Reader’s Links for February 20, 2021

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

99 Replies to “Reader’s Links for February 20, 2021”

  1. Biden Cannot Allow the Taliban to Destroy Trump’s Peace Legacy
    Con Coughlin
    5-7 minutes

    In Afghanistan, there has been a marked upsurge in violence since the start of the year. The Taliban have been accused of intensifying their terrorist campaign in their bid to retake control of the country. Pictured: Afghan soldiers fire on Taliban positions in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan on February 9, 2021. (Photo by Noorullah Shirzada/AFP via Getty Images)

    With former US President Donald J. Trump no longer able to dictate US policy on Afghanistan, the Taliban are exploiting the opportunity to increase their efforts to seize control of the country in spite of the peace accord they signed with the Trump administration last year.

    Under the terms of that agreement with the US, the Taliban agreed to negotiate a peaceful resolution of this benighted country’s long-running civil war in return for Washington agreeing to withdraw all its remaining forces. In addition, they agreed to cut their ties with Islamist terrorist organisations such as Al-Qaeda.

    https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/17080/biden-afghanistan-taliban

    (Richard: It is scary how otherwise sensible people are acting like Biden is in command, we all know that he is a puppet for Obama who is acting like a place holder until Harris can take over. Probably in February of 23 so she will be able to be in the White House for 10 years.)

  2. Antifa Could Be Branded as Domestic Terrorists Under Bill Being Discussed in Montana
    By Jack Phillips
    February 19, 2021 Updated: February 19, 2021
    biggersmaller Print

    Lawmakers in Montana are in discussions regarding a bill that would classify the anarcho-communist group Antifa as a domestic terror organization.

    Antifa networks and ideologically affiliated groups have conducted violent street protests and riots in a number of cities over the past several years, including in Minneapolis, Portland, Seattle, Olympia, and elsewhere.

    Montana state Rep. Braxton Mitchell, a Republican representing Columbia Falls, told the Montana House Judiciary Committee during a Tuesday hearing that the bill is being considered.

    The move would “send a message that we as a state won’t tolerate a group like this coming into our state,” he said, reported The Associated Press.

    Opponents of the measure said that such a bill should be opposed if it does not also classify other groups accused of violent acts, including groups that partook in the U.S. Capitol breach in January.

    https://www.theepochtimes.com/antifa-could-be-branded-as-domestic-terrorists-under-bill-being-discussed-in-montana_3703721.html?utm_source=morningbriefnoe&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=mb-2021-02-19

  3. Yemenis Want to Be Free from US Hegemony: Houthi
    https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2021/02/20/2456187/yemenis-want-to-be-free-from-us-hegemony-houthi

    “The leader of Yemen’s Ansarullah movement said the Yemenis want to be a free and independent country, strongly rejecting guardianship sought by the United States, Saudi Arabia, or any other foreign state.

    Abdul-Malik al-Houthi made the remarks in a televised speech on Friday, saying the enemies of Yemen wanted to control the country and its people, while Yemenis wanted to be “free from the American hegemony.”

    “We do not want to be under the guardianship of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the US, Israel, or any foreign country; we are free, and our faith identity compels us to strive to achieve our independence,” Houthi stressed, Yemen’s Arabic-language al-Masirah television network reported.

    He added that the enemies imposed a years-long brutal war on Yemen since Yemenis wanted to be free from the shackles of dependence on foreign states and wanted to live as a free nation.

    Saudi Arabia and a number of its regional allies, including the UAE, launched a devastating war on Yemen in March 2015 to bring former president Abd Rabbouh Mansur Hadi, a staunch ally of Riyadh, back to power and crush the popular Ansarullah movement.

    Yemen’s army, as well as allied popular forces, however, has gone from strength to strength against the Saudi-led invaders, leaving the so-called military coalition forces bogged down in Yemen.

    Houthi further said that Washington ultimately wanted to establish Israel’s dominance over the region while Yemenis would gallantly fight for their independence.

    “Our goal is to confront aggression, refuse any foreign dominance over Yemen, and confront those who have ambitions in our country,” he stressed.

    Earlier this month, Yemen’s army soldiers and their allied fighters from Popular Committees resumed an offensive to take control of oil-rich Ma’rib, Hadi’s last urban stronghold in northern Yemen, which is some 120 km east of the capital Sana’a.

    Regarding the Ma’rib offensive, Houthi stressed that this operation just like similar ones in other areas of the country, including al-Jawf and Ta’izz, “is a response to the aggressor who fought against our people because it wants control and guardianship over them.”

    He added that very few people from Ma’rib are fighting in the ranks of militiamen loyal to Hadi.

    Regarding the destructive role Takfiri terrorists play in parts of Yemen, Houthi said the Takfiri mindset is completely different from that of the Yemeni nation.

    Takfiri elements “do not believe in the authenticity of our people, they regard true Yemenis as non-believers,” he said.

    In conclusion, Houthi said that all military operations in all tracks by Yemeni army troops and allied fighters come within the framework of confronting “aggression that others have imposed” on Yemen.

    The Saudi war and siege on the Arabian Peninsula country has made at least 80 percent of the country’s 28-million-strong population reliant on aid to survive in what the UN has called the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

    UN agencies have already warned that around 400,000 Yemeni children aged under five are in danger of losing life this year due to acute malnutrition.

    The war has also destroyed or closed half of Yemen’s hospitals and clinics, leaving the people helpless particularly at a time when they are in desperate need of medical supplies to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.”

  4. Yemeni Govt Says Houthis Are Using Civilians as Human Shields
    https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2817251/yemeni-govt-says-houthis-are-using-civilians-human-shields

    “The Yemeni government said on Saturday that the Houthi militias are using civilians as human shields in their renewed offensive in the city of Marib.

    Earlier this month, the Iran-backed militias resumed a push to capture the city, which is 120 kilometres (75 miles) east of the capital Sanaa.

    The city lies close to some of Yemen’s richest oil fields. However, the fighting has raised fears for the hundreds of thousands of displaced civilians sheltering in camps in the surrounding desert that extends to the Saudi border.

    Two military officials told AFP the Houthis had been using residents of Al-Zor camp in the province’s Sirwah district as “human shields” since their capture of the area last week.

    The officials said there had been no let-up in the fighting.

    Over the past 24 hours, at least 12 loyalists and 20 Houthis had been killed in clashes north and west of Marib, they said.

    Until early last year, Marib had been spared the worst of the civil war that erupted in 2014.

    The International Committee of the Red Cross has said it is “extremely concerned” by the recent fighting.

    “The ICRC urges all parties to the conflict to take every possible measure to protect the civilians, their properties and all civilian essential infrastructures,” it said on Twitter.

    The UN has warned of the potential for a humanitarian disaster.

    “It puts millions of civilians at risk, especially with the fighting reaching camps for internally displaced persons,” envoy Martin Griffiths told the UN Security Council.

    Observers say the Houthis want to capture Marib to strengthen their hand in eventual peace negotiations.”

  5. Beijing Wants to Sway US Policy Using Climate Change, Experts Warn
    By Cathy He
    February 19, 2021 Updated: February 19, 2021
    biggersmaller Print

    The Biden administration should not allow the Chinese regime to use climate change as a bargaining chip to extract concessions in other areas, according to China experts.

    The warning comes as the United States formally rejoined the Paris agreement on Feb. 19. President Joe Biden has described climate change as an “existential threat” and vowed to do more to reduce carbon emissions. But analysts are concerned that this may lead the United States to become cozier with the Chinese regime.

    While Biden officials have broadly indicated they would continue the Trump administration’s tough-on-China posture, they have also pointed to “cooperative” aspects of the U.S.-China relationship.

    On the campaign trail, Biden said he’d work with the regime in areas of common interest, such as climate change and preventing nuclear proliferation.

    https://www.theepochtimes.com/beijing-wants-to-sway-us-policy-using-climate-change-experts-warn_3703738.html?utm_source=morningbriefnoe&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=mb-2021-02-19

  6. Covid-19: Mass medic migration leaves Iran in pandemic panic
    https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/covid-iran-doctors-nurses-lost-migration-pandemic

    “Iran is seeing an exodus of its healthcare professionals, including doctors and nurses, who have chosen to take up jobs abroad rather than stay home amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

    Over the past 10 months, more than 3,000 healthcare workers have reportedly emigrated from Iran, according to figures released by the Medical Council of Iran, a non-governmental organisation and the main national regulatory body for medical professionals.

    Around 200 healthcare workers have died of Covid-19 since the global pandemic began, the council declared.

    The development is especially alarming in a country that has has borne the brunt of the coronavirus pandemic in the Middle East, with a recorded 1.4 million positive cases and more than 57,800 deaths.

    A lack of incentives is among the main motives that is driving Iran’s healthcare professionals abroad, said Mohammad Jahangiri, a senior official at the Medical Council of Iran.

    “When we ask the doctors ‘Why are you leaving the country?’, they answer that ‘We are looking for peace and wellbeing for ourselves and our families’… When physicians face social, job and welfare tensions, and job insecurity on a daily basis, these all lead them to lose their motivation…”

  7. Russian air strikes ‘kill 21 Islamic State fighters’ in Syrian desert
    https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/syria-russia-strikes-kill-islamic-state-fighters

    “Russia launched at least 130 air strikes in Syria over the past 24 hours, killing at least 21 Islamic State (IS) fighters, according to a UK-based activist group on Saturday.

    The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the Russian onslaught followed a series of IS attacks on Friday that killed at least eight members of a militia fighting to support the Syrian government.

    The air strikes focused on a vast desert area stretching from the central province of Homs to the border with Iraq that has recently become the focal point of increasingly frequent fighting between IS and Syrian government forces, backed by Russian air power.

    Despite having lost the large areas of territory it had controlled since 2014, IS has continued to launch attacks in the Badia desert area.

    More than 1,300 government troops have been killed in such clashes since late March 2019, as well as 145 pro-Iran militia members and more than 750 IS fighters, according to the Observatory.

    Russian raids in the desert region generally “target small groupings of IS militants as well as their vehicles,” said Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the Observatory.

    “It is a difficult operation for the Russians because there are no fixed positions for IS fighters who are always on the move,” he told AFP.

    Since Syria’s civil war broke out in 2011, more than 387,000 people have been killed and millions forced from their homes.”

  8. Saudi Arabia fifth-largest armoured power in the world
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20210220-saudi-arabia-fifth-largest-armoured-power-in-the-world/

    “Global Fire Power has ranked Saudi Arabia as the fifth-largest armoured power in the world, surpassing a number of regional and global powers, Al-Khaleej Online reported on Friday.

    According to Al-Khaleej Online, Global Fire Power stated that Saudi Arabia has 12,500 armoured vehicles, surpassing the UK, Germany, France, Iran, Turkey and Israel.

    Global Fire Power reported that the first armoured power in the world is the US with 40,000 armoured vehicles, followed by China with 35,000, Russia with 27,000 then South Korea with 14,100 vehicles.

    Turkey ranked the sixth power with 11,630 armoured vehicles, Egypt the eighth with 11,000 vehicles, Iran the 15th with 8,500 and Israel the 17th with 7,500 armoured vehicles.

    The Saudi army is considered one of the strongest armies in the Gulf and is one of the largest Arab and Middle Eastern armies.”

  9. BBC refuses to apologise over ‘Islamophobic’ interview
    https://english.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2021/2/20/bbc-refuses-to-apologise-over-islamophobic-interview

    “The BBC has defended its position after being accused of dealing “aggressively” with Muslim Council of Britain president Zara Mohammed during a radio programme.
    The Women’s Hour programme, which airs on BBC Radio 4, hosted Zara Mohammed, the first woman elected to the Council, an umbrella of hundreds of Muslim organisations in Britain.

    Emma Barnett, host of the programme, stirred outrage after she repeatedly asked Mohammed how many female imams there were in the UK. Some commentators accused her of Islamophobia and religious illiteracy.

    Two hundred people, including more than 100 public figures such as the Tory peer Sayeeda Warsi, the Labour MPs Diane Abbott and Naz Shah, and the comedian Deborah Frances-White, co-signed a letter to the BBC. The letter called on the broadcaster to issue a statement committing to engage with Muslim women “in good faith”.

    “Most of Mohammed’s answers were interrupted, revealing an instinctive urge not to listen to the voice of a Muslim woman but to jump in,” the letter said.

    “Despite the BBC having a commitment to due impartiality and fairness, the line of questioning fell into a well-worn narrative of presuming Muslim women are inherently disenfranchised,” it added.

    The interview “reflected the approach and tone of accountability with a politician, rather than truly getting to know and engaging in what British Muslim women mean”, the letter read.

    The letter also urged the BBC to boost recruitment of Muslims to “leadership and commissioning roles” within the organisation and provide better opportunities to those in “non-leadership positions” to reach those roles.

    The BBC released a statement on Friday, which did not apologise nor did it address the complaints.

    “While we appreciate that people sometimes have a different reaction to our interviews and discussions, we believe it was legitimate for the programme to seek clarification of some of the issues facing Muslims in the UK,” the statement read.

    “We pledge to return to this issue on air soon, to deepen our engagement with issues of concern to the majority of Muslim women, as well as to consider diversity on the Women’s Hour programme as part of the BBC’s plans to reflect the society we serve more accurately,” the statement said.

    Tim Davie, the director general of the BBC responded to the letter to clarify the broadcaster’s position, saying: “As an employer and a broadcaster paid for by the public, we have a duty to reflect the whole of the UK in our staff and within our programmes.”

    He added: “You are correct, across the BBC, representation of Muslims within our staff is lower than the national average but it is not as low as you suggest.”

    Just over 2.5% of the BBC workforce had identified as Muslim, he said: “I want to assure you that improving the representation of our staff is a key priority for me and my executive team. We have more work to do but we are determined to get there.”

    Commenting on the BBC’s reaction to the letter, Maryam Khan and Yasmine Abdel-Magied, two signatories of the letter, said that Davie and the programme in question “failed to engage in the details of our concerns about the content of the interview”.

    They added that it was frustrating that Davie chose to refer to statistics about Muslims working in the authority, while ignoring the percentage of representation in the production studios for television and radio, which “requires attention, at the level of workers and the level of leadership”.”

  10. Russian Foreign Ministry Calls Out Biden Administration For Persecution And Violating Human Rights Of Trump Supporters – Tsarizm
    by Tsarizm Staff
    6-7 minutes

    February 18, 2021February 18, 20215 8462
    U.S. Department of State Spokesperson Jennifer Psaki — sporting a shapka, or fur hat with ear flaps, given to her by Russian counterpart Maria Zakharova — stands with Zakharova between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Paris, France, on January 13, 2014

    Please Follow us on Gab, Parler, Minds, Telegram, Rumble

    Russian Foreign Ministry Spokewowman Maria Zakharova recently railed against Biden administration hypocrisy of criticizing the Russian Federation’s handling of Kremlin antagonist Alexei Navalny, while persecuting and violating the human rights of Trump supporters.

    Zakharova described an “ongoing persecution campaign” taking place “against anybody at all who does not agree with the results of the latest presidential election.” She also mentioned Biden minions calling American patriots ‘domestic terrorists’.

    https://tsarizm.com/news/eastern-europe/2021/02/18/russian-foreign-ministry-calls-out-biden-administration-for-persecution-and-violating-human-rights-of-trump-supporters/

  11. [Photos] US Clones Endangered Animal
    True Daily Staff February 20, 2021 America, Technology 3 Comments

    The United States has successfully cloned an endangered animal.

    30 years ago a black-footed ferret died but some of its genetic material was frozen, now that material has been used to clone the ferret.

    This effort from the the San Diego Zoo, Revive & Restore, ViaGen Pets, and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums has been a massive success and the cloned ferret named Elizabeth Ann is doing well and in good health. From the Fish and Wildlife Services:

    https://truedaily.news/2021/02/20/photos-us-clones-endangered-animal/

  12. 4. The Ale House pub on Dundas Street downtown London, across from the Armouries, a great place, great people, great food, a place for Patriots to visit. Loved their fish and chips.