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“Multiple People Shot at Memphis, Tenn. Shopping Mall, Police Say” Breaking911 – December 26, 2017
http://breaking911.com/breaking-multiple-people-shot-memphis-tenn-shopping-mall-police-say/
Prince Harry interviews Barack Obama on Radio 4: Ex-President warns social media is ‘corroding civil discourse’
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/12/27/prince-harry-interviewsbarack-obama-radio-4-ex-presidentwarns/
A Demagogic Bully
The Southern Poverty Law Center demonizes respectable political opponents as “hate groups”—and keeps its coffers bulging.
https://www.city-journal.org/html/demagogic-bully-15370.html
Caution; do not know if source site is reliable. Still, the fact that this is trending is news in and of itself:
The politically correct insanity of Britain reached a new level this week. It was revealed that British Army Chiefs had decided to drop the historic slogan ‘Be the Best.’ Apparently, the reason was that the slogan is not inclusive enough, and after a survey was conducted, the Ministry of Defence decided to drop the phrase.
https://altright.com/2017/12/26/british-army-drops-historic-motto-over-pc-concerns/
It was Xanthippa.
“Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson dramatically intervened last night after The Mail on Sunday revealed that the British Army was ‘wasting’ millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money to scrap its famous ‘Be the Best’ motto – because top brass say it is elitist.”
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5209215/Army-ditch-Best-slogan-say-elitist.html
“Preferential Identities” is elitist. It excludes normal people.
“Be the best,” is not elitist. It includes normal people. It just so happens that normal people perform the best.
Question: was Washington Post heir suicided, or is there another explanation?
Saw many articles, do not know what to make of any of them…
Hi Eeyore and readers of Vladtepesblog,
4 Countries Now Moving Embassies To Jerusalem
https://www.frontpagemag.com/point/268844/4-countries-now-moving-embassies-jerusalem-daniel-greenfield
Thank You.
Hi Eeyore and readers of Vladtepesblog,
Daniel Greenfield: Identity politics works until you run out of other people…….
http://tundratabloids.com/2017/12/141278/
Thank You.
Nearly 450,000 People Fled These Three Deep Blue States In 2017
Photo of Will Racke
Will Racke
Three Democratic-leaning states hemorrhaged hundreds of thousands of people in 2016 and 2017 as crime, high taxes and, in some cases, crummy weather had residents seeking greener pastures elsewhere.
The exodus of residents was most pronounced in New York, which saw about 190,000 people leave the state between July 1, 2016 and July 1, 2017, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released last week.
New York’s domestic out-migration during that time period was about the same as it was in the same time 2015 and 2016. Since 2010, the state’s outflow of just over 1 million residents has exceeded that of every other state, both in absolute terms and as a share of population, according to the free-market think tank Empire Center.
http://dailycaller.com/2017/12/26/nearly-450000-people-fled-these-three-deep-blue-states-in-2017/
All three are high tax states, this year is the last year that all of their state income tax can be written off as a Federal Tax deduction. The Dems sceamed like stuck pigs about this but why should the low tax states be charged more money to pay for the high tax states?
Part of the flight were the very rich moving to low tax states. The rest were people hunting jobs moving to business friendly states. The states that are gaining people and businesses have low personal tax rates and are right to work states. This means that you don’t have to join a union to get a job. The Unions were needed in some cases vitally needed when they came in but they have gained too much power. The rust belt states are the result of this Union power, the rust belt states need to become right to work states but they are Dem controlled states and a very large percentage of the Dems money comes from the Unions, right now mainly Government Employees Unions. The politicians and Union bosses failed Economics 101, if the company can’t make a profit it goes out of business.
Richard: Combine this story with the story of the geneticists who injected a crisper virus into his body to grow more muscle. Now you are looking at the future, Husley’s Brave New World is just around the corner,
Genetically engineered ‘super-horses’ to be born in 2019 and could soon compete in Olympics
Genetically engineered horses designed to be faster, stronger and better jumpers will be born in 2019 after a breakthrough by the same laboratory which clones polo ponies.
Scientists in Argentina successfully used a powerful DNA editing technique called Crispr to rewrite the genomes of cloned horses.
Healthy embryos were produced following the procedure, which the researchers plan to implant into a surrogate mother within two years.
The team focussed on boosting the myostatin gene sequence which is crucial to muscle development, endurance and speed.
Theoretically, animals designed in such a way should be able to run faster, for longer, and jump higher more easily.
Traditionally the same traits would be achieved by breeding animals which already exhibited desirable features. But it can take many generations to develop a beneficial trait.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2017/12/26/genetically-engineered-super-horses-born-2019-could-soon-compete/
Richard: A Republican is President so the propaganda media has once again discovered the homeless. My question is how many of the homeless in this article and video are illegal aliens who are in California because of Moon Beam Brown making California a Sanctuary State?
Welcome to Skid Row 2017: Shocking scale of homelessness in downtown LA is exposed in footage showing sidewalks lined with dozens of tents in deprived area where 20,000 people live on the streets
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5214593/Christmas-Day-2017-Downtown-Los-Angeles.html#ixzz52TF78fj3
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
Rubbish bags piled up by the pavements and littered across streets.
Tents erected in clusters where people have camped down for the night.
Dozens of directionless residents congregating by the roadside and wandering into the road.
This is what Christmas Day looked like for thousands of homeless people in the dark and dingy underbelly of Downtown Los Angeles this year.
The shocking footage – captured using a car dash camera – shows the brutal reality of life on the street for some 20,000 people in the notorious Skid Row district.
Shot on 5th Street, 6th Street and San Pedro Street, it is a stark glimpse into the day-to-day existence of some of the country’s poorest citizens – including women and children.
This area of LA’s central business zone is considered to be one of the most dangerous places to live in the city.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5214593/Christmas-Day-2017-Downtown-Los-Angeles.html#ixzz52TFzNdsb
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
Richard: Reminds you of the pictures of the Islamic areas in Paris doesn’t it?
Federal workers poised to overtake salaries of senators, DC gets highest pay raise
The top paychecks of federal workers are set to grow again next year to a six-figure number that rivals the $174,000 salaries of America’s 535 House and Senate members.
Under a new federal order, salaries for most bureaucrats in the General Service will rise next year when the cap on top pay hits $164,000.
And for the upper reaches of the government, senior executive service employees will be allowed to earn a maximum of $189,600.
The Washington area, where the bulk of federal workers are employed, will get the biggest pay raise under the order signed by President Trump before Christmas. There, the increase for General Service workers will be 2.29 percent.
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/federal-workers-poised-to-overtake-salaries-of-senators-dc-gets-highest-pay-raise/article/2644368
Russia Plans National Biometric Database Starting Next Year
By Jake Rudnitsky
December 26, 2017, 7:42 AM CST
Upper house of parliament approves law allowing system
Russian state-owned firms lead push for biometric technology
Russia will get a country-wide biometric database for financial services starting next summer, the central bank said.
The system will expand access to banking by letting people open accounts without having to visit a branch and is a key milestone in digitizing financial services, the Bank of Russia said in a statement. The regulator said that data would only be stored with individuals’ consent. Legal changes needed for the system passed this month.
State-owned Rostelecom PJSC has been selected to run the database, which will collect personal data including images of faces, voice samples and, eventually, irises and fingerprints. Facial-recognition technology has been gaining consumer acceptance around the world, with Apple Inc.’s latest iPhone using it to unlock the device. In Russia, the authorities and government-linked companies are leading the charge.
Moscow claims it has the largest centralized surveillance network in the world, a
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-12-26/russia-plans-national-biometric-database-starting-next-year
Kremlin seeks investigation of vote boycott called by Putin opponent
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Hundreds of Russian celebrities, sportspeople and politicians nominated President Vladimir Putin for re-election on Tuesday, hours after the Kremlin said it wanted opposition leader Alexei Navalny investigated for calling for a boycott of the vote.
Navalny called for the boycott of the March 18 election on Monday after Russia’s central election commission ruled he was not eligible to run for president due to a suspended prison sentence hanging over him.
The 41-year-old lawyer, who says he’s being excluded on false grounds because the Kremlin is running scared, said he would use his campaign headquarters across the country to call the election’s legitimacy into question and organize protests.
The Kremlin, which points to polls that show Putin is the runaway favorite with Navalny trailing far behind, on Tuesday set the scene for possible police action against Navalny and his supporters whose protests have been broken up before.
“The calls for a boycott will require scrupulous study, to see whether or not they comply with the law,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call.
https://ca.news.yahoo.com/kremlin-seeks-investigation-vote-boycott-called-putin-opponent-163550565.html
Twenty-eight arrests after Venezuela looting, violence
PUERTO ORDAZ, Venezuela (Reuters) – Venezuelan authorities said on Tuesday they had arrested 28 people in southern Bolivar state for looting and disorder over Christmas in the latest unrest during a severe economic crisis.
There have been scattered protests and roadblocks around the South American OPEC nation in recent days over food shortages, power-cuts, high prices and fuel rationing.
Local chamber of commerce head Florenzo Schettino told Reuters 10 businesses – mostly liquor stores – were looted as dark fell on Christmas Day in Bolivar, which has seen unrest at various points over the last four years of brutal recession.
In the western Andean states, police and soldiers were guarding gas stations, where there were large lines and customers were only allowed to fill up 35 litres per vehicle.
“We’re wasting so much time … The government is testing people’s patience,” said bus driver Pedro Pina, waiting for hours to buy fuel in Barinas state.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/twenty-eight-arrests-venezuela-looting-violence-203546562.html
Russia Offering to Mediate Talks Between U.S., N. Korea as Regime Prepares Satellite Launch
December 26, 2017
OAN Newsroom
North Korea is reportedly preparing to launch a satellite into space amid growing fears the rogue regime may begin using the launches as a way to disguise its missile tests.
http://www.oann.com/russia-offering-to-mediate-talks-between-u-s-n-korea-as-regime-prepares-satellite-launch/
‘Let the West Burn’: Norway Reveals Radicalization in ‘Quran Schools’ Abroad (sputniknews, Dec 27, 2017)
https://sputniknews.com/europe/201712271060344879-norway-somalia-quran-school/
“The Norwegian police have raised concerns about the ongoing radicalization process in so-called ‘Quran schools’ in Somalia, where kids from immigrant families residing in the Nordic country are sent, often against their will, by parents to avoid being “westernized.”
Police in Oslo have held talks with returning youngsters because of radicalization concerns over their stay at Quran schools abroad. Previously, youths with Somali backgrounds reported the widespread use of violence and abuse, including lashings and other methods of torture, they experienced during their educational trips to their “home country.”
Somali-Norwegian “Omar” told national broadcaster NRK about a school in Mogadishu, Somalia, where he, in addition to extensive violence, was subjected to brainwashing in an Islamist direction. Among other things, he told of an evening prayer they had to repeat every night.
“Let the West burn. Let it go to hell. Let God take the money from the West and give it to us,” “Omar” recalled.
After numerous reports on the harsh conditions that Norwegian youth are exposed to inside the Quran schools in Somalia, the Ministry of Justice and Public Security asked the Norwegian police to present an overview of the situation. The Police Directorate summarized their findings in a report, which among other things, addressed the risk of radicalization.
“When you have schools where students are deprived of mobile phones and passports, as well as contact with the outside world, I think it’s much easier to involve these young people in the radicalization process,” Janne Birgitta Stømner of the new prevention unit at the Oslo police told NRK. “We have held some clarification talks with young people who have returned to check whether they have been radicalized,” she added.
One of the reasons why especially boys are being sent to Quran schools is parents’ concern that they have been involved in crime in Norway. Such corrective methods, however, have little to no deterring effect, the police reported.
“For those who have been sent away because they have committed a crime, there has been no positive effect, at least judging by the few examples we have seen. Our experience is that they continue on the criminal path when they return home, they strive after the environment they knew from before,” Janne Birgitta Stømner said.
Researcher and sociologist Inger Marie Holm of the University of Tromsø, who wrote a doctoral thesis on Somalis in Norway, argued that many Somali parents share the opinion that there is too little discipline in Norwegian schools, which they claim to undermine kids’ respect for both teachers and relatives.
“It may seem that parents sending their kids abroad are desperate. It also seems that they are not fully informed about the schools’ ways and proceedings,” Inger Marie Holm told NRK.
So far, however, only three youths have undergone preemptive interviews, and the police decided not to carry on with their cases.
The brutal pedagogical habits of the Somali Quran schools previously triggered national concern in Norway, with Prime Minister Erna Solberg arguing it was illegal for the parents to subject their offspring to this sort of treatment.
Children’s Ombudsperson Anne Lindboe argued that it was “no surprise” that children are being sent to schools abroad, where physical and psychological violence is not uncommon, calling for tighter measures, including revoking at-risk children’s passports.
Norway is home to over 40,000 Somalis, who constitute one of the largest population groups of non-European origin in the Nordic country of 5.2 million.”
German authorities target Islamist women’s network (DW, Dec 27, 2017)
http://www.dw.com/en/german-authorities-target-islamist-womens-network/a-41939883?
“Germany’s domestic security agency has identified a terror network made up of Islamist women. Female extremists are becoming increasingly common, as they aim to fill the gap left by their detained husbands.
German intelligence services said on Tuesday that they had identified an Islamist terror network made up of around 40 women in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s most populous state.
Burkhard Freier, the head of the North Rhine-Westphalian Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), told Germany’s Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper that the network followed a strict Salafist doctrine — from how to raise children and cooking ingredients, to how to interpret the rules of Islam and stir up hatred against so-called “non-believers.”
The result, Freier said, could be something “much more difficult to dissolve, namely Salafist pockets within society.”
The Islamist women’s network also advertises and proselytizes Salafist ideology — which subscribes to an extremely conservative interpretation of Islam — aggressively on the internet, Freier said. And while it was wrong to conflate Salafism with extremism, every European jihadi in Europe in recent years had been a member of the Salafist scene, the BfV head added.
Freier also warned that this network of women had been indoctrinating children from an early age. “Salafism has become a family affair,” he said.
The 40 so-called “sisters” identified by German authorities had also won the approval of their male counterparts. “The men have noticed that women can network much better and are therefore more capable of expanding the scene and keeping it active,” Freier said…”
HRW accuses Yazidi fighters in Iraq of executing civilians (france24, Dec 27, 2017)
http://www.france24.com/en/20171227-hrw-accuses-yazidi-fighters-iraq-executing-civilians
“Fighters from Iraq’s Yazidi community, brutally targeted by the Islamic State group, executed 52 civilians in apparent revenge killings after capturing territory from the jihadists, Human Rights Watch said Wednesday.
“Relatives of victims told Human Rights Watch that on June 4, 2017, Yazidi forces detained and then apparently executed men, women, and children,” the US-based rights group said in a report.
Those killed reportedly came from eight families of the Sunni Al-Bu Metewut tribe who were escaping clashes between IS and pro-government militias north of second city Mosul, the group said.
After seizing Iraq’s Sinjar area in 2014, IS unleashed a brutal campaign against the Yazidis — dubbed heretics by the jihadists for their non-Muslim faith — that the UN says could amount to genocide…”
Turkish PM says decree grants immunity only to civilians who helped defeat July 15 coup attempt (hurriyetdailynews, Dec 27, 2017)
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkish-pm-says-decree-grants-immunity-only-to-civilians-who-helped-defeat-july-15-coup-attempt-124802
“Prime Minister Binali Y?ld?r?m said early Dec. 27 that a new emergency decree granting immunity to civilians fighting against coup attempts only applied to those who took part in thwarting the July 15, 2016, coup attempt.
“The regulation is aimed at protecting the citizens who ran to the streets, laid down their lives [for Turkey] to prevent the attempted coup and events right after it,” Y?ld?r?m told reporters at Esenbo?a Airport in the capital Ankara ahead of an official visit to Saudi Arabia.
“The issue is loud and clear. Nobody should create distractions,” he added.
Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gül said Dec. 26 the decree applies to the night of the defeated coup and the following morning to ensure that legal action is not taken against people who went out of their houses to protect the country.
The Dec. 24 decree drew widespread criticisms from opposition groups who believe the measure is vaguely-worded and could lead to civilians committing violence.
The Turkish government believes the Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ) and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gülen orchestrated the defeated coup, which left 250 people killed and nearly 2,200 injured.”
Emergency decree gives Turkish security forces authority to open ‘suspicious’ letters (hurriyetdailynews, Dec 27, 2017)
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/emergency-decree-gives-turkish-security-forces-authority-to-open-suspicious-letters-124815
“A recently issued state of emergency decree has given the Turkish security forces authority to open letters deemed “suspicious,” a significant change to the law on “seizure of mails.”
According to the 696-numbered state of emergency decree issued early on Dec. 24, letters and envelopes believed to be containing “suspicious” materials will now be able to be opened by security officials at prosecutors’ demands.
The Code of Criminal Procedure’s previous law allowed that mails “suspected of constituting evidence of a crime” and mails that “have to be within the reach of the courthouse during the investigations and cases” be seized with the approval of judges and prosecutors, who could later open them.
The new decree, however, makes it possible for the security forces to also open letters and envelopes…”
Turkey sends new group of soldiers to Qatar (hurriyetdailynews, Dec 27, 2017)
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-sends-new-group-of-soldiers-to-qatar-124801
“A group of Turkish soldiers on Dec. 26 reached a military base in Qatar’s capital Doha, according to Qatar’s Defense Ministry.
The group reached the Al Udeid Air Base in southern Doha, the ministry said in a statement.
The soldiers will join a group that previously arrived at the Tariq bin Ziyad military base in the Gulf state.
The move comes as part of a 2014 defense agreement between Doha and Ankara under which Turkey established a base in Qatar at the request of its government.
In April 2016, the two countries concluded a military deal which would see Turkish troops deployed to a military base in the Gulf state.
The first group arrived in Qatar this June and conducted their first drill at Tariq bin Ziyad.
With this new group, the countries will have more military drills aimed at strengthening the defense capabilities of both countries.”
Turkey, Sudan sign 21 cooperation agreements (memo, Dec 27, 2017)
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20171227-turkey-sudan-sign-21-cooperation-agreements/
“Turkey and Sudan have signed a total of 21 bilateral agreements in the fields of security, military, economic and cultural cooperation.
The agreements were signed during Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s three-day visit to Sudan which began on Sunday…”
Blocked from Europe, migrants settle in Morocco (gulfnews, Dec 27, 2017)
http://gulfnews.com/news/mena/morocco/blocked-from-europe-migrants-settle-in-morocco-1.2147642
“Unable to reach Europe in search of a better life, Aliou Ndiaye settled in Morocco instead, giving up on his original goal like thousands of other sub-Saharan African migrants.
“Everyone has the right to go to another country to try their luck,” the 31-year-old former fish exporter from Senegal told AFP.
“Lots of people are trying to reach Europe, but some end up staying to make a living.”
Seven out of 10 West Africa-born migrants stay on the continent, according to a December study by the Moroccan think tank OCP Policy Centre.
Discouraged by the danger of passing through countries such as Libya and by harsh policies aimed at preventing migrants going to Europe, many settle in “transit” countries including Morocco.
Ndiaye said he gave up after he realised reaching Spain was “too hard”.
He took on several informal jobs and finally set himself up as a street vendor in Rabat, where he expects to remain.
His story illustrates a trend that has gained increasing attention from Moroccan politicians, civil society and researchers.
Morocco has turned from a transit country into a host country for immigrants, according to the government’s High Commission for Planning…”
‘Honour killings’ in Karachi shock Pakistan, show entrenchment of tribal culture in urban society (tribune, Dec 27, 2017)
https://tribune.com.pk/story/1593848/9-honour-killings-karachi-shock-pakistan-show-entrenchment-tribal-culture-urban-society/
“Illegal “honour” killings are a pandemic in the country, and women are its predominant victims. More Pakistani women are murdered at the hands of close family members for supposed immoral behaviour than Pakistani civilians are killed by terrorism…”
Hundreds sacked from Uzbek FinMin in ‘rat’ purge (reuters, Dec 27, 2017)
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-uzbekistan-finmin/hundreds-sacked-from-uzbek-finmin-in-rat-purge-idUSKBN1EL0Q0?il=0
Arab countries now fear Palestinian hysteria over U.S. Jerusalem move will evoke Trump wrath
This time Palestinian president Abbas may have gone too far. Jordan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, all happy that they have an ally in the Oval Office, are working to devise a new response to President Trump’s recent Jerusalem actions.
According to the newsletter Israel Hayom, those Arab states fear the Palestinian-led response will anger the American President and elicit American “punishment” as was threatened after last week’s anti-America UN vote. In fact, they are so fearful they are getting involved with the planning of Jerusalem strategy.
https://libertyunyielding.com/2017/12/27/arab-countries-worry-palestinian-hysteria-u-s-jerusalem-move-will-evoke-trump-wrath/
Less than 1,000 IS fighters remain in Iraq and Syria, coalition says (reuters, Dec 27, 2017)
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-islamic-state/less-than-1000-is-fighters-remain-in-iraq-and-syria-coalition-says-idUSKBN1EL0QT
“BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Fewer than 1,000 Islamic State fighters remain in Iraq and Syria, the United States-led international coalition fighting the hardline Sunni militant group said on Wednesday, a third of the estimated figure only three weeks ago…”
Asylum Seeker Pair Arrested After Sexually Exposing Themselves to Girls as Young as Ten (breitbart, Dec 27, 2017)
http://www.breitbart.com/london/2017/12/27/asylum-seeker-pair-arrested-sexually-exposing-girls-young-ten/
“Two asylum seekers, a 32-year-old Syrian and a 20-year-old Afghan, were arrested in the German city of Augsburg and stand accused of repeatedly exposing their genitals to young girls on public transportation.,
The two men are said to have exposed themselves time and time again on buses, trains, and streetcars, and have been in custody since the weekend. The Afghan admitted to police to four separate incidents of public exposure while the Syrian has yet to admit to any wrongdoing, Augsburger Allgemeine reports.
In the case of the Afghan, his victims were between the ages of only 10 and 11 years old. He was caught by chance when an investigator, who had seen his face multiple times from security camera footage, recognised him. The investigator called his colleagues who arrested the man in the vicinity of the Curt Frenzel Stadium.
The Syrian is alleged to have exposed himself on seven different occasions though he has yet to admit to any. His youngest victim was also only 10 years old and the migrant is thought to have also potentially molested several of his victims.
He was caught when a pair of teen girls, one of whom he had harassed previously on a tram, called the police and followed the man until he was arrested while giving officers updates as to his location.
Police say they are also looking for a third suspected exhibitionist who they have described as a 30-year-old African male…”
With all eyes on North Korea, China sinking its teeth into the South China Sea
By LU Staff December 26, 2017
As the world dealt with other crises, China increased its presence in the disputed South China Sea this year, according to a new Chinese government report.
While the Trump administration has addressed Chinese expansionism in the region, even going so far as to carry out multiple freedom-of-navigation operations and bomber overflights in the area, the U.S. has been noticeably preoccupied with the ongoing crisis on the Korean Peninsula. China appears to have taken advantage of that distraction and is tightening its grip on the contested islands and reefs in the South China Sea.
Beijing’s extensive claims to the South China Sea were discredited last year by an international arbitration tribunal, yet China continues to assert its dominance in the region, reclaiming thousands of acres of land and building a mixture of civilian facilities and military outposts to strengthen its position in these tense waters.
“The course of construction is moving ahead steadily and a series of striking results have been achieved,” a report published on a Chinese website run by the National Marine Data and Information Service and the People’s Daily Overseas Edition revealed, adding that Chinese projects in the area have “completely changed the face of the South China Sea’s islands and reefs.”
https://libertyunyielding.com/2017/12/26/eyes-north-korea-china-sinking-teeth-south-china-sea/
This is part of the reason China isn’t reining in Kim, they want the distraction so they can increase the size of their artificial islands and put more arm them better. This is another probably unspoken reason that Japan is rearming, they are dependent on the sea trade and having to go around the Philippines to come into Japan from the East instead of the South would add many miles to the journey possibly as much as a thousand. This would greatly increase the shipping expense and would do massive damage to the Japanese economy.
While this move places some of our allies in a bad position because of the Chinese control of the sea ways it also places the artifical Islands at the end of a long supply line. A supply line that Japanese and American Subs and airplanes could cut at will. Cutting the supply lines will place the defenders in the position of deciding if they want to expend their anti-air protection on taking down cruise missiles or taking the damage from the missiles and trying to save their anti-air asets for manned aircraft.
From what I am reading it will be several more possibly as many as10 years before the Chinese Navy is capable of standing up to the US and Japan in a naval war. Given the current leadership in the US and Japan by the time the Chinese are ready to take on the current naval assets we will be much stronger and the Chinese will once again be playing catch up.
When we are forced to move on Korea (the US military is betting sooner rather then later) China is positioning themselves to be in a position to harass the shipping of supplies to the forces fighting in Korea. I still doubt either China or Russia will intervene in our move against Korea it is possible that they will. Personally I think they will take the disadvantage of having US and Korean troops on their borders to gain the propaganda advantage of being able to scream that the US started the war. This will give both Russia and China time to better arm Iran and position their assets in the Middle East and Africa to take advantage of any turmoil caused by the Shiite v Sunni fight in that region.
The US removing the North Korean threat will also give the Russians and Chinese a chance to see how their top of the line air defense systems work against the US and may force us to expose some of our classified equipment to them.
The big question is do the pluses listed above combined with the US stepping down from the position as the Worlds policeman outweigh the minuses listed above if both set out our removing the North Korean Threat. I think the do but others will disagree with my analysis.
‘Bad Hijab’ No More? Iran’s Police Take Softer Stance on Breach of Islamic Rules (sputniknews, Dec 27, 2017)
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201712271060354168-iran-police-islam-rules/
“Previously, undercover morality police had been reporting on things like “bad hijab,” a term used to describe un-Islamic dress by women.
Iranian police have taken a softer approach to breaking Islamic rules, Tehran’s police chief Brigadier General Hossein Rahimi said in a speech on Wednesday.
“According to a decision of the commander of the police force, those who do not observe Islamic codes will no longer be taken to detention centers nor judicial files opened on them,” the police chief said as quoted by Reuters, adding that the police offered education courses while 7,913 people had been educated in these classes so far.
The current position on the breach of Islamic rules shows a remarkable shift, compared to the stance taken by Rahimi’s predecessor General Hossein Sajedinia, who said last year that some 7,000 undercover morality police had been reporting on things like “bad hijab,” a term used to describe un-Islamic dress by women.
The data provided by Tehran’s traffic police showed that in late 2015 they dealt with 40,000 cases of “bad hijab” in cars when women let their headscarves drop around their necks.
Such breaches were usually punished by fines and temporary detention of the vehicle.
The 1979 Iranian Revolution shifted the country away from the so-called westernization brought about by then-leader Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi back to the strict adherence to Islamic rules, making headscarves mandatory for women.
At the same time, the rules have weakened through several decades, with President Hassan Rouhani, elected in 2013, promising to take a moderate position toward the issue of enforcing religious rules.
“It is not the police’s duty to enforce Islam. No police officer can say I did something because God or the Prophet have said so… Many religious issues are a matter of personal faith,” he said back in 2015.
Such a stance has caused criticism by conservative clerics and the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, though it hasn’t affected the softer approach of the police toward breaches of Islamic rules.”
Moscow Has Data al-Nusra Front Militants Getting Support From Outside – Lavrov (sputniknews, Dec 27, 2017)
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201712271060346152-nusra-syria-lavrov-defeat/
“Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday that al-Nusra Front terrorists were getting help from the outside.
“They are still resisting, including via receiving external help, according to our information,” Lavrov said.
“Of course, the main anti-terrorist task now is to defeat Nusra Front as well,” Lavrov said at a meeting with leader of Syria’s Tomorrow opposition movement Ahmad Jarba.
According to the Russian foreign minister, the Syrian army and its allies, with Russian support, is “putting pressure on Nusra members.”
While speaking about Daesh terrorist group in Syria, Lavrov noted that the group suffered a decisive blow and it was clear that the main fight was over.
“We are seeing positive changes in Syria. A decisive blow has been dealt on the IS [Daesh]. And although some militants who have fled the battlefield are trying either to regroup in Syria or to flee abroad, it is clear that the main fight is over.”
Earlier this month, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu reported a complete victory over Daesh terrorists in the east and west banks of the Euphrates River in Syria, followed by President Vladimir Putin’s order to withdraw the majority of Russian troops from the country, with two bases in Hmeymim and Tartus remaining.
Moscow sees broad support for the Syria national dialogue congress among Syrians themselves, tribe leaders, Sergei Lavrov said…”
Erdogan Slams Assad as ‘Terrorist’ (sputniknews, Dec 27, 2017)
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201712271060350897-erdogan-assad-terrorist/
“Turkey is one of the guarantors of the Syrian ceasefire, brokered also by Russia and Iran.
“Assad is definitely a terrorist who has carried out state terrorism,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at a televised news conference with his Tunisian counterpart Beji Caid Essebsi in Tunis.
“It is impossible to continue with Assad. How can we embrace the future with a Syrian president who has killed close to a million of his citizens?” he said.
The Syrian president has yet to comment on the accusations, however, he has repeatedly denied allegations of targeting civilians.
Despite Turkey being a mediator in the Syrian peace talks, which are also brokered by Russia and Iran, Assad has previously refused to consider Ankara as its partner or a guarantor state, accusing the country of supporting terrorism.
For its part, Ankara has been sending mixed signals concerning its view of Syria’s political future. In November, Erdogan stated that Turkey was not ruling out future contacts with Assad, with the statement following the announcement that Ankara no longer considers Damascus a threat. However, since the civil war’s beginning in Syria in 2011, Turkey, along with many regional states, as well as the US, has been calling on Assad to step down.
This summer, Turkey set up observation points in Syria’s Afrin and deployed troops there in order to support the anti-terrorist operation conducted by the Free Syrian Army, which has been the second joint campaign on the ground by the forces in the course of a year.
While Ankara said that the operation was agreed at the Astana talks, Damascus accused Turkey of “aggressive actions” that violate the international law.”
CBC – This aspiring comedian uses stand up to challenge Islamophobia | Shelina Stand Up!
In Shelina Stand Up! aspiring comedian Shelina Merani uses stand up to challenge Islamophobia.
“To be a Muslim doesn’t mean you can’t have a laugh at yourself.” Shelina Merani is an artist, an activist and a mom. Now that her kids are grown, she’s turning her attention to the stage and using stand up comedy to challenge Islamophobia.
( 13 min 26 )
CBC – Skinhead: One man’s journey into the white supremacy movement and his journey out
Skinhead tells Brad’s story – a Toronto kid who became a Neo-Nazi, delving into how he spent 13 years in “the movement,” climbing the ranks from skinhead rabble-rouser to the Canadian boss for an ultra-violent US gang called Volksfront.
Skinhead steps back and takes a look at the scope of racist movements not only in the US but in Canada too. But Skinhead is largely Brad’s story – his journey into the movement, his journey out and what he sees happening next in this hyper-partisan age of racial tension under Trump.
( 44 min )
Brad was a white 18-year-old punk, in and out of trouble with the law, a street brawler already in his fourth high school, a kid without direction and a prime target for a neo-Nazi recruiter promising comradeship in a gang of “like-minded” men, a place where Brad could finally find what he wanted most: belonging.
Skinhead tells Brad’s story — how he spent 13 years in “the movement,” climbing the ranks from skinhead rabble-rouser to the Canadian boss for an ultra-violent US gang called Volksfront.
“It’s one underlying mission,” says Brad, “which is bringing back white society and kicking everyone else out. Like, the dream is to have a white country, an all-white country. Well, I mean, how do we achieve that? You don’t.”
Through Brad’s eyes, we get a completely rare glimpse of why hate and fear are consuming America under Trump — Brad understands the cues and messages that are being sent out by the US far-right, enabled by their President, who another former skinhead in our film calls “our mascot.”
“They’re trying to sugarcoat anti-Semitism and racism and things like that with this theory of the marginalization of the white race,” says Brad.
Brad has been out for five years, raising a family and getting his university degree in criminology. But most of all, he’s been working on leaving behind the hate groups that defined who he was for so much of his life.
“It’s not all of a sudden you’re free and clear of that life that you once had. But also, I’m not hiding who I am.”
Skinhead steps back and takes a look at the scope of racist movements not only in the US but in Canada too. In the 1930s in Toronto “Swastika Clubs” used to roam up and down the Boardwalk looking to beat up Jews. Even today “white nationalist” Paul Fromm still rants about the urgent need to cut off all immigration before white people become a minority.
“We want North America to remain European,” Fromm says in the film. “We want the founding settler stock to remain in charge.”
Brad’s Volksfront gang originated in Portland Oregon, the “skinhead capital of the USA.” Belying its reputation as a liberal utopia, Portland has seen some of the most violent outbursts of extreme right hate, including the murder of two men on public transit who were trying to defend some women of colour from a hard-right radical. In Skinhead we’ll go into the middle of a “Pro Trump” rally to witness the rise-of-the-right up close — and personal.
But Skinhead is largely Brad’s story — his journey into the movement, his journey out and what he sees happening next in this hyper-partisan age of racial tension.
“I call them white supremacy groups because that’s all it is,” says Brad. “What they are presenting as new is actually a very old idea of white marginalization.”
“I think my message is this: understand by adopting these types of extreme ideologies, that you are signing up for losing those years of your life. You will definitely lose time and you will be affecting others negatively. You will lose that time in your life.”
“Brad understands the cues and messages that are being sent out by the US far-right, enabled by their President, who another former skinhead in our film calls “our mascot.””
Brad was 13 years in “the movement” and now five years out.
Trump has been President just under a year. Trump has nothing to do with him. Now, he’s making a connection? To a businessman?
CBC – The Skin We’re In: Pulling back the curtain on racism in Canada
Urgent, controversial, and undeniably honest, The Skin We’re In is a wake-up call to complacent Canadians. Racism is here. It is everywhere. It is us and we are it. Following celebrated journalist Desmond Cole as he researches his hotly anticipated book, this documentary from acclaimed director Charles Officer pulls back the curtain on racism in Canada
( 44 min )
The Skin We’re In marks a distinctly Canadian contribution to the “Black Lives Matter” movement which originated in the US, but which describes a set of systemic injustices and disadvantages faced by all black people living in white-dominated societies.
Cole asserts that anti-black racism is so all-encompassing in Canada that black people and their allies, far from congratulating themselves that they do not live in America, should be following the American example and dismantling the structures that continue to hold them back.
The Skin We’re In invites viewers into the mind of an emerging intellectual and firebrand. Boasting intimate access to one of Canada’s most intriguing voices, it profiles Desmond Cole as his most exciting chapter unfolds.
This is his journey from journalist to activist, unfolding in real time. We follow Cole as he travels across Canada in pursuit of stories, examples, and knowledge about black identities and experiences.
“This is his journey from journalist to activist, unfolding in real time. We follow Cole as he travels across Canada in pursuit of stories, examples, and knowledge about black identities and experiences.”
Tweet: “In like Finn.”
Egypt’s Awqaf supports actress complaint over ‘screeching’ call to prayer
The Egyptian Ministry of Awqaf (Religious Endowments) has supported an Egyptian actress’ complaint that the voices of some muezzins (those who call to prayer at mosques) sound like they are “screeching.”
Shereen Ridda’s comments have sparked outrage and controversy in the country.
During her interview with ONTV, the former wife to Egyptian popstar Amr Diab called for uniting Azan calls. According to Ridda, “some muezzins’ voices make those who hear them stray away from religion.”
She urged that a government decision should be made and put into effect.
Remarks debated
Her remarks were heavily debated over various social media platforms. Some said she was right in her claims and was not exaggerating. Others opposed and criticized her, claiming she was tampering with religion and even demanded that she be interrogated and brought to court.
Meanwhile, the head of the religious sector at the Egyptian Ministry of Awqaf, Jaber Tayei, responded to the situation making his support to the actress known.
During a televised interview, Tayei expressed the ministry’s understanding of Ridda’s statements. He also said that the ministry does not see her opinion on the Azan as a breach on Islam’s rulings – therefore expelling such claims made against her on social media.
Encourage religious duty
Tayei added that the ministry carefully selects muezzins in accordance with strict and precise criteria. This all aims to satisfy citizens and encourage them to perform their religious duties, he added.
He also commented on the call for the unification of the Azan (for it to be heard at the same time by the same recorded muezzin in mosques across the country).
Tayei said that the reason for delaying the move was because audio players were stolen from mosques after the January 25 revolution in 2011.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2017/12/27/Egyptian-Awqaf-ministry-supports-Egyptian-actress-screeching-muezzin-claim.html
FOCUS – Hitlers Verhältnis zum Islam
Nazis rekrutierten systematisch Moslems – etwa 600.000 kämpften in Hitlers Armeen
https://www.focus.de/wissen/mensch/geschichte/nationalsozialismus/hitlers-muselmanen-fuhrer_id_7908751.html
MEMRI TV – Saying “Merry Christmas,” You Are Acknowledging a Satanic Holiday
In a Friday sermon delivered in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Lebanese-American Imam Abu Musaab Wajdi Akkari warned In the congregation not to “be weak” and say “Merry Christmas” to people. By doing so, “you are indirectly acknowledging a Satanic holiday,” he said. If someone asks why you can’t say “Merry Christmas” to him when he says “Happy Eid” to you, Akkari explained: “Well, you don’t have anything that you adhere to. I do. Your whole religion is a joke. Mine is not.” His December 15 sermon was posted on YouTube.
MEMRI TV – Uranium Enrichment Facilities Shown in an Iranian TV Documentary
Press TV, Iran’s English-language channel, aired a documentary on the city of Natanz, focusing on the nearby uranium enrichment facilities. The December 11 documentary showed the cascades of centrifuges and other installations within the facilities, while explaining the workings of the nuclear fuel cycle
Ron Hosko on importance of IG report on Clinton probe
Breaking down the Susan Rice unmasking scandal
Syrian rebel forces shot down a regime Aero L-39 Albatros with SA-18 MANPAD in Hama, Syria
U.S. WOMAN STABBED 14 TIMES BY SOMALI MIGRANT, MEDIA GO DARK
1 more for growing Big List of related crimes being swept under rug
Updated
http://www.wnd.com/2017/12/u-s-woman-stabbed-14-times-by-somali-migrant-media-go-dark/
Germany: Muslim students surround Jewish student, scream “Hitler was good! Because he killed the Jews”
https://www.jihadwatch.org/2017/12/germany-muslim-students-surround-jewish-student-scream-hitler-was-good-because-he-killed-the-jews
The following article about a foiled Islamic terror attack on a German Christmas market was published before Christmas in the Dutch media. Many thanks to FouseSquawk for translating this piece from De Telegraaf:
http://gatesofvienna.net/2017/12/truck-jihad-plot-foiled-in-germany/
MOSCOW (Reuters) – A blast ripped through a supermarket in the Russian city of St Petersburg on Wednesday evening, injuring several shoppers, Russian news agencies reported.
Nobody was killed in the explosion, but at least four people were hospitalized and there were unconfirmed reports of a further 10 people being injured.
http://www.oann.com/blast-rips-through-supermarket-in-russias-st-petersburg-agencies/
Hate crimes and hoaxes: 10 campus stories debunked in 2017
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/12/27/hate-crimes-and-hoaxes-10-campus-stories-debunked-in-2017.html
Man Whose Son Was Killed by Illegal Immigrant: CA Gov’s Concern for Criminals Is ‘Outrageous’
http://insider.foxnews.com/2017/12/27/california-pardons-illegal-immigrants-fox-friends-interviews-outraged-parent
RUSSIA – 10 injured, dozens evacuated after explosion in St. Petersburg store
Nine people have been taken to hospital following an explosion in a storage locker at a busy St. Petersburg supermarket. Over 50 people have been evacuated from the building.
“There was a bang. Emergency personnel are already on the scene. The evacuation has been completed, and there was no fire,” a local Emergencies Ministry official told TASS news agency.
The victims were taken to the accident ward with injuries “of variable severity.” One man refused hospitalization.
Officials are treating the investigation as a potential mass homicide attempt and say that the explosion was equivalent to 200g of TNT.
Footage showed multiple medical and police vehicles parked outside the Gigant Hall leisure center, where the Perekrestok supermarket, in which the incident occurred, is located on the ground floor.
https://www.rt.com/news/414373-explosion-petersburg-store-injured/
Within only a few hours of the disputed acquittal of five men charged with gang rape in the Fittja case, petitions and crowd-funding efforts in support of the victim were started in Sweden, resulting in over 100,000 signatures and a generous donation to protest what is perceived as an unjust trial.
https://sputniknews.com/viral/201712251060307253-sweden-gang-rape-protests/
Criminals were employed to “integrate” school – sent penis images to 14 years old
Published December 13, 2017 at 08.22
DOMESTIC. A man previously convicted of knife threats in connection with a honor conflict with a rival Arab clan was employed as a student counselor at a primary school. It ended with sending penis pictures to a 14 year old girl.
“You will rot on my cock. You will not be able to go for two days,” he wrote in a text message to the girl.
https://translate.google.com/translate?depth=1&hl=en&prev=search&rurl=translate.google.co.uk&sl=sv&sp=nmt4&u=http://www.friatider.se/kriminell-anst-lldes-f-r-att-integrera-skola-skickade-penisbilder-till-14-ring