough, Gates also wants “big public gatherings” banned during this entire, extended time. Backlash to Gates’ suggestions from the public was immediate on Twitter. “Unless Bill Gates is willing to give his entire fortune away to people who work in the bar and restaurant industry, his opinion is worthless,” one tweet said.
Reporter Ian Milers Cheong minced no words with his thoughts: “Reject this tyrant,” Cheong tweeted.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Ghislaine Maxwell Proclaims Innocence, Offers $22m Bail Package
Ghislaine Maxwell, the British socialite facing criminal charges she supplied girls for the late financier Jeffrey Epstein to sexually abuse, declared her innocence late Monday and proposed a $22 million bail package that would include armed guards to ensure she does not flee.
The bail arguments, first filed under seal last Tuesday, were publicly released late on Monday in Manhattan federal court with redactions approved by Judge Alison J Nathan.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Gov. Cuomo Says Sexual Harassment Allegations Against Him Are “Simply Not True”
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has said that allegations of sexual harrasement brought against him by a former aide are “simply not true.”
Lindsey Boylan, who served as Cuomo’s deputy secretary for economic development and a special adviser, has said that the governor sexually harassed her for three years while she worked in his office.
Although he said his former aide had a right to speak up, the governor said he disagreed with her characterization of their relationship.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Louisiana Homeowner Shoots 4 Invaders, Killing 2
A Louisiana homeowner shot four armed invaders last week, killing two of them, after they broke into his house carrying guns.
The surviving suspects, Renard Causey Sr. and Jason Leblanc, are both facing charges of first-degree murder for the deaths of the two suspects killed during the invasion. In addition to the murder charges for the deaths of Renard Causey Jr. and Justin Hill, Causey Sr. and Leblanc are also facing armed robbery and home invasion charges. They will be booked upon their release from the hospital, according to local media.
During the invasion, the homeowner’s 4-year-old daughter was struck by a bullet in the crossfire, but is expected to fully recover.
The homeowner is not facing any charges at this time.
[Comment: File this under ‘positive news’.]
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s Law Department attempted in court this week to block local news station WBBM-Ch. 2 from airing body camera footage of Chicago police officers raiding an innocent woman’s home and handcuffing her while she was naked.
The city also filed a request to have the woman, Anjanette Young, sanctioned for allegedly violating a confidentiality order.
Lightfoot officials made the extraordinary request to prevent a television station from airing a news report in an emergency court filing Monday evening, which a federal judge rejected. The courts long have ruled against efforts to prevent news companies from publishing reports, saying it’s an unconstitutional violation of the First Amendment.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
McConnell Congratulates Biden as President-Elect, Says the Electoral College “Has Spoken”
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) congratulated Joe Biden on Tuesday as the president-elect, saying the Electoral College “has spoken.”
McConnell’s speech on the Senate floor follows electors voting on Monday night to certify a Biden victory. McConnell has been joined by other lawmakers, who are now saying that Biden won the presidential race.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Michigan Health Department Fines Single Mother of Six $1,000 a Day for Defying State Restrictions
A mother of six has seen fines of $1,000 per day from Michigan’s health department for keeping her cafe open, violating the stay-at-home orders put in place November 15.
Owner of Cafe Rosetta Amy Heikken is now facing legal challenges because she is refusing to pay the multiple $1,000 fines.
“This is about independence,” Heikken told Newsmax on Monday, saying that she started the cafe after divorcing her abusive husband.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Pennsylvania Educator Sues After Being Forced to Resign for Anti-BLM Facebook Post
Another school teacher in Pennsylvania was fired for sharing anti-BLM content on her personal Facebook account. In a lawsuit, the teacher claims that the school district violated her First Amendment rights in firing her.
A special education expert with more than 27 years of experience, Ashley Bennet, was forced to retire in July because the school district did not like a Facebook post she shared that criticized the BLM movement. The post questioned what black lives the BLM protests were about and highlighted the hypocrisy of being against lockdown protests and glorifying social justice protests that were afflicted with looting.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Mark Crispin Miller, a New York University professor and blogger, is now suing his colleagues in a defamation suit for allegedly defaming him for his views about the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the lawsuit, Miller’s colleagues had intended to “disgrace and humiliate” him “under the guise of phony and uninformed political and cultural correctness and orthodoxy.”
Back in September, Miller was accused of asking students to not wear masks by an NY student, Julia Jackson. She said that Miller “spent an entire class period telling students that wearing masks don’t prevent the spread of COVID-19.” She later went on to drop out of the course.
Miller responded to Jackson’s allegations, saying that he was encouraging students to think for themselves and not just bow to the authority.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Recall Effort Against California Gov. Gavin Newsom Already Has Half the Needed Signatures
Organizers of an effort to recall California Gov. Gavin Newsom for his COVID-19 measures announced Monday that they have gathered half of the necessary 1.5 million signatures in order to trigger the special election. Those pushing the effort have until March to collect the rest.
Newsom’s recent stay-at-home orders, which have reimposed an economic lockdown by closing businesses and shuttering schools, have faced stiff opposition. The governor also received major pushback after he was photographed attending a swanky birthday celebration at the French Laundry restaurant at the same time he was issuing orders preventing others from doing the same.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Remdesivir is a Scam Like Tamiflu
Remdesivir is an antiviral drug that was evaluated during the Ebola breakout in 2014. The development used at least $70.5 million in taxpayer money, and that number may be higher.10 After analysis showed disappointing results for treating Ebola, it was once again tested in the early months of 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.11
A few of the remdesivir trials were stopped early after participants experienced significant side effects. Yet, some scientists believed the data suggested the drug could shorten recovery time.12 However, the drug has not produced adequate results and has not been proven to reduce the potential for death in those with severe disease. Worse, treatment comes with an added price tag of potential kidney damage.13
It seems remdesivir is following in the footsteps of Tamiflu. The story exploded when Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the President’s Coronavirus Task Force and NIAID, made a promotional announcement from the White House, in which he called results that had not been peer-reviewed from a pharmaceutical-sponsored clinical trial “highly significant” and remdesivir to be the new “standard of care.”14
WHO recently revealed the results from the SOLIDARITY trial15 showing remdesivir has little to no positive effect on mortality, length of stay or the need for ventilation.16
This supports what some doctors have been reporting and other studies have found, which I discuss in greater detail in the past article, “The New COVID-19 Medication Isn’t Backed by Results.” Gilead, makers of remdesivir and the developer of Tamiflu, attempted to cast doubt on the results of the SOLIDARITY trial, writing:17
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Facebook reportedly maintains an internal “hate bait” dashboard and the top 10 entries are all conservative pages and publishers, according to BuzzFeed News.
In an article describing this dashboard, BuzzFeed News claimed that Breitbart, Fox News, The Daily Caller, USA Patriots for Donald Trump, Donald Trump for President, Donald J. Trump, Ben Shapiro, Conservative Tribune by WJ, US Chronicle, and The Western Journal were recently listed as the top 10 US pages on Facebook’s hate bait dashboard.
According to the report, this hate bait dashboard monitors US pages that are “responsible for the largest concentrated volume of likely violating Hate Speech comments” over a recent 14 day period.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Ret. Gen Flynn Warns of Unelected ‘Tyrants, ‘ Says ‘Time for God-Fearing Americans to Fight’
Retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn warned of rule by “tyrants whom no one has elected and who want to have power in order to destroy us” in a new op-ed published by The Western Journal on Saturday.
In his op-ed titled, “We’re in a Battle of Good vs. Evil — It’s Time for God-Fearing Americans To Fight” Flynn did not specify who the so-called “tyrants” were, but said, “They have violated our laws; they have betrayed our nation and their oath to serve our country, their oath to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution.”
“The battle we are engaged in cannot be fought with only human weapons: It requires the intervention of God because in a war against the forces of evil, only the Lord can obtain the victory,” Flynn’s op-ed began. “And as American citizens, we must refuse to go to the funeral of our own independence. We the people are proud to proclaim that the United States of America is ‘One Nation under God.’“
Flynn also appeared to describe the “tyrants” in the context of the November 2020 U.S. election, writing, “Our protest, our denunciation of electoral fraud, is not only motivated by the fact that we are supporting Donald J. Trump as a candidate. It is above all a battle for justice and truth, which goes far beyond membership in a party or voting for a candidate.”
Flynn added, “If today we do not obtain justice from our elected officials, if the United States of America does not know how to choose between defending the law and legitimizing a coup against its citizens, our nation will abdicate its duties toward Americans and its international role.”
In his Saturday op-ed, Flynn also wrote, “We understand what their plan is: to eliminate dissent, subdue any criticism and outlaw those who do not submit unconditionally to the dictatorship of the ‘new world order.’ And if they do not succeed through the hammering persuasion of the mainstream media, they do not hesitate to resort to deception, betrayal, perjury and censorship.”
Flynn concluded his op-ed, writing, “Pray now that when the light shines in the coming days, it reveals the truth along with a new era of American patriotism.”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Several COVID-19 Vaccines Are Made Using Aborted Fetal Cells
Story at-a-glance:
The claim made by some citizen journalists is that certain COVID-19 vaccines “contain cells from an aborted fetus.” One video headline stated: “CONFIRMED — aborted fetus in COVID-19 vaccine”
Fact checkers have “debunked” these claims and labeled them false, in one instance because the name of the fetal cell line was incorrect and in others because the vaccines do not literally “contain” these cells; rather, the fetal cell lines were used as a growth medium for the virus during the production phase
Fact checkers’ claim that fetal cells are not used in vaccine development because they are clones of the original is perhaps the most ludicrous. There’s no difference between cells growing and multiplying indefinitely in a petri dish and cells growing and multiplying in your body during your lifetime. If the cells in your body are still you, then the cells in the petri dish are still that of the original fetus that was aborted
Aside from ethical concerns, some may also object to vaccines manufactured through the use of fetal cell lines on the basis that there may be health risks involved, due to potential DNA contamination. Human fetal cell lines in vaccine production have been linked to both autism and autoimmune diseases
Vaccine makers using a fetal cell line in the development of their COVID-19 vaccines include AstraZeneca, Jansen Research and Development/Johnson & Johnson, CanSino Biologics, University of Pittsburgh, ImmunityBio and Altimmune
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Shoplifting Cases Increase Amid COVID-Related Economic Fallout
Shoplifting has been on the rise in 2020 as Americans face growing unemployment and food insecurity, according to reports from small businesses and law enforcement agencies.
Forty percent of small business owners surveyed said that since the coronavirus pandemic began, shoplifting has increased, according to a report from Business.org. Philadelphia police information data show reported incidents of theft in retail establishments went up roughly 60% in March and were still elevated in July, The Washington Post reported.
Meanwhile, more than 20 million Americans are receiving unemployment aid, and 853,000 people filed new unemployment claims last week alone. Forbes reports that 12 million people will lose their aid unless Congress passes another financial stimulus bill by year’s end.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The father of the jihad murderer characterized his ex-wife Rafia Sultana Shareef, aka Rafia Farook, as “very religious,” like the killer, to whom he referred as Rizwan. “Rizwan was the mama’s boy,” he recounted, “and she is very religious like him. Once we had a dispute about the historical figure of Jesus, my son yelled that I was an unbeliever and decided that marriage with my wife had to end.” The son insisted on the divorce because he considered the father an “unbeliever.”
What’s more, old man Farook said that his son was an open supporter of the Islamic State, and, of course, hated Israel: “He said he shared the ideology of al-Baghdadi to create an Islamic state, and he was obsessed with Israel.” Moderate “unbeliever” Papa then told his son to bide his time since, in the immortal words of Tom Lehrer, everybody hated the Jews: “I kept telling him always: stay calm, be patient, in two years Israel will no longer exist. Geopolitics is changing: Russia, China, America too, nobody wants the Jews there.” Moderate!
So right in the heart of sunny Redlands, California, where Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik lived with their baby and Rafia (however safely ensconced upstairs, away from the pipe bombs, Grandma may have been), there was an open supporter of the Islamic State and an open supporter of the concept of the caliphate. Then we must not forget the winsome Tashfeen, who pledged allegiance to the Islamic State during the attack, was linked to a jihadi mosque in Pakistan, and who had become, in one of her teacher’s words, “a religious person” who often told people “to live according to the teachings of Islam.”
But their motive remains unclear!
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
SolarWinds HQ Raided in Austin — More News Coming on CEO and Executive Vice President (Update)
Last night the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued a rare Emergency Directive 21-01, in response to a KNOWN COMPROMISE involving SolarWinds Orion products.
This was only the fifth Emergency Directive issued by CISA under the authorities granted by Congress in the Cybersecurity Act of 2015.
CISA reported a breach of the SolarWinds Orion products.
This Emergency Directive called on all federal civilian agencies to review their networks for indicators of compromise and disconnect or power down SolarWinds Orion products immediately.
Dominion Voting Systems uses SolarWinds products. It’s right there on their website.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
SolarWinds Hacked Orion Platform Used in Dominion Voting Systems
Controversial firm Dominion Voting Systems accused of flipping votes during the 2020 US Elections used hacked Orion platform software by SolarWinds.
A so-called computer “glitch” in the voting machines flipping votes during the 2020 US Elections has caused a major controversy. The source and ownership of the voting machines used in the elections has become an urgent issue because of real fears that hackers, whether foreign or domestic, might tamper with the mechanics of the voting system.
However, GreatGameIndia has found that the vendors and not hackers maybe behind the rigging. One of the vendors, a Denver-based Canadian Crown Agent company Dominion Voting Systems has a long history of allegation of election rigging and interference in elections of various nations, including census data theft in India and interference in US Elections of 2020.
According to the witness affidavit of a high ranking military officer the Smartmatic software also used in Dominion Voting machines were specifically designed in a way that the system could change the vote of each voter without being detected in order to steal US Elections.
The Chairman of the US Federal Election Commission Trey Trainor believes voter fraud is taking place in states still counting ballots and that the 2020 US Presidential Elections is illegitimate.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Supreme Court Betrays the American People, But State Legislatures Have a Higher Authority
Liberals denounced Senator Joseph McCarthy because they were afraid of getting caught, so they fought back like a clan of hyenas to hide their own collaboration with the evil regime they so loved. We now know from a variety of sources, including Soviet archives, since the end of the Cold War in the early 1990s, that McCarthy’s charges were, in numerous cases, neither false nor hysterical, but correct.
The communist infiltration of America’s politicians and federal government has escalated exponentially since McCarthy’s efforts in the 1950s to expose the murderously evil nature and the massive espionage penetration of the U.S. government.
The socialist democrats and their comrades in mainstream and social media have executed the same kind of war against President Trump throughout his campaigns and his first term in office as they waged against McCarthy. The left hates President Trump because he has never belonged to their globalist establishment cabal, and he knows a communist when he sees one. Media’s propaganda, outright lies and censorship of the truth is a hallmark of communism. And it was our own Supreme Court who helped them.
The 1964 Supreme Court case, New York Times v. Sullivan, in a 9-0 decision by the liberal Warren court, gave media the right to lie with impunity about public figures unless actual malice could be proven. And media has used this decision to destroy every vestige of liberty, freedom and truth…
In 2017, we heard that the Heritage Foundation and the Federalist Society were putting together a list of conservative judges for President Trump. Neither of these organizations are truly constitutional conservatives…both are “controlled opposition.”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Swamp: Biden Hires Two More Goldman Sachs Execs to His Team
In another stunning act of resistance, Joe Biden has hired two former Goldman Sachs officials to his transition team, prompting more charges that he’s filling up the D.C. swamp again.
Politico reports that Biden has hired Eric Goldstein and Monica Maher to the Department of Homeland Security Review Team, and the National Security Council Review Team, respectively.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The Daily Caller Should Change Their Name to: The Daily Propagandist
From The Daily Caller:
“Occam’s Razor needs to be applied more broadly in the debate over free speech online. If you think your political position is being suppressed by Facebook or Google or Twitter, it probably isn’t. More likely, your post was taken down because you violated a rule and then interpreted the take down as a nefarious attempt at censorship.”
This is complete nonsense written by someone with no comprehension of what censorship entails obviously, the man is completely oblivious to what goes on in the world around him, or chooses not to see it for what it is — like most Leftists. Let’s look at Occam’s Razor and what precisely that means.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Trump Announces Departure of AG Barr After Biden Cover-Up
The news, shared to Twitter on the evening of December 14th, comes after Barr aided in the cover-up of a Department of Justice investigation into Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, and insisted that voter fraud didn’t occur in the 2020 election.
The two-tweet thread also reveals that Jeff Rosen will replace Barr as Acting Attorney General, and Richard Donoghue will take over Rosen’s former role of Deputy Attorney General.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
U.S. Bishops Say Catholics Have ‘Moral Responsibility’ To be Vaccinated Against Coronavirus
Leaders of the U.S. Bishops’ Conference (USCCB) declared Monday that Catholics have a “moral responsibility” to be vaccinated against the coronavirus.
“Receiving one of the COVID-19 vaccines ought to be understood as an act of charity toward the other members of our community,” state Fort Wayne Bishop Kevin Rhoades, chairman of the U.S Bishops’ Committee on Doctrine, and Kansas City Archbishop Joseph Naumann, chairman of the Committee on Pro-Life Activities, in a joint statement.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Videos of Underground Orlando ‘Fight Club’ Show Packed Crowd Amid Rising COVID-19 Fears
Somewhere in Orlando on Dec. 5, fighters and fans gathered to watch what was dubbed “Rumble In Orlando,” an offshoot of a controversial New York underground fight club that had a similar event shut down last month by law enforcement after violating COVID-19 guidelines.
Billed as a community initiative to settle street beef with boxing instead of bullets, social media videos of the event showed scores of onlookers watching eight “exclusive” fights within a makeshift ring cordoned off by steel barricades.
“Rumble in Orlando is an underground fight club to show and prove a message we can all relate [to],” Rumble In Orlando’s Instagram bio said in all-caps. “Respectfully guns down, gloves up.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Vote Machine Company Threatens Legal Action Against Conservative Media
Voting Machine company Smartmatic has delivered legal notices to three conservative news networks, demanding retractions of claims that the company was involved in rigging the election in favour of Joe Biden.
According to reports, Smartmatic has issued legal notices to Fox News, OAN and Newsmax, accusing the networks of a “campaign [that] was designed to defame Smartmatic and undermine a legitimately conducted elections.”
The company is said to have accused Fox News of having “embarked on a disinformation campaign against Smartmatic,” by allowing Trump lawyers Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell to make claims of vote fraud.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Belgian Police Banned From Using Drones to Find Lockdown Parties
Belgian police will not be allowed to use drones to look for violations of the coronavirus measures, the college of public prosecutors announced during a press conference on Tuesday.
The use of drones is “disproportionate” in this case, they said, adding that any evidence obtained via drone images will therefore not be valid.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Belgium Triples Fine for Breaking Lockdown Measures
Belgium will triple the fines for people attending a lockdown party, the college of public prosecutors announced during a press conference on Tuesday.
The fine for people attending a lockdown party will be raised from €250 now to €750. Organisers will risk a fine of €4,000 in future, instead of €750.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Czechia: Restaurants and Schools to Close Again as Epidemic Threat Rises
Due to the deteriorating Covid-19 epidemic situation, the Czech government will once again tighten measures against the spread of coronavirus.
Czechia will return to the fourth degree of the anti-epidemic system from Friday, Dec. 18. After two weeks, restaurants, hotels and guesthouses, swimming pools, gyms, and other indoor sports grounds, as well as museums, galleries, monuments, and libraries, will close again.
A night curfew will come into force and meetings will be limited to a maximum of six people, however, all shops and services can remain open this time. On Friday, children will go to school for the last time before Christmas. From the same day, ski resorts can be opened, but visitors will not be able to stay there. The government also decided on compensation for the affected sectors yesterday.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Czechia to Guarantee the Right to Own a Weapon as Wider EU Attempts to Disarm Citizens
The Czech government plans to guarantee the right to possess weapons in response to the controversial European Union Firearms Directive.
The Czech government is introducing an amendment to the Firearms Act, which will introduce new categories of weapons into Czech law, and the Senate is expected to approve the amendment without modification, according to Czech news portal Echo24.
The law will contain a provision according to which “the right to acquire, possess and carry a weapon is guaranteed under the conditions laid down by this law”. The provision is a response to trends within the European Union to remove the right to bear arms. The Czech Republic has been actively opposed to EU efforts to disarm citizens in the past, and the government has even stated it would support making the right to self-defense with a weapon a constitutional amendment.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Echoes of Support for Polish and Hungarian Veto in French and Italian Mainstream Press
Although the mainstream media in Western European countries were mostly very critical of the Polish and Hungarian veto against the EU budget and recovery plan, some publications showed understanding and even support for Poland’s and Hungary’s stance.
In France, center-right Le Figaro even published an interview with Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau in its Thursday edition, i.e. on the day European leaders were to discuss a possible compromise solution for Poland and Hungary to accept the new rule-of-law mechanism. In that interview, Rau explained to readers of one of France’s most-read daily newspapers why Poland could not accept the rule-of-law mechanism in the proposed form as it stood in violation of the European treaties.
Earlier, such publications overtly critical of the proposed rule-of-law mechanism could only be found in the FigaroVox section of Le Figaro’s website, which is a section of its website (one of the most popular news websites in France) with op-eds that may differ from the newspaper’s editorial line. Thus, just after Poland’s and Hungary’s veto was announced on Nov. 16, two opinion pieces were published that did not conform to the mainstream version of events, which posits that the ongoing conflict is mainly a matter of Poland and Hungary refusing to abide by basic democratic standards.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
EPP May Vote Tomorrow on Exclusion of Hungarian Fidesz MEP
The head of Hungary’s ruling Fidesz-KDNP delegation in the European Parliament, MEP Tamas Deutsch, faces potential expulsion from the European People’s Party (EPP) political group in the European Parliament on Wednesday, according to information from an EPP delegate who wished to remain anonymous.
The topic will be discussed at meeting, and while the leadership of the political group has the final say on the vote, the high-ranking EPP source confirmed to Magyar Nemzet that they would certainly vote on Wednesday to exclude a Fidesz politician.
Asked what happens if Deutsch’s exclusion would prompt other Fidesz MEPs to also leave the faction, the source said they hope to be able to reach a compromise with the Hungarian ruling party.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
EU Fishermen Threaten to Blockade Ports if No Deal Ends Their Fishing Claims
A French fisheries chief has threatened to blockade British goods at European ports if continental fishermen are no longer allowed to plunder Britain’s lucrative fishing waters in the event of a no-deal Brexit on January 1st.
The UK is set to leave the EU’s institutions at the end of the transition period on December 31st, 2020. While the UK has said she would regain full control of her territorial waters after Brexit, negotiating short-term licences for fishing rights to EU countries, Brussels has demanded continued access similar to the current Common Fisheries Policy.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
European Union Fines Twitter for Violating Privacy Law
The European Union has levied a fine of €450,000 against social media platform Twitter for violating a privacy law instituted in 2018.
The fine, equal to about $546,000, is the first issued under the law to an American technology company. It stems from a breach publicized in January 2019 that, for at least four years, exposed the private Twitter messages of some users.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
First Doses of Coronavirus Vaccine Could Arrive in Czechia on Dec. 28
According to the Czech Vaccinological Society, the first 9,750 doses of COVID-19 vaccine could arrive in Czechia on Dec. 28, half in Prague and the other one in Brno. The substance from Pfizer is expected to be approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for the European Union on Dec. 21.
To receive immunity, each person must receive two doses. Czech Minister of Health Jan Blatný said that the vaccine would be approved no earlier than Dec. 29 and that vaccination in the Czech Republic could begin in six to eight weeks.
Czechia has ordered a vaccine for about two million people thanks to the joint purchase of the European Union. As the substance is already being manufactured, only the final EMA approval is pending and distribution will be possible. The vaccine must be stored at minus 70 degrees Celsius and will be imported in larger packages. Therefore, people will be able to get vaccinated in vaccinating centers in larger hospitals.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France: Nice Terror Attack: Tunisian Charged With Stabbing Murders of Three
The chief suspect in the fatal stabbings of three people in a church in the French city of Nice has been charged with their murder.
Brahim Aouissaoui, a 21-year-old Tunisian national, was shot and seriously injured by police after the October 29 attack. He was charged after his condition in hospital improved, allowing him to be questioned.
France last month raised its attack alert to the highest level after the Nice killings, which came two weeks after the beheading of history teacher Samuel Paty by an 18-year-old Chechen refugee for having shown his pupils cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed in a lesson on freedom of speech.
Aouissaoui had arrived in Europe from Tunisia in September, first crossing the Mediterranean to Italy and then crossing into France overland.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France: Far-Left Anarchist Extremists Indicted Over Terror Plot to Kill Police
French officials indicted seven far-left Antifa anarchist extremists in Paris for forming a criminal terrorist organisation, after security services foiled an alleged plot to commit violence against police and soldiers.
The seven ultra-left extremists, six men and one woman, are aged between 30 and 36. Five have been kept in custody while two others were released under judicial supervision.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Kaczynski on EU Budget Deal: We Did Everything Possible to Protect Polish Sovereignty
The leader of Law and Justice (PiS), Jaroslaw Kaczynski, explained in an interview with Gazeta Polska that after the European Union summit, Poland now has tools to better protect its sovereignty than it would have had without a compromise.
He said that everything that could have been gained was achieved.
“On one hand we secured the position of our country within the EU and on the other, we strengthened the Polish budget and the economy with a powerful injection of funds,” he said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
PM Orban: Europe Woke Up at the Last Minute
Having lost the United Kingdom, Europe is in bad shape, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in the Hungarian Parliament on Monday, adding that while Hungary and Poland may have won last week, “difficult issues remain ahead”.
In his speech before the agenda, Orban also spoke about the end of a six-month series of talks at the European Council last weekend. He explained that Europe is in a bad place today.
“We have lost the UK, which was one of the largest economies in Europe, and the coronavirus has also spread to the European continent,” he said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Poland Prepares to Launch National Vaccination Program
Polish President Andrzej Duda has discussed the details of the Covid-19 vaccination program with Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and Minister of health Adam Niedzielski, with the government stating that its goal is herd immunity for the Polish population by 2021.
Niedzielski said that he would recommend extending the restrictions that apply throughout the winter holidays “so that we really stay at home and spend them safely as to avoid the third wave of the pandemic.”
He also noted that the rate of decline of new cases was not as large as it used to be in the second half of November.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Poll: Many Czechs Try to Limit Their News About COVID-19
More than half of Czechs deliberately limit the amount of information they receive about coronavirus, but nevertheless, according to a November survey by the Center for Public Opinion Research (CVVM), there is still considerable interest in what is happening around the epidemic.
Three-fifths of people receive coronavirus news daily through television, radio broadcasts, and printed newspapers or magazines. Almost half of the public read about it on Internet news outlets, blogs, discussion forums, and social networks.
Getting coronavirus news via radio, television, or print newspapers or magazines was most common with people over the age of 65, with more than three-quarters of them receiving it at least once a day.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Spain: ‘Influencer’ Who Bragged About 500-Strong Illegal Parties Faces €60,000 Fine
An ‘influencer’ from Velez-Malaga who bragged about organising 500-strong illegal parties faces a fine of up to €60,000.
DESPITE his boasts on Instagram, Malaga Local Police say the reality was around 20 people attended his bashes — and while it’s not 500, it’s still a breach of Covid regulations.
In videos uploaded by the influencer — who has 300,000 followers — he bragged about having devised a “software” in India that allows him to “summon” 500 people to his party.
Another “fabrication”, said police.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Survey: Majority of Poles Consider EU Budget Compromise a Success for Poland
In what will be encouraging news for Poland’s ruling party, 60 percent of surveyed Poles believe that the result of the recent EU summit, which ratified the EU budget, was a success for the country, according to a survey by United Surveys.
As a reminder, Poland and Hungary had initially threatened to veto the EU budget. This was due to a mechanism which associated EU funds with rule of law. In the end, a compromise was reached at the recent EU summit in Brussels.
The survey showed that 9.9 percent of Poles believe that the negotiations which resulted in the compromise were “definitely a success” for Poland while 49.4 percent of those surveyed believe it will “probably be a success”.
Another 14.1 percent of Poles think that the negotiations were “probably a failure” and 9.9 percent believe it was “definitely a failure”.
Sixteen percent of those polled were unable to answer.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK Vaccine Minister U-Turn: ‘Absolutely No Plans for COVID Passports’
Britain’s vaccines minister announced Monday that the government will definitely not mandate the coronavirus shot, and that it has no plans to introduce immunity passports, or place restrictions on those who do not take the jab.
Nadhim Zahawi made the announcement after a petition with more than 324,000 signatures against the so called ‘COVID passports’ was debated in parliament.
“I think mandating vaccinations is discriminatory and completely wrong… and I would urge businesses listening to this debate today not to even think about this,” Zahawi said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Charity Group Pulls Ad Depicting Hospitalized Santa Claus Suffering From COVID-19
An ad designed by a group supporting the official charities of the British National Health Service is facing criticism for putting Santa Claus in a COVID-19 intensive care unit.
In the brief spot, an elderly man is wheeled into a hospital by ambulance workers and placed immediately on oxygen. Doctors and nurses are shown working on the old man as he eventually regains his health. Once recovered, he leaves a gift for the NHS staff that cared for him, and it is revealed that the old man was the jolly old elf himself.
The ad, entitled “The Gift,” was intended to engender gratitude and praise for frontline workers in the country’s hospitals, but instead has been widely panned for being deeply unsettling for children.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Farage: We Will be Told a Brexit-in-Name-Only is a ‘Fantastic Victory’
Brexit leader turned journalist Nigel Farage has warned the signs in the dying days of Brexit negotiations are pointing to bad news for those who believe that Britain would be better off outside the European Union.
Speaking in the inaugural webcast of his new talk series Nigel Farage Live, Mr Farage said the present negotiations had descended to the level of pretence and that ultimately, the conclusion was probably foregone. At this stage, the talks continuing were merely to convince the British people an effort was being made on their behalf, he said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: London’s Khan: Make Public Wear Masks Outside, Don’t Relax Corona Rules for Christmas
London mayor Sadiq Khan is calling on the government to force the public to wear masks in public, to shut down secondary schools, and cancel Christmas
Mayor Khan, of the left-wing Labour party, published a statement demanding “regular asymptomatic testing [be] extended to all those unable to work from home and to [pupils] and staff at London’s secondary schools, sixth-form college and FE [Further Education] colleges,” adding that “Face coverings should also be made mandatory in busy outdoor public spaces, given the numbers on our high streets in the run-up to Christmas.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Police broke up an illegal speakeasy-style party attended by more than 100 revellers held in the basement of a Soho barbershop.
CCTV released today shows officers dispersing the mass gathering at Cut and Grind in London’s West End at around 1am on Friday.
The Met is now threatening to fine the owner of the barbers £10,000 after it blasted the ‘frankly shocking’ and ‘irritating’ breach of coronavirus regulations.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Wales: Veteran Fined £1000 Under COVID Rules for Playing Football With His Sons in the Park
A veteran in Wales was fined £1000 pounds under COVID-19 rules for playing football with his two autistic sons in the park.
Yes, really.
“Just been to meet a veteran in Wales who was fined ~£1,000 for playing football in the park with his two autistic sons,” tweeted Ben Loughnane. “I don’t see how anyone can justify this. We need to take back the power we’ve ceded to the lockdown Stasi before it’s too late.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Travel Ban on Governor of Libya’s Central Bank Deals New Blow to Turkey
by Mohamed Sabry
In a new blow to Turkey’s power in Libya, the interior minister of the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA) Fathi Bashagha has imposed a travel ban on Libyan Central Bank Governor Sadik Al-Kabir.
Why Did the GNA Crack Down on the Central Bank Governor?
In a strongly-worded statement, the GNA Interior Ministry said all Libyan officials will be subject to the new travel restrictions without mentioning al-Kabir by name. However the ban came shortly after the bank governor filed a complaint with the Attorney-General’s office about having been prevented from travelling outside the country, making the linkage clear.
The rift between the two allies of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan surfaced against the backdrop of accusations that al-Kabir of squandering billions of dollars.
[…]
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Iranian Makeup Zombie Instagramer Jailed for 10 Years
Sahar Tabar, a 22-year-old Iranian woman, has received a 10-year prison sentence — all because she shared images of herself across social media. Tabar, whose real name is Fatemeh Khishvand, rose to fame after she posted images of herself where many referred to her as a zombie version of Angelina Jolie and even an animated character known as Corpse Bride.
She was arrested in 2019 for making money through “inappropriate means,” accused of encouraging youth towards blasphemy by means of her now deactivated Instagram account where she had nearly half a million followers.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Azerbaijan Breaks Ceasefire Agreement in Nagorno-Karabakh
12/13/2020 Washington, D.C. (International Christian Concern) — International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that on December 11, 2020, Azerbaijan broke its ceasefire agreement by launching an attack in Nagorno-Karabakh’s (Armenian: Artsakh’s)Hadrut district. Azerbaijani President Aliyev blamed Armenia for the attacks, threatening to “break its head with an iron fist” and saying, “This time, we will destroy them completely.”
This incident was reported by the Russian forces deployed as peacekeepers to monitor the ceasefire. It occurred just one day after Azerbaijan and Turkey hosted a joint military parade to celebrate their victory over Nagorno-Karabakh. Turkey is jointly serving with Russia in a peacekeeper role, but has supported Azerbaijan’s aggressive military actions in Nagorno-Karabakh. This location is ethnically Armenian and religiously Christian. Turkey and Azerbaijan share a common Turkish Islamic identity, commonly referred to as “one nation, two states.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Pakistani Christian Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Blasphemy Acquitted by Court
A Christian man who was sentenced to life in prison for blasphemy has been acquitted by a Pakistan court.
The Lahore High Court acquitted Imran Ghafur Masih after he spent more than 10 years in prison under Pakistan’s blasphemy laws. The court’s decision came as a shock to his family.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Singapore: At Golden Mile Complex, Some Are Still Partying Like There’s No COVID-19
Most people in Singapore have been disciplined in the fight against Covid-19 by observing safe distancing measures and adapting to changes amid the new normal.
But an underground scene appears to have taken root in some places where safe distancing is ignored and caution is cast to the wind.
Behind shuttered shopfronts in Golden Mile Complex, illegal gatherings of large groups partying have allegedly been going on since June.
Shin Min Daily News yesterday reported on a party where about 30 people were crammed into a small bar on the second storey of the complex on Monday.
The Chinese language newspaper said a 50-year-old woman had thrown the party for her boyfriend’s birthday, with attendees invited by word of mouth.
No SafeEntry
The bar reportedly did not implement SafeEntry or temperature taking, and customers were allowed to mingle freely without masks.
Scantily clad women were seen on a makeshift dance floor with loud music while patrons drank alcohol and socialised.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
China has claimed it is unaware of blacklisting Australian coal exports worth $14billion despite the communist regime’s media widely reporting the ban.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Huawei Accused of Hiding Facial Recognition Tech That Singles Out Uyghurs
China’s Huawei is a global and versatile tech giant, particularly known for its mobile and 5G network products and deployments, that are controversial among western governments for the company’s ties with its own country’s authorities.
But now a new dispute over its role is brewing closer to home, where the company is accused of, and denying, making facial recognition tech designed specifically to target one of China’s minorities, Uyghur Muslims, via something called “Uyghur alarms.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Children in Quarantine Not Allowed to Unwrap Their Own Christmas Presents Under COVID Rules
Children currently in hotel quarantine over Christmas in Western Australia have been told they will not be allowed to unwrap their own Christmas presents due to the threat of COVID.
Current law mandates that all travelers arriving from other countries undergo a 14 day hotel quarantine before they are allowed to go to their next destination.
This has left many forced to spend Christmas in temporary accommodation, but rules on gift giving have made the experience even more burdensome.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Australians will be split into 12 different age groups that will determine how soon they receive the COVID-19 vaccine when it’s rolled out in early 2021.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Jamaica: Police Receive Over 130 Tips About Illegal Parties
The Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) says it has received more than 130 tips about unauthorised parties and events since it made an appeal for persons to provide such reports on Friday, December 11.
Head of the JCF’s Corporate Communications Unit (CCU), Senior Superintendent of Police Stephanie Lindsay, said that the tips were received from citizens up to Sunday.
She was addressing a JIS Think Tank on Monday.
A ban has been placed on the staging of parties and events as part of measures to reduce the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19).
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Three Trinidad Soldiers Among 44 Held at Illegal Party
(Trinidad Guardian) Three T&T Defence Force personnel and a police officer were among 44 revellers that were held, as police busted an illegal “zesser” party in La Horquetta yesterday morning.
According to a press release issued by the T&T Police Service (TTPS), officers of the La Horquetta Police Station received reports of a party in progress at Cordia Crescent.
On arrival, the officers reportedly heard loud music and saw a large group of persons.
Several patrons managed to run away upon seeing the officers, while the rest were rounded up.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Danish Minister Defends Ethnic Stats on Crime and Employment
Danish Minister of Foreign Affairs and Integration Mattias Tesfaye has defended studying non-European migrant links to crime and employment.
Tesfaye stated that the Ministry of Immigration and Integration would be grouping non-Western countries of origin together when compare statistics for crime and unemployment rates for migrants in Denmark.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Greece: Pakistani Migrant Accused of Drugging and Raping Minors
A Pakistani migrant drug dealer in Athens has been accused of taking two teenaged girls prisoner before drugging them both and raping one in his apartment.
Police stated the girls, Greeks aged 16 and 17, had claimed that the man had held them captive in his fifth-floor apartment and had threatened them with violence, saying he would kill them if they tried to leave.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: 32 Arrests in Immigration Scams in Potenza and Messina
Stay permits sold in Potenza, fake marriages arranged in Messina
(ANSA) — ROME, DEC 9 — A total of 32 people were arrested in the southern cities of Potenza and Messina in probes into two separate scams to give migrants fraudulent stay permits in Italy.
Potenza police placed 16 people under house arrest for providing nine-month stay permits to migrants.
Potenza prosecutors placed 56 people under investigation in the local area and in Milan, Florence, Foggia and La Spezia.
The alleged scam gang charged migrants 5,000 euros per permit, but gave discounts as far as 1,500 euros on the basis of the number of requests or personal or family relationships, police said.
In Messina, meanwhile, police arrested another 16 people (five taken to prison and 11 placed under house arrest) on suspicion of belonging to two criminal groups who allegedly enabled irregular non-EU migrants to stay in Italy by arranging bogus marriages with Italian women.
The scam involved multiple fake marriages featuring men from Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia, police said.
Some migrants who had been expelled from Italy allegedly gained re-entry via the suspected scam.
Each fake marriage cost some 10,000 euros, police said.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Populism Not Dead Yet! Dutch Immigration Patriot Thierry Baudet Bounces Back
The Dutch populist anti-immigration leader Thierry Baudet has beaten back a media-orchestrated coup attempt that (not for the first time in the Netherlands) stampeded his more cucked followers. After a tumultuous two weeks, 75% of the members of the Forum for Democracy Party (FvD) voted to keep Baudet as leader. Despite Main Stream Media gloating, [Is reckless populism fading with Trump’s defeat?, By Gwynne Dyer, Jerusalem Post, December 14, 2020]populism and nationalism are still alive post-Trump.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Police have arrested a lorry driver after they found 12 suspected migrants in the back of a fruit truck on the M6 in Walsall yesterday.
Video shows the group of men being detained by officers responding to reports of people in the back of a lorry before they searched the HGV.
Today the Home Office said that Immigration Enforcement was contacted by West Midlands Police at 3.25pm on December 14 after police officers attended the incident on the M6 in Walsall, near J10.
The men, who presented themselves as Iranian and Iraqi nationals, were taken into custody where they will be interviewed by immigration officers.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: One of 69 Albanians Absolved of Illegal Immigration Charges is Convicted Murderer: Report
One of the dozens of migrants in the UK who had charges of illegal immigration dropped due to a technicality is reportedly a convicted murderer in his native Albania.
In November, British authorities intercepted a fishing trawler off the coast of Suffolk, finding aboard and arresting 69 Albanians. The Times revealed last week that the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) dropped charges against all of them due to a technicality: the arrests were made before the migrants had set foot on British soil. Ten of the illegals had already pleaded guilty and began their eight-week custodial sentences.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Eton Teacher Fired Over YouTube Video Loses Appeal
A tutor at Eton College lost an appeal to get reinstated after getting firedover a controversial YouTube lecture on the perils of radical feminism. Despite immense support from former students and the clear violation of spirit of free speech, the governing body of the half-millennium-old college upheld the decision to fire Will Knowland.
Will Knowland, a teacher of English, prepared an online lecture dubbed “Patriarchy Paradox” on the topic of radical feminism and toxic masculinity. In a nutshell, the lecture was critical of radical feminism and glorified the achievements of men throughout history. The lecture was supposed to be part of the Perspective Classes for older students. However, the school denied him permission to show it to students due to concerns over its content. Instead, Knowland posted the lecture on his personal YouTube channel.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Facebook has launched a new notifications system that will encourage users to leave groups whenever Facebook removes one of the group’s posts for coronavirus “misinformation.”
Fast Company reports that these notifications will be sent to all users that have liked, commented on, or shared a post that is later removed by Facebook for containing “false, potentially harmful information about COVID-19.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
LGBT Activist Calls for All Children to be Put on Puberty Blockers
An LGBT activist has called for ALL children to be put on puberty blockers until a decision is made as to what gender they are going to be.
Yes, really.
Zachary Antolak began as a gay man but now identifies as a lesbian woman named Zinnia Jones and is in a polyamorous relationship with another lesbian named Heather and a ‘trans woman’ named Penny.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
https://www.northcentralpa.com/business/bradford-county-da-no-criminal-cases-will-be-filed-against-businesses-who-choose-to-remain/article_f9a3444c-3bea-11eb-8d58-bb60b04f937f.html
Very funny article.
Halal pork sausage is bought for convicted Muslims in Perm Territory
https://zwezda.su/security/proisshestviya/12/v-permskom-krae-dlya-osuzhdennyh-musulman-zakupayut-halyalnuyu-kolbasu-iz-svininy
May Google translate help you!
I’ve just noticed “scofflaw” in your header, Baron. The word is unknown to my Oxford English Dictionary (roughly equivalent to Webster’s, for American readers), but Googling tells me it originated in the US’ Prohibition era, referring to those reprobates who still drank alcohol.
Such incidental delights make “Gates” so much more enjoyable than more single-minded blogs.
Mark,
I had no idea that “scofflaw” was an Americanism!
I have both the OED and Webster’s, but the word wouldn’t be in either of them, because the latter is the 1909 edition, which I inherited from my grandmother’s first cousin. It’s an excellent dictionary, rich with engravings that illustrate the words.
For etymological purposes I have the Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology (1966), which is unsurpassed. If a word isn’t in there, however, I check the Webster’s, which is fairly good for etymology, and has lots of obscure words.
Regarding the Dems plans to steal the Georgia senatorial runoff election, it should be noted that the Ga. Secretary of State violated the Georgia constitution when he set the December 7 deadline to register to vote in the runoff.
Please help to try to expose this–somebody in Georgia needs to file suit to stop this.
Per the Georgia constitution:
“Paragraph II. Run-off election. A run-off election shall be a continuation of the general election and only persons who were entitled to vote in the general election shall be entitled to vote therein…”
What this means is a voter must have been registered (or have filed an application to register) by the deadline for the November 3 general election in order to be eligible to vote in any resulting runoff election.