The well-known Colombian-American journalist and vlogger Gonzalo Lira has reportedly died in a Ukrainian prison. Mr. Lira was arrested by Ukrainian authorities last year for publishing material that was considered against the interests of the Ukrainian state.
In other news, the repeated attacks on Red Sea shipping by Houthi rebels in Yemen have caused maritime shipping costs to increase by more than 300%.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to Conservative Tree House, Daniel Greenfield, Dean, JW, LP, Reader from Chicago, Roger, 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.
Argentina to Issue 10,000 and 20,000 Peso Bills Amid Soaring Inflation
As inflation in Argentina skyrockets to over 211%, the country is set to introduce larger denomination peso bills to simplify daily transactions.
The central bank has approved the production of 10,000-peso and 20,000-peso notes, which will be available by June. Currently, the highest denomination in circulation is the rare 2,000 peso note.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Argentina Faces Soaring Inflation, Affecting Traditional Social Customs
Argentina is grappling with soaring inflation, reaching around 200% last year, one of the highest levels globally, Reuters writes.
The rising costs, particularly in groceries, have significantly impacted people’s ability to afford traditional customs, such as the famous asado barbecue. Inflation is estimated to have been around 28% in December, with food prices increasing further due to a sharp devaluation of the peso currency.
The high inflation rate is a long-standing issue in Argentina, but the current levels are the highest since the early 1990s when the country was recovering from hyperinflation. The situation has forced individuals like Susana Barrio, a 79-year-old retiree, to cut back on social gatherings and traditions. Barrio expressed the difficulty of affording the once-traditional barbecue meals, which have become impossible due to fast-rising meat and vegetable prices.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
In the German budget for the year 2024, 200 million euros have been allocated for three new VIP helicopters for Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his ministers, according to Bild.
In the interest of savings, the German authorities are reducing subsidies to farmers, increasing quotas for harmful emissions from businesses, and raising fuel and energy prices. However, the government is not in a hurry to cut its own expenses. The budget for the year 2024 includes 200 million euros for three new VIP helicopters for Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his ministers.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
America Suffering ‘Autism Tsunami,’ Top Study Warns
A peer-reviewed study has warned of a crisis unfolding in America that scientists have described as an “autism tsunami.”
Researchers started raining the alarm of future autism cases in 2021.
They predict that the cost of treating the spiraling crisis will run into trillions of dollars per year, most of which will go to the pharmaceutical industry.
However, rising prevalence rates and lack of state services show the predicted crisis is already playing out.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Atmos Energy Says Fort Worth Hotel Explosion Wasn’t Caused by Its Gas Lines
Atmos Energy said Friday it had wrapped up its investigation into the Monday explosion at Sandman Signature Hotel explosion in downtown Fort Worth, saying it found no indication its gas lines and equipment caused the blast.
Fort Worth officials have pointed to natural gas as a likely cause for the explosion on the lower level of the historic tower, in the Musume restaurant, but investigators have yet to announce their findings. The brief statement by Atmos offered no details about how it reached its conclusion nor any possible cause.
[…]
Atmos Energy is responsible for the gas lines and infrastructure that are largely in public right-of-ways, such as under streets and sidewalks downtown. Property owners are generally responsible for gas lines on their land or in their buildings. The Sandman hotel opened in spring 2023 after a multi-million dollar renovation of the former office building; the basement-level restaurant opened last July.
| — Hat tip: LP | [Return to headlines] |
Biden Admin Rolls Out Red Carpet for Chinese Communist Who Ran Secret NYC Police Station
Secretary of State Antony Blinken rolled out the red carpet Friday for Liu Jianchao, China’s leading envoy — and the architect of its global scheme to kidnap and silence anti-Communist dissidents.
Liu’s “Operation Foxhunt” included setting up Chinese “police stations” including in New York, to find and extort dissidents.
His trip to the US was capped by the reception at the State Department by Blinken on Friday morning, the day after he met President Biden’s deputy national security adviser Jon Finer.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Biden Receives Rude Welcome While Visiting Swing State: ‘Go Home, Joe!’
President Biden received a rude welcome from swing-state voters who mercilessly heckled him during a Friday trip to Pennsylvania.
The 81-year-old commander in chief was met with shouts of “Go home, Joe!” and “You’re a loser!” by residents of an Allentown-area house as he walked into a bicycle store, according to a pool report.
Hours later, protesters opposed to Biden’s support for the Israeli offensive against Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip vowed that he’d pay the price at the ballot box in November.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Bill Gates: AI Will Save ‘Democracy,’ Make ‘Humans Get Along With Each Other’ & ‘Be Less Polarized’
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has suggested that he hopes artificial intelligence (AI) will dictate how “humans” behave toward one another.
According to Gates, powerful AI technology will “help” society to “be less polarized.”
Gates believes allowing the human race to have different opinions regarding politics and society is a “super-bad thing” because it “breaks democracy.”
In a Thursday podcast discussion with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Gates said that AI can fix these alleged problems by making “humans” “get along with each other.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Billionaire Bill Ackman Renounces 2024 Dems Over DEI Efforts, Plans Think Tank to Probe Higher Ed
Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman said he can no longer be “associated with” the Democratic Party over its support of “racist” diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.
In an interview on CNBC Friday, the Pershing Square Capital Management founder said that the Dems had “morphed” into woke martyrs.
“I was a Bill Clinton Democrat and what the party has morphed into is not something I want to be associated with,” he said on “Squawk Box.”
The 57-year-old Ackman announced he is planning to form a think tank to probe higher education in the US following his success in forcing ousted Harvard president Claudine Gay to resign.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Blue State AGs Tell Biden to Block Sale of Lake City’s 5.56 Ammo to Civilians
Authored by Kevin Stocklin via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours)
New York Attorney General Letitia James led a multi-state coalition of 20 attorneys general calling on the Biden administration to halt the sale of 5.56 caliber ammunition to civilians by the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant, a Missouri-based supplier for the U.S. military.
“Billions of rounds of military-grade ammunition manufactured at the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant have been sold on the commercial market, leading to their use in many of the most tragic mass shootings in recent history,” the AGs stated in a Jan. 9 letter to the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention. “We ask your Office to conduct an investigation into the contracting processes that led to this situation, and to take action to ensure that military-grade and military-subsidized ammunition stays out of civilian hands.”
The letter was signed by AGs from Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington. While many of these states have been enacting restrictions on firearms, others, including Arizona and Vermont, maintain a tradition of relatively permissive gun laws.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Breaking: Oregon’s Clackamas County Officially DISMANTLES Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Office
The Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Clackamas County, Oregon has officially been dismantled after officials voted to cut its bloated $828,000 budget. Clackamas County is one of the three counties that make up the greater Portland area.
The decision was made as the war against the anti-white “racist” initiatives, otherwise known as diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), has taken hold in America as enraged citizens have started to rebel against the progressive policies that they claim cause more harm than good.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Breaking: Fox News Pulls MyPillow Advertisements
Fox News has reportedly dropped advertisements from MyPillow.
“Ever since I’ve been speaking out about our election platforms since January ‘21, they’ve been attacking my company, MyPillow, with cancel culture, the box stores, the shopping channels, and now Fox News,” MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell told War Room host Steve Bannon on Friday.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Censorship Investigation: Jim Jordan Subpoenas Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan has issued a subpoena to Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines. This action is part of a wider investigation by the committee into allegations that the federal government has been working in concert with Big Tech companies to suppress certain viewpoints on social media platforms. These allegations raise serious concerns about violations of First Amendment rights.
Chairman Jordan, in his communication to Haines, underscored the gravity of the situation. He cited evidence gathered by the Committee and its Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government, along with other publicly available information, highlighting the federal government’s involvement in pressuring and collaborating with Big Tech and other intermediaries. This collaboration, as Jordan pointed out, has led to the censorship of specific viewpoints online, in direct opposition to the principles enshrined in the First Amendment.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Democrats Criticize Biden for Houthi Strikes Without Congressional Approval
President Joe Biden faced backlash from progressive Democrats for launching retaliatory strikes against the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen without seeking congressional approval, POLITICO writes.
A group of lawmakers, including Rep. Pramila Jayapal, chair of the Progressive Caucus, expressed strong objections, citing the violation of Article 1 of the Constitution, which mandates congressional authorization for military actions.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Several Democrats on Capitol Hill scolded President Biden on Thursday for launching airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen without congressional approval, arguing that the action was unconstitutional.
“The President needs to come to Congress before launching a strike against the Houthis in Yemen and involving us in another middle east [sic] conflict,” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) tweeted. “That is Article I of the Constitution. I will stand up for that regardless of whether a Democrat or Republican is in the White House.”
“Section 2C of the War Powers Act is clear: POTUS may only introduce the US into hostilities after Congressional authorization or in a national emergency when the U.S. is under imminent attack,” Khanna went on. “Reporting is not a substitute. This is a retaliatory, offensive strike.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
In a case of déjà vu, for the second time this week, a sprawling winter storm tracking across the central and eastern US is packing a trio of threats, including blizzard conditions in the Midwest, severe weather in the South and flash flooding in the East.
Just a few days ago, a deadly winter storm slammed the central US and brought nearly a foot of snow and whiteout conditions from the Plains to the Great Lakes as deadly severe storms and tornadoes raked the South, while high winds and flooding rain knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of Americans on the East Coast and sent rivers rising to historic levels.
Weather alerts of all types cover every state in the Lower 48.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Fauci Admits to Arbitrary Rules That Boosted Mass Surveillance and Suppressed Opinions
Some people may have already forgotten — but not so long ago billions of law-abiding citizens around the world basically got put under house arrest.
When they were able to go outside, they had to wear masks, and keep 6-feet “social” distance (known as “2-meter rule” in Europe).
Not to put too fine a point on it — but, it turns out the “science” behind this was pretty much arbitrary.
And, we learned this from none other than Dr. Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
The distancing rule was just one of the Covid-era restrictions explained and enforced as coming from “authoritative” medical sources and therefore based on science.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Good Guy With Gun Stops Armed Jewelry Robbers in Liberal California City
A good guy with a gun sent armed robbers “scrambling” for their lives after they targeted the local jewelry store where he works in liberal Oakland, California.
The store employee gave two suspected armed thieves an unwelcome surprise on Monday when he opened fire on them with his weapon, FOX2 reported.
The worker, who did not want to be identified, said he saw a Toyota Camry approach the shop on the wrong side of the road, according to FOX2.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
HS Student Faces Charges After Beating Up Teacher, 65, in Viral Video: Cops
A Missouri high school student is facing criminal charges after a distressing viral video showed her wrestling and repeatedly punching her 65-year-old teacher, leaving her hospitalized.
One clip seen more than 1.3 million times on X by Friday shows the St. Louis educator on the floor desperately trying to protect herself from the student standing over her and pummeling her in the head.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Jack Smith Targeted With ‘Swatting’ Call to Elicit Armed Police Response at His Home
Special Counsel Jack Smith was reportedly targeted by a “swatting” call to trigger an emergency response from armed law enforcement at his home.
The dangerous tactic seeks to direct law enforcement to respond to a falsely reported emergency, often with guns drawn, at the target’s location, according to NBC News.
The swatting attempt reportedly occurred on Christmas Day at Smith’s Maryland residence.
It involved a fraudulent 911 caller who anonymously asserted that Smith had shot and killed his wife in their home.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan is asking FBI Director Christopher Wray to hand over another confidential informant file related to an alleged $10 million bribe that the owner of Ukrainian natural gas company Burisma Holdings paid to Hunter and Joe Biden.
The March 1, 2017, file from a confidential human source of the bureau may contain “crucial” information to the committee’s investigation of Hunter’s overseas business dealings and impeachment proceedings against President Biden, Jordan (R-Ohio) wrote in a Thursday letter to Wray.
Jordan said the file “resulted in the creation of now publicly available [report], dated June 30, 2020, containing information implicating then-Vice President Biden in a multimillion-dollar bribery scheme,” was “necessary” for his committee’s work and must be submitted by Jan. 19.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Oregon Supreme Court Nukes Case Seeking to Remove Trump From 2024 Ballots
The Oregon Supreme Court has refused to hear a case that seeks to remove President Donald Trump from the state’s 2024 presidential election.
The case challenged Trump’s eligibility to appear on the state’s ballot by falsely claiming the 45th president violated the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
Five Oregon voters behind the case claim Trump is ineligible because he supposedly “engaged in insurrection” during the events at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Protesters Chant ‘UK and US Can Go to Hell’ in Times Square After Biden Bombs Houthis in Yemen
On Thursday, pro-Palestinian demonstrators descended upon New York City’s Times Square to protest against a joint military operation conducted by the United States and the United Kingdom against Iranian-backed Houthi forces in Yemen.
“It is right to rebel,” chanted the group of protesters who added, “US, UK go to hell.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Rand Paul Wades Into GOP Primary Race With ‘Never Nikki’ Haley Initiative
Nikki Haley is an “outlier” among the candidates vying to take on President Biden in the 2024 general election, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) told The Post on Friday, after launching his “Never Nikki” initiative.
The anti-endorsement aims to define the former South Carolina governor as a “Big Government” Republican with little concern for fiscal responsibility or civil liberties — fundamental issues for the libertarian senator — ahead of the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
WASHINGTON — House Republicans said Friday that Hunter Biden’s offer to testify if they issue him a new subpoena was too little, too late — and vowed to forge ahead with holding him in contempt of Congress unless he immediately sets a date to appear.
President Biden’s son waved a white flag in his standoff with House committees leading the impeachment inquiry into his dad for alleged corruption mere days before the full House was expected to hold him in criminal contempt.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) is requesting messages and records from an Atlanta prosecutor assisting in the Georgia case against former President Donald Trump after the lawyer met with Biden administration officials and House Democrats repeatedly in 2022.
Nathan Wade, a private attorney who was hired in late 2021 by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to aid in her investigation, may have abused federal funds by billing the county for trips he took with Willis while the two had an alleged affair, Jordan informed Wade in a Friday letter.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Revealed: SEC in ‘Active and Ongoing’ Investigation Into Rumble
A new report has revealed that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has undertaken an investigation into the free speech video platform Rumble.
In a report from Wired, Rumble and a letter from the SEC to the outlet have confirmed that the SEC is investigating the platform for allegedly inflating investor metrics.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
RFK Jr. Ramps Up Quest for Nationwide Ballot Inclusion
Authored by Jeff Louderbeck via The Epoch Times
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the 2024 independent presidential candidate, is continuing the daunting task of attempting to gain ballot access in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Mr. Kennedy will appear at voter rallies in Raleigh, N.C., on Jan. 12; Atlanta on Jan. 14; Honolulu on Jan. 18; and Charleston, W.V., on Jan 27.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Stars of Netflix’s ‘Queer Eye’ Almost Quit Over Carjackings in This Crime-Ridden Blue City: Report
The “Fab Five” reportedly threatened to abandon filming of an upcoming season of “Queer Eye” after a production vehicle was carjacked, leaving the crew feeling unsafe, according to sources that were on set.
The successful carjacking followed two failed attempts to steal production vehicles in 2022 during filming for the hit Netflix show’s upcoming eighth season, set in New Orleans, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Tan France said he’d leave production unless additional security measures were taken, while the remaining four hosts — Jonathan Van Ness, Antoni Porowoski, Bobby Berk and Karamo Brown — backed him up, several unnamed sources told THR.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
State AGs Blast Biden, Wall Street Plan to Sell Rights to America’s Public Lands
Authored by Kevin Stocklin via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours)
The current plan by the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) to create Natural Asset Companies (NACs), which would buy up land rights throughout America, faced heavy criticism from 25 state attorneys general, who in a Jan. 9 letter urged the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to reject the concept.
“What is happening here is clear,” the AGs wrote. “The Commission and the NYSE are seeking to implement a radical environmental agenda through the rulemaking process (and outside the legislative process).”
“This type of decision, particularly given its vast economic consequences, must be left to Congress and not the Commission or the NYSE,” they stated.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
President Donald Trump has issued a warning about the “very dangerous” impact of artificial intelligence-generated propaganda after fake AI images of him went viral on social media recently.
Trump’s name was mentioned in recently unsealed documents from a 2017 lawsuit by an alleged victim of late convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Unlike other powerful elites such as Bill Clinton and Prince Andrew, Trump’s name was only mentioned when witnesses asserted that he was never involved in any wrongdoing.
Nevertheless, that mention was quickly followed by a viral social media post with photos that purported to show Trump surrounded by young girls on Epstein’s private jet.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
US Supreme Court to Hear Dispute Over Starbucks Firing Pro-Union Workers
(Reuters) —The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear a challenge by Starbucks to a judicial decision that required the coffee chain to rehire seven employees at one of its cafes in Memphis, Tennessee who a federal agency determined were fired for supporting unionization.
The justices took up a Starbucks appeal of a lower court’s ruling that found that the company likely discouraged other employees from exercising their rights under U.S. labor law by firing the Memphis workers in 2022. This is the first case to reach the Supreme Court involving an ongoing nationwide campaign to unionize Starbucks stores.
The Memphis store is one of more than 370 Starbucks locations in the United States to unionize since 2021. The Seattle-based company was non-union for decades.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The OnlyFans model who fatally stabbed her boyfriend in the neck during an altercation nearly two years ago, was caught on video months before hitting and yelling at her beau.
Courtney Clenney, now 27, was seen swatting at Christian Obumseli in a seemingly unprovoked attack in Aspen, Colorado in Feb. 2022 — two months before she allegedly stabbed him to death in their ritzy Miami condominium.
“I was f—king sober for two weeks,” Clenney says in a crying-like voice as she repeatedly slaps Obumseli. “And now why am I not sober? Because of you.”
The video was released by the Haggard Law Firm, the group representing Obumseli’s family.
The law firm said they would be using the video in the murder case against Clenney, according to Local10 News.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Wisconsin Judge Rules Use of Mobile Vans in Absentee Voting Violates State Election Law
Authored by Katabella Roberts via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours)
A Wisconsin judge ruled this week that the use of a mobile van to facilitate absentee voting violates state election laws, marking a win for Republicans who had challenged the city of Racine after the vehicle drove to various locations throughout the city and collected absentee ballots in 2022.
Racine County Circuit Court Judge Eugene Gasiorkiewicz said in his ruling that the city’s use of a mobile van for absentee voting not only violated state law but also unfairly benefited Democrats in a primary election in August 2022.
In his 17-page ruling, the judge noted that while no statute of state law expressly prohibits the use of mobile voting vans, it also does not explicitly authorize their use.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The recent arrest of Rebel News journalist David Menzies by a police bodyguard for Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was one of many assaults on press freedom by the Liberals, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says.
Menzies himself asked Poilievre to lay out what he’d do differently from the Liberal government on media regulations at a Winnipeg press conference Friday morning.
Poilievre pledged to rescind Bill C-11 and fight back against other censorship plans being imposed by the Liberal government.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Campus Watch: Two Major B.C. Universities Hiring Professors Based on Race
The University of British Columbia and the University of Victoria have become the latest Canadian postsecondary institutions to take part in race-based hiring — by mandating that new professor hires be black.
These hiring practices are being pursued in accordance with their “diversity, equity and inclusion” agendas.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Lawton: Rebel News Suing Chrystia Freeland Over Reporter’s Arrest (ft. Ezra Levant)
Following the arrest of journalist David Menzies, Rebel News revealed they have retained legal counsel and plan to initiate legal proceedings as early as this week. Rebel News founder Ezra Levant joined True North’s Andrew Lawton to discuss the importance of defending not only Menzies, but also the fundamental principles of press freedom.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Maxime Bernier, Brian Peckford Appeal Air Travel Vaccine Mandate Case to Supreme Court
Former Newfoundland premier Brian Peckford and People’s Party of Canada Leader Maxime Bernier are taking their battle against the air travel vaccine mandate to the Supreme Court.
The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, which is representing Peckford and Bernier on the appeal, announced the development in the case Thursday.
The challenge to the federal government’s Nov. 2021 vaccine mandate addresses the government’s requirement for proof of COVID vaccination for all travellers using federally regulated transportation services.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Veterans Speak Out About “Disrespectful” Critical Race Theory Pushed in Military
The Liberal government is politicizing the Canadian Armed Forces and pushing an agenda to embed critical race theory onto servicemembers, a group of veterans warned in a recent episode of the Andrew Lawton Show.
Veterans 4 Freedom president Drew MacGillivray and member Tom Marazzo reacted to an exclusive report by True North revealing that a vast majority of the latest issue of the Canadian Military Journal was devoted to disparaging “whiteness” and claiming that the Canadian Armed Forces was founded on racism.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
AfD Dominates Polls in Three German States
According to current polls, the AfD (Alternative for Germany) would be the strongest party by a significant margin in the state elections at the beginning of the year 2024 in the German federal states of Saxony, Thuringia and Brandenburg, as reported by Kurier.
According to the RTL/ntv Trend Barometer published on Thursday, the AfD could expect to receive 36 percent of the votes in Thuringia, 34 percent in Saxony, and 32 percent in Brandenburg.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Anticipated Rise in Portugal: LPG Prices Set to Increase Again
As per the monthly report on bottled LPG price oversight in Portugal, analyzing estimates by the regulatory body, the most significant hike is expected in the 45-kilogram propane G110 cylinder, with a projected cost of 110.02 euros per unit, as reported by Portugal News.
The Energy Services Regulatory Authority (ERSE) report notes, “LPG prices in January continued their upward trend, aligning with the international price movements in the preceding month.” The regulator emphasizes that prices for the three primary gas cylinders will “increase in January.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Astronomer Discovers Enigmatic Giant Structure in Space
A young researcher from the United Kingdom has identified a colossal ring of galaxies in space, spanning 1.3 billion light-years. According to prevailing theories, such a structure should not exist, as reported by Spiegel.
Alexia Lopez, a researcher at the University of Central Lancashire in Britain, presented a groundbreaking observation at the American Astronomical Society conference in New Orleans. She reported the discovery of a large, circular structure composed of galaxies and galaxy clusters, referred to as the “Big Ring.” It ranks among the largest structures ever identified in the universe.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Climate Czar John Kerry Leads U.S. Delegation Flying to Davos for Elite WEF Conclave
The global elites are readying their private jets for the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual conclave in Davos, Switzerland, with the U.S. delegation to have John Kerry, special presidential envoy for climate, in the lead role.
The composition of the U.S. delegation was announced by the White House via a press statement.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Danish Prosecutor Reveals Hamas Links in Recent Terrorism Case
A Danish prosecutor disclosed on Friday that an investigation leading to the apprehension of three suspects in Denmark last month, accused of plotting a terrorist act is linked to Hamas, as reported by local media. The case, previously shrouded in secrecy, came to light during a custody hearing at the Eastern High Court.
“The investigation has provided information that, according to the police, the case has links to Hamas,” said prosecutor Anders Larsson during the hearing, adding that the information is no longer classified. Larsson refrained from providing further details. The arrests occurred on December 14, with three individuals detained in Denmark and a fourth in the Netherlands. Coincidentally, around the same time, the Netherlands and Germany also arrested alleged Hamas members, though the connection between these cases remains unclear.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Decline in Office Real Estate in Germany: Market Collapsed Last Year
The market for office real estate practically came to a standstill last year, especially in the banking city of Frankfurt am Main. In the midst of the real estate crisis, major investors are avoiding the purchase of office spaces. According to real estate specialist Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), investments in Frankfurt am Main plummeted to 347 million euros in 2023, marking a decline of nearly 90 percent compared to the previous year, as reported by Spiegel.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Finland Keeps Border With Russia Closed for Another Month
During a general session of the State Council, the Finnish government has decided to extend the closure of border checkpoints with Russia for another month. Minister of the Interior Mari Rantanen announced this decision, as reported by Yle.
The restrictions at the border will remain in effect until February 11.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The former Prime Minister of Britain, Boris Johnson, has effectively confirmed information that he influenced the decision of the Ukrainian government to reject a peace agreement with Russia in the spring of 2022. He made this statement to The Times.
Johnson reported that after the meeting of representatives of the Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul in 2022, he held talks with the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, during which he expressed his concern about the possibility of any agreement between Moscow and Kiev.
According to Johnson, in that conversation, he also emphasized that the United Kingdom is ready to help Ukraine “a thousand percent.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
German Government Raises Aviation Fees, Impacting Travel Costs and Family Finances
The German authorities have decided to increase aviation fees, which may negatively impact the financial capability of families, as reported by Rzeczpospolita. The change is effective from May, pertains to new tax rates for air travel. The fees apply to both domestic and international routes.
For domestic and European travel, the per-person fee will rise from 12.73 euros to 15.53 euros, while for flights exceeding 6,000 kilometers, it will increase from 58.06 euros to 70.83 euros. The new taxes will apply to all passengers departing from German airports, although airlines are obligated to remit the fees, potentially leading to passing the increases on to customers.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
German Farmers Warn Government: “No Scope” for Any More Cuts
SDP Chancellor Olaf Scholz found himself the subject of a lively farmers’ picket on Thursday afternoon as the embattled German premier cold-shouldered local agricultural organisations pressuring him to speak directly to protestors.
Security was heightened ahead of Scholz’s scheduled visit to Cottbus—in a region known to be a hotbed of agrarian discontent. A police cordon prevented direct confrontation between Scholz and the farmers as hundreds lined the streets to protest the hapless chancellor, who was there to launch a new railway components factory. Convoys of tractors attempted to encircle the northeastern German town.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Hundreds of Postal Employees Wrongfully Convicted in UK’s ‘Widest Miscarriage of Justice’
Hundreds of UK Post Office managers were bankrupted and imprisoned, thanks to flawed accounting software deployed by the government-run Post Office, which also initiated a 20-year campaign of cover-up and legal harassment against them.
It has been described as “the most widespread miscarriage of justice in UK history.” Yet, before the current explosion of public interest, almost nobody in British politics or the media paid it any proper attention for two decades. This is very much part of the scandal which provides a wider snapshot of the dire state of UK politics.
While playing a vital role in towns and villages, submaster-managed post offices and their staff are quite distant from the priorities of the Westminster ‘bubble.’ Like the Brexit revolt before it, the recent explosion of public indignation over how government-run institutions treated the ‘little people’ meant that UK politicians have been ill-prepared for the anger surrounding these criminal convictions, bankruptcies and worse.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
In Romania, Farmers Stage Tractor Protest Over Subsidy Delays and Agricultural Issues
The Patriotic Union of Farmers in Romania organized a protest in the capital using tractors due to delays in subsidy payments, low grain prices and unfair competition, as reported by G4Media.
“On Wednesday, January 10, farmers from several counties took to the streets with tractors with some expressing their intention to reach Bucharest with agricultural machinery. By the evening, they had stopped at the city’s entrance and on Thursday proceeded with the protest towards the government. The organizer identified themselves as the Patriotic Union of Farmers,” the portal states.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Advocacy group Free Speech Ireland has issued a “civil rights alert” as the country’s authorities are working to introduce the Irish Online Safety Code — that seems to be, at least in part, inspired by the UK’s hugely controversial Online Safety Act.
For example, although at first glance much smaller in scope, one point from the proposal is reminiscent of the Online Safety Act’s “legal but harmful” doctrine — it is punishing online platforms, specifically video ones, for content that “indirectly leads to harm.”
One of the ways such harm would be interpreted is even if a video does not contain content of the kind — comments to it are branded as “hateful.” In other words, it’s a platform liability for third-party content. The regulation would treat it as “indissociable from user-generated videos.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Latvia Expresses Doubt About the Need for a Unified EU Army
Latvian Minister of Defense Andris Spruds has expressed skepticism about the necessity of creating a unified EU army, a proposal previously put forward by Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani. The statement from the Latvian minister is reported by Delfi.
According to Spruds, discussions about an EU army can take place, but overall, the military strength of the region lies within NATO, many of whose members are also EU countries.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Norway Defends Solitary Confinement for Mass Killer, Rejects Human Rights Violation Claims
Norway’s government has affirmed its stance that Anders Behring Breivik, a right-wing extremist responsible for the 2011 killing of 77 people, including a bomb attack in Oslo and a shooting spree at a youth camp on Utøya island, should remain in solitary confinement due to the perceived danger he poses.
The government rejected Breivik’s claim that his human rights are being violated and emphasized the risk of violence as well as his potential to inspire others.
Andreas Hjetland, a government lawyer, argued that stringent security measures are necessary to prevent violence, stating, “There is simply nothing indicating that Breivik’s human rights are being violated.” Breivik, who changed his name to Fjotolf Hansen, contends that his isolation since beginning his prison sentence in 2012 constitutes inhumane punishment under the European Convention on Human Rights.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Poland: Conservatives Rally Against Illegal Media Takeover
Activists and supporters of Poland’s conservative opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party took to the streets of Warsaw Thursday afternoon protesting the aggressive takeover of the public broadcaster by the new left-liberal government.
Just after taking office in December, the Brussels-backed government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk sacked senior managers, journalists, and other employees of TVP, Poland’s state broadcaster, after accusing them of having ties to the previous government, led by PiS.
The move led to high-ranking members of the PiS, including the country’s former prime minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski, having a sit-down protest in TVP headquarters. Poland’s culture minister then announced that he would liquidate the entire network.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
President Andrzej Duda declared on Thursday that he has commenced clemency proceedings for two conservative politicians, Mariusz Kaminski and Maciej Wasik, currently being detained in Poland.
The decision came after a personal request from the wives of the two men, Barbara Kaminska and Romualda Wasik, and was preceded by a meeting between them and the Polish president.
President Duda began by acknowledging Kaminski and Wasik as the first political prisoners since 1989, expressing no doubt about their status. He remarked that these individuals, known for pursuing criminals, may have taken actions that are disapproved of by many in high-profile positions today.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Spanish Socialists Seek to Ban Opposition Media From Parliament
After hand-picking the ‘friendly’ journalists allowed to ask questions at Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’ end-of-year speech, his ruling socialist party, Partido Socialista Obrero Español (PSOE) has now banned opposition journalists from its events. Going a step further, the party is seeking to bar certain accredited media outlets from the national and regional parliaments.
In a statement sent out January 11th, titled “Yes to journalism, not one meter more to the pseudo-media nor the press of hate,” the PSOE announced that “in light of the events that occurred last New Year’s Eve in front of the Ferraz headquarters, which we consider to be extremely serious, we will withdraw the access credential to our headquarters and to the events organized by the party from all pseudo media participating in the broadcast of the event organized by the Revuelta association.”
“Most of them no longer had that access,” it added.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The Decline of the West: Insights From History and Present Realities — Die Welt
Is the West following the same path of decline as ancient Rome? According to a historian and an economist, the answer is affirmative. However, they challenge the concept of “late Roman decadence” and focus on aspects such as the welfare state, taxes and financial matters, Die Welt wrotes.
The inquiry into the fall of the Roman Empire often points to Christianity, as depicted in Edward Gibbon’s six-volume work. Yet, recent excavations reveal a more complex reality, especially in the outer provinces, leading to a need for a new explanation.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The EU Confirms a €2.4 Billion Fine for Google for Anti-Competitive Actions
Google is set to face confirmation of a €2.4 billion fine from the European Union (EU), as reported by The Brussels Times. The fine is imposed by Brussels for anti-competitive practices in the price-comparison market, was defended by a General Attorney in the European courts.
The legal dispute, which has been ongoing for almost 15 years, stems from the European Commission penalizing Google in June 2017 for abusing its dominant online search position.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Top Banker Christine Lagarde Warns Trump ‘Clearly a Threat’ to Europe
A return to the White House for former President Donald Trump Donald is “clearly a threat” to Europe judging by the America-first nature of his policies last time, European Central Bank (ECB) president Christine Lagarde cautioned Thursday.
The French globalist lawyer turned career bureaucrat made her claim of a potential misalignment between a less malleable Trump and Europe in an interview with France 2.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Biden Calls Houthis Terrorists, Then Declines to Give Them ‘Irrelevant’ Official Designation
President Biden labeled the Houthi movement as “terrorists” on Friday but refused to give the Iranian-allied militants an official terror group designation — calling the difference “irrelevant.”
Biden was asked about the “terrorist” label just hours after he ordered airstrikes on Yemen in response to Houthi attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea.
“Are you willing to call the Houthis a terrorist group, sir?” a journalist asked the 81-year-old commander in chief as he visited small businesses in Allentown, Pa.
“I think they are,” Biden replied.
In a subsequent exchange, Biden dismissed the need for an official designation following the joint US-UK bombardment, which Houthi leaders said killed five people. The offensive prompted a large anti-American rally in Yemen’s capital Sanaa.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Houthi Red Sea Attacks Send Shipping Costs Soaring Over 300%
The Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI), the leading indicator of worldwide freight costs, posted on Friday a cost per container of $3,101 — an increase of about 310 percent since the Iran-backed Houthi terrorists of Yemen began attacking cargo ships in the Red Sea.
The SCFI price for a 20-foot shipping container stood at $2,871 the Friday before, so costs are rising steadily week-by-week as shippers abandon the vital Red Sea trade route for slower and more expensive alternatives.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
US Warns Ships to Stay Out of Parts of Red Sea as Houthi Rebels Vow Retaliation for US, UK Strikes
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The U.S. Navy on Friday warned American-flagged vessels to steer clear of areas around Yemen in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden for the next 72 hours after the U.S. and Britain launched multiple airstrikes targeting Houthi rebels.
The warning in a notice to shippers came as Yemen’s Houthis vowed fierce retaliation for the U.S.-led strikes, further raising the prospect of a wider conflict in a region already beset by Israel’s war in Gaza.
U.S. military and White House officials said they expected the Houthis to try to strike back. And President Joe Biden warned on Friday that the group could face further strikes.
| — Hat tip: JW | [Return to headlines] |
Journalist Gonzalo Lira Reported Dead in Ukrainian Custody
Journalist Gonzalo Lira has died while in Ukrainian custody, according to his father.
“Gonzalo Lira, Sr. says his son has died at 55 in a Ukrainian prison, where he was being held for the crime of criticizing the Zelensky and Biden governments,” wrote Tucker Carlson on X. “Gonzalo Lira was an American citizen, but the Biden administration clearly supported his imprisonment and torture.”
In May, Lira was arrested by Ukrainian authorities because he “publicly justified” the Russian invasion, according to a press release by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).
The statement from Kiev said that Lira “has the citizenship of one of the countries of Latin America” but omitted that he is also California-born U.S. citizen, as ZeroHedge contributor Space Worm reported at the time.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Report: American Journalist Gonzalo Lira Has Died While Imprisoned in Ukraine
WASHINGTON DC (WSAU) — 55-year-old American journalist Gonzalo Lira has reportedly died in a Ukrainian prison after nearly eight months of imprisonment.
According to the Post Millennial, Lira was arrested by Ukrainian security in May 2023 after he was reportedly critical of President Vladimir Zelensky’s handling of the war being fought against Russian forces in Eastern Ukraine.
Lira’s comments included claims that Ukraine’s efforts to win the captured territory back have gone nowhere and their people are dying for a war that is already lost.
Gonzalo Lira Sr., provided a statement on his son’s death to The Grayzone, saying, “I cannot accept the way my son has died. He was tortured, extorted, and incommunicado for 8 months and 11 days, and the US Embassy did nothing to help my son. The responsibility of this tragedy is the dictator Zelensky, with the concurrence of a senile American president, Joe Biden.”
| — Hat tip: Conservative Tree House | [Return to headlines] |
Russia Prepares Legal Defense to Resist Seizure of Frozen Reserves
In response to mounting discussions among the US and its allies regarding the fate of Russia’s $300 billion in frozen central bank assets, Russia is gearing up for a legal battle to thwart any attempts to redirect these funds to Ukraine, according to sources familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reports.
Officials in Moscow, anticipating potential efforts to seize the frozen reserves, believe such an outcome is unlikely but are taking proactive measures to protect their interests. The Bank of Russia is reportedly close to finalizing agreements with international law firms to represent the country in case of a legal showdown. Authorities have also sought expert opinions on foreign legislation and analyzed precedents in other nations.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Russian Serial Killer Pardoned for Serving on Front Lines Killed Fighting in Ukraine
A Russian serial killer who was pardoned in exchange for serving on the front lines has reportedly been killed fighting in Ukraine.
Denis Zubov, 41, was killed on April 20, 2023, according to the date on his grave marker — but his death was just uncovered by a group that tracks Russian soldiers killed in the Ukraine war, Mediazone said.
Based on the date on his grave, Zubov may have been killed near Bakhmut, the outlet added.
Zubov’s sister, Tatyana, confirmed that Zubov had been pardoned in order to serve in the conflict in Ukraine and then was killed.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Russia Warns UK That Troop Deployment in Ukraine Would be ‘Declaration of War’
A senior ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned the U.K. that putting boots on the ground in Ukraine would amount to a declaration of war against Russia.
Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chair of the Security Council of Russia, took aim at the country in a post Friday on X as U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was arriving in Kyiv to announce a major funding package for Ukraine.
The U.K. will provide around $3.2 billion of military aid to Ukraine over the coming year, its largest annual commitment since Russia’s invasion nearly two years ago.
Medvedev, who served as Russian president from 2008 and 2012, also posited a hypothetical situation where Sunak would come under military fire while in the Ukrainian capital.
“The British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has arrived in Kiev to sign a ‘historic UK-Ukraine Agreement on Security Cooperation,’“ Medvedev wrote.
“What would [the] Western public say, if the British representatives happened to be bombarded with cluster ammunition in the center of Kiev, just as was the case with our innocent civilians in Belgorod?”
Medvedev was referring to a Dec. 30 attack on Russian civilians in the city of Belgorod, in southern Russia near the Ukrainian border, where at least 20 people were killed, including two children, and 111 injured in what it called an “indiscriminate” Ukrainian strike using cluster bombs.
Medvedev then went on to warn the U.K. about potentially deploying a military contingent in Ukraine.
“And I also hope that our archenemies, the impudent British understand that officially stationing their troops in Ukraine would mean declaration of war against our country,” Medvedev wrote.
| — Hat tip: Dean | [Return to headlines] |
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak Arrives in Kyiv, Announces New Funding for Ukraine
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak traveled to Kyiv on Friday to unveil a new support package for Ukraine, including an increase in military funding for its war with Russia that after 22 months shows no sign of ending.
The 2.5 billion pounds ($3.2 billion) in military funding for Ukraine over the next financial year will cover long-range missiles, thousands of drones, air defense, artillery ammunition and maritime security, according to a statement from Sunak’s office.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Chinese Scientists Reveal Experiments With Virus 100% Fatal to Mice
Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours)
Scientists in China, experimenting with a coronavirus closely related to the virus that causes COVID-19, found that it had a 100 percent kill rate in a small mouse study, according to the researchers’ announcement on Jan. 4.
The scientists, including a doctor trained by the Chinese military, cloned a pangolin coronavirus and infected modified mice to “assess its pathogenicity,” they said in a preprint paper published on bioRxiv.
Of the four mice infected with the virus, all began to lose weight five days post-infection. Shortly thereafter, they exhibited symptoms including sluggishness and white eyes.
The four mice died within eight days of inoculation. Researchers described the results as “surprising.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Globalism is a Western Idea, the Rest of the Globe Killed It
When globalism’s obituary is finally written, and the mourners file past in their crisp suits and pantsuits, the cause of death will almost certainly read, the People’s Republic of China.
China is the most obvious offender. Even before the Wuhan Virus cut off countries from each other, the Communist oligarchy had abused the world economy with massive digital theft, even more massive counterfeiting, product dumping, and every possible form of economic warfare.
That’s why any halfway serious adult on the other side supported Trump’s fight against China. Even George Soros, the uber-globalist, called Trump’s trade war with China his greatest achievement. The source of Soros’ opposition is the fear he expressed at Davos that the PRC’s social credit system could “sound the death knell of open societies”. By open societies, he meant globalism.
Unlike many, Soros isn’t worried about the loss of personal freedom, but the endurance of the nation state. China, like Russia, has shown that a nation-state with mass propaganda, a censored internet, a powerful secret police, and all the digital toys on sale in stores can survive the pressures of modernity that are fracturing the nations and peoples of the Western world.
But all of that depends on the PRC’s ability to generate wealth and raise living standards.
| — Hat tip: Daniel Greenfield | [Return to headlines] |
Japanese Earthquake on Jan. 1 Shifted Coastline Over 800 Feet, Satellite Photos Show
Satellite images captured striking changes in the coastline of Japan’s Noto Peninsula following a massive earthquake on New Year’s Day.
A 7.6 magnitude earthquake struck Japan on Jan. 1 around 2:10 a.m. EST (0710 GMT, or 4:10 p.m. local time in Japan), prompting orders for residents to evacuate affected coastal areas that experienced significant uplift. Satellite imagery of the area before and after the quake shows that the intense uplift extended the coastline by up to 820 feet (250 meters), which is greater than the length of two American football fields.
Images of Japan’s Noto Peninsula shared on X (formerly Twitter) by Nahel Belgherze show coastal areas where the seafloor has risen above the water, creating newly exposed beaches. The photos capture the coastline changes after the earthquake and tsunami had already subsided, leaving some ports completely dry and inaccessible to boats.
“During a field investigation along the northwest coast of the Noto Peninsula, we found evidence at 10 locations, from Kaiso to Akasaki sites, of coseismic coastal uplift related to the Noto Peninsula Earthquake (M7.6),” researchers with the Earthquake Research Institute at the University of Tokyo said in a statement on Jan. 4.
| — Hat tip: Roger | [Return to headlines] |
Australia’s eSafety Commissioner Complains About X Reinstating Censored Accounts
Without considering the possibility that there were perhaps too many of them to begin with — Australia’s eSafety Commissioner is complaining in a new report that X, since the Musk takeover, has fired too many “safety and public policy personnel.”
Another complaint from the commissioner’s “transparency report” is about previously censored accounts getting reinstated on the platform.
The sum of the new policy, according to this Australian office — a government agency that’s “independent (but) supported by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA)” — is that X is now less capable of “tackling online hate.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Guyana Seeks U.S. Assistance to Bolster Military Amid Venezuela Territorial Dispute
In response to concerns over a territorial dispute with neighboring Venezuela, Guyana’s government has announced its intention to seek assistance from the United States to enhance its defense capabilities.
The disputed region in western Guyana is believed to be rich in minerals and oil, raising fears of potential aggression from Venezuela. The announcement comes after two days of talks between top Guyanese officials and Daniel P. Erikson, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Western Hemisphere, who visited Guyana to discuss defense and security partnerships.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Finland Crafting Law on Refugee Border Procedures With Russia
The Finnish Ministry of Interior is actively developing a law outlining border procedures for asylum seekers at the Russian border, announced Mari Rantanen, the head of the ministry.
While it remains challenging to predict the completion date, Rantanen assured that the ministry is diligently working on the legislation. Speaking on a morning program on Yle public broadcaster, she emphasized the complexity of balancing legal instruments to safeguard asylum seekers’ rights while maintaining border security.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The Governor of Illinois has begged Texas Governor Greg Abbott to stop bussing migrants to his state ahead of a life-threatening winter storm.
Governor JB Pritzker warned carrying out the policy amid plunging temperatures is jeopardizing the safety of migrant children and families.
And with the mercury set to plummet even further at the weekend, he has begged Abbott ‘for mercy’ on behalf of the thousands of migrants arriving in Texas who are due to be sent off to Illinois’ sanctuary cities.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Salvini Says Proud of Action in Stopping Migrants at Trial
Deputy Premier and Transport Minister Matteo Salvini on Friday told a trial for allegedly abducting 147 migrants rescued by Spanish NGO Open Arms in August 2019 that he was proud of his actions as interior minister to stop migrants landing in Italy.
“I am proud to say that when I was Minister of the Interior there was no mournful episode (death, ed.) related to migrants, unlike what happened afterwards” and landings were reduced “by 90%”, he told the court in Palermo.
He is accused of kidnapping and refusing to perform his duty for having denied disembarkation to the 147 migrants rescued at sea in August 2019 by the Spanish NGO ship Open Arms, one of several such incidents.
In a post on Instagram before the hearing, Salvini reiterated: “Head held high, proud of what I have done.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Migrants Scour Trash for Food as They Live Out of Buses in Chicago
Hundreds of migrants in Chicago are living in buses — with some desperately digging through trash bins for food — as the Windy City’s shelter system groans under an onslaught of asylum seekers.
With an estimated 34,000 migrants arriving in Chicago in the past 16 months — and buses packed with fresh arrivals continuing to roll in on a regular basis — the city had initially turned to its police precincts to help house the throngs.
But Chicago officials put the kibosh on the stopgap measure in December, and with the city’s 27 designated shelter buildings still stretched to capacity, authorities have been forced to find other housing options while migrants scrounge for the bare necessities.
Eight so-called “warming buses” were added to its West Loop last month to try to ease some of the load, according to the Chicago Tribune.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Social media users have reacted angrily to revelations that a town in Democrat-run Maine is lavishing millions of dollars on luxury apartments for asylum seekers, even as many US-born residents sleep rough.
Immigrants this week started moving in to 24 one— and two-bedroom apartments in an attractive, recently-finished three-story clapboard block on the edge of the leafy coastal town of Brunswick, about 30 miles north of Portland.
State officials said they were welcoming in hard-up newcomers, and one of the migrants to win a home said it was a ‘palace’ compared to the shelters and hotels she had been sleeping in.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Biden Plows $700,000 Taxpayer Cash Into Program to Stop ‘Transgender Boys’ Getting Pregnant
Democrat President Joe Biden’s administration has invested a whopping $700,000 in taxpayer money on a program that claims to help prevent “transgender boys” from getting pregnant.
The tax dollar handout to support the creation of a national pregnancy prevention program for transgenders was revealed in federal grant records.
Health and Human Services (HHS) handed over the funds in September 2023.
The taxpayer funds were given to the Center for Innovative Public Health Research (IPHR).
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Scottish National Party to Push Ahead With Trans ‘Conversion Therapy’ Ban
Scottish officials are going through the motions of asking voters what they think about banning trans conversion therapy, but it appears the decision has already been made.
The Scottish National Party (SNP) has launched a public consultation on plans to outlaw both gay and transgender conversion therapy—an area where it says it wants to “lead the way.” Whatever those who engage with the consultation say, it seems fairly certain that Equalities Minister Emma Roddick is not for turning—and is even willing to send parents to prison if they refuse to let their children ‘transition’.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Seattle Teacher Allegedly Tells Students Identifying as ‘Straight’ is Offensive
A Seattle teacher has allegedly told his students that being “straight” is considered offensive.
Tenth-grade teacher Ian Golash of Chief Sealth High School teaches Ethnic Studies World History in the Seattle Public Schools system. A complaint filed by a parent to the school alleges that he told the parent’s son that being “straight” was offensive when the student completed a “Social Identity Wheel.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Authored by Steven Tucker via DailySceptic.org
Last time around, we considered NASA’s recent attempts to build outer space communications systems, and the strange belief of contemporary Left-leaning scientists and academics affiliated with astronomical organisations like SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) that any aliens we did manage one day to contact would inevitably talk in a language every bit as impeccably woke as they themselves do.
A classic illustration of such delusion came in the newly ideologically-captured journal Scientific American in 2022. Under the headline ‘Cultural Bias Distorts the Search for Alien Life’ appeared an interview with Rebecca Charbonneau, a young SETI-linked cultural historian whose paper ‘Imaginative Cosmos: The Impact of Colonial Heritage in Radio Astronomy and the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence’ had brought her to the attention of the editors.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The globalist World Health Organization (WHO) has established a 21-member family health committee that will set global healthcare policy guidelines on raising children.
However, the United Nations’ power-grabbing “health” agency has packed the panel with more activists and transgenders than medical professionals.
Eleven members of the WHO’s 21-member panel have no formal medical training, according to a report by Daily Mail.
Seven of the members are transgender while the rest are a mixture of activists and far-left “social justice” advocates.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A hearty rant against the Muslim invasion:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sy1v-BHPPX0
I will observe if this is permitted to remain on Youtube. Been seeing more and more criticial stuff in this vein lately, which seems to indicate a change in their censorship regime. If this is a genuine trend, things might get moving some day not too distant. This dam is going to break.