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.
Russian experts head to Bergamo to help Italy battle coronavirus
Russian military specialists who arrived in Italy to help with the fight against coronavirus are heading towards the north of the country, which has been affected by the deadly epidemic the worst.
The convoy, composed of 22 trucks and other vehicles, set off for the northern Italian city of Bergamo early on Wednesday. The convoy, escorted by the Italian Carabinieri, has reached Florence, making a brief stop there, the Russian military says.
Indian police go hard on curfew breakers
Indians struggled to comply with the world’s largest coronavirus lockdown on Wednesday as the government began the huge task of keeping 1.3 billion people indoors.
A police officer in the north Indian town of Batla went around rebuking people, telling them to wear protective gear and stay at home.
He scolded people who were defying a curfew and asked them to apologise and do squats as punishment.
He also ordered shopkeepers to avoid crowding in their shops in an effort to contain the virus outbreak.
Stores Vandalized In Portland As Businesses Ordered To Close, Inmates Released, Police Ordered To Cite In Lieu Of Arrest
Stores Vandalized In Portland As Businesses Ordered To Close, Inmates Released, Police Ordered To Cite In Lieu Of Arrest
Avatar by Brock Simmons March 25, 2020 93 Comments
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What happens when a governor orders businesses to close, jails release dozens of inmates, and police announce they will only respond to life threatening calls and issue citations instead of arresting people? Anyone with three functioning brain cells can see where this toxic combination is heading.
Stores Vandalized In Portland As Businesses Ordered To Close, Inmates Released, Police Ordered To Cite In Lieu Of Arrest
Avatar by Brock Simmons March 25, 2020 93 Comments
148Share Tweet Email
What happens when a governor orders businesses to close, jails release dozens of inmates, and police announce they will only respond to life threatening calls and issue citations instead of arresting people? Anyone with three functioning brain cells can see where this toxic combination is heading.
Sure enough, just one day into Oregon Governor Kate Brown’s order that all businesses deemed “non essential” are to close, vandals smashed out windows of seven businesses in Portland’s fancy pants Pearl District.
This has led to several businesses in the area to board up their windows.
KPTV reports:
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/03/stores-vandalized-in-portland-as-businesses-ordered-to-close-inmates-released-police-ordered-to-cite-in-lieu-of-arrest/?utm_source=Email&utm_medium=the-gateway-pundit&utm_campaign=dailypm&utm_content=daily
Bumbling Joe Now Claims He Was Ivy League Professor After Leaving Senate, Forgetting 8 Years of Being VP (VIDEO)
Senile ol’ Joe Biden does it again, this time claiming he was a professor at University Of Pennsylvania after he left the Senate. Apparently he forgot that he was Vice President after leaving the Senate. For 8 years.This was apparently part of some online streaming town hall on NBC to discuss the coronavirus. Here’s the video in full, though it doesn’t actually start until around the 55:10 mark, then, with no intro, it awkwardly hard cuts into Joe already talking.
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/03/bumbling-joe-now-claims-he-was-ivy-league-professor-after-leaving-senate-forgetting-8-years-of-being-vp-video/?utm_source=Email&utm_medium=the-gateway-pundit&utm_campaign=dailypm&utm_content=daily
Supercut: Biden Coughs, Acts Confused, Throughout ABC/CNN/MSNBC Interviews
France Orders Withdrawal of All French Troops From Iraq Amid Coronavirus Outbreak (sputniknews, Mar 25, 2020)
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/202003251078710169-france-orders-withdrawal-of-all-french-troops-from-iraq-amid-coronavirus-outbreak/
“France has ordered that all its troops be removed from Iraq until further notice amid the COVID-19 pandemic…”
Time Has Come to Remove the Chinese Regime
Can Lives and Economy Be Both Saved? Will the CCP Be Held Accountable for Early Cover Up?
The head of the World Health Organization on Wednesday praised President Trump for his leadership in handling the novel coronavirus outbreak and said the president is “taking responsibility” for leading the United States’ response to the global pandemic.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the United Nations health agency has repeatedly called for the heads of state to lead a “whole of government” response to COVID-19 and said Trump was leading by example.
“That’s exactly what he’s doing, which we appreciate because fighting this pandemic needs political commitment,” Tedros said during an afternoon press briefing in Geneva.
https://www.foxnews.com/world/world-health-organization-praises-trump-leadership-coronavirus-pandemic
A turkish (?) show of force. I laughed:
https://www.dumpert.nl/item/7845499_65b9b863
Chinese Maritime Militia on the Move in Disputed Spratly Islands
Even as the coronavirus crisis sweeps through Asia, China continues to assert its presence in the South China Sea by deploying maritime militia around disputed islands and reefs in the Spratly island chain, according to vessel tracking data and satellite imagery reviewed by Radio Free Asia.
A fleet of Chinese ships has been moving this month through the Union Banks, a collection of small land features disputed between China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan. Among the most significant features in this area are the Chinese-controlled Hughes Reef and Johnson Reef, and Vietnam’s Sin Cowe Island and Collins Reef. These ships were identified as part of China’s infamous maritime militia by the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative in January 2019.
The five ships whose movements could be tracked by RFA are now at Johnson Reef, in the southwest corner of Union Banks. It may not be a coincidence that that their presence at that location comes within days of the 32nd anniversary of the Battle of Johnson Reef, a March 14, 1988, naval skirmish between Vietnam and China in which dozens of Vietnamese troops died and China seized control of the reef.
https://www.rfa.org/english/news/vietnam/china-spratly-03242020164332.html
University Called Out By Judge For ‘Railroading’ Accused Student. Activists Claim School Isn’t Pro-Accuser Enough.
Earlier this month, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth circuit outlined the numerous ways in which the University of Denver (DU) railroaded an accused student. Campus activists, however, claim the school doesn’t do enough for accusing students.
As The Daily Wire previously reported, a student referred to as John Doe was accused by a student referred to as Jane Roe of sexual assault in 2014 six months after the two shared a sexual encounter their freshmen year. John was expelled following a lop-sided campus kangaroo court and sued. A panel of three judges outlined exactly how DU deprived John of his constitutional rights, calling the process “a railroading,” yet amazingly upheld the school’s decision to expel him:
HOW TO FIGHT CORONAVIRUS (WITHOUT CAUSING A GLOBAL DEPRESSION)
includes video – 14 mins 24 secs [embedded] – https://www.thenewamerican.com/world-news/item/35200-dr-shiva-phd-covid-19
In a letter to President Trump, Dr. Shiva Ayyadurai offers a plan for protecting those vulnerable to COVID-19 while allowing the healthy to return to work. States and cities are shutting down businesses, closing schools, prohibiting crowds, imposing curfews—all to contain the spread of coronavirus. The draconian measures are a major subversion of Americans’ constitutional liberties, yet proponents of such policies claim they are a necessary evil to prevent this latest pandemic from causing mass fatalities. The disastrous effect on our economy, they say, is to be preferred to the deaths of millions. But what if we didn’t have to choose one or the other? What if protecting American lives and preserving our freedom and economic stability weren’t mutually exclusive? He then goes on to outline “the solution that can lead America back to health—immune and economic:”
STEP 1 – Organize our citizens into four (4) groups
STEP 2 – Deliver a Personalized Protocol for Each Group
STEP 3 – Back to Work and Maintenance
If it all sounds too simple, remember that those who seek to impose authoritarianism detest simple solutions. Why? Simple solutions don’t provide very good cover for expanding state power. Luis Miguel
https://www.thenewamerican.com/usnews/health-care/item/35241-how-to-fight-coronavirus-without-causing-a-global-depression
EU set to start membership talks with Albania and North Macedonia
https://www.theparliamentmagazine.eu/articles/news/eu-set-start-membership-talks-albania-and-north-macedonia
An EU General Affairs Council meeting today is likely to give the go ahead – a decision that has been long awaited in the region.
The development comes after France and the Netherlands – the two EU countries objecting to the commencement of talks – were successful in pressing for changes to the process under which future EU enlargement is decided.
It is expected that it will be “virtual” meeting, with no EU ministers in Brussels, due to the unfolding crisis over the spread of Coronavirus.
Albania’s crime problem a huge obstacle to EU entry
https://www.irishtimes.com/news/albania-s-crime-problem-a-huge-obstacle-to-eu-entry-1.1110436
Estimates vary but it’s calculated that up to 50 per cent of Albania’s economy is associated with various illegal activities, from people- and drug-trafficking to money laundering and a rampant trade in stolen cars. Albanian gangs have spread their tentacles throughout Europe. In London, the police talk of the increasing control by Albanian mobsters of the city’s vice trade.
Christchurch Mosque Shooter Pleads Guilty to All Charges – Police
https://sputniknews.com/world/202003251078710677-christchurch-mosque-shooter-tarrant-pleads-guilty-to-all-charges—report/
“The 2019 Christchurch shooting saw 51 killed. The gunman video-recorded and live-streamed the attack on two mosques through the use of Facebook. Today, he appeared from prison via audio-visual link and acknowledged that he was the shooter.
Brenton Tarrant pleaded guilty to all 51 murder charges, as well as 40 charges of attempted murder, and one charge on engaging in a terrorist act, New Zealand police said in a statement.
The 29-year-old Australian made his confession during a special High Court hearing in Christchurch this morning.
The two Imams from the Al Noor and Linwood Avenue Mosques were present in the courtroom as representatives of the victims, as were members of the media. Victims, their families, and the public did not know about the hearing. Sentencing will not come into force until all victims who wish to attend a hearing can do so. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, hearings are postponed indefinitely. The killer will remain in custody until 1 May 2020, at which time a sentencing date will be set or there will be continued detainment.
“I want to acknowledge the large team of police staff who have been working diligently on preparing the case for court proceedings in June this year along with staff from the Christchurch Crown Solicitor’s Office. This is New Zealand’s largest ever criminal prosecution”, Police Commissioner Mike Bush said in a statement after the guilty pleas.
An initial report on the shooter’s change of testimony and guilty plea was provided by local media.
Christchurch Mosque Shootings
51 people were killed and dozens wounded in the 15 March mass shootings at two mosques in New Zealand’s eastern city of Christchurch. A man wearing a helmet, glasses and an army-style jacket used an automatic military assault rifle in the mosques with more than 300 people inside.
An attack at one of the mosques was live-streamed on Facebook by the shooter, but were soon removed by the social network.
The tragedy prompted New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to tighten the country’s gun laws, introducing a complete ban on military style semi-automatic firearms and assault rifles.”
Russian military in Italy
https://twitter.com/Gefira_org/status/1242799031312678915
Denmark Charges Norwegian with Working with Iran in Assassination Plot
https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/2198936/denmark-charges-norwegian-working-iran-assassination-plot
“Denmark’s state prosecutor said on Wednesday it had charged a Norwegian citizen with assisting an Iranian intelligence service plan an assassination on Danish soil.
The Norwegian, who has Iranian heritage, was arrested in October 2018 over a suspected plot to kill an Iranian Arab opposition figure in Denmark.
Prosecutor Lise-Lotte Nilas said the man, who was not identified, is suspected of gathering information which, according to the investigation, was to be used to carry out a murder in Denmark.
Nilas said it was “completely unacceptable that foreign intelligence services plan killings on Danish soil, and it is unacceptable that people help foreign intelligence services operate in Denmark.”
The man allegedly photographed and made videos of a person’s home on orders from an Iranian intelligence service, Nilas said. He was charged with illegal intelligence activity and complicity in attempted murder.
The plan was thwarted by Danish police. He was arrested in Sweden and extradited to Denmark.
The 40-year old suspect has pleaded not guilty to all charges, his lawyer told Reuters. The trial is scheduled to begin in a Roskilde court on May 1.
The alleged attempt to eliminate a leading member of the opposition Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Ahvaz (ASMLA) was prevented after a major police operation in Denmark in September 2018 during which borders were temporarily closed.”
Saudis torture and ‘disappear’ civilians in Yemen, claims HRW
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200325-saudis-torture-and-disappear-civilians-in-yemen-claims-hrw/
“Human Rights Watch (HRW) published a report today highlighting abuses by Saudi Arabia and the forces it supports in the ongoing conflict in Yemen, specifically in the eastern province of Al-Mahrah, which shares a border with Oman. The report, released a day before the fifth-anniversary of the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen, traces the serious abuses since June last year, including arbitrary arrests, torture, enforced disappearances and the illegal transfer of detainees to the Kingdom.
“Saudi forces and their Yemeni allies’ serious abuses against local Mahrah residents is another horror to add to the list of the Saudi-led coalition’s unlawful conduct in Yemen,” said Michael Page, HRW’s deputy Middle East director. “Saudi Arabia is severely harming its reputation with Yemenis when it carries out these abusive practices and holds no one accountable for them.”…”
Two Turkish soldiers killed, two wounded in Kurdish militant attack in Iraq
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200325-two-turkish-soldiers-killed-two-wounded-in-kurdish-militant-attack-in-iraq/
“Two Turkish soldiers were killed and two others wounded after a mortar attack by Kurdish militants in northern Iraq’s Haftanin region, the Turkish Defence Ministry said late on Wednesday, adding the attack was retaliated, Reuters reports.
In a statement, the ministry said Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants had mounted a “harassment attack” on Turkish troops. It said “targets identified in the region” were struck and destroyed immediately in retaliation.
The PKK is designated a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the United States and the European Union. Some 40,000 people have been killed in the fight between Turkish forces and the PKK.”
Iraq: Gunmen raid and torch home, killing family in Baghdad
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200325-iraq-gunmen-raid-and-torch-home-killing-family-in-baghdad/
“An armed group has killed an entire family and burned their home after storming it in the south of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, a security source reported on Tuesday.
The source told local media that the militants had stormed a residential home in Baghdad’s southern town of Sadr Al-Yusufiyah, adding that the group had opened fire on its residents leaving the entire family deceased.
“After burning the house, they installed an explosive device nearby, resulting in wounding a local security officer as the forces were approaching the scene,” the source disclosed.
The source did not provide details about the family nor the armed group’s identities.”
Houthis: More than 1,000 ballistic missiles targeted Saudi Arabia and UAE
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200325-houthis-more-than-1000-ballistic-missiles-targeted-saudi-arabia-and-uae/
“Tomorrow marks the fifth anniversary of the launch of Operation Decisive Storm against the Houthis in Yemen.
The operation was launched at dawn on 26 March, 2015, with the participation of at least ten countries, led by Saudi Arabia against the Houthi movement and the forces loyal to the ousted president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, and has not to date achieved its goals. Following the withdrawal of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the only remaining country of the alleged Arab coalition is Saudi Arabia, which is still fighting in Yemen in hope of defending its borders.
For the sixth consecutive year, Yemen has witnessed a war between government forces and Houthi militants, who control several governorates, including the capital of Sanaa.
With the coming commemoration of Operation Decisive Storm, it emerges that the announcement of the Arab coalition, led by Saudi Arabia, regarding destroying 98 per cent of the air defences that the Houthis seized from the Yemeni army a few days after the launch of the offensive in March 2015, was nothing but empty propaganda. The kingdom’s statements were proven to be misleading after years of consecutive defeats.
Yahya Saria, Houthi military spokesperson, announced that over the past years the movement’s forces have fired more than 410 ballistic missiles at Saudi Arabia and the UAE. He pointed out that the Houthis’ missile force bombed vital military targets, installations and other facilities in the Saudi and Emirati depths, adding that over 630 ballistic missiles were fired at hostile military targets.
Saria noted that the missile defence systems employed were: “Qaher systems, volcano, Badr, Quds 1, Mojanah, Nakkal, Qasim and Zulfiqar,” explaining that the Houthi movement “has successfully conducted new experiments on missile systems that will be revealed soon.”
International organisations accuse the Arab coalition, along with the rest of the parties to the armed conflict in Yemen, of being involved in numerous violations. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the number of civilians killed and injured since the Arab coalition began its military operations in Yemen exceeds 17,000.
In turn, the United Nations describes the humanitarian crisis in Yemen as “the worst in the world”, affirming that more than 22 million Yemenis, more than two thirds of the population, require some form of humanitarian assistance and urgent protection, including 8.4 million people who do not know how to obtain their next meal, and nearly two million children suffering from severe malnutrition.
The collapse of the Arab coalition in Yemen will lead to weakening Saudi Arabia’s position and trapping it in a profound dilemma, as the withdrawing Emirati forces left behind local militias that could turn against Saudi Arabia in the event of affecting its influence or interests in the areas that it controls.
Since the beginning of the war, the UAE has continued recruiting militias to fight on its side, such as the security belt forces deployed in Aden and the governorates of Lahij, Abyan and Dhale, the Shabwani Elite forces in the Shabwah governorate, and the Hadrami Elite forces in Hadramout. This comes in addition to mobilising, on the west coast of the country, a group of former Republican Guard forces loyal to the late President Saleh, who was killed by the Houthis after cutting ties with them in late 2017. Later, Saleh’s nephew, Tariq Saleh, was chosen to lead the movement.
The aforementioned forces will not be easy to control, which will contribute to worsening the humanitarian conditions of a poor country which is undergoing multiple crises, many of which were caused by the Arab coalition. This situation could lead to intensifying local and international indignation towards Saudi Arabia, which has been accused of deepening the grievances of the Yemeni people.”
Hezbollah deploys medics, hospitals against coronavirus in Lebanon
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-hezbollah/hezbollah-deploys-medics-hospitals-against-coronavirus-in-lebanon-idUSKBN21C3R7
“The Lebanese paramilitary group Hezbollah is mobilizing some 25,000 people including frontline medics and readying hospitals as part of a plan to help confront the coronavirus in Lebanon, it said on Wednesday…”
Libya battles escalate as coronavirus arrives in country
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-libya-security/libya-battles-escalate-as-coronavirus-arrives-in-country-idUSKBN21C1G6
“Battles erupted around Tripoli on Wednesday following intensified bombardment of the Libyan capital, defying international pleas for a truce to tackle the coronavirus after the first case was confirmed in the country…”
Istanbul prosecutor indicts Saudi suspects for Khashoggi killing
https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/istanbul-prosecutor-indicts-saudi-suspects-for-khashoggi-killing-153262
“Istanbul prosecutor’s office said on March 25 it had prepared an indictment against 20 suspects over the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, including the former deputy head of Saudi Arabia’s general intelligence and a former royal adviser.
The prosecutor’s office said the indictment accuses former deputy head of Saudi Arabia’s general intelligence Ahmed al-Asiri and former royal court adviser Saud al-Qahtani as having “instigated premeditated murder with monstrous intent”.
It accuses 18 others of carrying out the killing of Khashoggi, a U.S. resident and columnist for the Washington Post, the prosecutor’s office said in a statement.
The indictment was based on analysis of mobile phone records of the suspects, records of their entry and exit into Turkey and presence at the consulate, witness statements and analysis of Khashoggi’s phone, laptop and iPad, the statement said.
Saudi Arabia’s media ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In December a Saudi court sentenced five people to death and three to jail over Khashoggi’s murder. But a Saudi prosecutor said there was no evidence connecting Qahtani to the killing and the court dismissed charges against Asiri.
Khashoggi’s killing in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018 caused a global uproar, tarnishing the image of Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Some Western governments, as well as the CIA, said they believed he had ordered the killing – an accusation Saudi officials have denied.
Riyadh offered various, conflicting narratives to explain his disappearance before acknowledging he was murdered in the diplomatic building.
Khashoggi’s body was never recovered.”
Over 3,500 people nabbed on Turkish borders
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/turkey/over-3-500-people-nabbed-on-turkish-borders/1779329
“A total of 3,541 people were nabbed for trying to illegally enter Turkey from its southeastern borders, the country’s National Defense Ministry said Wednesday.
In a tweet, the ministry said that the crossings were made in the last 10 days within the 2nd Army Command responsibility area, which shares a border with Iraq, Iran and Syria.
Those nabbed were mainly Syrian nationals, the ministry added.
In a related development, Turkish forces seized 1,500 cartons of smuggled cigarettes and 15 kilograms (33 pounds) of drugs.
Turkey has been a key transit point for asylum seekers aiming to cross to Europe to start new lives, especially those fleeing war and persecution.”
March 25 – Greek Independence Day – Greek soldiers sing the National Hymn at the Greek-Turkish border
Cemetery Workers Are Burying One Person Every 30 Minutes in Bergamo
Sky News – Coronavirus: Life and death in Bergamo
“I think it’s very clear that there are people in your profession that write fake news. You do. She does.”
“It’s lucky that you have this group here right now for this problem, or you wouldn’t have a country left.”
Breaking911 – March 25, 2020 – Twitter
https://twitter.com/Breaking911/status/1242941853995012099
This is very strange.
SPAIN Coronavirus: Ambulances carrying sick elderly patients stoned in Spain
MADRID (AFP) – A handful of stone-throwing youngsters tried to prevent ambulances from transferring 28 elderly coronavirus patients to a residence in their town in southern Spain, police said on Wednesday (March 25).
The incident occurred as the virus death toll soared to 3,434 in Spain, overtaking China, with elderly people bearing the brunt of the outbreak.
Police said the protest occurred on Tuesday afternoon when a convoy of ambulances tried to enter La Linea de Concepcion, an impoverished city in Andalusia which flanks Gibraltar.
The protesters hurled stones and shouted insults at the ambulances and even tried to block their path by parking a car in the middle of the road, police said, indicating two men aged 32 and 25 were arrested.
The pensioners were being transferred to alternative accommodation in La Linea where they could receive medical treatment because their care home in Alcala del Valle near Malaga “was being disinfected”, a police source said.
At the residence, around 50 people, “mostly youngsters” stood outside, “threatening and insulting the police and those who had brought” them, warning of further protests if more sick pensioners were brought in, he said.
Further disturbances flared up later in the evening with protesters throwing objects from nearby rooftops, including “flammable material” police said.
Despite an unprecedented national lockdown to curb the outbreak, the virus has now infected 47,610 people in Spain, with the vast majority of fatalities elderly.
Over the past week, Spain has been rushing to try and protect its elderly population after a dozens of deaths at care homes across the country, with the army sent in to conduct a massive deep-clean operation.
A sprawling city with high unemployment, La Linea is located in the southern Cadiz province and is notorious for being a haven for drug trafficking and tobacco smuggling.
[...from Morocco...]"There is a tense atmosphere in the city because those involved in illegal activities like smuggling tobacco or hashish can't do anything, they can't leave their home without justification," the police source said.
"And when they try to go out, we catch them straight away because with no-one in the streets, the patrols can move much faster because there's no traffic."
https://www.straitstimes.com/world/europe/coronavirus-ambulances-carrying-sick-pensioners-stoned-in-spain