Two explosions near the grave of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani killed more than a hundred people and wounded hundreds more in Kerman, Iran. The blasts reportedly occurred during a ceremony honoring Soleimani on the fourth anniversary of his death. He was killed in 2020 by U.S. drone strike ordered by President Trump. A State Department spokescreature said that neither the USA nor Israel was responsible for the explosions.
In other news, Russia and Ukraine exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war in the largest release so far in the Russo-Ukrainian war.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to Conservative Tree House, Daniel Greenfield, Dean, Dora, DV, Fjordman, JW, LP, McN, MM, Reader from Chicago, SS, Upananda Brahmachari, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.
Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.
Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. I check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.
CPI Reality Check: Chick-fil-A Has Hiked Prices 21% in Just Two Years
While we keep letting the government tell us that inflation is at 3%, back out in the real world price hikes are staggeringly higher.
Just take one look at Chick-fil-A, for example: the popular fast food chain has hiked its prices a whopping 21% over the last two years, according to a new report from the NY Post.
In 2022, the chain first raised prices by 15%, the report says. In January 2023, the company then implemented a menu-wide 6% hike in prices, resulting in the average price of its chicken sandwich — which was under $5 in 2021 — to now cost $5.79.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Dollar’s Share in Global Currency Reserves Falls Below 60%, IMF Data Reveals
Recent data from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) highlights a continued decline in the share of the US dollar in global central bank reserves, dropping to 59.2% in the third quarter of 2023.
This downward trend is part of the ongoing global de-dollarization movement, with economists linking it to the impact of Western sanctions and the increased use of the Chinese yuan.
The IMF statistics reveal a notable decrease in the dollar’s share from approximately 70% in the year 2000. Despite this decline, it’s emphasized that the US dollar retains its status as the world’s primary reserve currency. In contrast, the euro’s share has fallen to 19.6%, showcasing a more rapid decline compared to the dollar.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Google’s Fake Polish Currency Rate Sparked Fears of a Currency Crash
On the evening of Jan. 1, Google’s currency converter showed a rate of up to 5.20 zloty per euro and 4.70 zloty per U.S. dollar, which represented a drop in value of more than a fifth from the rate on the previous trading day of Dec. 29.
The information set off a storm of speculation on the X platform, and although Poles did not rush to buy dollars on Jan. 2, officials called for calm.
“Relax. This zloty rate that is causing panic is a ‘fake’ (data source error),” Polish Finance Minister Andrzej Domanski wrote on X. Had the fake information been true, it would have meant there was a 32 percent increase compared to Friday’s closing.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
“President Clinton is a Key Person”: Epstein Files Finally Unsealed
Update (1858ET): The Jeffrey Epstein files have been unsealed. As expected, former President Bill Clinton is prominently featured — as John Doe #36.
As noted by attorney and journalist Techno Fog of The Reactionary…
“Apart from the defendant [Ghislaine Maxwell] and Epstein, former President Clinton is a key person who can provide information about his close relationship with the Defendant and Mr. Epstein…”
What’s more, Bill allegedly ‘likes them young’…
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
An acclaimed African-American scholar who has accused Harvard’s outgoing president Claudine Gay of ripping off her work is demanding that the prestigious university’s board clarify what exactly they consider plagiarism — after they stood by the embattled academic’s work.
Attorneys representing Carol Swain, a former political science professor at Vanderbilt University, sent a letter to the Harvard Corporation, the school’s highest governing body, requesting to know what “remedies” the Ivy League institution seeks to make for the unauthorized use of her work.
“Through its acts, omissions, and public statements surrounding the use of Dr. Swain’s work, the Harvard Corporation is now invested in this matter and its subsequent outcome,” attorney Robert Kleinman wrote on behalf of Swain.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A group of activists targeted disgraced former Harvard University President Claudine Gay outside her official campus residence Wednesday, trolling her with a “moving day” billboard and U-Haul trucks just one day after her resignation.
“It’s moving day Claudine Gay!” the digital mobile billboard read before changing to another screen that said, “Sponsored by the TENS OF THOUSANDS of Accuracy in Media activists who demanded your RESIGNATION.”
The billboard was accompanied by two U-Haul moving trucks, although it was not immediately clear if she had yet moved from the residence that serves as the official home of Harvard’s president.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Jeffrey Epstein’s former attorney and friend Alan Dershowitz defended the late multimillionaire sex offender’s associates, whose names will soon be released as part of a court ruling, saying: “None of us knew about his private life that he kept so secret.”
The one-time Harvard Law School professor said in an interview with NewsNation’s Leland Vitters Tuesday that no one should be automatically convicted in the court of public opinion simply for showing up on the Epstein list.
“You could judge them for having shown bad judgment, but you can’t conclude that any accusations against them are true without hearing the evidence,” the legal scholar argued.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
AP Admits Widely Panned Story on Harvard Plagiarism Didn’t Meet Standards
The Associated Press updated a headline on Wednesday that deemed plagiarism a “new conservative weapon,” following widespread backlash to the post on X, admitting the story did not meet the outlet’s standards.
“The story doesn’t meet our standards,” Lauren Easton, the VP of AP Corporate Communications, told Fox News Digital. She said they were in the process of updating the headline.
The AP’s original headline read, “Harvard president’s resignation highlights new conservative weapon against colleges: plagiarism,” which was widely mocked on social media, after Harvard President Claudine Gay announced she would be resigning from the position on Tuesday.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Appeals Court to Consider Constitutionality of Jack Smith’s Appointment
Jack Smith’s appointment as special counsel might be in trouble.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit advised counsels in Smith’s criminal case against Trump to be prepared during previously scheduled January 9 oral arguments to address issues raised in briefs filed by amicus curiae.
The court made the announcement after an explosive amicus brief filed by attorneys for former Attorney General Ed Meese arguing that Jack Smith’s appointment as special counsel by U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland is unconstitutional and so the court must reject his prosecution against Trump.
Meese, joined by Steven Calabresi, the co-chairman of the Federalist Society, and Gary Lawson, a prominent constitutional law professor, argues essentially that Garland improperly appointed Smith to an office that does not exist with authority Garland does not possess.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Arrest Made in ‘Random’ Murder of 15-Year-Old Michael Garr in Upper Darby
The Delaware County DA said the victim was murdered as he was “walking down the street in his own neighborhood.”
UPPER DARBY, Pennsylvania (WPVI) — An arrest has been made in what police are now calling the random murder of a 15-year-old in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania last spring.
The same suspect is also suspected of stabbing a pregnant woman during a carjacking just two months before.
Marson Weh, 24, was charged with first-degree murder in the death of Michael Garr, a 10th grader in the Upper Darby School District.
District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer said Garr was minding his own business when he was murdered.
“A juvenile who was doing nothing more than any juvenile should be able to do anywhere in America: just walking down the street in his own neighborhood,” Stollsteimer said. “He was stabbed and killed at random.
| — Hat tip: DV | [Return to headlines] |
Biden’s DOJ Recommends Only 6 Months in Jail for Ray Epps Who Claimed He ‘Orchestrated’ J6
On Tuesday, federal prosecutors requested that Ray Epps, who was caught on camera telling people to go inside the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, receive only six months in prison for participating in the riot.
According to a 29-page filing court filing in Washington, DC, the US government has recommended the “…high end of the applicable guidelines range” of half a year in jail, a year of supervised release, and $500 in restitution after the Epps pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of disorderly or disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Wall Street billionaire Bill Ackman, a Harvard grad and major donor, has demanded that the entire Harvard Corporation, including chairman of that board Penny Pritzker, resign from their posts. This comes after Claudine Gay resigned over allegations of antisemitism and plagiarism.
“The Board Chair, Penny Pritzker, should resign along with the other members of the board who led the campaign to keep Claudine Gay, orchestrated the strategy to threaten the media, bypassed the process for evaluating plagiarism, and otherwise greatly contributed to the damage that has been done,” he wrote in a lengthy post on X.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Bomb Threats at Five State Capitols Trigger Evacuations, No Explosives Found
A string of bomb threats on Wednesday led to the evacuations and searches of at least five state capitol buildings but law enforcement did not discover any explosives, CBS News reported.
The FBI in statement said it possessed “no information to indicate a specific and credible threat” but said the bureau would coordinate with other law enforcement agencies to monitor for any tangible threats.
Thus far, law enforcement and state officials have confirmed the receipt of threats in Montana, Georgia, Mississippi, Michigan, and Kentucky.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
In the unsealed trove of files on Jeffery Epstein it has been confimed that Donald Trump did not visit Epstein’s home or island and did not have contact with underage girls.
On page 112 of document 1320-12 of the files, during the examination of witness Johanna Sjoberg by Laura Menninger, Sjoberg was asked by Menninger if Trump had ever engaged “in sexual contact” with her.
“No,” Sjoberg replied.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Breaking: Entire House GOP Leadership Endorses Trump
All House Republicans in leadership positions have officially endorsed Donald Trump for president in 2024, paving the way for Trump’s chance to win the GOP primary and become the official Republican presidential candidate as he continues to dominate all competition in the polls.
This after House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) joined their Republican colleagues and issued their highly anticipated endorsements this week ahead of the upcoming important Iowa caucus which kickstarts the 2024 election season.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Cease-Fire Protest Halts California Legislative Session
SACRAMENTO, California — Hundreds of cease-fire activists on Wednesday interrupted California lawmakers’ return to the Capitol, forcing the state Assembly to adjourn for the afternoon.
The protesters filled the chamber’s gallery and began chanting and singing “cease-fire now” soon after the Assembly gaveled open its first floor session of the year. They demanded lawmakers call for an end to the Israel-Hamas conflict that has killed thousands of civilians.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Chicago Led Nation in Homicides for 12th Year in a Row, Murder-Rate Still 5X Nyc’s
Authored by Ted Dabrowski and John Klingner via Wirepoints.org
Count on hearing repeatedly this year from Chicago’s leadership that it successfully brought down the city’s murder total by 13% in 2023. Chicago finished the year with 617 homicides, down from 709 in 2022.
That’s 92 fewer murders and good news.
But what you’re unlikely to hear are five additional facts that would temper any optimism gained from that first fact.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Claudine Gay Claims She Fell ‘Victim to Well-Laid Trap’ That Ended Her Harvard Presidency
Former Harvard president Claudine Gay claims she fell victim to a “well-laid trap” that led to the end of her short-lived historic time at the helm of the prestigious university.
The 53-year-old resigned Tuesday after weeks of controversy over her handling of on-campus antisemitism after Hamas’ shock attack on Israel and accusations of plagiarism in her academic work plagued her.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Conservative Group That Challenged Georgia Voter Eligibility Didn’t Violate Voting Rights Act: Judge
A judge in Georgia ruled this week that the conservative election group True the Vote did not violate the Voting Rights Act by challenging the eligibility of more than 360,000 Georgia voters before the 2021 Senate runoff elections.
Fair Fight, an organization founded by former Georgia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, sued the Texas-based nonprofit last year, alleging that the group used voter intimidation tactics when it challenged the eligibility of hundreds of thousands of ballots prior to the contests.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A man leaped over the bench in a Las Vegas courtroom and attacked the judge at his sentencing hearing on Wednesday after she denied him probation, wild footage shows.
Deobra Redden, 30, a three-time felon, was being sentenced by Judge Mary Kay Holthus in Clark County District Court after he was convicted of attempted battery with substantial bodily harm, KLAS reported.
Around 11 a.m., Redden’s attorney asked Holthus to sentence his client to probation — but Holthus had something different in mind for the repeat offender.
“I think it’s time he got a taste of something else because I just can’t with that history,” she said.
Suddenly, Redden sprints up to the bench, springs himself over with outstretched arms and tackles the judge to the ground, video obtained by the outlet shows.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Epstein Docs Include Big Names: Prince Andrew, Dershowitz, Ex-FBI Director Freeh
The Southern District of New York on Wednesday published a batch of 40 documents related to a defamation case filed by Prince Andrew accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre against Epstein’s former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex crimes.
The case was settled in 2017, and Epstein was found dead in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019, but the case is making headlines again after media outlets sued to have documents related to it published.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Facebook Rolls Out “Link History” Showing How it Tracks All the Websites Users Visit
Facebook, just like the rest of Big Tech, has historically made a great effort to track users across the internet, even when they are not logged into the platform, for data collecting and ultimately monetary reasons.
Now, reports say that a new way to achieve this has been recently launched by the giant, and notably, for the first time this type of tracking is made visible. Called Link History, the new feature is found in the Facebook app as essentially one of the permissions, and “documents” every link a user clicks while using the app.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Feds Hide Anti-White Discrimination Complaints, Names of Policy Architects From FOIA Suits
How many anti-white discrimination complaints have been leveled by employees against the federal watchdog for workplace discrimination? Who is shaping federal policy on “indigenous knowledge” and its implications for scientific research?
The public apparently won’t get those answers unless a judge says so.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and National Science Foundation invoked Freedom of Information Act exemptions on personal privacy to withhold select information from separate FOIA requests by Hans Bader, a former Education Department lawyer under President Trump.
Bader, through his family foundation, has gone on a FOIA tear against various agencies, which sometimes respond with largely unreadable productions.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Florida State Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo is calling on healthcare providers to halt the use of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines, citing purported health risks labeled “misinformation” by federal officials.
In a bulletin issued Wednesday, Ladapo claimed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not shown evidence that coronavirus vaccines manufactured by Pfizer and Moderna have been assessed for “nucleic acid contaminants” that could cause cancer. Disputing claims by the FDA that such risk is “implausible,” Ladapo called for an immediate stoppage to the use of the approved mRNA COVID-19 vaccines.
“I am calling for a halt to the use of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines,” the Florida surgeon general said in a statement.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Franciscan Friars of California Declare Bankruptcy in Wake of Nearly 100 Sex Abuse Lawsuits
A Roman Catholic charitable order in California filed for bankruptcy this week to ensure “just financial compensation” in nearly 100 lawsuits related to decade-old allegations of sexual abuse.
The Franciscan Friars of California, Inc. filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection on New Year’s Eve following a change in state law that allows victims to override the statute of limitations, the Oakland-based organization announced Tuesday.
“The Franciscan Friars of California filed the Chapter 11 Bankruptcy petition to address 94 child sexual abuse claims filed as the result of state laws that allowed abuse survivors to file decades-old complaints that were otherwise time-barred or expired under the state’s statute of limitations,” the statement read.
“All of the claims are based on abuse that allegedly occurred at least 27 years ago, with several claims dating back to the 1940s,” the write-up added.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Imam Shot Outside His Newark, N.J., Mosque Has Died, Sources Say
Although a motive is unclear and the shooting outside the Masjid Muhammad-Newark remains under investigation, the incident comes amid increased tension in the U.S. since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
Police are searching for a gunman who fatally shot an imam outside his mosque in Newark, New Jersey, on Wednesday, an incident that heightened fears in the Muslim community amid increased tension in the U.S. since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
The shooting, which does not appear to be motivated by bias, occurred around 6:15 a.m. at South Orange Avenue and Camden Street, Newark Public Safety Director Fritz Fragé told NBC New York.
Hassan Sharif, an imam at the Masjid Muhammad-Newark, was hospitalized in critical condition. He died from his injuries around 2:20 p.m., law enforcement sources said.
Police said the victim was shot one time in the abdomen and the right arm.
| — Hat tip: LP | [Return to headlines] |
Jimmy Kimmel Melts Down After Aaron Rodgers Suggests He’s on Epstein’s ‘Client List’
Jimmy Kimmel has lashed out against Aaron Rodgers after the NFL quarterback suggested that the late-night talk show host’s name might be on Jeffrey Epstein’s “client list.”
Rodgers made the comments while a guest on “The Pat McAfee Show.”
The subject of Epstein came up when one of the hosts asked Rodgers if he was sitting in his wine cellar, waiting to celebrate the release of the list of the dead pedophile’s powerful associates.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Las Vegas Judge Attacked in Court During Sentencing
Three-time felon was about to be sentenced before attack
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A man attacked a Las Vegas judge in her courtroom Wednesday, forcing her to take cover and injuring a marshal in the process, video the 8 News Now Investigators obtained reveals.
Deobra Redden, 30, a three-time felon, was in Clark County District Court Judge Mary Kay Holthus’ courtroom for sentencing on a charge of attempted battery with substantial bodily harm, records said.
Around 11 a.m. Holthus was sitting behind the bench when Redden ran up to her, jumped over the bench and attacked her, video shared with the 8 News Now Investigators showed. Several other people then fought with Redden before throwing him to the ground. An alarm also sounded for several minutes alerting others to the incident.
The 8 News Now Investigators first published the video on 8newsnow.com.
Before the attack, Redden’s attorney asked Holthus to sentence his client to probation. Holthus then said, “I think it’s time he get a taste of something else.”
| — Hat tip: Conservative Tree House | [Return to headlines] |
Los Angeles County Reinstates Mask Mandates for Hospitals
Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours)
Los Angeles County over the weekend confirmed that has reinstated a mask-wearing mandate for staff, patients, and visitors at licensed health care facilities, citing a recent increase in COVID-19 cases.
According to health officials, the county entered the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) “medium level” for hospital admissions on Dec. 29, triggering the masking mandate.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Massive Offshore Wind Project That Was to be Operational in 2023 Gets a Single Turbine Running
Vineyard Wind, a massive offshore wind project 15 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard, failed to deliver electricity in 2023 as its developers had pledged to do, but they announced Wednesday that one of the project’s 62 turbines was running.
The project’s developers had for years been selling the project as the first utility-scale offshore wind project in the country, based on the 2023 timeline, according to Statehouse News. In December, New York’s South Fork Wind became the nation’s first.
Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners and Avangrid, Inc. announced Wednesday that it had managed to get one of the project’s 62 turbines operational, supplying 5 of its 800 megawatts to the grid.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
No Arrests Made After ‘Caravan’ of 50 Vehicles Blocks PDX Access in Protest
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A “caravan” of 50 vehicles filled with people protesting the war in Gaza blocked Airport Way outside the Portland International Airport at approximately 2:30 p.m. on Jan. 1, preventing travelers from reaching their terminals by car for several hours.
Port of Portland Police responded to the scene but made no arrests during the demonstration. No flights were delayed as a result of the demonstration, causing some of those stuck in traffic to exit their vehicles and attempt to reach their terminals by walking along Airport Way, KGW reported.
‘Extremely dangerous’: 19 arrested in Portland street takeover mission
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Just hours after being inaugurated as the 100th mayor of Philadelphia, Cherelle Parker signed a series of executive orders and declared a Public Safety Emergency, vowing to take immediate action against crime and drug use in the City of Brotherly Love.
Parker admitted that Philly needed more law enforcement, but also noted that public safety was best achieved via a “community-centered model.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The younger Soros took at least eight trips to the White House between February and September of last year to hobnob with federal officials, all while he and his 93-year-old father held meetings with Democratic lawmakers and gifted them with millions of dollars in campaign donations, according to White House visitor logs reviewed by the Washington Examiner. Meanwhile, George Soros recently passed the torch of his multibillion-dollar dark money philanthropy empire to his “more political” millennial son, a decision sure to have major ramifications on future elections and the left-wing donor sphere.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Pro-Hamas Protesters Target Pelosi’s Home With Demand for End of U.S Aid to Israel
Leftist Hamas sympathizers have gathered in protest outside Democrat former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) San Francisco home to demand an end to America’s aid for Israel.
Protesters who oppose the Jewish nation of Israel and support Hamas-led Gaza have loudly and consistently demanded an immediate end to Israel’s ongoing military response to the atrocities committed during the terrorist attacks on Oct. 7, 2023.
On New Year’s Day, that included around 100 such anti-Israel protesters who set up around sunrise and protested for several hours outside Pelosi’s home, according to local ABC affiliate KGO.
The protesters, who marched around Pelosi’s neighborhood while loudly chanting and banging drums, demanded the former Democrat leader presumably use her remaining power and influence in Washington D.C. to achieve an immediate ceasefire in the conflict in Gaza as well as to end all U.S. financial and military aid to Israel.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Prosecutors Found Epstein’s Hard Drives & Videos During Raid But They Never Entered Into Evidence
When Jeffrey Epstein’s New York City mansion was raided by authorities in 2019, investigators found boxes of hard drives and videos that were never entered into evidence by prosecutors.
Images from the raid show boxes of burned CDs, hard drives, and videos that were all individually labeled by Epstein.
However, authorities concealed the labels in all images, presumably to mask the identity of the people named in the labels.
As Slay News has previously reported, multiple victims and witnesses have alleged that Epstein gloated about having compromising videos and images of powerful people that he held against them.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Retired Milwaukee Sheriff Slams Democrat Politicians on Crime: ‘No Motivation’ to Stop it
Retired Milwaukee Sheriff David Clarke slammed Democrat mayors and governors on the topic of crime, saying that they have no motivation to stop it.
“Don’t these mayors care?” Clarke said on the Wednesday edition of the “Just the News, No Noise” TV show. “Don’t these governors care? They only care about one thing, and that’s at voting time that these people get out there and continue to keep them in office, and they continue to win. So there’s really no motivation for these liberal mayors … to really get tough on crime.”
He said that he hoped there would be a tipping point on this and 2024 might be the year for change.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Qualifies for Presidential Ballot in Utah, the First State to Grant Him Access
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has collected enough signatures to appear on the 2024 presidential ballot in Utah, election officials say, marking the first state where the independent candidate and prominent anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist has qualified.
Kennedy has met the 1,000-signature requirement needed to qualify for the Utah ballot and can officially file to run as a presidential candidate in the state before a March 5 deadline, state Elections Director Ryan Cowley said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Second Administration Official Resigns in Protest of Biden’s Support for Israeli War in Gaza
WASHINGTON (AP) — A Department of Education policy adviser appointed by the Biden administration quit Wednesday to protest the administration’s crucial military support of Israel’s war in Gaza and its handling of the conflict’s repercussions at home and abroad.
Tariq Habash, a Biden administration appointee who had worked in the education department to help overhaul the student loan system and address inequities in higher education, told The Associated Press he submitted his resignation Wednesday. That was after he and others had “done everything imaginable” to work within the system to try to register their objections to administration leaders, he said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Study Raises Alarm as New Health Issues Linked to COVID Shots
A new study has raised serious concerns for the safety of the vaccinated population as new health issues have been linked to Covid mRNA shots.
The research was published in December 2023 by the renowned peer-reviewed Nature Journal.
Accoridn got the study’s paper, the mRNA injections trigger suffer high rates of ribosomal “frameshifting.”
The issue causes recipients’ cells to produce off-target proteins that can trigger unintended immune reactions.
Off-target cellular immune responses occur in 25% to 30% of people who have received the Covid shot, according to the researchers.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Target Shopper Scoffs at Locked-Up Underwear: ‘I’m Gonna Go Commando Now’
A Target shopper in the market for some new underwear was left baffled and instead insisted on going “commando” after he found the store’s boxer briefs were locked behind a glass security door.
“How f—cked up as a society are we now that even the underwear is behind a glass box,” TikToker Mardom0 said in a video he shot inside one of the retail giant’s locations.
“Like, I’m just trying to get a pair of briefs or boxer briefs. Can’t even do that these days without having someone press a button for you. Well, sign off,” he said in the clip, posted in November with the text “Guess I’m gonna go commando now.”
Target has been locking up some of its most basic items — including deodorant, shampoo, toothpaste and even underwear — in an attempt to curb surging thefts at its stores.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Tens of Thousands of Votes Cast in Georgia With Ineligible Addresses in 2020 Election
An investigation has discovered that tens of thousands of voters cast ballots in Georgia during the 2020 election with ineligible ballots.
The discovery emerged during a probe of the state’s voter rolls.
Concerns have been raised for some time due to voter rolls never being reconciled against any other data.
In every state, there are active voters older than Abraham Lincoln — still voting and registering in recent years.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Trump Asks Supreme Court to Take Up His Removal From Colorado Ballot
Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday asked the Supreme Court to take up his removal from the Colorado Republican primary ballot after the state supreme court declared him ineligible under the 14th Amendment, Reuters reported.
The Colorado Supreme Court in late December determined that Trump’s role in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot constituted insurrection and disqualified him from returning to the White House. The campaign swiftly vowed to appeal what it called a “completely flawed” decision.
“Unsurprisingly, the all-Democrat appointed Colorado Supreme Court has ruled against President Trump, supporting a Soros-funded, left-wing group’s scheme to interfere in an election on behalf of Crooked Joe Biden by removing President Trump’s name from the ballot and eliminating the rights of Colorado voters to vote for the candidate of their choice,” campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said at the time.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
US Education Official Resigns Over Biden’s Israel-Gaza Policy
WASHINGTON, Jan 3 (Reuters) — A senior official in the U.S. Education Department stepped down on Wednesday, citing President Joe Biden’s handling of the conflict in Gaza, the latest sign of dissent in the administration as deaths continue to grow in the war.
Also on Wednesday, 17 Biden re-election campaign staffers issued a warning in an anonymous letter that Biden could lose voters over the issue.
Tariq Habash, special assistant in the Education Department’s Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development, in a letter to Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, said: “I cannot stay silent as this administration turns a blind eye to the atrocities committed against innocent Palestinian lives, in what leading human rights experts have called a genocidal campaign by the Israeli government.”
Habash, a Palestinian-American and an expert on student debt, was appointed early in Biden’s presidency as part of a build-out of the Education Department’s student loan expertise.
| — Hat tip: Dora | [Return to headlines] |
Can’t Beat Em, Ban Em: Governing German Party Suggests Banning Surging Populist Opposition AfD
The leader of the left-wing Social Democrat Party (SPD) of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has suggested banning the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party amid the right-wing populist party’s surge in the polls.
SPD leader Saskia Esken said this week that an outright ban of the AfD should not be off the table to protect democracy, claiming that the party uses “every topic to incite people” which she said is “clearly anti-democratic”.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
EU Cash Grab Likely as Belgian Council Presidency Begins
Belgium will commence its six-month control of the influential Presidency of the EU Council this week, looking set to promote a strident federalist agenda while continuing the bloc’s rule-of-law campaign against Hungary.
The Belgian presidency is seen by Eurocrats as an opportunity to shore up their progressive policy platform ahead of tumultuous European elections next year. Polls suggest the election results are likely to benefit right-wing populists, which, along with Hungary’s assumption of the presidency in June could unsettle the centralisation project of an “ever closer union”.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
German State-Run DW Correspondent Installed at Poland’s Public Television Station in Berlin
After Poland’s new left-liberal government seized control of public television in Poland, a journalist from Germany’s state-funded Deutsche Welle appeared on-screen on Tuesday as the station’s new Berlin correspondent. Previously, Cezary Gmyz served as TVP’s correspondent in Germany, but Magdalena Gwózdz-Pallokat has now replaced Gmyz in this role.
The new correspondent, Gwózdz-Pallokat, who works for Deutsche Welle’s Polish division, was formerly a DW correspondent in Warsaw. Her reporting primarily focused on German domestic politics and the German press’s reactions to events in Poland.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Ireland’s media watchdog, Coimisiún na Mean (Media Commission), headed by executive chairman Jeremy Godfrey, has voiced concerns about online “misinformation” and the possibility of foreign interference in the upcoming local and European elections. However, this stance has raised questions about the potential for overreach in online censorship in the country, especially as it has come to light that Ireland considered censorship plans over the recent backlash to the stabbing of a child caused heated arguments and riots over the nation’s immigration policy.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Italian Hospitals Are Collapsing. Experts Have Urged Italians to Get Vaccinated.
Italian hospitals collapse: Over 1,100 patients waiting to be admitted in Rome
The worst situation is in Rome and its region, where more than 1,100 patients are waiting to be admitted, according to the Italian Society of Emergency Medicine and Urgent Care.
Just a few days ago, ambulances were queuing outside hospitals in Rome. In other regions, such as Lombardy, patients are crammed into waiting rooms until a bed becomes available.
In cities such as Turin, hospital overcrowding has even led to a shortage of stretchers for patients.
Emergency departments in Italian hospitals are in chaos and on the verge of collapse.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Macron Allies Slander Le Pen Party as “Putin’s Mouthpiece in France”
While Marine Le Pen’s Rassemblement National party has made significant gains in popularity among the French public during the debates on the immigration law, it has been the target of a new salvo of attacks denouncing its alleged links with Vladimir Putin’s Russia, with the aim of weakening the party that constitutes the leading opposition to Emmanuel Macron.
At the root of this offensive is a lengthy investigation published in the Washington Post on Saturday, December 30th, which claims that the Rassemblement National is under Moscow’s influence, with the aim of “undermining French support for Ukraine.” The American newspaper claims to be relying on “Kremlin documents obtained by a European security service,” without giving any further details. These documents allegedly analyse the methods used by Vladimir Putin to increase his influence in Europe, using “social media” on the one hand and European ‘far-right’ parties on the other.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
New Year’s Eve Violence Tears Across Western Europe
Violence was rife yet again in many major Western European cities on New Year’s Eve, with rioting, brawling, attacks on emergency services, and the burning of cars becoming regular attractions in migrant-majority districts.
As we reported on Tuesday, January 2nd, German authorities and politicians are describing scenes of violence on New Year’s Eve as the “new normal”, after yet another night of crimes committed on the streets of Berlin and other cities.
Authorities in France were also keen to highlight how a minor drop in the number of arrests and the number of police officers injured was a “success.” Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said the 380 arrests made nationwide overnight was a 10% drop compared with a year ago. Authorities counted 745 vehicle fires, also 10% fewer than last year, and about 40 police officers suffered slight injuries, a 40% drop. The burning of cars is a regular occurrence in the migrant-majority districts of Paris on New Year’s Eve, and also during riots and celebrations.
London police officers also had their fair share of work on Sunday night.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
NHS Leaders Get Rich While a Million UK Patients Have Procedures Cancelled
In what appears to be a political strike by privileged middle class professionals putting patients at risk, junior doctors have today commenced the longest walkout in the history of Britain’s National Health Service (NHS). The six-day strike is only one day longer than action taken in July, but comes at a much worse time, with the week after Christmas and new year tending to be the busiest for hospitals.
Union representatives are demanding a full pay “restoration” to address real-term cuts in pay since 2008. Newspapers say this is equivalent to a 35% pay increase.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
North European Countries Launch Joint Mission to Defend Critical Underwater Infrastructure
An incident under the Baltic Sea in October highlighted once again the vulnerability of underwater infrastructure, which is critical for the energy supply of northern European countries. Now, the countries concerned have joined forces to launch a joint naval mission.
At around 2:00 a.m. on Oct. 8, 2023, Finnish and Estonian operators detected a sudden drop in pressure in the 77-kilometer Balticconnector pipeline linking the two countries, which plays a key role in Finland’s energy supply. It turned out that the pipeline had ruptured and that repairs would not be easy and could take up to six months.
The authorities in the two countries concerned immediately launched an investigation and announced in a statement on Oct. 20 that a Chinese-flagged merchant vessel bound for Russia, the Newnew Polar Bear, became the focus of the investigation.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Sweden Records Coldest January Evening in 25 Years
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Europe experienced stark weather contrasts on Wednesday, with extreme cold and snowstorms disrupting transportation and closing schools in Scandinavia while strong winds and heavy rain in western Europe caused flooding and at least one death.
Temperatures fell below minus 40 degrees Celsius (minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit) in the Nordic region for a second day in a row Wednesday. In Kvikkjokk-Årrenjarka in Swedish Lapland, the mercury dropped to minus 43.6 C (minus 46.5 F), the lowest January temperature recorded in Sweden in 25 years, Sweden’s TT news agency reported.
Extremely cold temperatures, snow and gale-force winds disrupted transportation throughout the Nordic region, with several bridges closed and some train and ferry services suspended. Several schools in Scandinavia were closed.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Thousands of Doctors in Britain Walk Off the Job for Longest-Ever Strike
LONDON (AP) — Thousands of doctors walked off the job in Britain on Wednesday, the start of a six-day strike that was set to be the longest in the history of the state-funded National Health Service.
Managers said tens of thousands scheduled appointments and operations will be canceled during the walkout across England and Wales by junior doctors, those in the first years of their careers. The doctors, who form the backbone of hospital and clinic care, plan to stay off the job until 7 a.m. on Tuesday.
Senior doctors and other medics have had to be drafted in to cover for emergency services, critical care and maternity services.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK Police Investigate First Alleged ‘Virtual Rape’ in Mark Zuckerberg’s Metaverse
British authorities are currently investigating an unprecedented case of “virtual sexual assault” involving a minor on Mark Zuckerberg’s VR metaverse platform.
The Daily Mail reports that UK police are investigating what is believed to be the first case of a “virtual rape” in the metaverse. The incident involved a girl under the age of 16 whose avatar was digitally sexually assaulted by the avatars of multiple men in a virtual reality game. While no physical harm occurred, police claim that the incident has had significant mental health implications for the victim.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Brexit’s Nigel Farage ‘Assessing’ Return to Frontline Politics for Next General Election
Brexit champion Nigel Farage is “assessing” whether he will make a political comeback before the next general election, Reform UK leader Richard Tice said on Wednesday morning.
At the party’s New Year press conference, Richard Tice cast Reform UK as the only viable party to save the country from the “socialist twins” of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and opposition Labour Party leader Sir Kier Starmer.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Speed cameras have been cut down in a series of night-time raids reminiscent of the damage inflicted on the Ulez cameras in the capital.
Two more cameras in Cornwall have been cut down overnight, following a spate of similar incidents in November.
One had been cut down before and replaced with a steel support but was cut down yet again.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Can Kemi Badenoch Revive the Tories?
British Tories believe Kemi Badenoch should be the next leader of the Conservative Party, according to a recent poll. But few Britons—and likely even fewer of those reading on the Continent—know who she is, what, if anything, she stands for and whether she could shake her party from its persistent stupor.
After spending some time in IT and financial services, Badenoch became an MP in 2017. She had previously stood for election in numerous seats since 2010, then aged 30. During her brief time in parliament, she has held roles in numerous departments and has gained something of a name for herself among politicos.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
After Tumbling in Polls, Netanyahu Clings to Power and Aims to Improve Political Standing During War
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — In the wake of Hamas’ brutal Oct. 7 attack, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s days in office seemed numbered.
Despite his reputation as the ultimate political survivor, the devastation of the attack and the security failures that allowed it to happen on his watch appeared to be too much for him to overcome.
But nearly three months after war erupted following the attack, Netanyahu remains firmly in charge and is putting up a fight. He has increasingly used his perch as wartime leader to test campaign slogans, appease his coalition partners and shirk responsibility for the calamity — all, critics say, with an eye on buying time and notching up his shrinking poll numbers.
“Every moment of his life, he is a politician,” said Mazal Mualem, a Netanyahu biographer. “Bibi always thinks he has a chance.”
| — Hat tip: JW | [Return to headlines] |
Israel is secretly discussing with Congo and other unnamed countries the possible resettlement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip after the war, The Times of Israel reports, citing sources.
This is called “voluntary migration”. According to sources, Congo has already agreed to accept the migrants.
Some ministers are “touting” Saudi Arabia as a possible resettlement location. There, Gazans could work on construction sites.
It is the “voluntary resettlement” of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip that is gradually becoming the key official policy of the Netanyahu government, although this idea has been categorically rejected by the international community, writes The Times of Israel.
“Our problem is [to find] countries willing to accept Gazans, and we are working on that,” the Israeli prime minister said last Monday at a meeting of the Likud faction.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Survivors of Oct. 7 Music Rave Massacre Sue Israel for Negligence
Dozens of injured survivors of the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre at a music festival close to the Gaza Strip have filed a $56 million suit against the Israeli government, alleging various forms of negligence that resulted in unavoidable casualties.
Declaring that “the negligence and the gross oversight is beyond belief,” the 42 plaintiffs have targeted four government entities: the Israeli Defense Forces, the Shin Bet internal security service, the Defense Ministry, and Israel Police. According to the suit, 364 attendees were killed and 40 kidnapped and taken to Gaza.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
U.S Intelligence Confirms Hamas Terrorists Used Gaza’s Al-Shifa Hospital as Command Center
U.S. intelligence agencies have independently confirmed that Hamas has been using the al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza as a front for the terrorist group’s command center.
According to newly declassified material, Hamas and another Gaza terrorist organization have been running their operation from the hospital, using innocent civilians as human shields.
The U.S. intelligence indicates that the hospital has a maze of tunnels and rooms constructed beneath it for terrorist use, the New York Times reported.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Al-Qaeda Threatens NYC Energy, Transportation With Suicide Bombers, Relaunches English Magazine
Al-Qaeda’s Arabian Peninsula branch released a video in English threatening New York City’s energy grid and subway system, as well as airplanes in general, with suicide bombers as the group relaunched its English-language magazine, “Inspire.”
The Transportation Security Administration said Monday that it is monitoring the potential threat posed by the al-Qaeda affiliate, according to NewsNation.
Al-Malahem Media, Al-Qaeda Arabian Peninsula’s media arm, published the video late last month. It opens with a picture of Al-Qaeda’s logo and the translated Quran verse: “And fight in the way of Allah, you are not held responsible except for yourself … and inspire the believers.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘Heinous’: World Reacts to Twin Blasts That Kill Dozens in Iran
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, promised a ‘harsh response’ to attack in southeastern city of Kerman.
Two explosions have killed nearly 100 people and wounded over 200 others at a ceremony in Iran to commemorate the death of top commander Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in 2020.
Wednesday’s attacks took place in the southeastern city of Kerman along the road leading to Kerman’s Martyrs’ Cemetery.
While no one has claimed responsibility and it was not immediately clear what caused the blasts, Iranian officials have blamed a “terrorist attack”.
“The evil and criminal enemies of the Iranian nation once again created a disaster and martyred a large number of dear people in Kerman,” Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said in a statement. “This disaster will have a harsh response, God willing.”
In a statement, Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi said, “Undoubtedly, the perpetrators … of this cowardly act will soon be identified and punished for their heinous act by the capable security and law enforcement forces. The enemies of the nation should know that such actions can never disrupt the solid determination of the Iranian nation.”
| — Hat tip: MM | [Return to headlines] |
Iran Says at Least 103 Were Killed in Blasts at a Ceremony Honoring Slain General
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Two bombs exploded and killed at least 103 people Wednesday at a commemoration for a prominent Iranian general slain by the U.S. in a 2020 drone strike, Iranian officials said, as the Middle East remains on edge over Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for what appeared to be the deadliest militant attack to target Iran since its 1979 Islamic Revolution. Iran’s leaders vowed to punish those responsible for the blasts, which wounded at least 211 people.
The blasts were minutes apart and shook the city of Kerman, about 820 kilometers (510 miles) southeast of the capital, Tehran. The second blast sprayed shrapnel into a screaming crowd fleeing the first explosion.
The gathering marked the fourth anniversary of the killing of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the head of the Revolutionary Guard’s elite Quds Force, in a U.S. drone strike in Iraq. The explosions occurred near his grave site as long lines of people gathered for the event.
Iranian state television and officials described the attacks as bombings, without immediately giving clear details of what happened. The attacks came a day after a deputy head of the Palestinian militant group Hamas was killed in a suspected Israeli strike in Beirut.
| — Hat tip: McN | [Return to headlines] |
A pair of explosions near the grave of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani killed at least 103 people and wounded up to 141 more in Kerman, Iran, according to Wednesday reports from Iranian media.
Iranian officials say the explosions occurred during a ceremony honoring Soleimani on the fourth anniversary of his death.
Soleimani was killed in 2020 at the hands of a U.S. drone strike ordered by then-President Trump.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
NATO Rift: Turkey Blocks Two Ex-Royal Navy Minehunters Destined for Ukraine
NATO allies Turkey and the UK are at odds after the former denied permission for two ex-Royal Navy minehunters donated to Ukraine to pass through its waters on the way to the Black Sea.
The two ships have been stopped from accessing the Bosphorus and Gallipoli straits to reach their destination as a result of the edict from Ankara.
Last month, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed its intention to send the vessels to the Ukrainian navy to help it conduct sea operations in the war against Russia.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Saudi Arabia Officially Joins BRICS — Reports
by RT
Saudi Arabia on Tuesday officially announced that it has joined the BRICS+ group, with the news carried by state TV.
Riyadh has been in negotiations on its accession to the group for months, with Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan stating last August that all the details on the move would be evaluated before an “appropriate decision” was taken.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Russia and Ukraine Exchange Hundreds of Prisoners of War in Biggest Release So Far
Russia and Ukraine on Wednesday exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war in the biggest single release of captives since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Ukrainian authorities said that 230 Ukrainian prisoners of war returned home in the first exchange in almost five months.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said that 248 Russian servicemen have been freed under the deal sponsored by the United Arab Emirates.
The UAE’s Foreign Ministry attributed the successful swap to the “strong friendly relations between the UAE and both the Russian Federation and the Republic of Ukraine, which were supported by sustained calls at the highest levels.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Russia, Ukraine Exchange Hundreds of Prisoners in Biggest Swap So Far
Officials said nearly 500 prisoners of war from both sides returned home in the first exchange in nearly five months.
Russia and Ukraine on Wednesday exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war in the biggest single release of captives since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Ukrainian authorities said that 230 Ukrainian prisoners of war returned home in the first exchange in almost five months. Russia’s Defense Ministry said that 248 Russian servicemen have been freed under the deal sponsored by the United Arab Emirates.
The UAE’s Foreign Ministry attributed the successful swap to the “strong friendly relations between the UAE and both the Russian Federation and the Republic of Ukraine, which were supported by sustained calls at the highest levels.”
The UAE has maintained close economic ties with Moscow despite Western sanctions and pressure on Russia after it launched its invasion in 2022.
| — Hat tip: Dean | [Return to headlines] |
Ukraine’s Leopard 2 Tanks Are Nearly All Destroyed or Broken
Of the 18 German-made Leopard 2AG main battle tanks sent to Ukraine, only a few are still in operation, with the rest either destroyed or broken, according to German Green MP Sebastian Schäfer, who serves as the defense expert for the party.
“The situation in Ukraine is very difficult at the moment. We need to do more at all levels; the government and industry are called upon to do more,” he wrote on the X social network. He also underlined his position in letters to Rheinmetall and the French armaments company Nexter.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Stop Jihadi Aggression in Holy Chandranath Hill in Chittagong, Bangladesh
The Chandranath on HilltopSuranjan Das | HENB | Dhaka | Dec 30. 2023:: The Holy Chandranath Temple located on top of the Chandranath Hill, is a famous Shakti Peeth located in Chittagong Hill region of Bangladesh where, as per Hindu sacred texts, the right arm of Sati fell on the shrine. Chandranath Temple is a pilgrimage site for Hindus. The Temple is located at a height about 1,020 feet (310 m) above sea level and famous for its natural beauty and divine serenity.
Now the sacred temple, shrines and water bodies adjacent to it are under the threat of Jihadi elements who are active to change the Sanatan Hindu character of the shrine with a sinister Islamic plan to capture the places around the Hindu pilgrimage.
Not only the Sitakunda Chandranath Temple, but the entire hill is a pilgrimage site for the people of Sanatan Hindu faith of Bangladesh and abroad. And the pilgrimage site is now under a humiliation by turning it as a tourist spot. The Golden Temple of Bandarban was also thus turned into a picnic spot. That was later restricted only to the Hindu-Buddhist community as the Jihadi people were trying to desecrate the areas day after day.
The radical Muslim people have been threatening to set the Islamic flags at the Sita Kund and Chandranath temple for several years. Pilgrims of any religion are sacred to the followers of that religion. But, the Muslims of Chittagong (Chattagram) are dreaming of establishing a huge Mosque atop Chandranath Hill in an absolute bullying. But, Hindus and Buddhists of Chittagong region are opposing the Islamic conspiracy and the making of a chaotic picnic spot hampering the religious character of the Chandranath Hill, Sita Kund and Vyas Kund.
People believe that Vyas Kund is a holy pond. Sanatani Hindus go there to redeem their internal and external impurities in the pond water. There, people of different religions can be seen making love on the ghats (staircases), throwing various dirty things into the pond.
The Medhas Muni Ashram in Chittagong has also become another such picnic spot. Adinath temple in Maheshkhali is also facing a similar plight.
Hindu organisations of Bangladesh raised this question, how can a pilgrimage site, a temple be such a picnic spot? Going to the temple, it is seen that the Muslims go around there with ill motivation, teasing Hindu girls, throwing water bottles and beef-biryani packets all around. The Muslims coming to the holy place like Chandranath temple try to desecrate by throwing biryani packets and food waste around temples and ghats.
Some Muslim tourists even post their comments in the Social Media that they will capture the Chandranath Temple soon with the grace of Allah and will make a Mosque there.
One Muhammad Shibbir Bin Nazir claimed he performed Adhan (Islamic Prayer call) on the hilltop and his invasive mode to fly the Islamic flag on Chandranath shrine was supported by many of his friends and followers .
Not only that a ‘Beef Barbeque Party’ was arranged in the vicinity of Sitakunda-Chandranath Hill to defile the Hindu religious sanctity by the Islamist guys in a very derogatory way. Beef is prohibited to the Hindus as per their religious faith.
The Chandranath Temple and Sita Kund premises are situated in Devottor property (a land essentially meant for Hindu Deities), no other purpose of tourism or other religion can be done other than divine service as per law. Therefore, keeping in mind the religious importance of Chandranath, the uncontrolled means of tourism should be banned forthwith in Chandranath hill.
As there is no dearth of government-designated eco-parks, zoos or privately-run recreation centers for tourism in Bangladesh, the Hindu pilgrimage of Chandranth Temple and Sita Kund should not be destroyed anyway.
Hindu and Buddhist minorities in Islamic Bangladesh are always put under a Jihadi repression under the indulgence of Ruling Parties and the Opposition both. Hindu religious sites, temples, shrines and Hindu agricultural lands and other establishments are under severe threat through land grabbing rackets in a planned way of ‘land Jihad’.
| — Hat tip: Upananda Brahmachari | [Return to headlines] |
Jimmy Lai Pleads Not Guilty in Hong Kong Show Trial
Catholic publisher Jimmy Lai—a pro-democracy advocate and fierce critic of the Chinese Communist Party—pleaded not guilty in Hong Kong on Tuesday, January 2nd to two charges of conspiracy under Beijing’s national security law.
The trial—widely labeled a ‘sham’—kicked off last December. If convicted, Lai, who has already been incarcerated since December 2022 for fraud, could face a life sentence.
Prosecutors claim that Lai had both conspired to produce seditious publications and colluded with foreign powers, including calling for sanctions against Hong Kong and Chinese officials.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Afghan refugee Mr Yawari, 66, was arrested in early December and charged with two counts of indecently assaulting a woman at a motel in Adelaide’s north.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Australia: Refugee Abthar Al-Athmany Charged With Rape of Girl at Parramatta’s Meriton Suites
Abthar Bassam Talib Al-Athmany, 19, and an unnamed 17-year-old boy abused a 15-year-old girl for several hours at the Parramatta Meriton Suites before she was able to escape on August 27.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
House Speaker Johnson at Border: ‘Disaster of the President’s Own Design’
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said on Wednesday that the crisis at the southern border is a “disaster of the president’s own design,” adding that Biden has the authority to fix the problems.
A group of 64 lawmakers representing 26 states visited the southern border in Texas on Wednesday.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Man Breaks Woman’s Foot With Stick Outside Termini
A27-year-old Nigerian migrant broke a 50-year-old Italian woman’s foot with a piece of wood taken from the back of a chair while she was waiting for a bus outside Rome’s Termini Station early on Wednesday.
The man then bit and kicked police who were trying to arrest him, also breaking the patrol car’s windshield.
He has been charged with bodily harm and resisting arrest.
Violent crime has risen lately around major Italian rail stations including Termini, with many of the incidents involving migrants.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Mayor Adams Admits a ‘Number of Migrants Committed Crimes’ in NYC, Reveals ‘Robbery Pattern’
New York City’s Democrat Mayor Eric Adams has admitted that a “robbery pattern” has emerged in his “sanctuary city” as “a number of migrants” have been “committing crimes.”
Adams made the admission during a press conference Tuesday as questions mount regarding the city’s handling of the migrant crisis.
NYC has been flooded with migrants who have entered the country illegally under Democrat President Joe Biden’s open border policies.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Somali Refugee Who Shot Dead Teen in Swedish Street by Mistake Won’t be Deported, Court Rules
A Somali migrant who executed a man in the middle of a Swedish street in what is believed to have been a case of mistaken identity cannot be deported because he has obtained Swedish citizenship, a court has ruled.
Ali Said, 19, was sentenced to life in prison by Lund District Court on Tuesday for the attack that occurred on May 14 last year outside a grocery store in Landskrona, a town in western Sweden.
In what was described by the court as a “pure execution”, a masked Said drove his electric scooter up to a 19-year-old man who was outside the store with his friends and fired several shots at the group.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Street Vendor Stabbed in Throat by Ivorian Minor at French Funfair
A 16-year-old Ivorian unaccompanied minor has been arrested in France on suspicion of stabbing a street vendor in the throat at a funfair in Limoges.
As reported by Le Figaro newspaper, an altercation broke out between the vendor and migrant youth shortly before 6 p.m. on Tuesday at an event on Cours Gay Lussac in the central French city.
After a verbal exchange, the Ivorian minor used a knife to stab his 25-year-old victim twice, including once in the carotid artery.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Former President Donald Trump is vowing to shift ‘massive proportions’ of law enforcement to focus on immigration and said he will use a Federalist era law to remove suspected gang members and drug dealers from the country.
Trump, who ran his 2016 campaign on a pledge to build a border wall and a pledge to kick out Mexican ‘rapists,’ touted his latest hardline proposals in an op-ed in the Des Moines Register in Iowa.
He has been stepping up his events there in the final weeks before the Iowa Caucuses, while sitting on a huge polling lead.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
California’s AB 994 is a newly instituted piece of legislation that significantly regulates the protocol for police departments and sheriff’s offices in relation to the publication of mugshots on their social media platforms. This law, effective from January 1, 2024, introduces strict controls regarding the display of mugshots, particularly emphasizing the inclusion of the arrested individual’s self-identified name and gendered pronouns.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
DHS Has Been Funding Programs at Universities to Label the “Manosphere” Movement a Terror Threat
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) continues to team up (by means of funding) with universities around the country, this time in a bid to stomp out the “Manosphere.”
In keeping with the formal purpose and tasks of the DHS, the idea is to treat the “Manosphere,” positioned as an anti-feminist effort, as a terrorist threat.
Regardless of somebody’s stance pro or against modern variations on feminism, some observers are wondering if opposing this social and ideological phenomenon can in fact fit within any definition of — terrorism.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A furry activist has pleaded guilty to sex trafficking charges and faces up to life in prison after he kidnapped a woman and forced her to make pornographic content for the adult entertainment website, OnlyFans.
Authorities say that Austin Taylor Koeckeritz, 29, of River Falls, Wisconsin held his victim captive and forced her to film erotic content. He reportedly wore a black and blue wolf-shaped furry suit and functioned like a pimp, and forced his victim to wear a black and white wolf-shaped furry suit, according to Reduxx.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A trans-identified male convicted of murdering and dismembering two handymen and then feeding them to his pigs has been serving his 50-year sentence in a women’s correctional facility in Oregon.
Susan Monica, born Steven Buchanan, was sentenced to serve at least 50 years in prison in 2015 after being found guilty of murder and abusing the corpses of two handymen, 59-year-old Stephen Delicino in 2012 and 56-year-old Robert Haney in 2013, according to an Oregon Live report from that time.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The Cultural Inversion of 1984
On the first Friday in December, a production of 1984 is reserved for black people.
It’s only fair since a few weeks earlier the show about a totalitarian dystopia had been reserved for ‘LGBTQIA+’ attendees at the Aurora Theatre in Berkeley, California.
George Orwell’s masterpiece depiction of Communist totalitarianism is more popular than ever and fewer than ever seem to understand it. A feminist retelling of the book, ‘Julia’ was recently approved by the Orwell Estate (the author had no biological children) which was last seen handing out copyright violations to people printing ‘1984’ on their t-shirts. Like calling someone ‘Hitler’, referencing Orwell and 1984 has become slang for something someone doesn’t like.
And often it’s the totalitarians who accuse their critics of ‘Orwellianism’…
| — Hat tip: Daniel Greenfield | [Return to headlines] |
United Nations Appoints Male Transgender as ‘Women’s Champion’
The United Nations has just appointed a male transgender activist as an ambassador to promote and represent the “empowerment of women.”
Munroe Bergdorf, a male model and broadcaster who has undergone several surgical procedures to try and resemble a “female,” has been appointed as the UN’s “Women’s Champion.”
However, the move has provoked a widespread backlash, with women’s rights groups speaking out to express their “dismay and disappointment.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
As an update the Islamic State has claimed credit for the Soliemani celebratory fireworks.
Strange to think that fratricidal compulsion, which is every bit as organic to Mohammedanism as Jew hatred, might be the slender hope of the Wests’ salvation.