Contributor’s links for June 18, 2019

Daily Links Post graphic

Each day at just after midnight Eastern, a post like this one is created for contributors and readers of this site to upload news links and video links on the issues that concern this site. Most notably, Islam and its effects on Classical Civilization, and various forms of leftism from Soviet era communism, to postmodernism and all the flavours of galloping statism and totalitarianism such as Nazism and Fascism which are increasingly snuffing out the classical liberalism which created our near, miraculous civilization the West has been building since the time of Socrates.

This document was written around the time this site was created, for those who wish to understand what this site is about. And while our understanding of the world and events has grown since then, the basic ideas remain sound and true to the purpose.

So please post all links, thoughts and ideas that you feel will benefit the readers of this site to the comments under this post each day. And thank you all for your contributions.

This is the new Samizdat. We must use it while we can.

About Eeyore

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

108 Replies to “Contributor’s links for June 18, 2019”

  1. China: The Perfect High-Tech Totalitarian State

    by Judith Bergman
    June 18, 2019 at 5:00 am

    https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14365/china-totalitarian-technology

    The 30th anniversary on June 4 of the Chinese regime’s 1989 massacre of pro-democracy protesters in Tiananmen Square served to highlight the extreme censorship in China under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and President Xi Jinping.

    The Tiananmen anniversary is referred to euphemistically in mainland China, as ‘the June Fourth Incident’. The regime there evidently fears that any talk, let alone public commemoration, of that historical event will stir up anti-regime unrest, which could endanger the Chinese Communist Party’s absolute power.

    The internet in China is under control of the Chinese Communist Party, especially through the rigorous censorship practiced by the party’s top internet censor, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), established in 2014. In May 2017, according to a Reuters report, the CAC introduced strict guidelines requiring all internet platforms that produce or distribute news “to be managed by party-sanctioned editorial staff” who have been “approved by the national or local government internet and information offices, while their workers must get training and reporting credentials from the central government”.

    Freedom House, in “Freedom on the Net 2018,” its 2018 assessment of freedom on the internet in 65 countries, placed China dead last. Reporters without Borders, in its 2019 worldwide index of press freedom, ranked China 177 out of 180 countries, surpassed only by Eritrea, North Korea and Turkmenistan. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), at the time of its 2018 prison census, counted at least 47 journalists jailed in China, but according to the CPJ, the number could be much higher: “authorities are deliberately preventing information from getting out”. In March 2019, the CPJ was investigating at least a dozen additional cases, including the arrests in December 2018 of 45 contributors to the human rights and religious-liberty magazine, Bitter Winter, which China targets as a “foreign hostile website”.

    • 1. Kept in ignorance and over sensitized with reported calamaties caused by the Western World.

      Hypnosis. The One Party.

      2. Islam takes you down the unforgiving line to a choice of perpetual virgins or eternal torture.

      3. The rest are tattooing and fantasy-masturbating on themselves and others for a new identity to transport out of here, and never will.

      And the crying out for someone to fix it for them as they fixed for them before… and we’re back to 1. 2. and 3. managing the herd.

  2. Venezuela: “A Mafia State”

    by Jiri Valenta and Leni Friedman Valenta
    June 18, 2019 at 4:00 am

    https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14407/venezuela-mafia-state
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    In an op-ed in the New York Times on June 11, Abraham F. Lowenthal and David Smilde propose a humanistic vision for the current Oslo negotiations between representatives of the regime of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and the democratic opposition, led by Juan Guaidó — recognized by more than 50 countries as Venezuela’s interim president.

    According to Lowenthal and Smilde, “The divisions within Maduro’s coalition laid bare during the failed April 30 uprising, coupled with Juan Guaidó’s unsuccessful call for the support of the armed forces, may have finally persuaded key people on both sides that the only viable way forward is a negotiated transition.”

    To support this argument, the authors provide examples of previous “negotiated transitions” — such as Chile in 1988 and Poland in 1989. Neither case can be applied to Maduro’s Venezuela, however, which is neither a military dictatorship, like that of Augusto Pinochet, nor a classical Communist regime.

    Venezuela — as described in an interview with The Hill in May by Navy Admiral Craig Faller, head of U.S. Southern Command — is “a mafia… an illicit business that [Maduro is] running with his 2,000 corrupt generals. It’s ruining the country. And the effects of that are compounding every other security problem in our neighborhood. Every security problem is made worse by Venezuela.”

    In his interview, Faller pointed to Venezuela’s gold and drug trades, which are helping to fund the remnants of Colombia’s FARC communist guerrillas. “The data and statistics show that their numbers have increased because of what they can gain in terms of freedom of maneuver and the economic opportunity that they get from illicit trafficking and partnering with the Maduro regime,” Faller said. “Illicit narco trafficking through Venezuela is up some 40 percent.”

  3. Houthi Leader Threatens to Target Int’l Navigation (aawsat, Jun 18, 2019)
    https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1773276/houthi-leader-threatens-target-int%E2%80%99l-navigation

    “Head of the Houthis’ Supreme Political Council Mahdi al-Mashat has threatened to target the commercial navigation waterways and oil tankers in the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea, saying that they possess missiles that can reach Egypt and Sudan.

    Mashat affirmed that the militias would continue to target cities and airports in Saudi Arabia.

    While the Houthis reneged on Mashat’s statements, published by Saba News Agency, claiming that the website was hacked by ‘hostile parties’, reliable sources reported to Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that internal conflict among the militias was the reason behind denying these statements coinciding with the briefing of UN Special Envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths before the Security Council.

    Mashat’s statements also referred to the Iranian support to Houthis and to the group’s backing to Iran in its conflict with the US.

    According to the sources, in an interview with Almasirah Channel, Mashat threatened to target international navigation but the spokesman of the group Mohamed Abdel Salam Fleeta, head of the board of directors of Almasirah, ordered not to broadcast the interview.

    They noted that Mashat was upset by not publishing the interview and ordered his followers to broadcast what has been stated in it and announce that it will be aired later on. Then later, Houthi leader Abdul Malik Al-Houthi intervened to remove the statements from the website.”

  4. Afghanistan’s World Cup players in restaurant row (saudigazette, Jun 18, 2019)
    http://saudigazette.com.sa/article/569287/Sports/Afghanistans-World-Cup-players-in-restaurant-row

    “Police were called after members of the Afghanistan squad were involved in an altercation at a Manchester restaurant on Monday.

    The incident took place the night before Afghanistan’s World Cup match against England at Manchester’s Old Trafford, with the minnows going down to a colossal 150-run defeat — their fifth loss in as many matches at the tournament.

    According to the BBC, the unnamed squad members took exception to being filmed by a member of the public, and confronted him.

    But Afghanistan captain Gulbadin Naib, speaking to reporters after the match, played down the incident by saying he had no fresh information to offer on the alleged altercation…”

    • Maybe they would do better if they used a dead goat. Afghans seem to like sports with dead goats or kidnapped boys.

  5. FBI releases files showing bureau monitored activities of ‘Rules for Radicals’ author Saul Alinsky

    The FBI on Tuesday released more than 400 pages of its files on left-wing activist Saul Alinsky that showed the bureau, for years, monitored the community organizer and investigated accusations that he was a communist.

    Alinsky, who authored the book “Rules for Radicals” and was known for his activism in Chicago, died in 1978. A self-described “radical,” Alinsky never identified as a communist. But the FBI, for years, harbored suspicions about his sympathies.

    The FBI files show the bureau received a tip in 1940 questioning if Alinsky was a communist. The FBI in Chicago wrote in one document that the bureau was interested in obtaining information about whether Alisnky was involved in organizing a “communistic or subversive group.”

    A 1941 FBI document, though, said the Chicago Police Department conducted an investigation and found “no information that he is communistically inclined.”

    https://www.foxnews.com/politics/fbi-releases-files-showing-bureau-monitored-activities-of-rules-for-radicals-author-saul-alinsky

    https://vault.fbi.gov/saul-alinsky/saul-alinsky-part-01-of-01/view

  6. Greece, Cyprus pressure EU to act over Turkey gas drilling as Ankara digs in (memo, Jun 18, 2019)
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20190618-greece-cyprus-pressure-eu-to-act-over-turkey-gas-drilling-as-ankara-digs-in/

    “Cyprus and Greece heaped pressure on the EU on Tuesday to take action against Turkey over gas drilling in disputed waters, as Ankara said it would step up exploration in a move that could further strain ties with Western allies.

    Turkey and Cyprus are at odds over natural resources in the eastern Mediterranean in a long-simmering conflict which has escalated in the past month, with Cyprus threatening to jeopardise European Union enlargement talks if it does not take action against Ankara.

    Ankara, which does not have diplomatic relations with Cyprus, claims that certain areas in Cyprus’s offshore maritime zone, known as an EEZ, fall under the jurisdiction of Turkey or of Turkish Cypriots, who have their own breakaway state in the north of the island recognised only by Turkey.

    Cyprus says that defining its EEZ is its sovereign right.

    A Turkish drilling ship, the Fatih, has been anchored west of Cyprus since early May and recently began drilling.

    Turkey’s energy minister Fatih Donmez was quoted as saying on Tuesday that a second ship, the Yavuz, would be dispatched to the area on Thursday.

    “We are now at around 3,000 metres deep. We target to drill to around 5,000-5,500 metres deep from sea level,” Donmez was quoted as saying by Anadolu Agency. “We have 100-120 days of a schedule for this task. We will have reached our targeted point at the end of July,” he said.

    EU member Cyprus and its close ally Greece have urged Brussels to take action against Turkey for what they regard as a clear infringement of Cyprus’s sovereign rights. In a phone conversation with European Council President Donald Tusk on Tuesday, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said Brussels should “unreservedly condemn” Turkey’s actions.

    Cyprus on Monday threatened to block any agreement to admit new members to the EU unless Brussels toughens its line towards Turkey. On Tuesday, Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades said he was confident the EU would take a tougher stance towards Turkey.

    The Fatih is in an area Turkey considers its continental shelf, while the Yavuz would be dispatched to an area Turkish Cypriots consider they have rights over. The Turkish Cypriots, supported by Ankara, claim a share in any offshore wealth as a partner in the establishment of the Republic of Cyprus in 1960.”

  7. Gunmen kill 41 people in central Mali: mayor (reuters, Jun 18, 2019)
    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mali-security/gunmen-kill-41-people-in-central-mali-mayor-idUSKCN1TJ2E2

    “Unidentified gunmen on motorbikes attacked two villages in central Mali, killing at least 41 people in a part of the country where ethnic reprisal attacks have surged in recent months, a local mayor said on Tuesday.

    The attacks on Monday evening on the villages of Yoro and Gangafani 2 compound a dire security situation in central Mali, where ethnic militias regularly slaughter civilians from rival groups and Islamist militants are also active.

    The victims of Monday’s raids were mostly ethnic Dogons, said Issiaka Ganame, the mayor of Yoro, where 24 people were killed. Another 17 died in Gangafani 2.

    “About 100 unidentified armed men circulating on motos all of a sudden invaded Yoro and fired on the population,” Ganame told Reuters. “Then they descended on the village of Gangafani 2, which is about 15 km (9 miles) away.”

    The tit-for-tat violence in recent months has largely pitted Dogon hunters against Fulani herders. Attackers believed to be Fulani raided a Dogon village last week, killing at least 35 people…”

  8. Air strike hits warehouse co-owned by Italy’s ENI in Libya (reuters, Jun 18, 2019)
    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-libya-security-noc/air-strike-hits-warehouse-co-owned-by-italys-eni-in-libya-idUSKCN1TJ2Z9

    “A storehouse belonging to Libya’s Mellitah Oil & Gas, a joint-venture between the National Oil Corporation (NOC) and Italy’s ENI, was damaged in an air strike on Tuesday, wounding three workers, the state oil firm said in a statement.

    It was the first confirmed attack on a foreign oil asset since eastern forces led by Khalifa Haftar started a campaign with ground and air forces to take the capital Tripoli, held by the internationally recognized government.

    “We are witnessing the destruction of the corporation’s facilities before our eyes,” NOC chairman Mustafa Sanalla said after the incident.

    NOC said “material losses” were significant but did not say what had been inside the warehouse in Tajoura, an eastern suburb of Tripoli home to several military barracks.

    Mellitah exports oil and gas through a port some 100 km (62 miles) west of Tripoli near the Tunisian border.”

  9. UAE court upholds man’s 10-year jail sentence for promoting hatred (gulfnews, Jun 18, 2019)
    https://gulfnews.com/uae/crime/uae-court-upholds-mans-10-year-jail-sentence-for-promoting-hatred-1.64678883

    “Abu Dhabi: A top court upheld the 10-year jail sentence for a man found guilty of defaming the UAE through social media channels, promoting sectarian feelings and hatred that would damage the country’s social harmony and unity.

    The State Security Court at the Federal Supreme Court on Monday ordered the confiscation of all communication devices used in the crimes, deletion of the statements and closed the websites and social networking accounts used in the offences.

    The court rejected the appeal filed by the Emirati defendant and confirmed the verdict issued by the Abu Dhabi Court of Appeals in March.

    The State Security Prosecutors had charged the man with deliberately damaging the political relations of the UAE with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Kingdom of Bahrain, the Kingdom of Morocco and the Republic of Turkey by setting up and running social media accounts on Facebook and YouTube.

    The defendant was also charged with the publishing of offensive articles and comments that carry obscene words, insults, false accusations and lies about the policies of those countries, and the publication of articles that defame the leaders of these countries, as stated in investigation records.

    The indictment also said that the accused had used his accounts to publish videos, articles, false information and rumours that would incite strife, hatred, sectarianism and racism, damage national unity and disturb public order, and abuse of security services in the country.

    The man was also charged with posting video clips and articles bearing statements that are offensive to the people of the house of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and his esteemed companions, causing sectarian strife and discrimination between doctrines.

    He was found guilty of disseminating information and broadcasting false statements that would disturb public security as set out in the investigations.

    The prosecution also accused him of photographing sensitive security places contrary to the ban issued by competent authorities.”

  10. Refugee Girls in Lebanon and Jordan Face Sexual Violence and Early Marriage (moroccoworldnews, Jun 18, 2019)
    https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2019/06/276151/refugee-girls-lebanon-jordan-violence/

    “Sexual gender-based violence (SGBV) is a strong concern for displaced Syrians around the world, but this issue is especially heightened in host countries where economic opportunities are limited. SGBV includes psychological and emotional abuse, forced marriage, child marriage, sexual assault, and rape.

    This type of violence occurs in both refugee camps and non-camp settings, and can be perpetrated by fellow refugees or natives of the host country.

    According to the Jordan INGO Forum (JIF), economic pressures and stressful living conditions can trigger what psychologists refer to as negative coping mechanisms.

    Within families, examples of negative coping mechanisms include using child marriage, labor, and trafficking to ameliorate financial hardships. Psychological distress can also generate sexual assault and abuse within the home, often in the form of intimate-partner violence.

    Although the primary targets of SGBV in refugee communities are women and girls, men and boys are also vulnerable to sexual violence, based on UNHCR regional studies. The perpetrators of this violence are typically male family members or older boys and men from local communities, both refugee and host.

    Refugee girls’ mobility in Lebanon is restricted by looming threats organization’ threats of sexual assault and harassment outside the home. In a study conducted by the humanitarian organization Plan International, Syrian girls in Beirut reported being harassed and chased by men and boys, and expressed fears of being kidnapped or raped.

    In Lebanon, Syrian refugee girls are getting married and having children at a young age, according to Plan International’s research. Colin Lee, the regional program director for the Middle East says, “child marriage is on the rise because parents are so fearful for their daughters’ safety.”

    The Higher Population Council’s 2017 report on child marriage in Jordan offers similar reasoning: “for families, marriage seemed the only option for their daughters to be safe and provided for, even at 14 years old.”

    Early marriages amongst Syrian refugees in Jordan has been on the rise for several years, with many Syrian refugee girls getting married to older Jordanian men.

    Child marriage allows many refugee families to ease financial burdens and can offer peace of mind regarding the safety of their daughters. However, this survival strategy is ultimately damaging to young refugee girls, who are forced to make the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of their family’s livelihood.”

  11. BCIJ Dismantles 5 Member Terror Cell in Northern Morocco (moroccoworldnews, Jun 18, 2019)
    https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2019/06/276078/bcij-terror-cell-morocco-terrorism/

    “Morocco’s Central Bureau of Judicial Investigation (BCIJ) dismantled on Tuesday, June 18 a five-member terror cell operating in Tetouan, Northern Morocco.

    A statement from the BCIJ said that the five suspects, aged between 23 and 33, are under investigation for links to ISIS.

    During the arrest, BCIJ seized several electronic devices, knives, and military uniforms.

    Preliminary investigations show that the suspect pledged allegiance to the self-styled “emir” of ISIS, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

    The suspects, according to BCIJ, are also accused of promoting terrorism and extremist propaganda. The cell is suspected of having links with terrorists in conflict zones, such as Syria and Iraq.

    The group are suspected of plotting terror attacks across the country. The statement added that the five cell members will be brought to justice immediately after investigation…”

  12. Government responds to ‘defamatory and malicious’ BBC report about Pakistani military (tribune, Jun 18, 2019)
    https://tribune.com.pk/story/1995137/1-govt-files-complaint-bbc-defamatory-malicious-report/

    “In response to a “defamatory and malicious story” published by a foreign news outlet against the Pakistani security forces, the government of Pakistan has recently filed a complaint to demand an apology.

    Published on June 2 by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the story titled ‘Uncovering Pakistan’s secret human rights abuses’ alleged the Pakistani security forces of perpetrating widespread violence against the residents of the erstwhile FATA during its anti-terror operations, the complaint said.

    Filed by the Ministry of Information, Broadcasting and National Heritage, the complaint stated the article – carried by both BBC English and BBC Urdu – “not only present[ed] a fabricated theme but it also violated journalistic ethos”.

    The government also prepared a detailed complaint dossier that dismissed the story as unfounded, biased and one-sided, stating that it failed to incorporate the viewpoints of all stakeholders and was published without citing credible sources.

    Carrying out a detailed analysis of the “baseless accusations” levelled against the Pakistani military, the complaint cited BBC’s own editorial guidelines in the report to explain how the story violated them.

    “Without taking the version of the accused party, [the claims made in the article] are in clear violation of fair, factual and unbiased journalistic standards and BBC’s editorial policy,” it said.

    Calling out BBC’s ‘agenda setting’

    In its detailed analysis of the story, the ministry of information stated that the accusations against the Pakistani military for “killing innocent civilians” during the terrorist operation in North Waziristan does not have an “iota of truth to it,” and the claims made in the article are “not backed by any evidence.”

    The dossier mentioned that the office of Pakistan army’s Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) received an email from the Asia editor of the BBC, Simon Fraser, on March 28, 2019, claiming that the outlet had gathered “evidence” regarding the matter.

    According to the dossier, the ISPR – after thoroughly analysing the “questions and the vague statements” contained in the email – responded by calling the “expression of [the] email highly judgmental,” and suggested the BBC hold an interaction with the ISPR to know facts before publishing the story.

    Per the complaint, the BBC – in violation of its own editorial policy – paid no heed to the suggestion and went ahead with the publication of their “one-sided story” without including the account of the ISPR.

    Referring to the headline of the story, the Pakistani government’s response pointed out that the use of the word “secret” is misleading because Pakistan is fighting against terrorism and all of its past and present military operations had been undertaken after the approval of the government and in line with the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy (UNGCTS-2006).

    It also dismissed the use of the word “abuse” in the headline as “incorrect in the said context,” terming it “part of the disinformation campaign against the Pakistan Armed Forces.”

    Replying to the story’s claim that the government of Prime Minister Imran Khan did not respond to BBC’s request for a comment, the dossier stated that neither the government’s external publicity (EP) wing was contacted, nor did anyone from the outlet reach out to the secretary of information, the principal information officer, or the special assistant to PM on media.

    According to the complaint document, failing to reach out to the sources it’s a violation of the BBC official editorial guidelines.

    The government also replied to the claim made in the article, according to which “evidence of murder and torture carried out by Pakistani soldiers and insurgents is emerging only now.” In response, the government said that “equating terrorist actions with the state’s legitimate operations is highly misleading,” and provided elaborate details of military action in the region.

    Citing the example of the United Kingdom, the dossier referred to the Hutton Inquiry which pointed out how the BBC was strongly criticised for its flawed reporting in the past and how then-British prime minister Tony Blair apologised to the public for taking actions based on wrong intelligence.

    The dossier also called out the journalist who filed the report and said that he had travelled all the way to Dera Ismail Khan to meet his sources but refrained from talking to the ISPR to obtain its version.

    The government said the story reflected the writer’s “mala fide intent and his personal biases,” and also added screenshots of the journalist’s Twitter account in the dossier, saying that his bias is “evident from his social media activities.”

    The report further called the BBC out for using unauthentic, unnamed sources in the story, calling them “shadowy and shady.”

    Citing point 1.2.11 of the BBC’s editorial guidelines, the ministry of information said that it expects the BBC to look into the response and demanded the outlet to remove the “defamatory and malicious story.”

    The ministry also demanded the BBC to issue a “clear-cut apology” and ascertain that such “fake stories [that] specifically target Pakistan” are not disseminated in future.

    “The government [of Pakistan] keeps the right to pursue all legal measures within the country and the United Kingdom if the BBC authorities fail to retract this libellous and defamatory story and take action against its writer,” the complaint concluded.”

    • He is sounding more and more like a conservative, now if he will just realize that the radical left has controlled the Dems for decades and are now taking their masks off we will have another ally.

  13. Exclusive – Trade ties with Turkey have great potential: UK secretary (aa, Jun 18, 2019)
    https://www.aa.com.tr/en/economy/exclusive-trade-ties-with-turkey-have-great-potential-uk-secretary-/1507849

    “The trade and investment ties between the U.K. and Turkey have a great potential, the U.K.’s international trade secretary said Tuesday.

    In an exclusive interview with Anadolu Agency, Liam Fox said a big opportunity lies in the complementary nature of both economies, particularly in financial services, in legal services, educational services and life sciences.

    “All of these areas and more, I think we have got an ability to work together,” Fox said.

    He noted that the U.K. is the world’s second biggest services exporter and has a lot of expertise in a lot of areas where a benefit into joint ventures and collaborations could be brought by the two countries.

    Fox also said that the U.K.’s skills in project management enable both countries to have the ability to improve their economies and to help the Turkish economy grow and mature more quickly.

    “That is a win-win for both of us,” he said. “It means more jobs and more prosperity here in Turkey, but it also for the U.K. means a potentially bigger market to sell into.”

    The U.K. is among Turkey’s top trade partners — second largest market for Turkish products and seventh largest source for the country’s imports.

    Last year, Turkish exports to the U.K. amounted to $11.1 billion while its imports from the U.K. totaled $7.4 billion…”

  14. Berlin opts to freeze rental prices for five years (thelocal, Jun 18, 2019)
    https://www.thelocal.de/20190618/berlin-opts-for-five-year-rental-freeze-to-curb-rocketing-prices

    “Berlin’s government on Tuesday moved to freeze rents in the booming German capital for five years from 2020 in their latest bid to halt runaway gentrification.

    Once described as “poor, but sexy”, Berlin has seen its housing costs
    double over the last decade as employees lured by the strong job market move into the city.

    The sharp rent hikes have led some residents to ponder radical solutions, including pushing for the seizure of housing stock from powerful landlords.

    Alarmed by the trend, Berlin’s city government agreed Tuesday on the outlines of a draft law that would include a temporary freeze on rents for five years from 2020, with a bill now to be drafted.

    The cap means “protection against rent increases for 1.5 million apartments,” tweeted the Berlin government’s department for urban development and housing.

    The cap comes amid skyrocketing rents. The average rent prices in Berlin have pushed past €10 per square metre per month, according to a recent study by a real estate group CBRE Berlin and German mortgage bank Berlin Hyp AG.

    Under the plan, landlords who seek to raise rates because of renovation work will also have to seek official approval for any increases above 50 cents per square metre.

    Only social housing and private property that has not been let out would be exempt.

    The move, by Berlin’s coalition government of the centre-left SPD, the Greens and far-left Linke party, is being closely watched across Germany, where a backlash is growing over fears that residents are being priced out of key cities.

    In an indication that the Berlin example could snowball into something wider, the SPD, which is also the junior coalition partner in Chancellor Angela Merkel’s federal coalition, has pledged to champion such rent controls nationwide.

    “We need a rent price cap for all of Germany,” said Thorsten Schäfer-Gümbel, one of the three interim SPD leaders.

    He argued that the measure would help “win time to build, build and build”.

    The SPD’s stance however puts it on a collision course with Merkel’s centre-right bloc, piling pressure on their already fragile partnership.

    Merkel herself has voiced scepticism about such caps, warning that “we must also provide an environment for people to want to build”.

    “It must remain advantageous and attractive to invest in residential property.”

    ‘Raise rents now’

    While the political climate in Berlin is turning against landlords, the influential property-owners association Haus und Grund has said it would not be cowed.

    In a clear call for pre-emptive action, the association had urged members
    to raise rents by Monday night (June 17th).

    Haus und Grund chairman Carsten Brückner told public broadcaster Inforadio that the planned policy “makes no distinction between very large landlords and small private property owners who do not behave irresponsibly with rents and modernization”.

    The situation in the German capital has become all the more acute since the end of the Cold War and reunification, becoming a tourism and party hotspot as well as an investment magnet.

    Although there are still huge swathes of unbuilt land and new construction mushrooming across the city, much of what is coming onto the market is out of reach for low-income locals.

    The rental freeze debate comes as residents are trying to seize the initiative by pushing for a referendum to seize buildings from landlords with more than 3,000 apartments.

    On Friday, the initiators of the citizens’ vote said they had cleared the first hurdle by obtaining 77,001 signatures — more than three times higher than the 20,000 needed to launch such a referendum.

    For the Tagesspiegel newspaper, the trend of runaway rents and growing revolt grew out of from the government’s failure to tackle the problem.

    “If the rental cap splits the government, then that’s something that it brought upon itself: because for far too long, far too little has been built. But the call for new construction alone won’t help.””

  15. Germany says there is ‘strong evidence’ Iran behind tanker attacks (DW, Jun 18, 2019)
    https://www.dw.com/en/germany-says-there-is-strong-evidence-iran-behind-tanker-attacks/a-49248524

    “Chancellor Angela Merkel has said there is “strong evidence” Iran carried out attacks on two tankers in the Gulf of Oman. She also warned Iran of consequences if it violated the 2015 international nuclear deal.

    German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Tuesday there is “strong evidence” Iran was behind the twin tanker attacks near the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

    The United States has accused Iran of attacking the Japanese and Norwegian flagged tankers and released video and pictures purporting to show a Revolutionary Guard boat removing an unexploded limpet mine.

    The EU said yesterday the video was not enough to blame Iran, while German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Germany was still evaluating the evidence before coming to any conclusions.

    Speaking at a news conference in Berlin alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Merkel called for a peaceful solution to tensions in the Persian Gulf.

    “We take these acts very seriously, there is strong evidence,” she said, referring to the US allegations that Iran was behind the attacks on the two tankers.

    “It is a very serious situation,” she said, adding that Germany would tell all sides and especially Iran, “that the situation should not escalate.”

    Iran has denied it was behind last week’s twin tanker attacks and a similar attack on four vessels of the coast of the United Arab Emirates last month. Iran said the video and still images released by the United States proved nothing.

    Merkel warns of consequences if Iran breaks nuclear deal

    The tensions between the United States and Iran have spiked since President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal and reimposed harsh sanctions on Tehran that have hit oil exports and sent its economy into freefall.

    On Monday, Iran warned that it would soon surpass the amount of enriched uranium allowed under the international deal, ratcheting up pressure on European signatories to save the accord. Iran’s atomic energy agency also raised the prospect of increasing enrichment levels beyond the 3.67% level allowed under the deal for peaceful purposes.

    Tehran wants Europe to ensure it receives the economic benefits promised under the nuclear deal despite US sanctions. So far, a European payment vehicle, INSTEX, to allow Iran to trade for humanitarian goods has not been implemented.

    Merkel warned Iran of consequence if it violated any part of the nuclear accord, but appeared optimistic Tehran would abide by its commitments.

    “We anticipate that Iran will continue to uphold the deal. When that isn’t the case, there will naturally be consequences,” she said.”

  16. CBC – Canadians deeply concerned about climate change, poll suggests

    A CBC News poll suggests about half of Canadians are deeply concerned about climate change but many are unwilling to make major sacrifices to combat it.

    + comments on the YT page

  17. BREITBART – Report: Trump Considering Live-Tweeting During the Democrat Debates

    President Trump is considering live-tweeting during the June 26–27 Democrat debates, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.
    The Wall Street Journal, citing “people familiar with the planning,” said Trump intends to deviate from the wishes of his advisers and is “tentatively planning” on live-tweeting during the events both nights.

    Reactions seem to be split. According the report, Trump’s advisers would rather see the Democrat candidates tear each other apart without distractions from the president. However, it is likely that Trump – who built his presidential legacy on speaking directly to the American people – wants America to know that he is engaged and ready to defend his position and the MAGA legacy he started.

    WSJ reports:

    Political advisers have long wanted Mr. Trump to tap the brakes on attacking Democratic presidential rivals, concerned that the president’s reactions would elevate contenders and provide some shield from what otherwise could be a bruising primary battle. Mr. Trump’s broadsides against former Vice President Joe Biden, for example, have coincided with polls that increasingly show voters view Mr. Biden as the most likely to deny the president a second term.

    It is unlikely that Trump will ease up and pump the brakes as the 2020 race heats up. Trump, arguably, won over many supporters by sticking to his guns and issuing pointed criticisms of his opponents during the Republican primary and general election of 2016.

    WSJ noted that the general plan for both debate nights remains “fluid,” adding that Trump could “change his mind” regarding his decision to live-tweet.

    The debates are scheduled June 26–27 and will take place in Miami, Florida at 9:00 p.m. ET. Twenty candidates qualified to participate. The Democratic National Committee (DNC) claimed to base the candidate lineup on a “random” drawing. Of course, many immediately noticed that the lineup favored Democrat frontrunner Joe Biden (D) by moving Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) to a separate debate.

    The lineup is as follows:

    Debate 1: Cory Booker, Julián Castro, John Delaney, Bill de Blasio, Tulsi Gabbard, Jay Inslee, Amy Klobuchar, Beto O’Rourke, Tim Ryan, Elizabeth Warren

    Debate 2: Michael Bennet, Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Kirsten Gillibrand, Kamala Harris, John Hickenlooper, Bernie Sanders, Eric Swalwell, Marianne Williamson, Andrew Yang

    Five notable NBC and MSNBC personalities will moderate the debates, including Lester Holt, Savannah Guthrie, Chuck Todd, Rachel Maddow, and José Diaz-Balart.

    https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/06/18/report-trump-considering-live-tweeting-during-the-democrat-debates/