Reader’s Links for October 23, 2018

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Thank you all for those that take the effort to assist this site in keeping the public informed. Below, typically people can find the latest enemy propaganda, news items of related materials from multiple countries and languages, op-eds from many excellent sites who write on our topics, geopolitics and immigration issues and so on.

About Eeyore

Canadian artist and counter-jihad and freedom of speech activist as well as devout Schrödinger's catholic

191 Replies to “Reader’s Links for October 23, 2018”

  1. London stabbing: Teenager DEAD after BRUTAL stabbing in Greenwich – Manhunt underway (express, Oct 23, 2018)
    https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1035105/London-stabbing-man-dead-greenwich-stabbed-death-met-police-latest

    “A TEENAGER has dramatically died after being stabbed to death in Greenwich, south London, as knife violence continues to escalate in the capital.

    Police were called to a disturbance on Armitage Road at around 9.25pm and found a man suffering from a stab injury.

    Police and paramedics tried desperately to save the 18-year-old as he lay unconscious, but he bled to death.

    The victim was pronounced dead at the scene at 10.03pm.

    No arrests have been made at this stage and a manhunt is currently underway.

    A crime scene remains and enquiries continue.

    Scotland Yard is appealing for witnesses and anyone with information should contact Police on 101 quoting: CAD 7560/22 October.

    A crime scene remains in place and enquiries continue…”

  2. BREAKING: FBI launch investigation after EXPLOSIVE DEVICE found near home of George Soros (express, Oct 23, 2018)
    https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1035130/George-Soros-explosive-device-Westchester-County-New-York-FBI-investigation

    “THE FBI is investigating an explosive device that was found near George Soros’ home in Westchester County, New York.

    The FBI commented on the device, saying: “There is no threat to public safety, and we have no further comment at this time.”

    The device was found in the mailbox of the billionaire philanthropist’s home.

    The device did not explode on its own.

    The FBI said their bomb squad was at the scene and had successfully donated the device and were not proceeding to search the area.

    Law enforcement officials responded to the device after Bedford police received a call about a suspicious package.

    The police said: “An employee of the residence opened the package, revealing what appeared to be an explosive device.

    “The employee placed the package in a wooded area and called the Bedford police.”

    Mr Soros was not home at the time the call was made.

    The Bedford police turned the case over to the FBI and Bureau of Alcohol Tabacco and Firearms (ATF).

    Mr Soros was originally born in Hungary but made a fortune running a hedge fund after coming to the US.

    He is a frequent donor and supporter of the Democratic Party, which has caused him to be vilified by some.

    He has also become a target for anti-Semitic comments.

    More to follow…”

  4. Morocco is ejecting sub-Saharan migrants. The persecuted blame Europe (smh, Oct 23, 2018)
    https://www.smh.com.au/world/africa/morocco-is-ejecting-sub-saharan-migrants-the-persecuted-blame-europe-20181023-p50bea.html

    “Rabat, Morocco: In a widespread crackdown, sub-Saharan migrants in Morocco are facing arbitrary arrest, banishment to remote sections of the country and, lately, outright expulsion, analysts and rights advocates say.

    Rights advocates contend that the raids, which government officials acknowledge, began in the summer and were coordinated with Spain and the European Union to stem the tide of migrants to the Continent. The Moroccan government says they were aimed at only migrants who are in the country illegally and human traffickers.

    The crackdown began in June and intensified in late July, after at least 600 migrants successfully crossed to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in northern Morocco, rights groups say. Sub-Saharan migrants, even some with valid residency permits, described wholesale round-ups in which they were herded onto buses with little more than the clothes they were wearing and taken to cities hundreds of kilometres to the south.

    Abdoulaye N., 31, a Senegalese immigrant who, like other migrants interviewed for this article, asked that only his given name be used for fear of reprisals, was one of those swept up in the raids.

    Four years ago, he had settled in the city of Tetuan on the Mediterranean Sea, where he obtained a residency card and slowly integrated into Moroccan society. He sold cheap jewellery in the market, sent money home to his family and generally kept a low profile.

    Yet, one morning in early September, five plainclothes police officers burst into the apartment he shared with two other migrants and arrested them. Told the raid was part of a simple document check, they found themselves hours later on a bus that took an overnight trip 965 kilometres south to the desert city of Tiznit.

    Far from an isolated incident, their banishment is consistent with hundreds of other accounts, human rights advocates say, leaving many sub-Saharans living in fear of arrest and displacement, often afraid even to stay in their homes. GADEM, a human rights group based in the Moroccan capital of Rabat, estimates that about 6500 migrants have been arrested and displaced since the crackdown began.

    The government has also begun expelling some migrants, rights groups say. A total of 91 migrants, including six minors, have been expelled since September. Another 37 remain in arbitrary detention, GADEM said in a recent report. Moreover, the group said, many migrants detained in the summer were dressed only in shorts and T-shirts and are now suffering from the increasingly cold nights.

    GADEM’s report on the expulsions was buttressed by the Moroccan Association of Human Rights, which published videos of groups of migrants being taken to the airport and deported.

    At the same time, the Moroccan Association of Human Rights in Nador, among other groups, has reported an uptick in attacks on migrants. As outsiders, they have never been welcomed by native Moroccans, who see them as soaking up state benefits in a country that struggles to provide jobs and health care for its citizens.

    Morocco’s crackdown on migration has extended to its own citizens. In late September, the Moroccan Royal Navy shot and killed a young Moroccan woman who had boarded a boat full of migrants trying to cross illegally into Spain. Moroccan officials said the Navy opened fire after the boat refused to stop, but some non-governmental organisations have questioned the circumstances.

    For years, most migrants seeking entry to Europe went through Greece and Italy. But after those portals were shut down, the migrants turned their sights to Spain, where the arrival of migrants entering the country illegally surged to 40,623 so far this year, making it the leading destination for migrants from Africa.

    Those numbers pale next to the 1 million or so migrants and asylum-seekers who entered Europe in 2015, but are about triple the number who entered in 2016. That, in turn, has led to rising anti-immigrant political pressures in Spain.

    Traditionally, King Mohammed VI of Morocco has been publicly welcoming to sub-Saharan Africans. Yet, despite these proclamations of support, migration has often seemed intended as a lever to pry concessions out of Europe, said Helena Maleno Garzon, a human rights worker and founder of the group Walking Borders.

    Something like that seems to be occurring now, she says, citing a $275 million aid package from the EU, agreed to in September, ostensibly to help with basic services and to support job creation.

    Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita acknowledged the crackdown but said it was aimed at fighting unauthorised migration and human trafficking, and he vehemently denied that Europe was dictating Morocco’s migration policies.

    “Morocco does not play and will never play the role of policeman for the European Union,” he said. “Morocco will continue to be a host country for sub-Saharan Africans. What you call ‘expulsions’ are made according to the norms. Embassies of African countries are involved in the process for identifications.”

    Still, analysts say there is no denying that the two governments work closely together on the issue.

    “There are very intense and constant contacts at all levels between Spanish and Moroccan officials over the hot topics such as migration, security, coordination and other things,” says Haizam Amirah-Fernandez, a senior analyst at the Elcano Royal Institute, a public policy research institution in Madrid.

    “Depending who you ask, the interpretations will differ,” he said. “When there is a high level of arrivals, it is understood that it’s a message sent by the Moroccan authorities, saying we are not happy for this or that reason.”

    On a visit to Rabat this month, Consuelo Rumi, the Spanish state secretary for migration, said that Spain was ready to act as “the voice of Morocco in the European Union,” to help Morocco receive more financial and material aid in its efforts to control migration. Rumi also said her government would look to regularise the papers of some of the estimated 200,000 Moroccans who live in Spain without official residency.

    Whatever the motivation for the crackdown, human rights groups have denounced the raids. GADEM said that many migrants, like Abdoulaye N., did not realise they were being expelled until they were dropped off hundreds of kilometres from their homes, and that many reported harsh treatment, with people often confined for hours on end without access to food or toilets.

    The Moroccan Association of Human Rights shared videos and photos of officials piling black-skinned migrants into buses in Tangier, Tetuan and Nador and dropping them off in the south. Images of harsh police treatment also emerged in local news reports.

    “It is shocking to see that young children are among those subjected to these brutal punishments, as well as UN-recognised asylum-seekers and refugees as well as registered migrants holding residency cards,” Heba Morayef, Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa director, said in a statement.

    An estimated 70,000 sub-Saharans reside in Morocco, according to several organisations, though the numbers are difficult to verify. About 24,000 got their papers during a legalisation campaign begun in 2014 and another 28,400 in a similar effort in 2017.

    Abdoulaye N. thought he was one of those who benefited from the program, until his arrest.

    “The legalization campaign is useless,” he said. “The fact is we have our residence cards and they still embarked us. At first, they left us at peace on the markets and in the streets. Now, they are preventing us from working with or without papers.”

    Rights groups say that some people have died during the roundups, usually under murky circumstances.

    A 16-year-old boy from Mali arrested at the market in Tangier and an older man from Gambia were found dead, handcuffed together near the city Kenitra, apparently after falling off a bus, the Moroccan Association of Human Rights reported.

    “This is a huge step backward for Morocco,” said Maleno Garzon, who has been based in Tangier for more than 15 years. “As Moroccans see authorities arresting these migrants, they automatically assume they’re criminals and it nourishes racism and xenophobia.”

    The result is a growing hostility to migrants, whether legal or not. Many say they appear in public only in groups, to ward off attacks. “Even when you’re at work, your heart isn’t at peace,” said a 39-year-old woman from the Ivory Coast, who gave only her first name, Pelagie. “Our kids are terrorised. We can’t even go out to food shop without the fear of getting mugged.”

    Patricia G., 36, also from the Ivory Coast, said: “There is a big difference between the official discourse and the reality. We see that the king wants us to have our rights, but it’s not always easy with the authorities here.””

    • Seriously, this is going to become the norm as the north African countries are stamped into line via threats of a reduction in trade or western largesse. Only such threats will pull them into line and reduce the flood to a mere trickle. Of course that requires that the EU and its member states find some gonads but….

        • He may align with PT domestically sometimes, but he’s still a Swamp-insider jerk.

          Shilling for the Turk and the MB, just as during the Arab Spring. He was at the forefront of the WaPoo stampede on behalf of Brother Khashoggi. Reduced PTrump’s options for dialling down the enemy-manufactured crisis.

          Exceptionally poor form.
          I’m keeping score.

    • “…sub-Saharan migrants in Morocco are facing arbitrary arrest, banishment to remote sections of the country and, lately, outright expulsion, analysts and rights advocates say.”

      All the same, America remains first and foremost with regard to supposedly cruel and inhumane treatment of foreign nationals. Go figure…

  6. German IS ‘shoemaker’ pleads to come home from Syria

    From northern Syria, Muslim convert Sufyan (not his real name) gives an interview to AFP in Rmelan, imploring his native Germany to take him back, having being captured years after joining the Islamic State group’s so-called “caliphate”.

  8. Germany: 34-year-old woman in Mainz raped by an Afghan and an Iranian man–
    Last Saturday, two accused of rape were brought before the judge at Mainz District Court, who ordered both persons to be detained on remand.The trial of the two defendants was preceded by extensive investigations by the Mainz Criminal Investigation Department. On Wednesday, 17th of October 2018, a doctor of the University Hospital of Mainz informed the police with the consent of the victim, a 34-year-old woman from Mainz.The mentally handicapped victim told the police that she had met a 47-year-old Iranian in the course of last week. The young woman had arranged to meet him on the evening of 16th of October 2018. A rape is said to have taken place in a green area, in which an acquaintance of the Iranian, an 18-year-old Afghan, is also said to have been involved. On Wednesday morning, the victim went to see a doctor, who immediately referred her to the university hospital. There a physical examination was arranged, care was provided and the police were informed.Based on the victim’s statements and extensive investigations, the Mainz criminal police succeeded in identifying the two suspects and arresting them on Friday.The 47-year-old Iranian is already known by the police for violations of the narcotics law, dangerous bodily injury and theft.The 47-year-old Iranian is already known by the police for violations of the narcotics law, dangerous bodily injury and theft. He was detained for five and a half months at the beginning of the year for violating the Narcotics Act. He entered the Federal territory in 2016 and has a residence permit. He was arrested near his registration address.The 18-year-old Afghan national entered Germany in September 2015 as a so-called unaccompanied minor refugee. His asylum application was rejected in February of this year. He has a temporary residence permit. The 18-year-old has already made a police appearance for violations of the Narcotics Act, bodily injury and a “fare evasion”. He was arrested in Bad Kreuznach.
    Read more:
    https://searchlight-germany.blogspot.com/2018/10/germany-34-year-old-woman-in-mainz.html

  9. Taharrush in Borken, Germany: Perpetrators of Arab or Turkish origin attack and sexually harass young women–
    In the night to Saturday an 18-year-old girl from Borken indicated that she had been approached and sexually offended by three men in the area of “Lange Stiege” street (approximately at the height of the street “An der Nathe”) in Borken at about 01.30 a.m..She had been on her way home on foot after a party when the men addressed her in broken German.She was later held by one of the perpetrators and pushed to the ground. The other two men had kissed her and touched her indecently against her will. The victim had fought back loudly and violently, whereupon the perpetrators had let go of her and walked away.The victim described the perpetrators as follows: The victim described the perpetrators as follows: For all three perpetrators is similar: possibly of Arab or Turkish origin; about 18 – 20 years old, spoke broken German. In addition, she could describe the individual perpetrators as follows:

    1st perpetrator: 180-190 cm tall; slender Clothing: dark trousers; hooded sweater, leather jacket
    2nd perpetrator: 165-170 cm; sturdy stature Clothing: wore jeans with holes
    3rd perpetrator: sturdy stature

    The police asks witnesses to call 02861 9000 and report to the Borken Criminal Investigation Department.
    Read more:
    https://searchlight-germany.blogspot.com/2018/10/taharrush-in-borken-germany.html

      • “Turk TV!”

        With November festivities closing in, isn’t about now when we should let Turkey know that IT’S TIME TO GET STUFFED!?!

        Any bashful fifth-grade halfwit could put Erdogan’s puppetry to shame.

    • “ALEX JONES • Record-Breaking Crowds At Trump/Cruz Rally In Houston, TX • Meets Supporters”
      General Shephard – Published on October 22, 2018

  12. “TRUMP @WAR – Full Movie Explicit Version”
    Trump at War – A Film by Stephen K. Bannon
    Published on October 11, 2018

    • Sorry, EB.
      I figured the warning was for filthy language. I didn’t expect to get hit with naked hate. 42 seconds was a stretch.
      Skull-&-crossbones next time?

    • “Hannity: Caravan Now Numbers as Many as 15,000”
      by Sharon Rondeau – October 22, 2018

      Excerpt:

      “Guatemala has long been known as a major smuggling corridor for foreigners from African and Asian countries making their way into the U.S. Last year Guatemala’s largest paper, Prensa Libra, published an in-depth piece on the inner workings of an international human smuggling network that moves migrants from Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bangladesh to the U.S. Individuals are sent to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates then flown to Brazil before heading to Colombia. Once in South America, the migrants are transported to Panama before moving on to Costa Rica then a central point on Guatemala. One Spanish news report refers to Guatemala as a human smuggling paradise because it’s so easy to get fake passports. A few years ago, the head of Guatemala’s passport division got arrested for selling fake passports to a group of Colombians, according to a government announcement,” Judicial Watch wrote in its October 18, 2018 press release.
      https://www.thepostemail.com/2018/10/22/hannity-caravan-now-numbers-as-many-as-15000/

  15. Bomb Found In Mailbox At George Soros’s Westchester Home
    Profile picture for user Tyler Durden
    by Tyler Durden
    Tue, 10/23/2018 – 06:17
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    An employee of billionaire investor George Soros discovered a bomb placed in a mailbox at Soros’s Westchester County home on Monday. The explosive device was later “protectively detonated” by an FBI bomb squad after the employee moved it to a wooded area.
    https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-10-23/bomb-found-mailbox-george-soross-westchester-county-home

  16. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s office in California was vandalized on Monday, according to an Instagram post by the Congressman.

    McCarthy, whose local office is in Bakersfield, CA, posted photos of the suspects and some of the damage. Two young men were caught on surveillance camera outside of the office, which had its window smashed in by a large boulder.

    “Does anyone know these two guys? They threw a boulder thru our office window and took office equipment,” McCarthy wrote on his Instagram account.

    https://dailycaller.com/2018/10/22/kevin-mccarthy-office-vandalized/

  17. “Off with their heads” may seem like something you’d read in a book or perhaps hear about in a documentary about the French Revolution, but it has new meaning for one Democrat today.

    A member of Minnesota’s Democratic-Farmer-Labor party recently shares a post on Facebook suggesting that Republicans be led “to the guillotines” the day after November’s midterm elections. According to the Associated Press, William Davis, a spokesman for the Democratic-Farmer-Labor party posted a to-do list, that included: “11.7 — bring them to the guillotines.”

    Corey Day, executive director of the progressive group said the past was later deleted and that it was part of an inside joke. Not surprisingly, the Republican targets of the joke failed to see the humor. Davis received a “working suspension” for a week to chastise him for the death threats and call for violence to others in the opposing party.

    https://www.conservativezone.com/articles/minnesota-democrat-bring-republicans-to-guillotines/

  19. The Animal Legal Defense Fund sued Monday to compel the federal government to act on climate change as a similar lawsuit filed by a group of young activists is on hold.

    The plaintiffs include scientists, nature enthusiasts and wildlife advocates who say they fear for their safety because their research or interactions with nature are hampered by increased severity of wildfires, mudslides, flash flooding, avalanches and disappearing snowpack and edible native plants.

    They contend they have a fundamental right to be left alone “free from human interference” in the wilderness.

    https://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2018/10/animal_legal_fund_files_climat.html

  20. Homeland Security Spokesperson Katie Waldman said Mexican cartels yield $2.5 billion per year by smuggling people into America at a rate of about $5,000 per person. She offered her remarks on SiriusXM’s Breitbart News Sunday in an interview with Breitbart News Deputy Political Editor Amanda House.
    Waldman’s comments were made in the context of a discussion related to a growing caravan of migrants — originating in Central America — demanding entry to America.

    Waldman said, “We have an entire southwest border that is controlled by Mexican cartels. You can’t gain access to the U.S. illegally without paying a smuggler $5,000 or $6,000 per head. It’s a $2.5 billion a year industry to these cartels. You certainly see a lot of attention paid to this caravan.”

    https://www.breitbart.com/radio/2018/10/22/dhs-spox-human-smuggling-is-a-2-5-billion-a-year-industry-for-mexican-cartels/

  21. Tommy Robinson has been released on bail after a judge ruled that a contempt case against him should be referred to the Attorney General. The founder of the EDL was told that the case against him was too complex and needed further consideration before it could be concluded. As he was released on bail his supporters, some of whom were seen drinking Stella and Strongbow before the case started, spontaneously started singing their own version of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah outside the Old Bailey.

    Read more: https://metro.co.uk/2018/10/23/tommy-robinson-contempt-case-sent-to-attorney-general-as-its-too-complex-8065779/?ito=cbshare

    Twitter: https://twitter.com/MetroUK | Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MetroUK/

  23. “LIVE: Tommy Robinson leaves court as his case has been referred to the Attorney General” Ruptly – October 23, 2018
    Streamed live 2 hours ago

    • It’s humanly impossible, but the caravan will reach the U.S. border before Election Day: Bank on it
      By Howard Portnoy October 22, 2018

      The question of who was funding the migrant caravan was raised here several days. It was noted that each migrant’s passage can cost as much as $7,000 and that the per capita income in Honduras is $2,300.

      As to who could be bankrolling the venture, a likely answer that has been bandied about is far-left billionaire George Soros, who is reportedly funding a smartphone app to help illegal aliens avoid federal immigration authorities.

      But for all his money, not even George Soros can alter the time-space continuum. That is what would need to happen in order for the thousands of migrants en route to the southern border to arrive no later than Nov. 6, the date of the midterm elections. Ideally, they would need to start showing up sooner in order to give the Trump administration time to act (to process “families” at the border) and Democrats a chance to react (oh, the humanity!). The chances of a single migrant getting here in time to accomplish that mission is virtually impossible.

      Consider, there are 16 days, including today, until Election Day. Actor James Woods crunches the numbers in a pair of tweets. In the first tweet, he notes that it 2,000 miles from Tegucigalpa, Honduras to Phoenix, Ariz. (Actually, the distance to Phoenix is 2,550 miles, but the Texas border is 2,000 miles from Tegucigalpa.)

      https://libertyunyielding.com/2018/10/22/its-humanly-impossible-but-the-caravan-will-reach-the-u-s-border-before-election-day-bank-on-it/

      Richard: I can’t think of anything that will get the Trump voters to turn out in mass quicker then this caravan reaching the border near the election.

    • Migrant caravan could prompt a wider confrontation between Mexico, US

      TAPACHULA, Mexico — As thousands of Central American migrants continue their long walk to the U.S. border, prompting daily condemnations from President Donald Trump, the Mexican government has had to decide: Are Trump’s threats enough to prompt an intervention?

      For now, Mexican police have merely stepped aside as the caravan has passed, watching first as migrants took rafts across the river that separates the country from Guatemala, and then as they continued by foot along the main highway, chanting, “Si, se pudo,” or “Yes, we did it.”

      https://www.thehour.com/news/article/Migrant-caravan-could-prompt-a-wider-13327884.php

    • Divided Democrats struggle to answer Trump’s claims on migrant caravan

      Democrats are struggling to respond to President Donald Trump and his Republican allies, who are casting the caravan of thousands of migrants headed toward the U.S.-Mexico border as a failure of Democrats to help enact immigration policy in the GOP-controlled Congress.

      Some Democrats said Trump is vulnerable to a counterattack on his core campaign issue given that his policies failed to reduce the number of unauthorized immigrants. Yet party leaders and Democratic candidates have largely been silent ahead of the midterm elections, refusing to engage with Trump.
      Recommended Video

      https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/article/Divided-Democrats-struggle-to-answer-Trump-s-13328112.php

      • Previously Deported Illegal Aliens Join Caravan: ‘It’s Time for Me to Go Back’

        Previously deported illegal aliens are joining the now 7,000-strong migrant caravan headed to the United States-Mexico border, to inundate and overwhelm the country’s asylum and immigration system.

        A new report by the Washington Post reveals that the migrant caravan now includes illegal aliens who have already been deported from the U.S., but who are looking to illegally re-enter through the southern border with the caravan.

        As noted by the Post, illegal aliens who have been deported multiple times are now a part of the caravan, including 29-year-old Imner Anthony Fuentes, who has been deported from the U.S. six times.

        https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2018/10/22/previously-deported-illegal-aliens-join-caravan-its-time-for-me-to-go-back/

    • Richard: Will this hit any part of the Caravan? Will it tear up things so the Caravan can’t get through or is greatly slowed?

      Major Hurricane Willa to Make Landfall in Mexico Tuesday With Destructive Winds, Storm Surge and Flooding Rain

      Willa is approaching the Pacific Coast of Mexico where it will make landfall later Tuesday as a major hurricane with destructive winds, life-threatening storm surge and flooding rainfall.

      For a brief time on Monday, Willa was a Category 5 hurricane but it has steadily weakened since then due to an eyewall replacement cycle and increasing wind shear. That said, Willa is still a dangerous hurricane threat for Mexico and all preparations should be complete.

      A hurricane warning is in effect from San Blas to Mazatlán, including Las Islas Marias. A tropical storm warning is in effect from Playa Perula to San Blas and from north of Mazatlán to Bahia Tempehuaya.

      https://www.wunderground.com/news/storms/hurricane/news/2018-10-22-hurricane-willa-pacific-ocean-mexico-landfall

  29. Chinese market drop leads world stocks lower

    SINGAPORE (AP) — A sharp drop in Chinese stocks led global markets broadly lower on Tuesday, as investors digest the impact of trade tensions on the country as well as other geopolitical worries, such as Italy’s debt problems.

    After the Shanghai index closed down 2.3 percent at 2,594.83, European markets traded lower. Germany’s DAX slipped 1.8 percent to 11,321 and France’s CAC 40 was 1.3 percent lower at 4,990. Britain’s FTSE 100 lost 0.7 percent to 6,991.

    Wall Street is forecast to open lower, with the future for the S&P 500 down 1.1 percent and the Dow future off by 1 percent.

    Traders appear to be weighing anew the impact of increased tariffs on most Chinese goods sold to the U.S., ranging from soybeans to electric cars and whiskey. Recent data showed China’s economy grew at a 6.5 percent annual pace in the third quarter, its slowest since 2009.

    https://www.yahoo.com/news/asian-shares-tumble-chinese-growth-063909004.html

  30. The squadron of ex-military men behind Bolsonaro’s rise in Brazil

    BRASILIA (Reuters) – The man who will likely be Brazil’s next Defense Minister greeted two reporters waiting outside the door, then politely sent them packing.

    “I do apologize,” he said, before slipping back into a cramped hotel conference room in the capital of Brasilia. “On orders from Bolsonaro, it is radio silence until the election is over.”

    The patrician, gray-haired fellow was 70-year-old Augusto Heleno Ribeiro Pereira, a retired four-star Army general. The world may soon be hearing a lot more from him and a cadre of high-ranking ex-military brass now poised to help lead the world’s fourth-largest democracy. Their ascension has many here worried about a return to the days when the armed forces called the shots in Brazil.

    Heleno is the dean of a small group of former generals behind the rise of presidential contender Jair Bolsonaro, who is predicted to win easily in this Sunday’s election over his leftist opponent Fernando Haddad. A combative far-right former Army captain, Bolsonaro has vowed to crack down on crime, end corruption and steam roll anything in his path.

    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-brazil-election-generals-insight/the-squadron-of-ex-military-men-behind-bolsonaros-rise-in-brazil-idUSKCN1MX1QX

  31. Erdogan Seizes on Saudi Murder as Chance to Upend Middle East

    (Bloomberg) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is trying to turn a horrific murder in Istanbul into a catalyst for changing the balance of power in Saudi Arabia and regaining influence across the Middle East.

    Having remade the region’s largest democracy in his own image, Erdogan is taking aim at rival Saudi Arabia’s leadership amid international outrage over the death of insider-turned critic Jamal Khashoggi at the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul. Erdogan has vowed to reveal what happened to Khashoggi “in all its nakedness” on Tuesday, just as the Saudis kick off a major investment forum in Riyadh. Directly refuting the Saudi account of the slaying could dramatically raise the stakes for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

    https://www.bloombergquint.com/politics/erdogan-seizes-on-saudi-murder-as-chance-to-upend-middle-east#gs.Rbu7_=c

    • Sky sources: Jamal Khashoggi’s body parts found

      Sources have told Sky News the writer had been “cut up” and his face “disfigured”.

      Body parts belonging to murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi have been found, according to Sky sources.

      Sources have told Sky News the writer had been “cut up” and his face “disfigured”.

      One source also suggested Mr Khashoggi’s remains were discovered in the garden of the Saudi consul general’s home.

      https://news.sky.com/story/sky-sources-jamal-khashoggis-body-parts-found-11533202

      • Jamal Khashoggi’s body parts found

        This entire brou-ha-ha reads like some sort of dime store paperback potboiler. Can’t these Bedouin thugs hire better logistics and operations staff?

        Also, am I the only one to question Khashoggi’s overall sanity as to him walking straight into the lion’s den? Admittedly, it’s difficult to imagine that the Saudis would be so unvarnished and bare-knuckled about it but, then again, the House of Saud never has been known for its civility or good taste.

        Seriously folks, this stuff looks like something brought home by Jabba the Hutt’s professional shopper. All of it has the appearance of what you’d expect from a gaggle of unusually cheerful saddle-makers doing interior design for a sky’s-the-limit client who is otherwise incapable of distinguishing his butt from a hot rock.

        Money can get you a lot of things, but it can’t buy enough bleach eyewash to decontaminate my retinas after looking at mere images of such over-upholstered, flying discotheques. Now, imagine having to take someone seriously who has spent gazillions of dollars on his own mobile entry in the Conspicuous Consumption Competition – Special Category: Tastelessness. It’s like having to take seriously someone who would wear Crocs to a (non-culinary) job interview.

        Also, if you have the intestinal fortitude, deep dive into various image groups of private Saudi jets and you’ll see airborne conference rooms with chairs on casters. Doesn’t sound like much, eh?

        I may have only a little experience as a pilot or with general aircraft safety, but I sure as hell wouldn’t want to be in the aforementioned aerial conference room when that jet hits any serious inflight turbulence. Each occupied chair becomes a 100 kilo (220 pound) projectile, while each empty (10-20 kg) seat accelerates even more quickly and ricochets about far more readily. As in: This is what happens when camel drivers are allowed anywhere near the steering column of a high quality passenger jet airliner.

        • The Turk’s tales get increasingly elaborate.
          That corporate media choses to publish them -in lavish, lurid detail – shows just how debased they’ve become.

          What gets me is that the Saudis have spent hundreds of millions of dollars on media manipulation, image consultants, social media packages.

          Yet they’ve gone mute – bumbling like camel-drivers caught in a sandstorm. I can’t understand it.

  32. Turkey demands to know who ordered ‘savage’ Khashoggi killing

    ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday dismissed attempts by Riyadh to blame Jamal Khashoggi’s “savage” killing on rogue operatives, saying the person who ordered the death of the prominent Saudi journalist must “be brought to account”.

    In a speech to parliament about a case that has sparked outrage around the globe, Erdogan did not mention Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who some U.S. lawmakers suspect ordered the killing.

    But he said Turkey would not complete its investigation into Khashoggi’s death until all questions were answered and Turkey was told the identity of a local collaborator Riyadh says disposed of the body.

    “Intelligence and security institutions have evidence showing the murder was planned…. Pinning such a case on some security and intelligence members will not satisfy us or the international community,” he said.

    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-khashoggi-turkey/savage-khashoggi-killing-was-planned-turkeys-leader-idUSKCN1MX1EA

    • DAILYMAIL – Khashoggi’s son glares at Saudi Crown Prince blamed for death of his father as they meet in Riyadh – amid claims writer’s ‘disfigured face’ has been found and Erdogan declares murder WAS planned

      Jamal Khashoggi was killed after entering Saudi Arabia’s embassy in Istanbul
      Turkish President Erdogan said there was strong evidence killing was ‘planned’
      He said a team of Saudi officials had disabled CCTV in the consulate building
      Erdogan said ‘this is a political murder’ and demanded to know ‘who gave orders’
      A report claims some of Khashoggi’s remains have been found in the grounds of the Saudi consul general’s home
      But in his speech, Erdogan had earlier said a corpse had not yet been located
      Pictures have emerged showing Khashoggi’s son meeting Crown Prince today

      https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6306539/Saudi-hit-squad-deliberately-disabled-CCTV-consulate-Turkeys-president-Erdogan-reveals.html

    • Saudi king and crown prince with Kashoggi’s son

      ... hand of the bodyguard on his pistol...

    • DAILY MAIL – ‘Hitman made SEVEN calls to the Saudi Crown Prince’s private office’ on the day Khashoggi was murdered before ‘hit squad sent his fingers back to bin Salman to prove mission’s success’

      Turkey intercepted 14 phone calls by Major General Maher Absulaziz Mutrib
      It was claimed seven were to the office of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman
      Mutrib has been described as the ‘spinal cord’ of 15-strong Saudi death squad
      Hit squad ‘sent Khashoggi’s fingers back to Riyadh to prove mission’s success’
      Turkey’s President Erdogan is set to reveal the ‘naked truth’ over the killing today
      Saudi foreign minister has insisted ‘something like this can never happen again’
      Merkel called killing a ‘monstrosity’ and will halt German arms exports to Riyadh

      […]A source told online news service Middle East Eye that members of the hit squad sent Mr Khashoggi’s fingers back to Riyadh to prove the mission’s success and they were presented to the Crown Prince.

      ‘MBS always said that he will cut off the fingers of every writer who criticises him,’ the source said.

      […]Last night, one Saudi and one Turkish intelligence source told Reuters that a Saudi royal aide sacked over the killing directed the murder by giving orders over Skype.

      Saud Al-Qahtani, who ran social media for the crown prince, allegedly insulted the journalist after he was seized in the consulate before telling a hit squad ‘bring me the head of the dog’.

      He was sacked from his post on Saturday and was made chairman of the Saudi Federation for Cybersecurity, Programming and Drones, a role he had held before.[…]

      https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6304751/Hitman-SEVEN-calls-Saudi-Crown-Princes-private-office-day-Jamal-Khashoggi-murdered.html

    • Trump Defers to Congress on U.S. Response to Khashoggi Killing

      President Donald Trump said he is passing responsibility to Congress for responding to the killing of U.S.-based journalist Jamal Khashoggi at a Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

      “In terms of what we ultimately do I’m going to leave it very much — in conjunction with me — up to Congress,” Trump told reporters Tuesday in the Oval Office. He added that he wants to receive a bipartisan recommendation on penalties.

      Trump also described the killing, which has stirred international outrage, “a very bad original concept.”

      “It was carried out poorly,” Trump added. “And the cover-up was one of the worst in the history of cover-ups.”

      Trump said of the attack on the journalist that “whoever thought of that idea, I think, is in big trouble.”

      Saudi Arabia has most recently said Khashoggi, a prominent critic of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed after a discussion at the consulate erupted into a brawl. That account has been questioned by world leaders, and Turkish officials have leaked accounts of audio recordings indicating the journalist was ambushed, beaten, killed and dismembered.

      Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday publicly challenged Saudi explanations and declared the killing a “ferocious” premeditated murder, demanding that Saudi Arabia hold accountable those responsible.

      Turkish Outrage Over Khashoggi Hints at Changing World Order

      Trump said CIA Director Gina Haspel and other U.S. officials looking into the killing should return from the region Tuesday evening and Wednesday. He said he has received preliminary reports from them but wants to wait to speak with them when they are back in Washington.

      Republicans and Democrats in Congress have both expressed deep skepticism about the Saudi explanation. Some lawmakers have called for stiff penalties on Saudi Arabia including but Congress is out session to campaign for the Nov. 6 election and won’t return until the middle of next month.

      Trump has previously called Saudi versions credible and sent conflicting signals on how the U.S. should respond, last week calling the journalist’s killing “very bad” but repeatedly emphasizing that he didn’t want to endanger U.S. arms sales to Saudi Arabia, Saudi investment in the U.S. or the American alliance with the kingdom.

      He repeated on Tuesday that it would be “foolish” to impede the arms deals or investment flows.

      https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-10-23/trump-leaves-u-s-response-to-khashoggi-killing-up-to-congress

      • What’s with everybody sourcing Middle East Eye and CNN and al-Jiz and misc. MB organs.
        Sorcery, more like…knuckle-&-albino stew…

        Something’s so seriously wrong with this picture, so weird & kinky, our President’s tossing it to the dogs in Congress.
        That says a lot, right there.

    • US eyes revoking visas after Kashoggi killing

      Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says the Trump administration is revoking the visas of some Saudi officials implicated in the death of writer Jamal Khashoggi.

    • Turkey demands to know who ordered ‘savage’ Khashoggi killing

      Priceless. Effing bloody PRICELESS. Who could have known?!?

      Erdogan’s flagrantly opportunistic MOCK OUTRAGE over what assuredly happens in the back rooms and basements of Turkey’s Gendarmerie General Command on a daily basis is laughable in its condescending and ridiculing stance over such routine crimes against humanity.

      From whatever Wiki Wacky Wookie Weirdness™: The Gendarmerie General Command is a service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces responsible for the maintenance of the public order in areas that fall outside the jurisdiction of police forces, as well as assuring internal security and general border control along with carrying out other specific duties assigned to it by certain laws and regulations.

      Put another way: This is Erdogan at his best bottom-feeding worst for the essential nutrients required to fulfill his Sultanic and high-handed vision of what awaits southern (and, eventually, northern) Europe

      ROUTINE DISCLOSURE: Due to machine and bandwidth-related limitations I am now creating some personal nomenclature. Please accept ‘Wiki Wacky Wookie Weirdness™’ as part of a general reference to online information resources. Any specific demands for exact cites and so forth will be met with cheerful compliance wherever I might cooperate. As in: Truth Comes First!

      If and when Wikipedia or Lucas sues me for copyright or IP (Intellectual one-ply ) violations, all of us shall know that NorseRadish has, indeed, arrived.

      To continue: Erdogan’s incessant, belligerent whinging about the roughness of his toilet paper or panty-liners ensures that Western peepules yust might start to lose any sense of sympathy for that nation’s Gobbler elite and the delicate sensitivities of its particular orifices.

      As in: There’s no replacement for kind, professional, and gentle care. Full stop.

      SIDEBAR: Speaking of which, recently, a RN in attendance demonstrated such thoughtful dedication to her work that I was ethically obliged to ask the Ward’s Head Nurse in Charge to take notice and make an entry on that individual’s personal record. I only can hope that everyone here at Vlad Tepes Blog is so thoroughly engaged with their healthcare providers to where nobody is able to ignore or overlook really high quality medical attendance.

      The further I go into this world’s hideous disregard for human decency, the more convinced I become regarding how important it is to begin assuring that these careless sh!tes start to pay increasingly painful prices for their feckless disregard of everything that has made our planet into such a flashing beacon of intelligence.

      That one previous sentence could go on for PAGES, yet, readers of Vlad Tepes Blog certainly have earned a well-deserved reprieve from my usual interminable ranting

  33. https://news.sky.com/story/sky-sources-jamal-khashoggis-body-parts-found-11533202

    Jamal Khashoggi’s body parts found

    Sources have told Sky News the writer had been “cut up” and his face “disfigured”.

    Body parts belonging to murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi have been found, according to Sky sources.

    Sources have told Sky News the writer had been “cut up” and his face “disfigured”.

    One source also suggested Mr Khashoggi’s remains were discovered in the garden of the Saudi consul general’s home.

  34. California company that hires protesters is accused of extortion

    Paid protesters are real.

    Crowds on Demand, a Beverly Hills company that’s an outspoken player in the business of hiring protesters, boasts on its website that it provides its clients with “protests, rallies, flash-mobs, paparazzi events and other inventive PR stunts. … We provide everything including the people, the materials and even the ideas.”

    But according to a lawsuit filed by a Czech investor, Crowds on Demand also takes on more sordid assignments. Zdenek Bakala claims the company has been used to run an extortion campaign against him.

    Bakala has accused Prague investment manager Pavol Krupa of hiring Crowds on Demand to pay protesters to march near his home in Hilton Head, S.C., and to call and send emails to the Aspen Institute and Dartmouth College, where Bakala is on advisory boards, urging them to cut ties to him. Bakala alleges that Krupa has threatened to continue and expand the campaign unless Bakala pays him $23 million.

    Read more here: https://www.sacbee.com/news/business/article220427190.html#storylink=cpy

  35. Judge bars New Hampshire proof of residency requirement for new voters

    (Reuters) – A New Hampshire judge on Monday put on hold a law requiring some voters to present proof of residency when they register, saying it would lengthen lines at polling places and make it difficult for students, disabled voters and others to cast ballots.

    The temporary injunction against the Republican-backed law comes two weeks before U.S. Congressional elections that will determine whether opposition Democrats or U.S. President Donald Trump’s Republicans retain full control of the federal government’s legislative branch.

    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-new-hampshire/judge-bars-new-hampshire-proof-of-residency-requirement-for-new-voters-idUSKCN1MW2Y8

  36. Government bans phrase ‘fake news’

    The government has banned the term “fake news” after urging ministers to use “misinformation” or “disinformation” instead.

    The phrase – a favourite of US President Donald Trump – will no longer appear in policy documents or official papers because it is “a poorly-defined and misleading term that conflates a variety of false information, from genuine error through to foreign interference in democratic processes,” officials said.

    While ministers may speak freely in the House of Commons, any strategy documents referring to election meddling or internet safety will need to use the new definition.

    The ban on the phrase was prompted by an inquiry into “fake news” led by the Digital, Culture, Media and Sports Committee to address the potential for social media to be misused to sway elections. It followed concerns that Russia meddled with the 2016 US presidential election and the UK referendum to leave the EU.

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2018/10/22/government-bans-phrase-fake-news/

  37. Designer babies aren’t futuristic. They’re already here.

    t first, Matthew assumed the weakness in his knee was the sort of orthopedic nuisance that happens when you turn 30. It was weeks before he consulted a doctor, and months before it occurred to him that there could be a connection between his worsening limp and a cousin’s shoulder problem when they were kids. DNA testing confirmed it: Matthew, like his cousin, had a genetic form of dystonia, a condition where muscles contract uncontrollably. Their grandfather most likely had dystonia as well.

    I’d met Matthew only a few months earlier, when he’d married my friend’s daughter, Olivia, in one of those hip old New York hotels with an elegant downtown vibe. Since I was the only genetic counselor of their acquaintance, they brought their questions to me. With their permission, I am sharing their story. I have changed their names to preserve their privacy.

    https://www.technologyreview.com/s/612258/are-we-designing-inequality-into-our-genes/

    • We know “1984” is being used as a training manual so why not “Brave New World”?

      • “We know “1984” is being used as a training manual so why not “Brave New World”?”

        You’ve conspicuously omitted “Atlas Shrugged” and “The Fountainhead”.

        The sheer notion that whichever of these supremely dystopic novels have become anything more or less than utter fiction should be enough to scrape the sh!t right off of your shoes, Virginia.

    • Scientists Create Immature Human Eggs From Stem Cells

      September 20, 20182:00 PM ET

      Scientists say they have taken a potentially important — and possibly controversial — step toward creating human eggs in a lab dish.

      A team of Japanese scientists turned human blood cells into stem cells, which they then transformed into very immature human eggs.

      The eggs are far too immature to be fertilized or make a baby. And much more research would be needed to create eggs that could be useful — and safe — for human reproduction.

      But the work, reported Thursday in the journal Science, is seen by other scientists as an important development.

      https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/09/20/649552734/scientists-create-immature-human-eggs-from-stem-cells

      Scientists Just Made Human Egg Cells from Human Blood for the First Time
      It’s the first step toward being able to mass produce human eggs using other people’s body tissues or blood.

      Scientists in Japan have used human blood to successfully create immature human egg cells in a lab for the first time, according to new research published Thursday in Science. The work is a major breakthrough in stem cell research and may lead the way to babies that can be created in a lab using the body tissues or blood of their relatives.

      Mitinori Saitou, a biologist at Kyoto University who contributed to this pioneering research, managed to produce mouse eggs and sperm from stem cells back in 2012 and used them to breed healthy baby mice. It was the first time that eggs were created from embryonic stem cells.

      https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/nemewx/scientists-just-made-human-egg-cells-from-human-blood-for-the-first-time

  38. CDC investigating more cases of polio-like syndrome
    Doctors are bracing for an upsurge in cases this fall.

    Federal health officials said Monday they now have reports of 155 possible cases of acute flaccid myelitis, a polio-like syndrome that causes muscle weakness and paralysis.

    The latest update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows no change in the number of confirmed cases — 62 cases in 22 states. But state health departments have reported another 28 suspected cases.

    https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/cdc-investigating-more-cases-polio-syndrome-n923041

  39. 2 U.S. warships sail in disputed waters

    OAN Newsroom
    UPDATED 6:23 AM PT — Tues. Oct. 23, 2018

    Two U.S. warships recently cruised through highly contested waters between Taiwan and China amid tension with Beijing.

    The USS Antietam and USS Curtis Wilbur sailed north through the Taiwan Strait Monday.

    In a follow up statement, the Navy explained the exercise was done in accordance with international law and is necessary for keeping the Indo-Pacific region “free and open.”

    https://www.oann.com/2-u-s-warships-sail-in-disputed-waters/

  40. Former top Clinton aide condones harassing Republicans in public

    A former top Clinton aide is claiming that harassing Republicans is protected under the First Amendment.

    Over the weekend, Philippe Reines said protesters are confronting Republican officials in public spaces because it’s — “all that’s left.”

    Numerous Republican officials, including Mitch McConnell, Ted Cruz and Sarah Sanders, have been heckled in public restaurants in recent months.

    https://www.oann.com/former-top-clinton-aide-condones-harassing-republicans-in-public/

    Richard: The Dems are pushing hard to label all of their political enemies as evil and thus make any action taken against them as good. This is not going to end peacefully and probably not going to end for at least one decade and probably many more.

    • Instead of protracted unrest, how about this alternative:
      A law, carefully crafted to define these crimes, a police empowered to enforce it, prosecution with heavy penalties.

      With SERIOUS enforcement – not too dainty apprehension of criminals. ZERO tolerance for disorderly protest.

      And a DoJ RICO crackdown on paid mobs that disrupt civil society. That’s insurrection, not “free association”.

      Ok. I'm a fascist.

  41. Richard: Erdogan is using this murder to create a new Middle East, one with himself on top and the rest under his heel.

    Riyadh must punish all Khashoggi’s ‘savage’ killers: Turkey

    ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday dismissed attempts by Riyadh to blame Jamal Khashoggi’s “savage” killing on rogue operatives, saying the person who ordered the death of the prominent Saudi journalist must “be brought to account”.

    In a speech to parliament about a case that has sparked outrage around the globe, Erdogan did not mention Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who some U.S. lawmakers suspect ordered the killing.

    But he said Turkey would not complete its investigation into Khashoggi’s death until all questions were answered and Turkey was told the identity of a local collaborator Riyadh says disposed of the body.

    “Intelligence and security institutions have evidence showing the murder was planned…. Pinning such a case on some security and intelligence members will not satisfy us or the international community,” he said.

    “The Saudi administration has taken an important step by admitting to the murder. From now on, we expect them to uncover all those responsible for this matter from top to bottom and make them face the necessary punishments,” he said.

    “From the person who gave the order, to the person who carried it out, they must all be brought to account.”

    A Saudi cabinet meeting chaired by King Salman said Riyadh would hold to account those responsible for the killing and those who failed in their duties, whoever they were.

    https://www.oann.com/savage-khashoggi-killing-was-planned-turkeys-leader/

  42. Kremlin says U.S. plan to quit flawed nuclear pact is dangerous

    MOSCOW (Reuters) – The Kremlin said on Tuesday that a landmark nuclear arms treaty Washington says it wants to quit had its weak points, but that the U.S. approach of talking about leaving it without proposing a replacement was dangerous.

    President Vladimir Putin was due to discuss the matter in Moscow later on Tuesday with U.S. President Donald Trump’s national security advisor, John Bolton.

    Bolton visited Moscow a day after Russia said it would be forced to respond in kind to restore the military balance with the United States if Trump followed through on his threat to quit the treaty and began developing new missiles.

    Signed by then-U.S. President Ronald Reagan and reformist Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in 1987, the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty required elimination of all short- and intermediate-range land-based nuclear and conventional missiles held by both countries in Europe.

    Its demise could raise the prospect of a new arms race and of Europe once again hosting U.S. land-based ballistic and cruise missiles, something that would make it a target for Moscow.

    Gorbachev, now 87, has warned that unravelling it could have catastrophic consequences. Countries such as Poland have, however, backed Trump’s move.

    https://www.oann.com/kremlin-says-u-s-plan-to-quit-flawed-nuclear-pact-is-dangerous/

    Richard:Russia wasn’t doing what the treaty requires them to do and won’t do what any subsequent treaty requires, they didn’t keep any treaty made when they were the Soviet Union and we have no reason to expect them to keep any new ones.

  43. New study suggests that 25% of students have PTSD as result of 2016 election
    By LU Staff October 23, 2018

    We are not a nation of immigrants, as Democrats are fond of saying in support of their open border policy. We are, however, a nation of snowflakes, judging from the findings of a new study published in the October Journal of American College Health.

    Researchers surveyed 769 students at Arizona State University and found that one-quarter of them suffered distress levels similar to what’s seen among witnesses to a mass shooting.

    Via the Daily Mail:

    https://libertyunyielding.com/2018/10/23/new-study-suggests-that-25-of-students-have-ptsd-as-result-of-2016-election/

  44. France: Police evict 1,800 migrants from Grande-Synthe camp

    French police evicted over 1,800 migrants staying at the Grande-Synthe refugee camp near the northern city of Dunkirk on Tuesday.

    Police forces and vehicles were seen at the camp, while officers escorted migrants outside of the camp.

  45. France’s niqab ban ‘violates’ human rights, UN declares as it demands compensation for women ‘confined at home and marginalised’

    U.N. Human Rights Committee said on Tuesday it would review French laws
    The Committee said the ban harmed their right to manifest their religious beliefs
    The country now has 180 days to report back and say what action it will take
    France has an international obligation to comply with committee ‘in good faith’

    France’s ban on the niqab has been ruled a violation of human rights, The U.N. Human Rights Committee said on Tuesday.

    In a landmark ruling the UN moved to support wearers of the full-body Islamic veil and ordered France to repay two French women convicted for wearing niqabs in 2012.

    The committee said in a statement that France had failed to make the case for its so-called ‘burqa ban’ and ordered it to review the legislation.

    A panel of independent experts who oversee countries´ compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, said France had 180 days to report back to say what actions it had taken.

    The panel’s findings are not legally binding but could influence French courts.

    The committee called for the women to be compensated and for a review of the 2010 law that forbids people from publicly wearing clothing that conceals their face.

    ‘The French law disproportionately harmed the petitioners’ right to manifest their religious beliefs,’ the committee said in a statement.

    It added that it was not convinced by France’s claim that the ban was necessary for security and social reasons.

    The two French women were convicted in 2012 for wearing the niqab, a veil with an opening for the eyes.

    ‘The ban, rather than protecting fully veiled women, could have the opposite effect of confining them to their homes, impeding their access to public services and marginalising them,’ the committee said.

    The UN Human Rights Committee, made up of independent experts, ensures countries stick to their human rights commitments but it does not have enforcement powers.

    It said the French ban was ‘too sweeping’ but that governments could still make people show their faces in specific circumstances.

    The committee’s decision reignites a debate that has raged in France for years over Muslim headwear and other religious clothing.

    The debate has regularly pitted supporters of the country’s secular constitution against those who argue for religious freedoms.

    The 2010 law had strong public support when brought in under former president Nicolas Sarkozy. But many said it targeted the tiny minority of Muslim women in France who wear Islamic veils.

    Condemned by critics for pandering to far-right voters but backed by many women rights activists, the law made France the first European country to ban garments that cover the face.

    An estimated five million Muslims live in France and women who ignore the ban can be fined up to 150 euros ($170).

    Other EU countries, including Denmark, Austria and Belgium, have also implemented similar full-face veil bans.

    more :

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6306593/Frances-ban-body-Islamic-veil-violates-human-rights-U-N-rights-panel.html

    • UNHRO – France: Banning the niqab violated two Muslim women’s freedom of religion – UN experts

      GENEVA (23 October 2018) — In two landmark decisions, the United Nations Human Rights Committee found that France violated the human rights of two women by fining them for wearing the niqab, a full-body Islamic veil.

      The two decisions, which were considered concurrently since they posed identical legal questions, are available to read in full (in French): 1 and 2.

      The Human Rights Committee received the two complaints in 2016, after two French women were prosecuted and convicted in 2012 for wearing articles of clothing intended to conceal their faces in public. France in 2010 adopted a law stipulating that “No one may, in a public space, wear any article of clothing intended to conceal the face.” The law has the effect of banning the wearing of the full Islamic veil in public, which covers the whole body including the face, leaving just a narrow slit for the eyes.

      The Committee found that the general criminal ban on the wearing of the niqab in public introduced by the French law disproportionately harmed the petitioners’ right to manifest their religious beliefs, and that France had not adequately explained why it was necessary to prohibit this clothing. In particular, the Committee was not persuaded by France’s claim that a ban on face covering was necessary and proportionate from a security standpoint or for attaining the goal of “living together” in society. The Committee acknowledged that States could require that individuals show their faces in specific circumstances for identification purposes, but considered that a general ban on the niqab was too sweeping for this purpose. The Committee also concluded that the ban, rather than protecting fully veiled women, could have the opposite effect of confining them to their homes, impeding their access to public services and marginalizing them.

      “The decisions are not directed against the notion of secularity (laïcité), nor are they an endorsement of a custom which many on the Committee, including myself, regard as a form of oppression of women,” said Yuval Shany, Chair of the Committee. Rather, he explained, the decisions represented the position of the Committee that a general criminal ban did not allow for a reasonable balance between public interests and individual rights.

      The case was the first of its kind to be considered by the Committee. While it regularly receives and rules on the practical application of civil and political rights in individual cases, it had not until now considered the question of laws which had the effect of banning the full Islamic veil.

      The next step is for France within 180 days to report to the Committee on the action it has taken to implement the Committee’s decision, including compensation of the two petitioners and measures taken to prevent similar violations in the future, including by reviewing the law in question.

      ENDS
      https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=23750&LangID=E

  46. Khashoggi Rejiggers Middle East at a Horrible Cost

    BESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 984, October 23, 2018

    EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi on the premises of the Saudi consulate in Istanbul threatens to upend the fundaments of fault lines across the Middle East.

    The killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul threatens to severely disrupt the US-Saudi alliance that holds together many of the Middle East’s fault lines.

    An investigation into Khashoggi’s fate mandated by members of the US Congress and a possible meeting between President Donald Trump and the journalist’s Turkish fiancée, Hatice Cengiz, could result in a US and European embargo on arms sales to Saudi Arabia and impact the kingdom’s brutal proxy war with Iran in Yemen.

    It would also project Saudi Arabia as a rogue state and call into question US and Saudi allegations that Iran is the Middle East’s main state supporter of terrorism.

    Those allegations were a key reason for the US withdrawal – with the backing of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Israel – from the 2015 international agreement that curbed Iran’s nuclear program and for the re-imposition of crippling economic sanctions.

    https://besacenter.org/perspectives-papers/jamal-khashoggi-middle-east/

  47. Social Media Titans Splurge on Dems

    Google, Facebook and Twitter staffs splurge on Democrats ahead of midterms

    President Trump has repeatedly called out Google, Facebook and Twitter for liberal bias. Two weeks until the midterms, it would appear he may have had a point.

    Employees of the tech giants have given a total of $2.4 million to House and Senate candidates, according to Federal Election Commission filings. Of that, only $176,000 – just 8 percent – went to Republicans.

    By comparison, in the last midterms in 2014, Google, Facebook and Twitter workers gave a total of $838,000 to congressional candidates, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics. Of that, $679,000 went to Democrats and $259,000 went to Republicans.

    In July, President Trump accused Twitter of “shadow banning” prominent Republicans. “Not good,” he tweeted. He also accused Google in a series of tweets in August of playing up negative articles about him in search results.

    https://www.foxnews.com/tech/google-facebook-and-twitter-staffs-splurge-on-democrats-ahead-of-midterms

  48. ARMY INVASION: Honduran Caravan Includes Military-Aged Male Migrants From Bangladesh, Haiti and Congo

    The migrant caravan from Honduras has been infiltrated by people from Bangladesh, Haiti, Congo and Sri Lanka, according to embedded reporters.

    Thousands of military-aged, virile mostly Honduran males breached the Guatemala border gate over the weekend and stormed the Mexican border bridge; Mexican authorities ultimately let the caravan through.

    A second caravan of 2,000 migrants formed on Sunday and started marching to Guatemala with a plan to reach the U.S. as their final destination.

    According to a Univision correspondent, Bangladeshis joined the migrant caravan before it crossed from Guatemala into Mexico.

    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2018/10/invasion-honduran-caravan-includes-military-aged-male-migrants-from-bangladesh-haiti-and-congo/

    • Reporter with migrant caravan: Bangladeshis joined it; at least some detained by authorities
      Benny Johnson, Daily Caller

      [Ed. – Bangladesh has plenty of peaceful Muslims who have been preyed on by the radical jihadis Bangladesh also has. The question is which ones, having arrived in Central America, would join a caravan of migrants determined to crash the U.S. border. I know which ones I’d bet on.]

      https://libertyunyielding.com/2018/10/23/reporter-with-migrant-caravan-bangladeshis-joined-it-at-least-some-detained-by-authorities/

      Bangladeshis Joined Migrant Caravan In Guatemala, Univision Correspondent Reports

      A Spanish language reporter who has spent weeks embedded with the migrant caravan said in a Friday report that people from Bangladesh had joined the mass of people trying to cross from Guatemala into Mexico.

      Univision correspondent Francisco Santa Anna reported from the bridge separating Guatemala and Mexico. The bridge has been packed with thousands of migrants demanding access to Mexico, with the ultimate goal of crossing the border of the United States illegally. The caravan has now swelled to many thousands.

      The Bangladeshis, he said, were detained in an immigration facility, though it’s not clear what happened to them after their detention. (RELATED:Train Of Central American Migrants Swells In Number Despite Warnings From Trump)

      “The borders in Central American are not as strong as the U.S., which makes it possible for people from Panama and Ecuador to cross easily,” Santa Anna said on Univision. “They cross from Costa Rica, then later go through Guatemala and eventually make it into our country.”

      “Yesterday when we were traveling through Guatemala, we noticed people from El Salvador and even people from Bangladesh,” he continued. “Can you imagine what they had to do to get here? They infiltrated themselves in this caravan and tried to cross with the crowd. That would have benefited them greatly.”

      https://dailycaller.com/2018/10/22/univision-caravan-bangladesh/

  49. Erdogan-Linked Activist Looks to Form Political Party for Migrants in Vienna (breitbart, Oct 23, 2018)
    https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2018/10/23/former-member-pro-erdogan-group-form-migrant-party-vienna/

    “The former vice-president of a group linked to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an is forming a political party in Vienna to counter “xenophobia” and to specifically give a voice to migrants.

    The new migrant party, which so far has no name, is the brainchild of Hakan Gördü, the ex-vice-president of the Union of European Turkish Democrats (UETD) and is allegedly not just a party for Muslims, Kronen Zeitung reports.

    Mr Gördü is not the first person in Austria to demand migrants have greater representation as migrant parties, like the New Movement for the Future (NBZ), another Turkish-migrant founded party, have attempted to enter politics in the past.

    Gördü resigned from the UETD citing safety concerns after attacking critics of Erdo?an’s AKP on Austrian television as the organisation was accused of calling on its members to report anyone they thought could be linked with the July 2016 failed coup attempt to Turkish authorities.

    At the time, he also defended Turks who took to the streets to support Erdo?an in Vienna saying: “We did not take to the streets for Erdo?an, we took to the streets for the Turkish people’s pro-democracy movement.”

    “Why are people on the street? I think one reason is that they do not have enough representatives in Austrian politics,” he added.

    The rallies were largely condemned across the Austrian political spectrum with Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, who was the foreign minister at the time, calling on Turks to be loyal to Austria or they were welcome to leave.

    Since the coup attempt, the Turkish government is believed to have tried to expose and even intimidate opposition Kurds and members of the Gülen movement which Turkey blames for the failed coup. In Germany, imams of the DITIB, the Turkish-German Islamic association, even admitted to spying on behalf of the Erdo?an regime.

    Austria has also had problems with imams of the Turkish-Islamic Union for Cultural and Social Cooperation in Austria (ATIB) which came under heavy criticism earlier this year with the Austrian government promising to expel up to 40 of them.

    Gördi describes his new party, which he seeks to run in 2020, as a civil rights movement saying: “Our group consists of Serbian, Chechen groups, Turkish bloggers, Austrian activists, Pakistanis, Afghans.” But he admitted they all were focused on combatting the recent burqa ban and were against “Islam-bashing” despite not officially being a Muslim party.”

  50. Council of Europe Wants Turkey to Stop ‘Foreign Funding of Islam’ to Expand Political Influence (breitbart, Oct 23, 2018)
    https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2018/10/23/council-europe-wants-turkey-stop-foreign-funding-islam-expand-political-influence/

    “The Council of Europe has asked the Islamist government of Turkey to stop funding Islam overseas for political purposes.

    The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, an intergovernmental organisation which predates the European Union, has called on its members to “put an end to any foreign funding of Islam which is used for the purpose of national political expansion into other States under the guise of Islam,” according to the Stockholm Center for Freedom.

    Turkey’s Directorate of Religious Affairs, known as the Diyanet, funds and administers a huge number of mosques in Europe — almost 1,000 in Germany alone, where Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdo?an personally opened a gigantic ‘mega mosque’ in Cologne on a recent visit.

    While many European politicians feel challenging the Islamist politician would be politically incorrect, there are increasing concerns about how Turkish-funded Islamic institutions are being used to extend Erdo?an’s influence in the continent, particularly over the increasingly large Turkish diaspora in Western Europe and the Balkans.

    There is some evidence that the Diyanet’s mosques are effectively arms of the Turkish state, with the German authorities uncovering evidence that their clerics were spying for Ankara in 2016, with a particular focus on diaspora Turkish nationals opposed to the Erdo?an regime.

    Austria, under its new conservative-nationalist coalition, has been one of the few countries to take robust action against Erdo?an’s religious networks, shutting down seven Diyanet mosques and deporting around 60 imams and their families as part of a promised “fight against political Islam”.

    The response of the Turkish government to Austria’s move against its religious institutions was apocalyptic in tone, with Erdo?an warning that Vienna was “leading the world towards a war between the cross and the crescent”.

    “They say they’re going to kick our religious men out of Austria. Do you think we will not react if you do such a thing?” he added.

    An Asiatic country with only a small foothold in Europe geographically — a legacy of the Ottoman conquests — Turkey nevertheless enjoys representation in the Council of Europe, and tried to sabotage the Parliamentary Assembly’s resolution against the Diyanet.

    Their efforts were unsuccessful, however, with French representative André Vallini expressing the concerns of many in Europe about Turkey’s activities, which have been described as “Islamo-nationalist” in character.

    “You have an organisation with 100,000 people under your president, Mr Erdo?an,” Vallini said to the Islamist leader’s representative.

    “Please understand that many [Council of Europe members] are frightened about what is said in our countries. We do not even understand the language.””

    • J.E. Dyer, October 22, 2017:
      I think of Turkey as more of a wild card, because of her very direct concerns about the geomilitary movements of everyone involved: Iran, the Kurds, Russia. Turkey is directly affected, and in more than one dimension, by each of them. Add to that the growing extremism inside Turkey, and the neo-Ottoman vision of Erdogan, and the mix is volatile.

      Turkey has a very large army, and geographic advantages that make it inadvisable to engage in combat with her lightly. Turkey has been relatively quiet up to now, but the way to wake her up is to suffer Iran to edge closer and closer to her southeastern border with Iraq behind a network of agreements with Kurds. Russia bustling about holding a briefcase in one hand and air defense radars in the other serves to pour gasoline on the flames.

      (Don’t assume, by the way, that a Turkey on the move will choose to move east. Or move in an obvious, linear fashion, for that matter. We’re back in a world in which moving west to empower oneself to the east is an intelligent strategy; and there’s more than one way to do it. Society and politics in the Balkans and Germany are productive lines of effort, but if I were Turkey, I’d be all over Italy and Libya right now.)

      https://libertyunyielding.com/2017/10/22/turning-point-irans-influence-iraq-tipping-dominance/
      …..
      Me: A year later, looks the Turk’s penetrated the Council of Europe.