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.
https://www.bild.de/regional/stuttgart/stuttgart-aktuell/nach-offenburger-pruegelattacke-rentner-detlef-braucht-magensonde-63611856.bild.html
After attack: Pensioner Detlef can no longer eat and drink. (Photo: Pensioner Detlef in hospital bed. He also lost an eye through the kicks.)
Offenburg – Pensioner Detlef J. (75), who was beaten half to death by a refugee from Somalia, is still in the clinic. His condition is getting worse every day! His hands are tied because he tears his tubes out of his arms under nightmares. He has lost over 20 kilos. And now he also needs a stomach tube.
As BILD reported, Detlef J. happened to meet Ali M. (25) after a game evening at night. The refugee, who had already attracted the attention of federal police twice that evening, hit the poor man for no reason. A witness observed how he repeatedly kicked the victim’s head. He is said to have called “Allahu akbar”.
That was ten weeks ago. Son Ralf (51): “My father’s swallowing muscle was also severely damaged by the kicks. Dad can’t eat and drink anymore.” So far he has been fed liquid via cannulas. Now Detlef J. has to go from the hospital to the home as a very heavy person in need of care.
Son Ralf: “You can’t feed him with cannulas there. That’s why a stomach tube is implanted in him.” Meanwhile, the twin sons are looking for a nursing home. Son Ralf: “Our father was so distressed through no fault of his own. We had to quit his apartment, we don’t know how to pay for the nursing home.”
At least 34 civilians killed in roadside bomb attack in Afghanistan – officials (RT, Jul 31, 2019)
https://www.rt.com/news/465439-afghanistan-roadside-bomb-attack/
“A roadside bomb has killed dozens, mostly women and children, in Afghanistan’s Farah province, according to government officials. The Taliban has been blamed for the attack.
Emergency services were deployed to the scene after a bus containing mostly women and children hit a roadside bomb on Wednesday. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but government officials have accused the Taliban of planting the bomb.
The deadly attack comes just a day after the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said pro-government forces, including NATO, have killed more civilians during the first half of 2019 than the Taliban…”
Afghanistan: Dozens of civilians killed and injured in roadside bombing
At least 34 people were killed and 17 injured after a roadside bomb hit a bus travelling between Herat and Kandahar in western Afghanistan on Wednesday. Footage shows survivors of the blast being taken to Herat provincial hospital.
“We were on our way to Kabul from Herat province. Our vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb. As a result, a lot of my friends were killed and wounded too,” said Zamin Ahmadi, one of survivors.
A local police spokesman said the bomb is likely to have been planted by the Taliban to target Afghan security forces. There has been a rise in numbers of such attacks in recent months. No-one has claimed responsibility for Wednesday’s explosion so far.
Britain seeks to unite Europeans over Iran’s threat to shipping in Strait of Hormuz (telegraph, Jul 31, 2019)
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/07/30/us-pressures-germany-send-warships-persian-gulf/
“Britain has invited military representatives of the US, France and other European countries to a meeting in Bahrain on Wednesday in an attempt to create an international mission to safeguard shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
Whitehall sources told The Guardian that the British proposal was to create a European-led mission to prevent future tanker seizures by Iran and was still alive despite the dismissal of Jeremy Hunt as foreign secretary in Boris Johnson’s cabinet reshuffle.
Earlier, the US had stepped up diplomatic pressure on Germany to send warships to the Persian Gulf as the Western allies remained divided over how to respond to Tehran.
Germany has so far been reluctant to contribute to any naval mission in the Middle East and the US embassy took the unusual step of publicly challenging Berlin to make a commitment.
“Members of the German government have been clear that freedom of navigation should be protected,” the US embassy said in a statement. “Our question is, protected by whom?”
The US statement said that both the UK and France had committed to sending warships to “secure the Strait of Hormuz and combat Iranian aggression”. In reality, there is still no agreement on any joint mission in the Strait of Hormuz.
France has refused to join any US mission out of concern it would associate Paris with Donald Trump’s “maximum pressure” against Iran. Britain is caught in the middle, calling for a European-led initiative but saying it will need American military support to succeed.
Germany appeared unmoved by the US pressure and refused to commit to sending naval assets. “The German government has taken note of this, but not promised to make any contribution,” a German official said.
The foreign ministry later said the US had provided details to allies on its concept for securing maritime traffic in the Persian Gulf region.
The ministry said it hadn’t promised any contribution but was “in close consultation with France and Great Britain.”
It gave no details of the U.S. plan, but said “priority must be given to a de-escalation of tensions and diplomatic efforts.”
It added “participation in the American strategy of maximum pressure is out of the question for us,” referring to the U.S. approach to Iran.
Mr Trump has repeatedly criticised Germany for not spending more on defence and German politicians have called for the expulsion of his ambassador in Berlin for appearing to interfere in the country’s domestic politics.
Overseas military deployments are a sensitive subject in Germany, where the post-war constitution places constraints on using the armed forces for anything other than strictly defensive operations.
Meanwhile, hardliners in Iran continued to revel in the seizure of the British-flagged Stena Impero tanker with the launch of a cartoon exhibition mocking the UK’s inability to recover its ship.
The “Pirates of the Queen” exhibit features more than a dozen cartoons. Some mock the Queen personally while others portray the UK as a fox – a reference to the Persian term “the Old Fox”, which is often used by Iranians to to describe Britain.
The captain of an Iranian tanker seized in Gibraltar accused Britain of using unnecessary “brute force” when Royal Marines took the ship. He said the marines pointed guns at his unarmed crew and forced them to kneel on the deck.
“They just pointed the gun and they started shouting look forward, look forward,” said the captain, an Indian national who spoke anonymously to the BBC. “I was totally shocked I didn’t know what to feel because they didn’t give me a chance to talk.”
Javad Zarif, Iran’s foreign minister, appealed to Mr Trump to ignore the advice of his hawkish advisers and seek a diplomatic solution to the standoff with Iran.
“Diplomacy = prudence; never weakness,” Mr Zarif said on Twitter.
Mr Trump has occasionally expressed interest in negotiations with Iran and reportedly tapped a Republican senator to be his envoy. But he has also said he does not believe Iran is ready to negotiate and has shown no sign he is prepared to ease crippling US sanctions on Iran.
French President Emmanuel Macron spoke with his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani on Tuesday and reiterated his call for a de-escalation of tensions between Iran and the United States, the Elysee said.
“It is France’s role to make every effort to ensure that all parties agree to a break and open negotiations,” the French presidency said.
Mr Macron had a “long” discussion with Rouhani during the French leader’s annual holiday at his summer retreat, the medieval fort of Bregancon on France’s Mediterranean coast, the Elysee said.
He “recalled the need to initiate a de-escalation of tensions,” it added.”
Lots of luck on that, with Britain leaving the EU Merkel and company won’t allow any European nation to ally with Britain to protect the tankers.
Nigerian Cardinal Urges Europeans to Stop Encouraging Africans to Migrate (breitbart, Jul 31, 2019)
https://www.breitbart.com/immigration/2019/07/31/nigerian-cardinal-urges-europeans-to-stop-encouraging-africans-to-migrate/
“Cardinal Francis Arinze has urged Europeans to cease encouraging Africans to migrate to Europe, insisting that people are better off in their home countries.
In an interview with the Catholic Herald last week, the 86-year-old Cardinal Arinze, once considered a top candidate for the papacy, said that when countries lose their young people to migration, they lose the people who can best build their nation’s future.
“So the countries in Europe and America can sometimes help best, not by encouraging the young people to come to Europe as if they looked on Europe as heaven – a place where money grows on trees – but to help the countries from which they come,” he said.
“It is best for a person to stay in that person’s own land – country, town, area – and work there,” he said, while acknowledging that at times that is not possible. He also said that government leaders of countries with high rates of emigration should examine their consciences to determine why it is that so many people are leaving.
And “in general, we cannot deny a human person the right to look for another area where you will have more peace, or even more study, culture or economic opportunity,” he said.
The cardinal speaks from personal experience, having been appointed Archbishop of Onitsha in 1967, a week before the outbreak of the Nigerian civil war. At that time, he was effectively a refugee, the Catholic Herald notes, “fleeing from one area to another as the theatre of war changed, while organising aid for the many displaced people.”
Arinze also looked at the problem of mass migration from the perspective of the receiving nations, insisting that they must be prudent enough to only accept the immigrants that they can effectively integrate.
“Each government has to see, for how many people can they provide,” the cardinal said. “Not only their entrance: lodging, work, family, cultural insertion.”
“It is not theory. It is fact,” Arinze said. “Where is their future: work, family life, culture, religion? Think of all that.”
“So it’s all these considerations we must make, when we mention the word ‘migrant,’” he said.
In his statements on mass migration, Cardinal Arinze joined a growing chorus of African prelates who oppose Europe’s encouragement of migrant flows from Africa to Europe.
In May of this year, Nigerian Cardinal John Onaiyekan, the archbishop of Abuja, said that mass migration out of his country is a sure sign that political leadership has failed.
“Authorities should make Nigeria home. Same should be applicable to other African countries,” he said.
Having visited Italy and seen the number of Nigerian prostitutes on the streets of Rome and other cities as a result of mass migration, the cardinal said he was ashamed.
“To tell you bluntly I’m ashamed, I’m ashamed,” he told the BBC. “I’m moving through the streets of Rome, Milan, Naples and I see my daughters on the street on sale.”
“I’m ashamed and I stop and even greet some of them — you can’t even engage them in conversation because they were brought out of the village illiterates. All they learn and all they know on the streets of Italy is what they need for this business — I’m ashamed.”
The words on immigration of both Nigerian cardinals echoed those of Guinean Cardinal Robert Sarah, the head of the Vatican’s liturgical department, who said in April that the Church should not be encouraging migration.
It is wrong to “use the word of God to promote migration,” he said, because using the Bible to encourage migration is a “false interpretation.” It is better “to help people flourish in their culture than to encourage them to come to Europe,” he said.
Cardinal Sarah denounced the Church’s push for migration into Europe in powerful language, insisting that most immigrants wind up in Europe “without work or dignity” and assume the condition of slaves.
“Is that what the Church wants?” he asked, adding that the Church should not support “this new form of slavery that is mass migration.”
Several days later, the cardinal went still further, saying that a Church of migration and ecology is “of interest to no one” and that it risks becoming just another NGO if it focuses on these “horizontal” issues rather than preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
Norwegian Party Leader Banned From Facebook For Slamming Migration, Supporting Tommy Robinson (sputniknews, Jul 31, 2019)
https://sputniknews.com/europe/201907311076415564-norwegian-party-leader-banned-from-facebook-for-slamming-migration-supporting-tommy-robinson/
“Ellen Due Brynjulfsen, the leader of the Independence Party, said her party’s opinions are either ignored or labelled as “hateful” by the mainstream media, which makes it heavily reliant on social media.
Norwegian Independence Party leader Ellen Due Brynjulfsen has been banned from Facebook for the third time in two weeks, the news outlet Resett reported.
Previously, Brynjulfsen was banned for three and seven days respectively, both times over posts containing support for anti-immigration activist Tommy Robinson, who is jailed in the UK. Now she has been been banned for 30 days over a post containing harsh criticism of mass immigration, state-sponsored diversity and forced multiculturalism.
“Norway is changing, but not for the better. The ‘diversity’ pushed by politicians has degraded the Norwegian people. If you are white you will not be taken seriously, but if you are an immigrant you will be exalted. Our culture is spat on, and our thoughts are ridiculed. Our opinions are called hate and our words are criminalised. Our constitutional right to speech is denied by the politicians,” Ellen Due Brynjulfsen wrote, as quoted by Resett.
Tweet: The Independence Party Party leader, Ellen Due Brynjulfsen, has been banned for the third time in two weeks. The post was consistent with Facebook’s own guidelines.
She ventured that the authorities discriminate against ethnic Norwegians in order to accommodate the “new arrivals”, among other things, by providing them with interest-free mortgages.
“We are inundated with ‘refugees’ who keep vacationing in the very countries they ‘fled’ from. We who belong in this country, are spat on and told that ‘this is our country now’ by the newcomers”, Brynjulfsen wrote.
She went on to slam “Sharia law” being enforced in both rural and urban areas. According to her, this morality police leads to girls and women being called whores, abused and raped. Brynjulfsen held the authorities and the media culpable for the current situation and social climate, where freedom of speech is under attack.
“The opinion police are pursuing and punishing us. Europe is on fire while the people are asleep and being suffocated by the smoke. They are blind and do not see what is happening. The media lulls them to sleep, while the the Muslim brothers’ plan run smoothly”, Brynjulfsen wrote. “Lie after lie we are fed by the old media,” she wrote, slamming climate alarmism as “hysteria” and a “yoke on people’s shoulders”.
By her own admission, Brynjulfsen went through Facebook’s guidelines and cannot see where she “crossed the border”.
According to her, measures such as bans will have a grave effect on the party’s campaigns, because Facebook is where the party originated.
“After all, we have been an internet party. That’s where we meet people, that’s where people sign up”, Brynjulfsen told Resett, drawing parallels with the right-wing Progress Party a decade ago, which has since risen to prominence to become the ruling Conservatives’ foremost sidekick.
She suspects that no matter what she and her fellow party members write, it will be labelled “hateful”. By her own admission, she is struggling to get her opinion across through mainstream media, which is why social media are of paramount importance for her party. Brynjulfsen said she has sent numerous opinion pieces to Norway’s leading newspapers, but never saw them in print.
On Facebook, the Independence Party stressed that it is “completely dependent” on social media and alternative news media to get its message through.
“They do not welcome the debate, because they will lose it. Exclusion is hamstringing those who challenge the powers that be,” the party wrote.
Tommy Robinson is the founder and former leader of the English Defence League. He is currently serving time in a London prison for filming defendants in a grooming gang trial in violation of a reporting ban. Robinson has repeatedly criticised the British establishment and even asked US President Donald Trump for asylum, saying that his country has “fallen”.
The Norwegian Independence Party labels itself as non-bloc conservative centre party that aims to promote and preserve Norwegian interests, culture and identity, and operates under the motto “Trust and tradition”. It advocates a restrictive stance in matters of immigration and foreign policy and promotes “repatriation instead of immigration”. It has yet to make its debut in the Norwegian parliament.”
Love the quotes. Her comments are right on target, hence why she gets banned. This is happening all over the western world.
“anti-immigration activist Tommy Robinson,”
I did not know Tommy was anti-immigration. Because he is not, and this is why the White Nationalists hate him.
So is “anti-immigration” the new “racist” for the mainsteam media to bait and switch?
Behavioral Cowardice set into the populace.
NATO ‘Ally’ Germany Won’t Back U.S. in Gulf to Avoid War with Iran (breitbart, Jul 31, 2019)
https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2019/07/31/germany-refuses-military-cooperation-us-persian-gulf/
“The U.S. has requested naval cooperation from Germany in the Strait of Hormuz as tensions with Iran escalate, but the political leaders of the European nation have refused to assist their NATO allies…”
UK Warship Commander: Iran Is Keen to ‘Test’ Royal Navy’s Resolve (breitbart, Jul 31, 2019)
https://www.breitbart.com/middle-east/2019/07/31/uk-warship-commander-iran-is-keen-to-test-royal-navys-resolve/
“Iran is keen to test the Royal Navy’s resolve as it escorts UK-flagged commercial shipping through the contested waters of the Strait of Hormuz, the commander of a British warship said Wednesday…”
Spain’s Socialists rise above 40%, voter poll shows
MADRID (Reuters) – Spain’s Socialist party extended its lead in an opinion poll published on Tuesday, which potentially put it on course to challenge for a majority in a snap election days after it failed to persuade lawmakers to confirm it in government.
Party leader Pedro Sanchez has been acting prime minister since April when the Socialists finished first in an inconclusive national election. Last week he lost two parliamentary votes on making that position permanent after coalition talks with far-left party Podemos broke down.
He now has until mid-September to break the political deadlock or face a fresh election on Nov. 10.
Published on Tuesday, the Centre for Sociological Studies’ (CIS) July survey of voter intentions put the Socialists at 41.3%, up from 39.5% the previous month and a large jump from the 28.7% it garnered in April.
The last election in which a single Spanish party secured a parliamentary majority under the country’s complex electoral system was in 2011, when Mariano Rajoy’s conservatives won 44.6%.
CIS said the latest survey represented direct voter intentions and lacked the checks and balances used in compiling projections, which were generally more accurate.
It polled nearly 3,000 people from July 1 to July 11, before the two parliamentary votes.
The Socialists have said they will keep working with all parties to avoid a repeat election – which would be Spain’s fourth in as many years – but were no longer prepared to offer a coalition government to Podemos.
In the poll, Podemos inched 0.4 percentage points higher to 13.1%, just behind the conservative People’s Party (PP), in second place on 13.7% and unchanged from June.
The centre-right Ciudadanos fell to 12.3% from 15.8% and far-right Vox to 4.6% from 5.1%.
Both mainstream rightist parties have ruled out support for a Sanchez government.
Sanchez became prime minister in June 2018 after Rajoy was ousted in a parliamentary vote of no confidence.
https://af.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idAFKCN1UP1SL
===========================================
Poll boost for Sanchez week after investiture defeat
The Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE) of acting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez would win 41.3 percent of the vote if a general election were to be held in Spain right now, according to the monthly opinion poll published by the Spanish Center for Sociological Investigation (CIS) on Tuesday.
The CIS poll comes a week after Sanchez was defeated in two investiture votes in the Spanish Congress of Deputies, with his attempts to be returned as prime minister thwarted by a failure to reach agreement with the left wing Unidos Podemos over a possible coalition government.
Although the investigation for the CIS poll was carried out before the investiture votes, it shows how the PSOE continues to gain support in the wake of the April 28 general election.
The Socialists won 123 seats in the 350-seat Congress in April general elections. If the findings of the July’s CIS poll were reflected in a new general election, Sanchez would be on the verge of an absolute majority.
While the poll has good news for the Socialists, there is little comfort for Spain’s other main parties in Congress.
The right wing People’s Party, whose 16.7 percent of the vote in their general elections was the party’s worst ever performance, see their support slip further down to 13.7 percent.
Support for Unidos Podemos falls from 14.3 to 13.1 percent, while the center-right Ciudadanos’ move towards the right sees support for Albert Rivera’s party slip from 15.8 to 12.3 percent.
The extreme right wing party Vox, has lost over half of its votes from April 28 with support slashed from 10.2 to 4.6 percent.
The effects of last week’s investiture votes have still to be seen, but with Tuesday’s CIS poll in his pocket Sanchez will have little fear of calling another general election if he is unable to find the support for a possible third investiture vote in September.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-07/30/c_138270502.htm
In Berlin, refugees take classes on sexual consent
In Marzahn, one of Berlin’s most disadvantaged neighbourhoods, where thousands of refugees have landed since 2015, seven men who have come to Berlin from Syria, Iraq or Afghanistan are attending a class on sexuality and consent.
Activity development of incorrigible-destructive “do-goodership”.
USA: Protesters push for ‘Green New Deal’ amid Democratic primary debates
Hundreds of protesters marched through the streets of Detroit on Tuesday to demand the ‘Green New Deal’ and to protest the Democratic primary debates being held in the city.
Protesters can be seen marching through the streets chanting slogans and bearing various placards and banners, focusing on unions, economic and racial justice, colonialism, water rights, and climate change.
The Protesters were reportedly joined by Detroit native and U.S. Representative Rashida Tlaib as they marched from Cass Park to the Democratic debates being held at the Fox Theatre.
Protests are expected to resume tomorrow for the second night of debates, where the second half of the large number of Democratic candidates will square off.
Pakistan – Quetta
Russia’s FSB Says Foiled Terror Attack in Tatarstan, Detained 2 Daesh Supporters (sputniknews, Jul 31, 2019)
https://sputniknews.com/russia/201907311076416989-russias-fsb-says-foiled-terror-attack-in-tatarstan-detained-2-daesh-supporters/
“The Russian Federal Security Service said in a statement that it had foiled, in cooperation with the Interior Ministry, a terror attack in Russia’s Tatarstan and had detained at the site of the planned attack two supporters of the Daesh* terror group who were complicit in recruiting for terrorist groups and promoting terrorism.
“The FSB and the Interior Ministry have foiled, within a launched criminal case, a terror attack at an infrastructure object in the Republic of Tatarstan,” the FSB said.
Two Russian citizens engaged in preparing the attack have been detained at the site of the planned attack, the FSB added, specifying that the detainees were Daesh supporters and were complicit in recruiting locals for terrorist groups and promoting terrorism.
Explosives and components of improvised explosive devices have been seized from the detainees.
*Daesh (also known as ISIS/ISIL/IS) is a terrorist group banned in Russia”
Twitter Suspends Dan Dicks For Saying A Man is NOT a Woman & Referring To “Jessica” Yaniv as “Him”
Madness and Society
Lessons on addiction and mental illness from a rural Italian village
At six o’clock each morning, the alcoholics, addicts, and mentally ill residents of San Donato Val di Comino, Italy, emerge from their homes and congregate—sometimes together, but mostly alone—in the cafés around the town’s main square. Some of the hardened alcoholics order an espresso with a shot of liquor, then climb into work trucks and head out to farms and construction sites. The mentally ill—who suffer predominantly from depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia—order cups of coffee or sit at the patio tables emptyhanded, an indication that they have run out of cash for the month.
My father was born in this village, where I’ve observed this early-morning ritual during family vacations over the past two decades, but this time it struck me in a new way. For the past 18 months, I’ve reported on homelessness, addiction, and mental illness in American cities and spent many hours with America’s most vulnerable residents, who, on the surface, struggle with the same afflictions as the residents here in San Donato.
In fact, the contrast is profound. In West Coast cities, tens of thousands of addicts and mentally ill people live outdoors in horrific conditions and survive on a combination of panhandling, prostitution, and property crime, which, in turn, creates disorder on urban streets. Not in San Donato, however: here, addicts and the mentally ill are deeply integrated into the community and maintain a dignified standard of living. Their families and relatives look after them and stay involved in their lives. When necessary, the municipal government provides employment sweeping the streets, and local businesses sometimes pay mentally disabled residents to serve as lo spanno, an informal occupation that entails walking through the streets with a loudspeaker announcing products newly available in the town market. The community plays a role in helping the most vulnerable, not through compulsion or formalized social programs but instead through the values of self-help and community responsibility.
In San Donato, a man found sleeping on the streets would suggest a moral scandal. The village would shame the homeless man’s family into taking him in to provide financial, practical, and psychological support. The reason that nobody sleeps on the streets here isn’t medical or technical—it’s cultural. Despite massive economic and social change over the past century, Italians have retained a culture of family and responsibility that strictly limits the expression of pathological behavior and enforces a standard of dignity that encourages addicts and the mentally ill to participate in society despite their condition.
It’s true that a small village like San Donato can’t be compared with an urban environment like San Francisco, but the dislocation and devastation in small-town America is arguably worse than in its cities. The difference is not only a matter of scale. Some might argue that higher taxes and more generous public-welfare programs prevent Italians from falling into homelessness and despair—but America actually spends more per capita on social services than Italy, with worse outcomes.
The dominant policy prescriptions for addressing addiction and mental illness in the U.S. involve professionalization, medicalization, and destigmatization. Despite mounting evidence of failure over the past half century, we continue to add social programs, to treat addiction as a disease, and to destigmatize everything from heroin consumption to homeless encampments. Yet America is more addicted, more despairing, and more disordered than ever before. Public administrators and academics treat the suggestion that family and cultural norms are key to solving the addiction and homelessness crisis as naïve or even immoral. But San Donato presents a case that traditional societies have a superior understanding of social problems, with cultural expectations playing a decisive role in curbing the most destructive human tendencies.
Many years ago, a friend referred to San Donato as a manicomio all’aperto—an open-air madhouse. He captured the poetic truth that we all fall somewhere on the spectrum of human irrationality, and that a good society integrates the sane and the insane into its common cultural institutions. Though a traditional shame culture exists in San Donato, residents express compassion toward the addicted and mentally ill—actually living with them and looking after them—while remaining intolerant of the pathological behavior accepted by American progressives.
The lesson for Americans: culture matters. If we want to reverse the destruction of human life through addiction, mental illness, homelessness, and violence, we must reimagine our moral and cultural possibilities and seek to reestablish familial and communal bonds that can prevent the most vulnerable from falling into the abyss. No doctor, pill, or public policy can replace a truly compassionate society—one that loves the mad and the addicted but restrains them from harming themselves and their neighbors.
https://www.city-journal.org/san-donato-mental-illness-addiction
Pictures: Iran Cartoonists Mock ‘Wicked’ Queen as ‘Pirate’ in Anti-British Display (breitbart, Jul 31, 2019)
https://www.breitbart.com/middle-east/2019/07/31/pictures-iran-cartoonists-mock-wicked-queen-as-pirate-in-anti-british-display/
“Iranian cartoonists have joined together to mount an exhibition mocking Britain’s ‘wicked’ Queen Elizabeth II as a cutlass-weilding pirate sporting the skull-and-crossbones, after the seizure of an Iranian oil tanker.
Forty caricatures have now gone on display in the “Pirates of the Queen” exhibition at the Osveh Art and Cultural Center in Tehran to throw the spotlight on the seizure of Grace 1 by Royal Marines which was denounced by supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as “piracy” by the “vicious British.”…”
German Swimming Pool Forced to Introduce ID Checks to Stop Harassment by Migrant Youths
“Those who do not comply, will not be let in.”
A swimming pool in the German city of Düsseldorf has been forced to introduce mandatory ID card checks in an effort to stop sexual assaults and rowdy behavior by migrant youths that has required the police to be called out on numerous occasions.
Following a crisis summit between administrators, the mayor and the police chief, an online ticket system linked to people’s IDs has been established to control who is allowed to enter the pool.
“In Rheinbad we have introduced an identity card for all visitors,” said Düsseldorf Mayor Thomas Geisel. “Those who do not comply, will not be let in. It is absolutely unacceptable and inconceivable that families who want to spend their free time here are harassed by youth gangs.”
As we reported earlier this month, the pool had to be closed twice after hundreds of male migrants harassed a family, prompting a huge police deployment.
Last Friday, the pool had to be cleared again as around 60 North African migrants began engaging in aggressive beahvior. Outnumbered, the six security guards on patrol had to call police for backup. 20 officers arrived and the pool was closed.
“It should be known, that before the migrant crisis, German swimming pools didn’t need six security guards to maintain order. It’s likely that they didn’t need any at all,” comments Voice of Europe.
It remains to be seen how authorities will prevent the kind of people who cause mayhem from using the pool. They could only really do so by barring people from North African countries, which would set off a nationwide controversy and lead to widespread accusations of racism.
https://summit.news/2019/07/30/german-swimming-pool-forced-to-introduce-id-checks-to-stop-harassment-by-migrant-youths/
DAILY MAIL Pictured: Eritrean man accused of pushing a young boy to his death in front of a train as it’s revealed suspect was a poster boy for integration in Switzerland
Habte Araya was pictured by the Swiss labour agency where he worked in 2017
In an interview that year he said he ‘liked almost everything about Switzerland’
Now he faces murder and attempted murder charges over the Frankfurt attack
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7305461/Pictured-Eritrean-man-accused-killing-young-boy-Germany.html
Germany: Rabbi of the Jewish Community of Berlin spat at and insulted in Arabic language by two men+++
The Rabbi of the Jewish Community in Berlin, Yehuda Teichtal, was insulted in the Arabic language and spat on by two men last weekend. The attack took place near a synagogue in the Wilmersdorf district, where Rabbi Teichtal had previously celebrated the worship service. After Rabbi Teichtal, who was accompanied by one of his children during the attack, had reported the incident to the police, the police started the investigation. Rabbi Yehuda Teichtal: “Unfortunately we have to state that the aggressions against Jews have developed a life of their own both in the schoolyards and on the streets of Berlin. But I remain convinced that most people in Berlin do not want to accept this aggression against Jews as a sad part of everyday Jewish life. Most people in Berlin want Jewish people to be able to live their Judaism openly without being afraid of being insulted, spat at or even beaten. Of course we will not hide now, but continue to build on love, tolerance, dialogue and education”.
More:
https://searchlight-germany.blogspot.com/2019/07/germany-rabbi-of-jewish-community-of.html
Illegal Immigrant Bought Baby for $80 in Guatemala to Get Priority Release in US
Growing Movement of Black Conservatives Supporting Trump—Pastor Mark Burns
Heather Mac Donald on Victim Mentality, Identity Politics & President Trump’s Baltimore Tweets
Leaders of US National Cathedral respond to Trump
Three leaders of the U.S National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. are condemning what they call “the escalation of radicalized rhetoric” from U.S. President Donald Trump.
If you voted for President Trump, you’re a racist. That’s what they think of you.
Chinese forces gathering at Hong Kong border, White House officials monitoring escalation
The White House is monitoring the sudden gathering of Chinese forces at the border with Hong Kong, in a worrying sign of escalation.
The White House is monitoring the sudden “congregation” of Chinese forces at the border with Hong Kong, according to reports, following another night of unrest and clashes between protesters and police.
A senior US official who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity said a number of units had gathered, but it’s unclear if they are security police or part of China’s military, Bloomberg reports.
It comes as Beijing accused the United States of inciting the increasingly unruly protests in Hong Kong, which began two months ago over a proposed extradition bill that could see citizens sent to the mainland.
Since then, demonstrations have evolved into a statement against Beijing’s influence in the operation of the relatively autonomous region.
Bloomberg cites the White House official as saying the US is watching China’s mainland border manoeuvres. Reports of the gathering of forces has sparked panic among Hong Kong locals on social media.
https://www.news.com.au/world/asia/chinese-forces-gathering-at-hong-kong-border-white-house-officials-monitoring-escalation/news-story/82621253f4c093c69834e041713ab34d
Crackdown Coming? China Gathers Forces On Hong Kong Border Amid Unrest
Massive anti-Beijing protests which have gripped Hong Kong over the past month, and have become increasingly violent as both an overwhelmed local police force and counter-protesters have hit back with force, are threatening to escalate on a larger geopolitical scale after the White House weighed in this week.
With China fast losing patience, there are new reports of a significant build-up of Chinese security forces on Hong Kong’s border, as Bloomberg reports:
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-07-30/china-mustering-forces-hong-kong-border-quell-protests-white-house-source
North Korea fires short-range ballistic missiles – South Korean military
SEOUL, July 31 (Reuters) – North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles early on Wednesday, the South Korean military said, only days after it launched two other missiles intended to pressure South Korea and the United States to stop upcoming military drills.
The latest launches were from the Hodo peninsula on North Korea’s east coast, the same area from where last week’s were conducted, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said in a statement. It said it was monitoring in case of additional launches.
The JCS in Seoul said later the North had fired ballistic missiles that flew about 250 km (155 miles). South Korean news agency Yonhap said they appeared to be a different type to previous launches.
Colonel Lee Peters, a spokesman for U.S. military forces in South Korea, said: “We are aware of reports of a missile launch from North Korea and we will continue to monitor the situation.”
He did not comment when asked whether the joint South Korea-U.S. drills, scheduled to begin next month, would continue.
http://news.trust.org/item/20190731000806-6sfvw
We are in the election season and the Dems are pushing the idea (the only one they have) of “Orange Man Bad”. The 4 enemies we are facing (Russia, China, North Korea and Iran) are seeing what the Dems are doing and are pushing hard hoping to gain an advantage because they think Trump is or will be desperate for good headlines.
ISIS Warns of Terror Strikes in San Francisco, New York, London
‘Kill them all, slit their throats, watch them die’
The ISIS terrorist organization is threatening to launch new attacks in San Francisco, New York, and London, according to new warning messages posted on the group’s social media channels.
The messages, carried across the internet via the Telegram networking website, feature the three cities and call for adherents of the terror group’s radical ideology to “kill them all,” according to copies of the warnings obtained by the Middle East Media Research Institute, or MEMRI, a group that monitors jihadi networks.
“The pro-Islamic State (ISIS) Ash-Shaff Media Foundation shared five posters on Telegram which threaten and encourage terror attacks in the West,” according to information compiled by MEMRI. “The posters are captioned in poor English and feature background images of San Francisco, New York City, and London. The Ash-Shaff media group is believed to be based in Indonesia and/or operated by Indonesians.”
“Go and answer the call,” one of the posters states. “Don’t spare none [sic]. Kill them all. It is now time to rise. Slit their throats. Watch them die.”
https://freebeacon.com/national-security/isis-warns-of-terror-strikes-in-san-francisco-new-york-london/
London: Woman in Niqab insults participant at LGBT parade – “God created Adam and Eve”
(In the description: Police have started an investigation) God luck identification!
The Waltham Forest police also commented on the video and wrote on Twitter:
“We know of footage circulating in the social media of the assault on participants in the Waltham Forest Pride event, and investigations are underway. Attacking someone for their sexual orientation or gender identity is a hate crime.”
Neuroscientists decode brain speech signals into written text
Study funded by Facebook aims to improve communication with paralysed patients
Doctors have turned the brain signals for speech into written sentences in a research project that aims to transform how patients with severe disabilities communicate in the future.
The breakthrough is the first to demonstrate how the intention to say specific words can be extracted from brain activity and converted into text rapidly enough to keep pace with natural conversation.
In its current form, the brain-reading software works only for certain sentences it has been trained on, but scientists believe it is a stepping stone towards a more powerful system that can decode in real time the words a person intends to say.
Doctors at the University of California in San Francisco took on the challenge in the hope of creating a product that allows paralysed people to communicate more fluidly than using existing devices that pick up eye movements and muscle twitches to control a virtual keyboard.
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/jul/30/neuroscientists-decode-brain-speech-signals-into-actual-sentences
Rio Grande Valley passes 300K apprehensions, sets annual border record
With two months still left in this fiscal year, the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) border sector has already set an all-time annual record for apprehensions at the border. According to a source in Border Patrol, this week, the total apprehensions in the RGV passed 301,000. That is an all-time record for this sector since Border Patrol began collecting records. The previous record was in 2014 during the first Central American migration, mainly of unaccompanied minors. 256K were apprehended in 2014 and 244k in 1997, the previous records for this sector.
Where is Congress? On vacation.
Earlier today, Rep. Chip Roy tweeted out this fact:
https://www.conservativereview.com/news/rio-grande-valley-passes-300k-apprehensions-sets-annual-border-record/
Court Case Saw UK Government Waste £286k on Deportation Flights That Didn’t Happen (breitbart, Jul 31, 2019)
https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2019/07/31/court-case-saw-uk-government-waste-286k-on-deportation-flights-that-didnt-happen/
“A court case intended to disrupt the British government’s policy of deporting illegals to their home countries saw chartered flights suspended for three months, at a cost to the taxpayer of £268,463.
Deportation flights on chartered aircraft were suspended in March 2019, after the preliminary High Court hearing about a case brought against the Home Office by charity Medical Justice ruled the practice had to be suspended while the case was ongoing, reports Britain’s Guardian newspaper. The case claimed the practice of not giving migrants the exact date of their deportation deprived them of the opportunity to instruct their lawyers to act to prevent it form happening.
The flights resumed in July after a three-month hiatus. Research by an anti-deportation campaign group found the government had spent £268,463.44 on charter deportation flights that never happened in that period. Open borders advocates cited by the newspaper celebrated the short break in deportation flights. One said: “While it’s shocking that the Home Office was spending hundreds of thousands of pounds when the flights were not running, it’s even more shocking that this controversial and inhumane practice is still happening at all.”
A Home Office spokesman said of the flights: “The Home Office makes enforced returns by both charter flights and regular scheduled flights. Charters are an important means to return foreign national offenders and immigration offenders where there are limited scheduled routes or where returnees may be disruptive.”
Disrupting the removal of illegal immigrants is a key tactic in the toolkit of pro-mass migration advocates, and attempts to ground aircraft carrying illegals back to their countries of origin have frequently hit the headlines. One of the most infamous was the protest action of Swedish immigration activist Elin Ersson, who boarded a passenger flight which also had a migrant being deported onboard…”
Populist League Could Become One of the Most Popular Post-War Parties in Italy (breitbart, Jul 31, 2019)
https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2019/07/31/salvini-league-heading-40-per-cent-polls/
“The League party, led by populist Italian interior minister Matteo Salvini, continues to climb in the polls with trends showing it could top as high as 40 per cent.
A poll released by polling firm SWG conducted on behalf of the television programme La7 showed another increase in support for Salvini’s party, rising 0.2 per cent to 38 per cent and trending towards 40 per cent, Italian newspaper Il Giornale reports.
The current trend, if carried over to a national election, could see the League as one of Italy’s most popular post-World War II parties, rivalling the now-defunct Christian Democracy party which held a record 48.51 per cent of the vote in the 1948 election…”
President Trump’s tax plan blocks spending on illegal families, saves billions
OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 1:10 PM PT — Tuesday, July 30, 2019
Under the administration of former President Obama, a loophole at the IRS allowed illegal aliens to fraudulently collect tax refunds for their children living in Mexico. President Trump’s new tax plan, however, is set to save Americans billions of dollars every year.
One America’s Pearson Sharp explains how.
https://www.oann.com/president-trumps-tax-plan-blocks-spending-on-illegal-families-saves-billions/
Sign of the times: China’s capital orders Arabic, Muslim symbols taken down
BEIJING (Reuters) – Authorities in the Chinese capital have ordered halal restaurants and food stalls to remove Arabic script and symbols associated with Islam from their signs, part of an expanding national effort to “Sinicize” its Muslim population.
Employees at 11 restaurants and shops in Beijing selling halal products and visited by Reuters in recent days said officials had told them to remove images associated with Islam, such as the crescent moon and the word “halal” written in Arabic, from signs.
https://www.oann.com/sign-of-the-times-chinas-capital-orders-arabic-muslim-symbols-taken-down/
Rabbi spat at in German capital; police investigating (abcnews, Jul 31, 2019)
https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/rabbi-spat-german-capital-police-investigating-64678454
“German police have opened an investigation into a report from a prominent Berlin rabbi that he was insulted and spat at as he was heading home from synagogue with his son.
Police said Wednesday they were treating the incident as a religiously-motivated crime and are currently looking for suspects.
Police say Rabbi Yehuda Teichtal was walking past an apartment building in the Wilmersdorf neighborhood Friday night when he said he was spat at and sworn at by two men inside the building.
Teichtal, who said the two men spoke in Arabic, called in a statement for “tolerance, dialogue and training.”
Despite increasing anti-Semitic incidents, he says he remains “convinced most people in Berlin do not want to accept this aggression against Jews as a sad part of everyday Jewish life””
Rights group says prisoners go on hunger strike in Egypt (abcnews, Jul 31, 2019)
https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/rights-group-prisoners-hunger-strike-egypt-64675259
“Amnesty International says 130 detainees in a notorious Egyptian prison have been on hunger strike for more than six weeks to protest what it calls “cruel and inhumane detention conditions.”
The international rights group on Wednesday called on authorities to investigate the prisoners’ allegations of torture and other abuses.
Magdalena Mughrabi, Amnesty’s Middle East and North Africa deputy director, says “the combination of squalid and inhumane detention conditions and the denial of family visits and access to their lawyers … has created an unbearable situation for detainees.”
The detainees are being held at a Cairo prison known as the Scorpion, where a number of political figures have been jailed over the course of a sweeping crackdown on dissent in recent years.
Calls to the Interior Ministry requesting comment went unanswered.”
China warns outsiders not to ‘sow distrust’ in South China Sea
BANGKOK (Reuters) – China’s top diplomat on Wednesday warned outside countries not to amplify disputes in the South China Sea, where recent Chinese maneuvering in the energy-rich waters has rattled regional states and drawn condemnation from the United States.
Chinese Councillor Wang Yi touted progress on an eventual Code of Conduct with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) after meeting counterparts in the Thai capital.
https://www.oann.com/china-warns-outsiders-not-to-sow-distrust-in-south-china-sea/
Hong Kong charges 44 protesters with rioting, grants bail
HONG KONG (Reuters) – More than 40 people appeared in a Hong Kong court on Wednesday charged with rioting for their role in a recent protest that turned violent when thousands of activists clashed with police near Beijing’s main representative office in the city.
A wave of protests that began in late April have plunged the former British colony into its biggest political crisis since its return to Chinese rule in 1997, but this is the first time that the authorities in the financial hub have resorted to using the rioting charge.
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The 44 charged had been arrested after a peaceful gathering on Sunday in a park in the city’s central business district rapidly morphed into running battles between thousands of black-clad demonstrators and police, who fired rubber bullets and tear gas.
The use of the anti-riot law could infuriate activists who have been demanding that the government avoid using the term “riot” to refer to the demonstrations. Under Hong Kong law, rioting is defined as an unlawful assembly of three or more people where any person “commits a breach of the peace”, and a conviction can carry a 10-year prison sentence.
Most of the defendants were released on bail of HK$1,000 (US$128). The court also imposed a curfew from midnight to 6 am on most of them, and many were ordered to remain in Hong Kong.
https://www.oann.com/hong-kong-protesters-appear-in-court-to-face-riot-charge/
A little humour to start off the day:
Lifestyles of the rich and infamous: Pelosi and pals stop off for R & R on their way to Africa
By LU Staff July 30, 2019
All work and no play. In case you don’t have a copy of her daily itinerary, Nancy Pelosi is in Africa with a delegation of black Congress members. All are in Ghana “for high-level talks and a commemoration of the 400-year-old slave trade from Africa to the New World,” according to Voice of America.
Pelosi’s delegation includes House Majority Whip James Clyburn, Congressional Black Caucus chairwoman Karen Bass, House representatives Barbara Lee, civil rights leader John Lewis, and — for some reason — Ilhan Omar.
https://libertyunyielding.com/2019/07/30/lifestyles-of-the-rich-and-infamous-pelosi-and-pals-stop-off-for-r-r-on-their-way-to-africa/
At debate, Dem candidate fails to place hand over heart during national anthem
By Ben Bowles July 31, 2019
There were plenty of noteworthy lowlights in last night’s Democratic presidential debate. One came when Sen. Elizabeth Warren chastised the crowd for laughing as she recited a sad health care anecdote, telling those assembled, “This isn’t funny.” (Moral: Some people — even would-be Amerindians — are lousy storytellers.)
But not all of the lowlights were verbal. One that is generating a good bit of commentary this morning is the failure of Ohio Rep. Tim Ryan (who?) to place his hand over his heart during the singing of the national anthem. (Although it is going largely without mention, presidential contender Marianne Williamson also began with her hands folded in front of her but self-corrected partway through the performance. Check out the “before” and “after shots below.)
https://libertyunyielding.com/2019/07/31/at-debate-dem-candidate-fails-to-place-hand-over-heart-during-national-anthem/
(Richard: The Soviet Union had internal passports that were required to travel far from your home, now one of the Dems is trying to set up something like that in the US. The left really doesn’t grasp the idea of freedom and that the individual states are the laboratories of democracy and freedom where we are free to travel and move as we want. )
Newsom laments lack of borders between states to stop weapons of ‘godd–ned mass destruction’
California Gov. Gavin Newsom says it is inexplicable that a weapon “of godd—ned mass destruction” was used over the weekend during the Gilroy Garlic Festival mass shooting.
The Democrat told a Santa Clara audience that a semi-automatic rifle that Santino William Legan, 19, used to kill three and wound 12 others exists in the U.S., in large part, because of “completely bankrupt” Republican lawmakers.
“You can’t put borders up, speaking of borders, to a neighboring state where you can buy this damn stuff legally,” he said Monday at a local medical center, the Los Angeles Times reported. “How in the hell is that possible? I have no problem with the 2nd Amendment, you have a right to bear arms but not weapons of godd—ned mass destruction.”
The weapon used by the gunman, who was fatally shot by police on the scene, was described by authorities as an “AK-47 variant.”
http://www.gopusa.com/?p=73474?omhide=true
Young Woman Found Dead Stuffed in Suitcase in Dortmund, Afghan Suspect Arrested – Report (sputniknews, Jul 31, 2019)
https://sputniknews.com/europe/201907311076419116-young-woman-found-dead-stuffed-in-suitcase-in-dortmund-afghan-suspect-arrested–report/
“The woman, 21, died of multiple stab wounds before the murderer stowed her in a suitcase, which was later found in a garage near a railway station in Dortmund.
German police have arrested a 24-year-old Afghan man, who is suspected of murdering his wife, WR newspaper reports.
The man is alleged to have killed the 21-year-old woman, who is also Afghan, in the western part of Dortmund on Sunday.
According to the public prosecutor’s office, the victim was babysitting her female friend’s children in the friend’s apartment. The suspect, who is said to be living in Zwickau in Saxony, the opposite part of the country, came over to visit her on Friday or Saturday.
He purportedly strangled his wife and killed her by stabbing her some 70 times on Sunday morning, before stowing her body in a suitcase and taking it out.
The two children, aged 5 and 9, were not harmed and did not witness the crime.
The victim’s friend told the police that she discovered the children and “a lot of blood” in the apartment later on Sunday, and saw that a suitcase went missing.
Police arrested the man on Monday in his Zwickau apartment and he was flown by helicopter to Dortmund for interrogation. He tipped the officers off as to the whereabouts of the woman’s remains, and the suitcase was found in a garage near Dortmund railway station.
A Bild reporter has shared a photo of the garage where the suitcase was hidden.
The man’s motives are still unclear.”
Turkish Radio & Television – TRT- Syrians going for Hajj pilgrimage via Turkey
Thousands of Syrians are making the pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia via Turkey. The Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam, a journey millions of Muslims take every year.
Turkey Threatens to Reignite European Migrant Crisis
by Soeren Kern
July 31, 2019 at 5:00 am
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14624/turkey-threatens-migrant-crisis
Turkey has threatened to re-open the floodgates of mass migration to Europe unless Turkish nationals are granted visa-free travel to the European Union. The EU agreed to visa liberalization in a March 2016 EU-Turkey migrant deal in which Ankara pledged to stem the flow of migrants to Europe.
European officials insist that while Turkey has reduced the flow of migrants, it has not yet met all of the requirements for visa liberalization. Moreover, EU foreign ministers on July 15 decided to halt high-level talks with Ankara as part of sanctions over Turkish oil and gas drilling off the coast of Cyprus.
In an interview with Turkish television channel TGRT Haber on July 22, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Çavu?o?lu said that Turkey was backing out of the migrant deal because the EU had failed to honor its pledge to grant Turkish passport holders visa-free access to 26 European countries. “We have suspended the readmission agreement,” he said. “We will not wait at the EU’s door.”
A day earlier, Turkish Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu accused European countries of leaving Turkey alone to deal with the migration issue. In comments published by the state news agency Anadolu Agency, he warned: “We are facing the biggest wave of migration in history. If we open the floodgates, no European government will be able to survive for more than six months. We advise them not to try our patience.”
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14624/turkey-threatens-migrant-crisis
The UN’s Deadly Silence on Iran’s Maritime Violations
by Majid Rafizadeh
July 31, 2019 at 4:00 am
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14626/iran-maritime-violations
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In recent times, nothing has exemplified the double standards of the international community more than its laid-back response to the illicit activities and recklessness of Iran in international waterways during the last few months.
Bizarrely, the international community and its ever-so-willing apologists cronies in the mainstream media seem more interested in chasing shadows with their constant criticism of Israel, while slyly ignoring the main culprit, Iran, which continues to jeopardize safety, peace and security in the region and worldwide.
In May 2019, for instance, four tankers were attacked close to the port of Fujairah off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, in what was a violation of their territorial space. Within a month, on the June 13, two ships – the Japanese Kokuka Courageous and the Norwegian Front Altair — crossing the Gulf of Oman were sabotaged with explosives. One went up in flames; the other was left to be towed away.
A few weeks later, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) released a video showing commandos in black ski masks and military fatigues descending from a helicopter to seize a British oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz. The Iranians would on go to shoot down an American drone over International waters. All of these provocations have somehow seemed to be slipped under the radar by the UN and other powers that be.
Switzerland loses sovereignty to EU despite being independent nation – shock study (express, Jul 31, 2019)
https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1160111/eu-news-switzerland-news-Switzerland-sovereignty
“SWITZERLAND has “lost control” of its sovereignty to the European Union and other official bodies despite not being a member of the Brussels bloc, a shock study has found.
The Central European country, which is not a member of the EU, is said to be losing grip as international bodies including the EU, UN, G20 and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development make more and more decisions, according to Swiss Radio and Television. The study ”Policy Agenda Setting” found that between 1987 to 1996, 7.4 percent of all political decision-making processes in Switzerland, which has always resisted the temptation to join the EU, were initiated by international actors.
This is compared to the period between 2007 and 2015, when it was already at 21.4 percent.
Meanwhile, 83 percent of all decision-making processes prompted by international actors were about the creation of new laws in Switzerland.
Most recently, the guidelines of the OECD and the G20 countries forced a relaxation of Swiss banking secrecy, while new laws and regulations for agriculture are also particularly influential.
Pascal Sciarini, from the University of Geneva who is one of the three authors of the study, said: “We do lose a little bit of control over the rules that we want to develop for ourselves. Formally, we are still independent.
“But in reality, Switzerland is becoming more and more dependent on what is decided internationally and supranationally.”
The numbers of the study are also likely to be used in the Swiss election campaign ahead of the parliamentary elections in October 2019.
The Swiss People’s Party president Albert Rösti said that “long ago that well over fifty percent of the regulations are simply taken over”.
SP leader Roger Nordmann demanded his nation to ”become more active internationally”.
He said sovereignty was “that one gets involved where the decisions are made internationally”.
The shock results come after Swiss voters rejected a bid to give the country’s laws priority over international law in a referendum last year.
A total of 66 percent of voters voted against the “Swiss law, not foreign judges” proposal, supported by the right-wing SVP.
The measure called for an addition to the national constitution giving it clear precedence over the thousands of international agreements Switzerland has with other countries.
The referendum took place after years of debate in Switzerland over the country’s sovereignty.
Those in support of the change insisted that Switzerland’s sovereignty was being weakened by international agreements.
They argued that the nation’s tradition of direct democracy, which sees its citizens take part in referendums, was under threat.
The results come as the EU and Switzerland remain at loggerheads over a bilateral treaty, with Brussels threatening action against Bern and refusing to reopen negotiations.
Bern has been accused of “foot-dragging” by an increasingly confrontational Brussels after the Swiss Government asked the bloc to “clarify” three areas of the deal.
Brussels has perceived the request as a demand to reopen the draft treaty concluded in November 2018 – something the European Union has refused to do.
And in what looks like a decisive step towards a confrontation with Switzerland, the European Commission ignored a deadline to propose extending the equivalence regime that lets EU investors trade on Swiss bourses – effectively ending it as of July 1, an EU diplomat revealed.”
Migrants in Berlin Get Schooled on the Difference Between Sex and Rape (sputniknews, Jul 31, 2019)
https://sputniknews.com/europe/201907311076419574-migrants-in-berlin-get-schooled-on-the-difference-between-sex-and-rape/
“The videos demonstrated in the workshop are meant to help the participants understand things such as the concept of personal space, and teach them how to react if a woman rejects their advances.
A sexual education workshop aimed at teaching migrants the sexual norms of German society, is now up-and-running in Berlin, The Local reports.
According to the media outlet, the four-hour course called “Together for Security” is currently being held only in the capital, though Germany’s integration commissioner Annette Widmann-Mauz called for a broader implementation in the wake of the Freiburg gang-rape case “in which 10 of 11 suspects are refugees.”
The topics discussed in the workshop touch a variety of sensitive issues, such as how to determine if a woman is willing to engage in sexual activities, and how one is supposed to react if she rejects advances.
One of the videos played in the class uses metaphor to illustrate the difference between rape and consensual sex.
“It’s like asking a person if they want a cup of tea. If she answers ‘Yes, I love it’, it’s because she wants one. If she hesitates, you can make the tea and ask again. And if someone says ‘No, thank you’, don’t make the tea and don’t get angry — it’s the same with sexuality,” the voiceover narrates in English.
Another video explains what distance a person should maintain in order not to invade another’s personal space.
The session was organised by the Norwegian group Hero, which manages several hostels for migrants in Germany, the media outlet adds.
Since 2015, Europe has been struggling to cope with the effects of an influx of refugees fleeing war and social crises in the Middle East and Africa.
Over the course of the last four years, Germany has welcomed nearly a million migrants amid harsh criticism of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s “open borders policy,” including her failure to resolve migrant crisis-related crime following mass sexual assaults staged by migrants in Cologne on New Year’s Eve in 2015.”
Ted Malloch: Returning Hong Kong
Daily riots in the streets of Hong Kong have reached a fever pitch – what began as an extradition case of one man has become the symbol of the oppression of all Hong Kongers.
Hong Kong needs to return and stay on the side of democracy and freedom—the values it was built on; and Trump and the free world needs to say so.
Would you want to live under the Chinese Communist Party? Given extra points on your social credit score for memorizing Xi Jinping “thought”? If, by fortune or hard work, you happened to be a resident of Hong Kong, one of the freest places in the world, the most open economies, would you willingly give Beijing the right to extract you from the city and judge you in a communist tribunal somewhere unfamiliar and foreign?
3 million or so Hong Kongers have answered with a resounding, NO. Protests on workdays, with violent clashes with police forces and the looming threat of another Tiananmen Square all hang over the situation. The Communist PLA is ready to march. Then what?
The faction that won the power struggle after Tiananmen Square remains in power in Mainland China and has the same attitude toward protestors as it did back then.
1997 rolled along and Britain honored its commitment – made a century earlier between the Empire and a Chinese royal house that no longer existed. Hong Kongers themselves weren’t consulted on the matter, in an early demonstration of the hubris of the 90s.
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2019/07/ted-malloch-returning-hong-kong/?utm_source=Email&utm_medium=the-gateway-pundit&utm_campaign=dailyam&utm_content=daily
Freedom of Assembly Under Fire
by: Michelle Malkin
July 31, 2019
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Do law-abiding American citizens still have the right to gather peacefully to discuss their ideas without fear of government censorship and retribution?
In my adopted hometown of Colorado Springs, the answer is “No” if you believe in strict border control or question whether the U.S. can survive as a nation-state. The answer is “No” if you wish to meet with others to express concern about the unsustainability of current U.S. immigration policy. The answer is “No” if you dare to speak unvarnished truths about the deleterious security and economic impacts of illegal immigrants, Third World and sharia-promoting Muslim refugees, temporary guest workers, chain migration beneficiaries, diversity visa lottery winners, and legions of unassimilated and unvetted visitors and other visa holders from around the world.
In spring 2017, award-winning journalist and former Hoover Institution media fellow Peter Brimelow and his educational nonprofit VDARE reserved the Cheyenne Mountain Resort for a conference on immigration and sovereignty issues. A local far-left gadfly who bragged about wearing her “pink pussy hat while driving (her) Prius” launched an online petition condemning Brimelow’s organization as a “hate group.” The petition threatened both the resort and the mayor, bellowing that “the residents of Colorado Springs will not support businesses that profit from hate groups and will not re-elect politicians hospitable to those hate groups!”
http://www.theconservativeinsider.com/freedom-of-assembly-under-fire/?roi=echo3-56842547171-52345484-0e860e682ef8077d2535d29fc9ef8f6d
Left-wing media on notice after malicious attacks against OAN
Trump: My tweets are ‘my only form of defense’