Yesterday’s Black Friday sales were lackluster, according to retail statistics, presumably due to the severe inflation crisis. Meanwhile, more than 40% of American small businesses say they cannot afford to pay their rent in full this month.
In other news, according to a new poll, 23% of Americans say they have not yet been “vaccinated” against the Wuhan Coronavirus.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to Dean, DV, JW, LP, Reader from Chicago, SS, Upananda Brahmachari, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.
Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.
Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. I check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.
Despite weaker than expected inflation for October American households are still feeling the pinch with household spending rising 7.7 percent at the same time last year to $433 a month.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Bidenomics: 41% of Small Businesses Can’t Pay Rent This Month, Report Warns
More than 40% of U.S. small business owners say they couldn’t pay rent on time or in full for the month of November, the highest this year.
The small business network group Alignable released the survey, which found that the hardship varies by industry. A notable 57% of beauty salons said they couldn’t make rent as well as 45% of gyms, 44% of retail and 44% of restaurants.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Black Friday Disappoints: Thin Crowds and ‘Desolate’ Stores
The busiest shopping day of the year is not as busy as retailers hoped.
Across the U.S., shopping malls are seeing only thin crowds, according to reports in business media. Inflation and depressed consumer sentiment appear to have dampened the holiday shopping spirit.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
FTX Gave $1 Million to McConnell-Backed Super PAC
The collapsing cryptocurrency company FTX when it was run by disgraced former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried contributed $1 million to the super-PAC aligned with Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, the Senate Leadership Fund, in the 2022 midterm election cycle.
Bloomberg reported Friday that the Senate Leadership Fund “received the $1 million donation on Oct. 27, according to its most recent filing with the Federal Election Commission. Only a couple of weeks later, more than a 100 FTX-related companies, including the US arm, filed for bankruptcy, and Bankman-Fried resigned as head of the corporate group.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Australia’s richest person has pleaded with people to not stand by silently as poor people are hurt by ‘foolish’ government policies influenced by the Greens which she claims help drive up power prices.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Gloomier Outlook for Dutch Economy From OECD; Inflation to Remain High Till 2024
The Dutch economy will grow less than previously estimated, mainly due the inflation, which will remain high until at least the end of 2024, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) warned in its annual report for the Netherlands, NOS reports.
Despite a 0.2 percent contraction in the third quarter, the OECD expects the Dutch economy to grow by 4.2 percent for the whole of 2022. The Dutch economy performed well in the first half of the year. Next year, the economic growth will amount to only 0.8 percent and then 1.1 percent in 2024.
According to the OECD, inflation based on the European calculator will amount to 15.4 percent in the last months of this year. In 2023, that will drop to 9.5 percent, and then to 4.2 percent in 2024. While inflation is decreasing, it is still far above the average for the Netherlands in recent years.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Supermarkets have been faced with the UK’s largest bout of avian flu and rising production costs, leading to a shortage of eggs. The biggest hike was in a box of 15 eggs at Tesco, up by 30p in the last two weeks.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
A Mississippi-based company that had become one of the largest furniture businesses in the country laid off nearly its entire workforce two days before Thanksgiving.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Democrats Race to Raise Debt Ceiling, Send More Money to Ukraine in Lame-Duck Session
While Republicans took back the US House of Representatives in the recent midterm elections, Democrats are scrambling to pass big-spending, progressive bills before they lose full control over the legislative branch.
Come January, the GOP will secure the gavel in the House, while the Democrats will retain a majority in the Senate. Before their power is diminished, Democrats are rushing to address the debt limit, get more funding for the war in Ukraine, and codify same-sex and interracial marriage despite neither being illegal, reports The Guardian.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Drive-by Outside Nashville Church Injures 2 at Funeral for Shooting Victim
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A drive-by shooting in Nashville on Saturday injured two people as they and others were walking out of church from the funeral of a woman who was fatally shot earlier this month, according to police.
Metro Nashville Police Department spokesperson Don Aaron said the afternoon shooting occurred outside New Season Church, where a funeral service had just ended for 19-year-old Terriana Johnson. The hearse was parked out front with the rear door open and people were filing out of church as the shots began, Aaron said.
Police say they are on the lookout for a black late-model Honda Civic with a temporary tag, from which one shooter or more fired as the car passed by, hitting an 18-year-old woman in the leg and a 25-year-old man in the pelvis. Neither were considered life-threatening injuries, Aaron said.
Some attendees of the funeral services for Johnson — who was not a member of the church that was hosting — were armed and fired back at the car, Aaron said.
The shooting occurred before Johnson’s body was brought out of the church, according to police, and her burial took place later in the afternoon.
| — Hat tip: DV | [Return to headlines] |
Elon Musk Says Media Attacking Him Because He’s ‘Fighting for Free Speech in America’
Elon Musk says the corporate media is attacking him because he’s “fighting for free speech in America.”
Twitter CEO Elon Musk explained the real reason the media is losing their collective minds over him buying Twitter.
Musk said they are mad at him because they no longer control the narrative, and for them, that is unforgivable.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Twitter CEO Elon Musk set Alyssa Milano straight after the Hollywood star mounted an ill-fated protest of Musk and his many companies. Milano said:
“I gave back my Tesla. I bought the VW ev. I love it. I’m not sure how advertisers can buy space on Twitter. Publicly traded company’s products being pushed in alignment with hate and white supremacy doesn’t seem to be a winning business model.”
She was immediately called out on Twitter for her historical ignorance. One Twitter user reminded Milano that, “Volkswagen was founded in 1937, as part of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler’s vision to enable German families to own a first car. During World War Two, the Wolfsburg-based firm manufactured vehicles for the German army, using more than 15,000 slave labourers from concentration camps.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Fauci Admits Modeling Lockdowns and Mandates on Chinese Measures
Dr. Anthony Fauci has admitted that he modeled America’s draconian pandemic lockdowns and mask mandates on brutal measures enforced by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases NIAID and Democrat President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser, sat for a deposition on Wednesday.
As part of a lawsuit against top Biden administration officials, Fauci was deposed at the National Institutes for Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland by Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt and Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Funding Censorship? Feds Give Tens of Millions to Fight COVID ‘Disinformation’, Populism
Government efforts to squelch purported misinformation and disinformation on the most contested subjects in American politics don’t stop with Cabinet-level agencies.
The National Science Foundation has awarded at least $39 million in grants and contracts in fiscal years 2021 and 2022 for projects that target misinformation or disinformation, frequently pertaining to COVID-19 and elections.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
IRS Warns Taxpayers of New $600 Threshold for Reporting Third-Party Payments
The IRS this week warned taxpayers about its new $600 reporting threshold for third-party payments and the need to fill out a 1099-K form should taxpayers exceed that limit.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Judge Won’t Let Clearview AI Escape Lawsuit
The Superior Court of California, Alameda County, has decided not to grant a motion to dismiss that was filed by the controversial “AI” firm Clearview, and at the same time to deny its anti-SLAPP motion.
We obtained a copy of the order for you here.
The motion to dismiss was meant to shutter a complaint submitted against the facial recognition company, accused of biometric data privacy violations. The anti-SLAPP law is designed to stop strategic lawsuits aimed at preventing public participation by intimidating and financially burdening defendants.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Judge Sides With DeSantis, Says Governor Won’t Have to Testify in Suit Brought by Prosecutor
A federal judge this week ruled that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will not have to testify in a lawsuit brought against him by a prosecutor he dismissed over the summer.
DeSantis made headlines in August when he fired State Attorney Andrew Warren after the latter indicated he would not enforce laws prohibiting sex-change operations for minors. “State Attorneys have a duty to prosecute crimes as defined in Florida law, not to pick and choose which laws to enforce based on his personal agenda,” DeSantis said at the time.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Lobbyists Call on the US Government to Develop Digital ID Infrastructure for “Security” Reasons
A group of 10 advocacy organizations, including the Identity Theft Resource Center and the Better Identity Coalition, have called on Congress to pass the Improving Digital Identity Act of 2022, mandating the government to develop federal digital ID infrastructure.
The bill has advanced through committees in both the House and Senate, but it is yet to be put to a vote.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Marjorie Taylor Greene Invites Elon Musk to ‘Oversight Hearing’ To Discuss Banned Twitter Accounts
Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has invited Elon Musk to attend a House Oversight Committee hearing to discuss accounts that were banned on Twitter before he bought the company.
The congresswoman asked Musk to attend “an Oversight Hearing in the 118th Congress.”
Republicans are keen to find out why prominent conservatives, including Greene and President Donald Trump, were permanently suspended by the social media platform.
As Slay News reported earlier this week, Musk revealed that he plans to make internal discussions between Twitter’s executives public.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Mars Rover Finds ‘Very Strange’ Chemistry in Martian Soil, Possible Evidence of Life
Scientists at NASA are reporting the discovery of chemical compounds and organic signatures in Martian soil that may signal the possibility that life once existed on the now-barren red planet.
A study published this week in Science claims that the Perseverance rover’s Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals instrument, or SHERLOC, detected “fluorescence signatures consistent with aromatic organic compounds” within rocks on Mars.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Number of Americans Carrying Guns Daily Jumps to at Least 6 Million
The number of Americans who leave their homes with a pistol or revolver on their person jumped from approximately three million in 2015 to six million in 2019, according to a study conducted by University of Washington researchers.
The Guardian reported the study on November 25, 2022, noting that it appeared in the American Journal of Public Health.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Poll: Nearly a Quarter Not Vaccinated Against the Chinese Coronavirus
Nearly a quarter of Americans said they have not been vaccinated against the Chinese coronavirus, a survey from The Economist/YouGov found.
According to the survey, 23 percent of Americans have not been vaccinated against the Chinese coronavirus after two years of public pressure from government officials and various employers. Six percent said they have received one dose but are not fully vaccinated, and another six percent said they prefer not to reveal their status.
Forty-two percent consider themselves fully vaccinated and have also received at least one booster. Another 23 percent said they have received the full vaccine series but have not received a booster jab.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘Redo the Arizona Election’ Says Trump, Pointing to Voting Issues in Maricopa County
Authored by Frank Fang via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours)
Former President Donald Trump suggests that Arizona redo its 2022 elections after a memo revealed widespread problems at voting sites in Maricopa County on Election Day.
“This Election was a disgrace,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social on Nov. 22. “They should at minimum redo the Arizona Election,” Trump added, pointing to the memo written by attorney Mark Sonnenklar, who was one of 11 roving attorneys working with the Republican National Committee’s (RNC) Election Integrity program in Maricopa County.
According to the memo, 72 of the 115 voting centers the attorneys visited, or 62.61 percent, witnessed “material problems.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Source: 2 Children Fatally Stabbed in the Bronx, Mother Taken Into Custody
NEW YORK — A police source tells CBS2 two children were stabbed to death in the Bronx on Saturday.
The FDNY says they were called around 8 p.m. for a report of cardiac arrest at a building on Echo Place near Anthony Avenue in the Mount Hope section.
Two patients were taken to a local hospital, where they were pronounced dead.
According to a police source, the children are approximately 1 and 3 years old.
The police source says it happened at a family shelter and the children’s mother was taken into custody.
| — Hat tip: LP | [Return to headlines] |
Twitter Has Lost 50 of Its Top 100 Advertisers Since Elon Musk Took Over, Report Says
Half of Twitter’s top 100 advertisers appear to no longer be advertising on the website. A report from Media Matters for America states that these 50 advertisers have spent almost $2 billion on Twitter ads since 2020 and more than $750 million just in 2022.
Seven additional advertisers have slowed their advertising to almost nothing, according to the report, which was published on Tuesday. These companies have paid Twitter more than $255 million since 2020.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Twitter Bans Antifa Collective Crimethinc, Notorious for Radicalizing Militants Toward Violence
Violent far-left group CrimethInc, which calls for arson attacks and political violence, was suspended from Twitter on Friday after the social media giant’s owner Elon Musk started suspending accounts that call for violence.
The Post Millennial editor-at-large Andy Ngo tweeted, “Violent extremist #Antifa collective @crimethinc has been suspended at the moment. The international group operates like ISIS: makes propaganda & training material to radicalize militants toward violence. Though the main account was suspended, they operate a dozen other accounts.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
U.S to Ban Certain Chinese Tech Over National Security Threat
The United States will ban certain Chinese tech from being imported and sold in America over mounting concerns of the national security threat.
On Friday. the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) finalized a rule that would block Chinese Communist Party-linked Huawei, ZTE, Hikvision, and Dahua.
The companies are now banned from importing and selling certain technology that the board viewed as posing a potential threat to national security.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
BC Bank Unveiled “Carbon Footprint” Tracking Credit Card
The British Columbia-based credit union Vancity has launched Canada’s first-ever carbon tracking Visa card.
It will be first available for consumers in 2023 and will allow cardholders to track estimated carbon emissions on every purchase.
“Members will be able to see how their monthly tally compares to the national average, or which credit card purchases have the highest environmental cost,” said a statement by Vancity.
“The Carbon Counter will help Vancity card holders understand the carbon footprint of their purchases as well as provide advice on what they can do to reduce their emissions footprint.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Canada’s Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s office distributed a blacklist of 201 trucking companies that participated in the Freedom Convoy Protest in February.
“Please find attached an excel sheet detailing which companies whose trucks are participating in Ottawa convoy demonstrations,” an unidentified employee at Freeland’s office wrote in an email, according to Blacklock’s Reporter.
“A total of 45 companies whose trucks are in Ottawa have accessed the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy out of a total of 201 companies whose trucks are publicly known as being in Ottawa. Three of the companies with trucks in Ottawa are US-based companies.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
On November 25, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland testified before the Public Order Emergency Commission. She was asked about a reference to Fox News.
Freeland said that it was “significant” that she and financial institutions received bad press from outlets like Fox News for freezing the accounts of Freedom Convoy protesters.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Trudeau Says He Feels “Serene and Confident” Over Decision to Freeze Protesters’ Bank Accounts
In his testimony before the Public Order Emergency Commission (POEC), Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tried to justify his use of the Emergencies Act to stop the Freedom Convoy protest by blacklisting and freezing the bank accounts of protesters supporting civil liberties.
Trudeau admitted that the protests were not violent but still insisted that he is “confident” with his decision to use a law that has never been used before to stop the protests.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Arrest Made in Hack of Dutch Politician’s Twitter Account; Geert Wilders Likely Victim
Police in Nijmegen arrested a 22-year-old man on Wednesday in connection with the 2020 hack of a politician’s social media account. Geert Wilders, the leader of the far-right political party PVV, said the arrest was related to the unauthorized takeover of his Twitter account which was reported on the same day a group of hackers took over many top Twitter accounts as part of a significant cryptocurrency scam.
Police did not confirm Wilders’ claim that it was related to his case. Authorities said a case was launched after a Dutch member of parliament filed a report. “After an extensive and intensive investigation and cooperation with the American authorities, this 22-year-old man came into the picture. The man is suspected of having gained access to the account and/or of having taken over the user’s account details,” police said.
“Good thing he was tracked down and arrested two years after I reported it,” Wilders said. “It is incomprehensible that he was sent away after interrogation — even though he remains a suspect.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Croatia, Bulgaria and Romania Are ‘Ready’ To Join Schengen, Says European Commission
roatia, Bulgaria and Romania are “ready” to join the passport-free Schengen Area after having “strongly proven” they meet all the necessary criteria, the European Commission has said.
Schengen enables cross-border travel without the need to carry a passport or pass through border controls. It currently encompasses 26 nations, including 22 EU countries, and almost 420 million citizens.
“It’s high time to say welcome,” Ylva Johansson, the EU’s home affairs commissioner, said on Wednesday while unveiling a new report that argues in favour of the three countries’ readiness.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
European Officials Reach Limit With Joe Biden, Accuse USA of Profiting From War in Ukraine: Report
Top European officials are furious with Joe Biden’s administration and are accusing America of making a fortune from the war in Ukraine according to a report from Politico. Some of the officials swiping at Biden remained anonymous while others did so publicly.
“The fact is, if you look at it soberly, the country that is most profiting from this war is the U.S. because they are selling more gas and at higher prices, and because they are selling more weapons,” one senior official told politico.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
In 4 Years, 343 Terror Convicts Have Been Released in France
Prisoners convicted of terrorism-related offences are monitored by the judiciary and intelligence services upon their release. This has been a huge cost to French taxpayers.
What happens to men and women convicted of acts related to Islamist terrorism in France? As FranceInfo reported on November 14, they are released after their sentence and placed under judicial and intelligence surveillance. In total in 4 years, 343 have been released from prison, including 72 in 2022.
The Ministry of Justice indicated that 406 “TIS” prisoners (Islamic Terrorists) are still behind bars on French territory.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Several officials within the European Union have accused U.S. President Joe Biden and the United States of profiting from the Ukraine war by marking up the prices of gas and weapons.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Netherlands: Man Who Stabbed Therapist to Death in Psych Prison Also Suspected of Murder in Nigeria
Those in the Netherlands in life threatening danger should immediately dial 112 for emergency services. Anyone suffering from depression or contemplating suicide may call 113 Zelfmoordpreventie at any time by dialing either 113 or 0800-0113. Counselors at De Luisterlijn may also be reached at 088-0767000, or volunteers may be reached at one of their local numbers. A list of suicide crisis hotlines outside the Netherlands is available on Wikipedia.
The patient who stabbed a socio-therapist to death and injured two women at the Veldzicht clinic for people sentenced to institutionalized treatment on November 5 is also suspected of murder in Nigeria, De Telegraaf reports based on conversations with clinic employees and sources around the investigation.
According to the newspaper’s sources, the man was an asylum seeker from Nigeria. He came to the Netherlands via Italy, where he first applied for asylum. According to the Dublin Regulation, the Netherlands should have sent him back to Italy, but due to the pandemic, travel movements were limited, and his asylum procedure started here.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Netherlands: COVID Conspiracy Group Viruswaarheid, Cut Off From Banking, Will Call it Quits
Viruswaarheid announced that it will stop as an activist group, said the group’s chairs, Jeroen Pols and Willem Engel, on Friday. The immediate reason is a recent lawsuit, which gave ING Bank the ability to close the conspiracy theorist group’s bank account.
“Participation in society is impossible without an account. That means that we will stop,” said Jeroen Pols.
The group was founded in early 2020 and was initially active under the name Viruswaanzin, which translates to Virus Nonsense. This was later changed to a name which means Virus Truth in English.
The group opposed government measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, such as the curfew, as well as the Covid-19 vaccination campaign and the use of the coronavirus contact tracing app and the coronavirus access pass system. Viruswaarheid regularly went to court to try and secure a ban on such measures, but the group lost nearly every case.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Netherlands: Pro Footballer Mohamed Ihattaren Arrested in Utrecht Over Violent Threats
The police arrested pro-footballer Mohammed Ihatarren in Utrecht on Tuesday due to a serious threat. He is in custody at a police station for questioning, De Telegraaf and various other media reported.
Little is known about the charges against Ihataren. The police would not say what the threat entailed or whether the 20-year-old footballer would have to remain in custody during the investigation.
Ihatarren is a former Ajax footballer. He and the Amsterdam club parted ways at the end of October. De Telegraaf reported that Ihatarren was receiving threats from criminal circles and was, therefore, unable to train with Ajax for safety reasons. His Porsche was set on fire in Utrecht in September
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Netherlands: About 150 Extinction Rebellion Protesters Arrested on A12 in The Hague
Update: Over 150 demonstrators were arrested in total.
The A12 near The Hague in the direction of Utrecht is open again, according to the national travel association ANWB. The road was closed by a blockade of climate activists from Extinction Rebellion, who had been blocking the road since noon Saturday to protest against subsidies for the fossil fuel industry. The blockade was ended m in the meantime, but, the Utrechtsebaan to the city is still closed.
According to Extinction Rebellion, there were several hundred protesters at the location. The police ordered them to leave and move the protest to the Malieveld, a huge area opposite the central station in The Hague, to demonstrate there instead of on the highway.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘The House of Cards is Collapsing, They Have Failed!’
Recently, MEP Virginie Joron invited renowned French tropical doctor and vaccine expert Professor Christian Perronne to the European Parliament for a conference. MEP Christine Anderson delivered the opening speech.
Perronne was prosecuted by the French government for his criticism of the Corona policy, but was recently fully rehabilitated by the disciplinary chamber of the French order of doctors. The doctor argued, among other things, that masks and lockdowns do not work and that the danger of Corona had been grossly exaggerated. He received a standing ovation in the European Parliament.
“A wind of change is blowing. Their house of cards is collapsing,” Anderson said alongside a smiling Perronne. “I am tired of being called a Covidiot.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The Journalist-Run, Intelligence-Linked Operation That Warped British Pandemic Policy
Authored by Kit Klarenberg via TheGrayZone.com
Presented as an independent voice for “unbiased” scientific advice, iSAGE provided a channel for media spinmeisters, spies and psy-op specialists to influence Britain’s pandemic policy without accountability. Leaked internal emails show members fretting over its unethical methods.
Throughout Britain’s response to the COVID-19 crisis, a lobbying group known as the Independent Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (iSAGE) served as a key driving force behind the government’s most draconian lockdown policies.
While it presented itself as a non-governmental organization composed of forward-thinking health experts, The Grayzone can reveal iSAGE not only maintains an array of ties to the British security state, while relying largely on political, rather than scientific, considerations when crafting policy recommendations.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Climate Tsar Sharma Delivers Blow to Sunak by Joining Onshore Wind Rebellion
Alok Sharma, who was the president of the Cop26 climate summit, joined Liz Truss and Boris Johnson in backing rival legislation.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Sir Keir Starmer is ranked ahead of Rishi Sunak in nearly all areas, according to bombshell polling that reveals the size of the mountain the Prime Minister must climb to win the next General Election.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
England World Cup Fans Warned Not to Wear ‘Crusader’ Garb That Could ‘Offend Muslims’
England fans have been dressing as crusader icon St. George for years, but now fans are being warned to leave their chain mail and cross-emblazoned tunics at home for fear that the garb will upset Muslims at the Qatari World Cup.
The warnings come on the heels of a pair of St. George-garbed fans being seen led away by Qatari officials at the World Cup.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Western leaders have “misplaced optimism” in their ability to defeat Russia in Ukraine and oust Vladimir Putin from power, a German Member of the European Parliament (MEP) told Breitbart London.
In an exclusive interview, Dr Gunnar Beck, MEP for the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, said that there is a lack of calls for peace in Ukraine in Europe and America because politicians have made the miscalculation that Ukraine can prevail and that the Russian people will turn against Vladimir Putin.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Russian Reservists Being ‘Killed in Large Numbers in Frontal Assaults’ — UK Intel
Recently mobilised Russian reservists are dying “in large numbers” in Ukraine, according to Britain’s Ministry of Defence (MoD).
In its Friday update on the course of the war in Ukraine, the British government claimed that the deployment of reservists following President Vladimir Putin’s “partial mobilisation” of hundreds of thousands of men with military experience has “often” been “characterised by confusion over eligibility for service, inadequate training and personal equipment, and commitment to highly attritional combat missions.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Russia Hitting Ukraine With Old Nuclear Missiles — Minus the Warheads
Russian forces are striking Ukraine with Cold War-era nuclear missiles — with the nuclear warheads removed, crucially — according to British intelligence.
“Russia is likely removing the nuclear warheads from aging nuclear cruise missiles and firing the unarmed munitions at Ukraine,” the Ministry of Defence (MoD) claimed in its Saturday update on the course of the Russo-Ukrainian war, citing “[o]pen source imagery show[ing] wreckage of an apparently shot-down AS-15 KENT air launched cruise missile (ALCM), designed in the 1980s exclusively as a nuclear delivery system. “
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Ukraine Struggles to Restore Power After Russian Strikes
Ukraine has said that as much as 50% of the country’s electricity needs are currently not being met, after massive Russian missile strikes this week.
The Ukrenergo power operator said the priority was to fix key infrastructure but repairs were now taking more time.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said “the most difficult situation” with power as well as water supply was in 15 regions, including the capital Kyiv.
Across Ukraine, winter is setting in, with snow and sub-zero temperatures.
There are fears that people across the country could die of hypothermia.
| — Hat tip: Dean | [Return to headlines] |
India: Mangaluru: Students in Love Affairs Belonging to Different Faith Cautioned by Hindutva Group
Moral policing against Love Jihad: Muslim BE student dragged out of bus, thrashed by pro-Hindutva mob while travelling with Hindu girlfriend in Mangaluru.
Moral Policing against Love JihadB Upendran | HENB | Mangaluru | Nov 26, 2022:: In yet another case of ‘moral policing’, a Hindu woman and a Muslim man, obviously of different faiths were allegedly stopped by pro-Hindutva activists in Mangaluru while they were travelling in a bus. The Man, who belongs to the Muslim community was dragged out of the bus and thrashed.
The incident occurred on Thursday night at Nanthur in Mangaluru, when the duo were travelling in a bus from Karkala to Mangaluru. The man is a BE student at Nitte Institute of Technology, Karkala and the woman is said to be his classmate.
According to city police, the three accused asked the victim to show his ID card and then later dragged him off the bus and assaulted him. It is alleged that the accused were saying, “we don’t want to allow another Ankita, Shraddha or Nidhi Gupta in the racket of Love Jihad”.
“It is not yet known which fringe group the accused belonged,” a police officer said.
Alok Kumar, ADGP Law and Order earlier tweeted on Friday that appropriate action has been taken regarding the incident.
Mangaluru city police have booked a case under sections 323, 324, 504, 506 read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code against the Hindutva activists, following a complaint by the victim.
There is a high repercussion among Hindus in India after surfacing the series of killings of Hindu girls by their Muslim counterparts in many deceptive love truces in recent times.
| — Hat tip: Upananda Brahmachari | [Return to headlines] |
Cash for Commies: UK Sent Over £50 Million in Foreign Aid to China in 2021
The supposedly cash-strapped British government sent over £50 million in foreign aid to Communist China last year despite previously committing to cut off all aid to the world’s second-largest economy, which boasts a massive space programme and nuclear arsenal.
According to figures released this week by the Foreign Office, £51.7 million in British taxpayers’ money was sent to China last year. While what exactly the money was spent on is yet to be released, the Daily Mail reports that the money was likely directed towards climate change projects, as well as claiming down on the illegal trade in wild animals, a practice that is still pervasive in the so-called Middle Kingdom, particularly for dubious medical benefits in Traditional Chinese Medicine.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Daniel Andrews has won a historic third term as Victoria’s premier despite a swing against his Labor party.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
The pair exchanged blows on the grounds of a polling place at a school in the suburb of Niddrie, Melbourne, on Saturday morning.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Election Farce in Victoria as Voters Are Told to Handwrite Their Own Votes on Blank Pieces of Paper
The Victorian Electoral Commission confirmed the ballot paper shortage on Twitter on Saturday night forcing some voters to have to hand write their own slips.
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Daniel Andrews has been described as Australia’s most authoritarian ever leader. Former Victorian premier Jeff Kennett says lockdowns have also destroyed his state’s international reputation.
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The mum-of-16 from Australia’s largest family has officially welcomed another new member into the brood, after one of her daughters gave birth to a baby girl last weekend.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Brazil School Shooter Wore Swastika, Planned Attack
BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) — A former student armed with a semiautomatic pistol and a revolver who killed three people and wounded 13 in two schools in Brazil had a swastika pinned to his vest and had been planning the attacks for two years, police said.
The shootings took place Friday at a public school with elementary and middle school students and a private school, both located on the same street in the small town of Aracruz in Espirito Santo state in southeastern Brazil. Two teachers and a student were killed.
About four hours later, the shooter, identified as a 16-year-old boy who used to study at the public school, was arrested by police, Espirito Santo Gov. Renato Casagrande said. Authorities did not release the suspect’s name.
Authorities say the teenager used his family’s car to go from one school to the other, and had the license plate hidden by a cloth.
Security camera footage showed him wearing a bulletproof vest, according to Espirito Santo public security secretary Márcio Celante. The shooter gained access to the teachers’ lounge in the public school after breaking a lock.
Casagrande said the semiautomatic weapon belonged to the military police, while the revolver was a personal weapon registered in the name of the former student’s father, a military police officer.
| — Hat tip: JW | [Return to headlines] |
Five-Year-Old Migrant Girl Reported Dead by German Media May Never Have Existed
A five-year-old migrant girl reported to have died trying to cross from Turkey into Greece may never have existed, an investigation has claimed.
A number of reports from the major German publication Der Spiegel claiming that a five-year-old migrant girl died while trying to enter the European Union have seemingly been taken down amid claims that the child in question may never have existed.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Greece: 7 Egyptians Held, Suspected of Crewing Migrant Boat
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greek authorities say they have arrested seven Egyptians suspected of having crewed a fishing boat crammed with nearly 500 migrants.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Serbian Police Find 600 Migrants After Shootout Near Hungarian Border
BELGRADE — Serbian police uncovered 600 illegal migrants near the border with Hungary on Friday following a shootout in a town in which one person was shot, the Interior Ministry said.
The incident happened in the early hours in the north Serbian town of Horgos, police said.
“Members of the ministry of interior …started a detailed search after reports that migrants were on the street, shooting at each other,” a police statement said.
“(They) have found six migrants, one of whom was around 20-years-old…with two gunshot wounds to the chest.”
A police operation eventually uncovered around 600 migrants in the area, including weapons and some of those involved in the shootout, the ministry said in a separate statement citing Interior Minister Bratislav Gasic.
The Western Balkans route via Turkey, Bulgaria, North Macedonia and Serbia remains the main migratory path into the European Union, border agency Frontex said in September.
Many migrants are crossing borders using elaborate networks of smugglers who are sometimes armed.
Last week, Serbia agreed with Hungary and Austria to deploy more joint border patrols and align its visa policies with those of the EU to stem the flow of illegal migrants to the west through the Western Balkans.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Balenciaga Sues Producers of ‘BDSM Teddy Bear’ Pedophilic Ad Campaign
Fashion company Balenciaga has filed a $25 million lawsuit against the producers of a pedophilic ad campaign that included BDSM teddy bears, a child pornography court ruling, and books from an author whose works depict nude children and occult rituals.
The fashion house — (which we assume had to have at least signed off on the ‘BDSM bear’ imagery) — is suing production company North Six, Inc. and set designer Nicholas Des Jardins over the inclusion of documents from a US Supreme Court decision on child porn laws, the NY Post reports.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The birth control pill comes with many side effects but one that is not discussed often is changes in sexual preference. Studies in the UK suggest the pill can alter sexuality.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Fairfax County Schools Seek ‘Gender Combined’, ‘Inclusive’ Sex Ed Standards
Virginia’s Fairfax County Public Schools is looking to “revise” its sexual education standards to become “gender combined” and use more “inclusive” language.
Proposed “Family Life Education Instruction Materials” seeks gender inclusivity but does make some carve-outs for students who were “assigned male” at birth.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Justin Trudeau Preaches Diversity on Canadian RuPaul’s Drag Race Spin-Off
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was invited to appear on the Canadian spin-off of RuPaul’s Drag Race, where he preached about diversity.
Trudeau told the drag queens it had been “an incredible pleasure to be part of fighting the good fight on the right side” after the show’s host congratulated him for becoming the first Canadian leader to participate in a Pride parade and being “such an ally” in a clip of his appearance shared on social media.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Russia Advances Law to Ban Pedophilia Propaganda and ‘Woke’ Gender Ideology
Russia’s lower-lower parliament has unanimously passed a law to ban propaganda that promotes pedophilia and “woke” gender ideology.
On Thursday, over 300 representatives of the State Duma, including the chairman, authored the new law that would ban the distribution of materials promoting pedophilia, sex-change surgeries and transgender treatments, and “gender identity.”
The law imposes heavy fines of up to 10 million rubles ($165,000) for violating the ban by promoting such propaganda using online channels, media, or in public.
Stateless persons and foreign citizens who violate the law would also face expulsion from the Russian Federation.
Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin said the law would help protect the motherland’s traditions and values for her children and the future of Russia.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The director Monika Strzepka said she had agreed to exhibit the metre-high golden vagina dubbed ‘Lady Moist’ (pictured) because she wanted to promote feminism.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Parents are voicing their disbelief at ‘over-sensitive’ young Britons who think that traditional fairy tales are inappropriate. A survey revealed that young Brits think they are outdated and too scary.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
DIVERSITY means a myriad of parallel societies in the same body politic.
EQUITY means robbing Peter to pay Paul.