Secretary of State Antony Blinken and UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy arrived in Kiev today for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky about the deployment of long-range missiles against targets deep inside Russia. Meanwhile, the governments of France, Germany and Britain condemned the transfer of Iranian ballistic missiles to Russia.
In other news, two 12-year-old girls have been arrested in Laredo, Texas after allegedly threatening to carry out a shooting at their own middle school.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to Dean, JW, McN, MM, Reader from Chicago, Roger, SS, TN, 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.
Consumer Prices Increased 0.2% From July to August, Annual Inflation 2.5%, Federal Government
Consumer prices increased 2.5% in August compared the to the same time last year and 0.2% from the previous month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Thursday.
The annual rate in July was 2.9%, with the slowdown in inflation expected to further increase the likelihood the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates next week.
The 2.5% rate is the lowest since February 2021.
August’s number were in line with Wall Street expectations, according to CNBC.com.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Germany Faces a Surge in Bankruptcies With ‘Worse to Come’
In the first six months of this year, almost 25 per cent more companies in Germany filed for insolvency compared to 2023, with experts fearing that the worst is yet to come.
August alone saw a rise of 10.7 per cent in regular insolvency proceedings filed in Germany compared to the previous year according to the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis).
“Except for June 2024 (+6.3 per cent), the growth rate has thus been in the double-digit range since June 2023,” the agency said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Dolton, Illinois, Mayor Tiffany Henyard, dubbed “America’s worst mayor,” spent $85,000 on a party for the suburban Chicago village while she faces an investigation for taxpayer-funded expenditures.
Henyard spent $50,000 in taxpayers’ money on one hour of entertainment from two musical artists and then over $35,000 on other costs such as staff, activities, and equipment, according to WGN-9.
The event did not have a high turnout, according to former Dolton trustee Valeria Stubbs. “That was a flop,” she said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Another Restaurant Chain Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
The number of restaurant chains that have filed for bankruptcy this year grew on Wednesday after BurgerFi International filed for Chapter 11 protection.
The company said it filed for Chapter 11 reorganization to “preserve the value” of its BurgerFi and Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza & Wings brands “for all stakeholders.”
Only its corporate-owned BurgerFi and Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza & Wings restaurants are included in the bankruptcy proceedings, it said. There are 17 and 50 of those, respectively.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Appeals Court Upholds NYC’s Controversial ‘Good Moral Character’ Gun Permit Law
A federal appeals court has upheld New York City’s contentious gun permit law, which allows officials to reject applications based on their assessment of the applicant’s “good moral character.” The ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit comes after a lower court had previously blocked the law, declaring it an unconstitutional infringement on Second Amendment rights.
The case originated with Joseph Srour, a New York resident whose gun permit application was denied due to prior arrests and traffic violations. Srour, who was never convicted of any crime, argued that the city’s denial violated his constitutional rights. In 2023, a U.S. district judge sided with Srour, ruling that New York officials failed to prove their restrictions were consistent with America’s historical tradition of firearm regulation—a standard set by a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision.
New York City lawyers appealed the decision, and the Second Circuit stayed the district court’s order, temporarily allowing the law to stand. Srour then appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, but Justice Sonia Sotomayor declined his request to lift the stay.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
An Arizona mom has filed a lawsuit against the city of Surprise after she was arrested for questioning the city attorney’s salary during a city council meeting in August. She alleges the city violated her First and Fourth Amendment rights, per the complaint.
Rebekah Massie, 32, a frequent vocal community participant in city council meetings, complained about the city attorney’s salary before the council on Aug. 20. Massie, who had attended the meeting with her 10-year-old daughter, then found herself handcuffed and taken into custody, Fox News reported.
Conor Fitzpatrick, Massie’s attorney with the Foundation of Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), said his client was fingerprinted and given a “pretty invasive patdown” when she was detained for at least two hours. He said the matter violated her Fourth Amendment rights.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Biden Visits Pennsylvania Fire Station, Gets Surrounded by Trump-Supporting Kids, Puts on MAGA Hat
President Joe Biden was seen wearing a Trump 2024 hat on Wednesday as he visited a Shanksville, Pennsylvania fire station to commemorate the 23rd anniversary of 9/11.
A photo of Biden donning the hat was posted to X by Trump War Room with the caption, “Thanks for the support, Joe!” In response, White House Senior Deputy Press Secretary Andrew Bates wrote, “At the Shanksville Fire Station, [Biden] spoke about the country’s bipartisan unity after 9/11 and said we needed to get back to that. As a gesture, he gave a hat to a Trump supporter who then said that in the same spirit, POTUS should put on his Trump cap. He briefly wore it.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Bill Gates Wants AI-Based Real-Time Censorship for Vaccine “Misinformation”
Microsoft founder Bill Gates continues with his crusade, as part of the mission of the Gates Foundation, to not only proliferate the use of vaccines but find new justifications to in effect, force them onto those skeptical or unwilling.
One of the methods Gates has clearly identified as helpful in achieving this goal is hitching his “vaccine wagon” to the massive, ongoing scaremongering campaign and narrative around “misinformation” and “AI.”
Gates spoke for CNBC to reveal he may be a vaccine absolutist — but not a free-speech one. He also didn’t sound convinced that America’s Constitution and its speech protections are the right way to go when he brought up the need for “boundaries” allowing some new “rules.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Black-Student Enrollment at Harvard Dipped After Supreme Court Affirmative-Action Ruling
BOSTON — There was a slight decline in the number of Black students in Harvard University’s freshman class, the first admitted since a Supreme Court ruling struck down affirmative action in higher education.
The impact of the ruling is still coming into focus at selective universities around the country, with some reporting significant swings in the numbers of students of color and others seeing little change.
In a case sparked by challenges to admissions plans at Harvard and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the court’s conservative majority last year barred colleges from considering race, leaving many searching for new ways to promote student diversity.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Brown University Sees Increase in Asian Students After Supreme Court Decision
Following the Supreme Court’s 2023 prohibition of affirmative action in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, Brown University accepted relatively more Asian students than in years prior.
Specifically, the percentage of incoming Asian students rose to 33% in the fall of 2024, up from 29% in the fall of 2023, according to demographic data that the school released on Sept. 6.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
CNN: Percentage of Voters Who Trust Trump More on Economy Surged After Debate
Following the presidential debate on Tuesday night, a CNN poll identified a surge in the number of voters who trust President Donald Trump more on the economy than Democrat nominee Kamala Harris.
The CNN poll was reportedly taken shortly after the debate concluded.
The poll found that the percentage of voters who trust Trump more on the economy rose from +16% to +20%.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Conservative Billionaire Wants to ‘Crush’ Leftist Media
Authored by Dmytro “Henry” Aleksandrov via Headline USA
Leonard Leo, a conservative billionaire activist who was responsible for the driving force behind the conservative movement to reshape the American legal system, recently started a $1 billion campaign to “crush liberal dominance” in American corporations, mass media and the entertainment industry.
Leo, who became famous for helping to make the Supreme Court conservative during Donald Trump’s first presidential term, said his non-profit group, the Marble Freedom Trust, is prepared to make the government and the private sectors conservative.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Father of Colt Gray Files Motion to be Separated From Other Inmates in Jail, Records Show
BARROW COUNTY, Ga. — Colin Gray, the father of the 14-year-old accused in the deadly Apalachee High School shooting, filed a motion in court to be separated from other inmates in jail, according to court records.
On Wednesday, 11Alive obtained court records from the Superior Court of Barrow County. The records revealed that Colin Gray’s attorneys filed a motion to keep him isolated while in custody.
The motion states Colin Gray, 54, has received an “incalculable number of threats, “and in some cases, even calling for the death of the Defendant.”
“It is certain that those feelings of anger and retribution manifested in the collective pschye, of both the public and the community at large are not also represented in the individuals currently incarcerated with the Defendant at the Barrow County Detention Center,” the motion states.
“In fact, so many lives in the community of Barrow County have been touched in unfathomable ways, it would be reckless to assume there are NO inmates, either currently or in the near future, being housed in the Barrow County Detention, who wish to harm the Defendant,” the motion adds.
| — Hat tip: MM | [Return to headlines] |
Lame-duck President Joe Biden and Democrat presidential nominee Kamala Harris were blasted to their faces as they attended the commemoration ceremony at Ground Zero in New York City on Wednesday.
During a speech at the event, the widow of NYC Fire Department Assistant Chief Gerard A. Barbara, who was killed on 9/11, had sharp words for the Biden-Harris admin.
The late FDNY chief’s wife Joanne slammed the Biden-Harris admin for “granting the terrorists a plea deal.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Google Meets Digital ID as Chrome Pushes Controversial Tech
The most widely used browser globally, Google’s Chrome, is gradually introducing one of the most controversial technologies in the world: digital ID.
Announced on the developer blog, the trial includes digital ID and credentials API and can be found on Chrome 128 (released last week for Android, and on Monday for the desktop).
The “origin trial” involves what Chrome developers say is a new web platform API (“Digital Credentials”). The goal is to let sites request verifiable information via digital credentials from a digital wallet (e.g., national ID card or driver’s license).
The post makes a note of the fact that apps like Google Wallet can be used for mobile driver’s licenses (mDLs) in a number of US states, California and Arizona among them. The article also mentions EU’s eIDAS 2.0 online verification efforts.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Iowa Supreme Court Sides With Objection Panel Decision to Kick Libertarians Off the Ballot
DES MOINES, Iowa — The Iowa Supreme Court has sided with an objection panel’s partisan decision to kick Libertarian candidates off the November ballots due to a technicality regarding the party’s nominating conventions.
Republican challengers objected to three Iowa Libertarian congressional candidate’s places on the ballots, accusing the party of failing to comply with state law when it comes to nominating candidates by convention.
The requirements were new to Libertarians, who were only just granted major party status in 2022. Libertarians argued they shouldn’t be kicked off the ballot over a technicality that they admittedly overlooked.
The court’s decision ends a series of appeals from Libertarian nominees regarding the issue.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Jon Bon Jovi Credited With Saving Woman on Pedestrian Bridge in Nashville
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) — Legendary rocker Jon Bon Jovi was in the right place at the right time for one woman in Nashville on Tuesday evening.
According to reports, Bon Jovi was on the Pedestrian Bridge around 6 p.m. for a shoot when he approached a woman who appeared to be getting ready to end her life by jumping off the bridge.
Bon Jovi reportedly spoke with the woman and convinced her not to commit suicide.
Both the Nashville Fire Department and the Metro Nashville Police Department responded to the scene.
| — Hat tip: TN | [Return to headlines] |
Justice Department Drops Nearly Half of Pending Obstruction Charges in J6 Cases
The Justice Department (DOJ) has dropped nearly half of the remaining obstruction charges that are still pending against January 6 defendants, according to recent DOJ data.
The Supreme Court in June made it more difficult to charge the defendants with obstruction, but charges can still be brought if prosecutors can prove that rioters were intentionally trying to stop the arrival of certificates used to certify electoral votes.
The department said last week that it has already dropped the charge in approximately 60 of the 126 defendants whose cases were still pending. It is still going to charge 13 of the defendants with obstruction, and is still examining the other cases.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Michigan Supreme Court Shoots Down Cases Asking Refunds From Schools Over Disruptive COVID Policies
The Michigan Supreme Court ruled against granting refunds to college students who complained about disruptions caused by their respective school’s COVID-19 policies.
Students sued Eastern Michigan University, Central Michigan University and Lake Superior State University, claiming that the three schools’ COVID-19 restrictions caused complications with studying and housing on campus.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Nuland Admits US Discouraged Ukraine From Signing Russia Peace Deal at Moment it Was ‘Really Close’
There’s never a dull moment when former high-ranking State Department official Victoria Nuland goes on the record for a new tell-all. She’s certainly never shy about broadcasting her role in anti-Moscow covert maneuvering and machinations.
Indeed, many already know her as Victoria-’F*** the EU’-Nuland and for essentially running foreign policy in Europe stretching back through the Obama years as then Assistant Secretary of State for Europe, where many of the problems which sparked the disastrous and tragic Russia-Ukraine war were first set in motion.
Exiled Russian journalist Mikhail Zygar recently sat down with her for a new interview published to YouTube earlier this month. The most interesting part of the interview was when he pressed Nuland on widespread reports saying that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson actively encouraged President Zelensky to back out of a potential peace deal with Moscow early after the Feb.2022 Russian invasion. There was a possible chance to end the war and perhaps avoid hundreds of thousands of deaths. But the West apparently convinced Zelensky to fight it out.
But a deal was on the table, and Russia was demanding a full commitment to Ukrainian neutrality regarding NATO. Nuland laid out that it was “relatively late in the game” when Kiev started seeking guidance on the peace deal from Washington and its allies. Zygar said there were statements from foreign leaders privy to the negotiations saying both sides were “really close” to achieving a deal.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Philadelphia police officer Jaime Roman, who was shot while on duty during a motor vehicle stop in June while Trump was speaking at nearby Temple University, died from his injuries on September 10 after months of hospitalization.
Roman, a six-year veteran of the police force, was shot in the neck in the Kensington neighborhood by 36-year-old Ramon Rodriguez Vazquez. Roman and his partner had pulled over Vazquez for having improper registration on his Toyota. During the stop, officers discovered Vazquez did not have a driver’s license.
As Vazquez was waiting for a tow truck to impound his vehicle, police conducted a search and found a gun holster under a seat. When officers attempted to confront Vazquez about the discovery, he fled on foot and then fired at the officers with a firearm he had in his possession. Roman was struck in the neck by the gunfire. Although Roman’s partner returned fire, Vazquez was not hit.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
While former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris debated at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia on Tuesday night, pro-Hamas activists clashed with police while calling for the end of Israel and America.
As the debate proceeded inside, hundreds of activists marched down Market Street from City Hall in the “Shut Down the Debate” rally with banners, bullhorns, and signs while carrying flags supporting Palestine and terrorist organizations demanding a ceasefire in the Israeli-Hamas war while criticizing both presidential candidates.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
It has been revealed that Carmen Rubio, the leading left-wing candidate to replace Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler, has received more than 150 parking tickets and traffic violations over the last two decades. Records show that she failed to pay most of them in a timely manner, including for several years.
As a result, a judge has suspended Rubio’s driver’s license on at least six occasions for failing to appear in court or pay citation fines. Rubio is currently a Portland city commissioner.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
San Bernardino Wildfire Started by Suspected Arsonist
A California man has been arrested in connection with the San Bernardino Line Fire, which has scorched tens of thousands of acres of forestland. The wildfire, which began last week, has led to significant damage and the evacuation of residents in affected areas.
Justin Wayne Halstenberg, a 34-year-old resident of Norco, California, was taken into custody following an investigation by the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department into the wildfire that has resulted in over 34,000 acres being burned.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Secret Service Honors 9/11 Terrorists Among the Victims in Now-Deleted Post
On Wednesday, the United States Secret Service accidentally honored the 19 hijackers who committed the 9/11 terrorist attacks in a now-deleted post on X. The post made in honor of the 23rd anniversary of the tragedy included the terrorists in the victim count, Fox News reported.
The agency quickly apologized and issued another post correcting its error.
“The flag hanging in our headquarters is a solemn reminder of 9/11 and our mission’s purpose. A testament to freedom and sacrifice, it honors all 2,996 lives lost, including our own Master Special Officer Craig T. Miller & Special Agent in Charge Charles L. Friend,” the agency wrote on X.
The number of victims killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks has been tallied at 2,977. That number includes victims killed in each attacked location such as the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and the crashed plane in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. In its first post, the Secret Service reported the number of deaths as 2,996, appearing to have included the 19 hijackers.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
SpaceX Astronauts Reach Farthest Distance From Earth Since Apollo
An all-commercial group of four civilian space astronauts aboard the SpaceX Dragon Capsule via the Polaris Dawn mission has just achieved a significant milestone.
“Polaris Dawn and Dragon at 1,400 km above Earth — the farthest humans have traveled since the Apollo program over 50 years ago,” Elon Musk’s space company wrote on X early Wednesday morning.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
SpaceX Faces Delay in Starship Launch Due to Federal Regulators
SpaceX announced on Tuesday that although it is prepared to launch the next test flight of its Starship rocket, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will not approve the launch license until at least November. This delay marks a significant pushback from the FAA’s original target date for making a decision on the launch license.
In its statement, SpaceX explained that the Starship rocket and Super Heavy rocket booster have been prepared to launch since the beginning of August, but have not been able to proceed with their goals due to the lack of approval from the FAA.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Trump Suffers “Worst Anchor Pile-on” Yet While Harris Given Easy Ride in First Debate
Donald Trump last night faced new Democratic nominee Kamala Harris for their first—and possibly only—presidential election debate.
The head-to-head is, of course, unlikely to be as consequential as Trump’s debate with a flailing President Joe Biden back in June, and there have been few surprises in the immediate post-debate analysis regarding who various outlets and political figures thought came out on top.
But the handling of the event by ABC moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis has prompted a potentially more significant debate.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Two 12-Year-Old Girls Arrested in Texas Over Threats to Commit School Shooting
Two 12-year-old girls have been arrested in Laredo, Texas after allegedly threatening to carry out a shooting at their own middle school.
The girls, who have not been identified, were detained on Sunday and confessed to making threats, Laredo Police Department said.
Laredo Independent School District suspended classes at Cigarroa Middle School, where the girls are students, and Cigarroa High School on Monday. Surrounding elementary schools were placed under “additional security protocols.”
Laredo police warned the school district of the threat at around midnight on Monday after they received reports from more than 10 members of the community.
Police said they took “swift” action, and sent officers to three homes in the early hours of Monday morning.
| — Hat tip: Roger | [Return to headlines] |
Bloc Quebecois Positions Itself for a Coalition to Keep Justin Trudeau in Power
In the wake of NDP leader Jagmeet Singh announcing an end to his coalition with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the Bloc Québécois hopes to step in and take the NDP’s place in helping the Liberals ward off an early election.
Last week, Singh “ripped up” the supply and confidence agreement between the two parties. Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet is now leveraging his party’s position to get “gains” for Quebec in exchange for voting with the government.
Parliament resumes in the House of Commons on Monday next week. The Conservatives have promised to introduce a motion of no confidence in the current government, while the NDP has said it would consider supporting Trudeau on a “vote-by-vote basis.”
Blanchet’s proposed deal would mean the Bloc would support Trudeau’s Liberals in votes in exchange for “clear gains” for Quebec.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre announced Wednesday that he plans to introduce a non-confidence motion “at the earliest opportunity” after the Parliamentary session resumes on Sept. 16, CTV News reported. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s loose coalition with the New Democratic Party (NDP) ended last week. Poilievre called that a political “stunt” at the time.
Poilievre challenged both the NDP and Bloc Quebecois to support the motion. “It’s put up or shut up time for the NDP,” Poilievre said to reporters on Wednesday.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Canada’s ‘Pandemic Bill’ Will ‘Regulate’ Meat Production and ‘Promote’ Insect-Based ‘Foods’
Canada’s new “pandemic prevention and preparedness” bill includes disturbing clauses that seek to dramatically reshape the nation’s food supply.
In order to allegedly “reduce pandemic risk,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government will “regulate” meat production and other elements of the agriculture industry that are essential for feeding the general public.
In addition, the bill states that the government will “promote” the “production of alternative proteins” such as lab-grown “meat” and insect-based “foods” in order to “prepare” for the “next pandemic.”
Once passed, the legislation, Bill C-293, will give Trudeau’s Liberal Party sweeping powers to regulate the food supply to allegedly “prevent” as well as “prepare” for a future pandemic.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
TIFF Won’t Pull Controversial Documentary About Russian Soldiers
The Toronto International Film Festival says it’s not pulling a controversial documentary about Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine from its schedule, despite outcry from Ukrainian officials and community groups who say the film amounts to propaganda.
TIFF’s statement comes a day after Ontario’s public broadcaster TVO, which helped fund Russians at War, announced it was no longer supporting the film and would not be airing it in the coming months as planned.
“In our view, in no way should this film be considered Russian propaganda,” TIFF said Wednesday, following days of silence on the issue.
“While we understand the concerns expressed by many, we believe, like the Venice Film Festival and other international festivals who have programmed the film, that this Canadian documentary merits a place in our selection.”
The Ukrainian Canadian Congress, which helped organize a protest against the film in Toronto on Tuesday, said it’s disappointed by TIFF’s stance.
| — Hat tip: McN | [Return to headlines] |
AfD-Effect in Austria: Will Mainstream Parties Exclude FPÖ?
The right-wing, anti-immigration Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ) may well win the national elections scheduled for September 29th but, it may not matter whether they finish in first place or not, because the new government of Austria has already been agreed upon, according to Exxpress: it will be the grand coalition of old between the centre-right People’s Party (ÖVP) and the Social Democrats (SPÖ).
As we recently reported, the FPÖ is on course to win the elections, with migration being one of the biggest concerns for voters in the country. According to a survey published in July, 40% of respondents named migration as their top issue of concern, followed by environmental concerns (20%) and education (12%).
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Already Depleted British Army Further ‘Constrained’ by Training Thousands of Ukrainian Soldiers
The UK’s National Audit Office has recommended the Ministry of Defence “balance Ukraine’s needs and the UK’s strategic interests” after finding training and supplying the Ukrainian armed forces had reduced the capability of the British armed forces.
The British military has taught so many Ukrainian soldiers its own Army has struggled to get vital exercise time on its own training facilities, a government report has found. The National Audit Office (NAO), the UK-government funded autonomous value for money assessor also found the sheer volume of equipment donated to Ukraine from UK stocks will cost billions to replace and take years to source.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The UK has a new/old chair of the parliament’s Culture, Media and Sports Committee — and she is yet another champion of (obliging) Big Tech, and a veteran in the “war on disinformation,” but also attempts to demonetize “disfavored” public figures.
Caroline Dinenage keeps failing upwards: she has just been reelected to this role, after last year embarrassing herself by trying to pressure X and Rumble, and other platforms and media to demonetize actor Russell Brand because of anonymous allegations against him.
The Committee that scrutinizes the activities of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (BBC included), has a Sub-Committee specifically focused on what are considered online harms and disinformation, as well as UK’s sweeping censorship law, Online Safety Act.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Coup at Greece’s Syriza Party Sweeps Its Leader From Power
Serious infighting has erupted out in the hard-left Syriza Party in Greece after its central committee removed Stefanos Kasselakis as its leader.
On September 8, a vote of no confidence was held amid escalating tensions within Syriza. The poll was initiated by the so-called “Group of 87” members, known for their close ties to former prime minister Alexis Tsipras.
Some 163 committee members voted in favour of the motion, 120 opposed it and three votes were invalid.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France: More Congolese Athletes Go ‘Missing’ in Paris After Olympics
More Congolese athletes have reportedly gone “missing” in France following the Olympic games, local media is reporting.
Information seen by Le Parisien indicates that a number of athletes from the Republic of Congo taking part in the Paralympic games have now disappeared following the closing ceremony on September 8.
The publication describes prosecutors in Seine-Saint-Denis as having opened an investigation into the disappearance into two of the country’s athletes — wheelchair discus and javelin thrower Mireille Nganga and blind sprinter Grce Mouambako — as well as the latter’s running guide.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
How about this “next pandemic”: the political virus of drastic showdowns with social media platforms that’s spreading in Europe, and beyond — in the wake of Telegram CEO Durov’s arrest in France.
A number of “ideas” are cropping up from various politicians, and now in Germany, the discredited (when it comes to supporting censorship) Greens have a solution for “online radicalization” — and it’s more radical censorship.
Greens MP and chair of the German parliament (Bundestag) European Affairs Committee Anton Hofreiter has told Funke Media Group over the weekend that as far as extremism goes — “one of the biggest problems is online radicalization.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
German CDU Rejects Calls for Joint EU Loans
A mere two days after it was published, many European Union member states have already rejected Mario Draghi’s ultimate recommendation for making Europe more competitive: taking on more joint EU debt. The former European Central Bank chief’s 400-page report called for investing hundreds of billions of euros into the bloc’s economy—just to keep up with the U.S. and China.
It is becoming clear that implementing the suggestions from the report will be near impossible. On Wednesday, September 11th, Friedrich Merz—a prospective German chancellor and the leader of center-right opposition party the Christian Democratic Union (CDU)—vehemently opposed the plan during a parliamentary debate, declaring
I want to say this very clearly, now and in the future, I will do everything I can to prevent this European Union from spiraling into debt.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Germany Torpedoes Draghi’s European Competitiveness Plan
Almost before Mario Draghi had finished presenting his report on his plan to revive European competitiveness, Germany reacted immediately and with a sharp jab. The ambitious study, which the former president of the European Central Bank spent a year working on at the request of Ursula von der Leyen, proposes pumping €800 billion a year into the European economy to give it a chance to compete with the U.S. and China.
Draghi argued that the amortization of European competitiveness has reached a level that can only be tackled by immediate and drastic solutions, and that the delay in seeking consensus among member states is pushing the EU economy closer to the brink of the grave every day.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Gonzalez’ Arrival in Spain Triggers Political Dogfight
The Spanish government’s decision to grant asylum to Venezuelan presidential candidate and opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez has triggered a political dogfight between the largest parties.
Santiago Abascal, the president of the Conservative party VOX, accused both Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell, of “executing [Venezuela’s disputed President] Nicolas Maduro’s plan”.
According to Abascal, the goal of the High Representative and the PM was “to avoid at all costs” Gonzalez’s recognition as president of Venezuela and prevent “any immediate sanctions against the regime”.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Green Fail: Germany’s Anti-Nuclear Policies Resulted in More Pollution, More Costs, Report Finds
A bombshell report has found that Germany could have been more effective at reducing its carbon footprint while saving hundreds of billions of euros if it had invested in nuclear power rather than green energy projects.
Leftist-run governments in Europe’s top economic powerhouse made a devastating error by transitioning away from nuclear power and focussing instead on so-called “renewable” sources of energy like wind and solar, industrial engineer Jan Emblemsvåg of the University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, Norway has said according to German daily Welt.
While nuclear energy accounted for around 30 per cent of Germany’s electricity in the year 2000, just over two decades later in 2022, the country, under the direction of the leftist Social Democrats (SPD) and the Greens, shut down its last nuclear power plant.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘No Conservatives’: EU Socialists Issue Ultimatum to Commission President
The social democrat (S&D) group in Brussels is not happy about some of Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s plans for distributing portfolios in her new cabinet. They voiced their disagreements along with the rest of the Left by demanding better representation for themselves—and that she deny Italy’s conservative candidate an earmarked top seat in the new Commission.
If S&D’s “expectations” remain unmet, it would be “very difficult, even impossible” to support von der Leyen’s cabinet when it is presented for Parliamentary approval, the group threatened the Commission president.
The situation seems serious, as von der Leyen decided to postpone Wednesday’s meeting with the heads of the European Parliament (EP) groups. Here, she was supposed to present her preliminary plan for distributing portfolios among the commissioner candidates.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
On Spain’s Chavistas and the Exile of Edmundo Gonzalez: An Interview With Alejandro Peña Esclusa
Alejandro Peña Esclusa is an engineer, writer, analyst, and political advisor. A pioneer of the first protests in his country against the left-wing Chavista regime, he was imprisoned for a year in El Helicoide (a prison notorious for its torture) and is now a political exile. An expert on the Sao Paulo Forum and the influence of cultural Marxism, he is the author of several books on these subjects.
In an August commentary on the Venezuelan presidential election for The European Conservative, Peña Esclusa wrote:
Everyone knows that in the face of the most difficult obstacles, the opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez obtained an overwhelming victory [over socialist dictator Nicolas Maduro] by more than 37 points, as evidenced by 83% of the official tally sheets, which are available for anyone who wants to see them at www.resultadosconvzla.com.
In this interview we discuss Edmundo Gonzalez’s sudden departure from Venezuela, Spain’s Chavistas, and how this ‘exile’ affects the current situation in the country.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
This post originally published via the Ordo Iuris Institute for Legal Culture
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and his Justice Minister Adam Bodnar presented on Sept. 6 the basis for a draft law on the status of judges who were appointed or promoted to higher positions after 2018.
Under the planned arrangements, only judges for whom this was their first appointment after graduating from the National School of Judiciary and Public Prosecution will retain their status. Those judges who were promoted to higher positions after 2018 will be treated differently. The promotions of some of them will be revoked three months after the law takes effect, and they will be reinstated to their previous positions. They will also be subject to disciplinary procedures. Other judges who have been promoted, in order to remain in office, will have to make a statement that they regret their decision. They will then return to court and be able to compete for various positions.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Reform UK Hits Out at Labour’s “Wicked and Cruel” Pensioner Payment Cut
Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour government may have expected its failings on immigration and UK-EU relations to be attacked by the Reform party, given these key issues have shaped—and have been shaped by—its leader, Nigel Farage.
But it will be all the more uncomfortable seeing the former Brexit Party outflanking it on support for pensioners.
Last night, Reform did just this, with all five of its MPs voting against Starmer’s decision to cut winter fuel payments—not that the BBC cared to make a point of this. The lump sum £200-£300 (€237-€355) benefit was paid—until now—to all pensioners to help with energy bills. A report from the Labour Party itself claimed that almost 4,000 pensioners could die without the support.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Reporters Say No Evidence for Polish Claims of ‘Thousands of Ukrainians’ Joining Foreign Legion
Reporters have discovered that a “thousands-strong” Ukrainian legion in Poland does not yet exist.
During the NATO public forum on July 11 in Washington DC, Polish foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski said “several thousands of Ukrainians” had registered with the legion of Ukrainian volunteers to be trained in Poland, adding that “if every country had done that Ukraine would now have several additional brigades.”
But on September 9, Dziennik Gazeta Prawna (DGP), a Polish owned centre-right leaning daily, reported that although Poland had been ready to begin training volunteers from August 1, the Ukrainian side had not recruited any participants and that the legion “remained an idea that was just there on paper”.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Slovakia’s Fico Accuses West of ‘Tolerating Ukrainian Extremists’
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has accused the West of “tolerating” extremist elements within the Ukrainian military, prompting a backlash from Kyiv.
Speaking outside a Holocaust museum in the country, Fico blasted the country’s allies for allegedly not caring about instances of political extremism in the country.
“We all talk about fascism, Nazism, and yet we tacitly tolerate the fact that there are units running around Ukraine which have a very clear designation, which are linked to movements that we now consider dangerous and forbidden,” he said according to a Reuters report.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Slovak Government Slams Reports of EU Funds Block
Slovakia’s Government has blasted reports of the European Commission allegedly planning to block European funds for Bratislava over concerns about “democratic backsliding”.
On September 9, Bloomberg reported that the EC had laid the groundwork “to censure Slovakia over the erosion of democratic norms”. Other international news outlets swiftly picked up on the story.
Robert Fico’s populist-left Slovak administration was said to be eroding democratic norms by abolishing the office of the special prosecutor, who was in charge of several corruption cases involving European Union funding.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Socialists Threaten to Reject Ursula Von Der Leyen’s EC Team
Socialists in the European Parliament have warned they may withhold support for the next European Commission unless their key demands are addressed.
They include ensuring “gender balance”, defending social rights across Europe, respecting the spitzenkandidat process for selecting EC leadership and keeping what they called “the far-right” out of key roles.
“If these expectations are not met, the leaders of the Party of the European Socialists and the Socialists and Democrats Group in the European Parliament warn it will be very difficult, even impossible, to support the Commissioners presented by [EC President] Ursula von der Leyen,” they said on September 10.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Spanish PM Sanchez Calls for Tariff Truce Between EU and China
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has urged for a truce between the EU and China on the imposition of tariffs.
During his state visit to the communist country, the PM urged both powers to find common ground in the hopes of avoiding a possible trade war during a speech on September 11.
Asked if Spain would reconsider EU tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles during his visit to the Mondragon Industrial Park in Kunshan, near Shanghai, Sanchez appeared open to the possibility.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Sweden: Third Night of Drone Incursions on Stockholm Airport
Unidentified drones trespassed into the air space of Stockholm-Arlanda, Sweden’s largest airport, for the third consecutive night on Tuesday, as reported by media outlets.
“We can confirm that during the evening, we observed a drone at Arlanda, we noticed a change in the traffic pattern, and we are adjusting the traffic accordingly,” Eric Casselberg, the officer on duty at the Civil Aviation Authority, told TV4. “We have no information on whether there is a connection with the previous drone alerts, or if it is one or multiple drones.”
Stockholm police also received reports about drone observations in other locations. Press spokesman Daniel Wikdahl confirmed that more alarms about drones had come in, but would not comment on where.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: COVID-Vaxxed Kids 45 Times More Likely to Die Than Unvaccinated
Children who received Covid mRNA shots are 45 times more likely to die from any cause than unvaccinated kids, alarming official government statistics have revealed.
The bombshell data shows that children who received Covid mRNA shots are at a massively elevated risk of dying.
The shocking figures were revealed in a UK government report.
Buried in the report is the disturbing confirmation that the Covid injections have been killing children at an unprecedented rate.
The admission was quietly revealed in a section of the report compiled using data from the UK government’s Office for National Statistics (ONS).
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Farage Demands Apologies for Claims He ‘Incited’ Southport Riots
Britain’s terrorism watchdog has called for more information to be made public in the event of mass attacks, so as to reduce the risk of trust in public institutions being undermined. Jonathan Hall KC, the independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, has warned of an “information vacuum,” noting that people “quite reasonably wanted to know as much as possible about a massacre of children.”
Supporters of Nigel Farage say these comments vindicate the Reform UK leader, who was accused of inciting nationwide violence. Speaking on GB News, Clacton MP Farage announced:
Had we been told more about [the Southport attacker], I do not think the Southport riots would have happened on anything like the level that they did.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Airstrike on UN School in Gaza Kills Dozens, Israel Claims it Was Targeting Militants
It was a violent day as Palestinians say Israeli strikes killed dozens in Gaza. Israel says the targets were Hamas militants who took shelter at a UN school that has become a shelter for the displaced. In the West Bank, an Israeli soldier died in an attack on a bus stop and Palestinians say Israeli raids backed by airstrikes killed at least five.
| — Hat tip: JW | [Return to headlines] |
France, Germany, UK Condemn Iran Over Ballistic Missiles, Target New Sanctions
The governments of France, Germany and Britain condemned the transfer of Iranian ballistic missiles to Russia, and said they would cancel bilateral air services agreements with Iran and work towards sanctioning airline Iran Air.
The announcement came after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Russia had received ballistic missiles from Iran and would likely use them in its war in Ukraine within weeks.
“This act is an escalation by both Iran and Russia, and is a direct threat to European security,” said a joint statement from the three countries.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Biden Says ‘Working Out’ Letting Ukraine Hit Russia With US Long-Range Missiles
President Joe Biden’s latest words to reporters related to the Ukraine war strongly suggest the US could be close to greenlighting Ukraine’s ability to use US-supplied long-range missiles to strike deep inside Russian territory.
The pattern of recent history is also that if Zelensky lobbies hard enough in western capitals, there’s eventual capitulation, even should there be great risk of NATO escalation with Russia. This is how the F-16 program happened, and it was rushed through with negative results thus far.
Amid the latest pleas from Zelensky for the West to take off all restrictions on use of offensive weaponry, Biden when asked by reporters Tuesday if the US will allow Ukraine forces to use longer-range missiles to target sites inside Russia, said: “We’re working that out right now.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Blinken and UK Foreign Secretary Lammy Arrive in Ukraine to Talk Long-Range Strikes Against Russia
U.S. Secretary of State Blinken and his UK Government counterpart arrived in Kyiv on Wednesday morning for talks with President Zelensky which have been widely trailed to be about the deployment of long-range missiles against targets deep inside Russia.
Antony Blinken and David Lammy, the new-in-job British Foreign Secretary travelled from London to Kyiv by plane and train overnight into Wednesday morning, ready for a day of meetings with senior Ukrainian politicians. The Ukrainian Prime Minister set the tone for talks, which had already been widely reported as focussing on whether the U.S. would give permission for deep strikes against targets inside Russia when he welcomed the two men with a plea.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Lukoil Loophole: Kyiv and Budapest Reach Oil Transit Agreement
Kyiv finally greenlit Budapest’s proposal to circumvent sanctions on the Moscow-based energy giant Lukoil. Hungarian company MOL (Hungarian Oil and Gas Public Limited Company) must now buy Russian oil before it enters Ukraine, which will collect higher transit fees in return. This surprisingly simple solution puts an end to the months-long deadlock between Ukraine and several Central European countries that greatly depend on Russian energy.
As we reported previously, Kyiv’s decision to sanction Lukoil and ban it from using Ukraine’s transit infrastructure shocked Central Europe. The private company is not associated with the Kremlin, repeatedly condemned the invasion of Ukraine, and has maintained a relatively good standing in Brussels.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Why West Has Limited Ukraine’s Use of Its Missiles
There are strong indications that the US and UK are poised to lift their restrictions within days on Ukraine using long-range missiles against targets inside Russia. Ukraine has been pleading for this for weeks. So why the reluctance by the West and what difference could these missiles make to the war?
What is Storm Shadow?
Storm Shadow is an Anglo-French cruise missile with a maximum range of around 250km (155 miles). The French call it Scalp.
It is launched from aircraft then flies at close to the speed of sound, hugging the terrain, before dropping down and detonating its high explosive warhead.
Storm Shadow is considered an ideal weapon for penetrating hardened bunkers and ammunition stores, such as those used by Russia in its war against Ukraine.
But each missile costs nearly US$1 million (£767,000), so they tend to be launched as part of a carefully planned flurry of much cheaper drones, sent ahead to confuse and exhaust the enemy’s air defences, just as Russia does to Ukraine.
Britain and France have already sent these missiles to Ukraine — but with the caveat that Kyiv can only fire them at targets inside its own borders.
They have been used with great effect, hitting Russia’s Black Sea naval headquarters at Sevastopol and making the whole of Crimea unsafe for the Russian navy.
Justin Crump, a military analyst, former British Army officer and CEO of the Sibylline consultancy, says Storm Shadow has been a highly effective weapon for Ukraine, striking precisely against well protected targets in occupied territory.
“It’s no surprise that Kyiv has lobbied for its use inside Russia, particularly to target airfields being used to mount the glide bomb attacks that have recently hindered Ukrainian front-line efforts,” he says.
| — Hat tip: Dean | [Return to headlines] |
Sniffer Dog Plays Key Role in Cracking Triple Murder Case…
Sumedha Shinde | HENB | Mumbai | Sept 12, 2024:: A sniffer dog played a crucial role in helping the Palghar Police crack a triple murder case, leading to the arrest of a 30-year-old suspect from Uttar Pradesh. The Muslim accused is alleged to have murdered an elderly couple and their 52-year-old daughter in Neherloi village, Wada. The decomposed bodies of the Hindu victims were found on August 30, and the sniffer dog’s contribution was instrumental in solving the case.
The victims were identified as Mukund Rathod (75), his wife Kanchan (72), and their daughter Sangeeta (52), all of whom were residents of Wada. Mukund, a retired fabric businessman, had been supporting the household through rental income, supplemented by financial assistance from their son Pankaj, who lives in Virar.
The Hindu family, who were victims of the brutal murder, had never suspected that their Muslim tenant, whom they had trusted, would turn out to be their killer, driven by a greed for their wealth and valuables.
According to police officials, the crime took place on the afternoon of August 17. Arif Anwar Ali Ansari, the family’s tenant who had rented an adjacent property, allegedly attacked the Rathod family with a hammer. Ansari, who was preparing to return to Uttar Pradesh, was in need of money and targeted the family, believing they possessed cash and valuables.
“Under the pretence of returning a borrowed hammer, Ansari went to the Rathod’s apartment. Finding Mukund away, he broke into the home and viciously attacked Kanchan and Sangeeta with the hammer,” according to the officer.
Following the assault, Ansari allegedly concealed the bodies of Kanchan and Sangeeta in a metal trunk and cleaned up the bloodstains. However, upon hearing Mukund’s vehicle approach, he realized he was at risk of being discovered. He hid inside the house and allegedly attacked Mukund with the hammer when he arrived. Ansari then allegedly covered Mukund’s body with a bedsheet and fled the scene, taking the family’s mobile phones and some ornaments with him.
The gruesome discovery was made on August 30, when Pankaj, concerned about his family’s unavailability since August 17, arrived at their Palghar residence to find it locked from the outside. With neighbors unable to provide any information, Pankaj alerted the Wada police, who launched a murder investigation and brought in a dog squad. The canine team led them to Ansari’s residence, making him the prime suspect when he was found to be absent. “We enlisted the help of a dog squad, which led us to Ansari’s house after visiting the crime scene. His absence further solidified his status as the prime suspect,” an officer explained.
To determine whether the deaths were natural or homicides, police enlisted the help of a dog squad. The sniffer dog was presented with items from the crime scene and led investigators to a locked rental apartment, where Ansari and his family resided. The dog’s actions raised suspicions, and when police began inquiring about Ansari, they discovered he was absent. This further fueled their suspicions,” the officer explained.
Subsequently, with the assistance of Uttar Pradesh authorities, Palghar police successfully traced and apprehended Ansari in the jurisdiction of Meja Road police station, Uttar Pradesh. During interrogation, Ansari confessed to the crime.
The shocking triple murder case in Palghar has raised concerns about safety and security for homeowners, particularly when Hindus rent their properties to tenants from different religious backgrounds like Muslims. The incident has sparked questions about the potential risks, including attacks or even murder, that may arise in such situations.
| — Hat tip: Upananda Brahmachari | [Return to headlines] |
A home builder has collapsed owing close to a million dollars to creditors as every Australian state and territory fails to deliver on national housing targets.
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EXCLUSIVE — A city council member in Alabama kicked all residents out of a meeting in “totalitarian” fashion after residents asked questions about the recent arrival of Haitian migrants to the community, one of the speakers during public comment told Fox News Digital.
Sylacauga City Council President Tiffany Nix adjourned a meeting after several attendees pressed the council on the illegal immigrant issue, including allegations that buses of Haitians were brought in supposedly to work, but many are walking aimlessly in the streets.
The last speaker, David Phillips, barely got to speak before Nix cut him off.
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Aurora Police Identify 10 Known Tren De Aragua Gang Members
DENVER (KDVR) — The Aurora Police Department said Wednesday that they have identified 10 known members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua as part of ongoing investigations.
The department said it has been actively investigating reports that members of the gang have been living in the city “and committing acts of violence against members of the migrant community.”
This includes two men arrested in connection to a shooting at an apartment complex on Nome Street, as well as several others allegedly involved in incidents at the Whispering Pines Condominiums.
The former was shut down by city officials in August for unsafe and unfit living conditions, while the city has threatened to shut down the latter.
The Aurora Police Department said all 10 were documented members of the Tren de Aragua gang.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Austria Applauds Hungary’s Move to Ship Migrants to Brussels
The leader of Austria’s Freedom Party (FPÖ) has welcomed Hungary’s initiative to ship migrants by bus to Brussels as a form of protest against the EU’s policy of strong-arming Hungary into accepting them.
FPÖ leader and candidate for chancellor, Herbert Kickl, was quite pleased with Viktor Orban’s initiative.
“This is a good initiative from Orban. Others should follow his example. If the bureaucrats in Brussels want migrants, they should take them in themselves,” Kickl wrote in a social media post.
National elections take place in Austria on Sept. 29, with Kickl set to come in first place.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The city of Denver funneled federal COVID funds through area non-profits to house thousands of illegal immigrants in shelters, according to a new report. Many illegal immigrants have ended up at the troubled Edge at Lowry and Whispering Pines Apartments in Aurora, Colorado.
Critics say these buildings have turned into human dumping grounds and magnets for crime, attracting ruthless Venezuelan gang members and are quickly becoming a blight on the community.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
European Leaders Furious Over German Border Controls
The decision by Germany to reintroduce temporary checks at all its borders has caused a commotion within the European Union, especially among its neighbours who have expressed outrage at the move.
The Berlin Government announced the decision on Monday, September 9th, in an attempt to curb illegal border crossings by migrants. Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said that border checks within the free-movement zone of the Schengen Area are necessary until the EU’s external borders are sufficiently reinforced through joint action.
The move comes as Germany faces a rise in migrant knife crime and the increasing popularity of the anti-immigration Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said that the conversation about illegal migration and crime has “barely started” and warned that the new Labour Party government will suffer a similar defeat to the Tories if they fail to demonstrate the “political will” necessary to protect Britain’s borders.
Appearing before a House of Commons committee, the Brexit boss urged for tough action from Westminster as the number of boat migrants illegally crossing the Channel from France is approaching 9,000 since Prime Minister Keir Starmer came to power in July.
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Four Million Ukrainians Granted Temporary Protection in the EU
More than four million Ukrainians have been granted temporary protection status in the European Union since Russia’s latest invasion of the country began in 2022.
Germany, Poland and Czechia are among the countries that have hosted the highest number of Ukrainians under the system.
According to the latest Eurostat release published September 10, 1,110,600 Ukrainians are under protection status in Germany, 976,205 in Poland and 369,610 in Czechia.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Germany’s Border Checks Could Embolden Michel Barnier’s Tough-on-Immigration Stance
Germany’s decision on Monday (9 September) to introduce checks at all national border crossings to curb irregular migration may pressure France to respond, with President Emmanuel Macron’s party seeming to favour a tougher stance on migration policy.
“The issue of controlling [migration] flows is one that affects all member states,” Charles Rodwell, a pro-Macron Ensemble pour la République (EPR) MP, told Euractiv.
Rodwell, who will co-lead negotiations over the 2025 immigration budget bill this autumn, has closely monitored what’s happening in France.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Germany’s Scholz Defends Border Controls Against EU Critics: ‘Dispute is Necessary’
Germany is determined to press forward to implement border controls, undeterred by a backlash from its EU partners, Chancellor Olaf Scholz emphasised that the “dispute is necessary”, on Wednesday (11 September).
On Tuesday, Poland’s pro-European Prime Minister Donald Tusk (PO/EPP) had sharply criticisedGermany’s plans to introduce checks at all its land borders, calling them “unacceptable”.
“We will continue this successful approach, […], we are doing this, although it is getting difficult with our neighbours,” Scholz (SPD/S&D) told lawmakers in the German Bundestag.
“I believe […] it is necessary for us to endure this dispute,” he added.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
German Migration Talks Collapse Amid CDU’s Call for Stronger Border Control
Crisis talks on migration between the left-liberal German government and the centre-right opposition CDU/CSU alliance have broken down. CDU leader Friedrich Merz has accused the coalition of not being tough enough and is calling for the rejection of illegal migrants at Germany’s borders. The government believes the opposition party is putting on a display for voters before the regional elections in Brandenburg, where migration will play a key role.
Both the government and the centre-right have been publicly trying to outbid each other in recent days on who can come up with the toughest anti-immigration measures. This is ironic, seeing as how the previous CDU-led governments and the current Social Democrat-led coalition have overseen the influx of millions of illegal immigrants from Africa and the Middle East.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: Bavarian Town of 4,000 Protests Over New Asylum Home for 500 Migrants
As Germany endures its ongoing migrant crisis, the government continues to allocate migrants across the countryside, effectively transforming towns across the nation, many of which have been culturally and ethnically homogenous for hundreds of years. One of the latest cases is the Bavarian town of Rott am Inn, which is seeing wide-scale demonstrations against plans to create a refugee accommodation that will house 500 people.
Protesters gathered at the district council building in Seeon, where they are furious over plans to import 500 migrants, which would then make up more than 10 percent of the town’s population of 4,000.
Notably, residents are blaming the Christian Socialist Union (CSU), which is the political powerhouse in Bavaria and effectively runs the state, with Markus Söder, the minister-president, as the head of the state. In fact, Söder had specifically promised just six months ago to the town that no such asylum home would be built.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Haitian Migrants Capture Geese in Springfield, Ohio: Police Report
A recording of a call made to police in August has revealed a Springfield, Ohio resident expressing concern to authorities over Haitian migrants in the city capturing geese. The recording and police report were obtained by The Federalist.
“I’m sitting here, I’m riding on the trail, I’m going to my orientation for my job today, and I see a group of Haitian people, there was about four of ‘em, they all had geese in their hands,” the caller told the police dispatcher in the audio recording of the call.
According to a police report, the caller sent in his report on Aug. 26, before Springfield, a Columbus suburb about 50 miles away from the state capitol, became a byword for the chaotic and often non-existent immigration policy of the Biden-Harris administration. The caller described to the dispatcher how he was observing four migrants, two male and two female, each walking away grasping a goose in their arms.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Mike Dewine Sends State Troopers Into Springfield to Deal With Haitian Migrant Crisis
Gov. Mike DeWine (R-OH) announced Tuesday that he will send the Ohio State Highway Patrol and $2.5 million to the beleaguered community of Springfield, where Haitian immigrants have turned the city upside down.
“I want the people of Springfield and Clark County to know that as we move forward, we will continue to do everything we can to help the community deal with this surge of migrants,” DeWine said in a statement. “The federal government has not demonstrated that they have any kind of plan to deal with the issue. We will not walk away.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
New Swedish Migration Minister: ‘Remigration’ is an Important Issue for Sweden
When Swedish PM Ulf Kristersson presented his re-formed government on Tuesday, in the wake of the surprise resignation of Foreign Minister Tobias Billström last week, a renewed focus on dealing with migration seemed apparent.
Maria Malmer Stenergard, the former migration minister, will replace Billström as head of the foreign ministry. She will be replaced as migration minister by Johan Forssell, the former minister of aid and foreign trade. Both belong to Kristersson’s Moderates party.
In an interview after the appointment, the new migration minister said keeping asylum migration to a minimum for a long time will be a priority. Forssell told Aftonbladet, “The important thing now is that we don’t return to the previous policy, which put Sweden in a very difficult situation. A lot of people were affected by it.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
An Ohio man was shocked to learn that his daughter would have to hire a translator in order for his grandson to attend class as the only English-speaking child in a state preschool.
In a video originally shared to TikTok, the grandfather said it all started when his daughter went to a meet and greet at the school in New Philadelphia in Tuscarawas County, Ohio and discovered that her son would be the only English-speaking student in a class composed of Spanish-speaking kids, according to the Daily Mail.
“My daughter enrolled my four-year-old grandson into preschool last week and they have a little meet and greet,” the man begins.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The father of Aiden Clark said Tuesday that he wishes his son “had been killed by an older white man, instead of a Haitian” because he says the death is being used “for political purposes.”
“You know, I wish that my son, Aiden Clark, was killed by a 60-year-old white man. I bet you never thought anyone would ever say something so blunt. But if that guy killed my 11-year-old son, the incessant group of hate-spewing people would leave us alone,” Nathan Clark of Springfield, OH said during an opportunity for the public to speak at the Springfield City Commission.
Clark insisted his son “was not murdered” but “accidentally killed by an immigrant from Haiti.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Poland Accused of Conspiring Against Germany to Ensure Open Borders
With thousands of migrants crossing through Poland into Germany, Poland has a vested interest in making sure they do not stay on their territory. German media outlets are now pointing out that Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk is rejecting Germany’s plan to introduce border controls in the wake of Islamic terror attacks in recent months.
German newspaper Junge Freiheit goes so far as to state that “Poland is now conspiring with other neighboring countries against the Federal Republic.”
Tusk himself in response to the border closures said that the plan was “unacceptable.” He stated that he would participate in “urgent consultations” with countries neighboring Germany to stop Berlin from closing its borders.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Spanish Parliament Rejects Right’s Plan to Cut Aid for Underage Criminal Migrants
The Spanish parliament has rejected a measure that would strip state subsidies from foreign-born minors who are detained for committing crimes.
The measure, proposed by the anti-immigration VOX party, would amend Article 274 of the General Law of Social Security to remove monetary support for underage law-breakers from migrant backgrounds.
The centre-right Partido Popular also supported the measure, but the plan was narrowly defeatedby 178 votes against to 170 in favour.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Tusk Calls German Border Controls Crackdown ‘Unacceptable’
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has called the unilateral decision by Germany to reintroduce border checks on all its frontiers “unacceptable”, adding that it was mistaken migration policies the country adopted that have caused the current migration crisis.
They will result in the “de facto suspension of Schengen on such a large scale”, Tusk told Polish ambassadors at their annual gathering in Warsaw.
He added that “such actions are unacceptable from the Polish point of view, because I have no doubt that it is the internal political situation in Germany that is causing these more stringent steps, and not our policy towards illegal migration on our borders”.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
“Transgender Women Are Women” According to Prospective Leaders of UK’s Women & Equalities Committee
Westminster is scheduled to elect one of its own to head up a highly influential Commons group on Wednesday, September 11th. While the group has “Women” in its title, two leading candidates for the role have a track record of arguing that people born male who identify as women (‘transwomen’) are women.
Commons select committees exist to oversee the work of UK government departments and agencies, Established following the 2015 general election, the Women & Equalities Committeeis designed to scrutinise the Government Equalities Office. For close to a decade, its brief has included sex, age, race, sexual orientation, disability and transgender/gender identity. Its chair, as with all commons select committees, is elected by a secret ballot of MPs.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
EU Member States Sabotage Von Der Leyen’s Demand for Gender Equality Among Commissioners
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen asked the EU member states to present both a male and a female candidate for commissioner, but only Bulgaria did so. EU officials say that by doing so, member states have completely snubbed the European Commission president. Nevertheless, von der Leyen insists on a gender balance in her new team and has put pressure on some smaller member states.
Von der Leyen’s self-imposed deadline is fast approaching, but she has still not managed to assemble her team, leaving the composition of the new European Commission still uncertain, Politico reports.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Transgender Lawmaker Wins Democratic Primary for Delaware’s Sole U.S. House Seat
Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride on Tuesday night won the Democratic nomination for the state’s sole House seat, putting McBride in position to become the first openly transgender lawmaker in Congress’s lower chamber.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A trans-identified male property manager from Oklahoma, who began transitioning to a woman in prison, admitted to having previously decapitated a friend while still living in Oklahoma. Alex Ray Scott, 28, was in a New York court Monday to plead guilty to the murder of Kenneth Savinski, 64.
Scott ran from Oklahoma in 2019 after being accused of molesting a five-year-old boy — but before leaving, he dismembered Robin Skocdopole, 63, with a chainsaw. The shocking news — which had not been mentioned at the trial — came out as Scott took the stand and described in detail the killing of Savinski, an antique dealer. Scott described using a plate, kitchen knife and “maybe a pen” to commit the January 2020 murder, the Daily Mail reported.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
“According to the latest Eurostat release published September 10, 1,110,600 Ukrainians are under protection status in Germany, 976,205 in Poland and 369,610 in Czechia.”
…not that I would have anything to support my assumptions – however I believe it is much more than these numbers. But the Ukrainians are – long term – used to “living under the radar”, and they do prefer “unregistered, tax free work” because they always work from the bottom of the barrel.
Anyhow – “hat tip”
https://www.thenational.scot/sport/24577105.angry-rangers-star-blasts-czech-fa-ukraine-fan-takeover/
There was a football match in Prague just a few days ago, Ukraine vs. Czech Republic.
Guess who was “home” – on that Prague stadium 🙂
Just a sign of the times. Powers that be decided to exchange Czechs for the Ukrainians, in Bohemia, and everything seems to be going great!
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9 – 11
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How The World Got in This Mess –
Christopher Bollyn
Expert on Middle East, Who Did 9-11 & Why
https://rumble.com/v55jsgn-how-the-world-got-in-this-mess-christopher-bollyn-expert-on-middle-east-who.html Videos that Matter
1.18K followers
”
“If you have ever wanted to know about the 911 false flag attack that sealed the coup d’eta started with the assasination of President Kennedy this is the man to learn from. Christopher Bollyn . He came to our San Diego 911 Truth events a few times and stayed in my guest room, I took him snorkeling. He is the real deal a very brave and honest Patriot who spoke Truth to power.
He is the total expert on the Middle East, and all it’s leaders and feuds, and history and was assigned to investigate the 911 attack. He was in New York that day. Listen to him well, for he explains the War On Terror and how we got to this point in History… This is the foundation of it all:
I have not heard from him since the Plandemic. His wife is from Sweden I imagine he is laying low right now.
July 26, 2016
The 9/11 Studies Club hosted guest speaker Christopher Bollyn at Portland Community College where he discussed the predicament Americans face with a two-party system in which both try to out-do each other to show support for the massive fraud known as the War on Terror.Bollyn, author of “Solving 9/11: The Deception that Changed the World”, traveled through the Middle East and studied the region’s history and languages before earning a degree from the University of California at Santa Cruz with an emphasis on the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Having worked as an independent investigative journalist from 2000-2006, Bollyn spent a great deal of time investigating the events of 9/11. In 2007, after having been attacked by undercover police at his home and forced into exile, he began writing “Solving 9-11”, which is dedicated to explaining what really happened and bringing the events of 9-11 into historical perspective.
Christopher Bollyn’s third live speaking engagement in Oregon, which took place on July 16th at Portland Community College’s Sylvania campus.
Share widely so people understand this important foundation that started with killing President Kennedy and how 911 was used to clinch all power all government taken over. Listen to his information on the attack of our U.S.S. Liberty.
Everytime I listen to this over the years I learn more. He is a walking history book.
Bollyn Rocks!
I pray he and his family are safe.
”
This is a link to the Question & Answer session after this talk on Youtube: https://youtu.be/vckW_YKfO2U?si=l5s3zylJWQpJHuqP