Contributor’s links for Aug. 15, 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

70 Replies to “Contributor’s links for Aug. 15, 2019”

  1. Italy says six EU states will take in Open Arms migrants (memo, Aug 15, 2019)
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20190815-italy-says-six-eu-states-will-take-in-open-arms-migrants/

    “Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Thursday that six EU countries had agreed to take in some 150 migrants from a rescue ship that Italy had blocked from docking, resolving the latest standoff over immigration to Europe across the Mediterranean, Reuters reports.

    The migrants have been stranded on the Spanish charity ship Open Arms since it picked them up off Libya in early August, and Rome’s far-right interior minister, Matteo Salvini, refused to allow them to disembark.

    The migrants will be shared out among France, Germany, Romania, Portugal, Spain and Luxembourg, Conte said in an open letter to Salvini in which he accused the minister of disloyalty and being “obsessed” with closing Italy’s ports to migrants.

    The Open Arms, operated by a Spanish charity of the same name, was in Italian territorial waters on Thursday, a day after a Rome administrative court gave it leave to enter them, countermanding Salvini’s ban..

    Before Conte’s announcement, Spain said it was working with other EU states and the European Commission to find a “common… and orderly solution”, and was willing to “participate in a balanced distribution of migrants on board the ship.”

    French and German officials confirmed talks were under way to resolve this latest in a series of flashpoints over immigration involving Italy, and one that has fueled infighting in a coalition government in Rome that is close to collapse.

    Salvini, who heads the League party that forms part of the coalition, issued an emergency order to prevent Open Arms arriving at the Italian island of Lampedusa. But the defence minister, who is from the League’s partner party 5-Star, refused to countersign it.

    Openly challenging the League leader, who has so far dictated Italy’s immigration policy, Elisabetta Trenta said defying the court was illegal and that “politics must not lose its humanity.”

    The League and the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement were already in open conflict after Salvini said last week the alliance had become unworkable and called for elections.

    The League has tabled a motion of no-confidence in the government, and the premier Conte, a former academic who is not from either ruling party, vented his anger in his open letter to Salvini.

    He accused the far-right leader of “disloyal collaboration” by misrepresenting Conte’s own position, and of exploiting the issue of immigration for electoral gain rather than seeking necessary solutions with Italy’s partners…”

  2. Official: Turkey-backed Syrian opposition forces to send fighters to Idlib area (memo ,Aug 15, 2019)
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20190815-official-turkey-backed-syrian-rebels-to-send-fighters-to-idlib-area/

    “A Syrian opposition force supported by Turkey will send fighters to reinforce positions facing a Russian-backed Syrian government offensive in the Idlib region in the northwest of the country, an official in the rebel force told Reuters on Thursday.

    The National Army, an opposition group that is based north of Aleppo city near the Turkish border and is backed by Ankara, took the decision at a meeting with the rebel National Liberation Front (NLF), a separate rebel alliance that operates in the Idlib area, said Mohamed Abu Sharfo, spokesman for the National Army’s First Legion.

    The decision was taken to “start sending forces from the National Army to rural Hama and Idlib”, Abu Sharfo said. “The level of readiness has been raised and fighters are being called up from all the brigades of the National Army,” he said.

    The NLF and National Army also decided to establish a joint operations room. Northwestern Syria represents the last major foothold of the rebellion against President Bashar al-Assad.

    The most powerful rebel group in the Idlib region is widely seen to be the jihadist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham faction.”

  3. Former Johns Hopkins Professor Daniel Povey argued in a blog post this week that many American colleges demonize white men. Povey may not find his future career to be more welcoming to ideological diversity — he has accepted a position at Facebook.
    Professor Daniel Povey was fired by Johns Hopkins University in May when he tried to break up a student protest. Now, Povey is speaking out about his experience in academia.

    In a blog post, which was highlighted this week by Campus Reform, Povey explains that way American colleges demonize white men. Povey claims that he felt that he was expected to apologize for his identity.

    White males in this environment seem to be expected to constantly atone for their existence by telegraphing their exclusive concern for every demographic group but their own, like a neutered puppy-dog or some Justin Trudeau man-child. It’s pathetic, in my opinion; and I don’t accept it at all. I am not prepared to apologize for being who I am. I don’t think that empathy should preclude critical thinking or basic self-respect. I don’t accept that a person should have carte blanche to disrupt everyone’s lives just because of their minority status; and I don’t feel it’s right that I should be fired just for opposing a group whose victimhood makes them politically unassailable. This might sound very controversial to some people here, but to me it seems like common sense.

    https://www.breitbart.com/tech/2019/08/15/former-johns-hopkins-professor-colleges-demonize-white-men/

  4. “The John Moore Radio Show: Wednesday, 14 August, 2019”
    John Moore – Guest Host: Tim Spencer – Published on August 14, 2019
    Second Hour: Jeff Nyquist @ 52:18…
    Some of the topics discussed on the show:
    1. President of Ukraine Volpdymyr Zelenskyy
    2. “Darwinism on Trial ” by Phillip E. Johnson
    3. Mathematical Challenges to Darwin’s Theory of Evolution

  5. Thousands protest in Britain for Kashmir outside Indian High Commission (reuters, Aug 15, 2019)
    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-kashmir-britain/thousands-protest-in-britain-for-kashmir-outside-indian-high-commission-idUSKCN1V51AL

    “Thousands of people, many waving Pakistani and Kashmiri flags, protested outside the Indian High Commission in London on Thursday in support of the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.

    India’s decision to revoke special status for its portion of Kashmir, along with a communications blackout and curbs on movement, caused fury in Pakistan, which cut trade and transport links and expelled India’s envoy in retaliation.

    In London, protesters carried banners saying “Kashmir is Burning”, “Free Kashmir” and “Modi: Make Tea Not War”, according to a Reuters reporter.

    A small counter-demonstration was kept apart from the main protest by the police.

    Four people were arrested for affray, obstruction of police and possession of an offensive weapon, police said.

    “One person was injured during the demonstrations,” they said.

    A Reuters photograph showed police carrying away a large curved knife from the protest…”

  6. 1 in 6 Migrants Died Crossing Central Mediterranean to Italy in 2019 (mwn, Aug 15, 2019)
    https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2019/08/280387/migrants-died-central-mediterranean-italy/

    “At least 843 migrants died while crossing the Mediterranean Sea to Europe between January 1 and August 8, 2019. The majority of those, 578, died while attempting to cross at the “central Mediterranean” route, which extends from Libya to Italy.

    The figures, from the International Organization for Migration’s Missing Migrants Project, indicate the incredible risks migrants take when making the passage.

    One in six migrants attempting to reach Italy in 2019 have died, a UNHCR communications officer, Marco Rotunno, told the BBC…”

  7. 2 PKK terrorists ‘neutralized’ in SE Turkey (hdn, Aug 15, 2019)
    http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/2-pkk-terrorists-neutralized-in-se-turkey-145801

    “Turkish security forces “neutralized” Thursday two PKK terrorists in southeastern Turkey, the nation’s Defense Ministry said.

    Security forces retaliated against a PKK terrorist attack on a Turkish military base in Da?l?ca, a village in the southeastern Hakkari province, the ministry said in a statement.

    Turkish authorities often use the word “neutralized” in their statements to imply that the terrorists in question either surrendered or were killed or captured.

    In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the European Union- has been responsible for the deaths of nearly 40,000 people, including men, women, children and infants.”

  8. Traffic accidents claim 50 lives during Eid al-Adha (hdn, Aug 15, 2019)
    http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/traffic-accidents-claim-50-lives-during-eid-al-adha-145802

    “Fifty people lost their lives in road accidents across Turkey this year during Eid al-Adha, the Interior Ministry has said.

    A total of 45 accidents occurred from the eve of Eid al-Adha on Aug. 11 to the last day of the holiday on Aug. 14, covering a period of four days.

    The accidents took place in 33 of Turkey’s provinces.

    All across Turkey, especially at destinations where traffic frequently gets congested, 116,236 traffic officers, 360 personnel tasked to monitor bus trips and 56 chief police and gendarmerie inspectors were assigned for traffic measures, the ministry’s written statement read. The tasked forces performed their duties for a week, from Aug. 9 to Aug. 15.

    Death tolls from car crashes, however, have decreased significantly in Turkey despite a boom in motor vehicle ownerships in the country in the last decade, the ministry said.

    This is because of meticulous precautions taken, according to the ministry…”

  9. Palestine warns of ‘religious war’ over Aqsa’s status (aa, Aug 16. 2019)
    https://www.aa.com.tr/en/world/palestine-warns-of-religious-war-over-aqsas-status/1557542

    “The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) warned Thursday that calls by an Israeli government minister to change the status quo at Jerusalem’s flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque would lead to a “religious war”.

    In a written statement released after a meeting in Ramallah, the PLO’s Executive Committee said the recent calls are “an attempt to drag the region into a religious war” and “propaganda” for the division of the mosque.

    On Tuesday, Israeli Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan called for changing the status of the mosque so that Jews can pray there individually or collectively in an open or closed area.

    “I think there is an injustice in the status quo that has existed since 1967,” Erdan told Israeli Radio on Tuesday.

    “We need to work to change [the status quo] so in the future, Jews, with the help of God, can pray at the Temple Mount.”

    Gaza-based resistance faction Hamas meanwhile called for national unity in a written statement after holding an emergency meeting on the latest developments concerning al-Aqsa Mosque that occurred on the eve and first day of the Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday.

    Israeli forces attacked Palestinian worshipers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex Sunday, injuring at least 37.

    Terming Jerusalem a “red line”, Hamas said “any attack on Al-Aqsa Mosque is an attack on the Palestinian people in particular and all the ummah.”

    “The only way to resist this plot is real national unity based on a real partnership,” it said.

    The Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs of Palestine in a written statement also warned against a “religious war” in the region.

    Calling the recent Israeli actions a “provocative step” aimed at dividing Al-Aqsa Mosque, the ministry called on the international community to intervene.

    Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. In 1980, in a move never recognized by the international community, Israel annexed the entire city, claiming it as the self-proclaimed Jewish state’s “eternal and undivided” capital.

    For Muslims, Al-Aqsa represents the world’s third-holiest site after Mecca and Medina. Jews refer to the area as the “Temple Mount,” claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.”

  10. Turkish government clamps down on liberal imams (DW, Aug 15, 2019)
    https://www.dw.com/en/turkish-government-clamps-down-on-liberal-imams/a-50045194

    “Liberal imams in Turkey can find themselves arbitrarily fired if they don’t toe the line set by the state religious affairs office. The vague charges against them leave those accused with little recourse.

    Turkey’s directorate for religious affairs, Diyanet, keeps watch over its imams — the religious scholars whose work is mostly that of leading prayers in mosques.

    Diyanet provides its imams at 90,000 mosques with guidelines that govern morals, prayer, and the teaching of the faith. Violations are punished harshly — most of the time, the imam is discharged immediately.

    The body, which also organizes Islamic religion courses for children, declined to comment on the exact number of dismissals, but the fate of certain individual imams who spoke to DW shone a light on the severity of the problem. Overall, Diyanet employs about 117,000 people, though not all of them are imams.

    Abdullah, a 35-year-old imam, opposed a mufti who issued an Islamic legal decree, known as a fatwa, stating that women could not enter a supermarket unaccompanied by men. “I saw it differently,” Abdullah said.

    After disagreeing with the fatwa, he said his Facebook profile was searched and turned up an entry in which he permitted women wearing nail polish to pray and perform religious ablutions.

    What about freedom of speech?

    “Then everything happened very quickly,” Abdullah told DW. “Right after that, the investigations were underway.” After six years in office, the authority dismissed Abdullah without notice. “A breach of guidelines” was the only reason he received.

    “In my statement, I invoked freedom of speech,” he said. “I was just doing my job, and that is getting people to use their own minds. I thought there was freedom of expression in this country.”

    Ahmet Muhsin Tuzer, known to many as the “rock imam,” was dismissed nine months ago, again for a “breach of guidelines” when he formed a rock band in the Mediterranean seaside town of Kas.

    “Immediately after its founding, Diyanet started hassling the band, they sent the investigators to our shows, and turned my entire life upside-down,” he said.

    The accusations were soon to follow: Tuzer put on concerts without the proper permission and earned significant additional income. He would have submitted his bank statements to them, but that, he said, wouldn’t have changed anything.

    However, he said even before his music shows he had fallen out of favor with his superiors by saying, “The inventor of the light bulb, Thomas Alva Edison, certainly went to heaven.”

    Local higher-ups did not approve of the statement because the US inventor born in 1847 was a Christina.

    Tuzer called the turn of events a “disgrace to democracy and freedom.”

    A fateful prayer

    In the southeastern Anatolian city of Sirnak, the 46-year-old S.T. was sacked after 25 years serving as an imam because he was a member of a trade union.

    In the summer of 2015, militias from the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) occupied several municipalities, and Ankara retaliated with military operations in Kurdish territories.

    The workers’ union in question was accused of having ties to the PKK groups at the time. S.T. said he was suspended by emergency decree along with nine other trade unionists.

    Another case is that of Zekeriya Bilada, an imam in the town of Nevsehir. He received an invitation from the ultranationalist Good Party (Iyi Party) to lead a prayer for the party shortly before the local elections on March 31.

    It turned out to be a fateful prayer: A mufti, close to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) party, intervened then called to inform Bilada that another imam would replace him.

    They accused the 21-year-old of praying for a FETO supporter, referring to the chairman of the Iyi Parti, Meral Aksener. FETO is the name given by the government to the Gulen movement that allegedly participated in the 2016 coup attempt.

    The Islamic lawmaker referred to Article 25 of the law on religious affairs stating, “Religious personnel may neither praise nor criticize the attitude and opinion of the parties.”

    Diyanet as a political instrument?

    However, Bilada said almost all Turkish imams made political statements during the local elections and added that those who prayed for the AKP candidate Binali Yildirim are still in office.

    Turkish opposition members criticized that the presidential office for religious affairs is increasingly acting on political motivations. The widely shared accusation is that the authority acts in the interests of the conservative Islamic AKP government.

    This favoritism would be hugely problematic because secularism — the separation of state and religion — has been one of the key principles of Turkish society since its founding in 1923.

    The father of the modern Turkish republic, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk viewed the separation of state and religion as one of “six pillars of the Turkish state.”

    Most people in Turkey still hold a belief in the principle of laicism.

    DW changed the names of some people quoted in this article who feared repercussions for criticizing Diyanet or the government.”