Reader’s Links for December 18th, 2022

Here is a link to the VladTepesBlog social media Mastodon Pod. Please feel free to check it out and sign up for an account if you are sufficiently annoyed with Twitter and Facebook to try something new.

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

51 Replies to “Reader’s Links for December 18th, 2022”

  1. Information:

    https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/information

    Understanding:

    https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/understanding

    Digital dictatorship:

    https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19237/eight-billion-minds

    We need strong allies on our side. We know the coming economic crisis will be devastating for the debt-soaked middle class. People’s desperation will be exploited by the enemy within–the likes of Marxist Mark Carney.

    Russia’s entering Ukraine, regardless of reasons, has effectively helped deflect attention from our enemy within, so expect deflections to continue.

    We know the First Amendment has been used to destroy the First Amendment. Until the enemy has lost control of over half the information flow, it stands to reason our resistance will be relegated to dispersed pockets such as VTB, which are small, frail, and on the far edge of the battle space. If we can be effective owning less than half of this flow it is important to discover how. In fact what if we can win owning much less than half the flow? It is an engineering question. Simply asking this question makes Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter all the more interesting. What if engineered narratives are much more frail than they appear, and can be demolished with far less capital than was required to build them, because the tensile strength of the lie is so much weaker than that of the truth? The lie is a composed alloy while truth is elemental. We know this to be true from knowing history’s great Communist failures. Perhaps this was Musk’s thinking when he purchased Twitter. If he were working for the dark side he would have left Twitter alone to do what it was doing.

    https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2021/march/reality-war-should-define-information-warfare

    • PROF: RYSZARD LEGUTKO: “Two minutes of truth, of bitter truth” in the European Parliament

      During ceremony of the 70th anniversary of the European Parliament, the European Conservatives and Reformists made cutting criticisms. Speaking on behalf of the Group, Chairman Professor Ryszard Legutko pointed out that in the strict sense it is only a quasi-parliament, alienating millions of voters.

      “Madam President, Prime Ministers. Two minutes of truth, of bitter truth. And the bitter truth is that the European Parliament has done a lot of damage in Europe. It has been sending a false message it represents the European demos. There isn’t, and there won’t be any European demos. The Parliament infected Europe with shameless partisanship and the infection became so contagious that it spread to other institutions such as the European Commission.

      The Parliament has abandoned the basic function of representing people. Instead, it has become a machine to implement the so-called European project, thus alienating millions of voters. The Parliament has become a political vehicle of the left to impose their monopoly with their fierce intolerance towards any dissenting view. No matter how many times you repeat the word ‘diversity’. Diversity is becoming an extinct species in the European Union and particularly in this chamber.

      The Parliament is a quasi-parliament because it rejects the essential principle of parliamentarism, namely accountability. The deputy – let me remind you – is elected by the voters and must be accountable to the voters that elected him. Not so in the European Union. The idea that, say, Spanish, German, French, et cetera, deputies accountable to their own national electorates can dictate something to, shall we say, Hungarian society or any other society to which they cannot be held accountable and which cannot take them to task is simply preposterous.

      Call it what you will. But democracy, it is not. To sum up, the Parliament represents the demos that does not exist, works for the project that ignores reality and law, shuns accountability, turns its back on millions of people and serves the interest of one political orientation. And this is just the tip of the iceberg. Having said that, ladies and gentlemen, I rest my case.”

    • Qatargate: Greek MEP Eva Kaili to remain in custody another week

      A Greek MEP charged with corruption in an alleged bribery plot by Qatar is to remain in pre-trial detention until at least December 22.

      Eva Kaili was arrested last week, as Belgian police raided homes and offices of individuals linked to the European Parliament.

      Police seized over 1.5 million euros in cash.

      Kaili’s lawyer says his client is innocent.

      And Qatari officials have also denied any wrongdoing. But the scandal has sent shockwaves through the EU.

    • europravda – EU announces carbon deal that aims for 62% emissions cut by 2030

      The deal aims to accelerate emissions cuts, phase out free allowances to industries, and target fuel emissions from the building and road transport sectors.

  2. Full analysis, vaccines and accidents

    + COMMENTS ON THE YT PAGE

    This study was funded by a Federal government grant titled “increasing vaccine confidence in Canada”.

  3. Big Tech censorship during #COVID | Rob Roos invites Elon Musk

    I would hereby like to invite ElonMusk to provide testimony before the European Parliament.

    The subject: Big Tech censorship during COVID.

    Did Big Tech collude with EU govts?

    • npr – Updated COVID booster shots reduce the risk of hospitalization, CDC reports

      New bivalent COVID booster shots are more effective at reducing risk of hospitalization than boosters of the original vaccines, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in two new studies Friday.

      The CDC recommended a bivalent booster in September to better protect against the omicron variant. The new booster targets a component of the omicron variant and a component of the original virus strain to offer both broad and omicron-specific protection.

      Two small studies from Columbia University and Harvard University in October suggested the new shots did not produce better antibody response against the omicron BA.5 variant than boosters of the original vaccines.

      But the CDC came out with two studies Friday detailing the bivalent vaccine’s effectiveness against COVID-related emergency department visits and hospitalizations and effectiveness against hospitalization specifically among older people.

      The first study was conducted from Sept. 13 to Nov. 18 in seven health systems when the omicron BA.5 variant, one of the targets of the bivalent shots, was the most dominant variant.

      People who received the bivalent booster had 57% less risk of hospitalization than unvaccinated people and 45% less risk of hospitalization than people who had received two to four doses of the original vaccine and received their last shot 11 or more months earlier. The risk of hospitalization after the bivalent booster was 38% less when compared with people who received two to four doses of the original vaccine and whose last dose was five to seven months earlier.

      The study has several limitations that include not accounting for previous infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

      The second study, which focused on adults 65 and older, was conducted from Sept. 8 to Nov. 30 in 22 hospitals across the country.

      Older adults who received the updated booster a week or more before the onset of illness had 84% less risk of hospitalization than unvaccinated people, and 73% less risk than people who received at least two doses of the original vaccines. The study also wasn’t able to analyze the effect of previous infection with SARS-CoV-2.

      “These early findings show that a bivalent booster dose provided strong protection against COVID-19–associated hospitalization in older adults and additional protection among persons with previous monovalent-only mRNA vaccination,” according to this study. “All eligible persons, especially adults aged ?65 years, should receive a bivalent booster dose to maximize protection against COVID-19 hospitalization this winter season.”

      Only 14% of people age 5 and older have received the updated booster, however. Experts attribute the low vaccination rate to pandemic fatigue and a desire to move on from the pandemic.

      “I do think it’s going to be an uphill battle,” Jennifer Kates, senior vice president and director of global health and HIV Policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation, told NPR in September. “I do think it’s a tough sell just because of where we are on this point in the pandemic.”

      It is not clear how well the boosters work against new variants BQ.1 and BQ.1.1, which are more evasive than the BA.5 variant.

      https://www.npr.org/2022/12/18/1143833585/covid-bivalent-booster-reduce-hospitalization-risk-cdc

      =============================
      Bivalent COVID-19 boosters gave seniors 80% better protection: CDC

      A new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Protection shows that the latest bivalent COVID-19 boosters provide seniors 80 percent better protection against hospitalization.

    • YAHOO – COVID: Bivalent booster shots were ‘tremendous’ in lowering hospitalization rates, doctor says

      Clinical Assistant Professor and Attending Physician in Emergency Medicine Dr. Calvin Sun joins Yahoo Finance Live’s Anjalee Khemlani, Seana Smith and Dave Briggs to discuss the winter surge in COVID and how the booster doses have helped lower their severity.

    • bloomberg – CDC Director Discusses COVID-19 and the Future of American Public Health

      Rochelle P. Walensky discusses the importance of data in tackling public health challenges, confronting the COVID-19 pandemic, and preparing the next generation of leaders in American health.

    • MSNBC – DeSantis Doubles Down On Covid Paranoia; Vaccine-Rejecting GOP Suffers Higher Death Rate

      Dr. Vin Gupta, critical care pulmonologist, talks with Alex Wagner about how the ongoing spread of misinformation about Covid, including an active campaign by Florida governor Ron DeSantis, has made Republicans who buy into that message more vulnerable to dying from the disease.

    • Biden COVID Chief Asked Point Blank Why COVID Deaths Are Spiking More Dramatically Than Cases

  4. American Medical Association –FDA, CDC expand Pfizer & Moderna bivalent vaccines to kids 6 months and up with Sandra Fryhofer, MD

    Bivalent COVID vaccines for young kids authorized by FDA—and recommended by CDC.

    The latest on Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna’s updated COVID-19 vaccines for children as young as six months old with AMA Board Chair Sandra Fryhofer, MD, who is also the AMA’s liaison to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), and a member of ACIP’s COVID-19 Vaccine Workgroup.

  5. Long-haul COVID, experts recommend bivalent booster

    Gov. Phil Murphy and the state Department of Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli are urging the public and parents of young children to get the new bivalent booster, which offers stronger protections from omicron and its subvariants.

    Still, just over 17% of eligible New Jersey residents have received the bivalent booster, which better targets the evolving virus.

  6. (Protect) women and children first!
    ICIC US / ENGLISH – DECEMBER 18, 2022

    In this episode of ICIC, Reiner Fuellmich engages in a tough but critical discussion with obstetrician and fetal medicine specialist James A. Thorp, criminal defense attorney Yiannis Zografos, and pediatric surgeon Vasilia Souleimanova about the disastrous effects of covid injections, particularly on women and children. They also share their concerns regarding the inglorious role of the judiciary worldwide.
    https://video.icic-net.com/w/u2QoxgbZpTBLyZMJZgKNqB

  7. REBEL NEWS – David Menzies joins Tucker Carlson to talk about the large breasted shop teacher

  8. This had me laughing out loud:

    Qatar World Cup boss: Tournament has ‘changed the perception of this part of the world’
    Qatar 2022 has perhaps been one of the most controversial World Cups but the tournament’s chief says it has brought a lot of positive developments.
    https://news.sky.com/story/qatar-world-cup-boss-tournament-has-changed-the-perception-of-this-part-of-the-world-12770401
    Qatar World Cup chief Hassan Al Thawadi says the tournament has changed perceptions of the region and transformed his country.
    “This was a celebration of the Arab people, of our culture, of our tradition, of our history,” Mr Al Thawadi said in an interview in Doha.
    “People might have come in with different opinions.
    “And I’ve heard it from many, in particular Europeans, saying that they might have come to support the team – but with trepidation, a little bit of concern.
    “But when they engaged with the Qatari community, when they engaged with the Arab community, when they engaged with the hospitality, a lot of them walked away with a different opinion, a different view.
    “And to that extent, it was a platform for bringing people together in an unprecedented way.”
    [..]
    Bringing the World Cup to Qatar put a focus on discriminatory laws. There were assurances LGBT fans would be protected but some were stopped by security with rainbow hats and t-shirts removed.
    “Some fans unfortunately did face issues,” Mr Al Thawadi said.
    “I think some of the security people might have taken a decision at the time to see what was best, whether in fear of potential tensions rising inside the stadium or not.”
    There is resistance to decriminalising same-sex relations in the Muslim nation.
    “This is something that’s within our religious values,” Mr Al Thawadi said.
    [..]
    “I think people are aware that we have differences in opinions. But I think it’s important to highlight that we have to find ways of respecting each other’s opinions, and finding a way of moving forward. And that’s what this World Cup has shown.”

  9. New York senator proposes bill to allow residents to sue oil companies for ‘climate negligence’
    By Eric Utter
    Democratic New York state Sen. Zellnor Myrie recently proposed legislation that, if passed, would allow Empire State residents to file lawsuits against oil companies accused of “climate negligence,” according to the New York Post.

    Myrie’s proposal currently awaits review by the Senate Rules Committee.

    Myrie bizarrely claimed that he modeled his proposed bill after Texas’ heartbeat law, which bans abortion after six weeks’ gestation, though he referred to the Texas law as “odious” and “dangerous.” Nonetheless, he argued that private citizens should be able to bring legal action against oil and gas companies for damages related to fossil fuels.

    https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.americanthinker.com%2Fblog%2F2022%2F12%2Fnew_york_senator_proposes_bill_to_allow_residents_to_sue_oil_companies_for_climate_negligence.html

  10. Connecticut Makes Climate Change Curriculum Compulsory in Public School Classrooms
    By Jim Hoft
    Published December 18, 2022 at 3:00pm
    169 Comments

    Connecticut lawmakers will force climate change curriculum into public schools in the state starting in July.

    The new law was passed because liberal lawmakers are worried that conservatives may push an anti-science agenda. And, the science is settled. And, the debate is over. And weather isn’t climate until there is a natural disaster, then it’s climate.
    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/12/connecticut-makes-climate-change-curriculum-compulsory-public-school-classrooms/

  11. Great Britain: Multiculturalism and Islam Turn It Upside-Down
    by Giulio Meotti
    December 18, 2022 at 5:00 am

    multicultural Britain, a place where the stunning number and size of the minorities – the 55 mosques, 18 Hindu temples, nine Sikh gurudwaras, two synagogues, two Buddhist centres and one Jain centre – are seen not as a recipe for conflict or a millstone around the city’s neck, but a badge of honour,” was how, in 2013, the British liberal newspaper The Independent celebrated the transformation of Britain’s tenth-largest city.

    There are places in Europe that visited the future sooner than others: Malmö in Sweden, Trappes and Roubaix in France, Cologne in Germany, Molenbeek in Belgium, Leicester in England…

    This year, Leicester’s famous multiculturalism, so praised by the establishment, exploded. Knife attacks, stone- and bottle-throwing, cars torched, religious symbols under siege, dozens wounded, including policemen. The burst of violence began after a cricket match between India and Pakistan on August 28. According to the media, some members of the Indian community in Leicester celebrated with the call “Pakistan Murdabad” (“Death to Pakistan”). A Sikh was attacked in the street. Social media networks spread the false news that the victim was a Muslim. The house of a Hindu family celebrating the Ganesh Chaturthi holiday was attacked and social media went

    https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19217/britain-multiculturalism-islam

  12. Crooked and Woke DC Bar Recommends Taking Away Rudy Giuliani’s Law License
    By Joe Hoft
    Published December 18, 2022 at 5:20pm
    1 Comment

    The corrupt actors running the corrupt DC Bar have recommended taking Rudy Giuliani’s law license away.

    Rudy Giuliani is an American icon. He’ll go down as one of the greatest Americans of this generation.

    He worked at the DOJ in New York and helped clean up corruption in the city. He was so good at it, he won the New York City Mayor’s job and he cleaned up the entire city.

    He made America’s city great again.

    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/12/crooked-woke-dc-bar-recommends-taking-away-rudy-giulianis-law-license/

  13. zero hedge – TWITTER FILES Supplemental: How The FBI Bullied Twitter Over Lack Of ‘Foreign Influence’ Evidence

    Journalist Matt Taibbi just dropped the latest series of ever-incriminating signals from The Twitter Files, with a supplement to his recent discussion of how Twitter became a de facto Ministry of Truth dissent-killer for The FBI.

    […]

    https://www.zerohedge.com/political/twitter-files-supplemental-how-fbi-bullied-twitter-over-lack-foreign-influence-evidence
    ===============================
    twitter @mtaibbi

    1.THREAD: Twitter Files Supplemental

    TWITTER AND THE FEDERAL TASK FORCE

    https://twitter.com/mtaibbi/status/1604613292491538432

  14. Eric Swalwell’s Epically Dense Tweet Provides Entertaining Responses
    By Margaret Flavin
    Published December 18, 2022 at 6:20pm
    140 Comments

    Is he really this dense?

    In an apparent effort to try to mock Jared Kushner or Elon Musk, it’s hard to say since there is nothing particularly remarkable about about two high profile people attending a major sporting event, Eric Swalwell tweeted a picture of the two men saying, “They say a picture is worth a thousand words.”

    Swalwell is best known for having an affair with Chinese spy Fang Fang and yet remaining in the US House of Representatives serving Democrat concerns.

    Not only that, Nancy Pelosi on re-appointed Swalwell to the Intel Committee despite his relationship with honeypot Fang Fang.

    Fang Fang was a “bundler” for Swalwell and other Democrat candidates.

    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/12/eric-swalwells-epically-dense-tweet-provides-entertaining-retorts/

  15. New Footage Shows Extreme Overcrowding at the Border Patrol Central Processing Center in El Paso, TX
    By Jim Hoft
    Published December 18, 2022 at 8:40pm
    0 Comments

    The invasion at the southern border has reached numbers we have never seen before. It has gotten so overwhelming, and bizarre, that illegal aliens are popping up out of sewers in El Paso, Texas.

    FOX News reporter Bill Melugin is covering the catastrophe at the border. The rest of the mainstream media is largely ignoring this man-made catastrophe.

    On Monday, Melugin posted a video of a huge migrant caravan of over 1,000 people crossing illegally into El Paso, TX. Many illegal aliens have been released onto the streets of El Paso after being detained by Border Patrol, which the city estimates is currently over 5,000 strong.

    On Sunday, Bill Melugin was able to obtain an exclusive video from Republican Representative Tony Gonzales of Texas’s 23rd District.

    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/12/new-footage-shows-extreme-overcrowding-border-patrol-central-processing-center-el-paso-tx/