Reader’s Links for January 4, 2021

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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

71 Replies to “Reader’s Links for January 4, 2021”

  1. Just Two Per Cent of Suspected Terrorists Are Still Being Tracked by UK Govt’s Anti-Extremism Programme (breitbart, Jan 4, 2021)
    https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2021/01/04/two-per-cent-suspected-terrorists-flagged-uk-govt-anti-extremism-programme-being-monitored/

    “The British government’s anti-radicalisation programme is only monitoring two per cent of all suspected terrorists flagged with the security services, Home Office data has revealed.

    In 2019, 6,287 people were listed on the rolls of the Prevent programme, which seeks to deradicalise primarily young people who are at risk of becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism.

    It has now been revealed that only 147 of those flagged last year remain under the scrutiny of the programme, representing just two per cent of all terrorists flagged for Prevent, The Sun reported on Saturday.

    The former boss of the National Counter Terrorism Security Office Chris Phillips told the paper: “Covid lockdowns have made the work of police and security services much-more difficult — try following a suspect on empty streets.”

    “In addition, many will be using the internet to radicalise others,” Phillips said, going on to warn: “We are in for a difficult time ahead with a high likelihood of further attacks.”

    The Prevent programme was responsible for tracking the London Bridge terrorist, Usman Khan, 28, who stabbed two Cambridge University graduates during a prisoner rehabilitation event at Fishmongers’ Hall in 2019.

    An inquest later revealed that the Prevent officers responsible for Khan had “no specific training” in dealing with terrorists.

    More recently, the suspect in the fatal shooting of a police officer in London in September had been flagged by the programme prior to the attack.

    Security analyst Will Geddes, who serves as the managing director of the ICP Group, said that a resurgence of terror attacks will likely occur after lockdown restrictions are eased in Europe.

    “One of the biggest issues we have to remember is that terrorism is not very successful if there are empty streets, where there are less potential victims and it is easier for security services to identify them,” Geddes said.

    “Terrorists like to target highly populated areas, which there are less of when people are not on the streets as much,” he explained.

    “Nothing can be discounted right now, the hardest part for counter-terrorism is trying to look at what opportunities these groups will try to exploit,” Geddes warned.

    In November, Home Secretary Priti Patel confirmed that the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (Jtac), an independent branch of the MI5 security service, upgraded the UK terror threat level, meaning that the government considers an attack “highly likely“.

    The upgrade from “likely”, which remains in place, followed a string of terror attacks in Vienna, Austria, and France.

    “This is a precautionary measure and is not based on any specific threat. The public should continue to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity to the police,” Ms Patel said at the time.

    In April, the government revealed that security services were aware of at least 43,000 terrorist suspects in the country, almost double the amount previously disclosed to the public.”

  2. Iran starts 20% uranium enrichment as tanker feared seized (abcnews, Jan 4, 2021)
    https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/iran-begins-20-uranium-enrichment-amid-us-tensions-75031991

    “Iran on Monday began enriching uranium up to 20% at an underground facility, a short technical step from weapons-grade levels, as fears mounted that a South Korean-flagged oil tanker had been seized by Tehran in the crucial Strait of Hormuz.

    The announcement of enrichment at Fordo came at the same time Western officials said they feared the MT Hankuk Chemi had been seized.

    It comes amid heightened tensions between Iran and the U.S. in the waning days of President Donald Trump’s term in office, which saw the U.S. leader unilaterally withdraw from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers and set off months of escalating incidents between the two countries.

    Iranian state television quoted spokesman Ali Rabiei as saying that President Hassan Rouhani had given the order for the move at the Fordo facility…”

  3. “Building the Canadian Shield” is a group of Canadians that are proposing a more aggressive Melbourne-like approach to lockdowns in Canada. This 17 page document, dated December 30, 2020, compiled by the “Covid Strategic Choices Group”, relies heavily on lockdowns to ‘zero out’ cases until mass vaccinations can be achieved. The word “lockdown” is mentioned 26 times in this paper. This group if funded by Global Canada (sounds like a government department doesn’t it …) which was created in 2015 and funded by Bill Gates.

  7. “Checking In – Saying HI and Safe and Sound”
    Jovan Hutton Pulitzer – Streamed live on January 2, 2021
    Watch This @ 52:18
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuoZGWxdPlo

    At the end of his talk Jovan Hutton Pulitzer mentioned Nic on Twitter.

    Video: “How is it legal to broadcast Propaganda in the United States?
    It became legal in 2012. When POTUS says “Fake News” he’s calling out Federal Information Operations to control the population’s perception. He’s fighting it from WITHIN our Govt! A dangerous thing. Support him.”
    Nic – December 21, 2020 – Twitter
    https://twitter.com/Nic_Ohi/status/1341076117961236480

  10. Pence Turned; Congress Turned, Will New “Political Correct” Overturn Election on January 6?

  11. Expert: Tech can detect counterfeit ballots in hours, calls to examine all Georgia absentee ballots

    • In the old days cards were fed into a keypunch machine. The keypunch operator punched in the numbers and then another person ‘verified’ the same numbers. What is the problem with someone verifying the ballots IF everything was done on the up and up?

      I would stake my life that Donald Trump was re-elected, it really is that simple

  12. After a historic defence budget, Japan begins procuring everything it needs to take on China

  14. Pakistan’s minority Shia Hazara community protests killing of 11 coal miners by ISIS

  16. Cultural Commissioner of the German Protestant Church (EKD) claims: The Holy Qur’an is the “third Testament”

    In a review in the newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, the cultural representative of the Protestant Church in Germany (EKD), Johann Hinrich Claussen, declares the Holy Qur’an to be a ‘third Testament’”.

    Jesus Christ is thus no longer the Son of God, but is downgraded to a prophet. The Trinity, which from the Muslim point of view is polytheism, is also invalidated. The EKD handout “Klarheit und gute Nachbarschaft: Christen und Muslime in Deutschland” (Clarity and Good Neighbourliness: Christians and Muslims in Germany) published in 2006 still contains an unambiguous Christian confession, with an affirmation of the missionary mandate, according to which the message of God’s justification is to be communicated to all the world.

    Apparently, the EKD has revised its position in the meantime. The theologian Margot Käßmann is mentioned, who sees the relevance of Luther today in the fact that we can learn from other religions that there are other ways to reach God besides Christ.Although Luther himself did not really practise this, fortunately we are much further ahead today, argues Käßmann.The EKD is also adapting to this new trend: “The challenge is to speak of Christ, but in such a way that the faith of others is not devalued or declared to be untrue”. The church renounces “one-way communication”, no longer wants to act as “organiser” and “provider”, but will profile, concentrate and, if necessary, reduce its own offers in close and sustainable coordination with civil society partners.

    In plain language, no longer speak of Christ. Because the exclusivity of Jesus Christ can be perceived as presumptuous and arrogant in a religiously plural society. Perhaps one wants to discuss the contents of the Christian faith with the Central Council of Muslims in the future?

    One recognises a spreading disorientation.

    https://medforthblog.wordpress.com/2021/01/04/cultural-commissioner-of-the-german-protestant-church-ekd-claims-the-holy-quran-is-the-third-testament/

  18. Japan poised for state of emergency as Covid-19 cases soar | Yoshihide Suga | World News | WION News

  19. Satellite Images Allegedly Show IRGC Ship Activity in Strait of Hormuz Amid US-Iran Tensions (sputniknews, Jan 4, 2021)
    https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/202101041081643485-satellite-images-allegedly-show-irgc-ship-activity-in-strait-of-hormuz-amid-us-iran-tensions/

    “Several satellite images released by the private US company Planet Labs have captured what looks like a “cluster” of activity by ships from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the Strait of Hormuz.

    Located between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, the Strait of Hormuz is a crucial channel that oil producers use to transport crude from the Middle East to markets around the world.

    Iranian officials have not yet commented on the images released as the Islamic Republic commemorated the first anniversary of the assassination of the commander of the IRGC’s elite Quds Force, Qasem Soleimani…”

  20. Polish Security Service Prevents Anti-Muslim Terrorist Attack, Government Says (sputniknews, Jan 4, 2020)
    https://sputniknews.com/europe/202101041081644931-polish-security-service-prevents-anti-muslim-terrorist-attack-government-says/

    “Poland’s Internal Security Agency (ABW) has detained and indicted several people believed to have been plotting a terrorist attack at a Muslim religious facility, the spokesman for Polish Interior Minister and Coordinator of Special Services Mariusz Kaminski said on Monday.

    “The Prosecutor’s Office sent an indictment to the court following an investigation … into the suspects over the preparation of a crime of creating a situation threatening the life and health of multiple people or large property as a result of an explosion,” Stanislaw Zaryn said at a briefing.

    According to the ABW, suspects plotted an attack “at a particular object of religious worship of the Muslim community and planned to disperse poisonous substances,” feeling strong opposition to the “Islamization of Poland.”

    Security officers found and confiscated from them explosive substances, four guns, including a hand-made automatic pistol, and munitions, as well as tools and materials for producing hazardous substances, according to Zaryn.

    One of the detained suspects was described as “inciting violence, crime and hatred based on national, ethnic, race and religious background,” the spokesman said.
    The indicted persons face prison sentences up to 10 years.”

  21. Seoul Sends Anti-Piracy Unit to Persian Gulf After Iran Seizes S. Korean Vessel Over Water Pollution (sputniknews, Jan 4, 2021)
    https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/202101041081643121-uae-bound-s-korean-flagged-vessel-feared-seized-after-crossing-into-iranian-waters-reports-say/

    “A South Korean-flagged tanker bound for the United Arab Emirates was earlier spotted off-course and crossing into the Iranian territorial waters, according to satellite data by marinetraffic.com.

    The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has seized a UAE-bound South Korea-flagged vessel in the Persian Gulf as the ship was polluting the waters with chemicals, Fars News agency reported citing sources.

    According to Tasnim news agency, the crew of the vessel are from South Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam and Myanmar.

    The South Korean Foreign Ministry later confirmed the development and dispatched its anti-piracy unit to the region.

    “The defence ministry immediately dispatched the Cheonghae unit to waters near the Strait of Hormuz shortly after receiving a report on the situation of Iran’s seizure of our commercial vessel”, the ministry said in a statement.

    Earlier, the MT Hankuk Chemi was spotted off Bandar Abbas on Monday afternoon, but there was no immediate explanation why it changed its direction, which prompted fears it could have been seized.

    The United Kingdom Marine Trade Operations, an information service about global shipping, said that the merchant vessel changed course after an “interaction” between the ship and Iranian authorities, but did not provide any other details.

    The US Navy’s 5th Fleet, in turn, stated that the authorities were aware of the situation and are closely monitoring it.”

  22. Indian army deploys tanks at a height of 17,000 feet | Indian Army | India-China | WION Dispatch

  23. Your Story: South Korea’s population declines for the first time ever | World News
    695 views
    •Jan 4, 2021

  24. Ossoff Refuses to Release ‘Further Financial Information’ After Controversial Payments Surface
    Georgia Dem cashed checks from China

    Even after a number of controversial payments to Jon Ossoff’s foreign film company surfaced in September—including one from a Chinese-backed media giant—the Georgia Democrat refused to release additional financial documents from the company.

    In a recent interview with the Washington Post, Ossoff declined the outlet’s request to “release further financial information” relating to his company, noting that “the particulars of our annual finances are confidential.” The refusal comes months after Ossoff quietly disclosed receiving at least $5,000 from PCCW, a Hong Kong-based media corporation owned in part by the Chinese Communist Party.

    Ossoff’s withholding of financial information could undermine his ability to fend off attacks from his Republican opponent. Senator David Perdue has criticized Ossoff for accepting funds from a “communist Chinese news agency” and called on him to explain “where his money comes from” in an October debate.

    Ossoff failed to include the PCCW payment in his May candidate financial disclosure before revealing it nearly two months later in an amended filing. While his campaign initially blamed the discrepancy on a “paperwork oversight,” spokeswoman Miryam Lipper later told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the payment was “around $1,000.” Senate ethics rules, however, only require candidates to disclose payments exceeding $5,000. Lipper responded by telling the Journal-Constitution that—despite falling below the reporting threshold—the payment was disclosed “in the interest of transparency.”

    https://freebeacon.com/2020-election/ossoff-refuses-to-release-further-financial-information-after-controversial-payments-surface/

  25. Iowa Dem seeking House intervention in lost election was on payroll of 2 Chinese firms
    Hart received $3,180 from Confucius International Education Group and $2,135 from Pangaea International Academ

    Iowa Democrat Rita Hart was on the payroll of two Chinese companies while running to represent the state’s 2nd District in the U.S. House of Representatives, a financial disclosure shows.

    Hart received $3,180 from Confucius International Education Group and $2,135 from Pangaea International Academy, both of which have ties to the Chinese Communist Party. The payments were discovered by Accuracy in Media when it was investigating a Federal Election Commission complaint against Hart.

    Confucius International Education Group (CIEG), based in Qingdao, China, is funded by Chinese state-run leasing company Far East Horizon, which has ties to the Youth Communist League.

    https://www.foxnews.com/politics/iowa-democrat-rita-hart-china-payrolls

  27. ‘Amen And Awoman’: Minister Invokes Hindu God, Offers Gender Lesson During Opening Prayer For 117th Congress

    Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO), who is an ordained United Methodist minister, opened the first session of the 117th Congress on Sunday by praying in the name of a Hindu god and twisting the word “amen” into a commentary on gender.

    “Eternal God, noiselessly we bow before your throne of grace as we leave behind the politically and socially clamorous year of 2020,” began Cleaver, who served as the pastor of St. James United Methodist Church in Kansas City, Missouri, from 1972 to 2009.

    https://www.dailywire.com/news/amen-and-awoman-minister-invokes-hindu-god-offers-gender-lesson-during-opening-prayer-for-117th-congress?itm_source=parsely-api?utm_source=cnemail&utm_medium=email&utm_content=010421-news&utm_campaign=position2

    (Richard: Cleaver has been a radical black activists for his entire career)</em)

  28. (Richard: I wonder what deal was struck to get them to vote for her?)

    Full ‘Squad,’ Including Two Newest Members, Vote Pelosi For Speaker
    Eric Quintanar
    3-4 minutes

    All six members of the congressional “Squad,” the group of progressive Democratic members of Congress that recently added two members, voted in favor of Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) serving another term as Speaker of the House when the 117th Congress began on Sunday afternoon.

    Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) all voted for Pelosi, as they did back in the 2019 speaker election.

    Meanwhile, Congresswoman Cori Bush (D-MO) and Congressman Jamal Bowman (D-NY), the two newest “Squad” members, also voted for Pelosi, despite remaining secretive about how they planned to vote in the speaker election during a CNN interview late last month.

    https://www.dailywire.com/news/full-squad-including-two-newest-members-vote-pelosi-for-speaker?itm_source=parsely-api?utm_source=cnemail&utm_medium=email&utm_content=010421-news&utm_campaign=position6

  29. Senate Throws A Serious Accusation At Obama – Report Says He Greenlit Funding For America’s Enemy
    Ben Dutka
    4-5 minutes

    Senate Throws A Serious Accusation At Obama – Report Says He Greenlit Funding For America’s Enemy

    As the country turns its attention to the Senate runoff races in Georgia and the apparent inauguration of Joe Biden, a former political leader finds himself back in the limelight.

    But this time, the light isn’t favorable: former President Barack Obama may have some questions to answer after the new report that came out this week.

    It was released by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA), and it suggests that Obama’s administration might’ve indirectly supported America’s enemies.

    https://thepatriotjournal.com/senate-obama-funding-group/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=pjnewsletter

  30. Supreme Court Gets New Petition From President Trump – He Wants A 2020 Election Review Of Voting Irregularities In Wisconsin
    Ben Dutka
    4-5 minutes

    Supreme Court Gets New Petition From President Trump – He Wants A 2020 Election Review Of Voting Irregularities In Wisconsin

    The official certification of the Electoral College votes is just a week away: on January 6, the results of the 2020 presidential election become official.

    But President Donald Trump’s team isn’t giving up. Though it certainly appears as if Democratic candidate Joe Biden will be inaugurated on January 20, Trump’s allies continue to fight.

    And now, their latest last-ditch effort just came to the highest court in the land.

    Earlier this month, the Wisconsin Supreme Court voted 4-3 to dismiss a Trump campaign lawsuit. The President’s lawyers were trying to overturn the state’s voting results.

    https://thepatriotjournal.com/trump-election-court-voting-wisconsin/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=pjnewsletter

  31. The Ugly New ‘Civic Virtue’

    Christopher G. Adamo | Jan 4, 2021 | Commentary | 7
    The Ugly New ‘Civic Virtue’

    We have all heard the horror stories. A woman and her two year old daughter are forced off of an airliner because the child would not “comply” with mask mandates. Another woman in a library full of people is singled out by local police, accused of “trespassing,” and ordered off the premises. Once again, her real “crime” is refusing to wear a mask. In both cases, a totally innocuous situation was turned into a major ordeal, eventually involving eviction, threats of physical force, and the possibility of arrest, simply because some bystander decided to make an issue of the fact that a free American had not “complied” with the mask edicts.

    Meanwhile, convicted felons are being released from prisons in blue states on orders of leftist Democrat governors, ostensibly for their safety from the virus. In many cases, innocent people have been further victimized by these criminals. Yet those same governors are ready to repopulate those prisons with people who’s actions are no more egregious than gathering with fellow believers for Christmas dinner, or to worship in Church on Sunday. Are we really to believe these abominable policies were enacted for the “public good”?

    Worst of all, in the face of real harm and oppression coming to honest and decent people as a result of such abhorrent policies, a good portion of onlookers nod in pious approval, deeming it an appropriate fate for those who dared resist the infinite beneficence and wisdom of the state. Given how widespread such outrages have become, and the minimal backlash from the population that has been targeted by them, it is hard to escape the conclusion that this America is no longer the “Land of the Free.”

    The “stoolies” who alert authorities of “non-compliance” by others rarely exhibit any genuine fear of contracting the virus. They are never seen fleeing the vicinity of an unmasked person, in order to stay out of reach of the nasty germs. Rather, they are aggressive and confrontational, to the point of committing physical assaults, simply because they believe they have the authorities on their side. Early on in the whole “Pandemic”/panic, it became glaringly obvious that little, if any public policy was actually about keeping people healthy.

    https://www.gopusa.com/?p=99907?omhide=true

  32. Exclusive: Over 432,000 Votes Removed From Trump in Pennsylvania, Data Scientists Say
    By Allen Zhong
    January 4, 2021 Updated: January 4, 2021
    biggersmaller Print

    Pennsylvania election data shows that over 432,000 votes were removed from President Donald Trump during the November election, data scientists say.

    According to an analysis by the Data Integrity Group, obtained exclusively by The Epoch Times, votes for Trump—from both Election Day and mail-in ballots—were removed from the totals in at least 15 counties.

    Time-series election data shows Trump’s votes decrementing in various counties at numerous time points instead of increasing as would be expected under normal circumstances.

    The group said that Election Day vote removals happened during the vote tabulation process in at least 15 counties, including Lehigh County, Chester County, Allegheny County, Armstrong County, Westmoreland County, Northhampton County, Delaware County, Montgomery County, Lackawanna County, Dauphin County, Pike County, Carbon County, Washington County, Erie County, and Luzerne County.

    https://www.theepochtimes.com/exclusive-over-432000-votes-removed-from-trump-in-pennsylvania-data-scientists-say_3642202.html?utm_source=newsnoe&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=breaking-2021-01-04-1

  33. Georgia Rep. Vernon Jones: Vote to Keep Socialism From Our Communities
    By Isabel van Brugen
    January 4, 2021 Updated: January 4, 2021
    biggersmaller Print

    Georgia state Rep. Vernon Jones (D-Ga.), a Democrat who is a supporter of President Donald Trump, on Jan. 2 called on voters to back Sens. David Perdue (R-Ga.) and Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.) ahead of this week’s crucial U.S. Senate runoffs set to determine control of the upper chamber, saying that there is “so much at stake” for the country.

    “All minds are on Georgia right now. We have to hold the line here … on funding police to make sure that defunding doesn’t take place, on keeping socialism from coming in our communities, and to make sure that our kids have an opportunity to have school choice right now. As you know, many of our children are trapped in failed schools based on Democratic policies,” Jones, a lifelong Democrat, told NTD News. “There’s so much at stake.”

    Senate Republican incumbents Perdue and Loeffler are up against Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock. Should Democrats take the seats in the Jan. 5 runoff elections, they would have a 50-50 tie in the Senate, which would then make the tiebreaker either Vice President Mike Pence or vice presidential nominee Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) following the result of the general election.

    https://www.theepochtimes.com/georgia-rep-vernon-jones-vote-to-keep-socialism-from-our-communities_3642388.html?utm_source=newsnoe&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=breaking-2021-01-04-1

  34. Congress Approves Rules Regulating Jan. 6 Electoral Vote Count
    By Zachary Stieber
    January 4, 2021 Updated: January 4, 2021
    biggersmaller Print

    The House of Representatives and the Senate on Sunday adopted rules that outline how the counting of Electoral College votes will take place on Jan. 6.

    The rules were passed without recorded votes. Instead, a voice vote was used in both chambers.

    The guidance, introduced by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), says the chambers will meet in a joint session on Jan. 6 presided over by Vice President Mike Pence.

    Pence, as president of the Senate, will open “all the certificates and papers purporting to be certificates of the electoral votes,” the rules state, a nod to how seven states sent so-called competing electors, or certificates for both Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and President Donald Trump, to Washington.

    The certificates and papers will be opened, presented, and acted upon in alphabetical order, starting with Alabama.

    https://www.theepochtimes.com/congress-approves-rules-regulating-jan-6-electoral-vote-count_3642381.html?utm_source=newsnoe&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=breaking-2021-01-04-2

  35. ‘The US isn’t an option anymore’: why California’s immigrants are heading back to Mexico
    Maanvi Singh
    9-12 minutes

    California’s most vulnerable immigrants have faced unprecedented challenges this year, with some weighing whether it’s worth staying in the United States altogether.

    Ten months of a pandemic that has disproportionately sickened immigrants and devastated some of the industries that rely on immigrant labor, combined with years of anti-immigrant policies by the Trump administration have exacerbated insecurities for undocumented people and immigrants working low-wage jobs across California.

    For immigrants at the bottom of the economic ladder, it’s never been easy in the US, said Luz Gallegos, the executive director of the immigrant advocacy group Training Occupational Development Educating Communities Legal Center (Todec).

    https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/dec/31/california-immigration-mexico-coronavirus-us

  36. Venezuela’s Maduro Plans Shift to Fully Digitalized Economy
    Nicolle Yapur
    3-4 minutes

    Nicolas Maduro speaks in Caracas in 2018.

    Nicolas Maduro speaks in Caracas in 2018.

    Photographer: Carlos Becerra/Bloomberg

    Photographer: Carlos Becerra/Bloomberg

    Venezuela’s government is planning to move to a fully digital economy as hyperinflation has made worthless bolivar notes practically disappear, and dollarization expands through the local financial system.

    The U.S. dollar has operated as an escape valve for Venezuela amid U.S. sanctions and collapsing oil revenues, President Nicolas Maduro said in a televised interview with Telesur on Friday. He said 18.6% of all commercial transactions are in dollars, while 77.3% are carried out in bolivars with debit cards. Only 3.4% are paid with bolivar notes.

    “They have a war against our physical currency. We are moving this year to a more profound digital economy, in expansion. I’ve set the goal of an economy that’s 100% digital,” Maduro said, adding that physical money will eventually disappear.

    It’s the latest ambitious currency plan from Venezuela’s president, with no guarantee of success. In 2017, with the bolivar in freefall, Maduro vowed that the nation would create a cryptocurrency called the Petro, backed by reserves of oil, gas, gold and diamonds. The Petro launched in 2018; the U.S. called it a scam.

    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-02/venezuela-s-maduro-plans-shift-to-a-fully-digitalized-economy

  37. People of the Lie – Frontpagemag
    Joseph Hippolito
    13-16 minutes

    Journalism dies in the darkness of collusion.

    Many Americans know about the New York Post’s exclusive reporting on Hunter Biden’s questionable foreign business deals that implicated his father: Joe Biden, the ostensible President-elect. Many Americans know Hunter Biden’s laptop provided the information. But most Americans have no idea what else that laptop contained:

    — Joe Biden’s private e-mails and cellphone numbers.

    — The names and contact information for the former vice president’s Secret Service agents.

    — Cellphone numbers for such figures as Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Harry Reid, Sen. Mitch McConnell, members of President Barack Obama’s Cabinet, and Bill and Hillary Clinton.

    — Information identifying Hunter Biden’s passport, driver’s license, Social Security card, credit cards and bank statements.

    — Bills for thousands of dollars Hunter Biden spent on pornography and escorts.

    No American outlet reported those facts. They came from Britain’s Daily Mail, in another exclusive published Oct. 30, two weeks after the Post’s articles.

    https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2021/01/people-lie-joseph-hippolito/

  39. https://hotair.com/archives/john-s-2/2021/01/04/iran-seizes-south-korean-oil-tanker-announces-plans-enrich-uranium-20/

    Iran Seizes A South Korean Oil Tanker, Announces Plans To Enrich Uranium To 20%
    JOHN SEXTONPosted at 1:00 pm on January 4, 2021

    Iran is once again doing what it always does when it wants attention on the world stage: Making threats and taking hostages. This morning Iran seized a South Korean tanker which was traveling through the Straight of Hormuz.

    The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it detained the Hankuk Chemi vessel at 10 a.m. local time on Monday “due to repeated violations of marine environmental laws.”…

    The vessel was carrying 7,200 tons of petrochemicals from Jubail in Saudi Arabia when it was intercepted, the IRGC said. The guard corps took it to Bandar Abbas port in Iran, the semi-official Fars News Agency said. Crew members from Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam and Myanmar were arrested, according to Iran’s Tasnim News Agency.

    There was nothing random about this seizure. Iran is currently negotiating with South Korea for the release of funds: “Tehran said a South Korean diplomat was expected to visit in the coming days to negotiate the release of billions of dollars in its assets now frozen in Seoul.” No doubt the release of the tanker will be used as a bargaining chip in negotiations over the frozen funds.

    Earlier in the day, before the seizure of the tanker, Iran also announced it was starting enrichment of uranium up to the 20% level.

    The state-run IRNA news agency on Monday quoted Ali Rabiei saying President Hassan Rouhani had given the order for the move at the Fordo facility…

    Uranium enriched to 20% is far below the 90% needed to construct nuclear bombs, but the jump from 20% to 90% is actually rather quick compared to the work needed to move from 4% to 20%.

    Since the assassination in late November of Iranian nuclear physicist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, which Iran has blamed on Israel, hardliners in Tehran pledged a response and parliament passed a controversial law calling for the production and storage of “at least 120 kilograms per year of 20 percent enriched uranium” and to “put an end” to the IAEA inspections intended to check that the country is not developing an atomic bomb.

    Iran’s demands are pretty simple. If we can’t terrorize and control the region through non-nuclear means, we’ll have to build a bomb. Israeli PM Netanyahu pointed to this as proof Iran is looking to build a bomb, something Iran has always denied, and said that would not be allowed to happen. “Israel will not allow Iran to produce nuclear weapons,” he said.

    The Biden administration has said it plans to re-enter the the Iran nuclear deal and remove sanctions on Iran as part of that process.

    If Biden formally re?nters the accord, Tehran is nervous about what rights that gives any future U.S. President, notably the ability to demand that the whole world impose “snapback” sanctions.

    The deal allows any one of the six powers that negotiated the deal—Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia, and the U.S.—to call for “snapback” sanctions if it believes Iran is cheating; the other five countries automatically have to comply. The Trump Administration invoked “snapback” sanctions in September, but, because the U.S. had previously withdrawn from the deal, the other parties refused to comply. “We don’t know who is going to be President four years from now,” Hadian told me. “So we don’t want the U.S. to have the right to ‘snapback.’ ” Iran’s new position, a person familiar with Biden’s thinking told me, “adds confusion when the benefit of what Biden proposes is clarity. The Iranians are hurting their own case. It’s a bizarre interpretation and will slow everything down.”

    Now that Iran is clearly violating the agreement, will the other members re-impose sanctions? And what happened to not negotiating with terrorists?

  40. Pakistani Shiites rally against killing of coal miners by IS (abcnews, Jan 4, 2020)
    https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/pakistani-shiites-rally-killing-coal-miners-75032740

    “Hundreds of Pakistani minority Shiites blocked a key highway Monday on the outskirts the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta for a second straight day to protest the killing of 11 coal miners by the Islamic State group.

    The miners, members of the country’s minority Shiite Hazara community, were abducted by IS militants in southwestern Baluchistan province on Sunday, taken to a nearby mountain and shot. Six died at the scene and five, critically wounded, died on the way to hospital.

    Police video of the bodies revealed the miners were blindfolded and had their hands tied behind their backs before being shot. The attack took place near the Machh coal field, about 48 kilometers (30 miles) east of Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan.

    The Sunni militant group has repeatedly targeted Pakistan’s minority Shiites in recent years. IS claimed responsibility quickly after the abduction of the miners.

    The protesters brought the coffins with the miners’ bodies to the Quetta highway on Monday, insisting they would not be buried until authorities arrest the killers. Under Islamic tradition, burials take place as quickly as possible after death.

    The crowd of about 1,000 said it would hold the sit-in until their demands are met. Authorities say they are still trying to trace and arrest the assailants and that police raids were underway in the area…”

  41. Saudi Arabia to lift Qatar embargo, easing the Gulf crisis (abcnews, Jan 4, 2021)
    https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/saudi-arabia-lift-qatar-embargo-open-airspace-border-75039716

    “Saudi Arabia will open its airspace and land border to Qatar on Monday evening in the first step toward ending a years-long diplomatic crisis that deeply divided U.S. defense partners, frayed societal ties and tore apart a traditionally clubby alliance of Gulf states.

    Qatar’s only land border has been mostly closed since mid-2017, when Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain launched a blockade against the tiny Gulf state, accusing it of supporting Islamist extremist groups and of having warm ties with Iran. The Saudi border, which Qatar relied on for the import of dairy products, construction materials and other goods, opened briefly during the past three years to allow Qataris into Saudi Arabia to perform the Islamic hajj pilgrimage.

    It was unclear what concessions Qatar had made or is promising to make regarding a shift in its policies.

    Kuwait, which had been mediating throughout the dispute, was first to announce the diplomatic breakthrough through its foreign minister. Earlier on Monday, the foreign minister had reportedly traveled to Doha to deliver a message to Qatar’s ruling emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

    While the Saudi decision marks a major milestone toward resolving the Gulf spat, the path toward full reconciliation is far from guaranteed. The rift between Abu Dhabi and Doha has been deepest, with the UAE and Qatar at sharp ideological odds.

    Following Kuwait’s announcement, the UAE’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Anwar Gargash, tweeted that his country was keen to restore Gulf unity. However, he cautioned: “We have more work to do and we are in the right direction.”

    The lifting of the embargo by Saudi Arabia paves the way for Qatar’s ruler to attend an annual summit of Gulf leaders Tuesday that will be held in the kingdom’s ancient desert site of Al-Ula. The summit would traditionally be chaired by Saudi King Salman, though his son and heir, the crown prince, may instead lead the meeting.

    State-run Qatari media confirmed Monday evening Sheikh Tamim would be attending the summit, a move that analysts say would have been domestically sensitive for him had the Saudi blockade still been in place.

    This year, Egypt’s president has also been invited to attend the summit of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, which comprises Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar.

    Kuwait’s foreign minister said in a statement carried on state TV that Kuwait’s ruler had spoken with Qatar’s emir and Saudi Arabia’s crown prince. The conversations “emphasized that everyone was keen on reunification,” and would gather in Al-Ula to sign a statement that promises to “usher in a bright page of brotherly relations.”

    The summit will be “inclusive,” leading the states toward “reunification and solidarity in facing the challenges of our region,” Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was quoted as saying in remarks carried by the Saudi state-run news agency.

    The decision to end the Saudi embargo comes just weeks after President Donald Trump’s advisor and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, visited the kingdom and Qatar in a final push by the administration to secure a diplomatic breakthrough…”

  42. Mozambique’s jihadists force Total to suspend gas project (abcnews, Jan 4, 2021)
    https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/mozambiques-jihadists-force-total-suspend-gas-project-75036790

    “Mozambique’s jihadist violence has forced the French energy firm Total to suspend work at its multibillion-dollar liquefied natural gas project in the country’s northern Cabo Delgado province.

    After the rebels’ Jan. 1 attack on Quitunda village, just outside the fence of the gas project, the company removed most of its workforce, estimated at 3,000, from the Afungi peninsula.

    “In view of the evolving security situation in Cabo Delgado province,” Total “decided to reduce the number of personnel present at the Afungi site,” the company announced in a statement Monday.

    Total “is taking all necessary measures to ensure the safety and security of its staff and subcontractors,” its statement said.

    Work at the site has been suspended, according to the Zitamar news agency. Total has cut back operations to a bare minimum, evacuating staff and contractors by air.

    The insurgents, allied with the Islamic State group, have carried out a string of attacks since Christmas Eve, driving closer to the Total construction site, which covers 27 square miles. Total paid $3.9 billion in September 2019 for a 26% share of the project which was to begin production in 2024.

    Mozambique’s rebels, known locally as al-Shabab but who are not allied to the insurgents of the same name in Somalia, have held the Indian Ocean port of Mocimboa da Praia since August and the Mozambican army has not been able to regain control of the strategic town. Late last year, the jihadists took over some nearby towns and beheaded about 50 people, according to several reports.

    Since the insurgency began in 2017, more than 2,400 people have been killed and 570,000 people have fled their homes, according to the government.”

  43. Three Killed in Suspected Jihadist Attack in Cameroon
    https://www.thedefensepost.com/2021/01/04/three-killed-attack-cameroon/

    “Jihadists crossing from Nigeria killed three members of a village self-defense force Monday in northern Cameroon, the local mayor said.

    “Boko Haram killed three members of the vigilance committee this morning” in the village of Kaliari, the mayor of Mozogo district, and also its traditional leader, Mahamat Chetima Abba, told AFP.

    Cameroon has set up civilian self-defense groups in remote areas in its Far North region, which has been hit by deadly incursions from neighboring Nigeria.

    A police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the toll, and gave the age of the fatalities as 25, 30, and 40.

    Boko Haram and a splinter group called the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) have stepped up attacks in recent years in Nigeria and neighboring Niger, Chad, and Cameroon.

    More than 36,000 people have been killed, most of them in Nigeria, and three million people have fled their homes since Boko Haram launched its insurrection in northeastern Nigeria in 2009.

    Niger is also being hit by jihadists crossing from Mali.

    Around 100 people were killed in two villages in the western Niger region of Tillaberi on Saturday, according to the local mayor.”

  44. Iraq refugees in Turkey return home after Daesh cleared from areas
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20210104-iraq-refugees-in-turkey-return-home-after-daesh-cleared-from-areas/

    “The Iraqi government has announced that 100 of its citizens who had found refuge in Turkey have been able to return to their areas following the elimination of the Daesh terror group’s presence.

    A statement released by Baghdad on Saturday revealed that the Iraqi Ministry of Displacement and Migration had cooperated with the Iraqi embassy in the Turkish capital Ankara to arrange the return of the refugees, who travelled back on buses.

    According to the statement, they were returned to the provinces of Mosul, Anbar and Saladin, where Daesh has reportedly been completely cleared out of and stability has been established in.

    It is estimated that over five million Iraqis fled their homes and areas as Daesh swept throughout parts of Iraq – along with Syria – in 2014, with many settling in safer cities to the north and south of the country and some crossing the border into Turkey…”

  45. German approved $1.4bn in arms exports to the Middle East in 2020
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20210104-german-approved-1-4bn-in-arms-exports-to-the-middle-east-in-2020/

    “Germany approved €1.16 billion ($1.4 billion) worth of arms exports to the Middle East in 2020, local news outlets reported, citing the country’s Economy Ministry.

    In its response to a request from German parliamentarian Omid Nouripour, the ministry provided a breakdown of its arms exports in the past year, clarifying that the German government approved the sales of arms worth €752 million ($923 million) to Egypt alone last year.

    Germany also approved arms sales to Qatar worth €305.1 million ($374 million), the UAE worth €51.3 million ($63 million), Kuwait to the tune of €23.4 million ($28.7 million), Turkey amounting to €22.9 million ($28 million), Jordan costing €1.7 million ($2 million), and Bahrain worth €1.5 million ($1.8 million).

    The ministry had previously stated that NATO and EU members received 37.3 per cent of German exports of military equipment in 2020, and that the top importers of German arms outside the EU are Israel, Egypt and the United States, according to the New Khaleej.”

  46. Iraq: $240bn smuggled out the country
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20210104-iraq-240bn-smuggled-out-the-country/

    “An Iraqi parliamentary inquest has today revealed that an estimated $239.7 billion (some 350 trillion dinars) has left the country illegally since 2003.

    According to the Iraqi News Agency, one member of the Parliamentary Integrity Committee, Taha Al-Difai stated: “The amount was smuggled in the form of fake receipts and a lot of commissions were paid to officials.”

    “Around $685 billion (1,000 trillion dinars) have been disbursed since 2003,” he said, adding that this amount was “wasted in contracting and rampant corruption”.

    According to Transparency International’s 2019 Corruption Perceptions Index Iraq is ranked 162 out of 198 countries with corruption coupled with high youth unemployment being a frequent cause of anti-government protests.

    Late last month the country’s Central Bank and 13 private banks were under investigation by Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council over allegations of money laundering and terrorist financing. Some of the Central Bank’s officials were described as seeking to exploit the foreign exchange auction.

    In a leaked draft of Iraq’s state budget last month, the Central Bank also devalued the national currency against the US dollar by almost 20 per cent leading to a backlash from the public over concerns of the economic impact of the move.”

  47. Muslims concerned about rise of Islamophobia in Germany
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20210104-muslims-concerned-about-rise-of-islamophobia-in-germany/

    “Germany’s Turkish-Muslim community is alarmed by the increase in Islamophobic hate crimes, senior figures told Anadolu Agency Monday.

    Kemal Ergun, president of the Turkish-Muslim association IGMG, said more and more mosques have become the targets of threats, vandalism, or arson in recent months.

    “At least 122 mosques were targeted in such attacks last year,” he said, adding that dozens of mosques received multiple bomb threats by neo-Nazis or other extremist groups, sparking worry among the members of the community.

    “We call on the police authorities to conduct more effective investigations and arrest the perpetrators of these attacks,” he said.

    Ergun, who leads one of the largest Turkish-Muslim organizations in the country, said Muslims were experiencing more hostility and discrimination in their daily lives due to the rise of anti-Muslim prejudice.

    He said Muslim women in particular who wear headscarves have frequently been verbally harassed on the streets, and that incidents of physical assault have reportedly also been on the rise.

    According to official figures, police recorded 632 Islamophobic crimes in Germany from January to November 2020.

    These included insults, threatening letters, disruption of religious practice, physical assaults, and damage to property.

    The real figures are believed to be higher, as many victims do not file criminal complaints with the police, largely due to their distrust of law enforcement.

    Durmus Yildirim, chairman of ATIB, one of the largest Turkish-Muslim cultural organizations in Germany, criticized right-wing populist politicians for inciting hatred and discrimination against immigrants and Muslims.

    “We want an end to this racist and populist rhetoric, efforts should be made for peaceful coexistence,” he told Anadolu Agency, calling for a stronger stance against anti-Muslim and anti-Turkish hatred.

    Yildirim said the country’s 3-million-strong Turkish community would not give in to threats by far-right groups and parties.

    “We are part of Europe, we’re living together here. Our third, fourth generations were born and raised in Germany, it has also become our homeland,” he said.

    A country of over 80 million people, Germany has the second-largest Muslim population in Western Europe after France. Among the country’s nearly 4.7 million Muslims, 3 million are of Turkish origin.

    The country has witnessed growing racism and Islamophobia in recent years, fueled by the propaganda of neo-Nazi groups and the far-right opposition AfD party, which has attempted to stoke fear of Muslims and immigrants to win more votes.”

  48. Man stabbed in Dubai car park dispute; three arrested
    https://gulfnews.com/uae/crime/man-stabbed-in-dubai-car-park-dispute-three-arrested-1.76245039

    “A group of Afghani men has been sentenced to two years in jail for assaulting and causing permanent disability to an Emirati man over a car parking dispute.

    The Dubai Court of First Instance heard that the 37-year-old Emirati man was with his brother in a parking lot at Naif when a dispute took place between them and four Afghani men over a car parking slot. “One of them hit me on the head with a rock. A second sat on my chest after knocking me on the ground and assaulted me with a fire extinguisher,” the Emirati victim said in official records. “I didn’t notice that a screwdriver was poked into my heart and I fell unconscious.”

    A policeman who responded to the emergency call testified that the defendants admitted to attacking the victim. “The victim was talking normally with us when we arrived but all of the sudden, he fell on the ground. He was stabbed with a screwdriver that was hanging from his body,” the policeman said in official records.

    Surveillance cameras revealed that the victim was trying to speak to the defendant first before the fight started.

    Three defendants were arrested while the fourth remains at large. The medical report said that the victim was assaulted and stabbed severely. He will suffer 15 per cent permanent disability due to the injuries.

    The court ordered that the defendants be deported after serving their jail term.”

  49. (Richard: Be sure and read this article, it is a long one but well worth the time, if JE is correct Trump has set several traps that the Swamp walked into all of them.)

    Trump’s ‘Operation Vote’: Glimmers of the key supporting effort, and the larger strategic context – Liberty Unyielding
    J.E. Dyer
    27-34 minutes

    Trump’s ‘Operation Vote’: Glimmers of the key supporting effort, and the larger strategic context

    Making his first calls to world leaders in 2017. (Image: Screen grab of AP video, YouTube)

    Things are beginning to tumble out around us from the holding pen, and there isn’t enough time to do them justice with extensive analysis and contextualizing.

    I suspect it’s going to be like that for at least the next several days. We’ll do the best we can to keep up.

    Here is the first example. On Sunday, the Washington Post published selected audio clips from a phone call on Saturday between the White House and the Georgia Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger.

    The call was about settling a lawsuit Trump’s campaign had brought against Georgia over the state’s refusal to hold a forensic audit of the vote.

    The parties to the call were supposed to keep their deliberations in confidence, but the call audio got to WaPo anyway. There doesn’t seem to be much doubt that it was given to the paper by Raffensperger.

    https://libertyunyielding.com/2021/01/04/trumps-operation-vote-glimmers-of-the-key-supporting-effort-and-the-larger-strategic-context/

      • It fits the evidence we have and explains why Trump is acting like he won’t be leaving office.

        If she is right and I am praying she is, Trump is holding off to get more backing from the States, he can and will act on his own but it will be much better for the nation if he has a lot of the States supporting him. If Congress does their thing and rejects a bunch of the electoral votes we probably won’t learn what Trump has until the coup members are arrested.

  50. U.S. judge blocks Trump sanctions targeting human rights lawyers, war crimes tribunal
    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-warcrimes-afghanistan-trump/u-s-judge-blocks-trump-sanctions-targeting-human-rights-lawyers-war-crimes-tribunal-idUSKBN2992MD

    “A U.S. judge on Monday blocked the Trump administration from sanctioning human rights lawyers for supporting the work of the world’s war crimes tribunal, the International Criminal Court.

    U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla in Manhattan issued a preliminary injunction against the White House from imposing criminal or civil penalties against four law professors under an executive order from President Donald Trump last June.

    Trump had authorized economic and travel sanctions against employees of the Hague-based ICC and anyone supporting its work, including a probe into whether U.S. forces committed war crimes in Afghanistan between 2003 and 2014.

    Failla said the plaintiffs would likely succeed in showing that Trump’s order unconstitutionally stifled their speech, resulting in irreparable harm.

    “The court is mindful of the government’s interest in defending its foreign policy prerogatives and maximizing the efficacy of its policy tools,” Failla wrote. “Nevertheless, national-security concerns must not become a talisman used to ward off inconvenient claims.”

    A Department of Justice spokesman declined to comment.

    The lawsuit was brought by the Open Society Justice Initiative, a New York-based human rights group, and the professors.

    Their lawyer, Andrew Loewenstein, a Foley Hoag partner, said the plaintiffs were “thrilled” Failla considered the sanctions a “gross infringement” of their First Amendment rights.

    James Goldston, executive director of the Open Society Justice Initiative, urged the incoming Biden administration to rescind Trump’s order, which he said was in “direct conflict with Washington’s historic support for international justice.”

    Administration officials have accused the ICC of infringing U.S. sovereignty and allowing Russian manipulation to serve Moscow’s interests, with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo labelling the tribunal a “kangaroo court.”

    In September, the U.S. administration sanctioned ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda. Her probe also covers possible war crimes by the Taliban and Afghan authorities.

    A Biden administration may consider lifting those sanctions as it evaluates the use of sanctions in foreign policy, two sources said last month.

    The ICC has called Trump’s order an attack on international criminal justice and the rule of law. The European Union has also expressed opposition.”