The EU announced that it will train 15,000 Ukrainian troops and send another €500 million in aid to Ukraine. Meanwhile, in an effort to help its NATO ally, France will begin sending natural gas directly to Germany.
In other news, a Sukhoi Su-34 fighter jet crashed into a high-rise apartment building in the southern Russian city of Yeysk, generating a fireball and setting off a fire from the first to the ninth floor of the building. The crew of the fighter jet ejected, but there is no information on casualties among tenants of the apartments.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to Dean, Dora, DV, JW, LP, MM, Reader from Chicago, Roger, SS, Upananda Brahmachari, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.
Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.
Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. I check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.
Dare we say the adoption of crypto looks like it is… accelerating?
Mastercard is now joining the ranks of a number of other major institutions now playing a role in helping plug crypto into the mainstream, announcing this week that they are debuting a service that is going to allow consumers to buy and sell digital assets through their bank accounts.
Banks had traditionally been hesitant to offer such services to their retail customers, as much of the crypto world remains in a state of regulatory limbo. Mastercard could wind up speeding up adoption, as they have “thousands of bank partners”.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
10 PayPal Alternatives — for Privacy or Free Speech
As digital payments have become increasingly popular, many of the largest companies in this sector have used their dominant position to censor users, harvest their private financial data, and threaten them with huge fines if they violate vague and subjective rules.
Here are some alternative payment services that promote freedom, reject censorship, and/or have privacy-preserving features.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
81 Percent of Portlanders Say 2020 Riots Destroyed City’s Image: Poll
A new poll reveals that voters in Portland’s tri-county area “strongly believe” that the Black Lives Matter and Antifa riots of 2020 did not improve race relations and instead “sullied the city’s reputation.”
The poll, commissioned by the Oregonian/Oregon Live, found that 81 percent of likely voters believe that the riots “did more harm than good to Portland’s image.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Americans Care More About the Economy, Immigration Than January 6: Poll
A new poll conducted by Harvard/Harris has revealed a disconnect between the American people and the Democrat party in terms of the importance of January 6.
The poll, conducted by The Harris Poll and HarrisX between October 12 and 13 among 2,010 registered voters, found that voters believe the Democrat Party’s issue of highest concern is January 6, while the issues surrounding that date rank low in average Americans’ worries.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Arabella Advisors: The Most Powerful Left-Wing Dark Money Network in America Expands Operations
This is the first part of a Fox News Digital series about the Arabella Advisors-managed dark money network.
The firm overlooking America’s largest liberal dark money network is expanding its operations as it experiences skyrocketing cash flows, which include billions of dollars raised and poured into progressive causes and initiatives across the country in recent years.
Arabella Advisors, a Washington, D.C., consulting firm that manages four nonprofits that host dozens of shadowy left-wing groups, including one that works with the Biden administration on policy, recently acquired New York-based Kiwi Partners, which provides nonprofit accounting and consulting services.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Astronomers Have Just Watched the Most Powerful Explosion Ever Seen
A gamma ray burst about 2.4 billion light years away is being called “the BOAT” — the brightest of all time — and is so powerful it has even affected Earth’s atmosphere
Astronomers have spotted what may be the most powerful explosion we’ve ever seen. The gamma ray burst, called GRB 221009A, was spotted on 9 October, and even its afterglow is brighter than most objects in the sky.
This type of gamma ray burst (GRB) is thought to occur when a massive star explodes in a supernova, leaving behind a black hole. The explosion creates an extraordinary jet of light which makes up the GRB itself, and then the supernova causes a dimmer afterglow. This particular GRB appears so bright partially because it is about 2.4 billion light years away from Earth, making it one of the closest GRBs ever spotted in addition to being the brightest.
“If we look at all of the gamma ray bursts that have been detected, this one stands apart,” says Jillian Rastinejad at Northwestern University in Illinois. “Informally, we’ve been calling it the BOAT — the brightest of all time.” She and her colleagues calculated that a GRB this bright is expected to occur only once every thousand years or so.
We don’t know exactly how powerful this burst is, though, despite the fact that many telescopes around the world are looking at it. That’s partially because it’s so bright that it saturates the detectors of gamma-ray telescopes, so all they see are completely white pixels with no detail, says Rastinejad’s colleague Andrew Levan at Radboud University in the Netherlands: “If you had gamma-ray eyes, you’d be blinded.” Current estimates put the energy of the GRB between 10^54 and 10^55 ergs, he says — in contrast, the total energy released by the sun throughout its lifetime is expected to be about 10^51 ergs.
GRB 221009A is so bright that it’s affecting Earth, even from billions of light years away. Naval radio transmitters recorded a strange disturbance in the upper atmosphere, which seems to have been caused by the powerful light from the GRB slamming into it. Detectors that search for high-energy photons — particles of light — have also seen extraordinary particles with energies far higher than anything produced at the Large Hadron Collider.
This has made a splash among astronomers. “It seems like pretty much every telescope in the world is starting to look at it,” says Rastinejad. But to learn more about the supernova itself and its home galaxy, they will have to wait until the bright jet fades, which could take months. Once that occurs, we should have a better idea of why this GRB was so extraordinarily bright.
| — Hat tip: Dora | [Return to headlines] |
Biden DOJ Wants 6-Month Prison Sentence for Steve Bannon
The Biden Department of Justice on Monday recommended that former Trump adviser Steve Bannon receive a six-month jail sentence and a $200,000 fine for contempt of congress, after he ignored a subpoena from the Jan. 6 select committee.
Bannon, 68, was charged with two counts last November; failure to appear to give testimony, and failure to produce “documents and communications,” or “provide a log of any withheld records.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Boston University Creates COVID Strain With 80% Mortality in Mice
Researchers at Boston University have created a new strain of Covid-19 that has an 80% kill rate in humanized mice.
In an effort to research what makes Omicron so transmissible — and funded in part by grants from the NIH and Anthony Fauci’s NIAID, the researchers cobbled the Omicron spike protein to the original strain of Covid-19. The resulting virus was five times more infectious than Omicron.
“The Omicron spike (S) protein, with an unusually large number of mutations, is considered the major driver of these phenotypes. We generated chimeric recombinant SARS-CoV-2 encoding the S gene of Omicron in the backbone of an ancestral SARS-CoV-2 isolate and compared this virus with the naturally circulating Omicron variant,” reads the pre-print.
The new research, which has not been peer-reviewed, was conducted by a team from Boston and Florida.
“In…mice, while Omicron causes mild, non-fatal infection, the Omicron S-carrying virus inflicts severe disease with a mortality rate of 80 percent,” the researchers wrote, adding that while the spike protein is responsible for infectivity, changes to other parts of its structure are responsible for its deadliness.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Breaking: Joe Biden Knew of Hunter’s Shady Business Dealings: Whistleblowers
New whistleblower documents obtained by Senator Chuck Grassley have revealed that President Biden “was aware of Hunter Biden’s business arrangements and may have been involved in some of them.”
On Monday morning, Grassley sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, FBI Director Christopher Wray, and US Attorney for Delaware David Weiss outlining new whistleblower allegations that claim the FBI has “significant, impactful and voluminous evidence with respect to potential criminal conduct by Hunter Biden and James Biden,” according to Fox News.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
California Gov. Gavin Newsom Announces COVID State of Emergency Will End in February 2023
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday the state will end its COVID-19 state of emergency in February 2023, nearly three years after it was first declared.
The months-long timeline will better prepare the state health care system for any surge in COVID cases that may result after the holidays and will give local governments time to make necessary changes, Newsom’s office said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Controversial Chicago Priest and Activist Father Michael Pfleger Facing New Sexual Abuse Allegation
A controversial, anti-violence activist priest in Chicago who once caught attention for his relationship with former President Barack Obama is under investigation for another sexual abuse of a minor case.
The Archdiocese of Chicago announced Saturday that Father Michael Pfleger will be under investigation for a new allegation of sexual abuse of a minor said to have taken place more than 30 years ago, according to a statement.
“Father Pfleger has been asked to step aside from ministry and live away from the parish while the allegation is investigated. He has agreed to cooperate fully with this request,” Archbishop of Chicago Cardinal Blase J. Cupich said Saturday.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Court Docs: Child Killed in Accidental August Shooting at Boy Scouts Camp Was Shot by AK-47
HONOLULU (KHNL/KMGB/Gray News) — The gun that killed an 11-year-old boy scout at a camp on a Hawaii Island in August was an AK-47 semi-automatic rifle, according to court documents.
Officials said Manuel Carvalho died from a single gunshot wound at Camp Honokaia on Aug. 28. Police had ruled the shooting death as accidental.
The court documents were filed by the boy’s family, according to KHNL/KGMB.
During the investigation into the boy’s death, police determined the unsupervised boy picked up a loaded firearm that belonged to his father.
As the child put the gun back down, it reportedly discharged and fatally shot him. An autopsy concluded the victim died from the single gunshot wound.
In September, detectives said they initiated 23 firearm-related offenses, including criminally negligent storage of a firearm.
Police said the offenses were against three men who were at the scene of the incident, and have been identified as the registered owners of multiple firearms.
In total, authorities said 18 firearms and various ammunition was recovered.
| — Hat tip: Roger | [Return to headlines] |
Dayton Officer Stabbed in the Neck While Responding to Mental Health Call
DAYTON, Ohio — A Dayton police officer is recovering after being stabbed in the neck while responding to a mental health call.
Body cam video released captured the startling moment.
The body camera video shows three officers in the home spending 15 minutes trying to convince 29-year-old Tyler Patrick to go with them to a hospital when Patrick pulled out a knife.
Doctors say he just missed officer George Kloos’ arteries and despite the look of it, Kloos’ injuries are not life-threatening.
Patrick is in custody, charged with multiple counts of felonious assault.
| — Hat tip: JW | [Return to headlines] |
DeSantis, Florida GOP Transforming Higher Education by Going After Woke Ideology
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his fellow Republicans are transforming education in their state by targeting woke ideology taught in schools.
DeSantis has pushed a bill that would allow parents to sue schools over the teaching of critical race theory, according to Politico.
“Nobody wants this crap,” DeSantis said at a press conference in 2021 to support the “Stop WOKE Act.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Disgraced Ex-FBI Agent Tells MSNBC ‘9/11 is Nothing Compared to Jan. 6’
Former FBI agent Peter Strzok claimed on MSNBC Monday that 9/11, the deadliest terror attack in American history, was “nothing” in comparison to Jan. 6.
After “Deadline: White House” host Nicolle Wallace claimed the Capitol Riot was the “deadliest attack on the U.S. Capitol in our, you know, in history,” Strzok trivialized the September 11 terror attack that killed nearly 3,000 Americans.
Strzok replied, “I think that’s right, and I think if you look at the scale in terms of a threat to democracy — I mean, 9/11 was a tragedy. We lost thousands of lives in a horrific way, we still mourn to this day, but when you look at something that is an attack on democracy, something that could actually bring about a fundamental change to American governance as we understand it — 9/11 is nothing compared to January 6.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
FBI Whistleblower Says Bureau Using Excessive Tactics to Ensure ‘Process is the Punishment’
An FBI agent in Florida says he chose to blow the whistle on his agency because it has not been following its own rules while investigating the Jan. 6 riot, designing cases to exaggerate the threat of domestic terrorism in America and using excessive tactics to ensure “the process is the punishment” even if a suspect is innocent.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Female Juror Dismissed From Whitmer Kidnapping Trial for Flirting With Defendant
A female juror was dismissed from the trial of three men accused of plotting to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer on Friday after attorneys said that she was flirting with one of the defendants.
NBC News reports that Judge Thomas Wilson said that the woman was removed from the jury after concerns were raised that the juror was having non-verbal communication with defendant Paul Bellar.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Gisele Baretto Fetterman, wife of Pennsylvania Democratic Senate nominee John Fetterman, criticized NBC News after it conducted an interview with her husband during which they discussed accommodating the lawmaker with closed captioning after he had a stroke.
Fetterman had a stroke in May prior to the Pennsylvania Senate primaries and uses closed captions to communicate more clearly. Fetterman used closed captioning during his sit-down interview with NBC News’s Dasha Burns.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Jill Biden Booed During Eagles-Cowboys Showdown
There was no brotherly love for first lady Jill Biden from Philadelphia Eagles fans Sunday night.
Biden, who was raised just outside Philadelphia, and doesn’t hide her support for the city’s pro teams, was greeted with boos as she took part in the coin toss prior to the matchup between the Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys.
The first lady was serving as the Eagles’ honorary captain for the game and was also present to promote the Biden administration’s Cancer Moonshot initiative.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Jury Has Yet to Reach a Verdict in Danchenko Trial, Will Resume Deliberations Tuesday
The federal case against Steele dossier primary source Igor Danchenko ended Monday with closing arguments and jury deliberations, but without a verdict being reached.
The jury is set to resume deliberations Tuesday morning on four of the five counts of lying to the FBI that Danchenko has been charged with.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Kanye West Announces Plans to Buy Parler
In a press release, Parlement Technologies announced that rapper Kanye West, aka Ye, will acquire Parler and the deal is expected to close before the end of the year.
Parler is a free speech alternative to Twitter. Following the January 6, 2021 riot at the US Capitol, the app was removed from Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store.
A few days later, Amazon booted it from its web hosting service.
The platform was back online in February 2021 and is also available on Google and Apple’s app stores after agreeing to moderate content.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Liberal Media Slams DeSantis for Relaxing Voting Rules in Hurricane-Battered Florida Counties
On Thursday, DeSantis signed an emergency executive order that expands main-in ballot access as well as early voting availabilities in counties that faced the heaviest damage from the Category 4 hurricane.
Following Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ move to ease voting rules in areas of the state hardest hit by Hurricane Ian, liberal outlets have slammed the decision, claiming that the decision affects only the red counties that saw hurricane devastation, according to Fox News.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Majority of Americans Oppose Moving Toward Socialism: Poll
A majority of Americans oppose a national shift away from capitalism and toward socialism, a recent survey revealed.
Overall, 60% of registered voters opposed such a shift, while 32% support it, according to a recent Fox News poll. That position tended to trend along partisan lines, with 83% of Republicans, 63% of independents, and 35% of Democrats disinclined toward moving toward socialism. A Majority of Democrats, however, 53%, saw a shift in that direction as a positive move.
Moreover, 54% of voters said they believed the country was trending in that direction, while just 38% said it was not.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Mom Charged With Murder for Stabbing 5-Year-Old Daughter to Death at Park, Officials Say
TOMBALL, Texas (Gray News) — A mother in Texas has been charged with capital murder for stabbing her 5-year-old daughter to death at a park, officials said.
According to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, 37-year-old Melissa White Towne admitted to intentionally killing her daughter.
The sheriff’s office said Towne stabbed the child at Spring Creek Park in Tomball on Sunday afternoon and then drove her to the hospital.
When she arrived, she asked hospital staff for a wheelchair because “her daughter’s body was hurting.” An emergency room nurse walked with Towne back to her Jeep Cherokee, where the nurse found the 5-year-old unresponsive in the vehicle.
Officials said the child’s body was partially wrapped in plastic and mesh bags, and there were lacerations and ligature marks on her neck. She was pronounced dead at the hospital.
Officers with the Tomball Police Department responded to the hospital and took Towne into custody. She was charged with capital murder and is being held at the Harris County Jail.
| — Hat tip: DV | [Return to headlines] |
Pittsburgh Shooting Leaves 3 Dead, 1 Wounded
No arrests have been announced for the suspect or suspects who killed 3 people in the PA shooting
Two women and a man were killed and a fourth person wounded in a shooting in Pittsburgh, authorities said.
Pittsburgh Public Safety officials said the gunfire occurred near a busy North Side intersection at about 10 p.m. Saturday.
Public safety spokesperson Cara Cruz said one woman died at the scene. A second woman and a man were pronounced dead at Allegheny General Hospital. Cruz said another man who arrived at the hospital was admitted in stable condition with a gunshot wound to a leg.
| — Hat tip: MM | [Return to headlines] |
Police Arrest Man After 8 People Injured in Shooting Near JMU
HARRISONBURG, Va. — A man has been charged in a shooting at an outdoor gathering in Virginia over the weekend that sent eight people to hospitals, police said.
Harrisonburg police arrested Tyreaf Isaiah Fleming, 20, of Harrisonburg, on Sunday afternoon, the department said in a statement. Fleming is charged with attempted murder, aggravated malicious wounding and firearms offenses, police said. Online court records do not list an attorney who could speak on Fleming’s behalf.
Witnesses said shots were fired into the crowd at an outdoor gathering on Devon Lane in Harrisonburg around 2:20 a.m. Sunday, police said in a statement. Statements from witnesses and security camera video helped investigators identify Fleming as a suspect.
| — Hat tip: LP | [Return to headlines] |
Ron DeSantis Ranks Number One in Approval Rating in Survey Over Major U.S. Politicians
A survey conducted by the Center for American Political Studies (CAPS) at Harvard University and The Harris Poll found that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ranks number one for the highest net approval rating among all major U.S. politicians.
The survey, which was conducted earlier in October, asked respondents to rate the top political figures in the U.S. in degrees ranging from “very favorable” to “very unfavorable.” It also provided the option for survey takers to say they “never heard of them” or had “no opinion.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Virginia Gov. Youngkin Announces Plan to Bolster Police Forces, Combat Rising Crime
Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin on Monday announced the debut of a new, statewide initiative to bolster the support of law enforcement and combat crime.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
During the trial of Waukesha Christmas parade massacre suspect Darrell Brooks on Monday, a witness who let the suspect into his home shortly after the massacre was carried out testified.
Daniel Rider told the courtroom that on the night of the Christmas Parade, November 21, 2021, he was at his home where he had recently returned after a hunting trip, when Darrell Brooks knocked on his door, claiming to be homeless.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Watch: Chaos in Minneapolis as Crowds Brawl, Street Race, Harass Police Horse — ‘Police Were Scarce’
Video footage captured chaotic scenes in downtown Minneapolis as crowds were seen brawling, blocking traffic, twerking, street racing, and even harassing police horses.
The troubling events occurred outside a gay bar — called the Gay 90s — on Saturday night and were recorded and shared on social media by independent photojournalist Rebecca Brannon. She noted that the content in her video was just a “fraction” of what she saw “and was able to capture in passing” that night.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Liberal Fertilizer Climate Target Would Have Negligible Impact on Emissions: Expert
An agrologist told parliamentarians that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s arbitrary 30% fertilizer emission reduction target for farmers would have a negligible impact on global CO2 levels.
Robert Saik, Founder and CEO of AGvisorPRO, told the House of Commons Environment Committee on Oct. 4 that a 30% reduction in agriculture emissions would amount to a cut of only 0.0028% of 1% to global greenhouse gases.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
New Brunswick Fourth Province to Oppose Liberals’ Gun Grab Scheme
New Brunswick has joined three other provinces in opposing the Trudeau Liberals’ request to use provincial police resources to buy back banned firearms from law-abiding citizens.
At the 2022 Federal, Provincial and Territorial Ministers Responsible for Justice and Public Safety meeting, New Brunswick, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba called on the federal government to stop its plan to use provincial RCMP as confiscation agents.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Reality Check: How Woke Are Our Schools?
As Canadians across the country head to the polls in the upcoming municipal elections, school board trustees are going woke. While many Canadians don’t fill out their entire ballot, future school board trustees are on the list and your choice affects what gets taught in schools. Canada’s schools are rife with woke trustees who are teaching students what to think, instead of how.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Recap of Day 3 of the Emergencies Act Hearings
On Day 3 of the Emergencies Act hearings, City of Ottawa officials testified that federal Parliamentary Protective Service officers blocked efforts from “good faith” convoy leaders in moving trucks out of residential neighbourhoods and onto Wellington Street.
Testimony today came from Ottawa city manager Steve Kanellakos and Mayor Jim Watson’s chief of staff Serge Arpin.
Evidence from today’s hearings primarily focused on negotiations between convoy leadership and the City of Ottawa. In particular, a large amount of time was devoted to discussing the agreement reached by Freedom Convoy leadership and the City of Ottawa to move trucks out of residential neighbourhoods and onto Wellington St.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Vancouver Left-Wing Mayor Loses Re-Election Bid to Law and Order Candidate
Running on a platform that included plans to hire 100 more police officers, Ken Sim was elected the new mayor of Vancouver on Saturday beating out incumbent mayor and former NDP MP Kennedy Stewart.
Sim’s election came after a heated race that largely centred on public safety and homelessness, with Sim declaring the city “in crisis”. Having received 49% of the vote, Sim will be the city’s first Chinese mayor.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Watch: Convoy Lawyer Cross-Examines Ottawa City Councillors
A lawyer representing the Freedom Convoy’s side of the public inquiry into Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s use of the Emergencies Act cross-examined a pair of Ottawa city councillors.
Rob Kittredge, a lawyer with the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, whose organization is working alongside The Democracy Fund, a registered Canadian charity that has featured prominently on Rebel News through FightTheFines.com and FightVaccinePassports.com, pressed Ottawa city councillors Mathieu Fleury and Catherine McKenney about the city’s response to the Freedom Convoy.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
After Greta’s Blessing, Germany Extends Life of Three Remaining Nuclear Plants
Five days after Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg broke ranks with the German Green Party and urged the country not to shut down its remaining nuclear power plants, Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced on Monday that the country would do just that — by extending the lifetime its three remaining facilities.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Czech PM Promises No Higher Taxes, Except for ‘Temporary’ War Tax
Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala promised on the Naprimo program on TV Nova that his government will not raise taxes on households, with the exception of the “war tax” which he claims is a special measure that does not apply to all sectors and is temporary.
“We have to make the state leaner in the future. Every bureaucratic matter costs a lot of money,” Fiala said.
The Czech prime minister said that he pays 2,800 korunas (€114) in advance for electricity, as well as over 10,000 korunas (€407) for gas. At the same time, the prime minister admitted that gas deposits for his family have increased several times.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
EU Prosecutor Opens Probe Into COVID Vaccine Purchases
Two weeks after Pfizer CEO bailed on EU testimony in the wake of a report highlighting a ‘secretive’ vaccine deal between himself and European Commission President Ursula ‘missing texts’ von der Leyen, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) has opened an investigation into the EU’s Covid-19 vaccine purchases, Politico reports.
EPPO, and independent EU body, is responsible for investigating and prosecuting financial crimes, including fraud, money laundering and corruption, according to the report. In its Friday announcement, the body did not specify who was being investigated, or which contracts were the subject of inquiry.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
EU to Train 15,000 Ukrainian Troops, Send Another €500 Million in Aid
The European Union will establish a mission to train around 15,000 Ukrainian troops and donate another 500 million euros ($485 million) in aid to support Kyiv against Moscow.
The supranational bloc has announced it will send another €500 million, of which €490 million is earmarked for the purchase of military equipment, under its so-called European Peace Facility (EPF) fund — bringing total donations to Ukraine via this route to €3.1 billion.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
EU’s Borrell Under Fire for ‘Europe is a Garden, Rest of the World is Jungle’ Remarks
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has come under fire for saying in a recent speech given in Belgium that “Europe is a garden” while the outside world is a “jungle”.
There are growing calls for him to retract the analogy and to issue an apology over what many are saying was a speech tinged with racist and imperialistic overtones. He was addressing an audience of his own diplomatic corps.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France Starts Sending Natural Gas Directly to Germany
France started sending gas directly to Germany for the first time on Thursday, GRTgaz said.
The French network operator began modifying its pipeline networks months ago to enable flow in the opposite direction to that originally intended.
“In a novel energy situation linked to the war in Ukraine, France is showing solidarity with its German neighbor by supplying gas directly to it,” the company said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
German Protesters and Parliamentary Delegate Member Discuss WHO’s Pandemic Treaty Power Grab
In today’s report, I interviewed German protesters who are against the World Health Organization (WHO), a group that plans to gain global health crisis authority through their pandemic treaty.
I also interviewed a World Health Summit participant who is part of a team of official parliamentary delegates in attendance, and who is working on signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the World Health organization to ask his opinion on what the Pandemic Treaty would do to the sovereignty of other countries if it passed.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
German Court Rules Intelligence Service Can Continue Surveilling Identitarian Movement
Germany’s Identitarian Movement suffered a defeat before the Cologne Administrative Court, with the court ruling that Germany’s’ domestic intelligence service can continue monitoring the group.
The powerful Office for the Protection of the Constitution, which is tasked with monitoring threats to the country’s constitution and democracy, has already monitored the group since 2019 after the agency classified it as “right-wing extremist.” However, after the ruling, the intelligence agency will be able to monitor members, including reading their emails and listening to their phone calls, without a warrant.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Great Reset: Dutch Children Fed Mealworms at School as Meat Alternative
Dutch schoolchildren have been fed mealworms as part of a project aimed at encouraging people to consume alternatives to meat.
Aimed at encouraging the consumption of meat alternatives, the “Smaakmissie Avontuurlijke eiwitten”, or “Flavor Mission Adventure Proteins” project in the Netherlands has seen school children as young as ten fed mealworms.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Hungary: Orban: We Need an Effective Army That Can Guarantee Peace
We Hungarians need an effective army of deterrent force that can guarantee peace, because “he who does not possess strength will also not be right,” Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Saturday in Budapest.
In his speech to mark the swearing in of people undertaking voluntary military service, as well as the official delivery of LYNX combat vehicles, the prime minister highlighted: It is time to revive our military spirit, because peoples that are incapable of doing so “are certain to fail in the future”. There are nations that have already begun preparations, and “we cannot fall behind in this either”, Viktor Orban declared.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Kaczynski: Poland Would Welcome Nuclear Weapons But it’s Not Possible Right Now
The leader of the Polish ruling Law and Justice (PiS), Jaroslaw Kaczynski, made clear during a speech in Silesia over the weekend that although Poland would welcome the presence of nuclear weapons on its soil, it recognizes that this currently is impossible.
During his speech, he noted that his brother, the late President Lech Kaczynski, had been pressing for a U.S. anti-missile shield; this is gradually being constructed in Radzikowo on the shore of the Baltic Sea and will protect against intercontinental rockets launched from Russia. Poland is also developing its ability to launch Patriot missiles in response to any Russian assault, as well as preparing shields to defend against short-range missiles.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Meloni’s Brothers of Italy Party Plans to Expand Its Presence in Romania
Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy (FdI) party has the ambition to expand its Romanian presence, Lino Elicona, head of FdI Romania told Romanian sports and lifestyle portal Fanatik in an interview.
Given the special provisions of the Italian constitution regarding elections, boosting the party’s presence in the country with a large Italian community has a direct goal that could translate into parliamentary mandates, Elicona says.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
New UK Chancellor Reverses Almost All of Truss’ Recently Announced Tax Cuts
Jeremy Hunt has announced that the government will abandon almost the entirety of the new Conservative government’s economic plan only revealed less than a month ago.
In a recorded statement on Monday, the newly appointed U.K. chancellor hammered the final nail in the coffin of his predecessor Kwasi Kwarteng’s plan for tax cuts to boost economic growth, instead opting for extra tax hikes and a reduction in public spending.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Pro-Democracy Protestor Dragged From UK Street Into Chinese Consulate and Beaten
During a pro-democracy protest at the Chinese consulate in Manchester, England on Sunday one vocal critic of the CCP named Bob was yanked inside the consulate gates from the street, which is UK sovereign soil, and then beaten by a gang of men until rescued by British police.
According to the BBC, Bob said, “they dragged me inside, they beat me up,” adding “It’s ridiculous. They [the attackers] shouldn’t have done that. We are supposed to have freedom to say whatever we want here [in the UK].”
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‘Stop Crimes Against Hindus’, 180 British Indian Orgs Write to UK PM Liz Truss
‘Hindus Under Siege’: 180 British Indian Organisations Write To UK PM Liz Truss, Request Help.
Arghya Mitra | HENB | London | Oct 16, 2022:: The Hindu organisations and rights forums jointly wrote British Prime Minister Liz Truss to give proper protection from the insane attacks on the Hindus in UK under a certain conspiracy of promoting ‘Hinduphobia’.
One hundred and eighty British Indian and Hindu organisations and temples have written a letter to UK PM Liz Truss requesting her to intervene and protect them as they are being targeted and feel under siege in Britain following the violence in Leicester and Birmingham. The open letter, signed by organisations that include National Council of Hindu Temples, BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Sanstha UK, Indian National Students Association UK, Iskcon Manchester, Overseas Friends of BJP (UK), the Hindu Lawyers Association (UK), and Insight UK, calls on the PM to ensure the police investigate the crimes against Hindus, to provide financial assistance to Hindus who were victims, including their businesses, and calls for her to commission an independent investigation into anti-Hindu hatred and its causes, and “recognise the threat of British homegrown extremism and how certain parts of Britain have become hubs of radicalisation”…
| — Hat tip: Upananda Brahmachari | [Return to headlines] |
Sweden Gets Populist-Conservative-Liberal Coalition Government: Moderate Leader Elected PM
Longtime left-ruled Sweden has a new Prime Minister, with Moderate Party leader Ulf Kristersson elected by the country’s parliament as PM after a coalition agreement between the centre-right parties was reached last week.
Kristersson became Sweden’s new Prime Minister on Monday by a vote of 176 to 173 with no abstentions and is expected to present his new government on Tuesday. The election of Kristersson comes despite his centre-right party placing third behind the populist Sweden Democrats in last month’s election.
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UK: Civil Engineer Shuts Dartford Crossing in Just Stop Oil Protest
One of the demonstrators is a “bridge design engineer from London”.
Morgan Trowland, 39, said: “As a professional civil engineer, each year as I renew my registration, I commit to acting within our code of ethics, which requires me to safeguard human life and welfare and the environment.
“Our government has enacted suicidal laws to accelerate oil production: killing human life and destroying our environment.
“I can’t challenge this madness in my desk job, designing bridges, so I’m taking direct action, occupying the QE2 bridge until the government stops all new oil.”
Trowland was accompanied by a 33-year-old teacher from London known only as Marcus.
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UK: Calls Grow for Conservatives to Brig Back Boris Johnson as Prime Minister
There are growing calls within the British commentariat and Conservative party membership to reinstate former leader Boris Johnson as prime minister following the incumbent Liz Truss’ catastrophic policy u-turns and the latest devastating polling figures.
More than 10,000 Conservative party members and supporters have backed a petition pushed by the Conservative Post news outlet, demanding that Johnson be “reinstated into his rightful position to lead our party into the next General Election and deliver Great Britain a great future.”
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United States of Europe: German Left-Wing Leader Advocates for Massive Expansion of European Union
The European Union should be massively expanded both in scope and power in order to have a greater influence on world events, Germany’s left-wing Chancellor has declared.
Olaf Scholz, the leftist leader of Germany, declared his support for the massive expansion of the European Union on Saturday, arguing that the transnational bloc should be enlarged in order to have a greater influence on worldly affairs.
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‘Visegrad is More Important Than Benelux Countries’
While Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic support Ukraine, Hungary keeps a strict distance from the western war drive and values its neutrality. Now the Visegrad heads of state met in person for the first time after a year and a half — and tried to reach unity.
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Gazprom CEO Says All Nord Stream NatGas Could be Redirected to Turkey
Russia’s natural gas supplies to Europe via the Nord Stream pipeline system will likely not be restored and could be redirected in pipelines via the Black Sea to Turkey.
Russian energy giant Gazprom PJSC CEO Alexei Miller told Russian television on Sunday that NatGas supplies via Nord Stream will be redirected to Turkey if the necessary infrastructure is constructed.
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Belarus on High Terrorist Alert
Belarusian armed forces and special services have been placed on high alert to swiftly respond to and contain any threats from neighboring states, Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei said in an interview with Russia’s Izvestia newspaper on Friday.
“The head of our country held a series of meetings with law enforcement agencies, and a counter-terrorist operation regime was introduced,” Makei told the paper, without elaborating on the scope of the alleged declaration. As of Friday morning, there were no official public announcements about the move from the security services.
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Fighter Jet Crashes Into Russian Building in Yeysk City
A large blaze engulfed the building and witnesses on the scene said it was on fire from the first to the ninth floor.
A military aircraft crashed into a residential building in the southern Russian city of Yeysk after what the defence ministry said was engine failure.
Unconfirmed footage on social media showed a large fireball erupting from a multi-story building on Monday.
The aircraft was identified as a Sukhoi Su-34 fighter jet. The crew managed to eject before the plane crashed, according to Russia’s defence ministry.
A large blaze engulfed the building, stoked by the jet fuel, and witnesses on the scene were quoted by Russia’s Tass news agency as saying it was on fire from the first to the ninth floor. Firefighters were battling the blaze.
“While climbing to perform a training flight from the military airfield of the southern military district, a Su-34 aircraft crashed,” a ministry statement said. “The cause of the crash of the aircraft was a fire in one of the engines during takeoff.”
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Tajik President Challenges Putin, Asks for ‘More Respect’ For His Country From Russia
At a recent meeting of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in Astana, Kazakhstan, Russian President Vladimir Putin had to listen to a rare, seven-minute admonishment of Russian policies versus lesser CIS members by Emomali Rahmon, long-time leader of Tajikistan.
“We may be small nations, we may not have 100-200 million people, but we have history, we have culture, and we want to be respected. We don’t need anything but to be respected,” said Rahmon, 70, who has been the de facto leader of his country of 9 million since 1992.
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Ukraine War: Kyiv Hit With ‘Kamikaze Drones’, Sanctions and Russia’s ‘Acute’ Logistical Problems
1. Casualties in Kyiv and Sumy as Russia ‘terrorises civilians’ once more
Russia attacked central Kyiv during Monday morning’s rush hour with drones and shelled other cities around the country, the second time in a week it has unleashed strikes across Ukraine.
Local authorities raised the number of dead in the afternoon to at least seven, victims of strikes in the capital and the northeastern region of Sumy. Many areas were left without power after several Russian strikes targeted key infrastructure.
“All night and all morning, the enemy terrorises the civilian population. Kamikaze drones and missiles are attacking all of Ukraine,” President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on the Telegram messaging app.
The United States and United Nations have condemned the attacks, while the EU said they would only reinforce its support for Ukraine.
The Ukrainian prosecutor’s office said that a fourth person had died in the capital Kyiv, following the strikes.
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US Congressional Resolution Recognizes 1971 Bangladesh Genocide
Congressional Resolution in United States Recognizes 1971 Bangladesh Genocide mainly perpetrated against Hindus and others by Pak Armed Forces.
Sitesh Guha | HENB | Washington, D.C. | Oct 15, 2022:: A recent Congressional Resolution in United States recognizes 1971 Bangladesh Genocide mainly perpetrated against Hindus, as stated in a press note released by HRCBM. As per the press note, the resolution demanded action under International Law against Pakistan Armed Forces and Islamist War Criminals.
On Friday, Congressman Steve Chabot (R-OH) introduced a historic resolution recognizing the genocide that took place over the course of 9 months in Bangladesh in 1971 and which disproportionately targeted members of the Hindu community and secular groups in the country formerly known as East Pakistan.
Congressman Steve Chabot, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, and Co-Chair of the Bangladesh Caucus, who introduced H.R. 1430 on Friday, said, “There was a genocide. Millions of people were killed [in 1971] in what is now Bangladesh, and what was then East Pakistan. About 80% of those millions that were killed were Hindus. And it was, in my opinion, a genocide just like other genocides — like the Holocuast — happened. And there were others that have occurred, and this was one that, thus far, hasn’t really been declared by definition. And we are working on this now.”…
| — Hat tip: Upananda Brahmachari | [Return to headlines] |
China Orders Evacuation of All Citizens Still in Ukraine, Sparking Escalation Fears
China’s foreign ministry on Saturday issued an urgent call for any Chinese nationals still in Ukraine to exit immediately, kicking off speculation over what’s behind the unspecified appeal and scramble.
The notification is being widely seen as the most forceful evacuation order yet, and suggests that Beijing might be aware of Russian plans for possibly imminent bigger, sweeping airstrikes against Ukrainian cities, such as the widespread escalatory strikes conducted last Monday into Tuesday.
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An Australian trans woman has admitted to an Adelaide court to filming herself masturbating her penis next to a young child, and possessing dozens of child porn content depicting victims as young as toddlers and babies.
Josh Dean French, who uses the name “Jayda Dean,” pleaded guilty in the Adelaide District Court to one count of aggravated producing child exploitation material and two counts of possessing child exploitation material.
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Dr Nick Coatsworth has responded to reports that Medicare is being ripped off by around $8billion every year by saying fraud is simple under the system and the problem can’t be ignored.
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New Zealand Arts Council Dumps ‘Imperialism’ Shakespeare Program That Failed to ‘Show Relevance’
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Is Shakespeare still relevant to today’s students?
New Zealand’s arts council appears to have its doubts after ending funding for a popular school Shakespeare program, arguing it relied too heavily on busy schools, failed to show relevance to “the contemporary art context” and relied on a genre “located within a canon of imperialism.”
But many have taken issue with the decision by Creative New Zealand, including Jacinda Ardern, the nation’s prime minister — and former student thespian.
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An expat says they have spent years living in multiple countries but had ‘always struggled to enjoy living in Australia’.
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Albanian migrants are working at cannabis farms within three days of crossing the Channel, an investigation has found.
The men are being actively recruited by drug lords to cultivate cannabis in empty houses and industrial buildings that have been converted into production sites following their release from detention.
The migrants, the majority of whom are men in their 20s, carry out the work to help pay £5,000 debts owed to Kurdish people smugglers following treacherous journeys in dinghies across the Channel.
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French police has four Algerians in custody suspected of participating in the brutal murder and rape of a 12-year-old schoolgirl only identified as Lola. The suspects (Dahbia B., Amine K., Friha B., and Rachid N.) all hail from the same Algerian village, and one of them may be in the country illegally.
The body was found in a suitcase curled up, shackled, with a deep wound in her throat, and marked with inscriptions. According to the autopsy, carried out on Saturday, her death was due to asphyxiation. Two of the suspects in the case have been charged with “murder of a minor under the age of 15 in connection with a rape committed with acts of torture and barbarism,” “rape of a minor under the age of 15 with acts of torture and barbarism,” and “concealment of a corpse.” Although there was no mention of sexual violence when the story first broke, the latest details from BMFTV allege the girl was also raped.
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A project designed to move 70 migrants and their families to the small rural French town of Callac is being fought by local residents. Despite calls for a referendum on the issue, the mayor refuses to hold such a referendum, conceding he would lose the vote if it were to take place.
During rival protests on Sept. 17, Callac Mayor Jean-Yves Rolland stated that he would address the constituents of Callac with a letter, which was released on Oct. 14. He said the letter would bring “the official version of our project in the face of rumors and misinformation,” the Le Télégramme daily reports.
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Poland Can’t be Paying for the Refugees From Ukraine Forever, Says Interior Ministry
Approximately 80,000 Ukrainian refugees are currently housed in centers such as public buildings and small hotels across Poland, according to Deputy Minister of the Interior Pawel Szefernaker, who warned that they cannot remain reliant on Polish handouts indefinitely.
The government wants to ensure that those still in residence in these places after 120 days can contribute up to 50 percent of the costs and gradually become self-sufficient financially so that they can support themselves in Poland.
Speaking to commercial radio RMF FM, Szefernaker insisted that refugees should be able to support themselves by the middle of next year.
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UN ‘Distressed’ After Greece Finds Scores of ‘Naked and Bruised’ Migrants on Turkish Border
The United Nations says it is “deeply distressed” after the Greek government said on Sunday that 92 migrants were found almost naked and bruised after allegedly being forced across the Evros river from Turkey into Greece.
“We condemn such cruel and degrading treatment and call for a full investigation into this incident,” the UNHCR said in a tweet.
EU border agency Frontex confirmed to AFP the arrival of the group in circumstances that the Greek ministry for civil protection said sent out an “inhuman image”.
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B.C. Father Shocked and Appalled After Child Brings Home Sexually Explicit Book From School
Imagine having to shield your younger kids from getting ahold of their older sibling’s schoolbooks. That was the disturbing reality faced by one Chilliwack, B.C. father named Grant Fahlman, after his 13-year-old daughter brought home a book called “Heartstopper“ from her school.
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Ontario Reviews Teaching Standards Over Oakville Teacher With Prosthetic Breasts
The Ontario College of Teachers, which licenses and regulates the province’s educators, says it’s reviewing professional standards amid a controversy involving a transgender Oakville teacher who wears enormous prosthetic breasts to class.
Amid the outrage over the teacher’s conduct, Ontario’s education minister Stephen Lecce told the media that he had requested that the College review its professional standards.
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Zelensky T-shirt
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“what the Pandemic Treaty would do to the sovereignty of other countries if it passed” is a legitimate concern. The World Heath Organisation is much funded by Bill Gates. Remember the dictum of the late Peter Sutherland, instigator and then chief of the deceptively named UN “Global Forum for Migration and Development”:
” sovereignty is an illusion… sovereignty is an absolute illusion that has to be put behind us.”
In Sutherland’s view the “EU should be doing its best to undermine ….a sense of homogeneity and difference from others…”
Globalists have no time for individual States.