Yesterday U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon ordered Ryan Wesley Routh to go on trial on November 18 for the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump. Today, however, federal prosecutors requested an indefinite delay in scheduling the trial, due to the massive complexity of the case.
In other news, the EU is being hindered by “whiteness”, according to a report by the European Council on Foreign Relations.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to Daniel Greenfield, LP, Mark H, MM, Reader from Chicago, Roger, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.
Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.
Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. I check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.
The Czech government’s contentious pension reform proposal, which includes raising the retirement age in line with increasing life expectancy, sparked intense debate in the Chamber of Deputies on Wednesday.
As anticipated, the opposition launched a fierce attack on Prime Minister Petr Fiala’s coalition government, criticizing the reform as unjust and unsustainable. The session, expected to extend into the night, saw lengthy obstructionist speeches from opposition leaders, reports news outlet Echo24.
ANO leader and former prime minister Andrej Babis fiercely condemned the Fiala government in a three-hour address, accusing it of being “incompetent, arrogant, and antisocial.” Babis vowed that if his ANO movement regained power — a strong possibility given his party’s recent electoral success — he would cap the retirement age at 65.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Slovak Cabinet Approves Web-Based Price Comparison Tool to Combat Food Inflation
The cabinet of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has approved a proposal to create a web-based price comparison platform aimed at helping consumers find the best deals on food and other essential items.
The initiative, which mirrors a similar system in Hungary, is part of the government’s ongoing effort to address food price inflation, a major issue during last year’s election campaign.
Slovakia’s finance ministry estimates the project will cost €168,000 to build, with an additional €16,800 per year allocated for maintenance, news outlet Dennik N reports. The government plans for the website to be operational by July next year.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
“A Post-Apocalyptic Scene”: North Carolina Communities ‘Wiped Off the Map’ by Helene, Governor Says
Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours)
The governor of North Carolina said that “hundreds of roads” were destroyed and that entire communities were “wiped off the map” because of storm Helene last week and over the weekend.
“Consider the roads closed in western North Carolina,” North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper told CNN on Sept. 30. “We do not need sightseers coming in to observe the damage. We ask you not to come in unless you are on a specific mission to help with rescue.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Bank of America Hit With Outage, Some Customer Accounts Show Zero
Bank of America was hit with an outage on Wednesday afternoon that left some customer accounts showing a balance of zero.
The issue began around 12:47 pm, according to Downdetector, which monitors tech disruptions.
One user on X reported their account balances were showing $0, but a phone call to BofA’s automated phone lines were delivering the correct balances.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Biden-Harris Admin Offers $750 Each to Victims Devastated by Hurricane Helene
The Biden-Harris administration announced on Wednesday that $750 would be distributed to residents in states ravaged by Hurricane Helene. The federal assistance will be provided through FEMA, and those who need immediate relief can apply for financial aid at their earliest convenience. Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, made the announcement during a visit to Augusta, Georgia, a city that sustained catastrophic damage from the hurricane.
Harris commended Georgia Governor Brian Kemp for his efforts to assist residents who were most severely affected by the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, which wreaked havoc on the southeast — cracking holes in roads, blowing rooftops off of homes, and downing power lines leaving residents unable to communicate.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Biden Says He Would Not Support an Attack by Israel Against Iran’s Nuclear Sites
President Joe Biden said Wednesday that, “no,” he does not support an attack by Israel on Iran’s nuclear sites in retaliation for Tuesdays’ missile attack by Iran on Israel.
“We’ll be discussing with the Israelis what they’re going to do. All seven of us agree that they have a right to respond but respond in course,” Biden told reporters at Andrews Air Force Base, MD.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
California Gov. Newsom Signs Bill Authorizing Cannabis Cafes
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, signed a bill on Tuesday that authorizes Dutch-style cannabis cafes in the state.
Under the law that will go into effect on January 1, 2025, businesses that are currently licensed to sell cannabis in the state can serve hot food and non-alcoholic beverages too.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Entertainer Sean “Diddy” Combs was once given the key to New York City by its embattled mayor, Eric Adams. But Diddy must be wondering now if he’ll ever see the key to his house again as his legal problems aren’t just growing but escalating to the heights of Mount Everest. On Tuesday, Combs was hit with the news that 120 new alleged victims have accused him of sex abuse over a 25 year period. Many of them are children, one as young as nine, who said he was drugged and sexually assaulted, the Daily Mail reported.
In response to the allegations, Elon Musk questioned “How many people in music & entertainment knew about this?”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Elon Musk Makes Starlink Free in All Areas Affected by Hurricane Helene to Aid Recovery Efforts
Tech billionaire Elon Musk announced Tuesday that Starlink internet would be made available in all areas impacted by Hurricane Helene, which will be free of charge for all residents to use. The SpaceX and Tesla owner wrote on his social media platform X that he hopes to have the internet service up and running by Wednesday.
“We are making a system update to allow all Starlinks in the affected areas to work, regardless of payment,” Musk said. “Software update hopefully completed tonight. Tomorrow at the latest.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Federal Judge Rules Deepfakes Are Protected Under First Amendment in Blow to California Law
A federal judge on Wednesday granted a preliminary injunction against a California law that banned deepfakes, saying parody videos are protected under the First Amendment.
California’s Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the ban on deepfakes last month, in an attempt to crackdown on the spread of misinformation heading into the 2024 election season. But Chris Kohls, known as “Mr Reagan” on X, sued the state in order to block the law, claiming he was protected under the First Amendment because his video was a parody.
Kohls had posted an AI-generated video of Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign ad on X in July, altering Harris’s voice and calling her a “diversity hire,” which was shared by X owner Elon Musk.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Federal Prosecutors Urge Indefinite Delay in Second Trump Assassination Attempt Case
Federal prosecutors on Wednesday requested the trial of former President Donald Trump’s suspected shooter Ryan Wesley Routh be indefinitely delayed, because of a massive amount of evidence they’ve uncovered in the past two weeks.
Routh allegedly attempted to assassinate Trump last month at his resort in Florida, but the plot was foiled by Secret Service agents. Routh has been charged with attempted assassination, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, and assaulting a federal officer. He has pleaded not guilty.
The prosecutors argued in a court filing on Wednesday that new details in the case have emerged, which have resulted in more than 100 outstanding subpoena returns, thousands of videos to review, and the seizure of multiple electronic devices.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A federal civil rights complaint has been filed against the University of Washingtonfor allowing antisemitism to “run rampant” on campus. The complaint was filed by the Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law on behalf of UW Jewish students.
According to the complaint, obtained by The Ari Hoffman Show on Talk Radio 570 KVI, “Jewish students at the University of Washington (“UW” or “the University”) have been subjected to severe and persistent harassment and discrimination based on their shared ancestry and ethnicity, which has created a hostile environment on campus. Jewish students have been threatened with physical harm, excluded and forced out of areas on campus they are entitled to access, and unable to attend class. Vandals have repeatedly covered the campus with anti-Semitic graffiti calling for violence against Zionists.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Feds Charge Five Michigan College Graduates From China Found Near Military Site
Federal prosecutors charged five University of Michigan graduates from China with several crimes on Tuesday night, after they were allegedly discovered at a military facility in northern Michigan last year.
The graduates were caught with cameras at the facility during a joint training exercise between U.S. national guardsmen and members of the Taiwanese military in August of 2023, according to the Detroit News.
The indictment comes amid increased scrutiny regarding national security threats and a series of incidents regarding Chinese nationals trespassing on U.S. military grounds.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
FEMA’s DEI Crippled Hurricane Helene Response
“I don’t know that anybody could be fully prepared for the amount of flooding and landslides that they are experiencing right now,” FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell protested to CBS News.
The ravages of Hurricane Helene had left parts of Asheville, North Carolina underwater, but it wasn’t just the homes and roads that were underwater, but FEMA’s botched response.
Criswell, who had been appointed to head FEMA by the Biden-Harris administration as a reward for coordinating New York City’s horrendously botched response to the pandemic, posed in a starched FEMA blouse and gold necklace on a morning show even as private volunteers were once again having to step in because the Federal Emergency Management Agency had failed.
FEMA was unprepared for the flooding because under Criswell, a DEI hire whose resume included being “the first woman commissioner of New York City Emergency Management”, the agency had shifted from disaster management to DEI disasters.
| — Hat tip: Daniel Greenfield | [Return to headlines] |
George Soros’ Media Matters Moves to Buy Alex Jones’ InfoWars Amid Forced Sell-Off
The George Soros-funded leftist propaganda outlet Media Matters is reportedly moving to buy Alex Jones’s InfoWars.
The courts recently ordered a forced sell-off of InfoWars to pay off huge legal debts after Jones and his outlet were thrashed with waves of lawsuits.
A Texas judge ruled the outlet could be liquidated to pay the families of the victims of the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Texas and Connecticut courts ruled that Jones must pay the families $1.5 billion in damages for reporting on theories that the shooting was staged.
Last week, a judge in Houston ruled that Free Speech Systems, the parent company of InfoWars, could be liquidated and put up for auction to help pay the judgment.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Jack Smith Argues Trump Isn’t Immune to Charges in DC Election Case
Special counsel Jack Smith on Wednesday submitted a new filing in his DC election case against former President Donald Trump, arguing that he is not immune from prosecution in light of the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on presidential immunity.
Smith originally charged Trump with four counts related to his efforts to challenge the 2020 presidential election. Trump had argued he was immune form prosecution due to presidential immunity. The Supreme Court, earlier this year, found that the president enjoys immunity for constitutional acts and presumptive immunity for official acts. Smith subsequently filed a revised indictment and has asked the court to determine that Trump’s alleged conduct does not fall within the scope of presidential immunity.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Vice President Kamala Harris’s husband assaulted his ex-girlfriend, three friends have told Dailymail.com.
The Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, 59, allegedly struck the woman in the face so hard she spun around, while waiting in a valet line late at night after a May 2012 Cannes Film Festival event in France.
One of her friends told DailyMail.com that the woman called him immediately after the incident, sobbing in her cab, and described the alleged assault.
DailyMail.com is not naming the woman, who is a successful New York attorney, but will refer to her by the pseudonym ‘Jane’.
A second friend said Jane, who had been dating Emhoff for three months, also told her about the alleged violence at the time.
A third friend told DailyMail.com that Jane first told her in 2014 that she had dated Emhoff, and recounted the full story of his alleged abuse in 2018, when then senator Harris was in the news after grilling Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh in a Senate hearing over sexual assault allegations.
The friends, who all asked not to be named for fear of retaliation by Emhoff, shared with DailyMail.com pictures of him and Jane together from 2012, and other documents and communications corroborating elements of the story.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
LAPD: Parents Turn in Their Kids for Flash Mob Robberies at 7-Eleven Stores
Parents of some unruly teens accused of flash mob robberies against several Los Angeles-area convenience stores have turned them into police, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
At least three parents have turned their children in to police, the Los Angeles Times reports. The series of robberies occurred over the summer, and surveillance footage shared by police shows groups of young men biking to the stores, forcing their way in and wreaking havoc once inside.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Majority of NY Times Columnists Agree JD Vance Won Debate: ‘Much More Forceful Speaker’
A majority of the 13 columnists and contributors polled by The New York Times agreed that Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, won the vice presidential debate against Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on Tuesday night.
Multiple New York Times columnists, including Binyamin Appelbaum, said Vance was overall effective in his presentation on the debate stage. Seven of the columnists and contributors said Vance defeated Walz, with two saying that the faceoff was a draw and three writers concluding that Walz won.
“He made Trumpism sound polite, calm and coherent,” Appelbaum said of Vance.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Man Killed in Renton Stabbing, Suspect Released 27 Hours After Arrest
RENTON, Wash. — A 19-year-old man accused of stabbing a Renton handyman to death on Friday was released from jail just 27 hours after his arrest on $50,000 bail.
Now, the victim’s friends and neighbors are speaking out about his death.
Michael Gray lived with his roommates in a single-story home across the street from the duplex where he was killed.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
New Documentary Features Never-Before-Seen Footage of Butler, PA Trump Assassination Attempt
Tucker Carlson premiered a new documentary on the first assassination attempt against Donald Trump. The never-before-seen footage comes from a two-man documentary film crew that was embedded with the Trump presidential campaign and was in Butler, PA, on that fateful day in July when shots rang out. The former president was hit in the ear, though he could have been shot through the head if he hadn’t turned for a second to look at a screen showing facts and figures about illegal immigration. One man was killed while shielding his family from gunfire, two others were injured and hospitalized.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘Our Future is at Stake’: Over 200 Retired Military Leaders Endorse Trump
Flag Officers 4 America, a group comprised of more than 200 retired admirals and generals, has endorsed former President Donald Trump for reelection in a signed letter Monday stating that Trump is a “proven leader who will secure our border, repulse our adversaries, revitalize our economy and keep America safe and strong.”
“Today our Nation has never been more divided as the cultural war, supported by the Democratic party, divides our citizens into conflicting groups,” they wrote. “Recent evidence is the widespread riots on university campuses with students and faculty supporting terrorist organizations, Hamas and Hezbollah, blatantly flying their flags on American soil and burning our US national flag.” Those endorsing Trump include generals from the US Army, Air Force and Marines and admirals from the US Navy.
“While this divisive domestic strife is dividing our Country, our foreign enemies have been on the march, taking advantage of the political/social disorder in America,” they continued.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Port Workers Strike Results in Violence in Baltimore
The first day of the union dock workers strike was reportedly marred in violence at a port in Baltimore, with a truck driver saying the striking workers broke his vehicle’s windshield and cut his face.
Members of the International Longshoremen’s Association are striking against the United States Maritime Alliance, which is impacting ports on the East and Gulf coasts with pay as a sticking point.
Projections show the strike will cost the U.S. economy as much as $5 million a day, and that consumers will start seeing a shortage of imported goods in the next one or two weeks.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A lawyer representing more than 100 of Sean “Diddy” Combs’s alleged abuse victims has warned that a “ lot of names” of “powerful” individuals are about to be exposed as accomplices in the rap music mogul’s horrific crimes.
During a Tuesday press conference in Houston, Texas, attorney Tony Buzbee revealed that a “long list” of “many powerful people” implicated in Diddy’s crimes will be made public.
“We will expose the enablers who enabled this conduct behind closed doors,” he said.
“We will pursue this matter no matter who the evidence implicates.”
Buzbee is representing 120 victims, 25 of whom were minors.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Prosecutors Request Indefinite Delay in Trial for Trump Assassination Attempt Suspect Ryan Routh
Federal prosecutors requested an indefinite delay Wednesday in scheduling the trial for the man charged in an apparent assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at his Florida golf course last month, citing a massive amount of evidence they’ve gathered in the 17 days since Ryan Routh’s arrest.
In a filing Wednesday afternoon requesting Florida District Judge Aileen Cannon officially designate Routh’s case as “complex,” prosecutors revealed new details about the scope of evidence they’ve amassed as they try to further gain insight into Routh’s actions leading up to his suspected attempt to kill Trump.
“Over the past two weeks, the United States has interviewed hundreds of witnesses,” prosecutors said in the filing. “It has also executed 13 search warrants in Florida, Hawaii, and North Carolina, and seized hundreds of items of evidence, including multiple electronic devices.”
Investigators reportedly have more than 100 outstanding subpoena returns in connection with the investigation, the filing states, and they estimate they have “thousands of videos to review” from the large volume of electronic devices seized thus far.
“All videos, still images, text files, and audio files constitute approximately 4,000 terabytes (4 million gigabytes) of digital review to complete,” the filing says.
| — Hat tip: MM | [Return to headlines] |
Record-Breaking 23-Year-Old Athlete Dies Suddenly: ‘Worst Nightmare’
Record-breaking California college track star Shelby Daniele has tragically died suddenly, according to her family.
The 23-year-old athlete died just months after graduating from California Polytechnic State University with a master’s degree.
Daniele’s devasted sister described her sudden and unexpected death as “my worst nightmare.”
The track and field star broke Cal Poly’s indoor 200m record last year with a time of 24.69 seconds.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
In the US, the Democrats continue with their sustained efforts to pressure major social media platforms, now about a month ahead of the presidential election.
The Twitter Files give some idea about what may be happening behind closed doors (if previous campaigns/elections are any indication), but this is about public pressure. This time, Congressman Adam Schiff’s turn is to “demand action” from companies behind social media.
Meta (Instagram separately), X, Google (and YouTube separately), TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube, and Microsoft are the recipients of a letter Schiff signed along with seven fellow members of the House of Representatives (four of them, like Schiff, California Democrats).
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Ryan Routh Ordered to Go on Trial in November at Fort Pierce Federal Courthouse
FORT PIERCE — The man who pleaded not guilty Monday to charges he attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump while he golfed, will go on trial next month at the federal courthouse in Fort Pierce, a judge ordered Tuesday.
Ryan Wesley Routh is expected to face a jury trial beginning Nov. 18 before U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon at the Alto Lee Adams, Sr. U. S. Courthouse in Fort Pierce, court records show.
Routh, 58, who was indicted Sept. 24 on charges of attempted assassination, is accused of stalking Trump in the days before U.S. Secret Service agents on Sept. 15 prevented him from firing a loaded weapon he left behind when he fled Trump International golf course in West Palm Beach.
| — Hat tip: LP | [Return to headlines] |
Seattle Light Rail See Assaults on Passengers Spike 53%, 80% Against Transit Workers
Passenger assaults and attacks on transit workers have spiked on the light rail in the Greater Seattle area, leaving transit officials confused if crime is up or rather just being more accurately reported. According to the Sound Transit report, passenger assaults have jumped by over 53 percent, while attacks on transit workers has spiked over 80 percent since 2023.
Sound Transit claims the shocking increases are the result of improved crime reporting due to extra security guards in the transit system. In 2023, KOMO Newsreported that hundreds of additional security officers were being assigned to patrol Sound Transit’s system.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Seattle Judge Releases Accused Killer 27 Hours After 65-Year-Old Military Veteran Stabbed to Death
A judge in Washington state released a teen one day after his arrest for allegedly stabbing a 65-year-old veteran to death at a home.
On Friday, the Renton Police Department said 19-year-old K’Shawn Konscience Jimerson called 911 just after 2 p.m. and told the operator he had stabbed someone and would be standing “outside with the knife.” Jimerson also claimed self-defense during the call, police said.
“The 911 caller said that they had stabbed the handyman inside the house,” Susan Hassinger of the Renton police told FOX 13 Seattle.
Witnesses told police they heard arguing and then saw Jimerson with a large butcher knife and covered in blood, FOX 13 reported.
A witness also claimed seeing 65-year-old handyman and veteran Michael Gray bleeding out and yelled for Jimerson to call 911.
When officers arrived at the apartment, they discovered Gray with stab wounds to his side and back.
Officers immediately rendered aid, but Gray died at the home, police said.
Officers also recovered the knife from a sink full of detergent, court records show.
Police said Jimerson remained on the scene and was detained.
When law enforcement officers were asked if they objected to Jimerson’s release, they marked “yes” on a court form, stating, “Jimerson, who is 19, stabbed a 65-year-old man with a large knife during an argument.”
At his first court appearance, 27 hours after his arrest, Judge Michelle Gehlsen initially set bail at $50,000 despite finding probable cause for second-degree murder and the prosecutor asking for $2 million bail.
Police said Jimerson posted bail and has been released.
| — Hat tip: Roger | [Return to headlines] |
In a vice presidential debate that offered a composed and articulate Sen. JD Vance most people thought the frenetic Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN) was the “weirdest” according to a new Daily Mail poll.
In a poll conducted by JL Partners for DailyMail.com, those surveyed said they would rather have Walz babysit their children, join them on a roadtrip or watch their cat. But they also assessed the governor to be the “weirdest” when compared with Vance.
Despite looking intensely nervous with that deer-in-the-headlights stare into the camera and his furtive scrawling of notes every time Vance spoke, some media outlets have attempted to redeem Walz’s performance, including Politico, which praised the governor’s wide and “passionate” eyes. But Vance’s even, composed performance won over a many Independent voters.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Tim Walz Melts Down When Asked About China Lies, Calls Himself a ‘Knucklehead’
Democrat vice presidential nominee Tim Walz struggled when he faced President Donald Trump’s running mate JD Vance during their Tuesday night debate.
While Walz got a free pass from the CBS News moderators on his stolen valor scandal, he was pressed on his most recently exposed lie about China.
As Slay News reported, Walz, Democrat presidential nominee Kamala Harris’s running mate, was caught in yet another lie over his long-held claim that he was in China during the infamous massacre at Tiananmen Square in the summer of 1989.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Trump Campaign Announces $160+ Million Haul in September
The Trump campaign on Wednesday announced that it had raised more than $160 million in September, with 96% of the donations it received being under $200.
“President Trump continues to inspire millions of everyday Americans to join his America First movement and help fuel the campaign with their hard-earned money,” Trump Campaign Senior Advisor Brian Hughes said in a press release.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
US Closes $1.5 Billion Loan to Resurrect Shuttered Michigan Nuclear Power Plant
The world was abuzz two weeks ago when we learned that the notorious Three Mile Island nuclear power plant — site of the worst nuclear accident in U.S. history — would restart to power Microsoft data centers. As we said at the time, that was only the beginning, as the staggering electricity needs of the coming AI revolution — which we dubbed “the next AI trade” earlier in the year, meant that much more nuclear capacity will have to be either built from scratch or reopened.
Sure enough, the US said on Monday that it closed a $1.52 billion loan to resurrect Holtec’s Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan, and a senior Biden administration official said it could take two years to reopen the plant (longer than the company predicted). The Biden administration has called for a tripling of U.S. nuclear power capacity as U.S. power demand surges and worries about climate change mount. The Trump administration, should it take over in November, will be even more aggressive about the coming US nuclear renaissance.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Walsh’s “Am I Racist” Outgrosses Coppola’s Anti-Trump Vanity Project, Cost 40x Less
Authored by Victoria Cook via Headline USA
Daily Wire commentator Matt Walsh released his bitingly comedic documentary, Am I Racist?, in early September to great acclaim, vexxing film critics and industry insiders who see themselves as the exclusive gatekeepers of the silver screen.
The movie’s surprise success—even while facing vicious left-wing attacks—stood in stark contrast with the failure of Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis, a sci-fi political drama with an anti-Trump political subtext that opened over the weekend with neither critical nor audience acclaim—despite its bloated budget, all-star cast and abundance of Hollywood hype.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Why uBlock Origin Lite Vanished From Firefox’s Add-ONS Store
In a development that may concern Firefox users, the developer behind uBlock Origin Lite, Raymond Hill, has decided to withdraw the ad-blocking and privacy extension from the Firefox Add-ons Store. This decision follows a series of disagreements with Mozilla’s store review team, which Hill described as enforcing a “nonsensical and hostile” review process.
The conflict began earlier in September when Mozilla cited each version of uBlock Origin Lite for policy violations, such as data collection and incorporating hard-to-review code. The accusations, Hill argued, were baseless and easy to discredit by anyone with rudimentary JavaScript knowledge. Though Mozilla later acknowledged the oversight and apologized, Hill chose to transition uBlock Origin Lite to a self-hosted format, accessible via GitHub.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Canadian Government Admits Deaths Surged Among COVID-Boosted Citizens
The Canadian government has been forced to admit that death rates surged among citizens who received Covid mRNA “booster” shots.
The damning admission was revealed in previously hidden data that lawmakers compelled that nation’s top federal health agency to hand over.
A parliamentary inquiry ordered the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) to unseal and surrender data for the country’s death rates during the pandemic.
The data revealed that the individuals who received the so-called “boosters” died at far higher rates than unvaccinated individuals during the same period.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘Dream Scenario’ for Poilievre as Conservatives Open Up 20-Point Lead With NDP, Liberals Tied
The latest Nanos Research numbers show Pierre Poilievre and the federal Conservative Party have not only opened up a big lead in ballot support — but Justin Trudeau’s Liberals have fallen into a statistical tie with the NDP.
The latest Nanos ballot tracking puts the Conservative Party at 41.6 per cent, more than 20 points ahead of the Liberal Party, which fell to 21.5 per cent — down four points in four weeks.
The NDP have actually inched ahead of the Liberals at 21.6 per cent.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Trudeau Survives Second Parliamentary Confidence Vote
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has survived a second non-confidence motion in parliament in as many weeks.
The motion, brought by the opposition Conservatives, was aimed at bringing down his minority Liberal government and triggering a federal election.
The motion failed after Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre again fell short in his effort to gain the backing of other political parties in parliament.
Poilievre tabled this second non-confidence motion the day after his last one failed.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
“Guilty”: CJ Hopkins is Officially a “Hate-Speech” Criminal in Germany
Authoired by Cj Hopkins via The Consent Factory
Guilty
So, the Berlin Appellate Court overturned my acquittal today.
I am now, officially, at least according to the New Normal German authorities, a “hate-speech” criminal.
‘m officially a “hate-speech” criminal because I compared New Normal Germany to Nazi Germany, and I challenged the official Covid narrative, and I used the cover art of my book to do it.
The New Normal German authorities didn’t like that, and were determined to punish me for doing that, and to make an example of me, in order to discourage other people from doing that. It took them two tries, but they pulled it off.
The judge in my original trial screwed up and acquitted me, but the Berlin Public Prosecutor’s office didn’t give up. They appealed the verdict — yes, they can do that in Germany — and this morning the Appellate Court overturned the verdict and declared me guilty.
I’ll report on all the ugly details of my day in court in a proper column sometime later this week, when I’ve sufficiently recovered from the hangover I am currently about to start working on.
I’ll also be resurrecting my legal defense fund and telling you about that in my next column, because the only recourse my attorney and I have left at this point is to try to get the German Constitutional Court (i.e., Germany’s supreme court) to hear the case.
In the meantime, I wanted to share my Statement to the Appellate Court. Here it is.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Francesco Giubilei is an Italian editor, columnist, author, and president of the conservative think tank Nazione Futura. Last Saturday, during a far-left pro-Palestinian demonstration, Giubilei, along with politicians such as Guido Crosetto and Liliana Segre, was singled out by New Italian Communist Party demonstrators. The protestors carried placards including his photo and the caption “Zionist agent,” and called for “making their lives miserable.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Commission Questions YouTube, TikTok, and Snapchat Over Recommender Algorithms
The European Commission sent a request for information on the design and operation of recommender systems to YouTube, Snapchat, and TikTok on Wednesday (2 October).
These requests are under the Digital Services Act (DSA), the EU’s landmark content moderation regulation.
The recommender systems, algorithms that suggest content to users, are at the ‘heart’ of systemic risks that platforms suggest to users, a senior Commission official said on Wednesday.
Recommendation algorithms are broadly considered to have possible harms, with digital rights and research organisations pointing to examples ranging from extremism to vaccine disinformation.
The information is meant to both deepen and broaden the Commission’s understanding of these systems, probing, in particular, their underlying structure, and to figure out whether they drive users to harmful content, said the official.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Czech Government Shaken by Departure of Junior Coalition Partner
A series of humiliating electoral defeats and an escalating blame game between members of the Czech government have resulted in its most junior coalition partner leaving. The liberal-progressive Pirate Party is now joining the ranks of the opposition.
The fall of the Pirates is further proof of the populist wave sweeping across European Union member states.
Now only center-right parties remain at the helm of the country, but this minor shift won’t be enough to prevent even more voters backing Andrej Babis’s right-wing populist ANO, which came out on top in every electoral race in the past few months.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Czech Republic’s Response to the Middle East Conflict: A Firm Stance on Israel
As tensions escalate in the Middle East, the Czech Republic has firmly positioned itself in support of Israel, particularly following recent missile attacks by Iran.
On Monday, the Czech Foreign Ministry condemned Iran’s missile strikes on Israel, which reportedly involved nearly 200 missiles. In an interview with Czech Television, Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský described the attack as “an act of aggression” that “must be unequivocally condemned,” affirming Israel’s right to defend itself.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
EU Condemns Iranian Missile Attack on Israel
The European Union has “condemned” Iran’s ballistic missile strike on Israel and called for an immediate ceasefire across the Middle East.
“The dangerous cycle of attacks and retaliation risks spiralling out of control,” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell warned on X after the latest assault on October 1, 2024.
“An immediate ceasefire across the region is essential.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
EU Demands Info From YouTube, Snapchat, TikTok on Content Algorithms
The European Commission requested information on October 2 from YouTube, Snapchat and TikTok on the parameters used by their algorithms to recommend content to users and their role in amplifying the danger posed by so-called “systemic risks”.
The commission asked the platforms to provide detailed information about their role in amplifying certain systemic risks, including those related to the electoral process and civic discourse, users’ mental well-being and the protection of minors.
Requests, made under the Digital Services Act (DSA), “also concern the platforms’ measures to mitigate the potential influence of their recommender systems on the spread of illegal content, such as promoting illegal drugs and hate speech,” the commission said in a statement.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Europe Being Held Back by ‘Whiteness’, Claims Soros-Backed Think Tank
The European Union (EU) is being hindered by “whiteness”, according to a report by the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR).
Despite young people in many European countries, including Germany and France, opting for the populist right in recent elections, the think tank alleged that the preponderance of native European politicians in the EU Parliament could undermine backing from “young people” in the bloc for the globalist political project.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Ex-French President Sarkozy Says Immigration a ‘Problem’, Country Needs to ‘Change Everything’
In the wake of yet another horrific murder allegedly committed in Paris by a foreigner, former President Nicolas Sarkozy declared that France needs to “change everything” in how it handles the “problem” of immigration.
There are growing demands for drastic immigration reforms following the murder of a young female student this month in an affluent neighbourhood of the French capital at the suspected hands of an illegal migrant, who was previously jailed in France for rape, released early from prison, and remained in the country despite having a deportation order.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France: Paris Olympics’ AI Mass-Surveillance System ‘To be Made Permanent’, Media Reports
The AI-powered mass-surveillance system put in place to protect the 2024 Paris Olympics is set to be made a permanent part of France’s security infrastructure, according to French news outlets.
On October 2, interior ministry documents were reported to indicate that the intention is now to expand the formerly temporary system across the country, a move said to have the backing of Prime Minister Michel Barnier.
That was despite the ministry having previously promised the measures would be phased out after the completion of the games.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France: Public Outrage After 17-Year-Old Boxer Stabbed to Death in Normandy
Just a week after the murder of young Philippine in the Bois de Boulogne near Paris, involving a Moroccan migrant facing deportation, another murder has stirred up French public opinion: that of a 17-year-old man, Kilian Binard, who was stabbed to death on Sunday, September 29th in Normandy. This time, the suspect is of Algerian nationality.
According to the initial findings of the investigation, the stabbing occurred in the early hours of Sunday, September 29th, as the young man was leaving a nightclub near Bayeux. The victim, a 17-year-old boxer, became involved in a fight involving around twenty people in the nightclub car park. The suspect allegedly hit Kilian in the back and neck with a knife recovered from his car.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: AfD Representatives Most Likely Targets of Political Violence
More than half of all recorded physical attacks on politicians in Germany have been against those from the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, newly released data shows.
In the first half of 2024, 84 violent attacks were made against German politicians, a sharp rise compared to 2023 when there were 23, according to the German government on October 1 in reply to a question from Martin Hess, a Bundestag MP with the AfD.
AfD politicians were most often targeted in those assaults — 48 times out of the 84 cases, the figures seen by Brussels Signal disclosed.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
German Foreign Minister: Censor Social Media to “Protect Democracy”
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is following in the footsteps of other leftist-liberal politicians who wish to crack down on “disinformation,” i.e., censor free speech on social media in order to “protect democracy.”
On Monday, September 30th, Baerbock called on the European Commission to adopt new rules for dealing with disinformation on social networks. Once again, “disinformation” is being used as the official label for news or views that the European establishment doesn’t want its citizens to see or hear.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Hard-Right Puts French PM Barnier on Notice With Ultimatum
French Prime Minister Michel Barnier has delivered a make-or-break general policy speech, outlining his plans for dealing with a national debt of €3,228 billion, controlling immigration, access to public services and the standard of living of the French. His indication that this could mean tax increases prompted the hard-right National Rally (RN) party to issue a warning to the government.
Following the speech late on October 1, the RN said it was prepared to take action that could lead to the downfall of the government, if necessary.
Marine Le Pen, president of the RN at the French National Assembly, has set three key red lines that, if crossed, could lead to the administration’s collapse — thus in essence making her the country’s kingmaker.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Israel is Attacked for Being Prosperous, Says Director of Hungary’s Center for Fundamental Rights
Israel’s success is behind widespread attacks against the country, according to the head of the influential Hungarian Center for Fundamental Rights.
“The fact that Israel is a prosperous, successful state incites a fit of rage in many people,” said Miklós Szanthó, director general of the Center for Fundamental Rights, during a speech at the center’s conference in Budapest.
Commemorating the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel, Szanthó said Hungary is the safest place for the Jewish community, especially in a world where cancel culture is allowing for a reemergence of anti-Semitism, albeit in a disguised form.
We protect our borders here, they don’t burn Israeli or even Hungarian flags here, we don’t allow woke activists to enter the universities, he stressed.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Letta: Europe is a ‘Financial Colony’ of the US
The United States’ ownership of European citizens’ banking data and domination of global payment systems mean that the European Union is increasingly becoming a “financial colony” of the US, former Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta said on Wednesday (2 October).
Letta, whose recent report on the single market is expected to heavily shape the EU policy debate in the next mandate, also warned that member states’ refusal to relinquish control of their domestic banking sectors to empower a cross-border European market risks exacerbating Europe’s financial subservience vis-à-vis the US.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Anybody who knows anything about Italian football is unlikely to disagree that it is a unique “world treasure” — but also one facing major problems, and for a while.
On the financial side, it’s the inability of the top league, Serie A, to keep up with other European giants in terms of investment, sponsorships, and above all, TV rights money.
How curious then — or let’s say, strange — that the legislative efforts aren’t focusing on fixing these fundamental issues, but are now pressing even harder to supposedly protect Serie A by further clamping down on — piracy?
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has expressed deep concern at “the disproportionately harsh treatment” faced by Julian Assange and said this has had a “dangerous chilling effect” which undermines the protection of journalists and whistleblowers around the world.
Approving a resolution based on a report by Thórhildur Sunna Ævarsdóttir (Iceland, SOC), the Assembly said Mr Assange’s treatment warranted his designation as a “political prisoner” under a definition it agreed in 2012, citing the severe charges brought against him by the United States of America, exposing him to possible life imprisonment, combined with his conviction under the US Espionage Act “for what was — in essence — newsgathering and publishing”.
The Assembly — which brings together parliamentarians from the 46 nations of the Council of Europe — also called on the US to investigate the alleged war crimes and human rights violations disclosed by him and Wikileaks. Its failure to do so, combined with the harsh treatment of Mr Assange and Ms Manning, creates a perception that the US government’s purpose in prosecuting Mr Assange was “to hide the wrongdoing of state agents rather than to protect national security”.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Patriots Announce Legal Battle Against EU Cordon Sanitaire
The Patriots for Europe group has announced that they will wage a new legal battle against the cordon sanitaire in the European Parliament.
Writing on X on October 1, the group said that their case at the European Court of Justice will seek to annul the decision by centrist and left-wing groups to exclude them from all committee chair and vice-chair positions, as well as other senior roles in the parliament.
Coordinated by the European People’s Party, the Socialists and Democrats (S&D), Renew, and a host of smaller left-wing political groups in the EP, the Patriots argue that the exclusion is “in violation [of] several articles of the Rules of Procedure of the Parliament”.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Poles Better Brace Themselves for a Harsh Winter, and We’re Not Talking About the Weather
This heating season will be the first season of truth. It will show us what our expenses look like for heating, water heating, for fuel, Agnieszka Lakoma, a columnist for “Gazeta Bankowa” and commentator on the economy told wPolsce24.
Lakoma, who specializes in energy, fuel and gas, did not bring good news.
“It looks like we will be paying more (for electricity) this season,” she said. Almost 20 percent more, to be exact, and next year will be even more expensive.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Polish Far-Right Party Gets Poll Boost After Floods
The latest poll shows that Poland’s far-right Confederation Party has gained the most support among the parliamentary parties following the floods that struck the country’s southern regions.
Poland was the largest country to be affected by the torrential rains and devastating floods in recent weeks. Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s government seeks EU support to deal with the losses and rebuild damaged infrastructure.
However, it is not Tusk’s Civic Platform (PO, EPP) or any other party in the ruling coalition, but the far-right opposition Confederation party (ESN) that has gained the most in the polls after the floods.
Although the party only came fourth in the latest poll by United Surveys for Wirtualna Polskanews outlet published on Tuesday, it has gained as much as 2.1 points compared to the previous survey and is now supported by 10.5% of the respondents.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Pope Francis Ignites Indignation Among Progressive Catholics in Belgium
During his visit to Belgium, where a large part of the Catholic community defends progressive positions, Pope Francis came up against a wall of hostility to his statements on abortion and on the role of women—especially from institutions that officially display the ‘Catholic’ label, such as the University of Leuven.
On a trip to Belgium, the pontiff visited the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven—the Catholic University of Leuven—which is celebrating its 600th anniversary this year.
The students had prepared a long letter for the pope in the form of a narrative alternating words and music, criticising his encyclical Laudato Si’ on integral ecology. Pope Francis’ emblematic text was accused by the students of making women invisible, and of maintaining “an unfair division of labour in the name of a supposedly ‘natural’ propensity that leads to a sexual division of labour.” The students’ challenge continued with this provocative question: “What place, then, for women in the Church?” In their indictment, the young people on the rostrum demanded that the Church and the pope “change paradigm,” moving towards “integral development” that would take into account “inequalities of class, gender and race.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Shots Fired at Israeli Embassy in Sweden, Explosions Near Embassy in Denmark
Shots were reported to have been fired at the Israeli embassy in Stockholm, Sweden, after Iran launched nearly 200 ballistic missiles into Israel.
Meanwhile police in neighbouring Denmark were said to be investigating the cause of multiple explosions that occurred outside the Israeli embassy in Copenhagen just hours later, although neither incident on October 1 was said to have resulted in casualties.
According to a report in Swedish daily Aftonbladet, the Stockholm shooting was believed to have occurred while the Israeli ambassador was away at a public event, with police confirming they had found evidence the embassy facility itself had been “hit by bullets.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘Some Dutch Police Refuse to Protect Jewish Targets,’ Officers Claim
Officers in the Dutch police force have reportedly been refusing to protect potential Jewish targets amid “moral dilemmas.”
Speaking to Jewish-Dutch weekly Nieuw Israëlisch Weekblad (NIW) on September 29, two veteran police officers now representing the Jewish Police Network, Marcel de Weerd and Michel Theeboom, said they were worried about apparent changes in the corps.
“There are colleagues who no longer want to protect Jewish targets or events. They talk about ‘moral dilemmas’ and I see a tendency emerging to give in to that. That would truly mark the beginning of the end. I’m concerned about that,” Theeboom said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Starmer Wants UK to Put “Brexit Years Behind Us” and Work “In Lockstep” With Brussels
Sir Keir Starmer is in Brussels today for his first bilateral meeting with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen since he became prime minister in July. This official engagement is further evidence of the Labour government’s growing threat to British voters’ 2016 decision to leave the European Union.
Long-time Remainer Starmer, who once fought for the Brexit referendum to be overturned, looks set to agree to a ‘youth mobility scheme’ during upcoming negotiations with Brussels. One migration expert told The European Conservative that such a deal is “literally synonymous with freedom of movement, an institution that the British public steadfastly rejected in 2016.”
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‘There is No Longer Any Trace of the Rule of Law in Poland, ‘ Says Poland’s Opposition Leader
Despite a Polish Supreme Court ruling that the former National Prosecutor was improperly removed from his position, Donald Tusk’s government is simply ignoring the court ruling. The complete breakdown of rule of law in the country has led conservative opposition leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski to note that the only rule that matters is that of Donald Tusk.
“This was a decision of Supreme Court judges, which means there is no longer any trace of the rule of law in Poland. The current will of one man, Donald Tusk, is in force,” said Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the chairman of Law and Justice (PiS).
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Populist leader Nigel Farage unequivocally ruled out any deal with the faltering Tory Party, declaring that his Reform UK party is “here to stay” and is the only viable opposition with a chance to take down the leftist Labour Party government.
While Mr Farage and the previous incarnation of Reform UK, then named the Brexit Party, made an election pact with the Conservatives in the 2019 general election to give Boris Johnson a large majority to “get Brexit done”, no such alliance looks to be on the cards to save the Tories after their disastrous defeat to Keir Starmer’s Labour Party in July.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A mother-of-three was raped ‘again and again until she died’ while she laid unconscious on a park bench, a court has heard.
NHS worker Natalie Shotter, 37, was attacked after apparently falling unconscious during a night out in Southall, West London, jurors were told.
Iidow Mohamed, 35, is accused of taking advantage of her in the early hours of July 17, 2021. He denies rape and manslaughter.
Prosecutor Alison Morgan KC said Ms Shotter’s body was discovered on the bench hours after the attack by a passerby.
‘What had happened to Natalie was not clear,’ she said. ‘She had not been stabbed or beaten to death. There were no signs of significant injury to her body, and no one else was with her.
| — Hat tip: Mark H | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Roast Chickens Turn Up the Heat on Official Regulator, Crashing Government Website
A new law forcing the British owners of one or more chickens (and pigeons and birds of prey) to register each bird individually has met with resistance.
Not everyone thinks the government should be counting their chickens (even after they’ve hatched). It was reported on X, formerly Twitter, that enough scamps have successfully registered their store-bought roast chickens to crash the government website.
While the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) enjoys some support for its anti-bird flu measures, poultry owners are concerned about the excessive bureaucracy the new system now involves (and no doubt also concerned about the threat of fines and even imprisonment for non-compliance).
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Jerusalem Bars ‘Israel-Hating’ UN Secretary-General From Entering Country
Israel’s foreign minister Israel Katz has announced he was barring UN Secretary-General António Guterres from entering the country, citing what he called Guterres’ failure to “unequivocally” condemn Iran’s recent missile attack on Israel.
On October 2, Katz accused Guterres of bias, pointing to what he said was the UN leader’s lack of a strong condemnation of the assault. “Anyone who cannot unequivocally denounce Iran’s heinous attack on Israel has no right to set foot on Israeli soil,” Katz declared.
He further criticised Guterres, calling him “an Israel-hating Secretary-General who supports terrorists.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Russian Forces in Complete Control of Vuhledar in Eastern Ukraine, War Bloggers Say
Russian troops are in complete control of the town of Vuhledar in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, the SHOT Telegram channel and pro-Russian war bloggers said on Wednesday, October 2.
Reuters could not independently confirm those reports. The Russian Defence Ministry has not yet confirmed the town’s capture.
On Tuesday, a regional Ukrainian official said Russian troops had reached the town’s centre, a bastion on strategic high ground that has resisted Russian assaults for more than two years.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Ukraine is Making Life for Its Hungarian Minority Hell
A Ukrainian politician came up with another great, very European-compatible idea. Natalija Pipa, a representative of the Ukrainian legislature, believes that from now on in schools, teachers and students should only speak Ukrainian during breaks, while standing in line at the cafeteria, or even in the restroom. That’s right, they should not be allowed to speak any other language, even in their free time between classes.
Hungarians from Transcarpathia, Poles from Lviv, Romanians from the Chernivtsi area, or even Russians should not even be able to talk to each other in their mother tongue outside of school hours, because it threatens the existence of Ukraine. Mrs. Pipa also drafted a bill for teaching national minorities to speak Ukrainian.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Australia’s Free Speech Crosshairs: Sweeping Anti-Disinformation Bill Draws Fierce Backlash
New legislative proposals in Australia, that those behind them say are aimed at curbing “disinformation,” are rejected by opponents as the biggest yet assault on free opinion and speech in the country.
The biggest such attack, at least “in peacetime” — this is how Institute of Public Affairs Director of Law and Policy John Storey qualified what he sees in this unprecedented effort — but the Australian authorities have been engaged in their “war on disinformation” for a while now.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: Afghan Arrested in Berlin Train Attack Targeting Children
An Afghan migrant was arrested in Berlin on Saturday after initiating a series of assaults against fellow passengers on the city’s public transport.
The incident occurred at around noon on Berlin’s S42 Ringbahn near Innsbrucker Platz in the Schöneberg district.
The Berliner Zeitung reported how a 24-year-old Afghan citizen confronted a man and demanded he stop using his mobile phone.
When the passenger ignored him, the man reportedly spat on him and kicked him. The victim disembarked at Schöneberg train station to avoid further confrontation.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: Naturalizations in Berlin Triple Due to New Laws, Rejections Drop Significantly
Naturalizations in Berlin have surged dramatically in 2024, more than tripling compared to last year, driven by the liberalization of German naturalization laws.
In the first eight months of this year, 28,716 foreign nationals in the city applied for German citizenship. This sharp rise is linked to a nationwide reform of the citizenship law, which now allows naturalization after just five years of residence in Germany, instead of the previous eight. In some cases, foreigners can apply after just three years.
In 2023, there were 18,018 applications across Berlin’s local authority although only 9,041 naturalizations were carried out.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: ‘Unlike Your Daughter, Dear Mr. Özdemir, Our Daughter Will Not Come Home Anymore’
This week, Germany was hit with a surprise column in the prestigious FAZ newspaper by Agricultural Minister Cem Özdemir (Green Party) calling for a rethink on migration policy because his daughter is being sexually harassed by men of migrant origin when she goes out in the city. Now, the father of a teenage girl slaughtered by a migrant on a train in Brokestedt in January 2023 wrote an open letter to Özdemir. The father, Michael Kyrath, notes that although Özdemir may be concerned about the safety of his own child, Kyrath’s daughter is never coming home.
In the powerful open letter, Kyrath notes that 300 children have lost their lives due to Germany’s open border policy.
Özdemir’s daughter is set to graduate high school this year and will be around the same age as Kyrath’s daughter, Ann-Marie Kyrath, when she was brutally murdered by an asylum seeker with multiple convictions, including violent offenses. Although his asylum request was rejected, he was never deported.
In addition, her 19-year-old boyfriend, Danny, was viciously stabbed to death as well. Multiple people were injured. In total, there were 38 stab wounds on the two main victims. The two, a young couple, died in shock and agony.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Nantucket’s Migrant Crisis Handling Called Out After Quiet Island Rocked by Wave of Violent Attacks
After U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested several illegal immigrants on Nantucket for alleged sex crimes, a local GOP chair is urging more vetting as migrant violence infiltrates Massachusetts’ wealthy liberal enclaves.
ICE has arrested at least eight people, including a member of the violent gang MS-13, on the islands of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard since August on various criminal charges.
Toby Brown, chair of the Nantucket GOP and a Nantucket resident for three decades, was among the few on the island who would openly voice concerns about illegal immigration in the wake of the arrests.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Sweden Democrats Call for ‘Free Movement Ban’ in the EU for Migrant Criminals
MEP Charlie Weimers, the leader of the Sweden Democrats’ (ECR) European Parliamentary delegation, submitted a motion for resolution on Monday, September 30th, calling for an EU framework to combat cross-border organized crime by allowing member states to impose travel bans on convicted offenders within the Schengen zone and thereby protecting the integrity of the EU’s free movement area.
Specifically, the document calls on the European Commission to introduce an “individual ban on the freedom of movement (IBFM) framework” that would be applicable to career criminals, repeat offenders, and “anyone aiding or assisting organized crime gangs.”
In practice, the framework would empower member states to prohibit entry for criminals based on certain criteria, and in some cases (such as repeat offenders of members of known organized crime groups) even to issue “lifelong entry bans.”
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Sweden Could Soon Have 1 Million Illiterates, Largely Due to Mass Immigration
The number of people who are illiterate in Sweden is expected to exceed 800,000 in winter of this year, with researchers expecting the number to soon reach 1 million, in large part due to mass immigration.
The most recent survey by Statistics Sweden shows there are currently around 780,000 people between the ages of 16 and 65 who are illiterate in Sweden, but this number is soaring.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Vance Follows Through on Debate Pledge to Post Evidence of Illegal Immigration Raising Housing Costs
Ohio Sen. JD Vance, the GOP vice presidential nominee, argued during the debate on Tuesday night that the massive influx of illegal immigrants is contributing to rising housing costs and when challenged by one of the CBS News moderators to identify his source, Vance pledged to post it to social media.
After the debate, Vance followed through on his promise and posted remarks from Michelle Bowman of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors as well as two studies.
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Colorado to Pay Web Designer’s Legal Fees After Losing LGBTQ Anti-Bias Law Case
Sept 30 (Reuters) — The state of Colorado has agreed to pay more than $1.5 million in legal fees to a web designer who won a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last year that the right to free speech allows some businesses to refuse to provide services for same-sex weddings.
Colorado and web designer Lorie Smith’s lawyers at conservative law firm Alliance Defending Freedom disclosed the accord in a court filing last week.
A state board approved the amount, which was less than the nearly $2 million that Smith had originally sought after her free speech win at the high court. The justices in June 2023 ruled 6-3 in favor of Smith, who cited her Christian beliefs in challenging a state anti-discrimination law.
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Parents Defending Education, a parental rights advocacy group, is preparing to file an investigation request with the federal government, requesting that the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission investigate a California school district for alleged employment discrimination through its race-based DEI hiring practices, citing civil rights violations.
The group states in the request that the La Honda-Pescadero Unified School District has updated its equity policy, which includes race-based recruiting practices such as meeting diversity quotas for new hires and faculty retention. The policy, the group said, violates Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, gender, or national origin.
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The University of Wyoming women’s volleyball team announced on Tuesday that it would be forfeiting its upcoming match against San Jose State University’s women’s team, which has a trans-identified male athlete on it. It is the third college to do so due to San Jose State’s trans-identified male player Blaire Fleming.
San Jose State is currently 10-0 with their next game scheduled for October 3 against Colorado State. The game against the University of Wyoming was set to take place on October 5.
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A Virginia school board agreed Monday to pay $575,000 in damages and attorneys fees to a former high school teacher it fired because he refused to refer to a transgender student with the pronouns the pupil requested, UPI reported.
West Point School Board has not only agreed to the financial settlement and to remove any record of Peter Vlaming’s firing but also to change its policies to conform to the new Virginia education policies of Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) that protect free speech and parental rights, according to the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), which filed the lawsuit on Vlaming’s behalf.
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“Czech Republic’s Response to the Middle East Conflict: A Firm Stance on Israel – As tensions escalate in the Middle East, the Czech Republic has firmly positioned itself in support of Israel”
This is not as good for Israel as Israelis might like, because the foreign minister who’d done this, Jan Lipavsky, is a young narcissistic child, never elected, he became foreign minister for the Pirate Party, which just had been kicked out of the government – yet this guy – this “caricature” immediately left his party that put him there, and stays as a foreign minister of the Czech Republic – now without a party.
I know that this might not make sense to Americans, or other westerners, but that’s how “we roll”, in the Protektorat.
The matter of fact is – Jan Lipavsky is extremely unpopular, never elected yet keeps his high government seat even though the moral thing would be to leave the government with his own party… Which he didn’t…
…So
this is the guy who – in the name of the Czech Republic – “firmly stands behind Israel”.
Now don’t take me wrong, Czechs do support Israel.
But when it’s the most unpopular idiot in decades who does this in “our name”…
…I would not call this a good sign for Israel. On the contrary. It is ominous.