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Turkey's Erdogan says critical decisions on Syria will be made today | SOCHI, Russia (Reuters) - Critical decisions will be taken for a solution to the Syrian crisis at a summit between Turkey, Russia and Iran on Wednesday, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said. Speaking alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in the southern Russian city of Sochi, Erdogan said it was vital for all parties to contribute to a political solution in the crisis that is acceptable for the Syrian people. | 0fake |
New Veterans Affordable Housing Complex Complete in Minneapolis Suburb | Controversial Proposal for Nurses Could Expand Access to Care for Veterans ‹ › Yanira is the Operations Editor for the Veterans Today Network. She has been on the job since 2008. New Veterans Affordable Housing Complex Complete in Minneapolis Suburb By Yanira Farray on October 27, 2016 WNC provided approximately $1.97 million in LIHTC equity to fund construction of Linden Grove Veteran Apartments MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 27, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — WNC, a national investor in real estate and community development initiatives, announced today the completion of Linden Grove Veteran Apartments, a 37-unit affordable housing complex exclusively constructed for homeless veterans of the United States Armed Forces in the Minneapolis suburb of St. Cloud, Minnesota. WNC provided approximately $1.97 million in low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) equity to fund the new development. As part of the St. Cloud VA Health Care System, and located adjacent to the St. Cloud VA Medical Center, Linden Grove Veteran Apartments is designated as permanent housing for low-income veterans who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. Completed in approximately 11 months, Linden Grove Veteran Apartments is a three-story building situated on six acres of land located at 4804 Veterans Drive. Community amenities include an activity/community room, computer lab, exercise facility, central laundry, picnic area, elevators, media room, library and a playground. “WNC is pleased to help deliver these permanent affordable housing units to veterans in need,” said WNC Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Michael Gaber. “This new community features a number of amenities for residents to enjoy. We couldn’t be happier to give back to those who have served our country, and thank our investment partners for their commitment to this important project.” Linden Grove Veteran Apartments was developed by St. Michael Development Group LLC, a subsidiary of The Sand Companies, Inc. Affordable Housing Initiatives LLC served as the managing general partner of the project and Jamie Thelen served as its developer. About WNC WNC, founded in 1971 and headquartered in Irvine, Calif., is a national investor in real estate and community development initiatives, as well as a leading investor in low-income housing tax credits (LIHTC). WNC has acquired more than $7.7 billion of assets totaling in excess of 1,300 properties in 45 states, Washington D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Since 2000, WNC has been awarded four New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) allocations, totaling $178 million, and has facilitated development of 17 low-income community projects. WNC’s investor base exceeds 19,500 institutional and retail clients, including Fortune 500 companies, multinational banks, and insurance companies. Additional information is available at www.wncinc.com . Related Posts: | 1real |
Catalonia to formally declare independence if Spain suspends regional autonomy: source | MADRID (Reuters) - Catalonia s regional president told a meeting of his party he would formally declare independence if Spain starts the process of suspending the region s autonomy on Thursday, a Catalan government source said on Wednesday. Madrid has given Thursday as a deadline for the regional government to back down from a symbolic independence declaration made last week, or face direct rule from the capital. If Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy moves to apply direct rule on Thursday, it will take between three and five days for regional autonomy to be effectively suspended. | 0fake |
HYSTERICAL! WHINY LIB Claiming Assault Instantly Shot Down By Quick Thinking Congressman [Video] | 1real | |
Trump says planning 'haircut' for Dodd-Frank banking regulations | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that his administration is working on changes to Dodd-Frank banking regulations that will make it easier for banks to loan money. “We’re going to be coming out with some very strong - far beyond recommendations - we’re going to be doing things that are going to be very good for the banking industry so that the banks can loan money to people who need it,” Trump told a meeting with a business leaders from the New York area at the White House. “We’re going to do a very major haircut on Dodd-Frank. We want strong restrictions, we want strong regulation. But not regulation that makes it impossible for the banks to loan to people that are going to create jobs,” Trump said. | 0fake |
Arizona man challenges primary results, alleging misconduct | PHOENIX (Reuters) - An Arizona man filed a lawsuit on Friday challenging the results of the state’s March presidential primary election, alleging misconduct by officials during a nominating contest that is already mired in controversy. The lawsuit filed by Tucson resident John Brakey alleges that officials improperly handled voter registration requests and permitted illegal votes to be cast in the election, which was marred by long lines at polling stations and allegations of discrimination against minority voters. The three-count complaint, filed late on Friday afternoon against Arizona’s secretary of state and 15 counties, also claims that erroneous ballots were counted by officials on election day. It seeks to enjoin the state from certifying the results “until such election is properly conducted and in compliance with every requirement of Arizona law,” according to the lawsuit. The legal action comes amid an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice into the election’s handling by Maricopa County officials that saw outraged votes wait up to five hours to cast their ballots at polls. Some county residents waited long after the polls had officially closed and projected results announced to vote at one of 60 election sites, a reduced number of locations made in cost-cutting efforts by officials. Two hundred polls were set up for the same election in 2012. Officials immediately took the blame for misjudging the number of people who would show up at the polls to cast ballots, saying that their decision were based on turnout history and an increase in mail-in voters. U.S. Justice Department officials are investigating whether federal voting laws were violated after complaints of long lines at polling stations and allegations that there was disproportionate waiting times in areas with high numbers of minority people. Maricopa County officials have until April 22 to respond to the questions from the head of the voting section of the department’s civil rights division. Such an investigation was requested by Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton, who called the March 22 election won by Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump “a fiasco” that was unacceptable. A hearing on the lawsuit has been set for April 19. (Corrects headline and first two paragraphs to show lawsuit alleges official misconduct over voter registration requests, not lines at polling stations or possible discrimination against minority voters) | 0fake |
Americans Preparing for Strong Possibility of Violence on Election Day | By Vic Bishop With the U.S. presidential elections just around the corner, concerns about violence on Election Day seem to be escalating. Several schools have announced... | 1real |
’NieR: Automata’ – ’Glory to Mankind’ Trailer - Breitbart | Platinum Games is bringing Nier: Automata, the sequel to action RPG Nier, to the Playstation 4 on March 7 as players fight extraterrestrial machines as android protectors of humanity. | 0fake |
AMAZING VIDEO : Hispanics for Trump in Miami Storm the Polls, HORNS BLASTING, Shouting “USA! TRUMP!” – TruthFeed | AMAZING VIDEO : Hispanics for Trump in Miami Storm the Polls, HORNS BLASTING, Shouting “USA! TRUMP!” AMAZING VIDEO : Hispanics for Trump in Miami Storm the Polls, HORNS BLASTING, Shouting “USA! TRUMP!” Videos By Amy Moreno November 2, 2016
Don’t listen to the LYING North Korea style media, who say minorities do not support Trump.
The truth is, Donald Trump has AMAZING minority support.
And his Hispanic support in Florida is outstanding!
At one Miami precinct, voters began a parade-like storm, shouting “USA” and “Make America Great Again” as they arrived at the polls to vote for America First!
Watch the video: @realDonaldTrump latinos storming precinct 10 sw Miami to vote for our one and only president Trump!! pic.twitter.com/liu4LDey4z
— El Galope Finca (@ElGalopeFinca) October 31, 2016 This is a movement – we are the political OUTSIDERS fighting against the FAILED GLOBAL ESTABLISHMENT! Join the resistance and help us fight to put America First! Amy Moreno is a Published Author , Pug Lover & Game of Thrones Nerd. You can follow her on Twitter here and Facebook here . Support the Trump Movement and help us fight Liberal Media Bias. Please LIKE and SHARE this story on Facebook or Twitter. | 1real |
Cop’s Convict Daughter DEMANDS Public Service Instead Of Jail For Hate Crime | Kathryn Knott was convicted of a hate crime for helping friends in a gay bashing assault on a same-sex couple on a Philadelphia street in 2014. She is also the daughter of Chalfont Borough Police Chief Karl Knott, which is most likely why she thinks that she deserves special consideration in this case after she blew her chance at no jail time.Knott was offered a plea deal for probation, which her two cohorts accepted, but insisted she was just an innocent bystander to the crime and turned down the deal. Instead, she opted for a trial where surveillance footage proved she was a damned liar. After the trial, she was found guilty and sentenced to 5-10 months of jail time.Of course, this is an unacceptable situation for her, even though she made her choice to reject the plea. Now, she and her lawyers are demanding that her jail sentence is transformed into a public service announcement to take the infamy of the arrest and maybe heal some wounds. Her lawyer is arguing that she is being punished for exercising her constitutional right to have a trial, by the harsher sentence being imposed after she refused a plea deal.Let s change this up just a bit. A group of 3 poor, black young adults assaults a heterosexual white couple, beating them up severely, and leaving one with a broken jaw. The same exact sequence of events follows up to the request of one one be let out of jail by doing a PSA. This would be laughed out of court.She helped beat up a gay couple, leaving them traumatized and one with a broken jaw. She had a chance to accept responsibility and take probation. She blew it by rejecting a deal, but because she s a police chief s princess daughter both she and her lawyer think that grown-up consequences don t apply to her. She deserves every damned day of punishment that she gets, and being a white police chief s daughter is not an excuse.Featured image from Philly Declaration | 1real |
Rick Scott Just Amped Up His War On Women In Florida | On Friday, Florida Governor Rick Scott screwed tens of thousands of women across his state.The vile excuse for a governor signed a bill into law that will not just cut state funding for abortions (which is already prohibited on both the state and federal level), but it also cuts funding from clinics that perform abortions. The Florida Times-Union reported:The bill, which passed largely along party lines, restricts state agencies, local governments and Medicaid managed-care plans from contracting with organizations that own, operate or are affiliated with clinics that perform elective abortions. Duval County is one of the health departments with a Planned Parenthood contract that may be affected by that provision.Basically, in his quest to destroy Planned Parenthood, he is hurting any woman who goes to these clinics for free pregnancy tests, cancer screenings, free birth control, STI screenings and a plethora of other services they provide. The laws requirements that doctors who perform abortion service have patient-transfer agreements with local hospitals or admitting privileges at a hospital in the area. It mirrors an Alabama law that was struck down on Friday by Federal District Court Judge Myron H. Thompson who said the law unconstitutionally restricts the rights of women. Planned Parenthood s president, Cecile Richards, expressed outrage over the bill: As a result of this bill, thousands of people across Florida may no longer be able to access essential reproductive health care, such as cancer screenings, birth control, and well-woman exams. This cruel bill is designed to rip health care away from those most at risk. Rick Scott is just the most recent in a very long line of Republicans who are attacking women around the country. They pretend that they are pro-life and that they care about women, but none of this is true. The GOP isn t pro-life, they are pro-fetus, anti-women asshats who don t care about the sanctity of life any more than we care about they care about the thousands of veterans living on the streets. If they were actually pro-life they would wholeheartedly support social safety nets, birth control and oppose the death penalty. But they don t, which makes the real reasons for these types of bills very obvious: they want to punish women for having sex.Featured image via Joe Raedle/Getty Images | 1real |
STRANGER THAN FICTION: Why Is Foundation of Vegas Shooting Survivor Sponsored By DHS Linked Firm? | Shawn Helton 21st Century WireWhen looking at the deeply entangled mystery surrounding the Las Vegas mass shooting, there s been no shortage of questionable details and information that just doesn t add up.You know the old adage, truth is often stranger than fiction VEGAS QUESTIONS Who is working behind the scenes concerning the High Desert Phoenix Foundation? (Photo illustration 21WIRE s Shawn Helton)The shooting involving the Las Vegas Mandalay Bay Resort and Route 91 Harvest Festival, has ushered in the brutal return of politicized mass tragedy in America. The dramatic nature of the surreal as of yet still motiveless crime, only adds to a traumatic event that is now being described as the 9/11 of Mass Shootings. Similarly, over this past week, a story of concerning the sudden tragic death of a Las Vegas shooting survivor sent shock waves through both mainstream media and alternative media alike.As a chorus of gripping media reports detailed the unexpected death of 28 year-old Kymberley Jo (Synder) Suchomel (left photo Daily Press) in the days after the Las Vegas mass shooting, those still in search of answers in the aftermath of the tragedy were left captivated by her tale.By now, many may already be familiar with media accounts of Suchomel s harrowing tale of survival, who along with close friends, was said to have attended the Route 91 Harvest Festival the night of the Las Vegas shooting massacre.As the untimely circumstances of Suchomel s death have been conflated with the unexplained events in Las Vegas, many in alternative media have hastily assumed that the young fund raiser s death was somehow linked to her dispute of the Las Vegas mass shooting storyline via social media posts on a Facebook account associated with her. Subsequently, online interpretations of the Suchomel story have led to a digital firestorm on social media, producing a wave of speculation prior to a more complete analysis of the survivor s tale.Despite sensationalized reportage, at this time, there s no concrete evidence to prove a social media-based conspiracy concerning the death of Suchomel According to the original story first published by the Daily Press, we re told Suchomel died in her sleep as she was said to have suffered from epilepsy and had been prone to seizures. Additionally, Suchomel, who was reportedly taking medication for a pituitary tumor, was discovered dead by her grandmother Julie Norton at 8:30am on October 9th at her Apple Valley, California home. At this moment, an autopsy of Suchomel s death is still pending.QUESTION: Is it possible that open source investigators were being led into a virtual cul-de-sac and thus missing the real story?Media Tripwire?Undoubtedly, the uncanny timing of Suchomel s death has come on the heels of a brewing controversy over the Las Vegas mass shooting. This has led to increased speculation, turbo-charging even more spurious internet-based conspiracies and allegations. These now viral stories have simultaneously been published, as anonymous survivor claims from those close to Suchomel have presented Facebook messages associated with her account. Suchomel s claims also allude to multiple shooters involved in the Las Vegas shooting, as she allegedly planned to organize a group of survivors, and that The media can suck it. They have no idea what went down! While Suchomel s story is compelling, you have to wonder is there more than we ve been told?At face value, Suchomel s public account of the Las Vegas shooting is persuasive and does appear to question the official narrative. However, one should look at information from multiple angles in order to formulate a more full spectrum understanding of complex multilayered criminality.*UPDATE* Below are two screen shots associated with a Linkedin profile under the name of Kymberley Suchomel. We at 21WIRE cannot verify if this profile is connected in anyway to the Las Vegas shooting survivor or not, but several similarities in the appearance of the individual, home location and the inclusion of an aero-space industry government contractor Aero-Zone, along with others, raises some serious questions The inclusion of the above Linkedin profile is not necessarily an endorsement of a larger conspiracy concerning the Suchomel saga. However, the Linkedin revelations above have surfaced at or around the same time as other government contractor links have been uncovered regarding the Las Vegas shooting survivor s charitable foundation. (see below)QUESTION:Is the Linkedin profile above a ruse, someone else or another mysterious part of the Suchomel story?SEE ALSO: The Las Vegas Mass Shooting More to the Story Than We ve Been ToldAlthough the police dispatch communication, along with eye-witness testimony reveals some startling information contradicting the official story surrounding the Las Vegas mass shooting, one must be cautious when looking at all of the available evidence of a suspicious crime however difficult that may be.As larger outlets in alternative media such as Infowars have sensationalized this highly emotive aspect of the Las Vegas tragedy, a series of formulaic polarizing political points have become an echo chamber in its aftermath. This type of conjecture rapidly descends into wild speculation only serving to magnify emotionally driven elements of a particular story, something that could be used to deliberately steer public perception away from any potential forensic clues.It s important to remember that during same time SITE Intelligence injected an ISIS meme into the Las Vegas tragedy without revealing any solid evidence, Infowars quickly followed suit. This then prompted an apparent official statement that echoed those dubious claims from the terror group ISIS. Although these claims still linger, they ve failed to produce any real connection to ISIS.As we ve noted numerous times here at 21WIRE, the intelligence monitoring group called SITE, has ties to both the CIA and Israeli intelligence. The group has also had ethical concerns raised over the nature of their intel gathering in the last decade and according to the group s founder, Rita Katz they ve managed to release terror related material linked to ISIS prior to the group itself. GEO GROUP A private-for-profit corrections and detention firm formerly known as Wackenhut Corrections Corporation under the umbrella of The Wackenhut Corporation. (Image Source corporatewatch)Strange Bedfellows: Follow the MoneyWhat you re about to see below, is a collection of material revealing what appears to be a rather incredible financial component connected to the High Desert Phoenix Foundation, a charitable organization co-founded by the recently deceased Las Vegas mass shooting survivor Kymberley Suchomel. The High Desert Phoenix Foundation claims to have raised funds for grieving families affected by trauma since 2008. This amazing coincidence, rather incredibly, has not been mentioned once in any of the conspiratorial claims surrounding the Suchomel story at alternative media outlets. Put another way, a survivor of a traumatic event has been a long time co-founder of a foundation that contends to have helped those who have endured a traumatic tragedy themselves. It s a difficult question to ask but what are the chances of this uncanny coincidence?Furthermore, new evidence uncovers details concerning the High Desert Phoenix Foundation s high-profile sponsors, one that includes the The GEO Group, Inc (GEO). This long time financial donor, is also linked to well-known government contractor security firms. Is this also a coincidence?In recent years, controversy has enveloped the multi-billion-dollar corporation known as Geo Group. Critics of GEO Group contend that politically motivated contributions have led to an expansion of its for-profit prisons system through federal, state and government contractual agreements at the expense of public safety. Even more concerning, is that critics argue that GEO Group has fostered a dangerous work environment via it s under staffed operations, inadequate training and apparent mistreatment of detainees and other inmates. This has led to a potentially volatile situation for communities nearby GEO Group s facilities. QUESTION: Does this sound like a suitable donor for a charitable foundation known for helping grieving families?In 1984, Wackenhut Corrections Corporation (WCC) had been formed as a part of The Wackenhut Corporation. In 2003, WCC management bought up all stock held by its subsidiary G4S, altering its name to The GEO Group, Inc.In 2004, other divisions of the Wackenhut Corporation were purchased by Group 4 Falck, a security focused subsidiary known as G4S Wackenhut, was later renamed again as G4S Secure Solutions.Here s a screen shot of the High Desert Phoenix Foundation s mission statement. Notice the modest look of the website an organization with the financial backing of the multi-billion dollar GEO Group, one of the nation s largest for-profit prison operators The reason why the GEO Group link is so significant, is that prior to modern America s largest mass shooting in Las Vegas, an apparent survivor of the incident was operating a foundation that was accepting financial support from a large-scale company formerly known as The Wackenhut Corporation, a subsidiary of G4S Secure Solutions, one of the world s largest security firms, and a Department of Homeland Security connected conglomerate tied to the suspicious Orlando shooting in the summer of 2016 an event, that was previously the country s largest mass shooting. If you remember, 29-year old Omar Mateen, an Afghani-American was located in Port St. Lucie, Florida, about 120 miles outside of Orlando. In 2013, Mateen was placed under a terror watch list for 10 months (interviewed two to three times by the FBI 2013-14) and had worked for G4S Secure Solutions, headquartered in Jupiter, Florida, a company which was formerly part of a CIA-linked government contractor and security firm known as The Wackenhut Corporation.G4S, as it turns out, was the very first designated and certified Department of Homeland Security (DHS) contractor and recently secured a $234 million dollar contract with the federal cabinet department. In addition to apparently providing security solutions for 90 percent of U.S. nuclear facilities, G4S, according to border patrol sources has also been tasked with the transportation and release of illegal immigrants inside the interior of the United States. At least one of Mateen s roles with G4S, was to transport and provide security for prisoner youths in Florida.Here s a screen shot from the High Desert Phoenix Foundation s website that proudly displays their billion dollar government contract linked diamond donor, The Geo Group Below is a link to the first discussion about the Geo Group connection as it relates to the Las Vegas mass shooting Boiler Room: Stranger than Fiction New Anomalies in the Las Vegas Mass Shooting with Shawn Helton & HesherSEE ALSO: The Las Vegas and Weinstein Cover-ups: Boiler Room EP #132The amount of independent examination regarding the Las Vegas shooting case thus far is fairly staggering and in the wake of any multilayered event, one must proceed with caution when reviewing the available evidence, as the doorway for a trial by media frenzy in both mainstream media and alternative media could be used to derail sincere analysis.What should the public make of the the High Desert Phoenix Foundation s long time financial links to a high-profile government contractor?All of this comes, as the Las Vegas shooting star witness, Mandalay Bay security guard Jesus Campos resurfaced to appear in what the public has been told will be his only media appearance to discuss this bizarre and highly questionable case.It s also worth mentioning that Campos failed to shed any more light on the shifting timeline of events associated with the Las Vegas mass shooting. Watch Campos break his silence in an interview that appeared on Ellen Stay tuned for any updates to this story 21WIRE associate editor Shawn Helton is a researcher and writer, specializing in forensic analysis of high-profile crime scene and counter terrorism investigations, and the deconstruction and analysis of the mass-media coverage surrounding those cases. He has compiled an extensive body of work covering a number of high-profile events since 2012.READ MORE DAILY SHOOTER NEWS AT: 21st Century Wire Daily Shooter FilesSUPPORT 21WIRE SUBSCRIBE & BECOME A MEMBER @ 21WIRE.TV | 1real |
Venezuela ex-prosecutor gives U.S. evidence on Maduro officials | GENEVA (Reuters) - Venezuela s former chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega said on Friday her team had supplied the United States with evidence compromising top officials in the leftist administration of President Nicolas Maduro. The Trump administration has already slapped sanctions on Venezuelan officials for alleged corruption and rights abuses, so news Ortega has been providing information to Washington is likely to irk Maduro s unpopular government. Asked if she was sharing information about corruption in the Maduro administration with Washington, including graft linked to food imports for the shortages-hit country, Ortega said meetings have taken place. The prosecutors in Colombia with me ... have been meeting with prosecutors from the United States and some other countries to exchange information, Ortega told reporters after meeting United Nations rights boss Zeid Ra ad al-Hussein in Geneva. We ve supplied them with a mix of evidence that compromises high-level government officials, she said, adding she planned to visit the United States. Ortega, 59, was removed from her post in August after breaking with Maduro earlier this year in a dramatic split the opposition said evidenced Venezuela s swerve into dictatorship. She went into hiding before fleeing the country on a speedboat to the Caribbean island of Aruba and going on to Colombia. Since then, she has been traveling around the region denouncing the Maduro government for persecuting her and engaging in corruption. She has said she has evidence that Maduro was involved in graft with Brazilian construction company Odebrecht and also profited off food imports to her country where millions are unable to eat three square meals a day. Socialist Party officials have denied Ortega s allegations. The Venezuelan government says Ortega failed to tackle corruption while she was in office and instead ran an extortion ring that allowed culprits to pay in exchange for getting off the hook. Ortega has rejected those accusations as politically motivated. Ortega, who was Venezuela s chief prosecutor for over a decade, long adhered to the ruling Socialist Party line and her office spearheaded the jailing of political foes. Two years ago she said she assumed she was on the U.S. State Department s list of Venezuelan officials who would be denied visas and have property confiscated there due to alleged rights abuses and corruption. Ortega s public change of heart came in March when she condemned the Supreme Court s usurping of powers from the opposition-controlled congress, a move that was quickly partially overturned. | 0fake |
Kazakhstan on the Lookout for Nuclear Security | New Eastern Outlook | Region: Central Asia In November 2016, the Majilis of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan approved the creation of an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Low-Enriched Uranium Bank on its territory. Low-enriched uranium (LEU) is a material used for making fuel for nuclear power plants (NPP). The International Atomic Energy Agency decided to create a strategic LEU warehouse in 2006. The project’s aim is to secure an uninterrupted supply of fuel to the NPPs of the IAEA Member States. However, the Bank will not be used for regular LEU supply. This will be an emergency reserve, which will only be used in exceptional circumstances. The IAEA will own the official LEU reserves. It was decided to place the Bank in one of the Agency’s Member States. The location of choice might be a state with no nuclear weapons but with the technologies and infrastructure to work with LEU. In addition, the country should enjoy a good reputation in the IAEA. Kazakhstan complied with all these requirements. The Republic of Kazakhstan is a large-scale producer of uranium with the relevant technologies and experience, which includes processing high-enriched uranium into LEU (which is important for nuclear disarmament). Kazakhstan decided to participate in the development of peaceful atomic energy and filed an application to the IAEA in summer 2011. Kazakhstan proposed two locations for the Bank: a plot at the former Semipalatinsk test site and the Ulba Metallurgical Plant (Ust-Kamenogorsk). After inspection of both sites by the Agency’s experts, the second site was chosen. The Ulba Metallurgical Plant has almost a half a century of experience in working with radioactive materials and high-skilled experts – a legacy of the Soviet school. In addition, the enterprise has been greatly upgraded and it meets the highest safety requirements. In April 2015, a decree of the Kazakhstan Parliament approved a treaty with the IAEA on the creation of the LEU Bank in Kazakhstan. In August 2015, this Treaty was signed by the Foreign Affairs Minister of Kazakhstan Erlan Idrissov and the IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano. The preparation works involving IAEA experts are in full swing. Prior to the placement of the LEU Bank in Kazakhstan, its government will have to improve both the infrastructure and legislation in order to comply with international safety criteria. The foundation has already been laid: the law On the Use of Nuclear Power was adopted in January 2016. IAEA experts participated in the preparation of some amendments to the new law. There is a lot still to be done to make the new warehouse as safe as possible for the local citizens and the environment. All the material will be stored in containers that comply with European standards. According to IAEA data, the uranium reserves will be enough to provide electricity to a big city for 3 years. The IAEA will bear all the expenses related to uranium transportation, taxes, and guarantees in respect of the LEU Bank. Kazakhstan will have to run the warehouse at its own expense – provide it with electricity, pay salaries to the employees (citizens of Kazakhstan), etc. In acknowledgement of the placement and maintenance of the LEU Bank on its territory, Kazakhstan expects that the IAEA will assist it in the development of the nuclear industry. Right now, the IAEA Commission is working in Kazakhstan and conducting general research of the nuclear infrastructure. Upon completion of its work, the Commission will prepare a report with recommendations for the development of Kazakhstan’s nuclear industry. The Republic possesses huge reserves of uranium and ranks first in the world in terms of its production. Uranium from Kazakhstan forms a large part of the world uranium market. Moreover, Kazakhstan has long dreamed of supplying more than just raw materials or semi-finished products to other countries. It hopes to independently carry out all the stages of the nuclear fuel cycle right up to uranium conversion into nuclear fuel for the nuclear power plants. The export of nuclear fuel is greatly more profitable. The President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev mentioned this objective during a meeting with the Chairman of the Board of Kazatomprom Askar Zhumagaliyev that took place in early November 2016. He noted that to reach this goal, Kazakhstan should intensify cooperation with other states and international organizations in the nuclear industry. It should be noted that one of the major partners of Kazakhstan in the nuclear industry is Russia. Owing to its interaction with Russia, Kazakhstan has made progress in the independent production of nuclear fuel. This cooperation continues: in October 2016, Astana hosted the Russia-Kazakhstan Interregional Cooperation Forum with the participation of the Presidents of the two countries – Vladimir Putin and Nursultan Nazarbayev. As a result, Russia and Kazakhstan adopted a plan of collaboration until 2018 and signed a Memorandum on expanding strategic partnership in the field of the nuclear fuel cycle. The Memorandum confirms all the previous agreements between the two countries in respect of the collaboration in the nuclear industry, including uranium production and processing. In addition, the document mentions the opportunity of Russia and Kazakhstan’s mutual participation in IAEA projects. The placement of the LEU Bank in the territory of the Republic is a grand gesture towards the IAEA, which will raise the profile of Kazakhstan in the eyes of other states. The LEU bank will prevent existing nuclear reactors from experiencing fuel deficit and it will promote the non-proliferation of the nuclear weapons. In fact, countries wishing to develop peaceful atomic energy often have to enrich uranium on their own in order to make fuel from it. Meanwhile, the IAEA fears that some of them may exceed the enrichment level for peaceful purposes and obtain material for the creation of nuclear weapons. The LEU Bank, which any of the IAEA Member States may turn to, will mean they no longer have to enrich uranium independently thus reducing the threat of the nuclear weapon proliferation. Thus, Kazakhstan may become a strategically important member of the IAEA and participate in ensuring global security. Apart from a reputation boost and assistance in the nuclear projects, this may attract the attention of foreign investors. According to the government of Kazakhstan, the volume of foreign investment in the country’s economy increased 5 times in the first half of 2016 and amounted to almost 6 billion US dollars. This growth is undoubtedly linked to Kazakhstan’s improved international standing, which has partially resulted from its cooperation with the IAEA. Dmitry Bokarev, political observer, exclusively for the online magazine “ New Eastern Outlook. ”
| 1real |
TARGET STORES TO REMOVE GENDER LABELS FROM KIDS DEPARTMENTS | The LGBT Mafia and PC Police doing what they do best shaming Americans and businesses into conformity. Does anyone have the courage or fortitude to fight back, or are we just going to allow these PC thugs to strip our children of the genders God clearly assigned to each of us? Target Corp. is removing gender labels from most of its children s departments after customers complained about signs designating certain toys for girls.The kids bedding section will no longer feature boy and girl signage, and the toy department will be without labels and pink or blue paper on the shelves, Minneapolis-based Target said on its website Friday. Gender labels will remain in the kids clothing section because of sizing and fit differences.Retailers have been moving away from gender stereotypes, and some startups have emerged to break down the divide in kids clothing and toys. The signage that sparked the dispute at Target was for building sets, like GoldieBlox, that are targeted at girls. As guests have pointed out, in some departments like toys, home or entertainment, suggesting products by gender is unnecessary, Target said. We heard you, and we agree. Right now, our teams are working across the store to identify areas where we can phase out gender-based signage to help strike a better balance. In June, Ohio mom Abi Bechtel called out Target s gender designations in its toy aisle. She posted a photo to Twitter that showed store signs for Girls Building Sets next to regular Building Sets. The outcry was swift, with angry shoppers calling for change. It stood out to me as a good example of the way our culture tends to view boys and men as the default, normal option and girls and women as the specialized option, Bechtel told CNN at the time.Via: Bloomberg | 1real |
null | That's a blow-torch! | 1real |
Conservative Chile presidential candidate calls for all-renewable grid | SANTIAGO (Reuters) - Chilean presidential candidate Sebastian Pi era, who is leading in the polls for this November s elections, pledged on Thursday to move the South American country toward a fully renewable electricity grid by 2040. Conservative Pi era, who previously served as Chile s president from 2010 to 2014, said that if elected he would seek to build on heavy investments the country has made in wind and solar energy. The goal is that by 2040, Chile has a 100 percent clean and renewable electricity grid and a 100 percent electric public transit system, Pi era said at a campaign rally. Chile is an obvious target for green energy firms. It imports most of the oil and gas it uses, but its desert climate and long coastline makes solar and wind power a viable prospect, especially as prices for renewables have plunged. A Pi era victory would be welcomed by the copper-producing country s business community, which blames current center-left President Michelle Bachelet for stoking market uncertainty in one of Latin America s most free-market economies. But Pi era is unlikely to win in the first round, and a December runoff against center-left candidate Alejandro Guillier or hard-left Beatriz Sanchez would likely be tight. Guillier and Sanchez have both also spoken in favor of boosting renewable energy, though neither has given a specific time-frame for moving toward an all-clean grid. | 0fake |
TUCKER CARLSON Rips The Left On Gun Control Hysteria: “Let’s stop lying about this” [Video] | Tucker Carlson weighed in on the hysteria over gun control and where the blame lies for the school shooting in Florida. The left has grabbed onto this story with an iron fist and won t let go. They are beating to death the theory that less guns means less crime. Not so fast! Look at the city of Chicago! Tucker Carlson calls them out on their lies: Let s stop lying about this. The calls we are hearing today for gun control have nothing to do with protecting Americans from violence. What you re witnessing is a kind of class war. The left hates rural America, red America, gun-owning America, the America that elected Donald Trump. They hate them. Progressives are still in charge of most of the major institutions in this country, and they despise the autonomy of an armed population. They want collective punishment for the sins of a few. They seek to obliterate a core constitutional right rather than trying to mitigate its downsides. They call it gun control, but it s not. It s people control. For the left, voters who can t be controlled, can t be trusted. <span data-mce-type="bookmark" style="display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;" class="mce_SELRES_start"> </span> | 1real |
'Big question' is whether Rohingya can go home: U.N. refugee chief | GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations refugee chief said on Wednesday the big question regarding the up to 800,000 Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh was whether they would be allowed to return to their homeland. Filippo Grandi, U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, said he hoped to discuss the statelessness of Rohingya with Myanmar officials in Geneva next week but recognized it was a very complex issue . It is very clear that the cause of this crisis is in Myanmar, but that the solution of this crisis also lies in Myanmar, Grandi told a news conference in Geneva on his return from Bangladesh. He called on the Myanmar authorities to end the violence in northern Rakhine state so that solutions to the situation could then be discussed. Some 480,000 Rohingya have fled northern Rakhine since Aug. 25 and accused the army of a campaign of violence that the U.N. has called ethnic cleansing , following attacks by Rohingya insurgents on police posts. About 300,000 Rohingya had previously crossed into neighboring Bangladesh. A Myanmar minister was quoted as saying on Wednesday that the Yangon government will manage the redevelopment of villages torched during the violence in Rakhine state. Since it is most likely that return will take time, if it happens, if violence stops, it will be important also to find in the medium term suitable solutions for the people that are in Bangladesh, Grandi said. He called for the Myanmar government to implement the recommendations of a commission led by former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. The lack of citizenship for the Rohingya, this needs to be addressed and resolved, he said. Clearly if only the people with papers can go back, that will be a very small number if at all, he said. So I think that the exercise should go beyond that and should really determine, if that s what is needed, who is a national, and those people should be allowed to go back and be given that citizenship. Grandi condemned violence by Rohingya insurgents, warning: It was also very obvious to me when I visited northern Rakhine that it is only a matter of time before terrorists would spring up from the situation of discrimination, of poverty, that prevailed in that area, he said. If the situation is not resolved, the risk of the spread of terrorist violence in the whole region - and this is a particularly fragile region - is very, very high. | 0fake |
Vive la Révolution – Marine Le Pen France’s New Jeanne D’Arc | Home | World | Vive la Révolution – Marine Le Pen France’s New Jeanne D’Arc Vive la Révolution – Marine Le Pen France’s New Jeanne D’Arc By Gaston 21/11/2016 13:17:50
ORLÉANS, – France – Like a Phoenix from the flames, soon France may find liberty and freedom again from the stifling octopus grip of the socialists and EU unelected swine.
Au revoir Sarko, you have had your day. Marine Le Pen is sweeping to the helm of the right wing candidates and Fillon will be swept aside too in the upcoming French election in May, 2017.
To be set free from the shackles of euro slavery, and for her economy to shoot up into the outer reaches of space, can the French maiden let loose from the darkness and reach her hand into the light to free France once and for all?
Could this be another Trump/Brexit moment at the polls?
The EU and its ludicrous Schengen policy has stifled France, muffled her voice and condemned her to the wild tax mad ramblings of the clinically insane Francois Hollande — a puerile man whose idea of economic embellishment is to categorically destroy everything with socialistic punitive taxes and burdensome mass unfettered migration.
Can the rising Joan of Arc save France from being marginalised forever? The French are understandably fed up with the EU communist entity and will do or vote for a saviour from the filthy dank EU prison. The boulevards of Paris may once again be something to be proud of, instead of a stinking piss filled camp of degradation.
The Bastille gates will be breached and the EU technicians taken to the guillotine for some swift justice.
Vive La France, they will shout as the heads roll into the baskets, these bringers of EU monstrosities onto a land that once coined the phrase Liberté, égalité, fraternité, only to be given Contraite, inégalité, haine. Share on : | 1real |
'Racist and sexist’ complaints against Aussie lamb advert rejected | 'Racist and sexist’ complaints against Aussie lamb advert rejected 18:36 Get short URL The ad recieves complaints of being sexist and racist against white men. © We love our Lamb / YouTube The Advertising Standards Board of Australia (ASB) has rejected complaints that an advertisement for lamb is offensive to white males. Several complaints were lodged about the ad which producers say attempts to be all-inclusive with the people it features.
Produced by Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA), the ad titled “You Never Lamb Alone” features a white TV presenter quickly being switched with a Bengali-Australian actor Arka Das who introduces a range of ethnicities and sexual orientations as he moves towards a barbeque cooking lamb - “the meat that doesn’t discriminate”.
http://giphy.com/gifs/bJJo3n1aUke1G
Most of the complaints to the Advertising Standards Board of Australia centered on the opening switch of white TV presenter Luke Jacobz to Das, after Jacobz utters the line “I’m here to address concerns that too many perky white males are contributing to the lack of diversity on our screens.”
http://giphy.com/gifs/7nzEvHhZ1zI52
“This advertisement clearly states ‘too many WHITE people’ in its commercial which is highly offensive,” one complaint read, according to Bandt . “Pointing out someone’s race and gender in an advertisement and then denigrating such race or gender is both racist and sexist,” another read. To whoever wrote this lamb ad, thank you for all the tongue-in-cheek jokes about 'diversity' in Australia. https://t.co/E87jCXMFr3 — she stress@pax prep (@ChattyAnny) October 26, 2016
MLA explained that the line was “simply a nod to the common criticism that Australian television lacks diversity,” with the ASB rejecting the complaints on similar grounds. Well done MEAT & LIVESTOCK AUSTRALIA for “You’ll never lamb alone” winning the Marketing Communications: B2C and B2B award. #AMI #AMIAwards
“The Board considered that the advertisement did not portray or depict material in a way which discriminates against or vilifies a person or section of the community on account of race or gender,” they said.
Currently the video has more thumbs down than thumbs up on YouTube, with comments now disabled. | 1real |
Trump assails GM over car production in Mexico, threatens tax | DETROIT/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday threatened to impose a “big border tax” on General Motors Co (GM.N) for making some of its Chevrolet Cruze compact cars in Mexico, an arrangement the largest U.S. automaker defended as part of its strategy to serve global customers, not sell them in the United States. Trump’s comments marked his latest broadside aimed at an American company over jobs, imports and costs before he takes office on Jan. 20, signaling an uncommon degree of intervention for an incoming U.S. president into corporate affairs. “General Motors is sending Mexican made model of Chevy Cruze to U.S. car dealers-tax free across border. Make in U.S.A. or pay big border tax!” Trump said in a post on Twitter. Trump did not provide further details but previously vowed to hit companies that shift production from America to other countries with a 35 percent tax on their exports into the United States. He also has denounced the North American Free Trade Agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada. Trump’s tweet came hours before GM’s rival Ford Motor Co (F.N) announced it would cancel a planned $1.6 billion factory in Mexico and would invest $700 million at a Michigan factory, after it also came under criticism from the Republican president-elect for its Mexican investment plans. Ford’s executive chairman, Bill Ford Jr., said he personally notified Trump of the decision, but after Trump’s early-morning GM tweet. GM, the world’s No. 3 automaker, said it sold about 190,000 Cruze cars in the United States in 2016. All of the sedan versions sold in the United States, or about 185,500, were built at its plant in Lordstown, Ohio. About 4,500 hatchback versions of the Cruze were assembled in Mexico and sold in the United States. “GM builds the Chevrolet Cruze hatchback for global markets in Mexico, with a small number sold in the U.S.” it said in a statement posed on its website. The Cruze is one of GM’s best-selling cars, although its sales numbers were down significantly in 2016. Shares of GM (GM.N) rose 1 percent to $35.19 after falling about 1 percent following Trump’s tweet before the market opened. Since winning the Nov. 8 presidential election, Trump has targeted GM’s rival Ford Motor Co (F.N), United Technologies Inc (UTX.N), Boeing Co (BA.N) and Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N). Trump also has touted decisions by companies to keep some production in the United States, including United’s Carrier unit in Indiana. “In this case, the tweet was specific to General Motors. But I think you’ve seen an overall philosophy during the campaign and since he was elected to stand up for American workers and make sure that American companies don’t benefit from moving their companies overseas and leaving American workers behind,” Trump transition team spokesman Sean Spicer said. Last month, Trump announced the formation of a council to advise him on job creation comprised of leaders from a variety of major U.S. corporations including GM Chief Executive Officer Mary Barra. GM said in 2015 it would build its next-generation Chevrolet Cruze compact in Mexico as automakers look to expand in the Latin American nation to take advantage of low labor costs and free trade agreements. The company said in 2015 it would invest $350 million to produce the Cruze at its plant in Coahuila as part of the $5 billion investment in its Mexican plants announced in 2014, creating 5,600 jobs. GM said last year it would import some Cruze cars from Mexico. Trump, a Republican who will succeed Democratic President Barack Obama, campaigned for president using tough rhetoric on trade and promises to protect American workers, and targeted several companies by name. According to Automotive News, GM began producing the Cruze in Mexico last year, making 52,631 cars there. In comparison, it built 319,536 of them in the United States. Previous versions of the Cruze sold in Mexico were made in a GM South Korea plant, it reported. The shift is part of a larger trend among Detroit’s Big Three automakers to produce more small cars for the North American market in Mexico in an effort to lower labor costs, while using higher-paid U.S. workers to build more profitable trucks, sport utility vehicles and luxury cars. In November, GM said it planned in early 2017 to lay off 2,000 employees at two U.S. auto plants, including the one in Lordstown. U.S. small car sales have been hurt by lagging consumer demand and low gas prices. GM’s U.S. Cruze sales were down 18 percent through November. GM will halt the third shift at the Lordstown plant on Jan. 23, cutting 1,250 jobs. | 0fake |
Nintendo Switch: A Blast at Home, So-So on the Go - The New York Times | There’s a new gadget that you can count on to soon zoom to the top of people’s wish lists: the Nintendo Switch. The Japanese game company is releasing the Switch, a $300 video game console, on Friday. For months, the device has been generating buzz because it is two gadgets in one — both a console that can sit in your living room and one that you can easily take with you on the go — making it extremely versatile. Last week, I took possession of a Switch from Nintendo to get a closer look at what the hype was all about. At home, I put the Switch on a dock to play games on my television. Over the weekend, I took the Switch off the dock for a trip to Los Angeles and used the gadget’s embedded screen and attached controllers to play games while out and about. Playing with the Switch was a blast. The hardware is well designed and capable of delivering powerful graphics. And early Switch games I tested made clever use of the included motion controllers. So what’s to lose? There won’t be many games available for the Switch on Day 1, with only 10 titles releasing alongside the device on Friday. There were also some bugs in the unit I tested, including one that made the device fail to power on for a day. The Switch also lacks some important features like compatibility with Bluetooth earphones, and is mediocre as a portable gaming device, with short battery life and an O. K. screen. And don’t forget: The Switch’s predecessor, Wii U, was also a multipurpose console that had a gamepad for portable use when it was released in 2012. That product flopped, so buying a Nintendo system today is a risk compared with buying a Sony PlayStation 4 or a Microsoft Xbox One. Still, getting the Switch is a risk worth taking. Its games offer an intimate form of gameplay unseen on rival consoles, and over all the system’s versatility makes it worth the money. What I hated about Wii U was how much space it took up. Not only was there a console box, but there was also a superfluous, bulky touch pad controller, along with all the Wiimotes, the rectangular controllers, which had to be charged between gaming sessions. In a recent purge, I packed the system and its jungle of power cables into a trash bag and gave it to a friend without even asking for a burrito in return. With the Switch, Nintendo appears to have learned as much as it could from the negative feedback about Wii U. The setup of the Switch is a breeze: You use two cables to connect a dock to your television and a power outlet. From there, you mount the Switch to the dock so the image shows up on your TV. On the sides of the Switch are strips with physical buttons, which are actually detachable wireless controllers called . Press a button to remove them, and voilà, each strip is a controller for two players. If you want to take the Switch somewhere, just reattach the and remove the device from the dock. The Switch hardware felt sturdy and well made. The controllers smoothly slide on and off the device, and docking the Switch is as easy as dropping it in and letting it snap in place. There is no better way to get acclimated to the Switch than playing the game . The game, which is generally designed for two players, asks each gamer to take a and use its motion sensors to compete in various absurd activities. There are more than two dozen minigames in including one in which players compete while milking a virtual cow. While milking the creature, the players are instructed to lock eyes. The move is not necessary to win the game, but it illustrates how much of a novelty eye contact has become in an era that has people glued to smartphone screens, reading tablets, televisions and computers. Another challenge in has a player swinging a katana blade and the other slapping the controller to catch the blade. A boxing minigame has players competing to throw straight punches, hooks and uppercuts as quickly as possible. After milking cows, swinging samurai swords and drawing guns on each other, adults who try Switch may remember the joys of the game they played in grade school. Children may learn for the first time that interaction will always beat a Snapchat video, text message or emoji. The Switch accommodates loners, too. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, for example, takes players through a vast open world, in which our hero, Link, prepares to battle the villain Ganon, solving puzzles, riding horses and climbing mountains along the way. The graphics, music and tricky puzzles make it stunning and addictive. Naturally, there are problems that Nintendo needs to fix with the Switch. In one instance, after my Switch was put in sleep mode, it failed to turn back on, even after the device had been charging for hours. This problem persisted for an entire day, and only after the device was left unplugged overnight did it wake back up with a icon. I suspect the software froze while the gadget was asleep, making it impossible to reboot until after the battery ran down. Nintendo said that it was looking into the issue and that a software update on Friday would improve overall system stability. The Switch is also not a great portable. Measuring about 9. 5 inches wide, it is cumbersome to hold for long durations. The picture quality on the screen is unremarkable: When being used as a portable, the system displays a lower pixel resolution than when it is docked for use on a TV. It also gets lots of glare in a living room. Finally, battery life was short. I was able to play three hours of Breath of the Wild before the Switch ran out of power. That is dismal compared with a Nintendo 3DS XL, a portable gaming device, which has about six hours of juice while gaming. Most people would be better off buying a Switch after Nintendo bolsters the system with a larger library of games. But the early signs for the Switch are promising, with coming titles like Super Mario Odyssey, Splatoon 2 and a new version of Minecraft coming out eventually. Gaming enthusiasts won’t want to miss out on the Switch. Though it may be an average portable gaming device, the Switch excels as a powerful and compelling home console. With Nintendo also already has a killer app that is a for gamers of all skill levels. In fact, a friend who helped me test professed that she had never won at any video games. So when we played the boxing game, I was confident I would win after years of taking professional boxing classes. Yet when the points were tallied up, I was shocked to see she had beaten me to most of the punches. The biggest deterrent to buying the Switch could be how tough it will be to get your hands on one. Nintendo said that it planned to make two million systems available worldwide this month — but if my fun experience with it is any indication, it might be hard to find one left on store shelves. | 0fake |
In Iraq, Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, upbeat on Mosul | QAYYARA WEST AIRFIELD, Iraq (Reuters) - President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, voiced optimism about the long-term U.S. alliance with Iraq’s military and its campaign to retake Mosul from Islamic State on Tuesday, as he visited a base about 10 miles (16 km) from the city. Kushner was on the last day of a two-day trip to Iraq as the guest of Marine General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the U.S. military’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. The visit to the Hammam al-Alil base included an operational briefing from Iraqi and U.S. commanders. The trip has demonstrated the far-reaching portfolio of Kushner, 36, who is part of Trump’s innermost circle and who has been given a wide range of domestic and foreign policy responsibilities, including working on a Middle East peace deal. His views on Iraq could shape Trump’s own opinions. It comes as Trump is examining ways to accelerate a U.S.-led coalition campaign that U.S. and Iraqi officials say has so far been largely successful in uprooting Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria. Mosul is by far the biggest city to have been held by Islamic State, and winning it back would largely destroy the Iraqi part of the group’s “caliphate,” proclaimed from a Mosul mosque in 2014. There are mounting concerns about civilian casualties in the final phases of the assault and questions about how quickly Mosul can be rebuilt, repopulated and governed in a way that avoids alienating its Sunni-majority population. The Mosul battle, the biggest in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, has been under way since October, with 100,000 Iraqi troops, Kurdish fighters and Shi’ite militiamen seeking to drive out the militants with the support of U.S.-led air strikes. Although Trump campaigned on defeating the hardline Sunni militant group, he has not announced any major changes to war strategy and it is unclear how Kushner’s experience in Iraq might shape his advice to the president. Speaking after lengthy battlefield reports from Iraq’s military, Kushner sounded upbeat about the campaign and said the partnership between U.S. and Iraqi troops was “very impressive.” He expressed hope the partnership would be enduring, signaling White House interest in longer-term U.S. military assistance. “I hope the victory that you have in Mosul in the near future will not just be a victory for the American and Iraqi troops but it will be a victory for the world,” Kushner said. On Tuesday, Islamic State issued its first official remarks referring to Trump since he assumed the U.S. presidency in January, describing him as an “idiot.” “You (the U.S.) are bankrupt and the signs of your demise are evident to every eye,” spokesman Abi al-Hassan al-Muhajer said in a recording released on the messaging network Telegram. “There is no more evidence than (that) you being run by an idiot who does not know what Syria or Iraq or Islam is.” Even after Mosul and other pockets of territory are recaptured, U.S. officials expect Islamic State to go underground and fight on as a more traditional insurgency. Kushner’s trip was his first to Iraq and the visit to Hammam al-Alil, where U.S. advisers and artillery are positioned to assist the battle in Mosul, was also the closest Dunford has gotten to Mosul since the campaign began. They stopped briefly at Qayyara West Airfield, another key hub in the war, where U.S. forces manning High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems fired twice at Islamic State targets in Mosul the night before. Iraqi security forces are engaged in fierce, house-to-house fighting in Mosul. Nearly 290,000 people have fled the city to escape the fighting, according to the United Nations, and it has had a heavy toll on civilians trapped in the city. The advance has been slowed since March 17, when scores of people sheltering from air strikes were killed in a blast. The United States has acknowledged it may have had some kind of role in the incident but also said Islamic State may be to blame. A U.S. investigation is ongoing. Dunford said Baghdad was looking at ways to better safeguard civilians, given tactics by Islamic State that has raised the risks - including the use of civilians as human shields. “The Iraqis are looking to make some adaptations,” he told reporters after the talks, which included meetings on Monday with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi in Baghdad. | 0fake |
PRESIDENT TRUMP AND MELANIA Arrive in Poland to Cheering Crowds [Video] | The President and First Lady touched down in Warsaw, Poland today for a visit before traveling to Hamburg, Germany. They ll be in Hamburg for the G20 Summit where Trump is expected to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin for the first time and discuss the nuclear threat of North Korea with world leaders. As they stepped off of the plane, Melania appeared in a beautiful green coat . She never misses! GO TO THE 10:15 MARK FOR THEIR DEPLANING:THE FIRST LADY WAVES AFTER ARRIVING IN WARSAW, POLAND:Melania Trump waves after arriving in Warsaw, Poland. How can anyone not love our First Lady? pic.twitter.com/6821k3dH2T Tennessee (@TEN_GOP) July 5, 2017POLISH CROWDS CHEERING AS PRESIDENT TRUMP ARRIVES IN WARSAW: CROWDS LINED THE ENTIRE ROUTE!Polish Crowds Cheering as President Trump Arrives in Warsaw pic.twitter.com/TGCHfb7Blc Jack Posobiec (@JackPosobiec) July 5, 2017A FULL MILITARY ESCORT IN POLAND:The First Couple will leave Germany for Paris and Bastille Day ceremonies next Friday. We re looking forward to watching President trump move amongst world leaders. We have to admit that it s also going to be fun to see what the First Lady is wearing each time she makes a public appearance. | 1real |
Elizabeth Warren Supporter Purchases ‘Pocahontas’ Domain, Trolls Donald Trump | As Elizabeth Warren amps up her attacks on the Donald Trump and his fraudulent university (and V.P. rumors are abuzz), the GOP nominee has decided to write her off simply as Pocahontas, echoing attacks from Scott Brown s campaign made over a controversy that looms over the Massachusetts senator.But like Hillary Clinton with her delete your account comment, a Warren supporter is trolling the loud, nasty, thin-skinned fraud (Warren s words) by purchasing the domain site Pocahontas.com and linking it back to her Senate campaign website.It s the ultimate trolling. After calling her the Indian, Republicans have yet again been put into an awkward situation with Trump s blatant racism. According to the Washington Post, some Republican lawmakers such as John McCain and Tom Cole (who is Native American) are uncomfortable with the rhetoric while some, including Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Roger Wicker of Mississippi, are brushing it off as good humor. Trump s comments also caused ire with weary Republicans at Mitt Romney s summit in Utah, where mega-donors like Meg Whitman compared the Republican nominee to Hitler and Mussolini due to his racist rhetoric.Considering the fact that Hillary Clinton is ahead of Trump in five new national polls, it would make sense that the orange racist with tiny hands would go after Elizabeth Warren, who may very well be Clinton s running mate. In fact, at a rally, Trump again referred to Warren as Pocahontas while his supporters responded with fake Indian war chants.Totally not racist, right?So please, if you can, type in Pocahontas.com and consider donating to Elizabeth Warren (she ll be needing it if she decides to join Hillary Clinton in making history).Trump s racist rhetoric is catching up to him, and people can see it. Clinton and Warren are also getting under his skin. Instead of promising good policy, Trump has devoting all his time to comebacks on Twitter.If this how the campaign will unfold, get ready for a Clinton landslide.Featured image via Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | 1real |
NURSE FROM One Of Nation’s Largest Hospitals Tweets: “Every white woman raises a detriment to society when they raise a son”…Their Sons “should be sacrificed to the wolves b___”” | It s hard to imagine, and very sad, that a hospital could hire someone who is so filled with hate and obsessed with race, to care for some of the most vulnerable members of our society.A controversial tweet allegedly posted Friday by a nurse at one of the largest hospital systems in the nation has sparked an internal investigation.The tweet came from an account named Night Nurse, linked to Indiana University Health employee Taiyesha Baker, FOX59 reported. Every white woman raises a detriment to society when they raise a son. Someone with the HIGHEST propensity to be a terrorist, rapist, racist, killer, and domestic violence all star. Historically every son you had should be sacrificed to the wolves b___, the tweet read.An IU Health spokesman confirmed to FOX59 that Baker is a registered nurse, but declined to reveal the hospital where she is currently employed. IU Health is aware of several troubling posts on social media which appear to be from a recently hired IU Health employee, the hospital said in a statement. Our HR department continues to investigate the situation and the authenticity of the posts. During the investigation, that employee (who does not work at Riley Hospital for Children) will have no access to patient care. Baker claimed to work in pediatrics in previously deleted tweets.According to public records obtained by FOX59, Baker was most recently issued a nursing license on Oct. 30.The Twitter account behind the controversial messages, @tai_fieri, was originally deleted after the post sparked a firestorm, but now appears to have been created by a different user who is posting new tweets, the IndyStar reported. FOX News | 1real |
FLORIDA: PARENTS of WIFE BEATING Husband Fly From India To Help Him Beat His “Disobedient” Wife…All 3 MIGHT Be Deported | Wow! What a nice family A man s parents flew out to Florida from their native India to help their son beat his wife for being disobedient, police say.Devbir Kalsi, 33, and his parents Jasbir, 67, and Bhupinder Kalsi, 61, were arrested after his wife Silky Gaind, 33, was found badly beaten and being held against her will at their Riverview home. Cops were called after Gaind called her own parents, back in India, to tell them she was being beaten by her husband and his family.When deputies arrived, they found the door blocked by Kalsi and heard the victim screaming inside for the deputy to save her and her child, the Hillsborough County Sheriff s Office said. The deputy burst in and arrested Kalsi before arresting his parents.Police report that Kalsi would regularly beat his wife and had called Jasbir and Bhupinder Kalsi asking them to fly over to help counsel and discipline Gaind for being disobedient .The beatings continued, while Gaind was locked in her room and had her cell phone taken from her.It escalated on Friday, when Devbir Kalsi and his wife got into an argument.The arrest report states that Kalsi struck her repeatedly and forcefully , and when Gaind attempted to defend herself, his parents began hitting her too, leaving bruises on her face, neck and torso.Gaind s young daughter, who was in her arms during the attack, was also struck in the face.Kalsi then allegedly held a kitchen knife to her throat and threatened to stab her.Devbir and Jasbir Kalsi may face charges of false imprisonment, child abuse and denying access to 911, according to the Tampa Bay Times.All three could also be deported back to India. They are currently being held without bail at Hillsborough County Jail. Daily Mail | 1real |
Trump spoke to Mexican president on Friday: White House official | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump spoke by phone on Friday to Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, a White House official said, amid a simmering war of words over Trump’s plan to build a border wall. The official said the two leaders spoke for about an hour. | 0fake |
BREAKING: Trump Tax Documents Leaked And They’re STUNNINGLY Incriminating | The chorus of voices saying, Show us your taxes, has been growing steadily as Trump continues to hide behind the flimsy excuse of an audit for keeping them hidden. Now, documents obtained by The New York Times may easily explain why he doesn t want the public to see them: While we all have been diligently paying our taxes each year, he very well may not have paid any income taxes at all for the last 18 years.18 years. That s astounding. That s disgusting, particularly for someone with a really fat bank account that s running for President. Trump has likely has paid so much less than his fair share that he helped to bilk the American people out of much needed services.What did the Times find? In 1995, Trump declared a $916 million loss on his taxes. That s a big enough loss to wipe out his federal income tax for the $50,000 to $100,000 he made on each and every episode of The Apprentice, and the $45 million he earned serving as chairman of the company that owned his failing casinos in Atlantic City from 1995 to 2009.Joel Rosenfeld, an assistant professor at New York University s Schack Institute of Real Estate, and also a tax expert, told the Times: He has a vast benefit from his destruction. Yes he does. Atlantic City and New Jersey were left picking up the pieces of his failed ventures there. But what s more damning is what Rosenfeld would say if a client came to him with a $916 million loss like Trump s: Do you realize you can create $916 million in income without paying a nickel in taxes? Wow. Yes, Trump was taking advantage of a tax system that s very heavily weighted in favor of real estate investors, and many would say that s just good business. However, just because something is legal doesn t make it right. Furthermore, when the issue of his taxes came up in the debate, and Hillary brought up his bragging that he pays as little as possible in taxes, he said: That makes me smart. Oh please. Smart? Many would say yes. However, that s anything but patriotic or presidential. It s selfish. It s shockingly selfish. It harms the veterans he claims to want to help, and the infrastructure he claims to want to fix, and everything else he claims he can turn around in his quest to enrich himself turn America into a shining golden city on a hill.And yet, this is the biggest example yet of his sheer hypocrisy. So is his campaign s statement on the matter: Mr. Trump is a highly-skilled businessman who has a fiduciary responsibility to his business, his family and his employees to pay no more tax than legally required. That being said, Mr. Trump has paid hundreds of millions of dollars in property taxes, sales and excise taxes, real estate taxes, city taxes, state taxes, employee taxes and federal taxes.Mr. Trump knows the tax code far better than anyone who has ever run for President and he is the only one that knows how to fix it. No, he wants to tilt it even further towards people like himself. Trump himself hasn t said anything about this on Twitter yet, but expect him to soon. Perhaps at 3 a.m., when he s writhing in fury on his bed that the Times has unmasked him yet again.Featured image by Spencer Platt/Getty Images | 1real |
U.S. senator raises questions about hospital operator UHS | (Reuters) - A Republican senator said on Tuesday he had written to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) raising questions about reports of “troubling conduct” by psychiatric hospital operator Universal Health Services Inc. The inquiry, by Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, raises concerns about reports by BuzzFeed News of low nurse staffing, medication errors and sexual misconduct at UHS’ Shadow Mountain facility in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Grassley said in his letter the reports showed a pattern of conduct by the hospital operator that “casts a dark cloud over UHS’ ability to properly care for its patients and whether it is properly billing federal programs.” Founded in 1979, Pennsylvania-based UHS operates more than 240 acute care hospitals, behavioral health facilities and ambulatory centers. Grassley has also sought a response from The Joint Commission, an accrediting organization, that reportedly designated the Shadow Mountain facility as a “Top Performer in Key Quality Measures” for the 2011-2015 period. Grassley’s letter is his second inquiry into UHS following a similar query to the HHS in December after BuzzFeed published its first report on the psychiatric hospital operator. The Dec. 7 report alleged that UHS pressured patients into unnecessary admittance and prolonged hospitalizations, potentially defrauding the government as a result. (bzfd.it/2oJN8jw) UHS’ stock fell 12 percent on the day of the report. Last week, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey accused UHS of employing unlicensed and unsupervised personnel at mental health centers, leading the company to submit false claims for reimbursement to the state's Medicaid program. (reut.rs/2pyi4TJ) Healy’s office filed a complaint in federal court in Boston after intervening in a whistleblower lawsuit against the hospital operator by the parents of a woman who died at one of its facilities. UHS’ shares were down 2.1 percent at $119.42 in afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday. | 0fake |
Argentina blocks some activists from attending WTO meeting | BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Argentina revoked the credentials of some activists who had been accredited by the World Trade Organization (WTO) to attend its ministerial meeting taking place in Buenos Aires next month, the foreign ministry and civil society groups said on Thursday. The 63 activists who had their accreditations rescinded were largely affiliated with the Our World Is Not for Sale network, said organizer Deborah James. The group opposes corporate globalization and has staged protests at previous WTO meetings. A spokeswoman for Argentina s foreign ministry told Reuters some individuals were not allowed to attend because they were determined to be more disruptive than constructive. WTO meetings often attract protests by anti-globalization groups, but they have remained largely peaceful since riots broke out at the 1999 meeting in Seattle. We ve never had this happen before. It s totally unprecedented, James, who is also director of international programs at the left-leaning Center for Economic and Policy Research, said by telephone from Washington, D.C. The group posted a public letter including an email the WTO sent to certain participants on Wednesday discouraging them from traveling to Argentina for the Dec. 10-13 meeting to avoid being turned away at the airport. The Geneva-based WTO did not immediately respond to request for comment after normal business hours. The Financial Times on Thursday quoted WTO spokesman Keith Rockwell saying the WTO had asked the Argentine government to reverse the decision. Argentina s President Mauricio Macri has promoted free-trade policies since taking office in December 2015, and Argentina will host global events as chair of the G20 group of major economies next year. During protests that coincided with a World Economic Forum event in Buenos Aires earlier this year, security forces used water cannons and tear gas to control picketers who had blocked a highway. James said it was unusual for a government that had agreed to host an international gathering to deny entry to people who were accredited by the host organization. The activists represented 20 different groups, including Friends of the Earth International and Global Justice Now. Nearly 500 civil society groups registered. James said she could not tell why some members were rejected and others not, and said she planned to attend. They re not blacklisting me, and I m the organizer. | 0fake |
Trump Owes A Foreign Bank At Least $100 Million – And It’s Fighting U.S. Regulators | While the country has a meltdown over Hillary Clinton s email scandal (even though she didn t break any federal laws), there seems to be a blind eye on an even bigger scandal and yes, it would involve Donald Trump.Mother Jones reports that should Trump win the presidency, he will potentially face having to owe over $100 million to Deutsche Bank, which has sparred with U.S. regulators for years. Such a conundrum would be the biggest conflict of interest any presidential candidate has ever faced.Here are the facts:Trump has acquired quite a bit of debt, totaling roughly $355 million (or possibly more) from various loans from a multitude of lenders. His ambiguous financial statement lists 16 loans from 11 different creditors. At least five of these loans are worth $50 million or more, and have no been paid back (at least in full).Deutsche Bank appears to be Trump s biggest line of credit, with loans totaling $295 million for two projects alone $125 million to buy Trump National Doral golf course, and most recently $170 million for his newest project, his hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue. With the election a mere five months away, and the hotel slated to open in fall, Trump will (if elected) waltz into the White House owing a foreign bank more than $100 million.That, as Richard Painter, an attorney who teaches at the University of Minnesota puts it, is very troublesome. For starters, this will mean that as President of the United States, Trump will literally be beholden to a foreign bank. And if it s anything like his Ocean City Taj Mahal, will it ever be paid? With bookings for his hotels dropping by a whopping 60 percent, who knows. As Painter told Mother Jones:They [former presidents] had large assets and usually diversified assets. They weren t in a situation where someone could put pressure on them to do what they want. Whereas having a president who owes a lot of money to banks, particularly when it s on negotiable terms it puts them at the mercy of the banks and the banks are at the mercy of regulators. In real estate, the prevailing business model is to own a lot but also owe a lot, and that is a potentially very troublesome business model for someone in public office.Just because Trump is a billionaire doesn t mean he ll pay it all back with full faith. As Mother Jones reminds readers:In 2005, Trump borrowed $640 million from Deutsche Bank and several other lenders for the construction of a Chicago hotel tower. When he failed to pay back the money on time in 2008, the banks, including Deutsche Bank, demanded he pay up the $40 million he had personally guaranteed. In response, Trump sued Deutsche Bank for $3 billion, saying the project s financial troubles were the fault of the economic recession, essentially an act of God, and accusing the bank of undermining the project and his reputation.With no indication of a blind-trust being set up as to avoid a conflict of interest, one could assume Trump would bend the rules in his favor, as he boasts to always doing.And if that alone wasn t a reason to be suspicious, Deutsche Bank has been fighting U.S. regulators for years, which would make a partnership with Trump all the more conflicted.With an ongoing battle of trying to bypass the rules in favor of Wall Street, the German bank was forced to pay a staggering $2.5 billion fine for rigging interest rates. The fine included paying $600 million to the New York State Department of Financial Services, $800 million to the Commodities Futures Trading Commission, and $775 million to the Department of Justice.The bank also reached multiple settlements for price fixing metals.Great business partners you got there, Trump. When Democrats and Republicans say Hillary Clinton is beholden to banks, maybe the attention should be turned to Trump, who literally owes a bank over $100 million.It s no wonder Trump has pledge to repeal Dodd-Frank.Featured image via Spencer Platt/Getty Images | 1real |
Trump 'not thrilled' with debate dates, Clinton vows 'to be there' | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican candidate Donald Trump said he is unhappy with the dates set for this fall’s presidential debates, but White House rival Hillary Clinton countered that the schedule was decided long ago and vowed to show up regardless of his objections. The nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates has scheduled three televised debates ahead of the Nov. 8 election - Monday, Sept. 26, Sunday, Oct. 9, and Wednesday, Oct. 19. The dates were set almost a year ago. Trump and other Republicans said they should be changed because of conflicts with National Football League games. “I think two of the three are against the NFL, so I’m not thrilled with that,” the Republican presidential nominee said in an interview with ABC’s “This Week” that aired on Sunday. Speaking to reporters while campaigning at a cheese barn in Ashland, Ohio, Clinton noted that the debate schedule had been established long before the two major political parties chose their nominees. “I’m going to be there. That’s all I’ll say,” Clinton said just days after the end of the Democratic National Convention, where the former secretary of state accepted her party’s presidential nomination. In a statement, the commission said the chosen dates “will serve the American public well,” adding that it was impossible to avoid all sporting events when working out the schedule. It said the debates had never been rescheduled for such conflicts. Trump, who tweeted on Friday that Clinton was “trying to rig the debates” so that fewer people would watch, suggested in the ABC interview that his rival wanted the debates to be held “when nobody’s home” to watch. Newt Gingrich, a Trump adviser and former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, tweeted that the scheduling “makes me think the commission is rigged to help hide Hillary from the voters.” The commission was established in 1987 by the Republicans and Democrats to ensure the debates became a permanent part of the campaign after a series of “hastily arranged” events in 1976, 1980 and 1984 - and no debates in 1964, 1968 and 1972. Neither party is involved with running the commission, which is governed by an independent board of directors. It is co-chaired by former Republican National Committee chairman Frank Fahrenkopf and Mike McCurry, a former press secretary in Bill Clinton’s White House. David Axelrod, a former senior adviser to President Barack Obama, suggested on Twitter that Trump could be “just trying to ditch” the debates. When asked directly whether Trump would participate, his campaign manager, Paul Manafort, said the Republican candidate “wants to participate” but also seeks “the maximum audience.” “So we’re going to sit down with the commission in the next week or so and we’re going to start talking to them and we want to make sure we have a broad audience, understanding, watching the debates,” Manafort told CBS’s “Face the Nation.” RNC Chairman Reince Preibus said the debates would get more viewers if they were on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday nights. “We’re going to be working with the commission and what they’re putting together,” Preibus said on CBS. “We’re not going to agree with anything that our nominee doesn’t agree with.” Clinton adviser John Podesta called the complaints “more Trump debate malarkey. We will be at the debates set by the bipartisan debate commission and expect he will too,” Podesta said on Twitter. Trump also told ABC he had received a letter from the NFL saying the debate dates were “ridiculous.” But Brian McCarthy, a spokesman for the NFL, said there was no such letter. “While we’d obviously wish the debate commission could find another night, we did not send a letter to Mr. Trump,” McCarthy said on Twitter. | 0fake |
New Venezuela oil boss to give military more PDVSA posts | CARACAS (Reuters) - A general appointed at the weekend to run Venezuela s energy sector will name more military officers to senior management posts at state oil company PDVSA as part of a shakeup the government says is aimed at fighting corruption, two company sources told Reuters on Monday. In a surprise move, unpopular leftist President Nicolas Maduro on Sunday tapped Major General Manuel Quevedo to lead PDVSA [PDVSA.UL] and the Oil Ministry, giving the already powerful military control of the OPEC nation s dominant industry. Besides the corruption scandals, Quevedo will have to tackle an attempted debt restructuring, within the context of a deep recession and debilitating U.S. sanctions. Sources in the sector said Quevedo s appointment could quicken a white-collar exodus from PDVSA and worsen operational problems at a time when production has already tumbled to near 30-year lows of under 2 million barrels per day. About 50 officials at state oil company PDVSA have been arrested since August in what the state prosecutor says is a crusade against corruption. Sources within PDVSA and the oil industry said Maduro s administration was using corruption allegations to sideline rivals and deepen its control of the industry, which accounts for over 90 percent of export revenue. The order given is to militarize PDVSA in key areas, said a PDVSA employee, asking to remain anonymous because he was not authorized to speak to the media. A second source said he was told military officials would take over key production divisions in Venezuela s east and west. Venezuela s president, a former bus driver and union leader whose popularity has plummeted during the economic crisis, has gradually handed the military more power in his cabinet and in key sectors such as mining. Unlike his popular predecessor Hugo Chavez, Maduro does not hail from the military. The opposition says he has been forced to buy the loyalty of the army, historically a power broker in Venezuela, giving them top posts and juicy business contracts while turning a blind eye to corruption. PDVSA did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but an internal company message seen by Reuters called on workers to come to Caracas on Tuesday for Quevedo s swearing in. Let s all go to Caracas to consolidate the deepening of socialism and the total, absolute transformation of PDVSA, the message read. Quevedo, a former housing minister with no known energy experience, is not a heavyweight in Venezuela s political scene, although two sources close to the military told Reuters he was a Maduro ally. Opposition lawmaker Angel Alvarado predicted the appointment would worsen PDVSA s operations. They re getting rid of the old executives, who although socialist and working under catastrophic management, at least knew about oil, he said. Now we re going to have totally inexperienced hands. Although military appointees had been on the rise within the oil industry too, Quevedo s appointment is the first time in a decade and a half that a military official has taken the helm of the oil industry. PDVSA so far had been led by chemist Nelson Martinez and the Oil Ministry by engineer Eulogio Del Pino, both of whom rose in the ranks under previous PDVSA president and Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez. Later demoted to become Venezuela s representative at the United Nations in New York, Ramirez recently criticized Maduro for not reforming Venezuela s flailing economy, in what insiders say is a power struggle between the two rivals. The opposition has also accused Quevedo of violating human rights during the National Guard s handling of anti-Maduro protests, in which stone-throwing hooded youths regularly clashed with tear gas-firing soldiers. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio included Quevedo on a 2014 list of Venezuelan officials whom he said should be named in U.S. sanctions, although Quevedo does not appear in the list released by the U.S. Treasury Department. Venezuela s government denies abuses, saying protesters were in fact part of a U.S.-promoted armed insurrection designed to sabotage socialism in Latin America. Quevedo s appointment has worried foreign oil companies in Venezuela, including U.S. major Chevron and Russian state oil giant Rosneft, according to industry sources. Venezuela is also trying to pull off a complex restructuring of foreign debt, including $60 billion in bonds, about half of which have been issued by PDVSA. Bondholders were invited to Caracas for a meeting with the government two weeks ago, but market sources say there has been no concrete progress or proposals since. PDVSA said on Friday it was making last-minute payments on two bonds close to default, including one backed by shares in U.S.-based Citgo, a Venezuelan-owned refiner and marketer of oil and petrochemical products, due on Monday, and called for trust as it seeks to maintain debt service amid the crisis. Quevedo s position on the debt issue is not publicly known. | 0fake |
Trump White House will not make visitor logs public, break from Obama policy | PALM BEACH, FLA. (Reuters) - The Trump administration will not make public White House visitor logs, the records that detail who has visited President Donald Trump and his staff on official business, his office confirmed, in a departure from a practice that was established under former President Barack Obama. White House Communications Director Michael Dubke said in a statement on Friday that “the grave national security risks and privacy concerns of the hundreds of thousands of visitors annually” was the reason for keeping the records secret. Transparency advocates had praised Obama’s decision to release the logs, although his administration argued the disclosure was not required by law but instead was voluntary. As a result, Obama’s team frequently redacted names from the list of visitors that were released to the public, including celebrities and donors who were sighted on the White House grounds. The logs offer the most comprehensive look at who has access to the president and his team. Examining the logs provides insight into which interests are lobbying the White House and who may have more influence in the administration. Trump has continued the Obama policy of not allowing administration staffers to become lobbyists after leaving their government job, a rule that carries no enforcement mechanism and that they have already waived for one staffer. The announcement that the logs would remain secret quickly drew criticism from watchdog groups. “Elected officials work for the people and we deserve to see government business conducted in transparent daylight,” Faiz Shakir, political director of the American Civil Liberties Union, said in a statement. “The only reasonable conclusion is to believe the Trump administration has many things it is trying to hide.”During the Obama administration, conservative watchdog groups sued the Secret Service, which maintains the records, in an attempt to make unredacted copies publicly available. After Trump took office, a liberal watchdog group has taken over the fight, filing a lawsuit on Monday demanding the records. Separately, Democrats in Congress have filed legislation to force the administration to release visitor logs from Mar-A-Largo, the president’s Palm Beach estate where he has spent most weekends since becoming president. The legislation is unlikely to gain any traction because Republicans control the legislative body. | 0fake |
Only 3 Countries Left Without a ROTHSCHILD Central Bank | Only 3 Countries Left Without a ROTHSCHILD Central Bank The Rothschild family is slowly but surely having their Central banks established in every country ... Print Email http://humansarefree.com/2016/11/only-3-countries-left-without.html The Rothschild family is slowly but surely having their Central banks established in every country of this world, giving them incredible amount of wealth and power. In the year of 2000 there were seven countries without a Rothschild owned Central Bank: Afghanistan North Korea Iran It is not a coincidence that these country, which are listed above were and are still being under attack by the western media, since one of the main reasons these countries have been under attack in the first place is because they do not have a Rothschild owned Central Bank yet.The first step in having a Central Bank establish in a country is to get them to accept an outrageous loans, which puts the country in debt of the Central Bank and under the control of the Rothschilds. If the country does not accept the loan, the leader of this particular country will be assassinated and a Rothschild aligned leader will be put into the position , and if the assassination does not work, the country will be invaded and have a Central Bank established with force all under the name of terrorism. Rothschild-owned Central Bank Central banks are illegally created private banks that are owned by the Rothschild banking family . The family has been around for more than 230 years and has slithered its way into each country on this planet, threatened every world leader and their governments and cabinets with physical and economic death and destruction, and then emplaced their own people in these central banks to control and manage each country’s pocketbook. Worse, the Rothschilds also control the machinations of each government at the macro level , not concerning themselves with the daily vicissitudes of our individual personal lives. Except when we get too far out of line. The only countries left in 2003 without a Central Bank owned by the Rothschild Family were: Sudan | 1real |
French Presidential Candidate Macron Says Le Pen’s Platform Based on ’Hatred’ | PARIS (AP) — Centrist presidential candidate Emmanuel Macron has launched a political offensive against leader Marine Le Pen, saying her platform is based on the “hatred for others” in contrast to his desire to “calm” the country. [advertisement | 0fake |
Lavrov: Russia-U.S. cooperation on Syria 'not without problems' | MOSCOW (Reuters) - There are problems with cooperation between Russia and the United States in Syria, Interfax news agency cited Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as saying on Friday. How we are cooperating on Syria - yes, not without problems of course, because not everyone takes things the same way, Interfax quoted Lavrov as saying. Nevertheless, it is an example of how you can set aside differences and concentrate on common interests. | 0fake |
EU's Mogherini says EU-U.S. ties deeper than any change in politics | BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said on Wednesday that the European Union and the United States would continue to work together following Donald Trump’s election as U.S. president. “EU-U.S. ties are deeper than any change in politics. We’ll continue to work together, rediscovering the strength of Europe,” Mogherini, high representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said in a tweet. EU officials and diplomats said European governments may need to strengthen their own cooperation if a Trump administration pulls back from international commitments. | 0fake |
A New Debate Over Pricing the Risks of Climate Change - The New York Times | Some companies, including Exxon Mobil, say the economics of climate change are too hard to predict for them to give investors hard numbers about the business impact of global warming. Federal regulators may disagree and are considering requiring Exxon to do just that for the value of its oil reserves. Now a legislative effort by a Florida congressman to prevent such a move by the federal government has become an unexpected flash point in the battle over disclosing risks — with potentially hundreds of billions of dollars in the balance. The congressional measure, an amendment to an appropriations bill, originally introduced in July by Representative Bill Posey, a Florida Republican, has been picked up in the Senate version of the legislation. Because the bill is tied up in a partisan debate over spending, there is no certainty the amendment will pass. But at a time when many Republicans dispute the very notion of climate change, the Posey measure has focused the debate over whether it is reasonable — or even possible — to expect companies to put a price tag on the environmental impact of climate change. Donald J. Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, has called climate change “a hoax” and promises to slash environmental regulations to bolster economic growth. The issue is not limited to Exxon and oil companies. The Posey amendment would allow real estate companies to stay mum on the risks posed to waterfront properties by rising seas, for example, and let food companies leave the impact of future water shortages unaddressed. “Whether it’s oil, apparel, clothing, utility — almost everything in our economy is built off of some use of natural resources, and the risks they face are substantial,” said Mindy S. Lubber, president of Ceres, a nonprofit organization that works with some of the world’s largest investors on climate change issues. But some companies, including Exxon, contend that the economics of climate change are unpredictable and that global growth will continue to create demand for resources, making it even more difficult to come up with hard numbers. Representative Posey is among those who say the federal government has no business forcing businesses to try. He accuses the financial regulator, the Securities and Exchange Commission, of pursuing a political agenda by pressing companies to quantify climate risks. “These politically motivated and mandated disclosures are not about protecting investors, they are about shaming companies, or at least attempting to shame companies, into adopting their agenda,” he said in July. “It is a waste of resources for the companies, for their shareholders, and for the S. E. C. ,” said Mr. Posey, who has accepted donations from oil and gas companies. George Cecala, a spokesman for Mr. Posey, did not respond to requests for further comment. Advocates of fuller corporate disclosure say the sums at stake are vast. Even under a plan that would limit warming to 2 degrees Celsius — a goal agreed to as part of the Paris deal — climate change could wipe out $1. 7 trillion of global financial assets, according to a study published earlier this year in the journal Nature. “How could anybody tell the S. E. C. to ignore the climate?” Ms. Lubber of Ceres said. The issue has been for investors, corporate executives and environmental leaders gathered in New York this week for Climate Week, an annual showcase tied to the opening of the United Nations General Assembly. Discussions here have been galvanized by news that more than 20 world leaders had ratified the Paris climate accord on Wednesday, all but ensuring that the agreement will be adopted by the end of the year. And Exxon’s acknowledgment that the S. E. C. was asking about its accounting gave further hope to proponents of fuller disclosure. Already, a shift in the global energy landscape, brought on partly by a surge in drilling in United States oil and gas shale fields, has brought about a slump in fuel prices, calling into question the viability of future oil projects in places like the Arctic and deepwater oceans. And scientists estimate that as much as of the world’s coal, oil and gas reserves must remain in the ground if the world has a shot at keeping carbon emissions under levels set by the Paris climate accord — unless there is a technological breakthrough in capturing carbon and keeping it out of the atmosphere. Exxon and its American oil industry peers have been reluctant to estimate the risks to their balance sheets. That contrasts with oil companies in Europe, which have been writing down the value of their assets over the last two years as oil prices plummeted. Energy experts say that is largely because international financial reporting standards require more detailed reporting on asset valuations than the standards in the United States. Last year, Statoil, the Norwegian oil giant, wrote down the value of its North American shale and oil sands assets by $4 billion. Royal Dutch Shell reported a of more than $8 billion. “The rules are different, the relationships between the companies and governments are different, and Europe has clearer carbon policies,” said Michael Webber, associate director of the Energy Institute at the University of Texas at Austin. Exxon Mobil, which has accumulated assets over decades, has long argued that its executives take a long view that includes periods of both low and high commodity prices that swing as a matter of normal course. In its filings to the S. E. C. Exxon Mobil has reported that it has its major assets and expects that future cash flow could sustain even its most economically challenged oil and gas fields. The company has conceded that a future of assets is possible if its projections change. Still, most oil companies, including Exxon Mobil, predict that oil and natural gas prices will recover over the next few years and that demand for those fossil fuels will continue to increase along with growing populations and middle classes in emerging markets. The companies also say that projections are difficult without knowing what future regulations will entail, or how new technologies might help curtail greenhouse gas emissions. “This is like being blindfolded, shooting in the dark at a moving target,” said Fadel Gheit, a senior energy analyst at Oppenheimer Company. The one certainty is that the United States oil industry is already under severe financial pressure. Last year, American petroleum producers wrote down $177 billion in assets, according to a recent report by IHS Energy. Exxon Mobil is in far better financial condition than most other companies in the industry. But this year the company, stretched by debt, lost its AAA credit rating. And while the fossil fuel companies may face the biggest climate change risks, the need for financial disclosure stretches to other industries, said Mark Campanale, founder and executive director at Carbon Tracker, a financial think tank that focuses on energy and climate change. “Banks are lending to fossil fuel projects, and ports and railroads are being built to handle coal, and that’s not viable,” Mr. Campanale said. “We’re talking about a highly disruptive transition, and companies aren’t properly disclosing what that transition will look like. ” Efforts are now afoot to set standards for disclosing climate change risks, most notably by the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board, a nonprofit group whose chairman is Michael R. Bloomberg, the former New York mayor. The board estimates that there are significant climate risks for most companies it tracks, which represent $27. 5 trillion, or 93 percent, of United States stocks as measured by market value. Some companies have led the way with disclosure. The global agriculture giant Adecoagro, in an April 2015 S. E. C. filing, reported that drought had reduced yields for its corn and soybean harvest by as much as 31 percent, and warned that “the occurrence of severe adverse weather conditions, especially droughts, hail, floods or frost or diseases are unpredictable and may have a potentially devastating impact” on future agricultural production. Jean Rogers, chief executive of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board, says more companies should acknowledge the threat. “Climate risk is the most ubiquitous risk out there,” Ms. Rogers said. “There’s no excuse anymore. We know what the risks are, industry by industry. ” | 0fake |
Obama And Kerry Exposed: Secret Side Deals With Iran And No Nuclear Agreement | Bravo! These two great Americans make me have hope for the politicians we elect. They re doing a damn good job of exposing the phony Iran deal. They both are veterans and super smart so maybe they ve been able to outsmart the Obama thugs. I love these guys!Rep. Mike Pompeo (R Kan.) and Sen. Tom Cotton (R Ark.) have a lot in common. Both are army veterans and both are graduates of Harvard Law School. And both have been doing a great job of exposing aspects of the nuclear deal with Iran that the administration would rather keep quiet.This week it was reported that an inquiry from Pompeo got the State Department to admit that the nuclear deal was never signed and is not legally binding. Julia Frifield, the Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs, wrote in response to Pompeo s inquiry if he could see the signed agreement, in a letter reproduced at the congressman s website, that the nuclear deal was not binding and that it was not signed by any party. The key parts of the letter read:The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) is not a treaty or an executive agreement, and is not a signed document The success of the JCPOA will depend not on whether it is legally binding or signed, but rather on the extensive verification measures we have put in place, as well as Iran s understanding that we have the capacity to re-impose and ramp up our sanctions if Iran does not meet its commitments.Frifield asserted that the JCPOA was not a signed agreement but reflections of political commitments between Iran and the P5+1 nations the United States, Britain, France, China, Russia and Germany.Pompeo responded, For the State Department to try to defend the unsigned and non-binding Iran nuclear agreement by calling it a political commitment is about as absurd as the terms of the deal itself. Instead of forging an agreement with Iran that will protect Americans and prevent the world s largest state sponsor of terror from obtaining a nuclear weapon, the Obama administration caved to Iranian bullies and serial nuclear cheaters. Unsigned, this agreement is nothing more than a press release and just about as enforceable. Pompeo, of course, knew that the deal was unsigned, but he got the State Department to admit it. What Cotton s letter did was expose the administration s ploy to evade Congressional oversight and still achieve the permanence of a treaty by going to the U.N. Security Council.The non-binding nature of the nuclear non-agreement isn t the only subterfuge that Cotton and Pompeo have exposed. It was also their questioning that led to the discovery of the secret side deals between Iran and the IAEA. One of the side deals allowed Iran to collect its own samples at the Parchin military base, an arrangement that non-proliferation experts Olli Heinonen, a former deputy director of the IAEA, and David Albright, head of the Institute for Science and International Security, said undermined the effectiveness of the JCPOA. (The scandal of self-inspection of Parchin had previously been brought up by Sen. Robert Menendez (D N.J.) and Sen. James Risch (R Idaho).)Cotton and Pompeo have been very good at exposing the weakness of the deal that the media wouldn t otherwise have reported. No doubt in the coming months Iran will continue testing the administration and the administration will continue retreating exposing further weaknesses in the deal. | 1real |
Jessica Williams Leaves The Daily Show With The Most Hilarious Trump Bashing Yet (VIDEO) | As many have been less than enthused with Trevor Noah taking over for Jon Stewart on The Daily Show, the show still held a tremendous amount of hilarious talent, especially in Jessica Williams. However, Comedy Central has just given her a show of her own, yet to be titled, and she s bidding farewell the late night show.In her final segment, Williams most definitely didn t hold back, and went directly after Donald Trump and those who support him. In particular, those who claim to be part of the Bernie or Bust movement who haven t quite caught on to the reality that Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are far more alike than Trump and Bernie will ever be. Yet, there are still the folks who just won t vote for Hillary because of some reason or another, and Williams tore into them with a line of questioning that undoubtedly proved their stupidity.Some of the Bernie or Busters even claimed that they d rather eat the turd that is Donald Trump, than the maybe-secret turd that, according to them, is Hillary Clinton, because at least they know they re getting a turd.The logic is mind-numbing and actually very scary, because these people actually vote. Thankfully, Williams shows them their true colors while hilariously bashing Trump in the mean time. Well done.Watch Williams brilliant final segment here:The Daily Show with Trevor Noah Get More: The Daily Show Full Episodes,The Daily Show on Facebook,The Daily Show Video Archive And here is the correspondent s final farewell:The Daily Show with Trevor Noah Get More: The Daily Show Full Episodes,The Daily Show on Facebook,The Daily Show Video ArchiveFeatured image via video screen capture | 1real |
Hot air? U.S. gas exporters rush to sell LNG to China | BEIJING (Reuters) - U.S. gas exporters and traders are aiming to grab a bigger chunk of the lucrative, growing business of exporting gas to China, the world s third-largest buyer, when they accompany Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross to China next month. But the talk may all be hot air if the U.S. suppliers can t compete with bargain prices agreed on long-term deals with rivals Australia, Qatar and Malaysia. According to a list seen by Reuters, 10 of the 29 companies traveling with Ross and U.S President Donald Trump are involved in energy and gas. [L4N1N228C] Among them are Cheniere Energy Inc, which operates the only U.S. LNG export terminal and Freepoint Commodities, founded and run by David Messer, who led power utility Sempra s vaunted commodities division. [L4N1N228C] Their presence underscores the U.S. ambition to sell more of its excess gas abroad as the U.S. shale revolution threatens to upset the global LNG market. China s appetite has soared as it embarks on an audacious bid to heat millions of homes across the north by gas for the first time this winter and switch tens of thousands of industrial boilers to the cleaner fuel as part of its push to clear the skies. Without sufficient domestic output to meet growing demand, imports have surged this year, offering huge potential for major exporting nations such as the United States. We re on the mission to talk to Chinese companies to get something signed up, said Frederick Jones, founder and chief executive of Delfin Midstream LLC, which is building floating LNG vessels that would sit 50 miles off the coast of Louisiana. He s heading to Beijing on the trip scheduled to begin on Nov. 8 with his chief financial officer Matthew Weil. Delfin has no customers yet for its new terminal, but hopes to showcase the company to state-owned and large private companies. Delfin has been in talks with Chinese buyers for potential offtake deals as well as funds for financing, according to a person with knowledge of the exchanges. A Chinese oil trading executive involved in discussions ahead of the trip expected the delegation to yield several short-term supply deals. (For a graphic on 'LNG market overview' click reut.rs/2z21LDq) In May, the United States and China agreed to boost trade under the 100-day trade talks aimed at reducing a U.S. trade deficit with China that reached $347 billion last year. Among the agreements is one allowing Chinese buyers to purchase long-term supplies from the United States directly. Current long-term contracts with Qatar and Australia signed between 2009 and 2013 will expire around 2030/40, but China will need to top up imports to meet growing demand. Uncertain when the global LNG market will bottom out, Chinese buyers are cautiously avoiding lining up new long-term contracts, but rather are looking at signing five-year or even shorter-term deals based on spot prices, sources said. U.S. imports of LNG have exploded this year. (For a graphic on 'China LNG Imports by Origin' click reut.rs/2yO1bvM) In the first nine months of the year, shipments hit almost 600,000 tonnes, ranking the United States as the sixth largest LNG importer, leap-frogging Nigeria and Peru. The average price China paid for U.S. LNG was $7.62 per million of British thermal units (mmBtu) over the past 12 months on a delivered basis, compared to $6.54 for Australia, according to Reuters calculations based on monthly customs data. In 2016, China imported just under 200,000 tonnes of LNG, up from 62,601 tonnes in 2015. China expects that gas demand will rise to between 320 and 360 billion cubic metres per year by 2020. The increase is the equivalent of the annual consumption of Japan, Asia s second-largest gas consumer after China. (For a graphic on 'China natural gas imports' click reut.rs/2xDm2CA) | 0fake |
Bomb blast in southeast Turkey kills four soldiers, wounds four: governor | DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) - A bomb planted by Kurdish militants ripped into a military vehicle, killing four soldiers and wounding four more, as they traveled in southeast Turkey near the border with Iran on Wednesday morning, local authorities said. Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants were behind the attack, which occurred in the Yuksekova district of Hakkari province, the provincial governor s office said in a statement. Security sources said a large number of armored vehicles were sent to the site of the blast. The governor s office said the wounded were being treated at a nearby hospital. More than 40,000 people have been killed since the PKK launched its separatist insurgency in 1984. It is designated a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and European Union. The collapse of a peace process between the state and the PKK brought an end to a ceasefire in July 2015 and thousands have been killed in renewed fighting since then across mainly Kurdish southeast Turkey. | 0fake |
Does not make sense to keep Charter of Fundamental Rights post-Brexit: UK minister | LONDON (Reuters) - It does not make sense for Britain to retain the European Union s Charter of Fundamental Rights after it leaves the bloc, Britain s Brexit minister David Davis said. Parliament began debating legislation on Thursday to sever political, financial and legal ties with the EU, but the opposition Labour Party has said it cannot support the bill without it being amended to better protect workers rights. We also do not believe it would make sense to retain the Charter of Fundamental Rights, Davis told parliament. The charter only applies to member states when acting within the scope of EU law. We will not be a member state nor will we be acting within the scope of EU law once we leave. He added: The charter catalogues the rights found under EU law which will be brought into UK law by the bill. It is not, and never was, the source of those rights. | 0fake |
Obama: U.S., Southeast Asia can advance 'shared vision' on maritime disputes | RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. (Reuters) - President Barack Obama said on Monday that the United States and Southeast Asian nations can advance a shared vision of rules and norms for resolving maritime disputes peacefully. Obama made the reference to the South China Sea, where China and several Southeast Asian states have conflicting and overlapping claims, at the beginning of a summit with leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). | 0fake |
“Well It Was Nice While It Lasted” – Democracy | 0 Add Comment
THE AGE old system of government, Democracy, has formally announced its retirement stating ‘well, it was nice while it lasted’.
“I now pass the baton into the incapable and tiny hands of a man who embraces xenophobia, misogyny and the hatred of all things he is simply too impatient and ignorant to bother understanding,” the clearly tired and battle weary ideology confirmed.
While many around the world had presumed Democracy would continue in its current position as the dominant political ideology in the West despite a change in management, it is thought its growing unpopularity amongst sections of the US electorate has seen it make the decision to vacate its profession entirely.
“You have to know when it is time to hang up your hat, and you guys seem quite fond of the man who doesn’t pay income tax and insults war veterans and war veterans’ families,” the descendent of Cleisthenes stated.
Many political experts have speculated that democracy has retired preemptively as it believes president elect Donald Trump will seek to have it deported, owing to the fact that Democracy emigrated from mainland Europe via Greece some years ago.
Democracy has a number of international franchises which may be wound down in the coming years too.
“I think a lot of people are really, really angry with me, so the time to step aside has come. When people question your ability and purpose, you begin to make for the exit sign,” Democracy confirmed.
Despite stating its intention to leave, Democracy is required to give at least 6-months notice, have a hand in training in its successor, All Out Chaos, and going through an awkward exit interview which will see it field questions from over 57 million people who didn’t vote for this. | 1real |
Obama sees no Middle East peace deal before his presidency ends | BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama said on Wednesday he did not expect a breakthrough on Middle East peace before he leaves office and reiterated his support for a two-state solution in which Israelis and Palestinians could live peacefully side by side. Speaking to students and teachers in Argentina, Obama said he expected to continue working on Middle East peace after he leaves office next January. The president’s comments came amid reports that his administration was considering a renewed push on the issue. Obama conceded that despite his and others’ efforts, the decades-long dispute had not come closer to being resolved during his presidency. “This is not something I was able to get done,” he said. “I am not that hopeful that it’s going to happen in the next nine months. It’s been 60 years; it’s not going to happen in the next nine months.” Having twice failed to achieve Israeli-Palestinian peace, the Obama administration is discussing ways to help preserve the prospect of an increasingly threatened two-state solution, U.S. officials said earlier this month. Despite his skepticism about progress anytime soon, Obama reinforced his commitment to that prospect. “There’s been talk about a one-state solution or sort of a divided government. It’s hard for me to envision that being stable, there’s such deep distrust between the two peoples right now,” he said. “And the neighborhood is in such a mess that I continue to believe that a two-state solution is the best way. Now, over time that could evolve.” | 0fake |
Critics Assail Cuts in Foreign Spending as Trump Moves to Boost Military - The New York Times | WASHINGTON — President Trump’s proposal to add $54 billion to the Pentagon budget next year sounds huge at first — a 10 percent increase for a department that already receives more of taxpayers’ money than any other part of government. But the outgoing Obama administration had forecast a $35 billion increase for the Defense Department in fiscal year 2018, so Mr. Trump’s share of the proposed increase over and above that figure is $19 billion, according to budget analysts. Even so, the proposed Pentagon increase has been greeted with criticism from military spending hawks, in part because White House officials say Mr. Trump will call for a significant cut in foreign aid, including programs that military officials say contribute to global stability and are seen as important in helping avoid future conflicts. Senior administration officials acknowledged on Monday that there were few specifics attached to the bigger budget number proposed for the Pentagon — so it is not yet possible to assess how many more troops, warships or the Pentagon will be able to field with the $54 billion. “Where we’re at in this process is that the number’s going to the D. O. D. today, and over the course of the next 10 days to two weeks, we’ll be coming up with those types of details,” Mick Mulvaney, the president’s budget director, said when pressed on plans for Department of Defense spending. Broadly speaking, Mr. Trump has said his military priorities include buying more warships and warplanes, increasing the number of American ground troops and modernizing the nuclear arsenal. Even so, he will face difficulty in getting such a proposal through Congress, where the threat of mandatory spending cuts known as sequestration has acted as a brake on military spending. “This is a symbolic gesture,” said Todd Harrison, the director of defense budget analysis at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “What Trump is proposing is increasing defense spending and paying for it by cutting nondefense spending. There’s no way Democrats are going to go for that. ” Under sequestration rules, Republicans would need Democrats to increase the military budget, a requirement that is likely to stymie Republican efforts to pay for increases in the Pentagon budget with cuts in other spending, including social programs. At the Defense Department, where military leaders always welcome more money, officials were muted about Mr. Trump’s budget proposal. What is more, Mr. Trump joined his call for increased military spending with a critique of the military, implying that the nation’s armed forces need more money because they have failed at winning wars. “We have to start winning wars again,” Mr. Trump said. “I have to say, when I was young, in high school and college, everybody used to say we never lost a war. We never lost a war, remember?” He continued: “And now we never win a war. We never win. And don’t fight to win. We don’t fight to win. We’ve either got to win or don’t fight at all. ” Mr. Trump was born in 1946, the year after World War II ended. The only wars fought when he was young were not American victories — he was 7 when the Korean War ended in a stalemate, and he was in college when American forces were bogged down in Vietnam. When he was in his 40s and 50s, the United States conducted a successful military operation in Panama, reversed Iraq’s invasion and occupation of Kuwait, and drove Serbian forces out of Kosovo. But Mr. Trump was channeling public exhaustion after more than 15 years of warfare since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, including the still unresolved conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. Mr. Trump gave no indication of how he would have ensured victory in either of those places or what he planned to do. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis briefed the president’s team on Monday on potential strategies for defeating the Islamic State, which has operated in Iraq and Syria. Still, even the wars believed to be outright American victories by the public are not necessarily so, according to Andrew Exum, a retired Army Ranger and a Defense Department official in the Obama administration. “Those victories were not as decisive as we remember: It took another 100 years, after the civil rights acts of the 1960s, before the North truly won the Civil War, while the peace that ended the First World War begat the Second World War, and the peace that ended the Second World War begat the Cold War and its many constituent conflicts,” Mr. Exum said. “What Trump is saying resonates because it’s based more on the myths we tell ourselves than the histories written down in long, dense books. ” Former and current American military officials agreed. “The wars today don’t deliver battlefield victories along the lines of what we saw in World War II, with the surrender on the deck of the battleship Missouri,” said David W. Barno, a retired Army lieutenant general and former commander of American forces in Afghanistan. “We’re fighting enemies with no navies, no air forces or even conventional armies in some cases. Applying only conventional armed forces to these conflicts is not always going to be adequate. ” Several former Pentagon officials, including a number of retired generals and admirals, cautioned against cutting the State Department and foreign aid budgets to help pay for increases in Pentagon spending. In a letter to top congressional leaders, the retired military officers wrote that “elevating and strengthening diplomacy and development alongside defense are critical to keeping America safe. ” “We know from our service in uniform that many of the crises our nation faces do not have military solutions alone,” the generals and admirals wrote. “The military will lead the fight against terrorism on the battlefield, but it needs strong civilian partners in the battle against the drivers of extremism — lack of opportunity, insecurity, injustice and hopelessness. ” James G. Stavridis, a retired admiral who signed the letter, said on Monday that most senior military leaders believed it was unwise to cut development aid and diplomacy funding. “So often, the far less expensive ‘soft power’ tools — humanitarian relief, medical diplomacy, foreign aid, strategic communications — are under sister agencies such as state and A. I. D. ,” said Mr. Stavridis, a former NATO commander who now serves as the dean of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, referring to the State Department and the Agency for International Development. “Cutting them harshly would be a mistake. ” Even Mr. Mattis expressed those views before being named defense secretary. “If you don’t fully fund the State Department, then I need to buy more ammunition,” he said during congressional testimony in 2013, when he was head of the military’s Central Command. Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona and the chairman of the Armed Services Committee, recently released a report calling for an increase in military spending to $640 billion in the next fiscal year, not the $603 billion that Mr. Trump proposed. In a statement on Monday, Mr. McCain said Mr. Trump’s proposal was insufficient. “With a world on fire, America cannot secure peace through strength with just 3 percent more than President Obama’s budget,” Mr. McCain said. “We can and must do better. ” After the Pentagon budget number was released on Monday, the stocks of the largest military contractors rose 1 percent to 2 percent during trading. Lockheed Martin, Boeing, General Dynamics and Northrop Grumman, which pay relatively high dividends, had already seen their stocks rise to record levels in a rally that began last summer. Investors will now want to see how any budget increases would be divided among weapons programs to determine which companies would benefit the most. | 0fake |
Mexico prison population drops as police, prosecutors bungle cases | MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico s prison population has fallen by a fifth from the peak in 2014 as fewer people are locked up under a new criminal justice system, with experts saying that cases are falling apart under a higher bar for police conduct and standards of evidence. The number of people imprisoned has dropped 19.8 percent from a record of 258,563 in September 2014, according to the statistics from the National Security Commission (CNS), meaning for the first time in more than 20 years there are technically more beds than inmates. The drop in the prison population has coincided with a spike in murders to record levels. Politicians have linked rising crime to the U.S.-backed 2008 reform, introduced to modernize Mexico s opaque and slow justice system. It was adopted by many states by 2014 and was fully in force from mid-2016. Data shows fewer people have been entering prison. Even justice experts who support the reform say police and prosecutors are struggling to make watertight cases due to a lack of training in the new system across the country. They had eight years to make the transformation and they didn t do it, said Maria Novoa, a criminal justice expert at think tank Mexico Evalua. We don t have either the institutions or trained people. Novoa said police are not detaining people because they fear they could make mistakes and be held liable. She also said prosecutors are overusing a rule that allows suspects to face the criminal process at liberty rather than trying to ask a judge to detain them. In 2016, 37 percent fewer people entered state prisons than in the prior year, according to the latest data from national statistics institute INEGI. And contrary to political rhetoric, fewer were also let out, the data shows. Neither Mexico s attorney general s office nor the Federal Police returned a request for comment. The 2008 reform moved Mexico to an adversarial justice system with oral trials from an inquisitive one mostly done on paper, with a deadline of June 2016. It radically changed the role of the police and prosecutors, by giving police greater responsibility and raising the evidentiary standard that prosecutors must reach to get a conviction. It also limits pre-trial detention, bringing an end to a practice where people were locked up for years without trial. In 2017, for the first time in more than 20 years, the country has enough space for all prisoners. But their uneven distribution across the country and a number of federal inmates in state facilities mean prisons in at least 13 states still have overcrowded facilities. Think tank CIDAC estimated last year that the reform would take 11 years to take hold properly, due to lack of police training in high quality investigations. We always knew that for the new system to work people would have to be trained, but there was a lot of resistance and lack of interest from state governments, said Vicente Sanchez, a professor at the College of the Northern Border. Now governors and prosecutors blame the new system and want to undo it. | 0fake |
California to hike funds for new parents on family leave | SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Reuters) - California will increase the amount of money new parents can receive through the state’s paid family leave program under a bill signed on Monday by Democratic Governor Jerry Brown. The measure, passed last month by the Democratic-controlled state legislature, will increase the amount paid to new parents or people caring for a sick family member to as much as 70 percent of their regular income for the poorest workers, up from 55 percent, beginning in 2018. Those earning more will also get an increase in payments, to 60 percent from 55 percent. The legislation also eliminates a seven-day waiting period imposed on receiving the benefits. The program will apply to all parents who take time off from work to bond with a child within one year of birth, adoption or placement as a foster child. It will also provide payments to people who take time to care for seriously ill relatives. President Barack Obama, a Democrat, welcomed the move by the most populous U.S. state and urged Congress to enact a national paid leave plan. “This action means more hardworking Californians will have the peace of mind to know that they can take care of a new child or a sick family member,” Obama said in a statement. “Yet millions of Americans still don’t have access to any form of paid leave.” The California law aims to help more people take family leave, especially poorer Californians who could not afford to stop work if they got only 55 percent of their regular income, according to the bill’s author, Jimmy Gomez, a Democratic assembly member. Money for the program will come through the state’s disability insurance system, which is funded from payroll deductions. Costs are projected at up to $587 million annually when it is fully implemented by 2021, but the law expires in 2022, and would have to be reauthorized at that time. A state analysis showed the Employment Development Department would increase worker contributions by 0.1 percent from 2019 to 2021 to pay for it. | 0fake |
In or Out? EU Is Hot-Button Issue In French Vote | PARIS (AFP) — Such is Marine Le Pen’s aversion to the European Union that the French right wing leader demanded the removal of its flag from a TV studio before agreeing to a recent interview. [Her chief rival in the race for the French presidency, centrist Emmanuel Macron, pointedly waved an EU flag from the podium at a campaign rally the next day. Love it or loathe it, the European Union has become a issue in the election, fanning fears far beyond France in the wake of Britain’s Brexit vote that a “Frexit” could doom the bloc. “Rarely has the European issue held such a place on all the candidates’ platforms as in this electoral campaign,” said analyst Pierre Vimont of the Carnegie Europe think tank. In the five years since France’s last presidential vote, Europe has seen a massive migrant crisis and a rise in populism, both contributing to the Brexit vote. None of the four main French candidates can afford to be neutral on the EU, whether they portray it as the source of all woes or a guarantee of peace and stability. Like Macron, conservative candidate Francois Fillon is bullish on Brussels, highlighting the leadership axis and defending the euro. Both candidates met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel during the campaign. Arrayed on the other side are Le Pen, who advocates leaving the EU immediately, and candidate Melenchon, who demands a renegotiation of key treaty provisions. “Positions have hardened,” said Manuel Lafont Rapnouil of the European Council on Foreign Relations. “Melenchon was very influenced by what happened to (Greek party) Syriza,” which gave in to European demands after months of crisis. Syriza, the party of Greek premier Alexis Tsipras, endorsed Melenchon, saying he “represents hope for change for France and Europe”. Le Pen, on the other hand, “is riding the wave of Brexit” and Donald Trump’s surprise accession to the White House, he said. The ideological underpinnings of the two candidates’ eurosceptism are worlds apart, however. — ‘Dictatorship of banks’ — Le Pen stresses economic, monetary and territorial “sovereignty” along with a “national preference” for French citizens in the workplace and the allocation of state benefits. Melenchon vows to end the “nightmare” of an EU that submits its members to “the dictatorship of the banks” and the austerity policies they impose. But both promise a showdown with Brussels and say they are certain to come out on top given the strength of France within the bloc. Le Pen says she will launch six months of talks aimed at withdrawing France from the Schengen area, as well as from the euro, before calling a referendum on whether the French want to leave the EU — a “Frexit”. For his part, Melenchon has a approach summed up as “change the EU or leave it”: a Plan A by which France will renegotiate its membership terms and a Plan B for a unilateral Frexit. As for the single currency, a poll carried out in early March found that more than 70 percent of the French oppose quitting the eurozone. On the eve of Sunday’s first round, Melenchon has toned down his euroscepticism, saying that he would prefer for France to stay in the EU and the eurozone. Le Pen has also adjusted her rhetoric, focusing more on FN staple issues such as immigration and security — the latter question surging to the fore after Thursday’s jihadist killing of a policeman in the Champs Elysees. On the side, Macron says he has “Europe at heart” wants to bolster the eurozone and is the only candidate who favours CETA, the agreement between the EU and Canada that will provisionally come into force in a few weeks. Fillon, more protective of French sovereignty, wants a of the balance of power between Brussels and EU members states. Giuliani of the Robert Schuman Foundation said both Fillon and Macron are too complacent with the status quo, calling the EU planks of their platforms “unimaginative”. Candidates should talk about the EU’s renewal and how France needs to revitalise its role within it, Giuliani said. | 0fake |
LYING WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: “OBAMA HAS SCRATCHED AND CLAWED FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS” | It s interesting that Josh Earnest still carries around the line of bs that all middle class Americans know is a lie. He is, after all, the chief propagandist for Obama so lying is what he does professionally. The truth is, Obama s presidency has been horrific for the middle class but great for the uber wealthy. Once again, they re counting on the American people to buy the line of bs and propaganda instead of looking at facts One moment of unintended and unnoticed levity occurred near the end of the White House briefing Tuesday, when White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest claimed that President Obama has been a president of the United States that for the last six and a half years has scratched and clawed to protect the interests of middle-class families all across the country. Not sure about who or what he has scratched and clawed. Because the markings are difficult to discern.The White House is careful to dress up its policies as middle class economics. Because the middle class is where the votes are. But the Obama presidency is not about the middle class.You can agree or disagree with Obama s methods and policies. But his chief enthusiasm has been helping the lower classes by expanding the welfare state and regulating businesses. The middle class stuff is camouflage for the real agenda.The proof is in the pudding. Here s the pudding.According to Reuters:Barack Obama enters the final two years of his presidency with a blemish on his legacy that looks impossible to erase: the decline of the middle class he has promised to rescue.Federal Reserve survey data show families in the middle fifth of the income scale now earn less and their net worth is lower than when Obama took office. In the six years through 2013, over the recession and recovery that have spanned Obama s tenure, jobs have been added at the top and bottom of the wage scale, a Reuters analysis of labor statistics shows. In the middle, the economy has shed positions whether in traditional trades like machining or electrical work, white-collar jobs in human resources, or technical ones like computer operators.Between 2010 and 2013, as recovery took hold and stock markets soared, the average net worth of families in the top 40 percent of income earners grew. For all others average net worth shrank, declining 19 percent for the middle fifth.These results stem from specific policies. Obama s chief domestic initiative, Obamacare, is not a middle class program. It s an effort to get health insurance to the lower class, including a massive expansion of Medicaid. Expanding health insurance is a good goal, but the way he has done it involves turning insurers effectively into wards of the state and raising the price and lowering the quality of healthcare for everyone else.Among his other battle cries are raising the minimum wage and legalizing illegal immigrants. He pushed and signed legislation containing massive new regulations on the banks, wants to regulate carbon emissions by fiat, and has enlarged the government s share of the economy while running up trillions in debt.Meantime the WEALTHY have benefited during Obama s tenure for the zero-interest rate Fed policies needed to keep the economy afloat in the absence of any serious presidential leadership on expanding the economy. The low rates have grandly goosed everyone s stock portfolios and made the rich richer.These things he scratches and claws for. Not private sector expansion and business-friendly policies that would promote middle class expansion.And the results speak for themselves.Via: White House Dossier | 1real |
BREAKING: Trump Is Now Directly Threatening Electors Who Don’t Vote For Him | If you want to know what kind of President Donald Trump will be, if he will execute the powers of his office in a manner that is fitting for an American President. look no further than his team s recent threats against electors who might be considering voting against our first Russian-installed President-elect.The Electoral college votes on December 19 so while Donald Trump may have kinda-sorta won the election by losing the popular vote by a historic margin, there is still a chance that he will not be our next President. Unfortunately for Trump, they seem to be taking the Russian hacking thing seriously, demanding a full briefing before they vote. We intend to discharge our duties as Electors by ensuring that we select a candidate for president who, as our Founding Fathers envisioned, would be endowed with the requisite qualifications, the open letter from electors to U.S. Director Of National Intelligence. [T]he Constitution envisions the Electoral College as a deliberative body that plays a critical role in our system of government ensuring that the American people elect a president who is constitutionally qualified and fit to serve. According to reports in the Washington Post, New York Times, and other outlets, the United States intelligence community has now concluded definitively that the Russian interference was performed to help Donald Trump get elected, yet even today Mr. Trump is refusing to accept that finding, the letter continues. Separate from Mr. Trump s own denials of Russian involvement in the election, the confirmed communication between Trump s aides and those associated with the Russian election interference activity raise serious concerns that must be addressed before we cast our votes. This may present a problem for a guy whom the CIA confirmed had a lot of help from a foreign power via hacking and propaganda, but Trump s solution is simple (terrifyingly simple): threaten them into compliance. We have gotten reports from multiple people, an elector told Salon under condition of anonymity, that the Donald Trump campaign is putting pressure on Republican electors to vote for him based on . . . future political outcomes based on whether they vote for Donald Trump or not. These reports, the elector says, come from Republican electors who say that violence was not threatened instead, the Trump camp threatened to ruin careers and livelihoods. It s all political, basically, the elector said. If Trump becomes the president, he s going to be able to put pressure on the state parties and they won t be involved anymore. Let s think about this for a moment: the expected incoming President of the United States was revealed to have been effectively installed by a foreign power after asking them to hack his political opponents. The intelligence community has confirmed that Russia heard his plea for help and stepped up to get him into office. Now, instead of even feigning surprise, Trump is attacking and threatening anyone and everyone who says anything negative about it the media, electors, even those same intelligence agencies whose investigations proved inconvenient for him.Keith Olbermann recently pointed out that if Trump assumes office, the chances of us ever having a free election again diminish severely. With Trump now threatening those whose job it is to ensure that a tyrant like him doesn t get into office, he seems to be right.Featured image via Getty Images/Steve Pope | 1real |
Bill Maher Sparks Outrage After Telling Ben Sasse He’s a ’House N**ga’: ’So Hurtful’ | Bill Maher calling himself a “house n****” on Friday’s episode of Real Time has sparked serious outrage across social media and caused many people, including some prominent black social justice activists, to call for the HBO host to be fired. [During a conversation with Sen. Ben Sasse ( ) Maher told the lawmaker: “I’ve gotta get to Nebraska more. ” “You’re welcome. We’d love to have you work in the fields with us,” Sen. Sasse jokingly replied. Maher said in response:: “Work in the fields? Senator, I’m a house n****. ” Met with a mix of groans and laughs from the audience, Maher said, “It’s a joke. ” The internet, however, didn’t find Maher’s comments funny or his explanation acceptable. Black Lives Matter activist Deray McKesson wrote on Twitter, “But really, @BillMaher has got to go. There are no explanations that make this acceptable. ” But really, @BillMaher has got to go. There are no explanations that make this acceptable. pic. twitter. — deray mckesson (@deray) June 3, 2017, “And why did the audience think it was okay to laugh? And Ben Sasse doesn’t even flinch. What is happening in the world?” McKesson added. And why did the audience think it was okay to laugh? And Ben Sasse doesn’t even flinch. What is happening in the world? — deray mckesson (@deray) June 3, 2017, Netflix’s Orange is the New Black star Danielle Brooks shared McKesson’s furor at what Maher said, writing on Twitter: “Unacceptable. And the audience applauds! ?! So hurtful. ” Unacceptable. And the audience applauds! ?! So hurtful. https: . — Danielle Brooks (@thedanieb) June 3, 2017, Soon, social media was filled with journalists, comedians, and viewers who expressed shock and outrage at Maher. Just a quick reminder that Bill Maher is trash, — BCC (@ByCommonConsent) June 3, 2017, Bill Maher gotta go. — Nina Parker (@MzGossipGirl) June 3, 2017, For me, the jig has been up on Bill Maher for a long time. So, nah. — Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) June 3, 2017, Me after watching that clip of Bill Maher pic. twitter. — Jamelle Bouie (@jbouie) June 3, 2017, And Ben Sasse the audience chuckle along with Bill Maher’s racism … https: . — TC (@tchopstl_) June 3, 2017, I used to love bill maher smh. — Ambquisha (@QueChainz) June 3, 2017, Did bill maher really just say he was a house n****? ???? ??WHAT IS WRONG WITH HIM, — kat calabrese (@KatCalabrese) June 3, 2017, Today is the day Bill Maher became president. — Michael Ian Black (@michaelianblack) June 3, 2017, Some social media users said Maher’s joke was akin to the stunt Kathy Griffin pulled earlier this week when she posed for a shock photo holding up a bloodied, decapitated head of President Donald Trump. Kathy Griffin: I really fucked up in an attempt to gain attention. Bill Maher: Hold my joint … . #RealTime #HouseWhat? — Wallace Ritchie (@WallaceRitchie) June 3, 2017, ”No one can ruin their career faster than Kathy Griffin” Bill Maher — Hold my beer, — Jack Posobiec 🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) June 3, 2017, Kathy Griffin at home right now, thankfully watching Bill Maher like pic. twitter. — Behdad Sami (@iambdsami) June 3, 2017, Tiger Woods: Nobody could screw up their career the way I did last weekend. Kathy Griffin: Hold my beer. Bill Maher: Mind if I join you? — Tennessee (@TEN_GOP) June 3, 2017, This isn’t the first time Maher has dropped the during a TV broadcast. The comedian said during a September 2010 interview with Larry King that Republicans referred to President Barack Obama as “Kenyan,” which is “code for n*****. ” “That’s the new Kenyan, Larry. And Kenyan, of course, was code for [the ]. But that’s where they are. They can’t say it out loud. But that’s where this whole campaign is going to be,” Maher said according to a CNN transcript. During a February episode of Real Time, Maher said, “I don’t know it for a fact that Jeff Sessions is a big fan of the movie Loving because he loves being able to talk about Ruth Negga,” referring to the star who’s name sounds similar to the . Maher, who is in his 15th season as host of Real Time, has not publicly responded to the controversy. Follow Jerome Hudson on Twitter @jeromeehudson | 0fake |
HILLARY’S UNUSED VICTORY PARTY Confetti Turned Into Aspen “Art”…Proceeds Go To Planned Parenthood [Video] | While leading Democrats wish Hillary would just go away, some of her supporters are still wallowing in her 2016 election loss:Longtime Hillary Clinton supporter Bunny Burson is transforming the unused election night confetti from Clinton s humiliating defeat to Donald Trump last November into something special .HILLARY ISN T THE ONLY ONE THAT S DELUSIONAL ABOUT HER LOSS AND STILL I RISE ???The Colorado woman and her husband Charles attended Clinton s party in New York on election night to witness the first female candidate for a major political party shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling, Burson told The Aspen Times.(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = 'https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&version=v2.11'; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));And Still I RiseThe nationally recognized works of Bunny and Charles Burson will be on display over the next month with a FREE gallery opening event tomorrow night to go along with our Holiday Open House. Don't miss it!You can hear more about the exhibition from the PRI interview below:https://www.pri.org/stories/2017-11-02/searching-hillary-clinton-s-unused-confettiSpecial thanks to:MILCKAtlantic RecordsGabe GreenbergKiku Obata & CompanyLaurent TornoDieu DonnePosted by Anderson Ranch Arts Center on Monday, December 18, 2017When that didn t happen, she came up with another idea for 200 pounds of Clinton confetti that went unused: to encase it glass snow globes with a metal placard inside that reads And Still I Rise a reference to a Maya Angelou poem of the same name.Bunny Burson made 1,000 of the special snow globes, which she s selling at the grand opening of her And Still I Rise art exhibit at the Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Snowmass Village. PLANNED PARENTHOOD GETS THE PROCEEDS: Nothing says breaking the glass ceiling like giving money to a baby killing, body parts selling factory like Planned Parenthood.The globes sold locally will go to the Arts Center, while proceeds from sales elsewhere will go to Planned Parenthood, according to the news site. It was a natural progression when this happened, as sad as it was, to use the confetti to lift people up including myself, Bunny Burson said at the opening Tuesday. It was cathartic for me to make the work, and I want young women and girls who see it to be able to do what they dream of doing and break the glass ceiling. WHILE BUNNY WALLOWS IN THE ELECTION LOSS, THE VANITY FAIR EDITORS ARE BEGGING HILLARY TO FIND A HOBBY SO SHE WON T RUN AGAIN:Maybe it's time for Hillary Clinton to take up a new hobby in 2018 pic.twitter.com/sbE78rA5At VANITY FAIR (@VanityFair) December 23, 2017Read more: American Mirror | 1real |
May Day: Anti-Trump Illegal Aliens Vow ’Biggest Workers Strike in over a Decade’ - Breitbart | On Monday, International Workers Day, protesters will fill the National Mall and the streets of cities elsewhere to protest what they call the federal government’s “deportation machinery” and to demand civil rights reserved for citizens be bestowed upon illegal immigrants. [The May Day protest by illegal aliens goes back to 2006 when “1. 5 million people took to the streets across the country to demand immigration reform,” magazine The Nation reported on Friday. Now, protesters aren’t asking for a pathway to citizenship. “Today, no one, not even immigrants rights advocates, is calling for immigration reform anymore,” Nation contributor Julianne Hing wrote . “Immigrants and their allies are now defending civil rights like due process and values like democracy and inclusiveness. “The policy agenda is no longer about winning citizenship or even legal status for the nation’s 11 million undocumented immigrants,” the article said. “It’s about defending families from separation. ” This year’s march will also include other protesters opposed to President Trump’s policies on immigration. “With the Trump administration intensifying attacks on Native Americans, immigrants, refugees, trans individuals, Muslims, women, people of color in general, and the poor, a coalition led by immigrants and workers is aiming to mark this year’s May Day with the biggest workers strike in over a decade,” The Nation article said. “One thing I’ve been struck by since the election is everyone is ready to see how these different movements intersect,” Jack Darin, director of the Illinois chapter of the Sierra Club said in the article, and he cited the Women’s March shortly after Trump’s inauguration as the prototype for their protest. “Our members see how our struggles and our goals intersect with these other constituencies. ” “It showed a lot of people at a moment when we really needed to see it that we were all in this together and combined, we really do represent the majority,” Darin said. “As immigrants our livelihoods, our futures, our families — they’re all in danger,” Cabrera, the director of communications at Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA) said in The Nation article. “May Day presents an opportunity for us to not silence ourselves and to remain vigilant. ” Organizers behind the “Day Without Immigrants” protest in February are calling again for people to not report to work on Monday. “Activists in Scranton, Pennsylvania Raleigh, North Carolina and Newark, New Jersey and dozens of other cities have been calling for a strike,” The Nation reported in an article entitled “How to Join the ‘Day Without Immigrants’ on May Day. ” “We believe that when the country recognizes it depends on immigrant labor to function we will win permanent protection from deportation for the 11 million undocumented immigrants the right to travel freely to visit our loved ones abroad, and the right to be treated with dignity and respect,” Movimiento Cosecha’s Maria Fernanda Cabello in a statement included in the article. “Immigrant, African American, LGBTQ, indigenous and women workers along with allies are striking on May 1,” the bsolid. org website states. “#may1strike is an invitation from the Food Chain Workers Alliance and SEIU USWW to build a General Strike on International Workers Day. Stand with us to pledge your participation … ” The website states that people said should not be silent when the government and corporations are escalating “immigration raids,” violating “Native sovereignty,” banning Muslims “because of their faith,” “criminalizing” black, brown and “trans people,” and “rapidly destroying the environment. ” “Opposing Trump is not enough,” the website states. “We must stop him. ” | 0fake |
BEHIND THE CURTAIN: How Obama Plans To Prevent “Certain” Social Security Beneficiaries From Owning Guns | There is nothing about Obama s executive order gun grab. Barack Hussein Obama has an agenda that, for some reason, no one in America seems to be able to stop. From the video showing fake tears flowing from Obama s left eye, to every false word uttered from his mouth, it is clear he will stop at nothing to fundamentally change America, just as he promised the American voter when he campaigned back in 2007. The White House released a fact-sheet Jan. 4 which previews the executive gun control Obama will unveil Tuesday and one aspect of the new controls is the inclusion of information from the Social Security Administration in the background check system about beneficiaries who are prohibited from possessing a firearm. On July 18 Breitbart News reported on Obama s push to ban gun-possession for Social Security beneficiaries who are believed incapable of handling their own finances.At that same time, the Los Angeles Times reported that a ban was being put together outside of public view, so all the details were not known. But the Times did know that the ban would cover those who are unable to manage their own affairs for a multitude of reasons from subnormal intelligence or mental illness to incompetency, an unspecified condition, or disease. The ban pertaining to Social Security beneficiaries is now tucked into the mental health aspects of Obama s executive gun control.According to the White House executive order preview:Current law prohibits individuals from buying a gun if, because of a mental health issue, they are either a danger to themselves or others or are unable to manage their own affairs. The Social Security Administration (SSA) has indicated that it will begin the rulemaking process to ensure that appropriate information in its records is reported to NICS. The reporting that SSA, in consultation with the Department of Justice, is expected to require will cover appropriate records of the approximately 75,000 people each year who have a documented mental health issue, receive disability benefits, and are unable to manage those benefits because of their mental impairment, or who have been found by a state or federal court to be legally incompetent. The rulemaking will also provide a mechanism for people to seek relief from the federal prohibition on possessing a firearm for reasons related to mental health.Again, the push for a ban on gun possession for certain Social Security beneficiaries was already in the works during the summer, but it is also incorporated into the mental health aspect of Obama s executive gun control.And this means that information on beneficiaries who meet the criteria of mental impairment demonstrated in part by an inability to manage their own benefits will be added to the National Instant Criminal Background System (NICS) so that the beneficiaries cannot buy a gun. Via: Breitbart News | 1real |
null | notice that no one harmed the Muslims praying in Jewish structures | 1real |
Bill Clinton suggests Trump slogan racist – but he used the same one | Former President Bill Clinton might want to keep the racism accusations to himself from now on -- after ripping Donald Trump for a slogan he's used repeatedly since his 'Comeback Kid' days.
The 42nd president on Wednesday, while stumping in Orlando for Hillary Clinton, suggested Trump’s campaign rallying cry, “Make America Great Again,” is racist code.
“I’m actually old enough to remember the good old days, and they weren’t all that good in many ways,” Clinton said. “That message where ‘I’ll give you America great again’ is if you’re a white Southerner, you know exactly what it means, don’t you?”
The crowd roared as Clinton continued. “What it means is ‘I’ll give you an economy you had 50 years ago, and I’ll move you back up on the social totem pole and other people down,’” he said.
The problem is, Clinton himself has used the same phrase several times in the past.
He used it repeatedly while running for president in 1991 and 1992, declaring at one Little Rock, Ark., event, "Together, we can make America great again."
And in a campaign ad for his wife in 2008, Bill Clinton said, "It's time for another comeback, time to make America great again."
Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway pointed to the inconvenient footage in calling the former president's allegations about Trump's slogan a "disgrace."
“That performance is really something,” she said Friday on “Fox & Friends.” “Bill Clinton is known as a very strong campaigner, a great voice in politics -- but not this cycle.” | 0fake |
Sidelined healthcare lobby stymies Republican healthcare effort | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senate Republicans pushing to overhaul Obamacare largely ignored key players in the debate over insuring the poor: the health insurers and hospitals charged with carrying out the law if it gets approved. Instead, conservative groups such as Heritage Action for America won the ears of Senate Republicans when it came to changing the Medicaid insurance program for the poor and disabled. The snub is fueling health industry opposition to the new plans for Medicaid, and threatens to further frustrate the months-long effort to dismantle Obamacare. The latest version of the Senate bill, released on Thursday, left the Medicaid overhaul largely unchanged from the radical makeover in the bill from the U.S. House of Representatives. A nonpartisan government agency has estimated an earlier version of the bill would trim nearly $800 billion in federal spending for Medicaid over 10 years. While insurers successfully influenced the legislation when it comes to individual insurance markets, the fact that they and hospital groups largely struck out on Medicaid is important because the new provisions shift more costs back to the states and hospitals. These groups, along with insurers, will be charged with enforcing the new law, so Republicans need their buy-in, health policy experts say. “A health policy means nothing if it can’t be implemented and doesn’t work,” said Andy Slavitt, former administrator under President Barack Obama of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which oversaw Obamacare. The Republican bill ends Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion and slashes traditional Medicaid funding, with cuts that deepen beginning in 2025. The U.S. House of Representatives passed its own version of the legislation in May. “A lot of conservatives, Heritage Action included, desperately wanted to hold the line to make sure the Medicaid portion wasn’t watered down in the Senate,” said Dan Holler, vice president of Heritage Action for America, a conservative advocacy group. “It was something we made known to folks up in the Senate.” When Democrats and the White House enacted Obamacare seven years ago, support from healthcare companies helped propel the legislation through Congress. The administration actively courted the health industry, lobbyists and former Obama administration officials said, viewing their support as critical to winning votes. While health insurer and hospital lobbyists said in recent weeks that they have been able to regularly meet with Republican lawmakers, they said their input on the bill’s Medicaid changes was largely ignored. A representative for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was not immediately available for comment. In 2017, the top hospital, doctor and insurer trade groups reported spending a total of more than $13 million on lobbying the federal government through the first quarter of 2017, according to a congressional lobbying database. One hospital industry lobbyist said there has been no attempt by Republican leadership to have a serious discussion with industry lobbyists or leaders about how to change the bill to win their support. That has not been the case with the portion of the bill that addresses the individual insurance market. Insurers, including some of the biggest providers of Obamacare individual plans, Anthem Inc (ANTM.N) and Molina Healthcare (MOH.N), have been asking for changes to specific policies. For instance, the Senate bill repeals the penalty associated with the individual mandate, the requirement that all people purchase insurance or pay a government fee. In its place, insurers received one of their biggest demands: a provision in the bill that provides incentives for Americans to have continuous insurance coverage and allows insurers to charge them more if they let their policies lapse. If that back and forth between industry and lawmakers on the individual insurance side ends up winning new conservative votes, lawmakers may be ready to turn the next round of healthcare bill negotiations to Medicaid, said Elizabeth Carpenter, senior vice president at Avalere Health, a consultant group to hospitals and insurers “The rubber meets the road on the Medicaid provision,” Carpenter said. | 0fake |
OOPS! Black Security Guard Won’t Allow White Dude Wearing Black Lives Matter T-Shirt Into Hillary Event [VIDEO] | After much back and forth between the white dude wearing a Black Lives Matter t-shirt and the black man who appears to be acting as security for corrupt Hillary, the black man suggests he go to the back of the line and ask secret service for permission to enter. The good news is that it appears the line to see Hillary (as usual) is pretty short. If he had to get to the back of the line for a Trump event, that could have been an issue.https://twitter.com/ShaunKing/status/724776822018170881Corrupt Hillary actually sent out this tweet just before the event the white dude in the Black Lives Matter t-shirt wasn t allowed to enter:"As a white person, I have to talk about [racism] more. We are not a post-racial society." Hillary to @Maddow #MSNBCTownhall Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) April 26, 2016 | 1real |
Rapist Cop Daniel Holtzclaw Disappears From Prison Database (IMAGES) | In December of 2015, a jury found former Oklahoma City police officer Daniel Holtzclaw guilty on 18 counts of sexual assault and rape. A month later, on January 21, 2016, Judge Timothy Henderson sentenced the serial rapist to a consecutive 263 year prison term.But on Friday, Oklahoma City s NBC affiliate KFOR reported that Holtzclaw s name had disappeared from the Oklahoma Department of Corrections website.On Tuesday the database showed the following information on Holtzclaw.Image credit, KFORThree days later, on January 29, the database showed no record of Holtclaw at all.Image credit: KFOR KFOR contacted the state Department of Corrections, only to be told by a department spokesperson We are not going to comment, it is a matter of security. Holtzclaw was convicted of sexually assaulting seven women and he is believed to have victimized many others. All but one of his victims were Black women. His youngest victim was just 17 years old, while his oldest victim was a 57-year-old grandmother of 12.Under Oklahoma law, Holtzclaw s victims have very specific rights, including the right to know his location.The state Attorney General s office and law enforcement agencies provide this information via the VINELink website, which is supposed to be updated daily with changes in offender status.Holtzclaw still shows up in the VINELink database, but his location is now listed as unknown. Image credit: KFORAccording to KFOR, Holtzclaw s victims have not been notified of any change in status or location, although Oklahoma law requires that crime victims be notified of any such changes.Alex Gerszewsk, an Oklahoma Department of Corrections spokesperson refused to provide KFOR with information on Holtzclaw s whereabouts, saying only that he was processed at Lexington exactly as every other offender. Gerszewsk repeated the same security claim, saying we cannot reveal his location for security; the security of the inmate and the facility. The state Department of Corrections and the VINELink publish the information of all offenders, including pedophiles, child abductors, serial killers and hundreds of other people who have committed every horrific and violent crime imaginable.There s little doubt that those criminals would like to have their information deleted from the Department of Corrections website as well. I m sure they d like to have their whereabouts kept confidential for security reasons, since those crimes are likely to get you beaten, raped or killed in prison.There s just one difference between Holtzclaw and every other serial rapist incarcerated in Oklahoma. Holtzclaw is a former police officer.The Oklahoma Department of Corrections seems to think it s OK to break the law and violate the rights of the women Holtzclaw raped and sexually assaulted, by removing his information from their database and concealing his whereabouts.This is completely unacceptable. It is the duty of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections to protect crime victims, not serial rapists who just happen to be former cops.Featured image credit: VINELink | 1real |
Dreaming Beyond Capitalism: a Culture Without Fear | By Martin Winiecki / kosmosjournal.org
In the 1990s an unusual encounter took place in the Ecuadorian Amazon. In plant rituals, shamans of the Achuar, a tribe living in pristine forest that had never been in touch with Western civilization, received the warning that the “white man” would try to invade their lands, cut down the forest and exploit the resources. Deeply shaken, they called out to the Spirits for help. Soon after white people did approach them, coming to them however with supportive intentions – a group of activists from the United States, searching for ways to protect Indigenous Peoples from the oil industry. The Westerners found a deeply interconnected tribal society living in profound symbiosis with the Earth. Seeing the bulldozers coming closer and closer, they asked the Elders of the tribe how they could survive. Their answer was surprising and straightforward: “Don’t try to help us here. Go back to your own culture and change the dream of the modern world! It is because of this dream that we are perishing.” [i]
This experience gave rise to the Pachamama Alliance , an international educational network dedicated to changing the dream of the Western world.
What is the dream of the Western world? When asked, most young people say: A perfect partner, a beautiful house, successful career, lots of money and travel to exotic places. Amplified a million times a day by Hollywood and the advertisement industry, promoted by parents, self-help gurus, schools and fairytales, this lifestyle became the central motif of our collective longing, the blueprint of globalized society.
Fulfillment became a matter of possession, of how much wealth, fame, power and sex we earned for ourselves. Rewarding people with profit and status for the most competitive and destructive behavior, worshiping the golden calf of maximal economic growth, capitalism has effectively manufactured and then exploited people’s dream image. Humanity’s general ethical decline is the result of this collective corruption.
“Social being determines consciousness”– Marx
First Nation tribes from North America coined a term to describe the ‘disease of the white man’– wetiko. In their understanding, wetiko consists of two essential characteristics: chronic inability for empathy and an egoistic fixation on ones own personal benefit and profit. The First Peoples used this word specifically because they could not fathom any other explanation for the behavior of the European colonialists. While often declared as unchangeable psychological features of humanity, greed, selfishness and violent impulses may in fact not be our “human nature” as many claim, but rather the outcome of our alienation under capitalist conditions. Marx said, “Social being determines consciousness.” [ii] According to epigenetic research, our genetic programming contains many different possibilities of existence. Whether wetiko takes holds of our psyche or we become compassionate strongly depends on the social structures we live in. We only consider egoism, hatred and brutality to be “normal” because over the past few thousand years our civilization has been conditioned in this way – basing its economy on war, its social organization on domination and conformity, its religion on punishment, damnation and sin, its education on coercion, its security on the elimination of the supposed enemy, its very image of love on fear of loss.
Patriarchal conditioning – carried out worldwide, generation after generation, with the most aggressive means – has created a cultural matrix of violence and fear, which at present nearly all of humanity more or less unconsciously follows. This matrix, or more accurately ‘patrix’, steers the global processes of politics and economics in similar ways as people’s interpersonal relationships, families and love lives. As psychoanalyst Dieter Duhm writes, “Automatic, usually unconscious, habits of thinking stand behind our daily misery.” [iii]
Use of Agent Orange resulted in widespread birth defects in Vietnam
Duhm started out as a leading Marxist writer during the anti-imperialist struggles of the 1960s and 70s in Germany, when he asked himself how it could be that billions of people comply with and obey the rules of society without being forced to do so. Shaken by the horrors of the Vietnam War, he needed to find a credible answer for how to overcome the imperialist system causing these atrocities. Working as a psychoanalyst, he faced the same basic structure in all his patients – no matter whether they suffered depression, heartache or schizophrenia – deep-rooted existential fear. The further he inquired, the more he realized this fear is not only in the “mentally ill,” but also appears in the “sane” as fear of what others could think of them, as speech anxiety, as fear of authorities and institutions, fear before and after intercourse, fear of the future, of getting sick and so on. “This inconspicuous, socially omnipresent and ‘normal,’ fear is neurotic,” he writes. “Fear is not only the product of capitalism, but part of its foundation, an element without which this entire system would collapse.” [iv]
For Duhm, the consequence was clear: If we want to escape from the wetiko disease of our current capitalist culture, we need a credible concept for a new nonviolent global society and for transforming the old matrix of fear and violence into a new matrix of trust, compassion and cooperation. Healing wetiko would be nothing short of reinventing our entire civilization and basing human existence on new social, ethical, spiritual and sexual foundations allowing profound trust between people as well as between humans and animals.
In 1978 Duhm started out with a group of people to engage in an interdisciplinary research project for social and ecological sustainability to develop precisely such a concept. Having witnessed the failure of countless communes in the 1970s, most due to unresolved interpersonal conflicts around money, power and sex (i.e. the inability of the groups to resolve wetiko among one another), the project focused its cultural experiment on creating new social structures able to resolve the psychological substratum of fear. They knew the answer could not be found in therapies, spiritual exercises and rituals alone, as helpful and healing as they may be – but that a whole new way of communitarian coexistence would have to be developed, from which one would no longer need to retreat in order to become human. Rather, it would be designed in a way that would foster compassion, solidarity and cooperation.
The development of such a society would need to begin with initial models researching its basic structures and demonstrating its viability. Thereby, an adventurous research project began, establishing functioning communities of trust. The deeper they went the more they realized they needed to work on all basic areas of human existence: starting with the intimate questions of sexuality, love and partnership, questions of raising children, coexistence with animals, self-sufficiency in water, energy and food systems. From this experiment, the peace research center, Tamera , came into life along with the vision of creating “Healing Biotopes” as catalysts for planetary system change. Solar-powered village by Sunvention, via Tamera
For much of the last million years, human beings have lived in communities; in fact, the era in which we have not is only a tiny fraction in the entirety of human history. In order to subjugate people under their systems of dominance, patriarchal rulers systematically destroyed tribal communities, thereby inflicting a profound collective trauma onto humanity. Humanity thereby lost its spiritual, social and ethical anchor, drifting off in a self-destructive frenzy of atomization, self-interest and othering. As we are reaching the pinnacle of a culture of global wetiko , the last throes of late-stage capitalism, healing our collective trauma, re-establishing functioning communities based on trust, and making our human existence compatible with the biosphere and nature again, may well be our only opportunity to secure ourselves and our children a future worth living on Spaceship Earth.
Martin Winiecki was born 1990 in Dresden, Germany, and is coordinator of the Terra Nova School in Tamera Center, Portugal where 160 residents of the center are working for a society free of violence and greed.
[i] Speech by Lynne Twist at the “Awakening the Dreamer” Symposium. USA, Los Angeles. Sept. 2008.
[ii] Marx, Karl. A Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy. New York: International, 1970. Print.
[iii] Duhm, Dieter. Beyond 2012. The Birth of a New Humanity? What Is the Shift of Consciousness? . Bad Belzig: Verlag Meiga, 2010. Print.
[iv] Duhm, Dieter. Angst Im Kapitalismus: Zweiter Versuch Der Gesellschaftlichen Begründung Zwischenmenschlicher Angst in Der Kapitalistischen Warengesellschaft. Lampertheim: Kübler, 1975. Print. 0.0 · | 1real |
John Pilger: Inside The Invisible Government: War, Propaganda, Clinton And Trump | John Pilger: Inside The Invisible Government: War, Propaganda, Clinton And Trump
The American journalist, Edward Bernays, is often described as the man who invented modern propaganda.
The nephew of Sigmund Freud, the pioneer of psycho-analysis, it was Bernays who coined the term “public relations” as a euphemism for spin and its deceptions.
In 1929, he persuaded feminists to promote cigarettes for women by smoking in the New York Easter Parade – behaviour then considered outlandish. One feminist, Ruth Booth, declared, “Women! Light another torch of freedom! Fight another sex taboo!”
Bernays’ influence extended far beyond advertising. His greatest success was his role in convincing the American public to join the slaughter of the First World War. The secret, he said, was “engineering the consent” of people in order to “control and regiment [them] according to our will without their knowing about it”.
He described this as “the true ruling power in our society” and called it an “invisible government”.
Freud had a cousin called Edward Bernays, who has since earned the title “father of Public Relations”. Bernays took Freud’s idea and applied it to consumers. If desire is our driving force, then appealing to emotions is the most powerful way to persuade consumers to act. The idea was to short circuit their rational conscious and get them where they were most vulnerable – the unconscious
Today, the invisible government has never been more powerful and less understood. In my career as a journalist and film-maker, I have never known propaganda to insinuate our lives and as it does now and to go unchallenged.
Imagine two cities. Both are under siege by the forces of the government of that country. Both cities are occupied by fanatics, who commit terrible atrocities, such as beheading people. But there is a vital difference. In one siege, the government soldiers are described as liberators by Western reporters embedded with them, who enthusiastically report their battles and air strikes. There are front page pictures of these heroic soldiers giving a V-sign for victory. There is scant mention of civilian casualties.
In the second city – in another country nearby – almost exactly the same is happening. Government forces are laying siege to a city controlled by the same breed of fanatics.
The difference is that these fanatics are supported, supplied and armed by “us”– by the United States and Britain. They even have a media centre that is funded by Britain and America.
Another difference is that the government soldiers laying siege to this city are the bad guys, condemned for assaulting and bombing the city – which is exactly what the good soldiers do in the first city.
Confusing? Not really. Such is the basic double standard that is the essence of propaganda. I am referring, of course, to the current siege of the city of Mosul by the government forces of Iraq, who are backed by the United States and Britain and to the siege of Aleppo by the government forces of Syria, backed by Russia. One is good; the other is bad.
Iraq War as portrayed on two popular American news magazines. Terrorists and hero savours are typical propaganda images
What is seldom reported is that both cities would not be occupied by fanatics and ravaged by war if Britain and the United States had not invaded Iraq in 2003. That criminal enterprise was launched on lies strikingly similar to the propaganda that now distorts our understanding of the civil war in Syria.
Without this drumbeat of propaganda dressed up as news, the monstrous ISIS and Al-Qaida and al-Nusra and the rest of the jihadist gang might not exist, and the people of Syria might not be fighting for their lives today.
Some may remember in 2003 a succession of BBC reporters turning to the camera and telling us that Blair was “vindicated” for what turned out to be the crime of the century. The US television networks produced the same validation for George W. Bush. Fox News brought on Henry Kissinger to effuse over Colin Powell’s fabrications.The same year, soon after the invasion, I filmed an interview in Washington with Charles Lewis, the renowned American investigative journalist. I asked him, “What would have happened if the freest media in the world had seriously challenged what turned out to be crude propaganda?”
He replied that if journalists had done their job, “there is a very, very good chance we would not have gone to war in Iraq”.
It was a shocking statement, and one supported by other famous journalists to whom I put the same question — Dan Rather of CBS, David Rose of the Observer and journalists and producers in the BBC, who wished to remain anonymous.
In other words, had journalists done their job, had they challenged and investigated the propaganda instead of amplifying it, hundreds of thousands of men, women and children would be alive today, and there would be no ISIS and no siege of Aleppo or Mosul.
There would have been no atrocity on the London Underground on 7th July 2005. There would have been no flight of millions of refugees; there would be no miserable camps.
When the terrorist atrocity happened in Paris last November, President Francoise Hollande immediately sent planes to bomb Syria – and more terrorism followed, predictably, the product of Hollande’s bombast about France being “at war” and “showing no mercy”. That state violence and jihadist violence feed off each other is the truth that no national leader has the courage to speak.
“When the truth is replaced by silence,” said the Soviet dissident Yevtushenko, “the silence is a lie.”
The attack on Iraq, the attack on Libya, the attack on Syria happened because the leader in each of these countries was not a puppet of the West. The human rights record of a Saddam or a Gaddafi was irrelevant. They did not obey orders and surrender control of their country.
The same fate awaited Slobodan Milosevic once he had refused to sign an “agreement” that demanded the occupation of Serbia and its conversion to a market economy. His people were bombed, and he was prosecuted in The Hague. Independence of this kind is intolerable.
As WikLeaks has revealed, it was only when the Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad in 2009 rejected an oil pipeline, running through his country from Qatar to Europe, that he was attacked.
From that moment, the CIA planned to destroy the government of Syria with jihadist fanatics – the same fanatics currently holding the people of Mosul and eastern Aleppo hostage.
Why is this not news? The former British Foreign Office official Carne Ross, who was responsible for operating sanctions against Iraq, told me: “We would feed journalists factoids of sanitised intelligence, or we would freeze them out. That is how it worked.”
Propaganda is most effective when our consent is engineered by those with a fine education – Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, Columbia — and with careers on the BBC, the Guardian, the New York Times, the Washington Post.
These organisations are known as the liberal media. They present themselves as enlightened, progressive tribunes of the moral zeitgeist. They are anti-racist, pro-feminist and pro-LGBT.
And they love war.
While they speak up for feminism, they support rapacious wars that deny the rights of countless women, including the right to life.
Daily Mail 25 Oct 2011: reports that “A Libyan revolutionary fighter has bragged in a leaked video that he was the man who killed Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, that country’s despotic former ruler. The young man, who is pictured but has not yet been identified, said he killed the fallen dictator because he could not bear the thought of taking him alive.”
In 2011, Libya, then a modern state, was destroyed on the pretext that Muammar Gaddafi was about to commit genocide on his own people. That was the incessant news; and there was no evidence. It was a lie.
In fact, Britain, Europe and the United States wanted what they like to call “regime change” in Libya, the biggest oil producer in Africa. Gaddafi’s influence in the continent and, above all, his independence were intolerable.
So he was murdered with a knife in his rear by fanatics, backed by America, Britain and France. Hillary Clinton cheered his gruesome death for the camera, declaring, “We came, we saw, he died!”
The destruction of Libya was a media triumph. As the war drums were beaten, Jonathan Freedland wrote in the Guardian: “Though the risks are very real, the case for intervention remains strong.”
Intervention – what a polite, benign, Guardian word, whose real meaning, for Libya, was death and destruction.
According to its own records, Nato launched 9,700 “strike sorties” against Libya, of which more than a third were aimed at civilian targets. They included missiles with uranium warheads. Look at the photographs of the rubble of Misurata and Sirte, and the mass graves identified by the Red Cross. The Unicef report on the children killed says, “most [of them] under the age of ten”.
As a direct consequence, Sirte became the capital of ISIS. Ukraine is another media triumph. Respectable liberal newspapers such as the New York Times, the Washington Post and the Guardian, and mainstream broadcasters such as the BBC, NBC, CBS, CNN have played a critical role in conditioning their viewers to accept a new and dangerous cold war.
All have misrepresented events in Ukraine as a malign act by Russia when, in fact, the coup in Ukraine in 2014 was the work of the United States, aided by Germany and Nato.
This inversion of reality is so pervasive that Washington’s military intimidation of Russia is not news; it is suppressed behind a smear and scare campaign of the kind I grew up with during the first cold war. Once again, the Ruskies are coming to get us, led by another Stalin, whom The Economist depicts as the devil.
The suppression of the truth about Ukraine is one of the most complete news blackouts I can remember. The fascists who engineered the coup in Kiev are the same breed that backed the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941. Of all the scares about the rise of fascist anti-Semitism in Europe, no leader ever mentions the fascists in Ukraine – except Vladimir Putin, but he does not count.
Many in the Western media have worked hard to present the ethnic Russian-speaking population of Ukraine as outsiders in their own country, as agents of Moscow, almost never as Ukrainians seeking a federation within Ukraine and as Ukrainian citizens resisting a foreign-orchestrated coup against their elected government.
There is almost the joie d’esprit of a class reunion of warmongers. The drum-beaters of the Washington Post inciting war with Russia are the very same editorial writers who published the lie that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.
To most of us, the American presidential campaign is a media freak show, in which Donald Trump is the arch villain. But Trump is loathed by those with power in the United States for reasons that have little to do with his obnoxious behaviour and opinions. To the invisible government in Washington, the unpredictable Trump is an obstacle to America’s design for the 21st century.
This is to maintain the dominance of the United States and to subjugate Russia, and, if possible, China.
To the militarists in Washington, the real problem with Trump is that, in his lucid moments, he seems not to want a war with Russia; he wants to talk with the Russian president, not fight him; he says he wants to talk with the president of China.
In the first debate with Hillary Clinton, Trump promised not to be the first to introduce nuclear weapons into a conflict. He said, “I would certainly not do first strike. Once the nuclear alternative happens, it’s over.” That was not news.
Did he really mean it? Who knows? He often contradicts himself. But what is clear is that Trump is considered a serious threat to the status quo maintained by the vast national security machine that runs the United States, regardless of who is in the White House.
Anti-Trump Boston Globe Sunday Edition Crosses the Line From News into Propaganda
The CIA wants him beaten. The Pentagon wants him beaten. The media wants him beaten. Even his own party wants him beaten. He is a threat to the rulers of the world – unlike Clinton who has left no doubt she is prepared to go to war with nuclear-armed Russia and China.
Clinton has the form, as she often boasts. Indeed, her record is proven. As a senator, she backed the bloodbath in Iraq. When she ran against Obama in 2008, she threatened to “totally obliterate” Iran. As Secretary of State, she colluded in the destruction of governments in Libya and Honduras and set in train the baiting of China.
She has now pledged to support a No Fly Zone in Syria – a direct provocation for war with Russia. Clinton may well become the most dangerous president of the United States in my lifetime – a distinction for which the competition is fierce.
Without a shred of evidence, she has accused Russia of supporting Trump and hacking her emails. Released by WikiLeaks, these emails tell us that what Clinton says in private, in speeches to the rich and powerful, is the opposite of what she says in public.
That is why silencing and threatening Julian Assange is so important. As the editor of WikiLeaks, Assange knows the truth. And let me assure those who are concerned, he is well, and WikiLeaks is operating on all cylinders.
Today, the greatest build-up of American-led forces since World War Two is under way – in the Caucasus and eastern Europe, on the border with Russia, and in Asia and the Pacific, where China is the target.
Keep that in mind when the presidential election circus reaches its finale on November 8th, If the winner is Clinton, a Greek chorus of witless commentators will celebrate her coronation as a great step forward for women. None will mention Clinton’s victims: the women of Syria, the women of Iraq, the women of Libya. None will mention the civil defence drills being conducted in Russia. None will recall Edward Bernays’“torches of freedom”.
George Bush’s press spokesman once called the media “complicit enablers”.
Coming from a senior official in an administration whose lies, enabled by the media, caused such suffering, that description is a warning from history.
In 1946, the Nuremberg Tribunal prosecutor said of the German media: “Before every major aggression, they initiated a press campaign calculated to weaken their victims and to prepare the German people psychologically for the attack. In the propaganda system, it was the daily press and the radio that were the most important weapons.”
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Shi’ite Militias Join Iraq’s Mosul Attack | Militia Fighters to Advance on Areas West of City by Jason Ditz, October 28, 2016 Share This
After a week and a half of assuring everyone that their role in the invasion of Mosul would be very limited, and removed from the Sunni population, Iraq’s Shi’ite militias have been announced to have launched an offensive west of Mosul, advancing on Tal Afar .
According to officials, the main goal of this offensive is to cut the city of Mosul off from ISIS territory in Syria, preventing the ISIS fighters within the city from fleeing west if the battle begins to turn sour. The offensive is said to start “within a few days or hours.”
The involvement of Shi’ite militias in the “liberation” of Sunni Arab cities in Iraq has been controversial because they often end up carrying out extrajudicial executions, looting and torture of locals they suspect of being secretly in league with ISIS.
An effort to block flight from Mosul to ISIS territory is Syria would be an obvious step, but the militias’ involvement again risks targeting of civilians, as the population of from Mosul is already overrunning the minimal camps set up for the displaced.
Civilians fleeing these cities are usually not welcomed in Iraqi government-held territory, and wind up fleeing into other ISIS-held territory. With little left in Iraq, this likely means fleeing into Syria, and the militias’ presence means the civilians displaced by the attack are likely to be targeted for fleeing “with” ISIS. Last 5 posts by Jason Ditz | 1real |
Putin’s speech at Valdai 2016: ‘America is a great nation, not some banana republic. Correct me if I’m wrong’ [VIDEO] | Click Here To Learn More About Alexandra's Personalized Essences Psychic Protection Click Here for More Information on Psychic Protection! Implant Removal Series Click here to listen to the IRP and SA/DNA Process Read The Testimonials Click Here To Read What Others Are Experiencing! Copyright © 2012 by Galactic Connection. All Rights Reserved.
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WATCH: Trump Gets SKEWERED By Morning Joe For Firing Acting Attorney General Like A True Tyrant | Joe Scarborough says Donald Trump is acting like a dictator because of the way he fired acting Attorney General Sally Yates.Yates stood up to Trump and refused to defend his unconstitutional executive order banning people from entering the United States if they are traveling from seven specific countries in the Middle East and Africa.The order violates constitutional rights and caused worldwide chaos over the weekend while sparking protests and condemnation around the globe. The acting Attorney General, Sally Yates, has betrayed the Department of Justice by refusing to enforce a legal order designed to protect the citizens of the United States, Trump said in a statement from the White House. Ms. Yates is an Obama Administration appointee who is weak on borders and very weak on illegal immigration. Trump s words shocked the Morning Joe host, who compared the way Trump fired Yates to how a tyrant would do it. The word betrayed, using the word betrayed for somebody, that s frightening, Scarborough said on Tuesday morning. That s what an autocrat would use, whoever put that word in there. An autocrat is just another term for dictator or tyrant. Scarborough went on to slam Trump for acting like a petulant child. There are people that can have reasonable differences without saying that, if they don t agree with you, they ve betrayed you. That is frightening, chilling language, whether they had a right to do this or not But saying somebody betrayed the Justice Department because they don t agree with you? Take that to Venezuela, OK? We don t really want to use that sort of language here. It s time for you guys to grow up. Here s the video via YouTube.Apparently, Donald Trump intends to fire anyone in our government who disagrees with him, and that s dangerous.Yates, as acting Attorney General, explained her responsibilities in a letter that makes it clear that she was trying to protect the integrity of the Justice Department by not jumping to defend an order without all the facts. My responsibility is to ensure that the position of the Department of Justice is not only legally defensible, but is informed by our best view of what the law is after consideration of all the facts. In addition, I am responsible for ensuring that the positions we take in court remain consistent with this institution s solemn obligation to always seek justice and stand for what is right. At present, I am not convinced that the defense of the executive order is consistent with these responsibilities nor am I convinced that the executive order is lawful. This is particularly scary because once Trump has full control of the Justice Department he will cripple it and no amount of protests or lawsuits will prevent him from doing so. We may even lose the power to oust Trump via elections. As long as Trump is allowed to solidify his power, no election will ever be fair and free again. And he will use the Justice Department to make sure of it, which means we will have no legal means to save democracy.Featured image via Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | 1real |
Republican Senator Launches Disgusting Racist Attack On Veteran Challenger | Comments
Struggling Senator Mark Kirk (R-IL) stunned his opponent and his constituents during last night’s debate when he mocked the generations of military service that his Democratic rival’s family have given to this country because they are immigrants.
Democratic candidate Tammy Duckworth lost both her legs during the Iraq War when a rocket struck the helicopter she was piloting. She knows what it means to fight and suffer serving America, but that wasn’t enough for Republican Senator from Illinois, who is down over 10 points in the polls . Lacking any reason for voters to choose him, the Republican insulted Congresswoman Duckworth to her face about, her ancestry, her military service and the service of generations of her family, which Politico reports happened like this:
“My family has served this nation in uniform going back to the revolution. I am a daughter of the American Revolution. I’ve bled for this nation,” Duckworth said during the debate. “But I still want to be there in the Senate when the drums of war sound because people are quick to sound the drums of war and I want to be there to say this is what it costs and this is what you’re asking us to do.”
Duckworth was born in Bangkok to a Thai mother, Lamai, and an American father, Frank, a U.S. Marine who traced his family’s military roots to the Revolutionary War. Frank Duckworth died in 2005.
“I forgot your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington,” replied Republican Illinois Senator Mark Kirk.
Congresswoman Duckworth was left completely speechless on stage after the Republican Senator’s incendiary personal attack.
However, the Republican’s horrifying attack on the disabled veteran Congresswoman represents everything that he and his party of Trump’s GOP collaborators has become; a group of angry white men, lashing out in a bitterly cruel manner at women, and lashing out at veterans and lashing out at immigrants.
Until this debate, Senator Kirk had been the most outspoken opponent in his own party of Republican nominee Donald Trump, but his vile moment of truth reveals that he has had one position in public this whole time, and quite another in private which his outburst exposed. Racism is part of the Republican Party’s genetic code and always has been.
SEN. KIRK: I unendorse Trump
GOP: See? Not all Republicans are like Trump. We have-
SEN. KIRK: Mixed-race people aren’t real Americans
— Daniel Lin (@DLin71) October 28, 2016 | 1real |
WOW! FORMER LIBERAL AND BLACK PANTHER Exposes Phony “Black Lies Matter” [VIDEO] | Ginni Thomas is one of the most hard-working and patriotic women in America. As a contributor to the Daily Caller she has interviewed a number of interesting, and many times controversial guests. Her interview with former Black Panther Clarence Mason Weaver is one of her most powerful and thought provoking interviews to date. You ll want to watch every minute of it. Clarence Mason Weaver was once so filled with hatred towards white people in America, that he broke up with a girlfriend who had a white dog, the now-conservative told The Daily Caller New Foundation in this exclusive video interview.A formerly hate-filled, Berkeley Black Panther liberal, Weaver is a black conservative who now holds strong views on Black Lives Matter, the first black president and how America can heal its racial divide.From humble beginnings, Weaver served his country in Vietnam working as a pipe fitter in the Navy. It was an incident on August 11, 1971 that changed his life forever: A white racist tried to kill him just because of his skin color. Done Nothing But Drive Us Apart : Former Radical Black Panther Gets Candid On Obama, Race RelationsTo read entire story: Daily Caller | 1real |
Names of Oregon victims released, range in age from 18 to 67 | Authorities Friday released the names of those killed in the mass murder at an Oregon community college, a collection of male and female victims ranging in age from 18 to 67 and including a professor as well as some of his students in an introductory writing class.
At a late afternoon press conference, Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin intoned the names as aides posted their pictures on a wall behind him.
They were: Lucero Alcaraz, 19, Quinn Glen Cooper, 18, Kim Saltmarsh Dietz, 59, Lucas Eibel,18, Jason Dale Johnson, 33, Lawrence Levine, 67, Sarena Dawn Moore, 44, Treven Taylor Anspach, 20, and Rebecka Ann Carnes, 18.
Statements were read from several families.
"We have been trying to figure out how to tell everyone how amazing Lucas was, but that would take 18 years," the family of Lucas Eibel said in their statement.
Eibel, who was studying chemistry, volunteered at a wildlife center and animal shelter.
Quinn Glen Cooper's family said their son had just started college and loved dancing and voice acting.
"I don't know how we are going to move forward with our lives without Quinn," the Coopers said. "Our lives are shattered beyond repair."
Hanlin also said he was raising the number of those injured in the carnage at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Ore. from seven to nine.
The announcement came shortly after investigators found at least 13 weapons linked to the gunman: six at the crime scene, including a rifle, and seven at his apartment.
All of the weapons were purchased legally, seven of them by the gunman or a relative, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It reports that investigators recovered body armor including a flak jacket at the school, and additional ammunition in the apartment.
In addition to the rifle, the shooter also carried five handguns, a law enforcement source tells Fox News.
Details on the shooter's background are slowly emerging. The U.S. Army says the gunman, Christopher Harper Mercer, flunked out of basic training in 2008.
Lt. Col. Ben Garrett, an Army spokesman, said Mercer was in service at Ft. Jackson, South Carolina, starting on November 5, 2008. But by December 11, 2008, he was discharged for failing to meet the minimum administrative standards.
The Army spokesman did not say which standards Mercer failed to meet. Generally, the Army requires recruits to pass physical fitness tests and to be generally in good physical and mental health. Recruits also must score highly enough on a multiple-choice test covering science, math, reading comprehension and other topics.
Authorities say Mercer killed nine people at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg before he was killed in an exchange of gunfire with police. Witnesses said the gunman specifically targeted Christians.
There didn't seem to be many recent connections on the social media sites linked to the gunman, with his MySpace page just showing two friends. He appeared to have at least one online dating profile.
On a torrents streaming site and blog that appeared to belong to Mercer, posts referenced multiple shootings and downloads included several horror films and a documentary on a mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.
A blog post urged readers to watch the online footage of Vester Flanagan shooting two former colleagues on live TV in Virginia, while another lamented materialism as preventing spiritual development.
A MySpace page that appeared to belong to Mercer included several photos and graphics of the Irish Republican Army as well as a picture of Mercer holding a rifle.
One law enforcement official described Mercer toThe New York Times as appearing to be "an angry young man who was very filled with hate." Another official said investigators were poring over what he described as "hateful" writings by Mercer.
Mercer's father says he's as shocked as anybody else. Ian Mercer spoke to KABC-TV and several other media outlets gathered outside his house in Tarzana, California late Thursday night.
He said it's been a "devastating day" for him and his family and said he has been talking to police and the FBI about the shooting.
He refused to answer questions and asked that his family's privacy be respected.
Mercer "seemed really unfriendly" and would "sit by himself in the dark in the balcony with this little light," according to neighbor Bronte Harte, speaking to the Associated Press.
The New York Post identified the dating site as SpiritualPassions.com and reported that Mercer used the screen name "Ironcross45," a possible reference to a WWII decoration awarded to Nazi soldiers.
The shooting sparked panic at the usually quiet college, more than 70 miles south of Eugene. Some students ran for their lives, while others crammed into buses taking them to safety.
Two people remain in critical condition in the ICU at Sacred Heart Medical Center in Springfield, Oregon. Doctors there say one victim was shot in the head.
One other victim is in critical condition at Mercy Medical Center in Roseburg, according to chief medical officer Dr. Jason Gray.He said his hospital initially received 10 patients.
Twitter user @bodhilooney posted a statement on the social network claiming that her grandmother was inside the classroom.
Hundreds went to a candlelight vigil Thursday night, with many raising candles as the hymn "Amazing Grace" was played.
Former student Sam Sherman said Roseburg was a "poor town, a mill town." Oregon's timber industry went into a tailspin 25 years ago.
"People don't generally aspire to greater things here," he said. "So having a place you can go to do that is a big deal. For something that terrible to happen at such a small school is frustrating."
The Associated Press contributed to this report. | 0fake |
This DA Just Called B.S. On Anti-Trans Republicans: ‘Most Predators Are Straight Men’ (VIDEO) | As the GOP s fight to control which bathrooms transgender people can and can t use continues, one of their main talking points has been how dangerous it is for trans individuals to be allowed to use the same restrooms as women and children.Despite how false that argument is (there have literally been NO instances where a transgender person has assaulted someone while using the restroom that matched their gender identity), this misleading stance actually sweeps an extremely important issue under the rug who the majority of sex offenders really are.Chad Butler, the District Attorney of Nashville, Tennessee, has prosecuted hundreds of sex crimes and has found the recent anti-trans bathroom laws in states like North Carolina extremely frustrating. In speaking to WSMV Channel 4, Butler revealed that throughout the entire length of his long career, he has never prosecuted a case against a trans individual. Not one. So who are the real threats? Butler says that sexual predators are overwhelmingly heterosexual men. As long as I ve been doing this job and the hundreds of cases I ve reviewed, I ve never once had a transgender person come across my desk as an offender. Butler believes that the ongoing arguments over transgender people s bathroom rights actually distract the public from real dangers. Specializing in crimes against children, Butler revealed that although these discriminatory anti-trans laws are supposedly meant to protect children, they don t. The real threat, he says, are the people the children come in contact with every day. Butler said: A majority of my cases are fathers, stepfathers, uncles, Boy Scout leaders, coaches, youth ministers, preachers. People that are already close to the family that the family trusts. Butler called the claim that trans people are a threat to children statistically unfounded and off base. These accusations only encourage parents to be weary of the wrong people. It is actually very frustrating because it sort of takes the dialogue and the conversation away from where it should be. What Butler believes WILL actually keep children safe, is open discussions about consent and sexual abuse at an early age. Butler says that one of the most important things parents can do is educate their children, and believe them if they come forward because more times than not, children are molested by someone close to the family. A child is more likely to be sexually assaulted in their own bathroom than a public restroom by a stranger. You can watch Butler shut down the GOP s anti-trans rhetoric below:WSMV Channel 4 Featured image is a screenshot | 1real |
Virginia judge issues new injunction against Trump travel ban | (Reuters) - A Virginia federal judge on Monday issued a preliminary injunction against President Donald Trump’s travel ban on people from seven Muslim-majority nations, the latest legal setback for the administration. The ruling from U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema came in response to a request from the Commonwealth of Virginia. Brinkema said the Justice Department had responded to Virginia’s injunction request with “no evidence.” | 0fake |
Quebec Mosque Attack Forces Canadians to Confront a Strain of Intolerance - The New York Times | QUEBEC — In a world often hostile to migration, Canada has stood out, welcoming thousands of refugees fleeing war and seeking a haven. It has been a time for Canada, proud of its national tolerance. On Sunday, that was upended when a man walked into a mosque and started shooting, killing six people and wounding eight. The man accused of being the gunman, Alexandre Bissonnette, was charged with six counts of murder on Monday. The nation quickly rallied after the attack. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called it an act of terrorism, and there was a collective outpouring of remorse and empathy. But the attack also forced Canadians to confront a growing intolerance and extremism that has taken root particularly among some people in this corner of the country. It was also a wrenching event for a country not accustomed to mass killings and even less used to the acrimonious immigration debate that has echoed from across the United States. Before Sunday, many Canadians were watching the immigration ban there with fascination and, for the most part, disgust. “Muslim Canadians are valued members of every community and wherever they live they deserve to feel safe they are home here,” Mr. Trudeau said at a memorial near the mosque in the Ste. Foy neighborhood in Monday evening’s biting cold. “We are all Canadians. Let peace unite us all. ” Yet while Canadian public figures of all stripes closed ranks quickly to reaffirm their solidarity with Muslims in Canada and tighten their embrace of multiculturalism, the killings remained a tear in the fabric of a nation in transformation. “Canada took in roughly 30, 000 Syrian refugees in a period — proportionate to the U. S. taking in 225, 000 over that time,” said David B. Harris, a lawyer and a director at Insignis Strategic Research, a counterterrorism consultancy. “These are dramatic developments in the life of any nation. ” Mr. Bissonnette, 27, who was also charged with five counts of attempted murder, appeared at the Quebec City courthouse looking boyish in a white jumpsuit. He was not charged with terrorism, which under Canada’s Criminal Code requires a broad proof of intent to intimidate the public. The shooting was the first time anyone had been killed in a mosque in Canada in such circumstances and was, at least in recent times, a rare event outside the Muslim world. The attack was particularly shocking for Quebec City, where the bulk of the population of 750, 000 works for the provincial government, universities or in tourism. Until Sunday there had not been any murders in the city for 21 months. Mr. Bissonnette was well known to people who monitor groups in Quebec, where he frequently commented on sites speaking about immigration and Islam. He was a particularly vocal supporter of Marine Le Pen, leader of France’s far right, when she visited the city last year. He was a student of anthropology and political science at Laval University, just minutes from where the shooting took place, according to people who monitored his online activities. “He was not a leader and was not affiliated with the groups we know,” said François Deschamps, a job counselor at Carrefour Jeunesse, a community organization that helps young people find jobs. Mr. Deschamps, who also runs an online group to help refugees called Bienvenue aux Réfugiés, said he had watched Mr. Bissonnette’s postings for about a year. “The minute I saw his picture this morning, I recognized him,” Mr. Deschamps said by telephone, adding that Mr. Bissonnette used his real name online. Mr. Bissonnette and his family live in a western suburb of Quebec City that lies in the shadow of a towering railroad trestle. Neighbors said there was nothing remarkable about the quiet young man. “We knew the family for 30 years,” said Alain Dufour, a neighbor. He said Mr. Bissonnette and his brother were “normal kids, nothing indicating bizarre behavior. ” Even outspoken critics of the religion recoiled at the prospect that an increasingly acrimonious debate over rising Islamic immigration may have contributed to the violence. Kellie Leitch, a conservative member of Parliament who has proposed screening immigrants for “Canadian values,” issued a statement calling the attack “not just on those gathered in a house of worship but on the very fabric of Canadian society. ” Quebec has had a history of confrontations with the Muslim community. In 2005, the province became the first to explicitly ban the use of Shariah law and, less than a decade later, the Parti Québécois government tried to pass a “charter of values” that would have banned provincial employees from wearing Muslim head scarves and other “overt” religious symbols. Quebec City, meanwhile, is a conservative bastion within the province and home to radio talk shows that push an agenda — unusual for Canadian broadcasters. Lise Ravary, a columnist for the tabloid Journal de Montreal, said it might be time for the debate to calm down. “I am a very vocal opponent of Islamism, and I realize now that whenever I condemn ISIS a lot of people view this as me condemning every Muslim on earth,” she said by telephone on Monday. “ looms for the common good. ” Mohammed Amin, in charge of social activities at the mosque, said the community had a “cordial relationship” with its neighbors. He dismissed the pig’s head that was left at the mosque’s door last year as “a small incident” that could happen anywhere. But other leaders at the mosque said there have been hate letters, and swastikas painted on its door, episodes that led to the installation of eight security cameras. “We’ve had to be very, very vigilant, careful for our community,” said Boufeldga Benabdallah, a of the mosque. Of the victims, he said, “The prayed beside us and they were shot in the back because they prayed. ” Ste. Foy, the postwar suburb where the attack occurred, is far from the walled city center, which is stuffed with historic buildings and tourists. The victims came from a variety of countries of origin and occupations. Azzeddine Soufiane, 57, was a butcher with a shop down the street from the mosque. Khaled Belkacemi, the oldest victim at 60, was a professor of soil and engineering at Laval University, according to members of the mosque. Mamadou Tanou Barry, an information technology worker, and Ibrahima Barry, a provincial public servant, were brothers, reported. Aboubaker Thabti, 44, came to Canada in 2011 from Tunisia and had two children. A programming analyst with the provincial government, Abdelkrim Hassane, 41, was father to three daughters. “Certainly Islamophobia has been increasing for some time,” Samer Majzoub, president of the Canadian Muslim Forum, said by telephone from Montreal. But he said the attack was nonetheless shocking. “It is overwhelming, unthinkable,” he said. | 0fake |
HERE YOU GO! TRUMP CONDEMNS DAVID DUKE…Calls Him A “Bigot” and A “Racist” [Video] | Following the situation in Charlottesville, Trump was one of the very few people to call out all sides for displays of violence and bigotry: white supremacists, black supremacists, Communists, and Antifa. In short, this flurry of frustration was far from one-sided.Amidst all of the chaos, David Duke tried to link Trump to the bigotry and violence that was present in Charlottesville. This is certainly interesting considering the fact that Trump called Duke out on his own bigotry nearly seventeen years ago. In an interview with Matt Lauer in 2000, Trump condemned Duke while being questioned about his reasons for dropping out of the Reform Party primary.Trump attributed the party s self-destructing nature to the people involved with it, specifically Duke. When pressed on this matter by Lauer, Trump responded, Well, you ve got David Duke just joined, a bigot, a racist, a problem, I mean, this is not exactly the people you want in your party. Further proof that Trump is never afraid to call a spade a spade, or a racist a racist.Read more: The Gateway Pundit | 1real |
Nikki Haley Calls United Nations Human Rights Council ‘So Corrupt’ - The New York Times | UNITED NATIONS — The American envoy to the United Nations, Nikki R. Haley, described the United States on Wednesday as the “moral conscience” of the world, and she dismissed the United Nations Human Rights Council as “so corrupt” without offering evidence. Ms. Haley said the United States would never close its doors to foreigners who flee persecution, even as she defended the Trump administration’s travel ban, which closed the door to refugees from six mainly Muslim nations. She insisted that American taxpayers should get value for the money they contribute to the United Nations. She said nothing about whether the United States would help head off a potential humanitarian disaster from famine that the United Nations has warned is looming over 20 million people abroad. Ms. Haley’s remarks, made at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York early Wednesday morning, were her first as ambassador to an audience of foreign policy experts. She called it “an intimidating crowd. ” She briefly channeled her boss, President Trump, by describing the United Nations as “basically a club” that needed to be disrupted. “The fact is, a wave is building throughout the world,” Ms. Haley said. “It’s a wave of populism that is challenging institutions like the United Nations, and shaking them to their foundations. ” Exactly how Ms. Haley proposes to disrupt the world body is not clear, beyond slashing American financial support, as Mr. Trump signaled with his budget outline. She declined to say how deep those cuts would turn out to be, saying she was in discussions with members of Congress who ultimately control the purse strings. “This is a time, in short, to show the people reasons to support the U. N.,” she said. Speaking to the council, Ms. Haley took a very different tone than she had with a different audience earlier in the week. On Monday night, at a policy conference held by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the lobbying group, Ms. Haley spoke of the utility of shoes in diplomacy: “If I see something wrong, we’re going to kick them. ” The remark was met with huge applause. In her remarks on Wednesday, Ms. Haley, a former governor of South Carolina, relied on familiar colloquial expressions and offered few specifics about the many foreign policy challenges facing the administration. “We’re not afraid to call out the governments that don’t have our backs,” she said in her opening remarks, without naming names. “The beauty of this administration is, all bets are off,” she said in response to a question. “We’re not going to look at how things were done in the past. ” Ms. Haley mentioned, as she has before, that the administration would closely scrutinize United Nations peacekeeping efforts, and said that the United States should bear no more than 25 percent of the total costs, a reduction from the current 28 percent. She cited what she called a “ridiculously biased report attacking Israel,” and criticized the Security Council for holding monthly meetings about the conflict. (The council also discusses Yemen every month and Syria three times a month.) Ms. Haley demurred when asked about proposals to expand the Security Council and about how to achieve peace in Syria, except to say that the country’s president, Bashar was “a big hindrance. ” She was not asked about two important challenges for the United Nations system, climate change and famine. She used her address to deliver a pointed attack on the United Nations Human Rights Council, the main international body meant to promote and defend human rights. “I mean, the Human Rights Council is so corrupt,” she said, adding that it includes “bad actors” who use it to protect themselves. Several countries with poor human rights records, including China and Saudi Arabia, have indeed won seats on the council. But the United States has itself used its seat to forcefully defend its allies, including Saudi Arabia, which has been accused of abuses in the war in Yemen. Ms. Haley said she would attend the Human Rights Council’s June session, but declined to say whether she favored withdrawing from the body. The United States withdrew from its predecessor, the Commission on Human Rights. Ms. Haley argued that the Security Council — where the United States has a veto — should be the United Nations body addressing human rights issues. She said she would organize a session on the topic in April when the United States takes its turn in the council’s rotating presidency. The Security Council has taken up human rights in the past, and sought to refer the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court, but Russia and China blocked the move with their vetoes. Perhaps the most uncomfortable moment of Ms. Haley’s speech on Wednesday came when she tried to defend Mr. Trump’s travel ban. She insisted that it was not meant to exclude Muslims, but to strengthen vetting procedures for asylum seekers. At one point, she cited this month’s London terrorist attack as a justification for the travel ban. The audience murmured audibly the London assailant was a Briton. | 0fake |
Putin calls tougher North Korea sanctions senseless, warns of 'global catastrophe' | XIAMEN, China (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that imposing tougher sanctions on North Korea over its nuclear missile programme would be counter-productive and said threats of military action could trigger a global catastrophe . Putin, speaking after a BRICs summit in China, criticised U.S. diplomacy in the crisis and renewed his call for talks, saying Pyongyang would not halt its missile testing programme until it felt secure. Russia condemns North Korea s exercises, we consider that they are a provocation ... (But) ramping up military hysteria will lead to nothing good. It could lead to a global catastrophe, he told reporters. There s no other path apart from a peaceful one. Putin was speaking after South Korea said an agreement with the United States to scrap a weight limit on its warheads would help it respond to the North Korea threat after Pyongyang conducted its sixth and largest nuclear test two days ago. Russia, which shares a border with North Korea, has repeatedly joined China in calling for negotiations with Pyongyang, suggesting that the United States and South Korea halt all major war games in exchange for North Korea halting its testing programme. While describing additional sanctions as the road to nowhere , Putin said Russia was prepared to discuss some details around the issue, without elaborating. The Russian leader also lashed out at the United States, saying it was preposterous for Washington to ask for Moscow s help with North Korea after sanctioning Russian companies whom U.S officials accused of violating North Korea sanctions. It s ridiculous to put us on the same (sanctions) list as North Korea and then ask for our help in imposing sanctions on North Korea, said Putin. This is being done by people who mix up Australia with Austria, he added. The United States has floated the idea of requiring all countries to cut economic links with North Korea to try to strong-arm Pyongyang into changing its behaviour. In Moscow s case, that would mean stopping using North Korean labourers, tens of thousands of whom work in Russia, and halting fuel supplies to Pyongyang. Russia has so far refused to contemplate doing either. | 0fake |
UK PM May: We must fight for the political mainstream | MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Theresa May said on Wednesday that her party must fight for a Conservative mainstream political agenda, speaking in her address to the annual party conference. We must come together to fight for this mainstream Conservative agenda. To win the battle of ideas in a new generation all over again, May said. | 0fake |
Witness Debunks Trump’s Comey Crime Allegation, Sets Trump Up For Another Potential Libel Lawsuit | Trump has yet again accused on of his critics of a serious crime and again the allegation evaporated within hours. The number of accusations made by the sitting president is shocking, but what s more, considering the weight they carry, they may set Trump up to face a series of libel lawsuits. The defendants are a who s who of people who have gotten in Trumps way. He accused Hillary of a series of unsubstantiated, often-vague crimes. He smeared Loretta Lynch. He falsely stated that Obama had illegally wiretapped him. He s slandered James Comey, the man he inappropriately fired for investigating him, on several occasions all from the platform of his White House-backed Twitter account.After watching a badly-botched Fox and Friends report on the memos Comey wrote, Trump went onto Twitter to accuse Comey of a crime rather than learn the facts.James Comey leaked CLASSIFIED INFORMATION to the media. That is so illegal! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 10, 2017Had he done any research, he would have seen that Fox s story was riddled with errors and no serious news organization would have ever run it. Instead, this happened:The Hill report Fox News report incorrect Fox & Friends tweet Trump accuses Comey of breaking the lawhttps://t.co/DS7nhWZqcA via @pbump https://t.co/b4dR9hq0rg Bradd Jaffy (@BraddJaffy) July 10, 2017Within hours, Comey s friend and the source of the Comey memos proving Trump lied about his conversations with the FBI director, had publicly stated that what Trump was saying was a complete fantasy. Columbia University law professor Daniel Richman told NBC that nothing he received from Comey was classified, the things he passed along to the press were written accounts of what Comey chatted with Trump about, which is completely legal.No evidence has surfaced supporting that charge. Three of the memos were classified from the beginning, and were never shared with Richman, the professor tells NBC News.Of the remaining four, a small portion much less than half has been retroactively deemed classified, said a Congressional source familiar with the matter.What Trump did was take a misleading section of a story, blow it up into something it wasn t and then publicly accuse a former civil servant of committing a serious crime. All based on a botched news report on Fox s morning show.And his words have consequences.In a recent example, Trump sicced his loyalists on reporters for exposing his scandals, members of the media have noted a serious uptick in the number of death threats and slurs hurled at them. After CNN exposed the anti-Semite behind the meme Trump tweeted, Trump fans announced that they would be gathering in front of the reporter s home. Another reporter received even more disturbing threats.In the wake of that, I received numerous threats. I was told people wanted to shoot, strangle me, hang me, throw me out of a helicopter 3/ Jared Yates Sexton (@JYSexton) July 3, 2017All of this pushes Trump into dangerous legal territory. It s easy to prove that when Trump falsely smears a person, that person suffers tangible losses to safety, reputation, and finance. A single tweet from Trump can mean your family receives death threats. Others will call for you to be fired or demand you resign. And you will now be known as a person accused by the president of the United States of a crime. Even if Trump only wants to use it as a weapon against his enemies and doesn t take it seriously, it still has costs to the victims.Trump should face libel lawsuits. Lots of them.Featured image via Ukas Michael Pool/Getty Images | 1real |
Facebook Announces New Ways to Prevent ‘Revenge Porn’ - The New York Times | The relationship may have faded long ago, but the intimate images you shared have not. If you’re lucky, your ex deleted them. If you’re not, the photos have sprouted up online. Victims of such nonconsensual posts, often referred to as “revenge porn,” now have some help in preventing their spread: On Wednesday, Facebook announced new artificial intelligence tools designed to keep such content, once flagged, off its site for good. “It’s wrong, it’s hurtful, and if you report it to us, we will now use A. I. and image recognition to prevent it from being shared across all of our platforms,” Mark Zuckerberg, the social network’s founder and chief executive, said in a Facebook post. The tools announced on Wednesday are intended to address a uniquely modern and pernicious form of harassment, often but not exclusively aimed at women, that has attracted increasing attention. In March, for example, a report that and veteran Marines had used Facebook to share naked and private photos of thousands of women in the Marine Corps prompted a congressional hearing and a Defense Department investigation. The company has been sued in the past by victims of revenge pornography who accused it of not doing enough to prevent the spread of their intimate images. Now, when such content is reported to Facebook, it will be reviewed by a trained member of a community standards team, most likely resulting in the image being removed and the account of the user who posted it being disabled, Antigone Davis, Facebook’s head of global safety, said Wednesday in a post on the site. The technology will then work to identify and thwart the future posting of similar images, not only on Facebook, but also to its instant messaging service and to Instagram. The company also published a guide on reporting and removing such intimate images, and said that it had teamed up with safety organizations such as the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, which operates a hotline for victims of nonconsensual pornography. | 0fake |
General Mills Recalls Some Flour After Consumers Fall Ill - The New York Times | No more sticking fingers into cake batter or cookie dough. On Tuesday, General Mills announced that it was voluntarily recalling various batches of its Gold Medal, Gold Medal Wondra and Signature flours that federal officials have potentially linked to illnesses in 38 people in 20 states caused by a strain of E. coli. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that about half of those people became ill after making something at home with flour, according to a news release from General Mills. Some of those who were sickened may have eaten raw dough or batter, the company said. “In general, C. D. C. recommends that people not eat raw dough or batter intended for cooking or baking, and children not be provided raw dough to play with,” an agency statement said. “People should use safe practices when preparing such products, including following package directions for cooking at proper temperatures washing hands, surfaces and utensils after contact with these types of products avoiding and refrigerating products properly. ” Most strains of E. coli are harmless, but E. coli O121, the one found in the 38 sick people, is a potentially deadly bacteria that can cause bloody diarrhea and dehydration. Seniors, children and people with compromised immune systems are most at risk. General Mills said the pathogen had not been found in any of its flour products or in its flour manufacturing plant. “Flour is an ingredient that comes from milling wheat, something grown outdoors that carries with it risks of bacteria, which are rendered harmless by baking, frying or boiling,” the company said. Its website has information on the flour batches affected by the recall. In 2009, Nestlé recalled some of Nestlé Toll House cookie dough after more than 70 people in 30 states became sick from E. coli 157: H7, another deadly variety. While no one ingredient was ever identified as the culprit, one hypothesis was that the E. coli in the product was passed by the flour to consumers who ate raw dough. The announcement on Tuesday was the latest of several voluntary food recalls. In May, the C. D. C. announced a recall of frozen vegetables that had been processed by CRF Frozen Foods but ended up in products under a variety of brand names. The foods had been linked to a listeria outbreak. Also in May the agency announced a voluntary recall of pistachios produced by Wonderful Pistachios, a division of the Wonderful Company, after it tied the nuts to 11 cases of Salmonella Montevideo and Salmonella Senftenberg. It linked 26 cases of poisoning in 12 states to a third strain of Salmonella found in sprouts produced by several companies from one lot of contaminated seeds that probably were the culprit, according to the agency. “Contamination of food is an ongoing issue,” said Sandra Eskin, who directs work on food safety at the Pew Charitable Trusts. “The good news is that we’ve got technology like whole genome sequencing that’s helping identify outbreaks more quickly than in the past. ” Ms. Eskin also said that new food safety regulations that will take effect this September will make food manufacturers responsible for preventing contamination and give the Food and Drug Administration the ability to take action against a company if it is not taking steps to prevent food safety problems. | 0fake |
Election 2015 Highlights: Who Won, Who Lost? | With no presidential election or congressional seats on the line, Tuesday’s election watchers were focused on some high-profile ballot initiatives, a governor’s race in Kentucky and a handful of other races. Here are some of the highlights, compiled from the Journal’s reports across the country. | 0fake |
Pilot of Vanished Malaysian Flight Had Deviant Route on His Simulator, Minister Says - The New York Times | The pilot of the Malaysia Airlines jetliner that mysteriously vanished more than two years ago had used his personal flight simulator to practice a path over the remote southern Indian Ocean, where the aircraft is believed to have crashed, the country’s transport minister said on Thursday. The remarks by the minister, Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, represented the first time the Malaysian government had acknowledged that the flight simulator belonging to the pilot of Flight 370, Capt. Zaharie Ahmad Shah, contained such a path, leading far from any route his airline flew. The minister did not say when the pilot might have practiced that route, and he emphasized that it was one of many found on the simulator, which the pilot kept at his home. The minister also said it would be premature to draw any conclusions from the disclosure. Nonetheless, it added to telltale indications that the aircraft, a Boeing jet carrying 239 passengers and crew members, might have been deliberately crashed into the sea by Mr. Zaharie after departing Kuala Lumpur for Beijing on March 8, 2014. “Yes, there is simulation showing it flew to many parts of the world,” the minister was quoted by Malaysia’s Bernama News Agency as saying at a monthly Transport Ministry briefing. The remote southern Indian Ocean route was “one of many,” he said. The minister appeared to be responding to a report published on July 22 by New York magazine, which said it had obtained a confidential document from a Malaysian police investigation showing that Mr. Zaharie had practiced the route on his simulator less than a month before Flight 370 disappeared “under uncannily similar circumstances. ” The magazine called the revelation, which was not in the Malaysia government’s public report on the Flight 370 investigation, the strongest evidence yet that the pilot had “made off with the plane in a premeditated act of mass . ” Flight 370’s deviation from its planned route, taking the aircraft thousands of miles off course, remains a mystery of modern civil aviation. One of the working theories is that the plane flew for hours on autopilot with its crew dead or incapacitated and then crashed when its fuel ran out. Technical signals sent by the plane suggested that it might have wound up in a area of the southern Indian Ocean, but aircraft and ships have scoured the area without turning up a sign of the aircraft. Last month, the three countries leading the search — Australia, China and Malaysia — said they would suspend the operation, but would revive it if “credible new information” emerged about the plane’s whereabouts. A small amount of debris believed to be from the plane has been found thousands of miles to the west. The most significant pieces appeared to be a wing part known as a flaperon — discovered last year on Réunion, an island near Madagascar that is part of France — and another wing segment found more recently near the coast of Tanzania. A prominent crash investigator caused a stir last weekend by asserting that the flaperon appeared to have been placed in an extended position when it hit the water, and that it had to have been done deliberately. The assertion by the investigator, Larry Vance, who led an inquiry into the 1998 crash of Swissair Flight 111 in the Atlantic Ocean, has not been confirmed by officials in charge of the Flight 370 inquiry. “Somebody was flying the airplane at the end of its flight,” Mr. Vance said in an interview on Australia’s “60 Minutes” program. “Somebody was flying the airplane into the water. There is no other alternate theory that you can follow. ” | 0fake |
Iraq dismisses U.S. call for Iranian-backed militias to 'go home' | BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The Iraqi government has dismissed a call from U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson for Iranian-backed paramilitary units that helped Baghdad defeat Islamic State to end operations in Iraq. Speaking after a meeting on Sunday with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and Saudi Arabia s King Salman, Tillerson said it was time for the Iraqi Popular Mobilisation forces and their Iranian advisers to go home . Washington, which backed Baghdad against Islamic State, is concerned Iran will use its expanded presence in Iraq and in Syria to expand its influence in the region. But Abadi showed unwillingness to meet Tillerson s demand. No party has the right to interfere in Iraqi matters, the statement from his office read. It did not cite the prime minister himself but a source close to him. Trained and armed by Iran, the Iraqi Popular Mobilisation forces often supported Iraqi government units in the fight against the militants who were effectively defeated in July when a U.S.-backed offensive captured their stronghold Mosul. They are paid by the Iraqi government and officially report to the prime minister, but some Arab Sunni and Kurdish politicians describe these militias as a de facto branch of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corp. Iraq s Sunni neighbors, including Saudi Arabia, share Washington s concerns over Shi ite power Iran s influence in Iraq, where the population is also predominantly Shi ite. But the office of Abadi, himself a Shi ite, said the forces were under the authority of the Iraqi government. Popular Mobilisation are Iraqi patriots, it said in the statement. The United States trained tens of thousands of Iraqi soldiers in the course of rebuilding the Iraqi armed forces and has over 5,000 troops deployed in the country, providing key air and ground support to the offensive on Islamic State. | 0fake |
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Black Agenda Report for Week of Oct 31, 2016 | News, information and analysis from the black left. Black Agenda Report for Week of Oct 31, 2016 Submitted by Nellie Bailey a... on Mon, 10/31/2016 - 20:45 Venezuela The Missing Black Movement Ingredient: Self-Determination
The Black Is Back Coalition for Social Justice, Peace and Reparations will hold a National Black Political Convention on Self-Determination, November 5 and 6, in Washington, DC. “If you go through history, the fundamental thing that we’ve confronted is the loss of our self-determination as a people,” said Black Is Back chairman Omali Yeshitela . The Coalition has put forward a 19-point position on the need to put self-determination at the center of Black struggles. The 19 points “give us the beginning of some kind of a plan,” said Yeshitela. “It says, specifically, here is our view on self-determination and the subject of reparations, Black women, the question of police invasion and brutality in our community,” and many other issues. The “Moment of Truth” for the Empire
“We are entering a new moment in American history,” said Dr. Anthony Monteiro , the Duboisian scholar and Black Radical Organizing Committee activist. “It is a moment of truth for the ruling class, for the ruling elite. What do they do when they are trumped at home -- forgive the pun -- and trumped internationally?” he asked. “Do they back off of empire, do they readjust, do they become peaceful, or do they up the stakes and attempt to resolve all problems with war abroad and oppression at home?” Dr. Monteiro is one of the planners of a Revolutionary Science for Radical Times conference, in Philadelphia, December 9 and 10. Hard Times in Venezuela
Despite what the corporate media are telling you, Venezuelans are not starving and the Socialist Party government will not be toppled any time soon. However, the rightwing opposition “is smelling blood” due to an economic crisis that “has made it very difficult for people to get access to imported goods, and many goods are very expensive,” said political science professor George Caccariello-Maher , of Drexel University, author of We Created Chavez: A People’s History of the Venezuelan Revolution . Corruption, smuggling and money speculation are serious problems, said Caccariello-Maher. However, the strength of the Left lies in the nation’s grassroots organizations and communes. “It would be very difficult for an opposition government to come in and attempt to throw them off their land” or return property to the private sector, he said. Happy Birthday, Rev. Pinkney!
Benton Harbor, Michigan, human rights leader Rev. Edward Pinkney, currently serving a 2 ½ to 10 year sentence on election tampering charges, turned 68 years old this month. Marcina Cole , a courtroom observer at Pinkney’s trial, teamed up with David Sole , of the Michigan Emergency Committee Against War and Injustice, to throw a birthday party for Pinkney, in absentia, in Detroit. “He’s definitely in support of other inmates, doing ministry work, and looking forward to being out very soon,” said Cole. She reported that Green Party vice presidential candidate Ajamu Baraka visited the political prisoner on October 19. “This was historical,” said Cole. “They know how powerful Rev. Pinkney is” -- and that he has allies on the outside. Black Agenda Radio on the Progressive Radio Network is hosted by Glen Ford and Nellie Bailey. A new edition of the program airs every Monday at 11:00am ET on PRN. Length: one hour. | 1real |
Fact: Superdelegates Have Never Determined The Democratic Nominee | As the Democratic Primary heats up heading into yet another Super Tuesday where Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Maryland, Delaware and Connecticut will decide who to support for the 2016 presidential election, questions (and hostilities) are flaring up yet again over the designation of superdelegates.Questions remain whether or not Hillary Clinton will be able to amass the 2,383 delegates needed to secure a nomination without the support of superdelegates. Clinton s campaign says they are not worried about falling short, but Jane Sanders, wife of presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, thinks otherwise. However, after a crushing blow in New York, team Sanders has had to come up with a new strategy if they hope to win the nomination that strategy, according to reports, is to persuade superdelegates to back him, a move the Clinton campaign has cried foul on.But in all, it really doesn t matter one way or another. What many people may not know is the superdelegate system, since its introduction in the 1984 election, has never determined who the Democratic nominee is.That s right. Superdelegates have never been responsible for putting Walter Mondale, Michael Dukakis, Bill Clinton, Al Gore, John Kerry or Barack Obama on the national stage for the general election. In 2008, the primary showdown between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton was even closer than it is now, and still superdelegates weren t responsible for Obama s win.While appearing on Fox News with Maria Bartiromo, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, head of the DNC and a congresswoman from Florida, reminded audiences of this crucial fact, as hostility intensifies within the party.Politifact decided to fact check this claim, using information and second opinions from a multitude of political scientists, and concluded that Wasserman Schultz is right (with one little detail left out), and gave the rating as Mostly True, writing:The first election where Democrats used superdelegates was in 1984, where they helped Mondale secure the nomination on the first ballot at the convention. It s not clear that they were the determining factor. Some say Mondale would have won without them.Since that time, a Democrat has won the nomination early enough where the superdelegates haven t mattered.What that means is the elections between two candidates (or more) in the Democratic primary have never been so close that superdelegates were needed to break the tie or push one candidate over the edge to victory. By the time the conventions have rolled around, it s been clear who the people (and pledged delegates) have picked.Only Mondale got help with superdelegates, but sources differ on whether they determined his win.Essentially, the superdelegates have been a symbolic vote by those within the Democratic ranks as to see which direction they want the party to head in. But why should we have them, then? According to the Wasserman Schultz, their purpose is to make sure that party activists who want to be delegates to the convention don t have to run against much better-known and well-established people at the district level. So whether or not you love them or hate them, just remember they have never been responsible for nominating the candidate you love or hate. Featured image via Justin Sullivan/Getty Images | 1real |
Factbox: Trump controversies: Michael Flynn, the travel ban and others | (Reuters) - The continuing controversy over former national security adviser Michael Flynn’s communications with Russia was just the latest in a series of imbroglios that have roiled the Trump administration since it took office on Jan. 20. Here are several of the tempests that have swirled around the new White House: Flynn quit on Monday after misleading the White House about his contacts with Russia before taking office and President Donald Trump lost trust in him, White House spokesman Sean Spicer said. U.S. lawmakers, including some leading Republicans, called for an investigation. On Thursday, Trump dismissed the controversy about ties between his aides and Russia as a “ruse” and “scam” perpetrated by a hostile news media, and he denied any of his associates had contacts with Moscow before last year’s election. Trump’s nominee to head the Labor Department, fast-food executive Andrew Puzder, on Wednesday withdrew his name from consideration amid concerns he could not garner enough Senate votes to be confirmed. Puzder admitted on Feb. 7 he had once employed an illegal immigrant as a house cleaner. He had already faced strong opposition from Senate Democrats and progressive groups because of his views on labor issues. On Thursday, Trump nominated former National Labor Relations Board member R. Alexander Acosta as secretary of labor. NATIONAL SECURITY AT MAR-A-LAGO Private guests at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida snapped photos of the president and visiting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe conferring and looking at documents while surrounded by aides following a weekend missile launch by North Korea. One guest posted to his Facebook page a picture with a man described to be the holder of the “nuclear football,” or weapons codes. The incidents prompted concerns about national security, and a Republican representative asked the White House for details. Trump issued an executive order on Jan. 27 temporarily banning U.S. entry by travelers from seven Muslim-majority countries and all refugees, citing the need to protect Americans. The ban triggered protests across the United States, confusion at U.S. and overseas airports and multiple legal challenges. A federal judge in Seattle on Feb. 3 suspended the ban in an order upheld by a federal appeals court in San Francisco. On Thursday, Trump said he would issue a new version of the order next week. The Seattle judge’s order drew fire from Trump on Twitter, who criticized the jurist and the court system. The Republican president’s Supreme Court nominee, Neil Gorsuch, said last week that the Twitter attacks were “demoralizing” and “disheartening,” according to a spokesman. Trump said Gorsuch’s comments had been misrepresented. Trump senior adviser Kellyanne Conway urged Americans last week to buy his daughter Ivanka Trump’s clothing and jewelry products during an appearance on a national television program after department store chain Nordstrom Inc said it was dropping them due to a decline in sales. Conway’s endorsement, which followed a Twitter attack by Trump on Nordstrom, prompted criticism from Democrats and Republicans. On Tuesday, the Office of Government Ethics said the White House should investigate whether Conway violated ethics rules. Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto scrapped plans to meet his counterpart in Washington during the second week of Trump’s presidency after Trump tweeted that Mexico should cancel the meeting if it was not prepared to pay for his proposed border wall. Trump abruptly ended a phone call in late January with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, telling the leader of one of the United States’ closest allies that it was the “worst call by far” he had had with a foreign leader, according to the Washington Post. Trump said a deal between the United States and Australia on refugee resettlement was “dumb” and accused Turnbull’s country of trying to export the “next Boston bombers” under the agreement, the Post said. | 0fake |
Stating the obvious? FBI awkwardly acknowledges San Bernardino massacre likely terrorism | Three days after a heavily armed Muslim couple who lived in a home investigators described as "an IED factory" burst into a Southern California office building and gunned down 14 people, the FBI finally -- and awkwardly -- acknowledged Friday that it is treating the case as an act of terrorism.
In an unusual and brief address to reporters at which Attorney General Loretta Lynch appeared and questions were not taken on camera, FBI Director James Comey affirmed the bureau's LA office's characterization earlier in the day.
"This is now a federal terrorism investigation," Comey said, alluding to evidence collected from electronic devices and reports that Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik may have been sympathetic to radical terrorist groups prior to the attack. After his comments, Comey asked pool reporters if they had any questions, but the pre-taped event, which was later distributed to media outlets, was cut off abruptly and no questions were permitted.
The director, a Republican appointed in 2013 and a former deputy attorney general under President George W. Bush," did not allude to the Muslim faith of suspects Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik. But in pronouncing it a case of terrorism, he seemed to be stating the obvious while at the same time going farther than President Obama has been willing to go and possibly hinting at some behind-the-scenes dissent. Sources told Fox News Lynch was there to "ensure [Comey] didn't take it too far" in his characterization of the attacks.
On Thursday, in the face of mounting evidence of a terror motive, President Obama refused to rule out an office dispute as the possible motive for the attack. The equivocation stoked outrage among many of Obama's critics, who noted his insistence on labelling as "workplace violence" the 2009 Fort Hood shooting, in which a Muslim Army major killed 13 people and injured another 30 while shouting “Allahu Akbar” and his ongoing refusal to characterize acts of terror as driven by radical interpretations of Islam.
"If you can't come to a conclusion at this point that this was an act of terror, you should find something else to do for a living than being in law enforcement. I mean, you're a moron," former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who led the city during the 9/11 attacks and their aftermath, thundered hours later on Fox News.
Then, on Friday, hours before the FBI announcement, Fox New confirmed that Malik had pledged her allegiance to ISIS as the morning attack began. She and her husband were killed hours later in a shootout with police just two miles away. Those developments confirmed the suspicions of many, and left it obvious that Malik, at least, was driven by radical Islam.
"We are investigating it as an act of terrorism, for good reason," David Bowdich, the assistant FBI director in charge of the Los Angeles office, told reporters in an afternoon news conference before his boss spoke.
Bowdich, who said neither of the two were on law enforcement's radar prior to the attack, cited several factors for the focus on terrorism, including "extensive planning" that went into the attack. The pair attempted to cover up their digital trail, damaging hard drives and other electronic devices, Bowdich said. Investigators did find two cell phones recovered from trash cans near the couple's Redlands home, and recovered evidence of communications with others who are now being investigated.
“They tried to wipe out their digital fingerprints,” he said, adding that digital communications will likely provide further substantiation of the motive, but "it's not a three-day process."
The post by Malik, in which she pledged allegiance to ISIS leader and self-proclaimed “caliph” Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, was confirmed by Facebook official. They said she posted the pledge just before she and Farook stormed a San Bernardino party for his co-workers before escaping. The couple died hours later in a shootout with police, and in the aftermath the 29-year-old Pakistani woman has remained largely a name without a face. No confirmed pictures of her have surfaced, and few details have emerged. The aura of mystery surrounding Malik has given rise to suspicions she may have been the radicalizing force who turned Farook from an aloof county restaurant inspector into her cohort in carnage, an Islamist fanatic capable of murdering co-workers who had embraced him for years.
"Usually it's ISIS supporters trying to radicalize young girls online as they try to find new wives, but this may be the first case I know of where the opposite happened," said Ryan Mauro, a national security analyst for Clarion Project, which tracks international terrorism.
Mauro noted that Farook's older brother, who shares his name, served in the U.S. Navy, which would seem to indicate that Farook's radical leanings did not come from within his own family.
"It is possible that she radicalized him or that suspected terrorists inside America he was communicating with are responsible for the radicalization, which led him to be attracted to a more hardline Salafi girl," Mauro said.
What is known is that Malik met Farook online and that the two became engaged after Farook traveled to Saudi Arabia in September 2013. Malik applied for a K-1 visa at the American embassy in Islamabad in May, 2014 and two months later Farook again traveled to Saudi Arabia, met her there and brought her to the U.S. on a K-1 visa, a 90-day visa given to fiancés planning to marry Americans.
“Tashfeen remains the biggest mystery,” said a leader of the area’s Pakistani-American Muslim community. “She’s the one no one knows anything about and has little to no presence on the Internet or having interacted with others in the Muslim community.”
They were married on Aug. 16, 2014, in nearby Riverside County, Calif. according to their marriage license. The marriage and passage of criminal and national security background checks using FBI and Department of Homeland Security databases resulted in a conditional green card for Malik in July 2015, two months after she gave birth to their baby daughter.
Malik and Farook, an American citizen born in Chicago and raised in Southern California by parents of Pakistani descent, lived with their daughter and his mother, Rafia Farook, in a Redlands, Calif., apartment described by one investigator as an “IED factory” and ammo arsenal.
However, Farook’s mother claimed not to have suspected any potential plots or problems pertaining to her son and daughter-in-law, telling others that the weaponry didn’t raise any eyebrows as he “was always into guns” from a young age and shooting was very much a part of his life.
Attorneys representing Farook's family said at a late afternoon press conference that none of Farook's relatives had any indication he or his wife held extremist views.
Federal officials confirmed that the four guns Malik and Farook carried when they were killed in a shootout Wednesday afternoon, some three hours after storming the San Bernardino social services facility where his department was holding a holiday party, were purchased legally. Law enforcement sources told Fox News that investigators believe the couple's death prevented a second attack Wednesday, though they have not established what the target would have been.
There have been reports Farook had ties to radicals in Pakistan and had a trip made there in recent years, but a source connected to the Pakistani Consulate in Los Angeles told FoxNews.com that he did not possess a Pakistani passport and that there is no record of him applying for a visa to travel to Pakistan through his local consulate. That did not preclude the possibility that he may have entered the country illegally or obtained a visa overseas or elsewhere.
Farook is a third-generation American from a family hailing from Karachi. Sources close to his family insisted that his marriage to Malik was not arranged. He told co-workers, who hosted a baby shower for him and his wife earlier this year, that Malik was a pharmacist. The California Board of Pharmacy has no record of her working as either a pharmacist or a pharmacist’s assistant.
Farook was a devout Muslim who prayed every day and recently memorized the Koran, according to brothers Nizaam and Rahemaan Ali, who attended Dar Al Uloom Al Islamiyah mosque in San Bernardino with Farook. Rahemaan Ali said he last saw Farook three weeks ago, when he abruptly stopped going to the mosque. Ali said Farook seemed happy and his usual self, and the brothers never saw a violent side.
"He never ever talked about killing people or discussed politics, or said that he had problems at work," Rahemaan Ali said. "He always had a smile on his face."
Prior to their marriage, Farook had multiple online dating profiles claiming he was a Sunni Muslim from a “religious but modern family” and that he was “looking for a girl who has the same outlook, wear hijab, but live life to the fullest, be my partner for snowboarding, to go out and eat with friends, go camping, working on cars with me.”
Farook was remembered as reserved by co-workers, who said he had grown his beard out in recent months – often a sign among Muslims of heightened religious devotion. He also had gotten into several heated arguments with a co-worker, Nicholas Thalasinos, about Islam. Thalasinos reportedly questioned whether Farook’s faith was truly a “religion of peace.” He was one of the 14 killed in Wednesday’s attack.
Neither Malik nor Farook had a criminal record, and the couple did not mix with the larger Pakistani-American community, and few people claim to have seen, let alone met, Malik, including neighbors. The Pakistani-American Muslim community leader, who asked that his name not be used, said the community believes is is clear that someone radicalized Farook.
“This event has shaken everyone,” said the source. “The fact that Syed and his wife seemed to be so removed from the community and no one really knows much about him or his wife at all can often be a key indicator something is wrong.”
Fox News Channel's Matthew Dean, Adam Housley and Hollie McKay contributed to this report | 0fake |
Iran’s President Says Donald Trump Can’t Tear Up Nuclear Pact - The New York Times | TEHRAN — Iran’s president said on Tuesday that he simply would not allow Donald J. Trump to tear up last year’s nuclear agreement and warned of unspecified consequences if he did. “He wants to do many things,” Iran’s president, Hassan Rouhani, said of Mr. Trump in a speech. During the campaign, Mr. Trump called the nuclear agreement “a bad deal” that he promised to “tear up. ” “He wants to undermine the J. C. P. O. A. ,” Mr. Rouhani said, referring to the agreement, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. “He wants to tear up the J. C. P. O. A. Will we or our nation allow this?” As Mr. Rouhani posed the question, the audience began chanting, “Death to America. ” In the speech, which was delivered at Tehran University and televised nationally, Mr. Rouhani maintained that “America cannot influence our determination, this nation’s resistance and its struggle. ” He continued: “America is our enemy we have no doubt about this. The Americans want to put as much pressure on us as they can. ” The change in tone by the Iranian president comes as he faces increasing pressure from who argue that the United States is not to be trusted to keep its end of the deal. They say that a recent congressional vote to extend unilateral American sanctions against Iran confirmed their warnings and that the nuclear deal is a failure. For Mr. Rouhani, who until recently seemed set to be elected for a second term in May, the change in fortune is a threat to his political career, analysts say. “Trump is far worse than his predecessor,” said Hamidreza Taraghi, a political analyst. “Rouhani has proven that trusting America is useless and a waste of time, energy and money. He should not be . ” Mr. Rouhani had promised an economic renaissance after the 2015 deal, which led to the lifting of most of the sanctions that had been crippling the Iranian economy in exchange for the mothballing of Iran’s nuclear program. But that has not materialized, thanks to remaining sanctions over Iran’s ballistic missile program and terrorism, as well as lingering fears among Western companies about incurring American penalties for doing business with Iran. During his speech on Tuesday, Mr. Rouhani, apparently trying to fend off the attacks, emphasized that ultimately it was the nation’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who had led the negotiations and signed off on the deal. “We took no step in the issue of the nuclear agreement without consulting the supreme leader,” he said. Ayatollah Khamenei has often criticized the deal publicly, but analysts agree that without his specific consent, a compromise with the United States and other global powers would never have been reached. Mr. Trump’s ascent to power has been met by Mr. Rouhani and other Iranian leaders with familiar slogans like “America can’t do a damn thing. ” But the vote last week in Washington to extend sanctions for another decade, which they say violated the nuclear agreement, seemed to strike a nerve. “If the Iran Sanctions Act is carried out, it will be a clear and obvious violation of the agreement and will be met with a very harsh response from us,” Mr. Rouhani said, joining dozens of other clerics, politicians and generals who have made similar threats. He told Iranians not to be “concerned,” saying that a government committee would meet on Wednesday to determine Iran’s reaction to the extension of sanctions, which the Obama administration said did not violate the nuclear agreement. Iranian lawmakers have proposed a boycott of American products, but very few are being sold in the country. Some have even suggested restarting nuclear activities and the enrichment of uranium, though they have little or no say over such matters. Pulling out of the deal is not an option for Iran, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Monday. “Iran will not be the first to break the agreement,” Bahram Ghasemi, the spokesman, said. “We will never, and in no way will be the first to make the first step forward. ” | 0fake |
Chelsea Clinton Has A Little Advice For Sean Spicer After He Defends Hitler | White House Secretary Sean Spicer decided to rewrite history on Tuesday, arguing that Adolf Hitler wasn t such a bad guy after all because he didn t use chemical weapons like Assad. While most of us were facepalming and shouting gas chambers, Chelsea Clinton stepped forward with a classy tweet offering Spicey a little advice. I hope @PressSec takes time to visit @HolocaustMuseum, the former first daughter tweeted this afternoon. It s a few blocks away, she added helpfully.I hope @PressSec takes time to visit @HolocaustMuseum. It s a few blocks away. https://t.co/24fNoMUyS8 Chelsea Clinton (@ChelseaClinton) April 11, 2017Spicer made his humiliating comments on Tuesday, which also happens to be the day Jews are celebrating the Passover seder. He was trying to convince the world that Donald Trump was right to bomb Syria but only ended up proving that he s a total idiot.When Spicer was called out on his ridiculous assertion that Hitler didn t gas millions of people in concentration camps, he grabbed a shovel and dug his hole deeper. Passing the point of no return, the press secretary argued that Hitler didn t gas his own people, just the Jews. And apparently, they don t count.Everybody except Trump s loyal base of anti-Semitic holocaust deniers knows that Spicer s version of history is a long, long way from the truth and it may be the worst excuse ever used to justify military action.People are justifiably outraged. The Anne Frank Center issued a statement calling for Spicer s resignation. Spicer s statement is the most evil slur upon a group of people we have ever heard from a White House press secretary, said Steven Goldstein, the organization s executive director. Sean Spicer now lacks the integrity to serve and President Trump must fire him at once, he added.Spicer would be wise to take Clinton s advice and study up a little on the holocaust before the next time he decides to spout off about what a swell guy Hitler was.Featured image via Marcus Ingram/Getty Images | 1real |
BILL O’REILLY ANNOUNCES 2 Week Vacation…Will Murdoch’s Liberal Son Who Pushed To Fire Roger Ailes Make His Vacation Permanent? [VIDEO] | Embattled Fox News host Bill O Reilly announced on Tuesday that he will be going off the air for almost two weeks, to take a vacation.The anchor s announcement comes amid an ongoing controversy over sexual harassment allegations made against him and a new report that James Murdoch wants him out of the company for good.The exodus of sponsors followed a recent report in The New York Times that five women were paid a total of $13million to keep quiet about harassment allegations.The accusations surrounding O Reilly, which date back 15 years, include claims of dirty phone calls, unwanted kisses and hotel room invites. The assumption is that he ll exit in a non-embarrassing way, one senior Fox News staffer told the magazine.O Reilly declined to share where he was heading, but has launched an online contest for fans to vote on where they think his vacation destination is. He made the point that the time off was voluntary.Bill O Reilly kept his announcement to leave FOX News for a two-week vacation upbeat:The claims prompted 60 sponsors to drop advertising deals with the prime time show and led to an internal investigation.Four network sources told New York Magazine that it s possible O Reilly s getaway could turn into a permanent vacation.The Murdoch family, the owners of Fox, are reportedly split on what to do about O Reilly. Rupert Murdoch and his eldest son Lachlan are said to be inclined to keep O Reilly, while younger son James the CEO of 21st Century Fox wants to give him the boot.James also pushed to fire Roger Ailes amid last summer s sex scandal, and sources think he could be successful in weeding out O Reilly this time around. Daily MailJames Murdoch is said to have convinced his father, 76, to go green in a major May 9 speech. In the speech, Rupert Murdoch sounded like Al Gore, saying that Climate change poses clear, catastrophic threats and that We may not agree on the extent, but we certainly can t afford the risk of inaction. Marc Gunther of Fortune magazine commented that Murdoch has boldly promised to make News Corp. carbon neutral by 2010 and to weave environmental issues and themes into his newspapers, TV shows, movies and online properties-a tricky business, particularly when it comes to news. (emphasis added)The Hillary front organization known as Media Matters has challenged Murdoch to rein in the various Fox News personalities, including Hannity, who have voiced skepticism about the man-made global warming theory. The group complains that conservative voices on Fox far outnumber progressive voices and that Fox anchors, reporters, and guests inject pro-Republican views into the shows.Murdoch s decision to hand the European and Asian operations of his company to his son James has been widely interpreted as a sign that James will soon inherit control of the entire company. That means that James liberal philosophy on environmental and other matters could become the party line not only of News Corporation but the Fox News Channel.The New York Times has described James Murdoch as steadfastly liberal and notes that he has supported Bill Clinton and Al Gore whose daughter he befriended at Harvard. Aim | 1real |
Jimmy John’s Thinks $1 Sandwiches Are Going To Make Us Forgive Their Horrible Right-Wing CEO | This week Jimmy John s sandwiches offered $1 subs as a promotion for Customer Appreciation Day, hoping to revamp their image after the public caught wind of owner Jimmy John Liautaud s disgusting business practices and hunting fetishes.The company started posted their $1 sandwich day on Facebook and Instagram earlier this week and people immediately called them out. According to Raw Story, the admin on the business official Facebook page began deleting comments from posters who pointed out just how shady their CEO is. Specifically, anyone who reminded potential customer s about Liautaud s history as a big game hunter, had their comments immediately deleted.In 2015, the CEO admitted to the Chicago Tribune that he had killed a rhinoceros, elephants, and a leopard in the past, but claimed he doesn t hunt there anymore: I choose to hunt and I choose to fish, he said. Everything I ve done has been totally legal. And the meat has been eaten, if not by me than by someone I m with. I don t hunt big African game anymore. He claimed that it had been ten years since his last hunt in Africa, even though the pictures that outed him were from 2010.In addition to killing innocent elephants, Liautaud has contributed tens of thousands of dollars to the Republican Party. In 2011, Chicago Business reported:He s faced down a union-organizing drive and boycott in Minnesota. His Arizona franchisees have been picketed over his contributions to candidates who back that state s year-old anti-illegal immigration law. And he s stepped up his support of Republican candidates and causes, giving $100,000 to Sen. Bill Brady in the last few days of his losing gubernatorial bid and prominently co-hosting a big fundraiser Downstate last month for GOP presidential front-runner Mitt Romney, to name just two.He is also one of the disgusting CEOs who protested being forced to provide his employees with healthcare when the Affordable Care Act took effect. In fact, he hated it so much that he made an appearance on Fox News and said that he would begin cutting his workers hours in an attempt to avoid it.As if all of that wasn t reason enough to avoid his company, in 2014 Democrats in the House of Representatives sent a letter to the Labor Department and Federal Trade Commission asking for them to investigate Jimmy John s after the company forced employees to sign non-compete agreements. The letter stated: There is no justifiable business interest in imposing such a restriction on restaurant employees that are not privy to any of the company s proprietary information. Furthermore, we believe this practice can intimidate working individuals, many of whom are struggling to support themselves and their families while earning barely above the minimum wage. With all of these unsavory facts out there, it s not surprising that Jimmy John s would try to woo people with $1 sandwiches. Unfortunately for them, there are thousands of people like me who want everyone to know how horrible the company and its CEO really are. It is going to take a helluva lot more than cheap sandwiches to make us forget all of this.Featured image Instagram | 1real |
Jordan says U.S. strike on Syria was 'necessary response': Petra | CAIRO (Reuters) - Jordan said on Friday a U.S. air strike on a Syrian air base was a “necessary and appropriate response” to a chemical weapons attack this week which the United States and its allies blamed on Syria’s government. The chemical incident was “an inhuman act ... which drew wide-ranging international reactions, the latest of which was the U.S. military strike. “Jordan considers this a necessary and appropriate response to the continued targeting of civilians”, government spokesman Mohammed al-Momeni said, quoted by state news agency Petra. Syria’s government denies using chemical weapons. | 0fake |
‘Daily Show’ DESTROYS Transphobic Republicans For Their Ridiculous Bathroom Bills (VIDEO) | On Wednesday night, Daily Show correspondent Jessica Williams took on the absolutely ridiculous bathroom bills that GOP lawmakers have made their focus in their quest to harass and discriminate against the LGBT community. It seems that the more visibility that the transgender community gets, the more energy Republican legislators put into proposing anti-transgender bills to police what bathrooms they can and can t use.To try to understand exactly why this is, Williams spoke to several trans people and one of their biggest opponents, Chaplain and state Rep. Gordon Klingenschmitt (R-CO). Williams confronted the transphobic lawmaker about his belief that transgender people are merely confused, and completely destroyed him. In expressing his asinine and twisted religious beliefs, Klingenschmitt told Williams just why transgender people were such a threat to the rest of the country: They not only want to be confused about their own identity, but they want the rest of us to be confused with them. Now they want the government to join them on that pretense? They re making us into liars. Interesting because when Williams actually asked trans people what they wanted, all they said was respect. They weren t trying to confuse or trick anyone about their identity, and insisted that their gender identity was not actually a choice (research can confirm this).Klingenschmitt wanted to go more into the discussion of religion, but insisted on changing first. He said: I would be comfortable talking about religious freedom, but I have to change into my alter ego. Williams waited for him to transition so he would feel more comfortable during our interview, while Klingenschmitt remained completely clueless to how ironic the situation had become.When Williams questioned Klingenschmitt about why he was so passionate about passing transphobic legislation, he replied: I mean, that is perversion. It s people who label themselves as transgender for the purpose of getting that access to violate the rights of others. Williams then targeted his role as a chaplain and asked him, Is it fair to say that if you re a priest you re a pedophile? Klingenschmitt said no, and Williams asked him why. He replied: Because some people are criminals, and some people are not criminals. Klingenschmitt then said he was unable to apply that same logic to the trans community because they re apples and oranges. Williams was able to gather that Klingenschmitt s concern was that policies allowing trans women to use bathrooms that match their gender identity would result in sexual assault even though there have literally been NO reported instances where sexual assault has happened as a result of this.You can watch her dismantle the GOP s anti-trans panic below:The Daily Show with Trevor Noah Get More: The Daily Show Full Episodes,The Daily Show on Facebook,The Daily Show Video Archive Featured image via screen capture | 1real |
HOUSE OF LIES: Pedophilia Allegations Levied Against Anti-Trump Actor Kevin Spacey Who Has Secret History With Bill Clinton | How should the gay community feel about the Trump-hating actor, and Bill Clinton pal, Kevin Spacey, coming out as a gay man, as an excuse or distraction for attempting to molest a 14-year-old boy when he was 26-years -old? Star Trek: Discovery actor Anthony Rapp claims Kevin Spacey got sexually aggressive toward him when he was only 14 years old, and Spacey has responded by apologizing and coming out as gay.Rapp told BuzzFeed News the incident occurred in 1986 the 2 were both on Broadway at the time. Rapp says Spacey told him he was having a party and invited him.Rapp says he got bored and retreated to the bedroom to watch TV. He said Spacey came in the room and appeared drunk, then picked me up like a groom picks up the bride over the threshold. But I don t, like, squirm away initially, because I m like, What s going on? And then he lays down on top of me. Rapp says Spacey was holding him down as he struggled to get away, adding, He was trying to seduce me. He eventually got away and left.Spacey, now 58, responded on social media, saying, I have a lot of respect and admiration for Anthony Rapp as an actor. I am beyond horrified to hear his story. I honestly do not remember the encounter, it would have been over 30 years ago. But if I did behave as he describes, I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior In response to the allegations, Spacey tweeted that he was beyond horrified to hear [Rapp s] story. TMZ I honestly do not remember the encounter, it would have been over 30 years ago. But if I did behave then as he describes, I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior, and I am sorry for the feelings he describes having carried with him all these years. Here is Kevin Spacey s Sorry, but I was drunk and I don t remember, but am truly sorry if I acted as a child predator and oh, by the way, I m gay, so can we just make that the news story? [Our summary of the tweet]:pic.twitter.com/X6ybi5atr5 Kevin Spacey (@KevinSpacey) October 30, 2017Here are some of the reactions to Spacey s Apology/Coming out tweet:You don't remember the incident but remember being drunk? Elizaeverafter (@Elizaeverafter) October 30, 2017Dude, you did this to a kid. Screw you. The Columbia Bugle (@ColumbiaBugle) October 30, 2017These comments praising Kevin Spacey are just disgusting. What is wrong with you people excusing this behavior. WTF Katica (@GOPPollAnalyst) October 30, 2017Is everyone on this thread making note of who this person is? CEO of Allied Artists excusing sexual assault of a minor Lydia Snider (@LydiaSnider) October 30, 2017 In 2008, financier Jeffrey Epstein, whose friends included some of the most powerful people on the planet, was convicted of soliciting an under-age girl for prostitution.Spacey was on board Epstein s private jet with Bill Clinton when it flew from JFK Airport into the Azores before the former President and the actor enjoyed a tour of Africa.According to Fox News, Epstein, Allegedly had a team of traffickers who procured girls as young as 12 to service his friends on Orgy Island, an estate on Epstein s 72-acre island, called Little St. James, in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Bill Clinton took at least 26 trips on the Lolita Express, a luxury jet fitted out with beds where prominent elitists allegedly had sex with young girls, ditching his Secret Service detail for 5 of those trips.Clinton chose to continue his association with Epstein even after, according to the Alliance to Rescue Victims of Trafficking, everyone within his inner circles knew was a pedophile. Epstein also reportedly had 21 different phone numbers for Bill Clinton.While there is no evidence to suggest Spacey engaged in criminal activity while on board Epstein s jet, his admission that he sexually assaulted a 14-year-old boy is sure to provoke further questions.ABC Action News Spacey, who has been famously private about his personal life, said that he now lives as a gay man which marked the first time the actor has made a public statement about his sexual orientation. This story has encouraged me to address other things about my life, Spacey said in his tweet. He continued that he has had relationships with both men and women, and added, I have loved and had romantic encounters with men throughout my life, and I choose now to live as a gay man. Is Spacey suggesting that s it s normal behavior for all gay men to molest young boys? Or is the Trump-hating actor attempting to convince people that it s okay for a 26-year-old man to molest a 14-year-old boy if he was drunk, or that if he already forgotten about it, we should too?So many questions remain, like for instance, will Prince Charles Un-Knight the alleged pedophile actor?https://twitter.com/KevinSpacey/status/743590498456088576Spacey took the opportunity to bash Trump while in France at an awards ceremony: Watch Spacey and unhinged Late Show s Stephen Colbert, who been allowing Donald Trump to live rent-free in his head for well over a year, bash Donald Trump: | 1real |
U.S. District Judge orders homophobic Kentucky clerk to explain why she shouldn’t be fined or jailed for contempt | Kim Davis — the Rowan County, Kentucky Clerk who earlier today brazenly defied the Supreme Court’s order to issue marriage licenses citing “God’s authority” — has been ordered to stand before U.S. District Judge David Bunning on Thursday and explain why she shouldn’t be jailed and fined for her actions.
In a statement released after she refused, for the fourth time, to issue David Moore and David Ermold a marriage license, Davis said that “[t]o issue a marriage license which conflicts with God’s definition of marriage, with my name affixed to the certificate, would violate my conscience. It is not a light issue for me. It is a Heaven or Hell decision.”
“I was elected by the people to serve as the County Clerk,” she continued, and “I intend to continue to serve the people of Rowan County, but I cannot violate my conscience.” That she is an elected official has become a point of contention, because as such she can’t be fired for refusing to abide by the Supreme Court’s ruling. Removing her from office would entail impeachment proceedings, which will either have to wait until the next legislative session or require the calling of a special session, which could be prohibitively expensive.
In the meantime, no one in Rowan County will be issued a marriage licenses. Lawyers representing the four couples who were denied licenses told the Associated Press that “[s]ince Defendant Davis continues to collect compensation from the Commonwealth for duties she fails to perform,” they want Judge Bunning to “impose financial penalties sufficiently serious and increasingly onerous” — but that they are not seeking for her to be jailed for contempt. The scene at Davis’ office this morning was raucous, with supporters of both side lining the walkway into it and occupying the tiny building. “Praise the Lord!” yelled one, “Stand your ground!” Another demanded Davis “Do your job!” One of her supporters was her husband, who noted that his family has received death threats and warned people that he’s a firm believer in the Second Amendment. “I’m an old redneck hillbilly,” he warned. “That’s all I’ve got to say. Don’t come knocking on my door.” Watch video via the Courier-Journal below. | 0fake |
Paul Ryan 1, Donald Trump 0 | Donald Trump is a proud man. He rarely admits that he's wrong. He even said, at one point in this campaign, "A lot of times, when you apologize, they use it as ammunition against [you]."
But Donald Trump effectively apologized twice on Friday -- or at least admitted he was wrong twice. And, arguably, he did it three and even four times.
First, on Friday morning, there was Trump's admission that he mistook video of the release of U.S. hostages held by Iran in Geneva as video of a transfer of $400 million from the United States to Iran. Then, on Friday night, he endorsed House Speaker Paul D. Ryan's (R-Wis.) reelection after declining to do so just three days prior.
Oh, and he also endorsed Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), whom he also conspicuously declined to back earlier this week.
"We will have disagreements, but we will disagree as friends and never stop working together toward victory -- and very importantly, toward real change," Trump said of Ryan in Green Bay, Wis.
The endorsement followed plenty of uncertainty. In comments to The Washington Post's Philip Rucker on Tuesday, Trump declined to back Ryan and said nice things about Ryan's primary opponent, Paul Nehlen. The snub was particularly notable since Ryan delayed his own endorsement of Trump. But given that endorsement eventually arrived, Trump's lack of reciprocation was seen as a political faux pas -- or perhaps a signal to Ryan that his continued criticism of Trump's controversial comments wasn't appreciated.
Trump also thumbed his nose at Ayotte, citing her lack of direct support.
“You have a Kelly Ayotte who doesn’t want to talk about Trump, but I'm beating her in the polls by a lot," Trump told Rucker. "You tell me. Are these people that should be representing us, okay? You tell me.”
In the end, though, it looks like a GOP nominee who often says things he might regret had come to regret these comments. Trump trails in the presidential race badly in recent polls -- by as much as 15 points -- and the potential for the GOP establishment to desert him was just not something he could take on.
Ryan has set himself up as the conscience of the GOP. He withheld his endorsement of Trump for a long time before coming around, and he has regularly weighed in when the establishment saw Trump going too far.
But what's most notable here is that Ryan continued his criticism of Trump even after Trump threatened to withhold his endorsement.
"We just came out our convention, and yeah he's had a pretty strange run since the convention," Ryan told Jerry Bader of Wisconsin local radio station WTAQ in an interview Thursday. "You would think you ought to be focusing on Hillary Clinton -- on all of her deficiencies. She is such a weak candidate that one would think we'd be on offense against Hillary Clinton, and it is distressing that that's not what we're talking about these days."
Ryan reassured that his support wasn't a "blank check" and even sent a fundraising email that could be read to warn of a potential landslide Trump loss in November.
If Trump wanted Ryan to kiss the ring and back down, he didn't get it. But despite that, he felt the pressure to back the most significant figure in the GOP establishment. And in doing so, he also bowed to the pressure he faced to endorse two senators who would be very important to GOP efforts to hold onto the Senate.
We're past the point where things like this can be cast as Trump truly changing tack and shifting into general election mode. But clearly, this was one case in which he bowed to the kind of political reality he usually shrugs at. | 0fake |
U.S. House passes $1.2 trillion measure to fund government | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday passed a $1.2 trillion bill to fund most government activities in the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1, knowing the Senate will disagree with many controversial elements and force a negotiation that could stretch into December. The bill, passed by a 211-198 vote largely along party lines in the Republican-controlled House, provides $658.1 billion for the Department of Defense and $44.3 billion for the Department of Homeland Security, including roughly $1.6 billion for construction of physical barriers along the U.S.-Mexican border. The $31.4 billion allotted for the Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Forest Service, the Indian Health Service and related agencies cut the EPA’s funding by $534 million when compared to the prior fiscal year. The funding measure also included a provision that would stop the Internal Revenue Service from implementing a provision of the 2010 Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare, that imposes a tax penalty on individuals who elect to go without health insurance. Representative Kevin McCarthy, a member of Republican leadership, said the funding measure would make “major changes to the way Washington spends taxpayer dollars.” “Our funding legislation forces the government to do what it ought to do and to stop doing what it shouldn’t do,” McCarthy said in a statement, praising it for “strengthening our national defense, veterans’ programs, and border security,” and “cutting abusive Washington agencies like the IRS and the EPA.” Democrats warned that the bill, which bundled together 12 separate funding measures and earned just one Democratic vote, would need substantial revision in the Senate, where Republicans hold 52 of 100 seats but most legislation requires 60 votes for passage. “These bills cannot be enacted into law because they cannot gain Democratic votes,” Democratic Representative Nita Lowey said in a statement, calling the House-passed bill “inadequate and partisan.” | 0fake |
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