Monthly Archives: March 2023

Klaboosterbach Walks It Back… Sort Of

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German Health Minister Karl “Klaboosterbach” Lauterbach has been featured here numerous times during the last few months in his capacity as a gung-ho proponent of the experimental mRNA treatments intended to mitigate the effects of infection with the Wuhan Coronavirus.

In the following video Mr. Lauterbach is questioned by an interviewer about the incidence of severe injuries experienced by people who have been vaxed. The numbers have become so large that he is no longer able to just wave them away, and is compelled to acknowledge that such injuries are in fact occurring. This forces him to retreat to a fallback position: well, actually, the number of adverse effects is statistically quite small, and besides, the vax still “protects against very severe disease and… also reduces the risk of long Covid.” In other words, he has had to abandon the “safe” part of “safe and effective”. Eventually the “effective” part will have to be jettisoned, too, since recent clinical results have demonstrated that the jab is not really effective at all, and may even make recipients more likely to contract COVID. But by the time that happens, Klaboosterbach may have been driven out of government along with the rest of the “traffic light” coalition*.

As an American I find it notable that a health minister is being interviewed antagonistically on public television. In this country the major networks are ostensibly independent — although they might as well be state TV — but you would never see such hostile, probing questions asked of a left-wing cabinet member on any network news program. During a Democrat administration the TV talking heads are all slavish toadies, with the (very limited) exception of Fox News.

Many thanks to Brunhilde for the translation, and to Vlad Tepes and RAIR Foundation for the subtitling:


Video link

Video transcript:
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BBB Won a (Useless) Landslide Victory

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Provincial elections were held in The Netherlands on Wednesday, and the newly-emerged farmers’ party scored an upset victory. Our Dutch correspondent H. Numan sends his analysis of the results; to help you understand the confusing political factions, a key to Dutch parties is appended at the bottom of this post.

BBB won a (useless) landslide victory

by H. Numan

A few days ago I reported about the upcoming elections in The Netherlands. Those elections took place on Wednesday. Official results are not known yet, but the known results are promising. The cabinet got a black eye, to say the least. Farmers’ boots are marching into the senate!

To give you a quick recap: we have a coalition government, surviving on a razor-thin edge in both parliament and the senate. They suffered a minor defeat in the senate during the Wednesday provincial elections. Now they have only a razor-thin edge in parliament, and a lot of questionable legislation that has to pass the senate. Sitting senators (soon to be replaced) are trying to rush it through, while they can. Which won’t be a problem, as you’ll find out.

The results are quite surprising. BBB, the farmers party didn’t exist four years ago. Now they gained 15 seats (out of 75) in the senate. Talk about a protest! From zero to the biggest party in the senate. Other more conservative parties did okay, but not nearly as spectacular. Some lost a lot.

The PVV didn’t do well. They lost a seat, from 5 to 4. Forum for Democracy (FvD) nearly went extinct, from 12 to just 2 seats. Do remember that its leader, Thierry Baudet, is an expert in finding very controversial topics and then debating complots around them. Don’t get me wrong; he does have a point sometimes. For an academic who gave his maiden speech in Latin, he should be more careful with his words. Ja21, a split from FvD, went from 0 to 3 seats. They represent more or less the same position as FvD, but without the conspiracies.

Left wing parties paid a small price. The Christian Democrats went from 9 to 5 seats. That was expected. I personally expected them to lose more. D66, at the moment the least popular party among the common voters, lost only 1 seat. The same goes for other progressive parties, they lost or gained one seat each. That’s one of Rutte’s other knacks: he can always put the blame on someone else, and everybody believes him.

The VVD did much better than expected, which is exactly what I expected! They only lost two seats, from 12 to 10. Let’s be honest. I’ve seen too many elections where the VVD should have lost massively but didn’t. I’m not saying voter fraud, far from it. The reason why the VVD didn’t lose much is that they hold — or claim to hold — the coveted center position.

That vital center position was for generations under the control of the Christian Democrats (and the parties that later merged into the CDA). They governed ‘over right’ or ‘over left’ with anyone. Like the proverbial whore of Babylon, sometimes both ways. Next in line were the socialists (PvdA). When the CDA had to give away the center position, the socialists tried to take it over. They failed. The VVD (used to be conservatives) took the center, and hold it until today. However, their rise to prominence is over.

Every cabinet led by Rutte costs the VVD votes. Not a lot each time, but consistently. This election is no exception. The only reason why he didn’t lose much more is because of his center position. No matter what happens, the country still needs a government. Preferably not too progressive and certainly not too right. You know you have a safe pair of hands with Rutte. Who knows what Wilders will do? Heaven forbid! That’s not exactly what most people think, but it most certainly is what the elites think. Like it or hate it, that is what matters. In America, the UK, Russia or The Netherlands. That’s why Brexit is a failure. The common people want it, but the elites hate it.

If you look at the results, the coalition shouldn’t complain. They did much better than they deserve. Mrs. Al-Qaq (Sigrid Kaag) is at the moment the most despised politician in the country. Yet, her party lost only one seat. Talk with anyone you want in the streets about Mark Rutte. You won’t hear much good about him. Yet, he only lost two seats.

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Gates of Vienna News Feed 3/16/2023

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The Russian military has reportedly located the downed U.S. drone in the Black Sea and is working to recover the tech and data from it. Meanwhile, an explosion ripped through an FSB (formerly KGB) building in Russia near the border with Ukraine, killing one person and injuring two others.

In other news, Japan has recorded the highest number of excess deaths since World War Two.

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

Thanks to Apollon Zamp, Daniel Greenfield, Dean, DV, LP, PF, Reader from Chicago, SS, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.

Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.

Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. I check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.

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Democratic Party in Italy Bombed by the Anarchists

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The Democratic Party in Italy, like its namesake in the USA, is a left-wing party, but that’s not enough to save it from being attacked by anarchists, who are even further to the left. The Left is like Islam — there’s always a faction that is purer and more zealous, ready to take down any moderates it views as timid and squishy.

The following video report concerns an anarchist attack on the branch headquarters of the Democratic Party in Rome. Many thanks to HeHa for the translation, and to Vlad Tepes and RAIR Foundation for the subtitling:


Video link

Video transcript:

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Terror Alert for Churches in Vienna

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Yesterday police and the military were put on heightened alert in Vienna due to a threat of possible Islamic terrorist attacks directed at churches. Coptic and Syrian Orthodox churches in the city were thought to be particular targets.

I haven’t heard anything further today, so I assume that no actual attacks have thus far been carried out.

Many thanks to Gary Fouse for translating this video report, and to Vlad Tepes and RAIR Foundation for the subtitling:


Video link

Below is an article about the alert from the Austrian daily Kronen Zeitung, also translated by Gary Fouse:

Heightened presence

Terror alarm: attack danger for churches in Vienna

March 15, 2023

Increased police presence in the national capital. On Wednesday morning, via Twitter, the State Police command reported a strengthened presence, some also with special equipment. The reason: A threatened danger of attack against Vienna churches.

What is concrete is that there is a security alarm from the Command of the State Security and Intelligence Service (DSN). According to Krone’s information, the police intelligence service received a tip about a planned attack by a Syrian-Islamist terror cell.

Apparently, the threat is directed against those Syrians who fled the war and dictator Bashar al-Assad. According to the information, these people were to be murdered while attending Mass because they did not participate as God’s fighters in the jihad.

To provide this security, more police — local forces, WEGA and Cobra — are being deployed, the police say. “With this surveillance, it is a precautionary measure, “ it was stressed — a normal process in such scenarios.

Church in close coordination with police

However, for now the danger is not so high that there is a need for temporary closures or cancellation of services, the Archdiocese of Vienna reports. The Catholic Church is in close contact with the police. “We know that it will be more closely controlled, “ said Michael Prueller, spokesman for the Vienna Archdiocese. Vienna’s Cathedral priest, Toni Faber, expressed gratitude to the security authorities through Kathpress [Catholic Press, Austria], “that the situation is under control and appropriate security measures have been taken.”

[Police tweet]

You will notice increased police forces in the city area with special equipment. The reason is there is an unspecified danger of attack against churches. We will keep you updated.

The founder of the Syrian Orthodox Church in Austria, Emanuel Aydin, says he has had no direct contact with the police. Officers have been in the area around his church in Favoriten and have spoken with members of the community. The church is still open.

Bishop Gabriel of the Coptic-Orthodox Church told Ö1-Mittagsjournal [Austria One Midday Journal] that they have been informed of the threat situation.

National army, “Forces sensitized”

The National Army was not immediately brought in for assistance, said the spokesman for the Defense Ministry, Colonel Michael Bauer. “Our forces, which routinely guard the embassies, are sensitized.” In a local inspection in the inner city, only a slightly increased police presence was noted.

How long the guarding of the churches due to a “heightened Islamist-motivated attack danger” will be kept is unclear.

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Gates of Vienna News Feed 3/15/2023

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Hours after Russian fighters downed an American drone over the Black Sea, NATO fighter jets intercepted Russian military transports over the Baltic. Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke on the phone with his Russian counterpart Defense Secretary Sergei Shoigu about the drone incident.

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

Thanks to Daniel Greenfield, Dean, DV, LP, MM, Reader from Chicago, SS, WRSA, 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.

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The Brutal Death of Luise

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Freudenberg is a small town in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. Last Saturday a 12-year-old girl named Luise was brutally stabbed to death in Freudenberg by two other little girls (aged 12 and 13), who have confessed to the crime. The two perpetrators are said to be from Luise’s circle of acquaintances. Due to the tender age of both the victim and her killers, virtually no meaningful information about the crime is permitted to be released. Cultural enrichment may or may not be a factor in the murder; one can only speculate.

Many thanks to Gary Fouse for translating this article from Politically Incorrect:

Murdered Luise press conference pure farce

Today, Tuesday, a press conference on the violent death of Luise (12) from Freudenberg took place (PI-News reported). One can call this event a pure farce with good reason.

The only new and confirmed report was that the victim was stabbed several times with a knife by two girls (ages 12 and 13) and died from massive loss of blood.

Lead state prosecutor Mannweiler emphatically stated that only a few details of the incident could be revealed. The right of information takes a back seat to personal privacy rights and laws for the protection of children. In addition, there are no criminal penalties for the perpetrators, since neither is of legal prosecution age and thus not capable of criminal guilt.

Responding to questions from journalists who were present, Mannweiler continued to state only that he could provide no information as to this or that. He gave no answer on the number of stab wounds, which probably has nothing to do with the protection of youths as to the perpetrators, unless the manner of carrying out the crime might lead to undesired conclusions. Also the question concerning the behavior of the girls before or after the crime, or whether emotions could be recognized, met with no answer. The two accused admitted to the crime, but the weapon has not yet been found, it was stated. No answer to the question of whether the perpetrators were from the same place or attended the same school as Luise. There was also no statement as to how or why Luise was off her normal way home or what the trigger for this brutal crime was.

The perpetrators remain unpunished, and the public will probably only learn more if someone from Luise’s circle is of the opinion that the 12-year-old’s agonizing death should not be swept under the carpet and forgotten in a few days.

Gates of Vienna News Feed 3/14/2023

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A Russian fighter jet intercepted a U.S. surveillance drone over the Black Sea, striking the drone’s propeller and causing it to crash. The U.S. government criticized the Russian action as reckless and unprofessional.

In other news, the convicted Islamic terrorist Sayfullo Saipov has avoided the death penalty for murdering eight people in New York City in 2017. The jury charged with deciding the death penalty issue was deadlocked, which means that Mr. Saipov will avoid the needle and spend his life in prison.

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

Thanks to Dean, Diana West, DV, LP, Reader from Chicago, Roger, SS, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.

Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.

Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. I check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.

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Belgium Throws Wide the Gates for Palestinian “Refugees”

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The Belgian government says: “Come on in, Palestinians! And bring your children, cousins, uncles, and grandpas!”

Many thanks to Gary Fouse for translating this op-ed from the Belgian-Jewish site Joods Actueel:

Federal government decides: From now on, Palestinians collectively allowed as refugees in Belgium

March 11, 2023

On March 8, 2023, the federal government agreed on an approach to the asylum crisis in Belgium. With a “controlled and fair migration model,” the government hopes to regain control over the migration flow. With the reception law, the government wants to speed up the return of those who have exhausted their procedures, provide additional reception spots, and tighten the rules for family reunification.

by Mark Geleyn

As for restricting family reunification, the government is providing two exceptions: For children who are at risk of genital mutilation, and for “involuntarily stateless persons, in particular, Palestinians.” For these categories, family reunification rules are being relaxed in Belgium.

I am not so concerned with the asylum agreement itself, however skeptical I am about this lukewarm attempt to bring order to what is presently a disorderly asylum policy. Here I want to consider the decision to label the Palestinians as involuntarily stateless persons, and as such, to grant them an easier reception in Belgium. The decision is remarkable.

All in all, it is a short passage in the government communiqué. The press hardly mentions it. But it is actually a passage with possible long-term consequences, and above all a serious ideological symbolism.

Let us first look at the possible consequences. By labeling the Palestinians as stateless, not on an individual basis, but collectively as a people, and by then opening the door to family reunification, this government risks exposing our country to an influx, with dangers that they have deliberately not wanted to consider.

Collective offer

A collective offer, whether for Palestinians or any other people, is politically unwise. Under classical human rights, asylum is, incidentally, always a decision on an individual. Such a collective offer is, above all, dangerous from a security point of view. This offer will, in fact, be abused by two groups. First by Palestinian clans, such as “families” who now are terrorizing entire neighborhoods in Berlin and Hamburg. Secondly, by Palestinians carrying out a war against Israel, and who thus are offered safe accommodation in Belgium.

It is thought-provoking that such an offer does not apply to Yazidis, Uyghurs, Kurds, or Greek Cypriots. Only Palestinians are named.

And that brings us to the ideological undertone of this decision.

Because by specifically naming the Palestinians, we see what motivated the government. This is not a rule that was not thought through, but a rule that deliberately responds to the left-liberal thought patterns in Europe.

Culture-Enriching Doctor-Killer Walks Free in Emmendingen

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Back in 2018 I reported on a bestial murder by a Somali (or Djiboutian) culture-enricher in Germany. The young “asylum seeker” entered the doctor’s office and stabbed him to death, while also wounding his assistant.

Now it has been revealed that the young perpetrator, who was determined to be mentally ill and has been housed in a psychiatric facility, is currently allowed to walk free in the city for several hours a day.

Many thanks to Hellequin GB for translating this article from Ansage.org:

Knife-African: Murdered Offenburg Doctor in 2018, at Liberty Again Today

In August 2018, the then 27-year-old migrant Suleiman A. brutally murdered a doctor in Offenburg with 20 stab wounds and wounded a medical assistant who rushed to help. The act was characterized by tremendous cruelty: Both carotid arteries and the throat were slit; the knife ultimately got stuck in the victim’s stomach, who in the meantime tried to escape to the door, but was attacked more and more. When the perpetrator left the practice, he left a trail of blood that stretched across several streets.

In such cases, the obligatory acquittal on the grounds of “insanity defense” due to a “mental illness” followed in court, which is typical in Germany, and then he was admitted to the closed psychiatric clinic in Emmendingen, where he has been housed for four years. Now it has become known that the perpetrator, outrageously, has already been released and is allowed to move freely in the city (!) for up to three hours a day. All he has to do is to be reachable on a mobile phone and undergo an occasional drug test.

A classic Merkel guest

The case is an example of countless similar murders and acts of violence in colorful Germany: Suleiman A.’s application for asylum was rejected back in 2017 — but of course he was not deported afterwards, but rather received “subsidiary protection status” and thus the opportunity to remain legally in the country, according to Angela Merkel’s heresy “make illegality legal”. He arrived in November 2015 as a classic Merkel guest in the course of the German welcoming madness through safe third countries such as Italy and Austria. He initially claimed to be from Somalia, but in court he said he was from Djibouti. He also gave conflicting information about his name and age.

“A man” of whom no one knows his name, or how old he is, or where he comes from, is staying in Germany without any authorization, murders a person in a bestial manner, is declared incapable of culpability because of a serious mental illness — and four years later he is allowed to walk around freely again. And when he picks up the knife again, no one will want to be responsible. This sums up today’s Germany perfectly. And because almost all knife murderers end up in psychiatric wards or correctional facilities, and both promise early release — be it through overwork or through a negligently progressive “rehabilitation” policy — one can already prepare for similar day-release regulations and more victims.

Afterword from the translator:

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Gates of Vienna News Feed 3/13/2023

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According to a new report, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation has only about half of the $264 billion required to cover deposits in failed institutions. Meanwhile, the value of stock for several additional major banks has declined precipitously as depositors line up to withdraw their funds.

In other news, an illegal migrant raped a woman with a severe mental disability in a French psychiatric hospital.

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

Thanks to Dean, LP, Reader from Chicago, SS, TB, Vlad Tepes, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.

Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.

Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. I check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.

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Giorgia Meloni Cracks Down on Migrant Traffickers

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Last week Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced a new initiative targeting the activities of people-smugglers outside of Italian territory.

Many thanks to HeHa for translating this video report, and to Vlad Tepes and RAIR Foundation for the subtitling:


Video link

Below are excerpts from a Remix News report (hat tip Reader from Chicago) about Prime Minister Meloni’s announcement:

Italian Government Announces Strict New Immigration Rules, Up to 30 Years in Prison for People Smugglers

The Italian government has decided to introduce prison sentences ranging from 20 to 30 years for traffickers who cause the deaths of migrants as a part of new regulations aimed at tackling illegal immigration.

The new law was announced at a special meeting on Thursday in Cutro, which was the scene of the Feb. 26 boat disaster in Calabria.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced the new regulations at a press conference after the cabinet meeting in the town of just over 10,000 inhabitants.

Video transcript:

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Presearching COVID-19

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The neologism “prebunking” — of relatively recent coinage — means to debunk “disinformation” in advance. I was inspired to coin something similar for this post: “Presearching”, which means to do scientific research on something before it exists. (Yes, I know there is an online search engine called Presearch, but I thought up my usage independently.)

Not only was COVID-19 presearched before the virus ever appeared in Wuhan, but some of the presearch may have been conducted in one or more biolabs in Ukraine. How’s that for a Harmonic Convergence?

Many thanks to Hellequin GB for translating this article from Uncut News:

Romanian media report explosive documents. The US funded Covid research even before the virus emerged!

Material released on the website USAspending.gov, which officially shows how public money is being spent in the US, has revealed shocking details about Covid-19. So we learn that the US Department of Defense funded research on Covid-19 in 2019, before the new coronavirus had emerged or been “named” by the World Health Organization. The same website also shows numerous grants to laboratories in Ukraine under a program to reduce biological threats.

The website USAspending.gov, which makes all public spending transparent, shows that more than $4 trillion has been spent on Covid in the US to date. The Department of Defense Contracts section lists Black & Veatch Special Projects Corp, which received a $77 million contract. Interestingly, on November 12, 2019, one of the US company’s subcontractors, Labirint Global Health Inc, received more than $369,000 for a project titled SME Manuscript Documentation and Covid 19 Research. This comes at a time when the World Health Organization had not even named the new coronavirus “Covid-19” in February of 2020, and before the first cases of SARS-Cov-2 appeared in Wuhan in December of 2019.

“Also, on December 12, 2019, a non-disclosure agreement was signed between NIAID, Fauci’s agency, and Moderna on the one hand, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on the other hand, for the transfer of the candidate coronavirus messenger. December 12 is the date of signing, but the agreement was probably drafted and negotiated long before that. According to MEP Cristian Terheș, a public information request to the EMA has revealed that Moderna submitted the first clinical trials for coronavirus messenger RNA vaccines as early as October 5, 2016, and Pfizer-BioNTech reported its first clinical trial of the Covid vaccine at the EMA on January 14, 2020, just three days after the outbreak in China and the official announcement by the WHO,” said the citizen-activist Aurelian Popa.

Intensive preparations

In 2016 Moderna received a $20 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for a project to evaluate combinations of antibodies in a preclinical study and a Phase I clinical trial for a potential messenger RNA treatment, adds the citizen-activist Aurelian Popa. Moderna later confirmed that grant was increased to $100 million. The terms of this agreement provide that Moderna agrees to grant certain non-exclusive licenses to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. At the same time, however, Moderna retains the right to exploit this intellectual property at its own discretion. “All this evidence shows that both Anthony Fauci and Bill Gates prepared and invested money in these messenger RNA technology-based vaccines, confirming the hypothesis that the pandemic was created for the vaccine and not the other way around. It should also be noted that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is a major sponsor of both the World Health Organization and the Global Alliance for Vaccine Initiatives,” said the citizen-activist Aurelian Popa.

Ukraine is everywhere

According to expose-news.com, Black & Veatch Special Projects Corp’s transaction history shows 115 transactions with recipients and brief descriptions, most of which are items such as “Laboratory Equipment for Kiev” and “Office Furniture for Kiev.” The recipients of the funds include ALT UKRAINE LTD, BIOLABTEKH LTD, UNILAB, SMART DEFENSE, for laboratory equipment for Kiev and Odessa. In September of 2012, the US Department of Defense’s Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) awarded a contract to a global engineering, procurement and construction company specializing in infrastructure development. The contract was for a biological threat reduction program in Ukraine and was awarded in October of 2020.

See also: National.ro

Afterword from the translator:

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Nitrogen Crisis + Asylum Crisis = Cabinet Crisis

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Many thanks to Gary Fouse for translating this article from the Dutch daily Algemeen Dagblad with the latest on the political crisis in The Netherlands:

Rutte and Hoekstra: Cabinet crisis not ruled out over nitrogen or asylum

Vice Premier Wopke Hoekstra (CDA [Christian Democrats]) and Prime Minister Mark Rutte are dealing with the possibility that the cabinet will fall over the nitrogen or asylum crises. When asked, they gave air to that scenario on the Buitenhof television program on WNL [public broadcaster] on Sunday.

by Jan Hoedeman
March 12, 2023

The two politically-sensitive subjects, nitrogen and asylum, hold the Netherlands in their grip en route to the Provincial State elections next Wednesday. Progress on both fronts is extremely difficult, but must be made in the coming months. It is remarkable that the leaders of both coalition parties openly discuss the possibility of a cabinet crisis.

Totally did not see it coming

Rutte spoke out about a possible crisis on WNL on Sunday. He doesn’t assume it in the least, but, “You never know for sure.” He referred to his second and third cabinets, which succeeded. But in his first cabinet with the support of [Geert] Wilders, it failed. “I totally didn’t see that coming.”

Hoekstra stated on Buitenhof [program on state TV] that the polarization has been greatest on the nitrogen issue, but the emissions must be reduced by half by 2030. “ I think that in the Netherlands we must find solutions with a base of support,” said Hoekstra. “It is not the goal to let the cabinet collapse, but that may very well be the consequence.”

“Not lightly”

Hoekstra admitted that in the summer of 2022, he had thought about a possible cabinet crisis. It was in the summer that he declared that the year 2030 was not sacred. For assurance, Hoekstra added, “ You don’t throw the towel in the ring lightly over nitrogen or migration.”

D-66 Vice-Premier Sigrid Kaag, also a guest on Buitenhof, noted the nitrogen discussion: “We have had a policy of standstill. Do we go forward to 2030 or do we allow ourselves to be hostage to a policy of standstill?” She also sees the interim calibration times of 2025 and 2028 as a possibility to accelerate the nitrogen approach in different provinces where things are difficult.

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