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Working the farm, while Trump talks tough on immigration | KING CITY, Calif. (Reuters) - On an overcast spring morning, about 40 Mexican men turned out in the pre-dawn hours to board a bus for California’s Salinas Valley where they would harvest 16 acres (6.47 hectares) of lettuce over the next three days. Hector Manuel Morales, 20, came north from Mexico to work the fields with his three cousins. He said his family worried about his journey, spooked by President Donald Trump’s talk of a crackdown on illegal immigrants. But he does not anticipate problems. While about half of U.S. crop workers are in the country illegally, Morales and the other men have H-2A visas, which allow them to work temporarily as seasonal agricultural laborers on American farms. “We are not violating any law here in the U.S.,” he said. “We come to work.” His co-worker Rafael Gonzalez Arredondo, 23, said listening to Trump’s statements about Mexico was “difficult, but we are going to show him that Mexicans are hard working people, that we are not what he says.” The men came to the country through a labor brokerage company, Fresh Harvest, which brings in H-2A laborers to work on farms in need of temporary workers. This year, the company’s owner, Steve Scaroni, says he expects to bring in about 4,000 workers. Companies like Fresh Harvest are attractive for farmers who want to employ legal workers but do not want to deal with the considerable government red tape and regulations associated with the H-2A program. Employers who bring in workers on the visas must provide them with free transportation to and from the United States as well as housing and food once they arrive. Wage minimums are set by the government and are often higher than farmers are used to paying. Still, Scaroni says he could find work for even more people if he had enough housing. While use of the H-2A program has steadily increased over the past decade, it still accounts for only about 10 percent of the estimated 1.3 million farmworkers in the United States, according to government data. In 2016, the government granted 134,000 H-2A visas. Alfredo Lopez Granados, 27, from Michoacan, Mexico has come north to work on an H-2A visa five times. He misses his family back home, he says, but the decision is not difficult. “Once you are here,” he said, “in one day you make more than you make in a week in Mexico.” (To see a related photo essay, click here: reut.rs/2qdtfnb) | 0fake |
Boiler Room EP #77 – The Venom of Divide and Rule | Tune in to the Alternate Current Radio Network (ACR) for another LIVE broadcast of The Boiler Room starting at 6 PM PST | 9 PM EST for this special broadcast. Join us for uncensored, uninterruptible talk radio, custom-made for barfly philosophers, misguided moralists, masochists, street corner evangelists, media-maniacs, savants, political animals and otherwise lovable rascals.Join ACR hosts Hesher and Spore along with Randy J from 21Wire, Andy Nowicki from Alt Right Blogspot and Stewart Howe of 21Wire for the 77th episode of BOILER ROOM. Dim the lights, dawn the headphones and indulge in some Boiler Room with the crew. This week we re boiling up some media maniac conversation with blend of topics that ONLY the Boiler Room can pull off.Please like and share the program and visit our donate page to get involved!BOILER ROOM IS NOT A POLICTALLY CORRECT ZONE! LISTEN TO THE SHOW IN THE PLAYER BELOW ENJOY!Reference Links: | 1real |
Will Trump block Comey testimony? White House does not know yet | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - White House officials said on Friday they did not know yet whether President Donald Trump would seek to block former FBI Director James Comey from testifying to Congress next week, a move that could spark a political backlash. “I have not spoken to counsel yet. I don’t know how they’re going to respond,” White House spokesman Sean Spicer told reporters. Comey was leading a Federal Bureau of Investigation probe into alleged Russian meddling in last year’s U.S. presidential election and possible collusion by Trump’s campaign when the president fired him last month. Critics have charged that Trump was seeking to hinder the FBI’s investigation by dismissing Comey. The former FBI chief is due to testify on Thursday before the Senate Intelligence Committee as part of its own Russia-related investigation, and his remarks could cause problems for the Republican president. Comey is widely expected to be asked about conversations in which the president reportedly pressured him to drop an investigation into Trump’s former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, whose ties to Russia are under scrutiny. Critics have said that such pressure could potentially amount to obstruction of justice. Presidents can assert executive privilege to prevent government employees from sharing information. However, legal experts say it is not clear whether certain conversations between Trump and Comey that the president has talked about publicly would be covered, and any effort to block Comey, who is now a private citizen, from testifying could be challenged in court. Democratic lawmakers sent White House counsel Donald McGahn a letter warning that invoking executive privilege “would be seen as an effort to obstruct the truth from both Congress and the American people.” In an interview with ABC News, White House senior adviser Kellyanne Conway appeared to indicate the president would allow Comey to testify. “We’ll be watching with the rest of the world when Director Comey testifies,” she said. But asked directly whether Trump would invoke executive privilege on Comey’s testimony, she added: “The president will make that decision.” Amid a political firestorm touched off by Comey’s firing, the Justice Department appointed a special counsel last month to take the lead on the Russia investigation. U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded the Russian government sought to influence the U.S. election in Trump’s favor, a charge Russia has denied. Russian President Vladimir Putin, however, said on Thursday some Russians may have acted on their own. Trump, who has raised doubts about the U.S. agencies’ findings and denounced the continuing Russia probes, has denied any collusion. | 0fake |
Trump's bid to open U.S. monuments to development draws calls for protection | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration’s call for an opening of U.S. national monuments to economic development has drawn 107,00 comments from the public, with many expressing hope that sites like Utah’s Bears Ears can maintain their protected status. President Donald Trump last month ordered the Interior Department to review some 27 national monuments created since 1996, with an eye to rescinding or shrinking the size of some of them to increase development opportunities. “It would be a travesty to leave this landscape vulnerable to uranium and fossil-fuel mining, and excessive off-road vehicle use,” the Navajo-led Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition wrote in one public comment. The five-tribe group oversees the Bears Ears monument and lobbied hard to secure its monument designation by former President Barack Obama in December. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke gave the public until May 26 to comment on Bears Ears, the country’s newest monument, and until July 10 to comment on the rest. As of Friday, groups and individuals had posted more than 107,000 comments on a government website created to receive them as part of the review process, a high number given the short time frame. A Commerce Department call for public comments on regulatory hurdles completed last month drew under 200 comments. One public comment, made anonymously, urged Zinke not to bow to industry and political pressure to alter the Bears Ears monument. “Do the hard thing, speak for the many and not the few,” it said. Many industry groups and politicians, including Utah’s governor, two senators and congressman, want Zinke to reverse monument designations and turn over control of the protected lands to states. Zinke is due to give his recommendation to Trump on Bears Ears on June 10 and publish a report on the other monuments later. Conservation groups said support of national monuments is wider than the online comments suggest. “This issue just strikes a nerve with people,” said Randi Spivak of the Center for Biological Diversity. But many opponents of the monument designations have posted comments, with some arguing that barring large swaths of land from any development keeps the public from fully enjoying these areas. “Sweeping monument designations ... restrict or eliminate opportunities for responsible off-highway motorized recreation on public lands,” said one anonymous comment, from a self-described member of the American Motorcycle Association. | 0fake |
Despite budget cuts, Tillerson works to win long-term influence | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - While he has swallowed a big budget cut, had his chosen deputy vetoed, and been dismissed as invisible in his own building, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is playing a patient game to gain influence by avoiding public conflicts with the White House, six current and former U.S. officials said on Thursday. The former Exxon Mobil Corp CEO faces multiple challenges in his unfamiliar role as chief U.S. diplomat, including a boss in U.S. President Donald Trump who makes unpredictable policy pronouncements and does not take kindly to criticism or contradiction, said four current officials. Relations between U.S. presidents and their chief diplomats have varied widely in history, but those between Trump and Tillerson are especially important because of potential conflicts between the unsettled state of the world and Trump’s “America First” agenda, two of the officials said. As a result, they said, speaking on the condition of anonymity, Tillerson is trying to keep a low profile, which is his natural instinct, and seeking a way to make his case on foreign policy without being drawn into losing battles. One case in point is Thursday’s White House proposal to cut spending on U.S. diplomacy and foreign aid by some 28 percent, a sign that the State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development are not Trump priorities.On Thursday in Tokyo, Tillerson said the State Department’s current spending is “simply not sustainable,” and accepted the “challenge” Trump had given in proposing to cut more than a quarter of his agency’s budget. “He is making a very sensible calculation,” said a former U.S. official, noting that Congress, not the president, holds the purse strings. “You state your loyalty to the president, and then you know that you will not actually have to live with the president’s budget.” NO WAY TO WIN ‘HEAD-TO-HEAD’ BATTLES Two current and former officials said Tillerson is no stranger to cost cuts, having lived through waves of them at Exxon, and they suggested that he had convinced the White House to allow him to make many of the cuts himself. “Tillerson isn’t opposed to cutting the budget at all, but he figured out that he couldn’t win head-to-head battles with the president and the people close to him, so he’s pursuing a different strategy, arguing that he can’t make wise decisions about what to cut until he’s more familiar with his department and its budget,” said one veteran State Department official. Michael Anton, a National Security Council spokesman, said Tillerson is held in high regard at the White House. “President Trump has the utmost confidence in the Secretary of State and looks forward to Mr. Tillerson implementing a bold agenda to revitalize American foreign policy,” Anton said. While he is delaying some of the drastic cuts the White House wanted, it is far from clear that Tillerson can prevail over Trump aides such as Steve Bannon who want to dismantle parts of the federal government and limit U.S. engagement with the world, said three of the current and former officials. The White House veto of Elliot Abrams, Tillerson’s choice for deputy secretary, the department’s second-highest post, “drove that point home,” one of the current officials said. Despite that defeat, a White House official said Tillerson has good access to the president, including multiple lunches, dinners and meetings. Tillerson dined with Trump on Monday, the night before he flew to Asia. Tillerson’s low profile - he held his first news conference on Thursday in Tokyo seven weeks after becoming secretary of state - has brought criticism from the media and many State Department officials that he remains invisible and has failed to cultivate potential allies in Trump’s cabinet and on Capitol Hill. Chas Freeman, a retired diplomat who served as the U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia and as the lead interpreter for former President Richard Nixon’s 1972 visit to China, said Tillerson’s low-key style might be a survival tactic. “If he says something, he runs a big risk of getting crosswise with Trump,” Freeman said. “This may be a Fabian strategy,” referring to the Roman statesman Fabius who defeated the Carthaginian general Hannibal by avoiding frontal conflict. | 0fake |
Donna Brazile Suggests Snowstorm Stella Could Hurt Trump Politically | Disgraced commentator Donna Brazile took to Twitter earlier this week and asked her followers if Snowstorm Stella’s disastrous effect on Americans could potentially damage Donald Trump’s presidency. [She used the analogy of Hurricane Katrina and the hurt it caused President George W. Bush, and how Hurricane Sandy marred former President Barack Obama. “#43 twisted with Katrina, #44 soaked in Sandy. Will #DonaldDumpStella? Can 40 million ppl find #Stella sobering under #45 leadership?” Brazile tweeted. #43 twisted with Katrina, #44 soaked in Sandy. Will #DonaldDumpStella? Can 40 million ppl find #Stella sobering under #45 leadership? — Donna Brazile (@donnabrazile) March 13, 2017, The Democratic strategist further politicized potential tragedy by posting another tweet with the hashtag “#StellaGotGroove. ” #StellaGotGroove #WinterStormStella https: . — Donna Brazile (@donnabrazile) March 13, 2017, By Monday afternoon, Brazile was still pushing politics and posting photos of the storm’s advancement. Here comes #Stella! pic. twitter. — Donna Brazile (@donnabrazile) March 13, 2017, Hurricane Katrina took 1, 836 lives in 2005. Hurricane Sandy killed another 106 people in 2012. Brazile’s tweets sparked outrage on social media, with many Twitter users asking why the former Chair of the Democratic National Committee thought it wise to politicize a potentially deadly snow storm. Brazile resigned from CNN last year after she was caught secretly sharing information about official CNN events with Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, Follow Jerome Hudson on Twitter: @JeromeEHudson | 0fake |
Inside the Deliberations of a Hillary Clinton Campaign Launch | Washington (CNN) This time eight years ago, when she first ran for president, Hillary Clinton was already officially a candidate.
"I'm in it to win it," she said in a YouTube video posted on January 21, 2007.
But even though a second Hillary Clinton for president campaign is all but certain, she and those close to her are debating when she should jump in the race, potentially delaying her entry by months.
There is no waiting for Republicans, who are engaged in a furious behind-the-scenes scramble for advisers and donors. Mitt Romney, Republicans' nominee in 2012, announced Friday he would bow out after just three weeks on the presidential speculation treadmill. Three Republican senators, two current governors and one former governor have all made active moves toward campaigns.
There could be ten or more Republican candidates by this summer. That might be when Hillary Clinton gets around to officially moving toward a campaign, if she heeds some confidantes, who are privately arguing for an announcement in July to coincide with the start of the third fundraising quarter. Delaying until the summer is an idea that is said to be gaining momentum against those who want to stick to the plan for an April start date.
The possibility of the delay is very real but still unsettled.
"I would say it's 40 percent," in the direction of those arguing for a delay, said one Democrat who supports a spring debut for Clinton's presidential campaign. Another Democrat who saw merits in both time lines put the odds of a delay at 50 percent.
Democrats on both sides of the debate spoke to CNN on the condition of anonymity so they could make their case without upsetting Clinton or those close to her for talking openly about internal deliberations.
Some Clinton loyalists worry that as the increasingly crowded Republican race heats up, the attacks on her could begin to stick without an apparatus in place to answer them.
The liberal superPAC American Bridge has been countering Republican attacks on Clinton's behalf but many Democrats think it's no substitute for a campaign messaging operation.
"They're doing terrific research," said one, "but they don't know what her specific policy agenda is going to be. She should get in and start putting together a substantive policy agenda so the attacks that are going to begin to come from every single Republican who is jumping in to the race can be answered."
The Democratic National Committee is beginning to take on a larger role in an effort to protect Clinton and the party brand but many Democrats are concerned even that won't be enough.
Other supporters want Clinton to lay low as the Republican field heats up, convinced Clinton will avoid some fire if she's undeclared and GOP candidates will take aim at each other instead.
"Never interrupt your opponent when it's destroying itself. That event in Iowa - nobody hated that more than [RNC chairman] Reince Priebus," said one Democrat, referring to the recent Iowa Freedom Summit, the first GOP cattle call for prospective candidates of many Republican presidential hopefuls (though noticeably neither Jeb Bush, Mitt Romney nor Rand Paul) attended. "Let's get Sarah Palin out there, let's get Donald Trump out there - the whole clown car."
Some Democrats believe it's also in Clinton's best interest to wait until President Obama, whose approval ratings have begun to rebound, becomes more popular, since a campaign by his former secretary of state will undoubtedly be seen as an extension of his presidency. It's a view shared by many at the White House who eye the entry of Clinton into the 2016 contest as the beginning of Obama's lame duck phase.
But if Clinton waits, she could run the risk of looking like she's taking the Democratic nomination for granted.
"The American people don't like to see a candidate assume that something is theirs for the taking," warned one Clinton supporter.
"If [Hillary Clinton] is trying to avoid a coronation it really is a terrible way to go about it. It sends a message that we don't have to campaign in the primaries." said a Democratic operative in Iowa, who warned it leaves an opening. "It really does require another candidate to fill that void"
And so far, no one has.
Vice President Joe Biden, former Maryland governor Martin O'Malley, former Virginia Senator Jim Webb and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders have all made the trek to Iowa in the last year, but none are being particularly agressive in recruiting staff or taking on Clinton.
"O'Malley hired one staff member the other day and that's all anyone is talking about," said the Iowa operative of the unusually quiet political scene in the early state. "It's kinda weird."
In 2008, Clinton's air of inevitability was off putting to many voters. Clinton and her advisers have been looking to avoid it this time around.
But without an insurgent, Obama-like candidate waiting in the wings (Clinton insiders are now pretty much convinced that populist darling and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren won't run, despite initial concerns she could mount a serious challenge from the left), many loyalists argue Clinton is safe to wait.
"If she's out there working hard, making her case, speaking to voters, that's what's going to matter," said a Washington-based Clinton backer who thinks a delayed campaign launch could benefit her.
It won't benefit her campaign coffers, however.
"Money will not flow until she's actually running," said one Democrat who cited powerful donor support for a Clinton run but acknowledged, "People don't give that kind of money on speculation."
The numerous Clinton loyalists interviewed for this piece admit there are arguments for both timelines. But perhaps the most important factor in deciding when to jump in the race is Hillary Clinton's personal inclination to put off campaigning.
The last time she ran for president, she entered the race in January 2006, almost two years before the election. The Democratic primary contest turned into a bruising slog that she is not eager to repeat.
"You can't dance in that spotlight for two years," a Clinton loyalist said. "She's not Rand Paul, she's the most famous woman on earth and every move is scrutinized." | 0fake |
Trump Admin Unloads Block of 271 Sanctions on Assad Regime for Chemical Weapons Attack - Breitbart | The U. S. Treasury announced on Monday that it is putting into place 271 new sanctions in Syria following a chemical weapons attack on April 4 that killed dozens of people, including many children. [Treasury said in a press release that the sanctions are “in response to the attack on innocent civilians in Khan Sheikhoun, Syria, by the regime of Syrian dictator Bashar ” calling the move one of the largest blocks of sanctions in the history of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). The sanctions are against 271 employees of Syria’s Scientific Studies and Research Center (SSRC) all of whom have expertise in chemistry and related “disciplines” and have been supporting Assad’s chemical weapons program since at least 2012, according to Treasury. “These sweeping sanctions target the scientific support center for Syrian dictator Bashar ’s horrific chemical weapons attack on innocent civilian men, women, and children,” Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin said in announcing the sanctions. “The United States is sending a strong message with this action that we will hold the entire Assad regime accountable for these blatant human rights violations in order to deter the spread of these types of barbaric chemical weapons. ” “We take Syria’s disregard for innocent human life very seriously, and will relentlessly pursue and shut down the financial networks of all individuals involved with the production of chemical weapons used to commit these atrocities,” Mnuchin said. “Today’s action follows OFAC and the Department of State’s sanctions announced on January 12, 2017 against 18 senior regime officials and five branches of the Syrian military, along with entities associated with its chemical weapons program, in response to findings by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons — United Nations Joint Investigative Mechanism, that the Syrian regime was responsible for three chlorine gas attacks in 2014 and 2015,” the press release said. The press release noted that these sanctions come less than three weeks after the chemical weapons attack and “more than doubles in a single action the number of individuals and entities sanctioned by the United States pursuant to Executive Orders, and that Assad’s actions are “blatant violations of the Chemical Weapons Convention and UN Security Council Resolution 2118. ” On February 28, just weeks ahead of the attack, Russia and China vetoed a United Nations resolution backed by the West that would have imposed sanctions on Syria over its chemical weapons program, AFP reported. “The measure drafted by Britain, France and the United States won nine votes in favor at the Security Council while three countries opposed it — China, Russia and Bolivia,” AFP reported. “Kazakhstan, Ethiopia and Egypt abstained. ” “It was the seventh time that Russia, Syria’s top military ally, has used its veto power to shield the Damascus regime,” AFP reported. Russian President Vladimir Putin had earlier warned that imposing sanctions on Syria during negotiations in Geneva over the more than civil war was “completely inappropriate” and would undermine the progress of the peace talks. “This resolution is very appropriate,” US Ambassador Nikki Haley after the measure was defeated. “It is a sad day on the Security Council when members start making excuses for other member states killing their own people,” Haley said. The resolution would have put 11 Syrians, mostly military personnel, and 10 other entities linked to chemical attacks in 2014 and 2015, on a UN sanctions blacklist. | 0fake |
WATCH: Trump Supporter Lynches Hillary Doll At Rally During Trump’s Appeal To Black Voters | If Trump supporters seriously want black people to vote for the Republican nominee, they should leave their nooses at home.Because during a rally in North Carolina on Wednesday evening in which Donald Trump made another desperate appeal to black voters, one Trump supporter draped a rope around the neck of a Hillary Clinton doll and hung her in effigy above the crowd for all to see.Ginger Glover is a toy store owner, so getting her hands on a Lyin Hillary doll was easy. But it was a terrible idea to promote lynching imagery in a state where black people suffered lynchings in the past.Glover claims that she was only trying to say that Hillary should be incarcerated at the very least and that hanging her in effigy was just for effect. Here s the video via YouTube:From 1877 to 1950, approximately 100 African-Americans were lynched in the state of North Carolina.Hanging a political candidate in effigy is an act of violence or threatened violence that has no place in our elections.This incident is even scarier considering that many Trump supporters are openly threatening to assassinate Hillary Clinton or lead a violent overthrow of the federal government if Trump loses the election, threats that only get worse as Trump continues to claim that the election is rigged against him.Nevertheless, it s going to be damn near impossible for Donald Trump to attract black voters to his campaign, especially if his supporters are bringing nooses to rallies and threatening to hang Hillary.African-Americans are not going to appreciate that imagery and they will not vote for man who condones it.Featured Image: Screenshot | 1real |
Police use pepper spray to disperse protesters at Trump's Phoenix rally | PHOENIX (Reuters) - Police fired pepper spray to disperse protesters outside a rally by U.S. President Donald Trump in Phoenix, Arizona, on Tuesday after being pelted with rocks and bottles, police said. Police have not given an estimate of the number of protesters, but Arizona media said there were several thousand. Police did not say whether the pepper spray was used on pro- or anti-Trump protesters, or both. “People in the crowd have begun throwing rocks and bottles at police,” Phoenix Police Department spokesman Sergeant Jonathan Howard said. “Police have responded with pepper balls and OC (oleoresin capsicum) spray in an attempt to disperse the crowd and stop the assaults,” he said. Four people were arrested during the protest, Phoenix Police Chief Jeri Williams said during a news conference. “We had tens of thousands of people downtown peacefully exercising their first amendment rights,” Williams said. “What’s unfortunate is that a very small number of individuals chose criminal conduct.” Police called on the crowds to disperse. Many of the protesters quit the scene, while dozens of police in riot gear and carrying shields sought to clear remaining protesters from the downtown area. The Phoenix Fire Department said it treated 56 people for heat exhaustion and dehydration at the convention center. Twelve people were taken to the hospital. | 0fake |
White House, government agencies discuss possible shutdown | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House budget office scheduled a call with U.S government agencies on Friday to plan for a government shutdown in case the U.S. Congress fails to pass a short-term funding bill by a deadline next week. “It is our hope that this work will ultimately be unnecessary and that there will be no lapse in appropriations,” a spokeswoman for the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) said in a statement. The federal fiscal year ends on Sept. 30 and Congress must pass a spending measure by then to keep the government open. In recent years, lawmakers have seldom agreed on a full federal budget and instead have relied on stop-gap measures. On Thursday, Republicans produced a bill which Democrats immediately rejected. The Senate is expected to hold an initial procedural vote on the legislation on Tuesday, according to a senior Republican aide. The White House was pleased that bill includes funding to fight the Zika virus, but has concerns about other provisions, spokesman Josh Earnest said, noting that it was “too soon to panic” about the bill. “I think it is unclear at best right now whether or not this particular piece of legislation will pass both houses of Congress and make its way to the president’s desk. Even if it were, it’s also unclear at best right now if the president would sign it,” Earnest told reporters. The OMB said there was enough time for Congress to pass a short-term funding bill, but “prudent management requires that the government plan for the possibility of a lapse.” Republicans and Democrats annually fight about spending bills but normally reach a deal to avert a shutdown, particularly during election years. In 2013, the two sides failed to agree, and the government stopped operations for 16 days. | 0fake |
NEW BOMBSHELL REPORT Shows DNC Emails Were Copied On East Coast ONLY 5 DAYS Before SETH RICH Murder…Disproves Russian Hacking Theory | DNC staffer Seth Rich was shot in the back several times while walking home late at night, when he was only blocks from his home. Rich was on the phone with his fianc when he was shot and left for dead. Seth Rich was hired by the Democrat Party as the official voter expansion data director. Although there is no confirmed connection yet, he was clearly privy to information that could potentially harm the Democratic Party, and more specifically Hillary Clinton s chances of winning the election in November. Although the DC Police Department ruled the crime a botched robbery, nothing was stolen from Rich after he was shot. Many believe that Rich was the person who copied the DNC emails and sent them to Wikileaks via a middle-man. Was Guccifer 2.0 the middle man?Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has strongly hinted that the source for the DNC emails he released was Seth Rich. In this interview with Julian Assange, he seems to suggest on Dutch television program Nieuwsuur that Seth Rich was the source for the Wikileaks-exposed DNC emails and was murdered:On August 9, 2016, Assange offered a $20K reward for information leading to the conviction for the murder of DNC staffer Seth Rich. ANNOUNCE: WikiLeaks has decided to issue a US$20k reward for information leading to conviction for the murder of DNC staffer Seth Rich. WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) August 9, 2016The report shows the DNC files were copied only 5 days before the unsolved cold-blooded murder of DNC staffer Seth Rich. h/t GPOn Sept. 13, 2016, POLITICO reported on Guccifer 2.0 s alleged hack into the DNC servers:If authentic, the documents would represent the latest strike from the mysterious hacker persona that has already roiled the 2016 election with leaks of documents stolen from the DNC and the House Democrat s campaign arm, the DCCC. Earlier document dumps include the internal communications that forced the resignation of former DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz this summer and fueled allegations of party bias against Bernie Sanders.The following statement from FBI Director James Comey seems to back up the assertion that Guccifer 2.0 was not the hacker. Comie testified to Congress that it was the assessment of the FBI that, hostile actors gained access to the private commercial email accounts of people with whom Secretary Clinton was in regular contact from her personal account. (like Seth Rich?)According to Fox News In May, 2016, Guccifer repeatedly claimed to Fox News during a series of interviews that he had successfully breached Clinton s private server. Guccifer made the same claims to NBC News, which published his claims later.In July, when FBI Director James Comey was asked about this claim before Congress, he testified, He did not [gain access to Clinton s server], he admitted that was a lie. Guccifer 2.0 was arrested and extradited to Romania where he is currently serving time for hacking offenses. In communication from jail, Guccifer 2.0 adamantly refuted the claim that he is Russian or tied to the Russian government via The Hill: I really hope you ve missed me a lot. Though I see they didn t let you forget my name. The U.S. intelligence agencies have published several reports of late claiming I have ties with Russia, reads the post. I d like to make it clear enough that these accusations are unfounded. I have totally no relation to the Russian government. Guccifer told Fox and NBC News that he breached Clinton s server, but in his May 2016 interview, when pressed by the FBI, Guccifer said the claims were not true. Here are a few key highlights from the bombshell report by The Forensicator that backs up Guccifer 2.0 s claim to FOX and NBC in 2016 that he did NOT hack the DNC emails and offers evidence that the emails were hacked locally (by Seth Rich?) and that the data was copied on a fairly slow USB flash drive:This study analyzes the file metadata found in a 7zip archive file, 7dc58-ngp-van.7z, attributed to the Guccifer 2.0 persona. For an in depth analysis of various aspects of the controversy surrounding Guccifer 2.0, refer to Adam Carter s blog, Guccifer 2.0: Game Over.Based on the analysis that is detailed below, the following key findings are presented: On 7/5/2016 at approximately 6:45 PM Eastern time, someone copied the data that eventually appears on the NGP VAN 7zip file (the subject of this analysis). This 7zip file was published by a persona named Guccifer 2, two months later on September 13, 2016. Due to the estimated speed of transfer (23 MB/s) calculated in this study, it is unlikely that this initial data transfer could have been done remotely over the Internet. The initial copying activity was likely done from a computer system that had direct access to the data. By direct access we mean that the individual who was collecting the data either had physical access to the computer where the data was stored, or the data was copied over a local high speed network (LAN). They may have copied a much larger collection of data than the data present in the NGP VAN 7zip. This larger collection of data may have been as large as 19 GB. In that scenario the NGP VAN 7zip file represents only 1/10th of the total amount of material taken. This initial copying activity was done on a system where Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) settings were in force. Most likely, the computer used to initially copy the data was located somewhere on the East Coast. The .rar files and plain files that eventually end up in the NGP VAN 7zip file disclosed by Guccifer 2.0 on 9/13/2016 were likely first copied to a USB flash drive, which served as the source data for the final 7zip file. There is no information to determine when or where the final 7zip file was built.Here are a few key conclusions from the report:Conclusion 6: The initial DNC file collection activity began at approximately 2016-07-05 18:39:02 EDT and ended at 2016-07-05 18:53:17 EDT. This conclusion is supported by the observed last modified times and the earlier conclusion that the ex-filtrated files were copied to a computer located in the Eastern Time zone.Conclusion 7: A transfer rate of 23 MB/s is estimated for this initial file collection operation. This transfer rate can be achieved when files are copied over a LAN, but this rate is too fast to support the hypothesis that the DNC data was initially copied over the Internet (esp. to Romania). This transfer rate can also be achieved when copying directly from a computer s hard drive to a fairly slow USB flash drive; there is a lot variability in USB flash drive speeds. We can shorten this statement and say that the 23 MB/s transfer rate supports the conclusion that the files were initially copied locally and not over the Internet.For an in depth analysis of various aspects of the controversy surrounding Guccifer 2.0, refer to Adam Carter s blog, Guccifer 2.0: Game Over.Here is an excerpt from Guccifer 2.0 s What Happened and When Did It Happen timeline: A lot of people are concerned if I have any links to special services and Russia?I ll tell you that everything I do I do at my own risk. This is my personal project and I m proud of it. Yes, I risk my life. But I know it s worth it. No one knew about me several weeks ago. Nowadays the whole world s talking about me. It s really cool!How can I prove this is true? I really don t know. It seems the guys from CrowdStrike and the DNC would say I m a Russian bear even if I were a catholic nun in fact. At first I was annoyed and disappointed. But now I realize they have nothing else to say. There s no other way to justify their incompetence and failure. It s much easier for them to accuse powerful foreign special services. They just f*cked up! They can prove nothing! All I hear is blah-blah-blah, unfounded theories and somebody s estimates.Specialists from Eastern Europe, Russia, China, India work for the leading IT-companies such as Google, IBM, Microsoft, Apple. There s no surprise that many hackers are descendants from these regions.Almost all recent famous hacker attacks have been attributed to Russia. the researchers supposed that the same instruments were implemented during the attacks. But I d like to reveal a secret to all those cool IT-specialists: all the hackers in the world use almost the same tools. You can buy them or simply find on the web.This line in Guccifer 2.0 s message is very interesting and extremely plausible:Guccifer 2.0 timeline. What happened and when did it happen? | 1real |
NATO Buildup in Eastern Europe: ‘We’ve Only Seen the Tip of the Iceberg’ | Sputnik October 27, 2016
NATO and Washington’s activities in Eastern Europe and the Baltics de facto amount to permanent military presence, Sergei Ermakov, a senior analyst at the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies, told RT, adding that we have seen “only the tip of the iceberg” so far. “Endless war-games and rotational deployments essentially amount to permanent military presence. NATO is testing a drastic military buildup. We have witnessed the alliance deploy expeditionary forces and assault troops to Eastern Europe. These are offensive, not defensive forces. What we have seen is only the tip of the iceberg,” Ermakov said.
The North Atlantic Alliance has pledged to refrain from deploying substantial forces along the NATO-Russia border on a permanent basis, but has been increasingly active in the region. The bloc approved its largest military buildup in Eastern Europe and the Baltics since the end of the Cold War at the 2016 Warsaw summit, a development viewed with deep concern in Moscow.
As part of this initiative, Canada, Germany, the UK and the US will establish and lead four battle groups expected to be deployed in Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Each will total up to 1,000 soldiers. These battalions are said to become operational in early 2017. The alliance has justified its massive buildup by blaming Russia for its ostensibly “assertive” behavior. Moscow has consistently denied these groundless claims.
Ermakov further explained that forces of NATO’s European members are not as lethal as they might seem. “On paper this is a force exceeding Russia’s [military] potential by several times. But it lacks real combat power. This is why Americans need to be everywhere. The US was forced to boost US European Command’s budget,” he said.
Earlier this year, the Pentagon requested $3.4bn for its operations in Europe in 2017, a four-time increase compared to its $789-million budget this year. A d v e r t i s e m e n t
Russian officials and experts have repeatedly pointed out that NATO increasing assertiveness has put regional stability at risk.
The bloc’s muscle flexing and aggressive rhetoric “greatly reduce European security and the chances for a revival of constructive dialogue between Russia and NATO, something Russia has been calling for so many years. Instead, the bloc is doing its best to provoke an arms race with unpredictable results,” Peter Korzun, an expert on wars and conflicts, wrote for the Strategic Culture Foundation. Ermakov also said that the United States wants to increase its presence in the Black Sea region to counter Russia. “Americans can no longer count on Turkey due to the failed coup attempt. Ankara has become a complicated partner. [Washington] is instead focusing on Bulgaria and Romania,” he said.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg mentioned Romania during a press conference held following the latest meeting of NATO’s defense ministers. He said that Romanian troops will join the US-led battle group in Poland. He also said that the ministers discussed progress made in strengthening NATO’s presence in the Black Sea region “in the air, at sea and on land.” This initiative will include among other things “a Romanian-led multinational framework brigade on land,” he observed, providing no additional information on the subject.
Ermakov further said that Washington also wants to counter Russia in Central Asia and the Asia-Pacific region. This article was posted: Thursday, October 27, 2016 at 6:39 am Share this article | 1real |
Kerry trip to Cuba for rights dialogue canceled: U.S. officials | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Tentative plans for U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to visit Cuba before mid-March for a human rights dialogue have been canceled, two U.S. officials said on Thursday, amid concerns over the Cuban government’s human rights record. Kerry told a congressional hearing on Feb. 23 that he might be in Cuba “in the next week or two” to hold a dialogue on human rights, ahead of President Barack Obama’s scheduled trip to the island on March 21-22. The sources said the trip had been canceled because U.S. and Cuban officials were deep in negotiations on issues including which dissidents Obama might see in Havana and that a trip in the timeframe Kerry had mentioned was not seen as constructive. State Department spokesman John Kirby said he had no updates regarding Kerry’s potential travel to Cuba. “The Secretary is still interested in visiting in the near future, and we are working with our Cuban counterparts and our embassy to determine the best timeframe,” Kirby said in an emailed statement. U.S. critics of Obama’s opening to Cuba have complained that the president has received little in return for restoring diplomatic relations with the former Cold War foe. On Feb. 24, the Cuban government granted seven dissidents who were out of prison on parole a one-time permission to travel outside the country in an apparent gesture to the United States ahead of Obama’s historic visit. | 0fake |
Susan Collins of Maine Says She Will Not Vote for Donald Trump - The New York Times | Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, announced Monday that she would not vote for Donald J. Trump in the presidential election, dealing another blow to Mr. Trump as he tries to unite his party and win more support from women. Ms. Collins revealed her decision in an opinion column for The Washington Post published Monday evening, saying that Mr. Trump’s proclivity for bullying and invective made it impossible for her to support him. She said she believed having Mr. Trump as president would make “an already perilous world” even more dangerous. Ms. Collins is the most senior senator to split publicly with Mr. Trump, and her message of censure could send a message to other Republicans that it is safe to shun the party’s presidential nominee. She is one of the few moderate Republicans remaining in the Senate and one of only two from New England, along with Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, whom Mr. Trump, after some hesitancy, endorsed late last week. Now in her fourth term, Ms. Collins also led the Senate committee that oversees homeland security, adding additional weight to her criticism of Mr. Trump, who has strained to convince voters that he is prepared to serve as the country’s commander in chief. While Ms. Collins described Mr. Trump as a person who would menace the country’s security, she hit him hardest for playing on the country’s racial and cultural divisions in the course of the presidential campaign. Faulting Mr. Trump for a “constant stream of cruel comments and his inability to admit error or apologize,” Ms. Collins specifically mentioned his attacks on Gonzalo P. Curiel, a federal judge born in Indiana whom Mr. Trump derided for his “Mexican heritage” Khizr and Ghazala Khan, the parents of a slain soldier and a New York Times reporter whom Mr. Trump seemed to mock for a physical disability. “My conclusion about Mr. Trump’s unsuitability for office is based on his disregard for the precept of treating others with respect, an idea that should transcend politics,” Ms. Collins wrote. “Instead, he opts to mock the vulnerable and inflame prejudices by attacking ethnic and religious minorities,” she continued. A spokeswoman for the Trump campaign did not immediately comment on Ms. Collins’s decision. The rebuke from Ms. Collins comes as Mr. Trump seeks to refocus his message in the presidential race, emphasizing themes of economic growth and nationalism rather than narrow political feuds with his own party. Mr. Trump delivered a speech on Monday in Detroit pledging to cut taxes and renegotiate American trade agreements, in an attempt to recover his footing after a debilitating start to the month. Within hours of his address, however, Ms. Collins and a collection of other Republicans had answered Mr. Trump’s grand address with an embarrassing signal of rejection. On Monday, 50 national security leaders who served in Republican administrations signed a letter rejecting his candidacy. In recent weeks, Republicans including Meg Whitman, a executive and Republican and Henry M. Paulson Jr. the former Treasury secretary, have broken ranks to back Hillary Clinton. In addition to Ms. Collins, multiple other Republican senators, including Ben Sasse of Nebraska and Mark S. Kirk of Illinois, have said that they will not vote for Mr. Trump under any circumstances. Several other lawmakers, including Senators Jeff Flake of Arizona and Mike Lee of Utah, have withheld their support from Mr. Trump without saying definitively that they will never cast their ballots for him. Ms. Collins’s opposition will probably make it far more difficult for Mr. Trump to compete in Maine, where he campaigned last week in an effort to scoop up at least one Electoral College vote. Ms. Collins is a popular figure there and her denunciation can be expected to land with force. Ms. Collins did not say whom she would vote for. | 0fake |
WATCH NANCY PELOSI Say She’s “Heartbroken Over Death” Of Rep. Steve Scalise, Who’s Still Alive In Hospital [VIDEO] | Nancy Pelosi attempted to offer her (incoherent) thoughts on the Democrat inspired shooting of US Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) that took place yesterday at the hands of 66 yr. old Bernie Sanders supporter and Trump hater in Alexandria, VA. In case anyone hasn t noticed, Nancy seems to be living in an alternate world lately. She s frequently confused and regularly makes nonsensical remarks, but referring to a fellow congressional member who s in critical condition in the hospital as deceased? Really Nancy?Watch:https://twitter.com/joshdcaplan/status/875413158600613889When will Nancy s voters begin to demand she take a competency test or step aside for the good of the nation?Here are just a few of Nancy s latest and best missteps. They would almost be humorous if she wasn t working as a public servant with a great deal of responsibility.On April 26, 2017, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi appeared on Meet the Press and gave a completely incoherent response to a question about the border wall. For the second time in a matter of weeks, progressive leftist Democrat Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi displayed what many believe can only be accredited to having a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome. While speaking to ABC s Jonathan Karl, Nancy confused the presidency of Donald Trump with George W. Bush for the second time since President Trump s inauguration.During two public appearances in March 2017, Nancy confused Iran with Iraq, pronounced words strangely, and claimed Republicans are offering a Mini Me or Mickey Mouse budget. Ends her very strange press conference by saying, I don t know. But there s no there there . We re beginning to wonder if Nancy is still there ?Is Nancy so flustered and panicked by Trump s presidency and her diminished role in Congress that she is no longer able to speak in public? Or, is it possible (all kidding aside) that she needs to be examined by a medical professional?You be the judge | 1real |
Dublin hopeful Northern Ireland talks can resume in coming weeks | DUBLIN (Reuters) - The Irish government is hopeful Northern Ireland s political parties will make a fresh attempt at restoring their devolved power-sharing government in the next few weeks, Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said on Thursday. The latest efforts to break a near year-long stalemate collapsed at the start of this month, prompting Britain to begin setting a budget for the province, a major step toward imposing direct rule from London for the first time in a decade. Many in Northern Ireland fear direct rule would further destabilize a political balance between pro-British unionists and Irish nationalists that has already been upset by Britain s vote to leave the European Union. I hope in the next few weeks we will be able to get back around the table. I think it is fair to say the parties are trying to move this forward and I hope the governments will be able to facilitate an agreement, Coveney told parliament. Coveney helped facilitate the talks as Ireland is a co-guarantor of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement which ended 30 years of sectarian violence that killed 3,600 people. He said he still believes a deal is achievable. Irish Nationalists Sinn Fein and the pro-British Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) shared power for a decade until Sinn Fein pulled out of government in January, complaining it was not being treated as an equal partner. DUP leader Arlene Foster has said she hopes talks can resume soon while Sinn Fein has called for greater intervention from the governments in Dublin and London. Analysts say a fresh round of talks is unlikely to be contemplated before the DUP s annual conference on Nov. 25. | 0fake |
Russian election hacking 'wildly successful' in creating discord: former U.S. lawmaker | CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (Reuters) - Russia succeeded in its goals of sowing discord in U.S. politics by meddling in the 2016 presidential election, which will likely inspire similar future efforts, two top former U.S. voices on intelligence said on Tuesday. Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and former House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers agreed at a panel at Harvard University that Russia likely believed it had achieved its goals and could attempt to repeat its performance in elections in other countries. “Their purpose was to sew discontent and mistrust in our elections they wanted us to be at each others’ throat when it was over,” Rogers said at the panel at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. “It’s influencing, I would say, legislative process today. That’s wildly successful.” Congressional committees have been investigating the issue since U.S. intelligence agencies in January concluded Russian President Vladimir Putin had ordered hacking of Democratic political groups to sway the election toward Republican Donald Trump. Moscow has denied any such meddling and Trump has been dismissive of the intelligence suggesting Russian involvement. Clapper said that Russia had long sought to influence U.S. voter behavior but discovered it could be far more effective at a lower cost by using social media to spread misinformation. “This is the most assertive, most aggressive and most directly impactful of any engagement that they have had in our elections,” Clapper said at the event, in Cambridge, Massachusetts just outside Boston. “They have to regard what they did as a huge success. They’ve been doing it in France and they’ll do it in Germany.” Russia has also denied attempting to influence France’s presidential election. Rogers maintained that he did not believe that Russia had specifically attempted to boost Trump’s chances of victory. “They saw the same polls that we did,” Rogers said. “Some notion that the Russians knew that Trump had an opportunity to win this thing more than U.S. public pollsters thought, I find ridiculous.” The congressional probe on whether Russia attempted to influence the election in favor is not the only investigation into relations between Moscow and the Trump administration. The Pentagon has also launched an investigation into whether Michael Flynn, Trump’s former national security adviser, accepted money from foreign entities without the required approval. Clapper is set to testify to a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the matter next week. | 0fake |
CAFE OWNER REACTS IN AWESOME WAY After Town Told Her To Remove “God Bless America” Banner From Front Of Restaurant | Bravo! This woman is example of true courage. More Americans need to take a stand against anyone who attempts to silence their First Amendment right Whenever folks in Penfield, New York get a hankering for pancakes for lunch they head over to the 5 Mile Caf .The family-owned restaurant is known in those parts for serving breakfast any time of the day (order their homemade corned beef hash).They are also known for their patriotism. We are very patriotic here at the caf all year round not just this time of year, owner Jennifer Aquino told me. We have American flags and patriotic things around the caf . So Jennifer decided to ask the town for a permit so she could post a God Bless America banner on the front of her restaurant. She wanted to display the banner from Memorial Day through Independence Day.There was just one significant problem.Penfield has a strict banner allotment policy. Businesses are only allowed to post banners for a total of three weeks out of the year. And Jennifer had used up her allotment. At one point we had banners all over the town and the town just looked trashy and our residents said enough s enough, town supervisor Tony LaFountain told WHEC.Jennifer s request was denied.Instead of posting the banner outside the restaurant, she posted it inside. And that was that until the Orlando terrorist attack. I decided on my way to work that I was going to put it up regardless of the town telling me I couldn t, she said. So I put it up. A bit later that day she received an email from the town telling her to remove the banner. They warned her that she could face a possible fine for violating the ordinance. I didn t take it down, Jennifer told me. And I was willing to pay the fine. The [message on the banner] means a lot to me especially during this time in our country with all that s going on with terrorism, she said. I just can t believe that I can t have this banner up and be supported by the town board. The fact that I m being asked to take it down is wrong, she said. It s against my First Amendment rights. People need to open up their eyes. If we start letting them tell us we can t do this it s going to get worse. Jennifer tells me she never imagined there would be a day like this in America. I have lots of veterans in my family, she said. I have a cousin who fought in Desert Storm so that we could have the freedom to hang a banner that says, God bless America. And yet we live in a nation where you can be punished for simply being patriotic.Via: FOX News | 1real |
BREAKING: The Electoral College Votes Are In, And Here’s How It Went | Despite all efforts to stop this from happening, Donald Trump cruised to victory today in the Electoral College, according to the Associated Press. Now, unless something really bizarre happens when Congress certifies the vote, Trump is officially the 45th President of the United States.Iowa s electors cast all six of their votes for Trump, Montana cast all three of theirs for Trump, Michigan cast its 16 for Trump and Florida its 19, and Missouri and Arizona put him up to 245 when their votes came in.It was apparently Texas that put Trump over the 270-vote threshold. Texas said earlier today that they might replace three electors who supposedly were ineligible to hold federal jobs, and there was a fourth who resigned. Election officials would have made sure that any replacements made would be solidly in Trump s camp, and that s exactly what happened.Other than that, though, there was little sign of defection from Republicans, even though there were people who insisted that as many as 30 would go rogue and vote for someone else.Now that he s solidified his win, what s going to happen? Well, for one thing, we can probably expect him to continue using his position to make himself richer. The Trump Organization has been pressuring foreign diplomats to hold their events at his hotel in D.C. Trump also canceled a press conference slated for Dec. 15, in which he was supposed to tell us how he was going to divest himself of his businesses.There s a chance he ll be impeached fairly quickly after assuming office because of that, depending on whether there s a case over the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution.Aside from that, though, Trump is now the president. We re probably in for a wild ride, and not in a good way.Photo of Donald Trump by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images. Photo of Hillary Clinton by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | 1real |
DNC To Sue Trump For Telling Truth: Trump Admits Everything Is A Lie | The DNC is suing the Republican National Committee due to Donald Trump’s claims that Hillary Clinton is committing election fraud.
Via YourNewsWire
The suit was filed in a U.S. District Court in New Jersey and aims to silence Trump’s claim that the election is rigged, which the DNC are particularly sensitive about. The DNC alleges that the RNC has not done enough to reprimand Trump for claiming that the election is rigged, and seeks to have the court hold the committee in civil contempt as well as levy sanctions.
The DNC claims that because the RNC has done “ballot security” work, they are agreeing with Trump that the election is rigged. Marc Elias, Hillary Clinton’s campaign counsel, claims that there is also a racial element to Trump’s claims of voter fraud.
“Trump has falsely and repeatedly told his supporters that the November 8 election will be ‘rigged’ based upon fabricated claims of voter fraud in ‘certain areas’ or ‘certain sections’ of key states,” the Democratic attorneys, including Hillary Clinton campaign counsel Marc Elias, wrote.
“Unsurprisingly, those ‘certain areas’ are exclusively communities in which large minority voting populations reside.” Election Day is in 13 days.
| 1real |
WATCH: This Democrat Just Released The Most Badass Campaign Ad So Far | Jason Kander is a Democrat running for a United States Senate seat in Missouri. The seat is currently held by Roy Blunt, a Republican. Kander, who is 35-years-old and is also Missouri s current attorney general, recently released probably the best political advertisement we will see in the 2016 election.Kander s opponent has been attacking him for supporting more effective background checks on gun sales.That was a major mistake for Blunt. That s because Kander is an Afghanistan war veteran. Which means that he knows his way around firearms, which Kander demonstrates perfectly in his campaign video. The thirty-second advertisement busts a myth that the right-wing has made about gun-law-reformers for decades that enacting smart safety regulations is tantamount to unilateral gun confiscation.In reality, despite what the NRA would have people think, gun law reformers want to create laws that should be considered common sense. Such as say, not letting people on terrorist watch lists purchase firearms.In the ad, Kander stands in front of a table with a dissembled rifle on the table. Kander proceeds to assemble the weapon while blindfolded. While Kander assembles the rifle he says: I m Jason Kander and Senator Blunt has been attacking me on guns. Well, in the army I learned how to use and respect my rifle. In Afghanistan, I volunteered to be a gun in an unarmored convoy of SUV s. In the state legislature, I supported 2nd amendment rights. I also believe in background checks so that terrorists can t get their hands on one of these. When Kander finishes assembling the rifle, he removes his blindfold and says, I approve this message because I d like to see Senator Blunt do this. A majority of Americans are in favor of expanding background checks. Yet, Congress has not taken action to support legislation that would create such a system. That s because the NRA is holding our Congress hostage. They donate huge amounts of moneyto political candidates. In 2016, so far the NRA has spent $825,000 dollars in campaign contributions. A paltry sum compared to the total amounts of money they have spent influencing politics. Overall, they have spent more than a quarter million dollars supporting Blunt.They also work endlessly to brainwash their supporters into thinking that all gun-reformers want to get rid of the second amendment. Which is absolutely not true. This ad effectively smashes that conflation in mere seconds.You can watch the ad below in full:https://www.facebook.com/kanderformissouri/videos/1102167116543853/Feature image from video screenshot | 1real |
Steven Mnuchin: ’Regulation Is Killing Community Banks’ - Breitbart | The highlight of Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s confirmation hearing so far was his rousing defense of community banks against overbearing federal regulations. [“Regulation is killing community banks,” he declared, and if the process is not reversed, we could “end up in a world where we have four big banks in this country. ” He went on to offer examples of how regulations enacted after the 2008 financial crisis had some unexpected negative consequences. Mnuchin ran through a list of regulatory agencies — “the OCC, the FDIC, Consumer Protection Bureau, the Federal Reserve” — and noted that “in certain cases, there is overlapping regulation. ” “My biggest concern, and I fully support regulation for banks with FDIC insurance, but my biggest concern is that this regulation is killing community banks,” he said. “We’re losing the community banking business. We’re losing the ability for small and banks to make good loans to small and businesses in the community, where they understand those credit risks better than anybody else. ” “I think that we all appreciate the engine of growth is with small and businesses. In my role at FSOC, in working with the different regulators, I would make sure that we did what we could to have proper regulation, but eliminate overlap, as well as make sure that the banks are lending to small and businesses, and we don’t end up with a world where we only have four big banks in this country,” Mnuchin said. He was referring to his prospective chairmanship of the Financial Stability Oversight Council, a new regulatory body created by the regulations to decide which private institutions are vital to the stability of the U. S. financial system, and so merit enhanced federal oversight. Senator Mike Crapo ( ) noted the importance of Mnuchin’s role within FSOC, which he criticized as “heavily focusing on some of its statutory mandates while ignoring others” since its inception. Crapo highlighted the statutory mandate to “advise Congress and make recommendation in such areas that will enhance the integrity, efficiency, competitiveness, and stability of U. S. financial markets. ” “To date, frankly, I’m not aware of FSOC fulfilling that role,” he said. “We don’t get a lot of advice from FSOC. We get a lot of directive in the country. Will you pledge, as the chairperson of FSOC, that you will ensure that the council considers ways to make the U. S. financial markets more efficient, and then advise and work with Congress to achieve those outcomes?” “I absolutely will, Senator,” Mnuchin replied. “Let me just comment on, for instance, the Volcker Rule as an example. I do support the Volcker Rule. I think the concept of proprietary trading does not belong in banks with FDIC insurance. ” The Volcker Rule is another artifact of the legislation, which as Mnuchin indicated limits bank ownership of hedge funds and private equity funds. In essence, it prevents banks from using the money they’re holding for investments that benefit the bank instead of its customers, which is the sort of activity that contributed to the immense losses in the 2008 financial crisis. “The Federal Reserve just put out its own report that the Volcker Rule has completely limited liquidity in many markets,” Mnuchin continued. “The Federal Reserve is concerned that the interpretation of the Volcker Rule doesn’t allow banks to create enough liquidity for customers. So that’s something I would absolutely want to look at. ” | 0fake |
Factbox: Trump fills top jobs for his administration | (Reuters) - President-elect Donald Trump will nominate high-frequency trading expert Vincent Viola to be secretary of the Army, a senior transition official said on Monday. Below is a list of Republican Trump’s selections for top jobs in his administration. Senate confirmation is required for all the posts except national security adviser, White House chief of staff, White House director of the National Economic Council and White House strategist. Tillerson, 64, has spent his entire career at Exxon Mobil Corp, where he rose to serve as its chairman and CEO in 2006. A civil engineer by training, the Texan joined the world’s largest energy company in 1975 and led several of its operations in the United States as well as in Yemen, Thailand and Russia. As Exxon’s chief executive, he maintained close ties with Moscow and opposed U.S. sanctions against Russia for its incursion into Crimea. Mnuchin, 53, is a successful private equity investor, hedge fund manager and Hollywood financier who spent 17 years at Goldman Sachs before leaving in 2002. He assembled an investor group to buy a failed California mortgage lender in 2009, rebranded it as OneWest Bank and built it into Southern California’s largest bank. Housing advocacy groups criticized the bank for its foreclosure practices, accusing it of being too quick to foreclose on struggling homeowners. Mattis is a retired Marine general known for his tough talk, distrust of Iran and battlefield experience in Iraq and Afghanistan. A former leader of Central Command, which oversees U.S. military operations in the Middle East and South Asia, Mattis, 66, is known by many U.S. forces by his nickname “Mad Dog.” He was in 2005 rebuked for saying: “It’s fun to shoot some people.” Sessions, 69, was the first U.S. senator to endorse Trump’s presidential bid and has been a close ally since. Son of a country store owner, the Alabama senator and former federal prosecutor has long taken a tough stance on illegal immigration, opposing any path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. Zinke, 55, a first-term Republican representative and a member of the House subcommittee on natural resources, has voted for legislation that would weaken environmental safeguards on public lands. He has taken stances favoring coal, which suffered during the Obama administration. The League of Conservation Voters, which ranks lawmakers on their environmental record, gave Zinke an extremely low lifetime score of 3 percent. Ross, 79, heads the private equity firm W.L. Ross & Co and Forbes has pegged his net worth at about $2.9 billion. A staunch supporter of Trump, Ross helped shape the Trump campaign’s views on trade policy. He blames the North American Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico, which went into force in 1994, and the 2001 entry of China into the World Trade Organization, for causing massive U.S. factory job losses. Puzder, chief executive officer of CKE Restaurants Inc [APOLOT.UL], which runs the Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s fast-food chains, has been a vociferous critic of government regulation of the workplace and the National Labor Relations Board. Puzder, 66, has argued that higher minimum wages would hurt workers by forcing restaurants to close and praises the benefits of automation, so his appointment is likely to antagonize organized labor. U.S. Representative Price, 62, is an orthopedic surgeon who heads the House Budget Committee. A representative from Georgia since 2005, Price has criticized Obamacare and has championed a plan of tax credits, expanded health savings accounts and lawsuit reforms to replace it. He is opposed to abortion. Carson, 65, is a retired neurosurgeon who dropped out of the Republican presidential nominating race in March and threw his support to Trump. A popular writer and speaker in conservative circles, Carson previously indicated reluctance to take a position in the incoming administration because of his lack of experience in the federal government. Carson is the first African-American picked for a Cabinet spot by Trump. Chao, 63, was labor secretary under President George W. Bush for eight years and the first Asian-American woman to hold a Cabinet position. She is a director at Ingersoll Rand, News Corp and Vulcan Materials Co. She is married to U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky. Perry, 66, adds to the list of oil drilling advocates skeptical about climate change who have been picked for senior positions in Trump’s Cabinet. The selections have worried environmentalists but cheered an oil and gas industry eager for expansion. Perry, who also briefly ran in the 2016 presidential race, would be responsible for U.S. energy policy and oversee the nation’s nuclear weapons program. DeVos, 58, is a billionaire Republican donor, a former chair of the Michigan Republican Party and an advocate for the privatization of education. As chair of the American Federation for Children, she has pushed at the state level for vouchers that families can use to send their children to private schools and for expansion of charter schools. The final leadership role of Kelly’s 45-year military career was head of the U.S. Southern Command, responsible for U.S. military activities and relationships in Latin America and the Caribbean. The 66-year-old retired Marine general differed with Obama on key issues and has warned of vulnerabilities along the United States’ southern border with Mexico. Recently re-elected to serve as Republican National Committee chairman, Priebus will give up his party post to join Trump in the White House, where the low-key Washington operative could help forge ties with Congress to advance Trump’s agenda. Priebus, 44, was a steadfast supporter of Trump during the presidential campaign even as the party fractured amid the choice. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY ADMINISTRATOR: SCOTT PRUITT An ardent opponent of President Barack Obama’s measures to stem climate change, Oklahoma Attorney General Pruitt, 48, has enraged environmental activists. But he fits with the president-elect’s promise to cut the agency back and eliminate regulation that he says is stifling oil and gas drilling. Pruitt became the top state prosecutor for Oklahoma, which has extensive oil reserves, in 2011 and has challenged the EPA multiple times since. U.S. Representative Mick Mulvaney, 49, a South Carolina Republican, is a fiscal conservative. He was an outspoken critic of former House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner, who resigned in 2015 amid opposition from fellow Republicans who were members of the House Freedom Caucus. Mulvaney was first elected to Congress in 2010. Haley, 44, has been the Republican governor of South Carolina since 2011 and has little experience in foreign policy or the federal government. The daughter of Indian immigrants, she led a successful push last year to remove the Confederate battle flag from the grounds of the South Carolina state capitol after the killing of nine black churchgoers in Charleston by a white gunman. McMahon, 68, is a co-founder and former chief executive of the professional wrestling franchise WWE, which is based in Stamford, Connecticut. She ran unsuccessfully as a Republican for a U.S. Senate seat in Connecticut in 2010 and 2012 and was an early supporter of Trump’s presidential campaign. U.S. Representative Pompeo, 52, is a third-term congressman from Kansas who serves on the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee, which oversees the CIA, National Security Agency and cyber security. A retired Army officer and Harvard Law School graduate, Pompeo supports the U.S. government’s sweeping collection of Americans’ communications data and wants to scrap the nuclear deal with Iran. Cohn, 56, president and chief operating officer of investment bank Goldman Sachs, had widely been considered heir apparent to Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of the Wall Street firm. Trump hammered Goldman and Blankfein during the presidential campaign, releasing a television ad that called Blankfein part of a “global power structure” that had robbed America’s working class. Retired Lieutenant General Flynn, 57, was an early Trump supporter and serves as vice chairman on his transition team. He began his Army career in 1981 and was deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq. Flynn became head of the Defense Intelligence Agency in 2012 under President Barack Obama but retired a year earlier than expected, according to media reports, and became a fierce critic of Obama’s foreign policy. Viola, 60, is a West Point graduate and U.S. Army veteran who served in the 101st Airborne Division. He founded high-frequency trading firm Virtu Financial Inc and served as chairman of the New York Mercantile Exchange, where he began his financial services career. After the Sept. 11, 2001, al Qaeda attacks on New York and Washington, Viola helped found the Combating Terrorism Center at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He is an owner of the Florida Panthers ice hockey team. CHIEF WHITE HOUSE STRATEGIST, SENIOR COUNSELOR: STEVE BANNON The former head of the conservative website Breitbart News came aboard as Trump’s campaign chairman in August. A rabble-rousing conservative media figure, he helped shift Breitbart into a forum for the alt-right, a loose confederation of those who reject mainstream politics and includes neo-Nazis, white supremacists and anti-Semites. His hiring signals Trump’s dedication to operating outside the norms of Washington. As White House chief of staff, Bannon, 63, will serve as Trump’s gatekeeper and agenda-setter. | 0fake |
70,000 Evacuated in Greece as WWII Bomb Found | THESSALONIKI (GREECE) (AFP) — Greek authorities on Saturday began evacuating some 70, 000 people in the city of Thessaloniki ahead of an operation to defuse a bomb from World War II. [The bomb, containing nearly 250 kilograms (550 pounds) of explosives, was unearthed in the northern city during road works last week and is due to be defused on Sunday. More than 300 disabled people and bedbound patients were set to be the first evacuated on Saturday using 20 ambulances, authorities from Greece’s second city said. The full evacuation of all residents within a 1. (1. ) radius of the bomb site, affecting three neighbourhoods around west of the is due to be completed before 0800 GMT on Sunday. Evacuation is “obligatory” regional security chief Apostolos Tzitzikostas told reporters Friday. The operation is unprecedented in Greece, “where a bomb of this size has never been found in an area this densely populated,” Tzitzikostas added. Regional authorities said the entire operation would take up to eight hours, but local military spokesman Colonel Nikos Phanios was more cautious. “We don’t know what we’re going to find,” he told AFP. Defusing the bomb and then moving it to a military shooting range “could take us up to two days” he added. It is not yet known which side in the war dropped the bomb or when it fell, Phanios said. A thousand police officers have been mobilised for the operation, with residents given several days’ warning via the media, leaflets and posts on social networks. Thessaloniki residents were facing disruption on the bus and train networks, with facilities set up to host evacuees in need of shelter. People living in a nearby refugee camp will also have to be evacuated, the migration ministry said, without specifying the number affected. At their request, the refugees will use the evacuation as an opportunity to visit the local archaeology museum, the ministry added. Seven decades after the end of World War II, unexploded bombs from the conflict are still being found around the globe. On January 23 dozens of people were evacuated after a bomb was found near a Hong Kong university, while three days before that Britain’s navy disposed of a suspected World War II bomb found close to the parliament in London. In the German city of Augsburg, 54, 000 people had an unwelcome Christmas surprise on December 25 when they had to leave their homes while authorities dealt with a bomb dropped by Britain during the war. | 0fake |
FBI Warns Of Possible Terrorist Attacks In New York, Texas and Virginia - USA News Insider | FBI Warns Of Possible Terrorist Attacks In New York, Texas and Virginia FBI Warns Of Possible Terrorist Attacks In New York, Texas and Virginia Posted By admin on November 5, 2016 Subscribe
FBI is warning 3 US States to take caution in order to prevent potential terrorist attacks. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is warning that terrorist organizations like Al-Qaeda could be planning pre-Election Day attacks in New York, Texas and Virginia. Officials have notified local and federal terrorism task forces about the threat, reported the New York Post . There are no information about specific sites that could be targeted in the three states, as the threat report is still being assessed.
1 1 like CBS News came out with a report that the most probable day for the attacks could be Monday. “The counter-terrorism and homeland security communities remain vigilant and well-postured to defend against attacks here in the United States,” said FBI officials. “The FBI, working with our federal, state and local counterparts, shares and assesses intelligence on a daily basis and will continue to work closely with law enforcement and intelligence community partners to identify and disrupt any potential threat to public safety,” FBI stated. Possible cyber attacks have also been reported on NBC News saying that the US Government believes that hackers from Russia or other countries may unleash cyber attacks causing chaos right before the elections.
| 1real |
War On Christmas Dimwits LOSE IT Over New Starbucks Cup – There’s Just One TEENSY Problem (VIDEO) | It s the first week of November, so of course, it s time for the annual War on Christmas idiocy to get underway. Last year, there was a massive brouhaha about Starbucks holiday cups they were plain red, and of course, people were pissed. Somehow, removing images like snowflakes and what-not from the cups amounted to taking Jesus out of Christmas. Well, Starbucks just put out a green cup with people on it, and of course, people are pissed.There s just one problem.The green cups aren t Starbucks holiday cups.Starbucks didn t even mention Christmas or the holiday season when they released these cups!They re actually unity cups, designed to help remind people that we re all people, all Americans, during an unprecedentedly divisive election season. Starbucks holiday cups haven t even come out yet, but they will be red with what looks like white holly leaves and berries on them. Or one version is the photo was leaked and we can t see whether there are several versions or just that one.Watch Buzzfeed News video about the whole non-controversy below:? It s the most wonderful time of the year ?People are mad about Starbucks holiday cups again pic.twitter.com/OXEkVtWeLk BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews) November 4, 2016And here is some of the proof that the War on Christmas blockheads are exactly that:Oh yes.. because Starbucks can single handily take Jesus out of Christmas with a cup MacDoesIt // 22 (@Machaizelli) November 3, 2016Starbucks is using a green cup for Christmas this year because they re a bunch of cowards https://t.co/ruoFJ4ED3B pic.twitter.com/4YmcjTdqBI Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) November 2, 2016RT if you think @Starbucks is trying to take Jesus out of Christmas with the new cup. Make this go viral so Starbucks makes cups red again. pic.twitter.com/KjscsgpAxQ Jazmine (@JazzHandd) November 1, 2016At Prince William Ice Center drinking my PSL in my ISIS-loving, Jesus-hating green Starbucks cup #HappyHolidays pic.twitter.com/Fb1YtfsOMo Kirsten Burt (@KikirBu) November 4, 2016#Starbucks launches new cup bomb as #waronchristmas begins. #starbuckschristmas https://t.co/oF583sse8E Charisma News (@charisma_news) November 3, 2016All I want is red holiday cups at Starbucks this green cup shit is unacceptable Mary Shampton (@youshouldmaryme) November 3, 2016This is the epitome of Christian ignorance and privilege. How s this: Learn what you re outraged over, accept that you just made horrific fools of yourselves, and get over it, people.Featured image via video screen capture | 1real |
Fidel Castro, Formula One, François Fillon: Your Monday Briefing - The New York Times | Good morning. Here’s what you need to know: • A recount effort in the United States presidential election that began in Wisconsin may extend this week to two more states narrowly lost by Hillary Clinton. Donald J. Trump dismissed the effort as a “scam” and unleashed a daylong storm of Twitter posts, including asserting without evidence that his shortfall in the popular vote was because of “millions of people” voting illegally. The Twitter outburst also came as Mr. Trump is laboring to fill crucial positions in his cabinet. An adviser assailed Mitt Romney, one the top candidates for secretary of state, as having gone “out of his way to hurt” the in the primaries. _____ • Mr. Trump’s business dealings around the globe are raising widespread concerns over conflicts of interest. One example is a postelection telephone call with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, in which the praised his business associate in the Trump Towers in Istanbul, above. In Scotland, Mr. Trump built a wall on the border of his golf course, blocking the sea view of local residents, and then sent them the bill. _____ • François Fillon, a conservative government veteran who called for economic sacrifice, major changes in the workplace and a crackdown on immigration and Islam, won a runoff to represent France’s Republican Party in April’s presidential contest. The outcome paved the way for a likely with the country’s party. _____ • The Cuban government is rolling out plans for a period of “Duelo Nacional,” or national pain, after the death of Fidel Castro, 90. The country, which defied the United States for nearly half a century before hostilities eased, remains firmly in the grip of his brother, Raúl Castro. The capital, Havana, has been quiet, but Cuban exiles celebrated in Miami. Mr. Castro’s ashes will be interred on Sunday. _____ • In Tbilisi, Georgia, a apartment shared by a computer science student and his younger brother is an unlikely offshore outpost of America’s fake news industry. “I did not write to make Trump win,” the student said. “I just wanted to get viewers and make some money. ” _____ • Swiss voters rejected a proposal to phase out nuclear power by 2029. • American retailers have geared up for Cyber Monday, the last day of deals in what has become an annual shopping weekend. Sales rose 18 percent over last year, to $5. 3 billion. Visits to stores dipped. • The European Court of Justice will hear arguments on Tuesday that will most likely determine how Uber can operate across the European Union. • Our business columnist tracked the fortune of J. K. Rowling, the “Harry Potter” author. He estimates Ms. Rowling’s net worth at $1. 2 billion, noting that she pays taxes and gives generously to charity. • A thinks it may have found the secret to growing truffles. • Here’s a snapshot of global markets. • In Montenegro, a detained mercenary is slowly spilling his guts on a purported plot orchestrated by two Russians to kill the prime minister and install a new government hostile to NATO. [The New York Times] • Viktor F. Yanukovych, the former president of Ukraine, said that he regretted not ordering troops to disperse the mass protests that forced him into exile in Russia. [The New York Times] • The U. K. Independence Party is expected to announce its new leader today. [The Financial Times] • The Vatican is seeking a grand compromise with China’s Communist leaders to heal a rift that has divided generations of Chinese Catholics. [The New York Times] • A Moroccan state broadcaster instructed women on ways to hide signs of domestic violence with makeup. [The Guardian] • U. S. officials say they will close a protest camp that has drawn thousands of Native Americans opposed to an oil pipeline in North Dakota. [The New York Times] • “I see the anger I was raised with rocking the nation. ” A young American who renounced white nationalism considers the wave of white rage that aligned behind Donald J. Trump as he ascended to the White House. [The New York Times] • A weekslong chess battle between Sergey Karjakin of Russia and the defending world champion, Magnus Carlsen of Norway, could end today. Simmering Cold War tensions have given the match weightier geopolitical overtones. A Russian spokesman said that President Vladimir V. Putin receives constant updates. • Anger rooms let customers smash objects to release their rage. Sessions are meant to be therapeutic, but mental health professionals question the efficacy of rampaging in a faux cubicle. • Nico Rosberg, driving for Mercedes, became the second son of a Formula One world champion to win the title himself. • “Hero of the Empire,” an account of Winston Churchill’s time in South Africa, and “Iza’s Ballad,” a meditative Hungarian novel, are among our 100 Notable Books of 2016. Here’s the full list. • And just look at these trees in Lapland, Finland’s northernmost region. They are so coated in frosty rime that they could be mistaken for towers of shaving foam. That banana you might be having for breakfast is probably a Cavendish, the most widely available variety of one of the world’s most popular fruits. But a deadly fungus is on the march, and the Cavendish’s lack of genetic diversity is raising fears of a possible “bananapocalypse. ” The killer, a strain of Panama disease called Tropical Race 4, has spread to China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan and the Northern Territory of Australia, and has recently been found in Africa and the Middle East. With its yellow peel and seedless fruit, the Cavendish makes up 95 percent of bananas sold worldwide, according to the U. N. Food and Agriculture Organization. The previous dominant variety, the Gros Michel, was devastated by another form of the fungus in the 1950s. Growers turned to the Cavendish, whose strength lies more in disease resistance than flavor. (One expert said it “had been considered something close to junk. ”) The Cavendish is thought to have arrived in England in the 1800s from Mauritius, taking its name from the family in whose greenhouse it was cultivated. Missionaries eventually carried it to the Pacific islands. One scientist sees a silver lining in newly urgent efforts to save the seeds from wild bananas. “Race 4 is a threat,” he says, “but it’s also an opportunity to start growing more diversity. ” Remy Tumin contributed reporting. _____ Your Morning Briefing is published weekday mornings. What would you like to see here? Contact us at europebriefing@nytimes. com. | 0fake |
FLYNN: When You Leave Your Pint at the Bar, the Terrorists Win - Breitbart | The photograph of a Saturday night reveler calmly fleeing the London attacks armed with a glass of beer he refused to leave at the pub shows that though the attackers and their victims lived in the same city they inhabited different planets. Englishmen are from bars, terrorists are from Kandahar. [The Muslims who murdered seven and injured several dozen Saturday night want women to wear masks, men to stop drinking alcohol, and everyone to drop into half tortoise five times a day. No thanks! One imagines that the weak pull of such a joyless existence encourages fanatics to resort to strong measures of the type witnessed on London Bridge and around Borough Market. When at first you can’t convert, kill, kill again. Perhaps we should give praise to Allah that instead of using 757s as instruments of death his votaries now rely on the vehicle favored by Scooby Doo, Matt Foley, and Postman Pat. This represents regression, or progress — depending upon your perspective. The perspective of so many in the West remains jaundiced. London electing a Muslim as its mayor last year and bestowing the name Muhammad — not Nigel, Simon, or Oliver — on more of its baby boys than any other strangely represents diversity rather than deterioration. Even the dimmest patron at the Globe Theatre would recognize this in a play as foreshadowing of disaster. But in real life we pretend to imagine the slow conquest of Europe as a multiculturalist dream rather than Charles Martel’s nightmare. Speaking of the mayor, Sadiq Khan announced in the wake of the attacks: “We don’t yet know the full details, but this was a deliberate and cowardly attack on innocent Londoners and visitors. ” What “full details” don’t we know? Khan seems confused about the religious motivation serving as the alpha and omega of the attacks. Perhaps “we don’t know yet” that the murderous trio remained CofE congregants in good standing until the moment of their deaths, but evidence indicates that they shared the same faith as Khan. But Khan, who does not yet know “the full details,” refrains from saying “Islam,” or “Muslim,” or “Allah,” in any of his public statements. The attackers proved more forthcoming. They redundantly shouted “This is for Allah!” as they killed people as though their victims might harbor confusion regarding their motives. Did anybody on London Bridge think their attackers militant Hawkwind fans or exclaim, “Oh, no! Anglican zealots again”? We may never know the “full details” about anything but regarding this thing we know that Muslim extremists murdered people. Why does London’s mayor mute this? The nihilism in responding to such intolerance with the empty mantras of “diversity,” “inclusivity,” and “multiculturalism” misses something obvious and disturbing and obviously disturbing. Outraged Muhammadans did not seize upon some hooligans with cockney accents mucking up the streets of Mecca. They killed Englishmen for behaving as Englishmen in England, a country, in case newcomers misunderstood its traditions, that features a cross on its flag and whose head of state refers to herself as the “defender of the faith. ” And what is London if not the antonym of Mecca? London screams the Ministry of Silly Walks, Page 3 Girls, Bertie Wooster, technicolor Carnaby Street, a ridiculous giant Ferris wheel, and The Beatles blaring Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band from the windows at Mama Cass’s Chelsea flat at 6 a. m. The extremists scream against all that. The proper response does not come in kind but involves an unhurried, imbibing of a pint, in the pub or in public, in the face of whatever disaster envelops. When you leave your beer at the bar, the terrorists win. | 0fake |
China's Xi tells India's Modi to safeguard peace in border areas: media | BEIJING (Reuters) - China s President Xi Jinping told India s Prime Minister Modi on Tuesday that the two countries should respect each other and safeguard peace in border areas, according to the state-owned People s Daily. Xi also told Modi that India should treat China s development correctly and rationally in a meeting on the sidelines of a summit of BRICS countries, according to the People s Daily. | 0fake |
I dare you to restrain yourself from laughing at Trump and Hillary in a stronger hot show | I dare you to restrain yourself from laughing at Trump and Hillary in a stronger hot show # akajsaid 1
off court okay a woman of the people that's what you're a man of the people who don't like carbon i was living in the white boy tell you what professional wrestling skin like a Russian drive safe russian and get there you going back with any probably couldn't find me you don't the job drunk think that decade not quite y'all just American side ... Tags | 1real |
The Tragically Hip’s Gord Downie: A True Canadian Hero | For those of you who have no clue who Gord Downie is, you are likely either not Canadian, or were born after the 90s. Gord Downie is the front man for the iconic Canadian band, The Tragically Hip . This band lives in the hearts of millions of Canadians and they are something we can basically call our own, as for some unknown reason they never really made it big anywhere else. It was recently announced that Gord Downie had been diagnosed with stage 4 terminal brain cancer. In the true spirit of the band, they decided to do one final farewell tour across Canada so that all of their loyal fans could enjoy the energy, performance, and great music, live on stage, one last time. The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) even aired the final show, in the band’s hometown of Kingston, Ontario. The Tragically Hip is such a big part of being Canadian that our Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, was even there, singing along.
So, by now you may or may not be wondering why I am calling Gord Downie a real Canadian hero. Yes, his music touched the hearts of millions, but it is because of how he has used his voice, time and time again, for the voiceless. Gord Downie stands up for those who are often not heard and advocates to bring awareness to a dark part of Canadian history and issues that are currently plaguing the First Nations people of Canada.
At the end of their very last show, Gord Downie didn’t draw attention to his own illness, and didn’t ask for money to be raised for cancer charities. Instead, Gord Downie addressed Canada’s new Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, and vocalized his fears that the Indigenous people of Canada are perhaps in more dire straits today than they have ever been. He said he believed that Trudeau could help bring about meaningful change and called upon all Canadians to “be more mindful of northern affairs.”
This meant the world to thousands of Indigenous people across the country, as this performance and announcement was broadcast on live television with millions of people tuning in. Leaders in the Indigenous population say Downie’s words are accurate and thanked him for taking the time out of his final performance to speak up for their community across the country despite his own struggle.
The Secret Path From the Secret Path website:
“Gord Downie began Secret Path as ten poems incited by the story of Chanie Wenjack, a twelve year-old boy who died fifty years ago on October 22, 1966, in flight from the Cecilia Jeffrey Indian Residential School near Kenora, Ontario, walking home to the family he was taken from over 400 miles away. Gord was introduced to Chanie Wenjack (miscalled “Charlie” by his teachers) by Mike Downie, his brother, who shared with him Ian Adams’ Maclean ’s story from February 6, 1967, “The Lonely Death of Charlie Wenjack.””
The stories Gord’s poems tell were fleshed into the ten songs of Secret Path with producers Kevin Drew and Dave Hamelin. Recording took place over two sessions at the Bathouse in Bath, Ontario, in November and December, 2013. The music features Downie on vocals and guitars, with Drew and Hamelin playing all other instruments, except guest contributions by Charles Spearin (bass), Ohad Benchetrit (lap steel/guitar), Kevin Hearn (piano), and Dave “Billy Ray” Koster (drums).
In winter 2014, Gord and Mike brought the recently finished music to comic artist Jeff Lemire for his help illustrating Chanie’s story, bringing him and the many children like him to life.
Secret Path acknowledges a dark part of Canada’s history – the long-supressed mistreatment of Indigenous children and families by the Residential school system – with the hope of starting our country on a road to reconciliation.”
This ten song album was released by Arts & Crafts accompanied by Leire’seighty-eight page graphic novel published by Simon & Schuster Canada. Secret Path was released on October 18th of this year in a deluxe vinyl and book edition and as a book with album download.
Downie’s music and Lemire’s illustrations inspired The Secret Path , an animated film was broadcast by CBC in an hour-long commercial-free television special on Sunday, October 23. The Secret Path and Road to Reconciliation panel discussion can be watched at cbc.ca/secretpath .
What Can You Do? Proceeds from the sale of Secret Path will be donated to the Gord Downie Secret Path Fund for Truth and Reconciliation via The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR) at the University of Manitoba. Money is also being raised for the Gord Downie and Charlie Wenjack Fund that focuses on cross-cultural education to support the healing and recovery of the Indigenous population, as well as directly supporting the NCTR.
You can purchase a copy of the book, album, or film to support this initiative directly, or simply donate by following this link . Share this article to help raise awareness about this important cause to finally try and bring about true reconciliation for the First Nations Peoples of Canada, and the horrible atrocities that they were forced to endure. It’s time to make amends, and you can be a direct part of that!
Much Love
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Elizabeth Warren's speech attacking Donald Trump made a bigger argument about Republicans | Most of the headlines from Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s speech at the American Constitution Society on Thursday were, understandably, about her attacks on Donald Trump.
Highlighting Warren’s rapid succession of fusillades against Trump makes sense. After all, outside of this election, you don’t often get sitting US senators publicly calling the other party's presidential nominee a "racist bully" who has "never risked anything for anyone and who serves no one but himself."
But Warren’s speech did much more than go after Trump. In her high-profile address, she pivoted from attacking the likely GOP nominee to attacking Republicans more generally, accusing the party’s leaders of orchestrating a prolonged "assault" on the independence of the federal judiciary in order to serve the wealthiest Americans.
For instance, when Warren highlighted Trump’s racist attacks against Judge Gonzalo Curiel, she said they were born from the same essential motivation as other mainstream Republican initiatives like the blockade of Merrick Garland’s Supreme Court nomination and the Citizens United decision on campaign finance: to help the richest of the rich.
"Donald Trump chose racism as his weapon," Warren said. "But his aim is exactly the same as the rest of the Republicans: to pound the courts into submission for the rich and the powerful."
Now, it should be noted that many leading Republicans, like Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan, have condemned Trump's remarks about Curiel. So it doesn’t seem entirely fair to blame them for what Trump has said there.
But the line does give us insight into how one of the leading progressives sees Trump, and it suggests how a Warren-led Democratic Party might respond in 2016 and beyond.
Many Democrats have said that Trump’s rhetoric against Curiel amounts to proof that he’s uniquely unfit for the presidency, as a sign that he goes far beyond even what other Republicans are willing to say.
Warren didn’t take this approach. Over and over, she insisted that Trump’s comments about Curiel reflect the Republican attacks on the courts — the only difference being that they’re done with less tact.
Where do you suppose that Donald Trump got the idea that he can personally attack judges, regardless of the law, whenever they don't bend to the whims of billionaires and big businesses? He's a Mitch McConnell kind of candidate … He is exactly the kind of candidate you'd expect from a Republican Party whose script for several years has been to execute a full-scale assault on the integrity of our courts, blockading judicial appointments so Donald Trump can fill them. Smearing and intimidating nominees who do not pledge allegiance to the financial interests of the rich and powerful. Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell want Donald Trump to appoint the next generation of judges. They want those judges to tilt the law in favor of big businesses and billionaires like Donald Trump. They just want Donald Trump to quit being so vulgar and obvious about it.
Warren connected Trump’s attacks on Curiel to Republican obstructionism against the judicial branch going back years, citing their unwillingness to confirm appointees like District of Maryland nominee Paula Xinis.
She began the speech, for instance, by citing her Senate office’s new report, "Going to Extremes: The Supreme Court and Senate Republicans’ Unprecedented Record of Obstruction of President Obama’s Nominees." And she said wealthy corporations have flooded the political system with cash in an attempt to corrupt the judiciary.
"The purpose is also to hamstring the president's ability to protect consumers and workers, to hold large corporations accountable and promote equality," Warren said. "In other words, to undermine the fundamental principle of equal justice under law."
It seems pretty questionable whether obstructing federal judicial appointments is really comparable to Trump’s attacks against a judge’s heritage.
But whether you buy Warren’s interpretation or not, as a partisan political strategy it has distinct pros and cons.
On the one hand, attacking Trump by calling him a mainstream Republican is probably not going to be particularly devastating to Trump himself.
Hillary Clinton's best shot at a landslide victory might be peeling away centrist Republicans turned off by Trump. If that's the case, comparing Trump's most outlandish attacks to the policy decisions of the party’s leaders may not prove particularly convincing.
On the other hand, though, it could help Democrats in their effort to ensure that it’s not just Trump who goes down to defeat, but rather the Republican Party as a whole. | 0fake |
U.S. lawmakers want 'supercharged' response to North Korea nuclear tests | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Frustrated U.S. lawmakers called on Tuesday for a high-powered response to North Korea’s nuclear tests, saying Washington should act alone if necessary to stiffen sanctions on companies from China, Russia and any country doing business with Pyongyang. “I believe the response from the United States and our allies should be supercharged,” said Representative Ed Royce, chairman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee. “We need to use every ounce of leverage ... to put maximum pressure on this rogue regime,” the Republican congressman told a hearing on North Korea. “Time is running out.” The U.N. Security Council stepped up sanctions on Monday following Pyongyang’s sixth nuclear test on Sept. 3, imposing a ban on textile exports and capping oil imports. It was the ninth sanctions resolution unanimously adopted by the council since 2006 over North Korea’s ballistic missile and nuclear programs. To win Chinese and Russian support, Washington dropped demands including a bid for an oil embargo. At the hearing, U.S. officials released American intelligence findings on how North Korea smuggles coal and commodities to Russia and China. Assistant Treasury Secretary Marshall Billingslea displayed slides showing ships he said picked up coal and other commodities in North Korea, illegally turning off their electronic identification systems to hide the fact that they were carrying cargo to China and Russia. “Pyongyang falsifies the identity of vessels to make it harder for governments to determine if ships docking in their ports are linked to North Korea,” Billingslea said. An Aug. 5 U.N. resolution banned North Korean exports of coal. Russia and China both say they respect U.N. sanctions. Committee members expressed frustration that previous sanctions had not deterred Pyongyang. “We’ve been played by the Kims for years,” Republican Representative Ted Poe said, referring to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his predecessors. Lawmakers pressed Billingslea, and Acting Assistant Secretary of State Susan Thornton for evidence new sanctions would be more effective. They acknowledged there had not been sufficient evidence that past sanctions had worked, but insisted the administration would work for a better result this time. “We can designate Chinese banks and companies unilaterally, giving them a choice between doing business with North Korea or the United States,” said Royce, who had breakfast on Tuesday with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. “We should go after banks and companies in other countries that do business with North Korea the same way,” he said. | 0fake |
Janet Reno, First Female US Attorney General, Dies At 78 | Janet Reno, First Female US Attorney General, Dies At 78 11/07/2016
NPR
Janet Reno, the first woman to serve as attorney general of the United States, died early Monday from complications of Parkinson’s disease. Reno’s goddaughter Gabrielle D’Alemberte and sister Margaret Hurchalla confirmed her passing to NPR.
Reno spent her final days at home in Miami surrounded by family and friends, D’Alemberte told The Associated Press. She was 78.
Reno served longer in the job than anyone had in 150 years. And her tenure was marked by tragedy and controversy. But she left office widely respected for her independence and accomplishments.
She was not President Bill Clinton’s first choice to head the Justice Department, nor his second. But after his No. 1 pick went down in confirmation flames, and his second choice also proved controversial, Clinton finally turned to Reno.
She was an unexpected pick. She had no connections to Clinton or Washington. But Clinton wanted a woman, and Reno was a big-time prosecutor, holding the top prosecutor’s job in Miami-Dade County, a position she had been elected to four times over 15 years.
Jamie Gorelick, who would later become deputy attorney general, was assigned to prep Reno for her confirmation hearing. “She was the least air-brushed candidate we have ever had for a Cabinet-level position,” says Gorelick. “She was herself, and she didn’t change herself for Washington.”
Reno arrived at the Justice Department knowing no one, and was immediately plunged into the siege at the Branch Davidian compound outside Waco, Texas. Four federal agents had been killed and 16 wounded while serving a warrant to search for illegal guns. Seven weeks into the siege, pressed by the FBI, Reno authorized a raid on the compound, resulting in 76 deaths, including as many as 25 children and the Davidian leader David Koresh, who ordered his followers to set fire to the compound.
In two sets of Waco congressional hearings over the next two years, Reno would successfully quell critics on the right and left.
“What haunted me,” Reno explained at one hearing, “was that if I did not go in, I might be sitting there 10 days [later] … when [Koresh] came out with explosives, blew himself, some agents and the entire place up.”
Years later, however, in an interview with NPR shortly before leaving office, her regret was palpable. “We’ll never know whether it was a mistake or not, in one sense,” Reno admitted. “But knowing what I do, I would not do it again. I would try to figure another way.”
“Waco didn’t make her hesitant: It made her insistent about getting her own information,” observes Walter Dellinger, who served in two top Justice Department jobs under Reno.
Dellinger believes, for instance, that it may have been the Waco experience that led Reno to go personally to Miami in April 2000 to see if there was a way to avoid a forcible removal of 6-year-old Cuban refugee Elián González from the home of a great-uncle so the boy could be returned to his only living parent, in Cuba.
Elián had been rescued at sea after his mother and eight others drowned trying to get to the United States. Rescued by fishermen and brought to the U.S., he was soon turned over to his great-uncle. The Cuban community in Miami was in an uproar over the idea of returning the boy to his father, who lived in Cuba, and the furor soon bled over to Congress.
But when negotiations with the great-uncle failed, armed federal agents, acting on Reno’s orders, raided the home, removed Elián, and turned him over to his father, who had come to the U.S. to receive his son. When the U.S. Supreme Court refused to intervene, the two returned to their home in Cuba.
Janet Reno takes the oath as attorney general during a ceremony at the White House on March 12, 1993, while President Bill Clinton watches.
Barry Thumma/AP
Over the course of time, Reno would become embroiled in many controversies. She sought the appointment of a series of independent counsels to investigate four fellow Cabinet members and President Clinton himself. But she refused to authorize an independent counsel investigation of contributions to the Clinton-Gore campaign after Justice Department lawyers concluded no crime had been committed by either the president or vice president.
The decision so infuriated Republicans that some called for her impeachment. “This is the most politicized Justice Department in the history of the United States,” railed Dan Burton, the Republican chairman of a key House oversight committee.
At 6 feet 2 inches, however, Reno stood tall in the political crosswinds. Gorelick observes that when members of Congress, like Burton, were unhappy with a government official, they threatened to call that official to testify. But Reno, who had served as a staffer in the Florida state Legislature, always said, “Fine, I’ll be there.” As a result, says Gorelick, “eventually all those who were threatening her with a hearing stopped doing that, because she prevailed in every outing that I can recall — she just went in there and laid out her views and bested those who would challenge her.”
The controversies that the Justice Department faced during Reno’s reign often eclipsed the many things that went well: the quick apprehension and successful prosecution of the Oklahoma City bombers, for example; the pursuit of bombers of women’s health clinics that provide abortions; and the solving of the so-called Unabomber case.
After nearly two decades of fruitless pursuit, the FBI still had no idea as to the identity of the man dubbed the Unabomber, who had killed three people and injured 23. Then, in 1995, the bomber sent a letter to The New York Times offering to cease his terror campaign if the Times or the Washington Post would publish his 35,000-word manifesto against modern industry and technology. Neither newspaper was inclined to do that initially, but Reno, the daughter of two newspaper journalists, persuaded the newspaper owners to jointly publish the essay in the interests of public safety.
It paid off. The Unabomber’s brother recognized the style and ideas in the essay and tipped off the FBI, ending the bomber’s long reign of terror. Theodore Kaczynski, aka the Unabomber, is now serving a life term in a maximum security federal prison.
In 1995 Reno was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. She did not slow down, but her hands sometimes shook so hard you could hear them knocking against the table at a congressional hearing. She even joked about the disease, claiming that “shaking sometimes helps,” as in playing a steel drum or balancing her kayak.
That combination of toughness and self-deprecating humor, plus her determination to protect the Justice Department from improper influence, made her a hero to many who worked for her.
“Janet Reno led with her values,” says former Deputy Attorney General Gorelick, the department’s No. 2 official. “And that meant that if she decided that a certain path was the right thing to do, the people around her believed her and would charge up any hill behind her. … I’d never seen that before in quite the same way.”
Florida gubernatorial candidate and former U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno speaks at the Florida Democratic Party State Conference on April 13, 2002, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. She lost the Democratic primary.
Reno won enormous respect inside the department as well, because of her work ethic and dedication to understanding issues in the many parts of the Justice Department — from national security, to environmental questions, to the generally obscure field of Indian law.
U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch called her “one of the most effective, decisive and well-respected-leaders in [the department’s] proud history” who “never shied from criticism or shirked responsibility.” And former Attorney General Eric Holder said that “in a city where too many compromise their values for short term political gain, Janet Reno stood out as a person of integrity and of enduring values.”
Former Solicitor General Dellinger believes that Reno was prepared for the attorney general’s job early in life by her intellect and ungainly height. “This is a woman that went to Cornell and Harvard Law School at a time when very few women went to Harvard Law School, went through junior high and high school being twice as tall as anybody else and probably twice as smart … and that’s really, really tough.”
There were, of course, ups and downs in the eight years of Reno’s reign. But she said she always took the long view of her job.
“If the end brings me out right, what people said about me won’t make any difference, and if the end brings me out wrong, 10 angels saying I was right won’t make any difference,” she said in an interview with NPR in 1997.
President Clinton made little secret of his frequent displeasure with Reno and the wall of separation she erected between the Justice Department and the White House. Still, he never asked her to resign. Reno was the last Cabinet member he reappointed after his re-election in 1996.
“It was actually quite wonderful,” said Dellinger. “She just decided to stay, and it turns out that nobody could fire her.”
The tension between Clinton and his attorney general was apparent even as Clinton’s time in office drew to a close. In an interview with CBS News’ 60 Minutes , Clinton went out of his way to praise friends and foes alike, but when it came to his evaluation of Reno, he was tepid, to say the least.
“Good woman,” he said. “Tried really hard to do a good job. She’s a good person.”
“At least he didn’t say I was a bad person,” replied Reno, with a laugh. “I’ll take what I can get!”
Indeed, by the end of her tenure, Janet Reno had outlasted her critics and earned such a reputation for integrity and independence that comedian Will Ferrell’s parody of her became one of the iconic skits on NBC’s Saturday Night Live . The recurring skit was inspired by reports that Reno had cut quite a figure dancing at a Justice Department party.
On the last episode of the “Janet Reno’s Dance Party” parody, Ferrell, wearing a blue dress and pearls, reminisces about past glories and laments that the end of the party is near. Then, suddenly, the real Janet Reno comes crashing through the wall of the set, wearing the same blue dress and pearls as Ferrell, to deliver one of Ferrell’s signature lines: “It’s Reno Time!”
“Oh, Janet,” he says to the real Reno, as he mourns the end of the skit’s run, “what do you do when you get sad?”
“I just dance,” Reno replies, commanding the orchestra, “Now, hit it!” as she breaks out her best moves to “Twist and Shout.” It was her last day in office. | 1real |
U.S. rescinds Obama plan for some undocumented parents | (Reuters) - U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly signed a memorandum on Thursday rescinding an Obama-era plan to spare some illegal immigrant parents of children who are lawful permanent residents from being deported, the department said in a statement. The program, which was announced by President Barack Obama in 2014, never took effect because it was blocked in federal court. Obama had hoped that overhauling the U.S. immigration system and resolving the fate of the estimated 11 million people in the country illegally would be part of his presidential legacy. However, President Donald Trump has vowed to crack down on illegal immigration. The plan unveiled by Obama intended to let roughly 4 million people - those who have lived illegally in the United States at least since 2010, have no criminal record and have children who are U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents - get into a program that shields them from deportation and supplies work permits. However, it was quickly challenged in court by Republican-governed Texas and 25 other states that argued Obama had overstepped the powers granted to him by the U.S. Constitution by infringing upon the authority of Congress. A federal appeals court blocked the program, and the U.S. Supreme Court let that ruling stand in a 4-4 split decision last year. Kelly said in a statement on Thursday he was rescinding the initiative, known as DAPA, because “there is no credible path forward to litigate the currently enjoined policy.” An earlier program, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), offers some 750,000 immigrants brought to the country illegally as children the chance to attend school and to work. Trump has previously said his administration was devising a policy on how to deal with individuals covered by DACA, but no formal changes have been announced. “They shouldn’t be very worried,” Trump said of DACA recipients in a January ABC News interview. “I do have a big heart.” | 0fake |
President Elect Trump – A New Era of Unpredictability Awaits | President Elect Trump – A New Era of Unpredictability Awaits President Elect Trump is new title for New York businessman, millionaire and Republican candidate Do... Print Email http://humansarefree.com/2016/11/president-elect-trump-new-era-of.html President Elect Trump is new title for New York businessman, millionaire and Republican candidate Donald J. Trump, who yesterday on November 8th, 2016 successfully won the US presidential election. Trump managed to defeat favorite Hillary Clinton by a relatively narrow margin. The victory came as a shock to many Americans, regardless of where they reside on the political spectrum. For many in the alternative media, the victory of President Elect Trump comes with a great sense of relief that career criminal Hillary Clinton was not elected (or installed) as so many had expected. Clinton had already showed a propensity to collude, cheat and lie during the Democratic Primaries where she triumphed with dirty tactics over Bernie Sanders.For many others, turned off by Trump’s racism, sexism, xenophobia, Islamophobia and generally flippant comments, the Trump victory is devastating and will challenge them psychologically and emotionally to accept the reality for the results. Hillary Clinton: What Went Wrong? The result is especially surprising given the degree to which Hillary Clinton had ingratiated herself with the upper echelons of the NWO ( New World Order ). From an outside perspective, it seemed Clinton had left no stone unturned in brown-nosing and sucking up to the most powerful people and organizations in the world, including the Rothschilds , Goldman Sachs, the Rockefeller CFR ( Council on Foreign Relations ) and many many more. Additionally, given her propensity for criminality and her powerful backers such as George Soros , coupled with the serious problems electronic voting machines possess in being able to be hacked and the vote flipped, many are left wondering how Hillary lost . What went wrong? At this stage in the game of post-election analysis, we can point to a few things. Hillary’s criminal past clearly caught up with her. It is unprecedented in the history of US presidential elections for a leading candidate to be under an on-again, off-again criminal investigation. Clinton simply has so many scandals in her recent and distant past that it’s like trying to stop a ship with 30 holes from sinking; you can’t plug them all. She was also running up against the problem that the Democrats had been in power for 8 years, when recent history shows that power seems to change hands in around that time frame. Clinton represented the establishment, and as the popularity of both Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump has shown, people are tired of the same. They intuitively know the system is rigged and corrupt, even if they can’t exactly put their fingers on it. Obama, Mr. “Hope and Change”, got in with a slick campaign of promising something different (upon which he didn’t deliver). Trump represented anti-establishment, and whether he truly embodies that or not is an entirely different matter, because it’s all about perception. Does a Trump Victory Show that NWO Powerbrokers Are Less in Control than It Seems? The win of President Elect Trump is truly shocking and monumental event. Many people (including myself) were predicting that it was a foregone conclusion that Clinton would win. For instance, founder of WikiLeaks Julian Assange stated before the election that “Trump would not permitted to win”. The MSM ( Mainstream Media ) were clearly favoring Clinton at almost every turn. Whatever you think of Trump, we can at least say the will of the majority of American voters was respected, which is a relief, given how much corruption exists in our society today.The question now is this: is a Trump victory the result the NWO powerbrokers wanted all along, for reasons we are yet to see? Or is it a genuine uprising against these forces? What Does a Trump Presidency Mean for Liberty and Freedom? For me, Trump can be summarized in one word: unpredictable . President Elect Trump truly embodies unpredictability more than any other high-level politician around. One moment he is railing against the 9/11 official story, then he is declaring his love for Israel, then he is bringing up the vaccine-autism connection, then he is suggesting Snowden be killed. Next he is suggesting GMO corn makes you stupid, then he suggesting Muslims be banned from the US, then he is calling global warming a hoax , then he is suggesting the Government be given the power to shut down the internet. Then, after all of that, he makes friendly overtures to Russia while demonizing the hell out of Iran. What does he stand for? Peace or war? Freedom or tyranny?At this stage no one knows, probably not even Trump himself. He has contradicted himself numerous times throughout his campaign, and merely once suggesting a good idea (i.e. looking at who controls the issuance of money instead of letting the international bankers via the Federal Reserve control it) doesn’t mean it will become his policy. Unpredictability is one of Trump’s great qualities, but also one of his most dangerous. A lot will depend on with whom he surrounds himself once becoming President Trump, and what kind of advice they give him. His VP Mike Pence is a standard conservative Republican who will be no doubt far more to the liking of the NWO conspirators, but Trump is also taking advice from retired DIA (Defense Intelligence Agency) chief Michael Flynn, the man who came out and highlighted how the US created ISIS in a declassified DIA document .For now, America and the world have around two-and-a-half months to get over the incredible shock of yesterday’s result and psychologically prepare itself for a Trump presidency. Meanwhile, it would be foolish for us to expect that one man can fix all of America’s problems. It will be the job of the independent and alternative media to hold Trump to his promises and his word, and to continue to share ideas of how we can truly create a better, freer and more just society. This necessarily involves questioning the very structures and systems of society, and will never magically improve with just the passing of the baton from one politician to another. By Makia Freeman , Guest writer, HumansAreFree.com | 1real |
Trump Says One ‘Exception’ To Muslim Ban Is His ‘Very Rich’ Middle Eastern Business Partners | Donald Trump s trainwreck interview with Chris Matthews wasn t just notable for his abhorrent views on abortion, but also because he took the time to remind people that he hasn t stopped being a horrible racist, too.In a window into what a Trump presidency might realistically look like, Trump told Matthews that he wasn t above playing favorites for his friends when he imposed his ban on Muslims entering the United States. While the majority of Muslims would be blocked regardless of circumstance, his very rich Muslim friends (i.e. the ones he has business deals with) can get a pass. He trusts them because they make him money. I have actually believe it or not, I have a lot of friends that are Muslim and they call me, Trump said, when asked about his plan by MSNBC s Chris Matthews, the event s moderator. In most cases, they re very rich Muslims, OK? Matthews then asked Trump if his rich Muslim friends would be able enter the country under Trump s Muslim ban. They ll come in, Trump said. You ll have exceptions. Trump has often brought up his Muslim friends who he routinely claims call him non-stop to tell him what a great job he s doing at being xenophobic towards Muslims. It might be tempting to claim that these Muslims are fictions of his imagination, a cheap talking point to justify his reprehensible plans for very real Muslims. However, it appears he really does have a few Muslim friends, but not exactly salt-of-the-earth types. He means autocrats in Middle Eastern nations. As the Daily Beast wrote about in late 2015:There s one type of Muslim Trump really loves: The ones that make him big bucks. You see, if a Muslim can show Trump the money, then all those concerns he has with Muslims go right out the window of his private jet as he jets off to the Gulf to cash in.For example, Trump loves Hussain Sajwani, head of the Dubai luxury real estate company Damac Properties. Trump has called the Muslim Sajwani a good friend and a great man, among other accolades. And in May 2014, The Donald even flew off to Dubai to spend time with his Muslim friend as they announced the massive real estate project they were teaming up to create in the United Arab Emirates.Trump, of course, has no qualms with working with Muslims if they can make his bank account grow. Suddenly, the people whose faith he thinks is hellbent on destroying America, aren t so bad. This duality makes his bigotry that much worse he s really not that committed to it. Like any good hate-monger, Trump scapegoats Muslims to rile up his deeply anti-Muslim base. It s led to vicious hate crimes against innocent Muslim Americans, including assaults and arson. It s also led to Trump s surge in the polls. But underlying the smears and falsehoods, is a calculated stab at winning an election via exploitation of fear and hate.So of course he would let his very rich Muslim friends in. His Islamophobia isn t personal. It s business.Featured image via Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | 1real |
Unlikely allies eye vote to legalize cannabis in New Zealand | WELLINGTON (Reuters) - New Zealand could become the first country in the Asia-Pacific region to legalize cannabis for personal use after an unlikely alliance of populist, centrist and leftist parties put drug policy immediately on the agenda of the incoming government. Recreational marijuana use is legal in several U.S. states and European nations including the Netherlands and Spain, but countries in the Asia-Pacific tend to have strict prohibitions. Australia recently introduced laws freeing up access to cannabis for medicinal use, but does not allow recreational use. Labour s prime minister-designate Jacinda Ardern said on Tuesday she agreed with a Greens proposal for a referendum to legalize use of recreational cannabis. We agreed that what we are doing now simply isn t working, so we have said yes to having that referendum, Ardern told reporters in Wellington. There is no timeframe for possible legalization, which would represent the first major reform of drug laws since the 1970s, but would depend on the public first voting to back reforms. Anything that helps shift New Zealand drug laws out of the dinosaur age is going to be a good thing, Ross Bell, executive director of the charitable NZ Drug Foundation, told Reuters. Arguably it is better for the sustainability of the reform to have a broad church like we ve got with this government, so that it is not just seen as some sort of fringe liberal policy, Bell said in a telephone interview. Drug law reforms figured in talks to form New Zealand s new government after a Sept. 23 election failed to yield a majority for either the governing National Party or opposition Labour, although neither major party had such a campaign plank. The center-left Labour will govern with support from its new junior coalition member, the populist NZ First, which supports holding referendums on controversial issues. The Greens have offered confidence and supply and the diverse group of parties is already starting to deliver a melange of policies, from potential relaxation of drug laws to tighter immigration controls. New Zealand s drug use ranks among the world s highest, a study by the NZ Drug Foundation shows. Too much money is spent on enforcement and convictions, rather than on health policies, says the body, which gets government and private funding. | 0fake |
Pope meets Myanmar's military chief in shadow of Rohingya crisis | YANGON (Reuters) - Pope Francis held talks on Monday with Myanmar s military chief at the start of a delicate visit to a majority-Buddhist country that the United States has accused of ethnic cleansing against its Muslim Rohingya people. The leader of the Roman Catholic church will also visit Bangladesh, where more than 620,000 Rohingya have fled to escape what Amnesty International has called crimes against humanity . Myanmar s army has denied accusations of murder, rape, torture and forced displacement that have been made against it. The pope s first meeting in Yangon was with military commander Senior General Min Aung Hlaing in St. Mary s Cathedral in the heart of the Southeast Asian nation s largest city. They discussed the great responsibility of authorities of the country in this time of transition, Vatican spokesman Greg Burke said after the 15 minutes of talks, which were followed by an exchange of gifts. Francis presented the general with a commemorative medal of his visit, and Min Aung Hlaing gave the pope a harp in the shape of a boat and an ornate rice bowl, Burke said. The army chief told the pope that there s no religious discrimination in Myanmar and there s the freedom of religion, according to a statement on the Facebook page of Min Aung Hlaing. Every soldier s goal is to build a stable and peaceful country, the army chief was paraphrased as saying in the statement. Members of ethnic minority groups in traditional dress welcomed Francis at Yangon airport, and children presented him with flowers as he stepped off his plane. He waved through an open window at dozens of children waving Vatican and Myanmar flags and wearing T-shirts with the motto of the trip love and peace as he set off in a car. Only about 700,000 of Myanmar s 51 million people are Roman Catholic. Thousands of them traveled by train and bus to Yangon, and they joined crowds at several roadside points along the way from the airport to catch a glimpse of the pope. More than 150,000 people have registered for a mass that Francis will say in Yangon on Wednesday, according to Catholic Myanmar Church spokesman Mariano Soe Naing. We come here to see the Holy Father. It happens once in hundreds of years, said Win Min Set, a community leader who brought a group of 1,800 Catholics from the south and west of the country. He is very knowledgeable when it comes to political affairs. He will handle the issue smartly, he said, referring to the sensitivity of the pope s discussions about the Rohingya. Large numbers of riot police were mobilized in Yangon but there were no signs of any protests. The trip is so delicate that some papal advisers have warned Francis against even saying the word Rohingya , lest he set off a diplomatic incident that could turn the country s military and government against minority Christians. The Rohingya exodus from Rakhine state to Bangladesh s southern tip began at the end of August, when Rohingya militants attacked security posts and the Myanmar army launched a counter-offensive. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson last week called the military operation ethnic cleansing and threatened targeted sanctions for horrendous atrocities . Myanmar s government has denied most of the accusations made against it, and the army says its own investigation found no evidence of wrongdoing by troops. Myanmar does not recognize the Rohingya as citizens nor as members of a distinct ethnic group with their own identity, and it even rejects the term Rohingya and its use. Many people in Myanmar instead refer to members of the Muslim minority in Rakhine state as illegal migrants from Bangladesh. Francis is expected to meet a group of Rohingya refugees in Dhaka, capital of Bangladesh, on the second leg of his trip. The most tense moments of his Myanmar visit were expected to be the private meeting with the army chief and, separately, with civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Tuesday. Vatican sources say some in the Holy See believe the trip was decided too hastily after full diplomatic ties were established in May during a visit by Suu Kyi. Suu Kyi s reputation as a Nobel Peace Prize laureate has been tarnished because she has expressed doubts about the reports of rights abuses against the Rohingya and failed to condemn the military. The pope has already used the word Rohingya in two appeals from the Vatican this year. Asked if he would say it in Myanmar, Burke said Francis was taking the advice he had been given seriously, but added: We will find out together during the trip ... it is not a forbidden word . A hardline group of Buddhist monks, previously known as Ma Ba Tha, said it welcomed the pope s visit but warned, without elaborating, of a response if he spoke openly about the Rohingya. I hope he doesn t touch on sensitive issues that Myanmar people couldn t accept, said Tawparka, a spokesman for the group, who goes by a single name. There s no problem if he talks about Islam, but it s unacceptable if he speaks about Rohingya and extreme terrorists. | 0fake |
Planned Parenthood Videomaker Files Motion to Disqualify Judge Who Censored Videos - Breitbart | Attorneys for David Daleiden and the Center for Medical Progress (CMP) have filed a motion requesting the disqualification of the federal judge who ordered videos showing abortionists discussing dismemberment of unborn babies to be removed from the Internet. [According to a motion filed in U. S. District Court in Northern California on June 7, the request for the disqualification of Judge William H. Orrick III is made “on the grounds that there is evidence of bias in favor of the plaintiff and prejudice against the defendants. ” The plaintiff in the case is the National Abortion Federation (NAF) which claims the videos would endanger the lives of their abortionists. In the latest CMP video, which is a compilation of excerpts from video filmed at NAF trade shows, abortionists are heard discussing, amid laughter, the difficulties they face in their jobs, such as “the head that gets stuck that we can’t get out,” and “an eyeball just fell down into my lap, and that is gross!” At the end of May, Orrick censored any video links and references to the identities of NAF members. Following Orrick’s order, YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo, and LiveLeak deleted the video from their sites. In an interview with Breitbart News, Peter Breen, special counsel with the Thomas More Society — which represents Daleiden — said the motion is extremely significant. He explained: Bringing a motion to disqualify a federal judge is a very serious matter. It’s not something that you do lightly, but in view of the evidence that has now come to light, we, as attorneys are duty bound, at this point, to bring the motion to disqualify. In fact, it would be malpractice for us not to. We believe the law requires disqualification. Breen continues: Some of the evidence we’ve brought forward is that as recently as September of 2015 — several weeks after entering the temporary restraining order in the NAF case — we’ve learned that the Good Samaritan Family Resource Center, which is interlinked with a Planned Parenthood affiliate that is a member of the National Abortion Federation — that they are holding out Judge Orrick as an emeritus member of their board. The National Abortion Federation — their allegations were there would be harm to their members — and, so, you’ve got an entity that is in partnership with a member that actually hosts one of the NAF members. Now you’ve got the judge being held out by that entity as part of the organization, as connected to it. The motion states the request for Orrick’s disqualification is based upon evidence contained in an affidavit by Daleiden: This includes Judge Orrick’s longstanding relationship as a past board member, and more recently as an emeritus board member, of an organization that has a “key partnership” with a Planned Parenthood affiliate that is a member of the plaintiff National Abortion Federation (NAF). Judge Orrick’s wife has also posted public comments, pictured with her husband, that are supportive of Planned Parenthood and critical of these moving defendants. For this reason, and the others set forth below, Daleiden and CMP respectfully request that Judge Orrick be recused from this case and that a stay be granted on all proceedings in this case until this motion is heard. The affidavit contains Orrick’s United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees. In his responses to the questions, Orrick states, “I advised Good Samaritan Family Resource Center when it was unionized,” (p. 42) and “After returning to San Francisco in 1984 … I assisted the Good Samaritan Family Resource Center on many legal issues from 1986 to 2009. ” (p. 44). The motion also cites Daleiden’s statement about Orrick’s wife, Caroline Orrick: I learned that, no later than the fall of 2015 Mrs. Orrick, “pinkified” her Facebook page and added the “I stand with Planned Parenthood” overlay across her profile picture. Planned Parenthood urged its supporters to add these elements to their Facebook pages as part of a social media campaign orchestrated specifically in response to the release of videos by myself and CMP. “Pinkifying” showed one’s support for Planned Parenthood and one’s belief that the videos were fraudulent. Just days ago, I further discovered that Mrs. Orrick “liked” a Facebook post by the National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL) that described my and CMP’s work as “heavily edited videos by a sham organization run by extremists who will stop at nothing to deny women legal abortion services. ” The Facebook post also appeared to describe our videos as “domestic terrorism” against abortion providers. Mrs. Orrick also liked a Facebook Post by “Keep America ” that applauded my indictment in Harris County, Texas, which was ultimately dismissed as invalid by two different judges. Both “likes” were accompanied by a profile picture featuring Judge and Mrs. Orrick. According to the document containing Orrick’s responses to the Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees, in June of 2009, Orrick introduced . Kamala Harris ( ) at a fundraiser for her campaign at the time for her bid for the post of California’s attorney general [p. 23]. In addition, he states, “I raised money and sponsored an event for the campaign of Kamala Harris for Attorney General in 2009, before I joined the Department of Justice. ” (p. 31). Democrat Harris was elected California attorney general in 2010, barely defeating Angeles district attorney Steven Cooley, a Republican, whose firm, Steven Cooley Associates (SCA) now defends Daleiden and his colleague, Sandra Merritt, who have been charged with 15 felony counts under California’s law protecting “confidential” conversations. “ General, now U. S. Sen. Kamala Harris, wielded unprecedented police power against a true American journalist while civil suits were already pending in Federal District Court concerning the same ” says Cooley. “Public Records Act requests filed by SCA reveal the Attorney General’s real interest in this case is entirely political, meant to manipulate the law to do the bidding of their benefactors at Planned Parenthood. ” In September 2016, emails obtained by the Washington Times showed that AG and U. S. Senate candidate Harris’s office collaborated with Planned Parenthood to produce legislation that specifically targeted Daleiden. The emails, according to the Times, were accessed through a public records request, and revealed conversations between officials of Harris’s office and Planned Parenthood regarding legislation that criminalizes undercover journalists for publishing and distributing recordings of private communications with abortion providers. On March 28, 2017, the new California Attorney General, Xavier Becerra, announced the criminal complaint charging Daleiden and Merritt with 15 felony counts against the state’s “confidentiality” legislation. Previously, Becerra was a longstanding Democratic congressman who received a total of $5, 535 from Planned Parenthood during his congressional election bids between 1998 and 2014, according to OpenSecrets. org. Harris is on record as having received $2, 600 in 2016 from Planned Parenthood for her Senate race campaign. Additionally, Harris was the recipient of $39, 855 from the Abortion Rights lobby group, according to OpenSecrets. org. ElectionTrack. com reported Harris received $15, 000 from Planned Parenthood for her attorney general campaign bids. | 0fake |
Pyongyang university needs non-U.S. teachers as travel ban leaves staff shortages | SEOUL (Reuters) - The only western-funded university in North Korea is scrambling to recruit teachers not from the United States after a U.S. travel ban to the isolated country forced the school to start the September semester with only half of its faculty. According to a recruitment notice from a faculty member of Pyongyang University of Science and Technology (PUST) reviewed by Reuters, the school is on a vigorous lecturer recruitment campaign for the spring semester slated to start next year. The notice, which said the recruitment focus is non-U.S. professors mainly from Asia and Europe, suggests that discussions with the U.S. State Department about receiving special exemptions for PUST s volunteers have not gone well. Of the roughly 130 foreigners at PUST including faculty members, staffers and family members, about 60 had been U.S. citizens, according to people familiar with PUST operations. Needless to say, our chronic faculty shortage and curriculum instability have been exacerbated even further, translating into the emergency situation of crippled school operation and curriculum running, said the notice sent out by Paul Song, currently acting dean of the international finance and management department at PUST. As of Sept. 1, the U.S. State Department has enforced a ban on Americans traveling to North Korea following the death earlier this year of an American student who had been detained by the state while on a tour. It also advised U.S. citizens living there to leave. North Korea has criticized Washington s decision to ban U.S. passport holders from visiting the North, with state media describing it as a sordid attempt to limit human exchanges. It has also said its doors are always open for all Americans who wish to visit. Tensions on the Korean peninsula have escalated significantly in the wake of numerous missile tests and its sixth and most powerful nuclear test by Pyongyang last month. Insults and threats exchanged between the North s leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump have also exacerbated global jitters over possible military conflict. A month after the fall semester had started, a PUST official told Reuters high security concerns over North Korea has made it difficult to find additional replacement staff . A number of organizations are unwilling to approve staff to travel, the official added. The school was founded in 2010 by a Korean American evangelical Christian with the goal of helping North Korea s future elite learn the skills to modernize the North and engage with the outside world. Since its founding, the school has grown to about 500 undergraduate and 60 graduate students studying in mostly three departments - electronic and computer engineering, international finance and management and agriculture and life sciences. | 0fake |
White House budget chief says any tax package would be retroactive | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - White House budget chief Mick Mulvaney said on Thursday that any tax reform package passed by Congress this year would be retroactive. “If it passes by the end of the year it will be retroactive,” Mulvaney told Fox Business Network when asked whether any changes in law would be retroactive to the start of the year. | 0fake |
Bernie Sanders Blames Closed Primaries As Path To The Nomination Narrows | Sen. Bernie Sanders suffered a crushing defeat Tuesday night, losing three out of five states to Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton by significant margins at press time.
In a speech shortly after most polls closed at 8 pm, Sanders blamed his loss on closed primaries, which barred independent voters from participating in four of five primaries. He did win Rhode Island, which allows participation by independent voters.
“In a general election, Democrat, independent, Republican, has the right to vote for president. The elections are not closed primaries,” Sanders said. “Those folks and independents all over this country will be voting in November for the next president of the United States. And in most cases, we win the independent vote by a 2–1 margin.”
Clinton made another strong showing Tuesday night with non-white voters and city dwellers. Exit polls indicated strong support in cities like Baltimore.
Baltimore pastor Jamal Bryant, who had been working to get out the vote for Sanders in Baltimore’s inner city, lamented that the Vermont senator has not done better with communities of color, who have overwhelmingly backed Clinton.
“He more than any candidate, Democrat or Republican, speaks to our issues,” Bryant told ThinkProgress, noting his progressive racial justice and criminal justice proposals. “I would have thought he’d have more black and brown supporters. But there’s been a translation problem. The gatekeepers have already sworn allegiance to the Clinton dynasty, and most people go with a name they’re already familiar with.”
As his path to the nomination narrows, Sanders’ campaign is reassessing the senator’s prospects following Tuesday’s losses, and key supporters are admitting that it is increasingly unlikely he can clinch the nomination. His campaign and supporters have already turned their attention to how Sanders can use his popularity and influence to shape the Democratic Party even if he is not its standard bearer.
The New York Times reported that aides to Sanders have started pressing party officials for a major role in drafting the platform for the Democratic National Convention in July, especially on including issues like a $15-an-hour federal minimum wage, breaking up Wall Street banks, and banning natural gas fracking. | 0fake |
Trump likely to visit China during November Asia trip: U.S. official | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump is likely to make a stop in China in November during his first official visit to Asia, a U.S. official said on Tuesday, a trip that will come amid tensions over North Korea’s nuclear tests. Washington and its allies have said there is a growing urgency for China, North Korea’s top ally and trading partner, to apply more pressure on its already isolated neighbor to get it to back down on its nuclear weapons and missiles programs. Chinese President Xi Jinping had invited Trump to visit China during their meeting in April in Palm Beach, Florida. The two leaders also met on the sidelines on the G20 summit in July. Trump is set to attend the U.S.-ASEAN summit and the East Asia summit in the Philippines in November, as well as the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Vietnam. China’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on Trump’s potential visit. Japanese public broadcaster NHK cited unnamed diplomatic sources saying that Trump was also considering visiting Japan and South Korea during his Asian tour in November. In February, Trump accepted Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s invitation to visit Japan by the end of the year. “The February agreement is still valid. We would definitely like to make it happen sometime within this year. But no specific timing has been fixed yet,” a Japanese Foreign Ministry official said. Also, the Japanese daily Yomiuri Shimbun said on Wednesday Japan, the United States and South Korea are in final stages of talks to hold a trilateral summit on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York. The newspaper, citing unnamed government sources, reported the meeting between Trump, Abe and South Korean President Moon Jae-in could take place on Sept. 21 and would focus on bolstering cooperation in response to North Korean provocation. On Monday, the U.N. Security Council unanimously voted to step up sanctions on North Korea, with its profitable textile exports now banned and fuel supplies capped. After several days of negotiations on the resolution, Washington dropped several measures to win the support of Russia and China, including a bid for an oil embargo and the blacklisting of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and the national airline. In Hong Kong, former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon told the South China Morning Post the results of a U.S.-led investigation into alleged Chinese intellectual property theft would be announced before the Beijing summit to reset bilateral trade. The far-right architect of Trump’s 2016 election victory, Bannon told an investor conference, organized by a unit of China’s largest brokerage, that Trump and Xi had a rapport that should enable them to work out differences, said an attendee at the meeting which was closed to the press. Bannon, who was let go by Trump last month, told a private lunch gathering in Hong Kong that he still “speaks with President Donald Trump every two to three days,” the Wall Street Journal reported. | 0fake |
The Woman Who ‘Totally Understands’ Donald Trump - The New York Times | An inspirational poster hangs above the Trump Tower desk of Hope Hicks, the press secretary for Donald J. Trump’s presidential campaign, squeezed in among the framed Time magazine covers of Mr. Trump and exuberant notes written in his inimitable scrawl (“Hopie — You’re the greatest! ”). “Fate whispers to the warrior, ‘You cannot withstand the storm,’” it reads. “And the warrior whispers back, ‘I am the storm. ’” Ms. Hicks, a onetime champion lacrosse player who signed a Ford modeling contract as a teenager, had never worked in politics before last year, and her widest exposure had been as a in a Nickelodeon children’s television special about golf. Now she plays confidante and sometime gatekeeper to the presumptive Republican nominee for president and, improbably, serves as Mr. Trump’s sole liaison to the teeming national press corps. Hillary Clinton employs a media handlers who field hundreds of daily requests. Mr. Trump has Ms. Hicks, who was working for his daughter Ivanka’s luxury lines and for the Trump real estate brand when the candidate called her to his office in early 2015 and declared that she was joining his campaign. “Mr. Trump sat her down and said, ‘This is your new job,’” said her mother, Caye Cavender Hicks. “It was a shocker. ” Hope Hicks had trained at Hiltzik Strategies, the powerful public relations firm that represents Hollywood clients and corporate executives, before Ms. Trump brought her . She was commuting from an apartment she shared with her sister in Greenwich, Conn. above the dive bar where her father had his first beer at 18. Suddenly, she found herself a presence by Mr. Trump’s side, flying in his jet, living in a apartment and attending to his mercurial moods. She is arguably the least credentialed press secretary in the modern history of presidential politics. But for journalists who cover the campaign, she is sometimes the Jekyll to Mr. Trump’s Hyde, emailing angry complaints from her boss (“dishonest”) and often concluding with her own polite : “Best, Hope. ” Seemingly unfazed by her boss’s outbursts, she can detect the best moments for reporters to make requests — knowing, for instance, not to bother Mr. Trump while he is watching a major golf tournament. “Her most important role is her bond with the candidate,” said Paul Manafort, the veteran Republican adviser who, as of this past week, had been put in charge of the campaign. “She totally understands him. ” Or, as Ivanka Trump said in an interview: “My father makes people earn his trust. She’s earned his trust. ” And not without some steeliness. Ms. Hicks remained in her role even as Mr. Trump fired Corey Lewandowski, his campaign manager and another early member of his team. Mr. Lewandowski and Ms. Hicks are close friends: He has visited her family in Greenwich for dinners and, days after Mr. Trump clinched the Republican nomination (and fired a key political aide) they took in a Hall Oates concert with her parents in the V. I. P. tent at the Greenwich Town Party. But it was ultimately Ms. Hicks who announced Mr. Lewandowski’s departure, describing it as “a parting of ways. ” Friends of Ms. Hicks say they are thrilled by her sudden rise, dismissing concerns that her ties to Mr. Trump could damage her nascent career. “She believes in him, his leadership and abilities, and she’s thrown herself completely into this,” said Michael Feldman, a prominent Democratic strategist and family friend. “I don’t think that ties her personally to everything that’s been said. ” But some say they are alarmed that Ms. Hicks is promoting, and defending, a candidate who has been denounced as a demagogue, a racist, a misogynist and even a fascist. In Greenwich, where her family is part of the civic firmament, the topic of her association with Mr. Trump can get touchy. “Believe me, there are times when I would like to voice my opinion,” said Drew Marzullo, a Greenwich town selectman and Democrat who is close with Ms. Hicks’s sister, Mary Grace. He recalled doing a double take after spotting Mr. Lewandowski and other Trump aides with the family at the Hall Oates concert. Still, he added, “It would be unfair for someone to judge Hope or the family based on her job. ” In fact, Ms. Hicks is the third generation of her family to represent a powerful but highly controversial client. Her grandfather led public relations for Texaco during the 1970s oil crisis. Her father, Paul B. Hicks III, represented a major tobacco company in Connecticut and later was the top communications executive for the National Football League, where he dealt with scandals over player safety and the Patriots’ deflated footballs. Her establishment pedigree aside, Ms. Hicks does not fit the part of the typical campaign press secretary, spinning reporters and gossiping over expensed drinks on the trail. Among journalists, Ms. Hicks is not known to wrangle, cajole or mingle, serving as more of a conduit for her intensely boss, who likes to act as his own chief spokesman. Unlike her Clinton counterparts, who take pains to shape their candidate’s image, Ms. Hicks is not active on Twitter and does not show up on cable talk shows. Contacted for this article, she declined to be interviewed, insisting that she did not want to draw attention away from her candidate. Reporters praise Ms. Hicks for her poise amid a chaotic campaign. But some say that she can be unresponsive to questions, a habit so pervasive that it spawned a mocking, anonymous Twitter account, @HicksNoComment. On the trail, political reporters say Ms. Hicks rarely interacts with them at rallies, preferring to communicate by text or telephone. Ms. Hicks — perhaps the only campaign press secretary to have been photographed as a teenager by the fashion photographer Bruce Weber, in a campaign for Naturalizer shoes — favors Burberry trench coats and heels, a break from the scruffy ranks of harried campaign operatives. One reporter recalled staggering into a New Hampshire rally after a snowstorm, soaked in water and ice, only to find Ms. Hicks dressed impeccably, her makeup unmussed. Still, the stresses of the campaign have occasionally spilled into public view: Despite their friendship, Ms. Hicks and Mr. Lewandowski were spotted in a screaming match on a Manhattan sidewalk, which later turned up in The New York Post, fueling reports of internal tensions. Mostly, however, Ms. Hicks is a friendly, if disciplined, presence — Southern charm by way of Fairfield County. (Upon accompanying Mr. Trump to Scotland this past week, she told a reporter wryly, “I don’t do well in plaid. ”) And she is unfailingly deferential to her employer, whom she refers to only as “Mr. Trump” or “sir. ” He seems to appreciate it. “I’m lucky to have her,” Mr. Trump said in a telephone interview on Thursday. “She’s got very good judgment. She will often give advice, and she’ll do it in a very manner, so it doesn’t necessarily come in the form of advice. But it’s delivered very nicely. ” Did he have qualms about hiring a campaign spokeswoman with no political background? “Well, I have a lot of political experience, so I wasn’t really concerned about it,” Mr. Trump said. “And if it didn’t work out, I would be able to make a fast change,” he said. “But it has worked out. ” Mr. Trump sent flowers to Ms. Hicks’s family when her grandmother died earlier this year. Her parents also visited Mr. Trump’s Florida resort, where he greeted them and teased Mr. Hicks about the N. F. L. “He could not have been nicer,” Caye Hicks said. Ms. Hicks’s success has not surprised her family (“Hope’s a fighter,” as her father said) even as they harbor some concern about the intensity of her work. “She doesn’t really talk to anybody anymore, she has no life,” Caye Hicks said. Mr. Trump’s rallies, where violent protests sometimes break out, can also be disconcerting. “I have to hope the Secret Service is keeping them all safe,” Caye Hicks said. “It’s a crazy atmosphere. ” She added: “I can’t actually let her know how worried I am. ” On free nights, Ms. Hicks retreats to her parents’ home in Greenwich — her mother sometimes hears a creaking door at 2 a. m. — to unwind. Her sister, Mary Grace, is a paramedic there, and her father, a former town selectman, remains a prominent figure: This spring, Greenwich proclaimed April 23 as Paul B. Hicks III Day to recognize his philanthropy. Ms. Hicks grew up in Greenwich swimming and golfing. When she was in sixth grade, a neighbor invited Ms. Hicks and her sister to a Ralph Lauren tryout soon their photographs were in Bloomingdale’s. She made a cameo on “Guiding Light,” appeared on the covers of young adult paperbacks like “Gossip Girl” and once read lines for a film role with Alec Baldwin. At age 13, Ms. Hicks told Greenwich Magazine, for a cover story about the Hicks sisters’ modeling careers, that she was “not ready to decide if modeling is what I want to do with my life. ” “If the acting thing doesn’t work out,” she said, “I could really see myself in politics. Who knows?” The Hicks sisters earned enough from modeling to file tax returns. But Hope preferred lacrosse, leading Greenwich High School to a state championship and later playing at Southern Methodist University, where she majored in English. After graduation, she and her father bumped into Mr. Baldwin at the Super Bowl. The meeting led to an interview and job offer from Matthew Hiltzik, whose clients include Mr. Baldwin and, fatefully, Ivanka Trump, who was impressed by Ms. Hicks and eventually hired her away. Aside from Mr. Trump’s children, Ms. Hicks is now the aide on his presidential bid. Mr. Feldman, the family friend, said he doubted that anyone anticipated it would last this long. “You do the best you can under very unusual circumstances,” he said. “In this case, circumstances that are more unusual than most. ” The campaign is looking to hire a communications director. But as the general election looms, Ms. Hicks, who has recently been featured in Marie Claire and GQ, remains loyal, apparently unperturbed by the controversies swirling around her candidate and prepared to stick it out. Mr. Trump, asked if Ms. Hicks would have a spot in his administration, replied, “She would definitely have a role. ” How about press secretary? “I don’t want to comment on that,” he said. “It’s too early. I don’t want to be making those prognostications yet. But she’ll certainly be involved with us. She’s terrific. ” | 0fake |
Ryanair loses EU court battle to keep Irish law for crew abroad | LUXEMBOURG/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Ryanair lost an EU court battle on Thursday in which the airline had sought to continue forcing cabin crew based outside Ireland to take their disputes to Irish courts, in a case with implications across the low-cost airline sector. The European Court of Justice in Luxembourg ruled in favor of cabin crew based at the Irish carrier s Charleroi airport in Belgium on the question of which court should decide on their complaint. The employees took the airline to a local court, believing Belgian law would be more favorable to them. Ryanair argued that Irish courts had jurisdiction over their Irish contracts. But a Belgian court in Mons had requested the ECJ s ruling on whether its own judges had jurisdiction. The Court (of Justice) points out first of all that, as regards disputes related to employment contracts, the European rules concerning jurisdiction are aimed at protecting the weaker party, the Luxembourg-based ECJ said in a statement. Those rules enable inter alia an employee to sue his employer before the courts which he regards as closest to his interests. Low-cost carriers such as Ryanair and easyJet have bases all over Europe, including in France, Spain, Italy and Germany, where both planes and crews are stationed. This means crews can return to their home base each night, allowing the airlines to avoid costs involved with overnight rest stops. Ryanair said the ruling would not add to its costs. Its pilots are typically employed on contracts via third-party agencies, while easyJet uses local labor contracts. The Court said the place where a cabin crew s aircraft is stationed should also be taken into account when determining which court had jurisdiction. Philip von Schoeppenthau, Secretary General of the European Cockpit Association, called the ruling a landmark decision that is a ray of light for the thousands of pilots and cabin crew across Europe who have struggled to find legal protection at the place where they actually work on a daily basis, rather than being forced to seek judicial redress in Ireland . Schoeppenthau said the Court s ruling meant all cabin crews in Europe can derive their rights and applicable law from their Home Base as a general rule. Ryanair said it welcomed the ruling for recognizing that the home base of the employee should not be the sole factor in determining which court can hear disputes on labor issues. We do not believe this Mons ruling will in any way alter our Irish contracts of employment or the union rights which all of our people enjoy under the protection of the Irish Constitution, Ryanair Chief People Officer Eddie Wilson said. Michael O Leary, the company s Chief Executive, said in Berlin the ruling could give the unions more opportunity to take the airline to court or challenge whatever kind of provisions we provided in Ireland but ultimately, they cannot and will not be changing the Irish contracts or the structure of the Irish contracts. This won t change Ryanair s cost base by one cent, O Leary said. The crew involved in the case had employment contracts drawn up under Irish law which said their work was to be regarded as being carried out in Ireland since they were working on Irish-registered aircraft. But Charleroi airport in southern Belgium was designated as their base, meaning they started and ended their working days there and had to reside within an hour of that airport. Ryanair said that Ireland had adopted all EU rules on employment rights and in some cases offered better protection than other EU countries. The case will now go back to the Belgian court, which will make a final decision on the matter. | 0fake |
Iran bans oil refinery products traffic with Iraqi Kurdistan: report | ANKARA (Reuters) - Iran has banned the transportation of refined crude oil products by Iranian companies to and from Iraq s Kurdistan region, the semi-official Tasnim news agency said on Friday, after Tehran vowed to stand by Baghdad following the region s vote for independence. A directive by the Road and Transportation Organization has temporarily banned carrying oil products from Iran to Iraq s Kurdistan region and vice versa following the latest developments in that region, Tasnim reported. Iraq s Kurds overwhelmingly backed a call for independence in a referendum on Monday, defying neighboring countries which fear the vote could lead to renewed conflict in the region. A ban on international flights into Iraq s Kurdish region was being imposed on Friday after the Baghdad government retaliated against the vote. Almost all foreign airlines suspended flights to Erbil and Sulaimaniya, obeying a notice from the government in Baghdad, which controls Iraqi air space. Iran, which has its own Kurdish minority, had already halted flights to and from Kurdish regions on Sunday. | 0fake |
Kerry says it's inappropriate for Trump to step into German politics | LONDON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Monday it was “inappropriate” for Donald Trump to brand German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s refugee policy “a catastrophic mistake”. “I thought frankly it was inappropriate for a president-elect of the United States to be stepping into the politics of other countries in a quite direct manner,” Kerry told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour during a one-day visit to London in the last week of the Obama administration. “He will have to speak to that. As of Friday, he is responsible for that relationship.” Trump, who will be sworn in as president on Friday, had said in a joint interview with Bild newspaper and the Times of London that he respected Merkel, but criticized her stance on refugees, which allowed a wave of more than 1 million refugees into Germany. Merkel faces a tough re-election battle in September. “I think we have to be very careful about suggesting that one’s strongest leaders in Europe, and most important players with respect to where we are heading, made one mistake or another. I don’t think it’s appropriate for us to be commenting on that,” Kerry said. He rejected Trump’s description of Merkel’s refugee policy as “catastrophic”. “I think she was extremely courageous. I don’t think it amounts to that characterization,” Kerry said. “It has had some problems, but everybody has had some problems with this challenge of how to respond as a big nation, a great nation, as the West, where our values, our principles are important with respect to caring for people who are in distress,” he added. The United States has admitted far fewer Syrian refugees than some allies, such as Germany. Trump has said violent militants could enter the country posing as refugees. The CNN interview came a day after Kerry attended a one-day conference of 70 nations in Paris on Israeli-Palestinian peace. The conference reaffirmed that only a two-state solution could resolve the conflict and warned against unilateral steps by either side that could prejudge negotiations. Trump has said resolving the conflict will be a priority of his administration and suggested that his son-in-law Jared Kushner could help broker a peace deal between the Israelis and Palestinians. Kerry, who tried for nine months to forge an agreement between the two sides, welcomed Trump’s efforts but pushed back at a suggestion that the Obama administration was to blame for the failure to clinch a deal. “No, no, the leaders of the two countries involved ... have failed to come to the table to reach an agreement. You can lead a horse to water, you can’t make it drink, and we did a lot of leading to a lot of water.” | 0fake |
Private Equity Consultant Hamilton Lane Trots Out New Excuse, “Evil Populists,” for Already-Flagging Private Equity Performance | by Yves Smith
Private equity shills are readying the Blame Cannon for the industry’s widely forecast fall in returns.
Who are the allies of the private equity firms attempting to villianize as the cause of deteriorating performance? Not the 0.1% Masters of the Universe, who are always and every the sole cause of Good Things but never never to be found when Bad Things occur. No, it’s those evil “populists” interfering with the proper operation of the world according to private equity that is messing up returns.
We’re not making this up. From the Wall Street Journal :
The rise of “populist” politicians in western nations could challenge the ability of private-equity firms to do business and make money, according to a report from Hamilton Lane, one of the largest advisers to investors in the industry.
The backlash against globalization may cause higher taxes on private-equity firms, create more regulation, drive more volatility and restrict economic growth, Hamilton Lane’s annual review said.
This is utterly ludicrous if you’ve been paying attention.
From the first half of 2015, the average EBITDA multiple for PE purchases was over 10X, higher than the peak of the last cycle, in 2007. Even limited partners who are leery of saying a bad word about private equity, like CIO Chris Ailman of CalSTRS, described PE acquisitions as “priced to perfection” . The trading prices of the private equity firms that are public shows that equity market investors believe that private equity firms will not earn any carry fees over the next couple of years.
And as we’ve pointed out repeatedly, since the second half of 2015, senior officers of prominent private equity firms have increasingly been warning that private equity returns going forward will be lower than levels of the past. And none of them used Putin, um, Trump, um populism as the excuse for why returns were going to decline.
Hamilton Lane has more reason than most to blame private equity’s declining fortunes on external forces rather than the obvious factors of too much money chasing too many deals, and if the Fed ever pulls it off, rising interest rates being particularly punitive to high risk strategies like private equity, which is fundamentally levered equity. As we’ve pointed out, private equity has doubled its share of global equity from 2005 to 2014.
Hamilton Lane is not just a consultant to private equity; it is deeply conflicted by virtue of being a private equity fund of fund manager, which means it needs to play nice with the general partners in order to maintain access to funds. And the limited partners it has advised on private equity need excuses they can take to their boards and broader constituencies when private equity returns fizzle. So it’s easy to blame those nasty anti-capitalists rather than admit that private equity has always been a cyclical play and the end of a cycle is nigh. In fact, it should have occurred after the 2007 deal frenzy, but private equity was an accidental beneficiary of central banks’“rescue the financial system” emergency operations, and got a stay of execution.
In a sign that the public is getting smarter about private equity, 80% of the comments on the Wall Street Journal story were not buying what Hamilton Lane was selling. The other 20% were general criticism of populism rather than votes of support for private equity.
This skew should not be surprising given some of the strained claims Hamilton Lane made. Notice in the quote above that the first, and presumably therefore the most important problem for private equity was “higher taxes on private-equity firms,” which almost certainly refers to closing the carried interest loophole. But readers are supposed to believe that that would dent their ability to make money for investors, when those investors are almost without exception exempt from US taxes.
Now some private equity industry members have stomped their feet and said they’d quit if they had to pay more taxes. It’s hard to take this hissy fit seriously since there are not other lines of work in which they’d earn remotely comparable pay even with a bigger tax bill. At the largest firms, the typical annual pay is eight figures, and for the top dogs at big and some medium-large funds, nine figures.
And it’s not as if “talent” makes as much of a difference as the general partners would have you believe. Industry data shows that no one has a secret sauce. Top quartile funds are less likely to perform well in the next period then by chance. An investor in private equity should stop wasting time picking winners. They should try to avoid crooks and otherwise attempt to index.
So who might leave the industry if anyone? The departures are more likely to take place at the smallest funds or ones with mediocre performance, since the difference in tax treatment would have a bigger impact on the ability of the principals to maintain what is perceived to be an adequate lifestyle.
Ironically, thinning out the marginal players is if anything likely to be salutary for industry performance. With too much competition for deals, the winning bid is often made by someone who is desperate to win a deal (as in their investors perceive them to be too slow at putting money to work) or not well informed.
But the Hamilton Lane whinge is a harbinger of the sort of excuses you can expect to hear from both general partners and limited partners over the coming years, the tired old “whocoulddanode?” in new garb. 0 0 0 0 1 0 | 1real |
Two LGBT Men Horrifically Burned During Anti-Gay Hate Attack (VIDEO) | Twenty-one-year-old Marquez Tolbert and his 23-year-old boyfriend, Anthony Gooden Jr., were asleep in the home Tolbert shared with his mother and her boyfriend, when the couple was viciously attacked.According to the couple, Martin Blackwell, who was dating Tolbert s mother at the time of the attack, poured boiling water over the two men as they slept.During a March 15 interview with Atlanta s Project Q, Tolbert said Blackwell pulled him up, saying Get out of my house with all that gay. Tolbert said, I couldn t stop screaming. The twenty-one year old victim went on to say, We were just burning. My body was just stinging. Both men suffered second and third-degree burns during the attack. Tolbert spent ten days in the hospital, while the second victim was hospitalized for five weeks.Image credit: Vickie Gray, via Huffington PostBlackwell was arrested on two counts of aggravated battery and held without bail. Although the state of Georgia does not have a hate crimes statute, federal hate crimes charges could still be applied in the case.On March 17, Tolbert spoke with WSB-TV about the attack.Watch the interview below. According to the latest FBI statistics, 7,242 people were the victims of a hate crime in 2013. More than 20 percent of all victims of hate crimes included in the FBI report were targeted because of their sexual orientation.But most advocates believe that hate-based attacks against members of the LGBT community are severely underreported. The facts support this conclusion.As Vocativ reports here, a large number of hate crimes committed against LGBT citizens are never identified or reported as hate crimes.Gregory Herek, a psychology professor at the University of California at Davis who specializes in violence against sexual minorities, explained to Vocativ: The best estimates suggest that the real number of hate crimes are up to 40 times larger than the numbers contained in the FBI reports. For a hate crime to be recorded in the national statistics, it first must be reported by the victim to the police, Herek said.Most often, this doesn t happen: In fact, the National Crime Victimization Survey found that more than half of hate crimes are never reported. That s only the beginning of the battle. Then it must be classified by the local law enforcement agency as a hate crime, he says. This often isn t done unless the agency has special training for officers and personnel who are assigned to respond to hate crimes. What happened to these two young men is horrific. Yet what can we expect from a society which allows Christian extremists to openly call for the execution of LGBT citizens? What can we expect from a society that grants right wing pastors tax-exempt status to spread homophobic hatred through their churches, or a society that allows republican legislators to spend billions of taxpayer dollars to further an agenda of anti-gay hate? If we want to stop the violence we have to stop the extremists who instigate it, shutting them down in our communities, our churches and especially in our government.Featured image via Vickie Gray via Huffington Post | 1real |
32 Million Uninsured, Premiums To Double If Obamacare Repealed But Not Replaced | A new report released by the Congressional Budget Office on Wednesday pointed out the problems with repealing the Affordable Care Act without replacing it, a move supported by President Trump, and the results are staggering. This is also the same President that has recently criticized the CBO s findings and argued that their reports are fallible, his general response when something doesn t show him in a good light.U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has called for a vote on a motion early next week that could lead to the idea of repealing Obamacare without a replacement system in place to be debated, a tactic he and Trump have sought after the revised Senate bill to replace the ACA was disapproved by at least four Republican SenatorsThe CBO examined the effect of repealing most of the health law without a replacement in their report and found that 17 million more people would be without insurance next year, reaching approximately 32 million people by 2026, 10 million more than what was projected under the Republican party s revised health care bill that didn t pass the House. At the same time, it s projected that the increases in premiums for those still with coverage would double and the average premiums for individuals purchased through exchanges or insurers would go up by about 25 percent next year compared to Obamacare, reaching approximately 50 percent in 2020. The repeal bill would also bring an immediate end to uninsured people paying a penalty for their lack of coverage, as well as ending funding for Medicaid further down the line.The report also came to the conclusion that insurers would leave the individual market due to the lack of penalties for the uninsured, mostly in anticipation of more high-cost customers and fewer enrolees. If this were to happen, roughly 50 percent of the nation would reside in areas with no insurers in the individual market by 2020, a number that would increase to around 75 percent by 2026, the result of less pressure on penalties and more on premiums.All we can hope for now is that the Senate will vote against a repeal of Obamacare without a replacement ready to go.Featured image via Mark Wilson/Getty Images | 1real |
Richard Dreyfuss Just Showed ‘Little-Dick’ Donald Trump How To Win A Twitter Battle (TWEETS) | Richard Dreyfuss has provided us with some of the finest moments in movie and television history. His ability to run the table on acting to bring us everything from Mr. Holland to Dick Cheney to Bob s savior, Dr. Leo Marvin, has made him a Hollywood icon and fan favorite for more than four decades. In the age of social media, Dreyfuss is also proving himself to be an amply armed Twitter warrior, taking on the likes of none other than Donald J. Trump.Dreyfuss isn t so much upset about Trump s following of low-hanging fruit; they are as he puts it, struggling. The celebrities who have endorsed Trump? Dreyfuss views them in a different light altogether:The saddest people aren't Donald Trump's supporters. They're really struggling. It's Donald Trump's celebrity supporters who are whores. Richard Dreyfuss (@RichardDreyfuss) May 30, 2016It s their souls they re whoring out for Trump, and it truly is sickening. To see people who would otherwise be considered intelligent and educated jumping on the Trump train to nowhere is infuriating not only to their fans with half a brain but to Dreyfuss as well. Luckily for Hollywood, people twisted enough to support the orange one aren t exactly A-listers, with Jon Voight being the closest thing to a decent actor in the bunch.After the shot at the Kirstie Alleys and Ted Nugents of the world, Dreyfuss moved on to Trump himself, taking a shot at his off the cuff style of speaking, which we like to call racism :I get the thing about "off the cuff speaking." I get it! But when that speaking is dedicated to hurting latino americans, you're a racist. Richard Dreyfuss (@RichardDreyfuss) May 30, 2016We don t need Richard Dreyfuss to tell us that Trump is a racist; it s as obvious as the comb-over. It s always nice, however, to see a public figure adored by so many dropping truth bombs on the Republicans latest choice to destroy America. Dreyfuss wasn t quite finished yet, however, letting people know that his opinions aren t just speculative; he has actually had experience dealing with Trump in person:I met Donald Trump a few times but first was a party in Malbu where he got very upset that his date had the gault to speak with other guests Richard Dreyfuss (@RichardDreyfuss) May 30, 2016And there s the Donald Trump we all know and despise. If you ve never experienced a man becoming so jealous that his date actually has a mind of her own that he loses his cool, you can t quite appreciate how it affects you. It s infuriating. Trump didn t just get a little upset, either. He was so butthurt that he acted like a small-dicked prick, forcing her to leave and causing those left behind to wonder if he would hurt her:He acted like a small dicked prick and pusher from the party and left of us wondering if we had made a mistake letter her go with him Richard Dreyfuss (@RichardDreyfuss) May 30, 2016Autocorrect seems to have gotten the best of him there, but the implications are clear: Donald Trump is a deplorable human being whose own actions have caused people to fear for the safety of women he s dated. With that, Dreyfuss ended his anti-Trump Twitter barrage. Trump decided not to engage, as is usually the case when someone calls him out for his treatment of women.Game, set and match: Dreyfuss. And THAT is how to win a Twitter battle against Donald Trump. Embarrass him to the point that he stays out of it altogether.Featured image by John Sciulli/Spencer Platt/Getty Images | 1real |
United States Reformation or Fracture? | United States Reformation or Fracture?
By Thierry Meyssan Observing the US presidential electoral campaign, Thierry Meyssan analyses the resurgence of an old and weighty conflict of civilisation. Hillary Clinton has just declared that this election is not about programmes, but about the question ŤWho are the Americans?ť. It was not for reasons of his political prgramme that the Republican leaders have withdrawn their support from their candidate, Donald Trump, but because of his personal behaviour. According to Thierry Meyssan, until now, the United States was composed of migrants from different horizons who accepted to submit to the ideology of a particular community . This is the model which is in the process of breaking down, at the risk of shattering the country itself. " Voltaire " - During the year of the US electoral campaign that we have just weathered, the rhetoric has profoundly changed, and an unexpected rift has appeared between the two camps. If, in the beginning, the candidates spoke about subjects which were genuinely political (such as the sharing of wealth or national security), today they are mostly talking about sex and money. It is this dialogue, and not the political questions, which has caused the explosion of the Republican party whose main leaders have withdrawn their support from their candidate - and which is recomposing the political chess-board, awakening an ancient cleavage of civilisation. On one side, Mrs. Clinton is working to appear politically correct, while on the other, ŤThe Donaldť is blowing the hypocrisy of the ex-ŤFirst Ladyť to smithereens.
On one side, Hillary Clinton promises male / female equality - although she has never hesitated to attack and defile the women who revealed that they had slept with her husband and that she is presenting herself not for her personal qualities, but as the wife of an ex-President, and that she accuses Donald Trump of misogyny because he does not hide his appreciation of the female gender. On the other, Donald Trump denounces the privatisation of the State and the racketing of foreign personalities by the Clinton Foundation to obtain appointments with the State Department the creation of ObamaCare not in the interest of citizens, but for the profit of medical insurance companies - and goes as far as to question the honesty of the electoral system.
I am perfectly aware that the way in which Donald Trump expresses himself may encourage racism, but I do not believe for a second that this question is at the heart of the electoral debate, despite the hype from the pro-Clinton medias. It is not without interest that, during the Lewinsky affair, President Bill Clinton apologised to the Nation and convened a number of preachers to pray for his salvation. But when he was accused of similar misconduct by an audio recording, Donald Trump simply apologised to the people he had upset without making any appeal to members of the clergy. The currrent divide re-awakens the revolt of Catholic, Orthodox and Lutheran values against those of the Calvinists, mainly represented in the USA by the Presbyterians, the Baptists and the Methodists.
While the two candidates were raised in the Puritan tradition (Clinton as a Methodist and Trump as a Presbyterian), Mrs. Clinton has returned to the religion of her father, and participates today in a prayer group composed of the army chiefs of staff, The Family, while Mr. Trump practises a more interior form of spirituality and rarely goes to church. Of course, no-one is locked into the systems in which they were raised, but when people act without thinking, they unconsciously reproduce these systems. The question of the religious environment of the candidates may therefore be important.
In order to understand the stakes of this game, we have to go back and look at 17th century England. Oliver Cromwell instigated a military coup detat which overthrew King Charles 1st. He wanted to install a Republic, purify the soul of the country, and ordered the decapitation of the ex-sovereign. He created a sectarian régime inspired by the ideas of Calvin, massacred thousands of Irish Papists, and imposed a Puritan way of life. He also created Zionism he invited the Jews back to England, and was the first head of state in the world to demand the creation of a Jewish state in Palestine. This bloody episode is known by the name of the ŤFirst British Civil Warť.
After the monarchy had been reinstated, Cromwells Puritans fled from England. They set up in Holland, from where some of them left for the Americas aboard the Mayflower (the ŤPilgrim Fathersť), while others founded the Afrikaneer community in South Africa. During the War of Independence in the 18th century United States, we saw a resurgence of the struggle of the Calvinists against the British monarchy, so that in current manuals of British History, it is known as the ŤSecond Civil Warť.
In the 19th century, the American Civil War opposed the Southern States (mainly inhabited by Catholic colonists) to the North (mostly inhabited by Protestant colonists). The History of the winning side presents this confrontation as a fight for freedom in the face of slavery, which is pure propaganda. The Southern states abolished slavery during the war when they concluded an agreement with the British monarchy). As a result, we once again saw the revolt of the Puritans against the Brititsh throne, which is why some historians speak of the ŤThird British Civil Warť.
During the 20th century, this interior confrontation of British civilisation seemed over and done with, apart from the re-appearance of the Puritans in the United Kingdom with the Ťnon-conformist Christiansť of Prime Minister David Lloyd George. It was they who divided Ireland and agreed to create the Ť Jewish national homelandť in Palestine.
In any case, one of Richard Nixons advisors, Kevin Philipps, dedicated a voluminous thesis to these civil wars, in which he noted that none of the problems had been solved, and announced a fourth confrontation [ 1 ].
I have no doubt that Mrs. Clinton will be the next President of the United States, or that if Mr. Trump were to be elected, he would be rapidly eliminated. But over the last few months, we have witnessed a large electoral redistribution within an irreversible demographic evolution. The Puritan-based churches now account for only a quarter of the population, and are swinging towards the Democrat camp. Their model looks like a historical accident. It disappeared in South Africa, and will not be able to survive much longer, either in the United States or in Israël. Beyond the Presidential election, US society will have to evolve rapidly or split once again. In a country where the youth massively rejects the influence of the Puritan preachers, it is no longer possible to displace the question of equality. The Puritans envisage a society where all men are equal, but not equivalent. Lord Cromwell wanted a Republic for the English, but only after he had massacred the Irish Papists. This is how it is at the moment in the United States all citizens are equal before the law, but in the name of the same texts, black people are systematically condemned, while attenuating circumstances are found for white people who have committed equivalent crimes. And in the majority of states, a penal condemnation, even for a speeding ticket, is enough to cancel the right to vote. Consequently, white and black people are equal, but in most states, the majority of black people has been legally deprived of its right to vote. The paradigm of this thought, in terms of foreign policy, is the Ťtwo-stateť solution in Palestine equal, but above all, not equivalent.
It is Puritan thinking that led the administrations of preacher Carter, Reagan, Bush (Sr. and Jr. are direct descendants of the Pilgrim Fathers), Clinton and Obama to support Wahhabism, in contradiction to the declared ideals of their countries, and today, to support Daesh.
A long time ago, the Founding Fathers built communities in Plymouth and Boston which were idealised in the US collective memory. And yet the historians are formal they claimed to be creating the ŤNew Israëlť, and chose the ŤLaw of Mosesť. They did not place the Cross in their temples, but the Tables of the Law. Although they are Christians, they attach more importance to the Jewish scriptures than the Gospel. They oblige their women to veil their faces and re-established corporaI punishment. Thierry Meyssan , French intellectual, founder and chairman of Voltaire Network and the Axis for Peace Conference. His columns specializing in international relations feature in daily newspapers and weekly magazines in Arabic, Spanish and Russian. His last two books published in English : 9/11 the Big Lie and Pentagate . Translation - Pete Kimberley
[ 1 ] The Cousins Wars , Kevin Philipps, Basic Books, 1999. | 1real |
WATCH: Gun Nut Believes Trump’s ‘Second Amendment’ Threat Is A Call To Arms | Donald Trump s Second Amendment threat just took a more frightening turn.National outrage ensued after the Republican nominee suggested on Tuesday that gun owners do something to stop Hillary Clinton from nominating judges to the Supreme Court. If she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do, folks, Trump said. Although the Second Amendment people maybe there is, I don t know. This statement prompted the Secret Service to take the unprecedented step of responding to an assassination threat by a presidential candidate against an opposing candidate, whom the Secret Service is charged with protecting and would be in the line of fire should a right-wing gun nut answer Trump s dog whistle.And it appears that at least one gun nut is interpreting Trump s dog whistle call as a call for armed insurrection if Hillary Clinton becomes president and doesn t pick who they want her to pick as a Supreme Court Justice.Greg from Michigan called into C-SPAN on Wednesday morning and while he denied that Trump was calling for Hillary to be shot and killed he frighteningly declared that Trump was actually calling for a bloody armed revolt if conservatives don t get their way. Number one, Mr. Trump was not threatening assassination of Hillary. But what he was implying and could happen is if Hillary got her way and did do away with Second Amendment rights, there are a lot of us who are gun owners who are going to object to that very strongly. And since we do have firearms, it might if it comes down to it be us having to defend our rights with those guns, just as the revolutionaries did in the Revolutionary War. Here s the video via C-SPAN:Trump s rhetoric just took a scary turn and his supporters are taking him seriously. Republicans have talked about Second Amendment remedies before but American voters have been consistent in rejecting candidates who spew such rhetoric. The idea of using guns to force your political agenda on the country is a threat to our democracy and has no place in this country. It s time for voters to once again reject this rhetoric by defeating Trump by a landslide. Republicans need to learn once and for all that threats of gun violence is not a political strategy and is a sure way to lose elections.Featured Image: YouTube | 1real |
Nate Silver: Hillary Clinton’s Wins Most Resemble The Democratic Party | As the New York primary draws closer and closer, Hillary Clinton, current front runner in the Democratic Party, is slated to win by a comfortable margin (for now). New York, a solid Democratic state when heading into the general, is also a very diverse state which is good for Clinton.According to Nate Silver of FiveThirtyEight, New York s diversity is why Clinton will most likely win on Tuesday. In fact, according to Silver s measures, Clinton s wins in heavily diverse states like Texas, Nevada, Florida, South Carolina, etc. most closely represents the Democratic electorate in the general election.Silver predicts, through meticulous exit polling data and election trends, that the citizens who cast their vote for the Democratic nominee in November will be 54 percent white, 24 percent black, 15 percent Latino / Hispanic, and 7 percent Asian. That s a pretty diverse electorate, something Democrats should take pride in.Silver also says this is why Clinton will most likely be the nominee. As Silver writes, Clinton s major wins in states like Florida and Texas are embody the coalition Democrats need to win:In addition to being important to the Democratic Party s electoral present and future, Florida, Virginia, North Carolina and Texas are quite diverse. They re diverse ideologically Miami and Austin aren t exactly the most conservative part of the country and they re diverse racially. They contain not only a substantial number of African-Americans but also Hispanics and, increasingly, Asian-American voters.In fact, these states are among the most demographically representative of the diverse Obama coalition that Clinton or Sanders will have to rely on in NovemberThe states whose primaries most resemble the real Democrat electorate are:One of Clinton s strengths comes from the black vote, which carried her to an impressive sweep of the South.Summed up:In other words, Clinton has won or is favored to win almost every state where the turnout demographics strongly resemble those of Democrats as a whole. This shouldn t be surprising Clinton is winning nationally by about 14 percentage points in the popular vote. So if you re in a state that s well-representative of Democrats national demographics, you might expect her to win it by a solid margin too.This isn t to say Sanders hasn t won some diverse states that vote Democratic he crushed Clinton in Hawaii, and pulled off a major upset in Michigan. Should he win the nomination, he ll win virtually every demographic versus any Republican candidate as will Clinton if she s the nominee. Featured image via Justin Sullivan/Getty Images | 1real |
UK Economy Grows 0.5% in Three Months after Brexit Vote | Store UK Economy Grows 0.5% in Three Months after Brexit Vote The GDP figure is driven by growth in the services sector - offsetting slides in construction, manufacturing and agriculture. Image Credits: publicdomainpictures.net .
The UK economy grew by 0.5% in the three months after the Brexit vote, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has said.
The figure for July to September was down from the 0.7% growth recorded in the second quarter of 2016 – the months before Britain voted to leave the European Union.
But it is more robust than many economists had expected – and stronger than the 0.2% forecast last month by the Bank of England (BoE).
The higher-than-expected GDP figure was driven by the services sector – which accounts for more than 78% of the UK economy – which grew by 0.2% in the three months to September. | 1real |
China's neo-Maoists welcome Xi's new era, but say he is not the new Mao | BEIJING (Reuters) - A fringe group of hard-line conservatives who long for the way things were under communist China s founding leader, Mao Zedong, have welcomed President Xi Jinping s new era of socialism and its renewed emphasis on equality. Their enthusiasm only goes so far, though. They don t want to put Xi on the same pedestal as Mao. At the ruling Communist Party s leadership conclave that wrapped up this week, Xi laid out a confident vision for a proud and prosperous China, with the party firmly in control, and cemented his authority as the country s most powerful leader since Mao took power in 1949 and declared the founding of modern China. Delegates praised Xi using Mao-era honorifics, and he became the first serving Chinese leader since Mao to have a named ideology written into the party charter, signaling that it will be in effect beyond his second five-year term, which began this week. Their similarity is that they both want to rejuvenate the Chinese nation, they both want an independent, powerful, new China, Song Yangbiao, a Beijing-based neo-Maoist freelance journalist, told Reuters. Chairman Mao freed the Chinese people from the oppression of the West, while Xi Jinping has dedicated himself to giving new China a greater voice on the global stage, he said. But Song said that it was not realistic to revive Mao s party chairman title and confer it on Xi. That elevation is a possibility that has been floated, according to some sources with ties to the leadership. Chairman Mao s authority was built from a long and arduous struggle. Xi s power came from the bureaucracy in a time of peace. The history is totally different, he said. Some mainstream party cadres at the congress did not have such reservations. Many called Xi a wise and great lingxiu , or leader, an honorific only used for Mao Zedong and his short-lived successor Hua Guofeng. Bayanqolu, party chief of northeastern China s Jilin province, went so far as to call Xi party helmsman , a term not in general use in senior Communist Party circles since Mao, who was called the Great Helmsman . Accepting Xi as a powerful leader, accepting him as the most powerful leader since Mao, is a necessary trait of Xi s new era, said Sima Nan, a television pundit, blogger and defender of Mao and the Communist Party. Look at how much he has said, how much he has written, how many people he has met - when does he have time to sleep? he said in reference to Xi. China has an awkward relationship with Mao s legacy. Mao is still officially venerated by the Party as the founder, with a huge portrait overlooking Tiananmen Square and his face on every yuan banknote. But he is disliked by many intellectuals and others in China, who consider him personally responsible for the tumultuous decade-long Cultural Revolution and economic policies that caused famine and killed millions. State media sometimes say that what Mao did was 30 percent negative and 70 percent positive. Neo-Maoists dismiss criticisms of Mao as smears by Westerners and revisionists, and the group vociferously defends Mao and his policies in articles online, with occasional public shaming of those who slight his legacy. In January, a professor in central China was sacked from a university after Maoists protested a social media post in which he said Mao was responsible for millions of deaths. While Xi has not lavished praise on Mao or his policies, he has defended his mistakes and has drawn a line against attempts to revise the Party s official history, pleasing the neo-Maoists. He has also borrowed from Maoist imagery, rhetoric and campaigns to enforce discipline on cadres, garner public support and strengthen the party s leading role in society. Party, government, military, civilian and academic, east, west, south, north and center, the Party leads everything, Xi said during his speech to open Congress. | 0fake |
Tillerson says he and Trump disagree over Iran nuclear deal | (Corrects this August 1st story to show Tillerson did not say European countries would be reluctant to re-impose sanctions in 11th paragraph) By Yeganeh Torbati WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson acknowledged on Tuesday that he and President Donald Trump disagree over the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, and said the two men discuss how to use the international agreement to advance administration policies. Trump at times vowed during the 2016 presidential election campaign to withdraw from the agreement, which was signed by the United States, Russia, China and three European powers to curb Iran’s nuclear program in return for lifting most Western sanctions. Trump has preserved the deal for now, although he has made clear he did so reluctantly after being advised to do so by Tillerson. “He and I have differences of views on things like JCPOA, and how we should use it,” Tillerson said at a State Department briefing, using the acronym for the deal, formally called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Tillerson said that Washington could “tear it up and walk away” or stay in the deal and hold Iran accountable to its terms, which he said would require Iran to act as a “good neighbor.” Critics say the deal falls short in addressing Iran’s support for foreign fighters in Iraq and Syria, arms shipments around the Middle East and ballistic missile tests. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tillerson’s remarks. Trump said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal last month that he predicts Iran will be judged “noncompliant” with the Iran deal at the next deadline in October, and that he would have preferred to do so months ago. Tillerson expressed a more nuanced view of the deal’s potential benefits on Tuesday. “There are a lot of alternative means with which we use the agreement to advance our policies and the relationship with Iran, and that’s what the conversation generally is around with the president as well,” Tillerson said. European officials would likely be reluctant to re-impose sanctions, especially the broader measures that helped drive Iran to negotiate over its nuclear program in the first place. New U.S. sanctions on Iran in July were a breach of the nuclear deal and Tehran had lodged a complaint with the body that oversees the pact’s implementation, a senior Iranian politician said. Tillerson acknowledged that the United States is limited in how much it can pressure Iran on its own and said it was important to coordinate with the other parties to the agreement. “The greatest pressure we can put to bear on Iran to change the behavior is a collective pressure,” he said. | 0fake |
New Report Blames Air Pollution For Deaths Of 600,000 Children Every Year | Most recent environmental concerns regarding pollution have been largely focused on water and land pollution. Though these are undeniably major concerns facing our planet, there has been a tendency... | 1real |
Mugabe removed as WHO goodwill envoy after outrage | GENEVA/LONDON (Reuters) - Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has been removed as a goodwill ambassador, the World Health Organization said on Sunday, following outrage among Western donors and rights groups at his appointment. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus named Mugabe to the largely ceremonial post at a meeting on Wednesday in Uruguay on chronic diseases attended by both men. At the time, Tedros praised Zimbabwe as a country that places universal health coverage and health promotion at the center of its policies to provide healthcare to all . But Tedros said in a statement that he had listened to those expressing concerns and heard the different issues raised. Over the last few days, I have reflected on my appointment of H.E. President Robert Mugabe as WHO Goodwill Ambassador for NCDs (non-communicable diseases) in Africa. As a result I have decided to rescind the appointment, Tedros said. The decision had been taken after consultation with the Harare government and was in the best interests of the World Health Organization , he said. Jeremy Farrar, a global health specialist and director of the Wellcome Trust charity and the NCD alliance, representing health groups combating chronic diseases, welcomed the reversal. Dr Tedros deserves all our support to ensure he and WHO build a global health movement that is inclusive and works to improve health for everyone, Farrar said in a statement. Zimbabwean Foreign Minister Walter Muzembi accepted the move while insisting that WHO had benefited tremendously from having nominated Mugabe and the media buzz it brought to health issues. So on the balance, it is wiser to let go, and help WHO focus on its mandate while we focus Zimbabwe on its membership obligations, Muzembi said in a government statement. Several former and current WHO staff had said privately they were appalled at the poor judgment and miscalculation by Tedros, elected the first African head of WHO in May. Mugabe was head of the African Union when the bloc endorsed Tedros - a former health and foreign minister of Ethiopia - over other African candidates for the top post, without any real regional contest, they said. Mugabe, 93, is blamed in the West for destroying Zimbabwe s economy and for numerous human rights abuses during his 37 years leading the country as either president or prime minister. Britain had said Mugabe s appointment as a goodwill ambassador was surprising and disappointing and that it risked overshadowing the WHO s global work. The United States, which has imposed sanctions on Mugabe for alleged human rights violations, also voiced disappointment. He (Tedros) has to remember where his funding comes from, said one health official who declined to be identified. The Trump administration, which is already questioning financial support for some United Nations agencies, is WHO s largest single donor. WHO is struggling to recover a reputation tarnished by its slowness in tackling the Ebola epidemic that killed more than 11,000 people in West Africa from 2014-2015 under Tedros predecessor, Margaret Chan. The agency is now grappling with a massive cholera outbreak in Yemen that has infected some 800,000 people in the past year and a plague outbreak in Madagascar that has killed nearly 100 in two months. | 0fake |
Should We Be Scared of Butter? - The New York Times | Is butter, along with other sources of saturated fats, back on the table, as many have recently claimed? It is. Just not in the quantities the meat, dairy and industries might have you ingest. Unless you have a medical condition that dictates otherwise, there’s no reason to cut anything — not butter, ice cream or Porterhouse steak — completely from your diet as long as you mainly eat foods (vegetables, fruits and whole grains) lean animal protein and fish and don’t go overboard on foods rich in saturated fats that can cause harm in excess. That’s the conclusion of the best available evidence I’ve reviewed for maximizing the health of body and brain and enjoying a long life. The unending controversies about a wholesome diet provide much fodder for this column. An extensively researched book by the science writer Nina Teicholz (“The Big Fat Surprise: Why Butter, Meat and Cheese Belong in a Healthy Diet”) published in 2014, has raised serious questions about the evidence that nearly 40 years ago prompted the Senate Select Committee on Nutrition and Human Needs to recommend that Americans follow a diet low in saturated fats and cholesterol to curb what was then a runaway epidemic of heart and other cardiovascular diseases. Those recommendations spawned an outpouring of and processed foods that replaced the maligned fats with carbohydrates, primarily sugars and refined starches, which the body treats like sugar. A result: Heart attacks and coronary deaths are way down (thanks largely to the decline in smoking and use of medications along with dietary changes) but obesity and Type 2 diabetes have soared. So what should we do? Cut back on carbs and go back to eating lots of meats and dairy products? Not if you value your health. The task now is to appreciate the effects that different nutrients have on the body and adopt a rational and enjoyable diet that takes both health benefits and risks into account. Upon reviewing the newest reports, Dr. Boris Hansel, a French who specializes in obesity management, wrote in a Medscape commentary: “Butter is one of the foods with the highest saturated fat content, and consuming it on a regular basis promotes an increase in blood cholesterol levels. ” But, he added, “It should be considered a pleasure food for those who are fond of it, provided that it is consumed in moderate amounts and not consumed in addition to other foods that are high in saturated fatty acids. ” At the same time, a lot more attention should be paid to the overconsumption of simple and refined carbohydrates — the sugary drinks, desserts, pastries and snacks, as well as white bread, white rice and potatoes — that promote obesity and now threaten to reverse the decline in cardiovascular disease. “Not all fats and not all carbohydrates are created equal,” Dr. Frank Hu, the senior author of a recent report on saturated fats, told me. “The types of fats and carbohydrates are more important than the quantity. ” Dr. Hu is a professor of nutrition and epidemiology at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health and a member of the nation’s Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee that last year recommended a diet lower in red and processed meat, which have been linked to heart disease and cancer. “Saturated fat is still bad for heart disease risk,” Dr. Hu told the Nutrition Action Healthletter, published by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a public advocacy group. “Evidence from studies on thousands of people shows that if you replace saturated fat with unsaturated fat, you reduce your risk of heart disease. If you replace saturated fat with refined carbs, you don’t reduce your risk. ” Studies that seem to exonerate saturated fats often fail to compare their effects with the appropriate nutrients, Dr. Hu said in an interview. Furthermore, claims that, heart risk aside, diets low in saturated fats do not prevent premature death have now been refuted by a huge observational study published online in July in JAMA Internal Medicine. With Dr. Dong D. Wang in Dr. Hu’s department as first author, this study of 83, 349 female nurses followed for 32 years and 42, 884 male health professionals followed for 26 years found that both total death rates and deaths from specific diseases like heart disease, respiratory disease, cancer and dementia were reduced among those consuming the least amount of saturated and trans fats, replacing them with polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. Simply substituting 5 percent of calories from saturated fats with the equivalent amount of polyunsaturated fats reduced total deaths by 27 percent, and replacing saturates with monounsaturates (from foods like olive and canola oil, nuts and avocados) reduced deaths by 13 percent. fatty acids from fish also “modestly” lowered total mortality, the researchers found. However, when saturated fats were consumed in place of carbohydrates, there was no significant drop in cardiovascular death rates and slightly higher death rates from cancer. Dr. Wang and colleagues wrote that this finding was not surprising “because the major sources of carbohydrates in a typical Western diet are highly processed foods with large amounts of refined starch and sugar” that can raise the risk of cardiovascular disease independent of saturated fats. For the various diseases with death rates linked to diets high in saturated fats, chronic inflammation is believed to be a main underlying cause. Chronic inflammation promotes atherosclerosis, leading to arteries and setting the stage for heart attacks and strokes. The same process affects arteries in the brain and can result in vascular dementia, a common cause of memory loss. On the other hand, a diet rich in olive oil and nuts but relatively low in saturated fats not only protects the heart but also has been shown to improve cognitive function and may reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, according to a report from Barcelona last year. Diets rich in red meat and processed meats have repeatedly been linked to an increased risk of developing colon cancer. And an ongoing study of young nurses under the auspices of the Harvard School of Public Health is exploring evidence that higher intakes of saturated fats (as well as too many simple carbohydrates) can raise the risk of premenopausal breast cancer. All saturated fats are not alike, which is good news for chocolate lovers. Stearic acid, the saturated fat in dark chocolate, does not raise unhealthy cholesterol. And there’s room for an occasional indulgence — if you eat healthfully most of the time. | 0fake |
Bill Clinton defends wife's 'super predator' comment to protesters | (Reuters) - Bill Clinton faced down protesters for 10 minutes at a presidential campaign rally in Philadelphia for his wife, Hillary Clinton, over their criticisms that a 1994 crime bill he approved while president led to a surge in black people being imprisoned. Several protesters heckled him and held signs, including one that read “CLINTON Crime Bill Destroyed Our Communities.” Video footage of Hillary Clinton defending the bill in 1994 by calling young people in gangs “super predators” who need to “be brought to heel” have been widely circulated during the campaign by activists in the Black Lives Matter protest movement. Bill Clinton defended her 1994 remarks, which protesters say were racially insensitive. “I don’t know how you would characterize the gang leaders who got 13-year-old kids hopped on crack and sent them out on the street to murder other African-American children,” he said, shaking his finger at a heckler as Clinton supporters cheered, according to video of the event. “Maybe you thought they were good citizens. She didn’t.” Hillary Clinton, who also has faced protesters upset by her remarks, has said she regrets using the term. Bill Clinton said last year that he regrets signing the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act into law because it contributed to the country’s high incarceration rate of black people for nonviolent crimes. | 0fake |
“WANNABE PRESIDENT” BARACK OBAMA MEETS With South Korean President After Trashing President Trump In Indonesia | Former President Barack Obama seems to be feeling nostalgic for his old job, meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in Monday for 40 minutes.The Korea Herald reported that Moon spoke about his recent meetings with President Trump in Washington and asked Obama for his advice on how to improve that relationship.The meeting came after Obama spoke at the Asian Leadership Conference and the Fourth Congress of Indonesian Diaspora in Jakarta. There he attacked Trump s decision to withdraw from the Paris climate change accord. In Paris, we came together around the most ambitious agreement in history about climate change, an agreement that even with the temporary absence of American leadership can still give our children a fighting chance, Obama said in Indonesia.The former president had said before leaving office that he appreciated his predecessor George W. Bush s silence during his tenure, but also contended that he s still a citizen and that carries with it duties and obligations. Daily Caller | 1real |
“KILL YOUR A$$”: Florida Lefty Threatens GOP Congressman…Gets A Dose Of Karma! | Only two weeks after U.S. congressman Steve Scalise and four others were shot during a baseball practice in a Washington suburb by a man with a history of lashing out at Republicans, a Florida lawmaker decided he wasn t taking any chances. After someone threatened his life on a Facebook page, state Rep. Jose Felix Diaz, R-Miami, told police. HADN T TAKEN HIS MEDS And on Monday, Northwest Miami-Dade resident Steve St. Felix, 34, was arrested and charged with written threats with intent to do bodily injury. Police said St. Felix was fed up with the Republican Party and that he hadn t taken his meds when he posted the threat. It s unclear what condition the medications were treating.The threat I ll kill your ass and you better not show up to the next REC meeting was quickly removed from the Facebook page, police said. It appeared to refer to the Republican Executive Committee, the name of the local Miami-Dade County GOP.RECENT THREATS AND THE SHOOTING OF SCALISE CALL ATTENTION TO THREATS:On June 14, Steve Scalise, the U.S. House Republican whip, was badly injured during an early morning shootout in Alexandria, Virginia, as a group of Republicans practiced for their annual baseball game against Democrats.Two members of Scalise s Capitol Police security detail, a congressional aide and a lobbyist were also shot and injured. The shooter, James T. Hodgkinson, a 66-year-old from a Belleville, Ill., a suburb outside St. Louis, was shot and killed.Two members of Scalise s baseball squad said they spoke with Hodgkinson before the practice and that he asked them what party they were affiliated with.Read more: Miami HeraldThe interesting thing is that Facebook just hired thousands to delete hate speech Facebook hires thousands to launch crackdown on hate speech Facebook s statement: Our current definition of hate speech is anything that directly attacks people based on what are known as their protected characteristics race, ethnicity, national origin, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, sex, gender, gender identity, or serious disability or disease, said Richard Allan, Facebook vice president of public policy for Europe, the Middle East and Africa said in the blog post. There is no universally accepted answer for when something crosses the line. Although a number of countries have laws against hate speech, their definitions of it vary significantly. This could get really interesting with Facebook being called out for NOT catching things like the incident above but deleting a harmless conservative post. Censorship is getting even worse at Facebook. | 1real |
Cambodian leader threatens ban on opposition party | PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen threatened on Monday that the main opposition party would be dissolved if it continues to back detained leader Kem Sokha, who has been charged with treason over an alleged plot to gain power with U.S. support. Kem Sokha was arrested on Sept. 3 and is the only serious election rival to Hun Sen, a 65-year-old former Khmer Rouge commander. Western countries have criticized the arrest, which marked a an escalation in a crackdown on critics ahead of a poll next year that could pose the toughest electoral challenge Hun Sen has faced in more than 30 years of rule. The opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) said it would continue to support Kem Sokha as leader and threatened to boycott the election if he is not freed. Speaking at a graduation ceremony in Phnom Penh, Hun Sen warned that the CNRP s stand could mean the dissolution of the party . If the political party continues to blockade and defend this traitor, it means the party is also a traitor so there is no time to let this party operate in Cambodia s democratic process anymore, Hun Sen said. Parliamentarians from the CNRP went to the prison where Kem Sokha is being held to demand his release. They said his arrest was illegal because he should have been protected by parliamentary immunity. The party president Kem Sokha is the CNRP president now and will be in the future, one of his deputies, Mu Sochua, said outside the prison, adding that his release was an essential condition to allow a free and fair election. We can t participate in an election that isn t free and fair, she said. The opposition party boycotted a parliamentary vote on whether Kem Sokha should be prosecuted. It would not have been able to block approval as Hun Sen s Cambodian People s Party (CPP) holds a majority, and the motion in favor of prosecuting was passed unopposed. It was unclear whether that effectively overrode Kem Sokha s right to claim parliamentary immunity. The evidence presented against Kem Sokha so far is a video recorded in 2013 in which he discusses a strategy to win power with the help of unspecified Americans. His lawyers have dismissed the evidence as nonsense and said he was only discussing election strategy. Western countries and human rights groups have condemned the arrest of Kem Sokha and raised doubts as to whether next year s election can be fair, given the crackdown on the opposition, activists and independent media. However Hun Sen s main ally, China, has said it supports Cambodia s efforts to preserve its own security. Hun Sen was due to visit Beijing on Monday. He said he was going to ask for more aid for Cambodia s health sector. (Story refiles to correct opposition party acronym to CNRP in later references.) | 0fake |
‘Miss Peregrine’ and Tim Burton: The Making of a Film Fable - The New York Times | Ransom Riggs’s novel “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children,” with its haunting photos, quirky outsiders and feel for the macabre, reads a bit like a Tim Burton movie. And, fittingly, it has now become one. The director of “Beetlejuice” and “Edward Scissorhands” was drawn to “Miss Peregrine” (in theaters Sept. 30) because it fell in line with the themes he often explores: misfits struggling to be understood and tales that blend the comic and the tragic. The “Peculiar Children” of the title possess special abilities, like the power to reanimate dead creatures or shoot fire from their fingers. For this story of a teenage boy (Asa Butterfield) who uncovers a family mystery that involves a handful of those children, invisible monsters known as Hollows, and time travel, Mr. Riggs built his narrative around vintage photographs he collected. “I liked Ransom’s approach with the pictures,” Mr. Burton said in a phone interview from Los Angeles. “It was an interesting kind of way to create a story. It made it feel like a weird old fable. ” For the production, Mr. Burton sketched characters, props and more. Here, he explains why he decided to put clothes on evil creatures and how he came to storyboard a feast of human eyeballs. This is Hugh (Milo Parker) a Peculiar who has a wild hive of bees living inside of him. Mr. Burton’s simple sketch shows the intensity of the character using only dots to illustrate the bees. “I didn’t do too many sketches of the kids because I didn’t want to do three drawings and try to cast the kids to look like that,” he said. “This was just a little more my process, my doodles really,” Mr. Burton said. “Doodling these little things helps me to get thoughts from the inside out. ” These creatures are the biggest threat to Peculiars, and all the more menacing because they are invisible to most everyone. In his sketch, Mr. Burton incorporated mouth tentacles and other traits described in the novel but also put his stamp on this lanky figure, which could be at home in his films “The Nightmare Before Christmas” or “Corpse Bride. ” “Originally, we were doing things that felt too much like monsters,” he said. “I got back to the idea that they should have a human quality. That made it feel more like a folk tale kind of children’s horror story. So I kept clothes on them so they had a human aspect to them. ” This scene is from an experiment conducted by the creepy villain, Barron (Samuel L. Jackson) who has evolved from a Hollow and is trying to achieve immortality. The helmet has a sinister, torturous medieval yet industrial look that Mr. Burton came up with after earlier designs left him dissatisfied. “I had a lot of artists working on things, and the helmets were looking overly elaborate, overly cartoonish, like from an old Disney movie,” Mr. Burton said. “But I thought there was something a bit more weird and scary about a more simple helmet. This riveted simplicity felt kind of cultish to me. ” To become more humanlike, Barron must eat human eyeballs. In one scene, he and other former Hollows enjoy an eyeball feast. It’s a grisly, but also a kind of funny, visual set piece that gets at the children’s nightmare spirit of the novel. Mr. Burton’s simple watercolor drawing helped realize this moment. And while he doesn’t make as many storyboards for his movies as he used to, they were necessary in this case. “We had to do this scene in a montage kind of a way,” Mr. Burton said, “so it is one sequence that helped to storyboard. ” In the end, though the feast’s vibe is lifted from in the book, he said, “it’s not as literal as what we ended up with. ” | 0fake |
Trump team weighs 'infrastructure bank' to fund projects: Trump adviser | NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team is weighing an “infrastructure bank” to make investments in the nation’s infrastructure, Trump adviser Steven Mnuchin told reporters on Wednesday. Mnuchin, a Wall Street veteran under consideration for Trump’s Treasury secretary, said the team was focused on “taxes... regulatory changes, looking at the creation of an infrastructure bank to fund infrastructure investments.” “I’d say the economic priorities are clearly taxes, regulatory, trade, infrastructure,” he added. | 0fake |
Pakistani government calls in army to help disperse Islamist protesters | ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan s government on Saturday called on the military to help police break up a sit-in by religious hardliners who have blocked the main routes into Islamabad for more than two weeks, state television reported. Army called in to control law and situation in capital, official Pakistan TV reported, citing an Interior Ministry notification. Pakistani police fought running battles on Saturday with stone-throwing activists of the ultra-religious Tehreek-e-Labaik party but failed to dislodge the activist who are blocking roads into Islamabad. By nightfall new demonstrators had joined the camp as protests spread to other main cities with activists brandishing sticks and attacking cars in some areas. | 0fake |
HERE THEY GO AGAIN! Muslims trying to claim that the Hebrew-language Dead Sea Scrolls are Arab Muslim in origin | BNI Store Nov 7 2016 HERE THEY GO AGAIN! Muslims trying to claim that the Hebrew-language Dead Sea Scrolls are Arab Muslim in origin So, let me get this straight. The Dead Sea Scrolls are demonstrably written in Hebrew. But the Palestinians are now saying these ancient documents are, like Jerusalem’s Temple Mount , the holiest site in Judaism, Arab Muslim in origin.That is how ridiculous the campaign to delegitimize Israel has become. Israel Today Carmel Shama-Hacohen – Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) – said the Palestinians raised the matter informally during a recent meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to its Countries of Origin. JERUSALEM POST The dead Sea Scrolls are about 900 documents and Biblical texts, discovered in one of the greatest archaeological finds of the 20th century in the 1940’s and 50’s in caves in and around Qumran on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea. The texts include some of the only known surviving copies of Biblical documents made before 100 B.C.E., and preserve evidence of Jewish life during the Second Temple period. According to the ambassador and to representatives of the Israel Antiquities Authority who were present at the meeting, the Palestinians intend to make a formal claim to the Dead Sea Scrolls when the committee next convenes in 2017. “This is another provocative and audacious attempt by the Palestinians to rewrite history and to erase our connection to our land,” Shama-Hacohen told The Jerusalem Post . “The Dead Sea Scrolls are factual and weighty archeological evidence of the presence of the Jewish people in the Land of Israel.” “[The accusation is] part of an ongoing effort to deny the continuous Jewish presence in Israel. The Dead Sea Scrolls provide incontrovertible proof of the historical facts that underpin the legitimacy of Israel as a Jewish state,” David Koschitzky, chairman of the UJA Federation in Toronto. “As such, they pose a threat to the ongoing attempts to obscure the unique relationship of the Jewish people with the land of Israel. | 1real |
Trump says Iran is violating 'spirit' of Iran nuclear deal | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Iran is violating the spirit of the Iran nuclear deal, but stopped short of saying whether he will refuse to recertify the agreement. Talking to reporters aboard Air Force One as he flew to Washington after a visit to storm-hit Florida, Trump called the Iran deal negotiated by former President Barack Obama, one of the worst deals I have ever seen. Saying that Iran is violating the spirit of the agreement, Trump said, We are not going to stand for what they are doing. | 0fake |
Factbox: President-elect Trump's top goals, biggest hurdles | (Reuters) - Republican Donald Trump campaigned on a promise to shake up Washington and as president the brash real estate mogul will be in a position to dramatically change how the United States handles immigration, trade and a range of other policies. Yet many of his more ambitious proposals will require cooperation from Congress after he takes office on Jan. 20. While he will may enjoy a post-election honeymoon with congressional Republicans, a long-lasting romance is far from guaranteed, given his uneasy relationship with congressional leaders and some basic ideological differences he has with Republican orthodoxy. Following is an overview of Trump’s top policy plans: In his campaign, Trump argued that international trade agreements had hurt U.S. workers and the country’s competitiveness. He has promised to “get tough” on China and withdraw from the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP, which is still not finalized. As president, Trump does have some power to raise tariffs on countries such as China. President Barack Obama’s administration has suspended its efforts to win congressional approval for TPP, saying its fate was up to Trump and Republican lawmakers. Trump has also said he would renegotiate or scrap the North American Free Trade Agreement, the 1994 free-trade deal with Mexico and Canada. Both Canada and Mexico have indicated they are willing to discuss the agreement with Trump. Canada has indicated it would consider a free-trade agreement that excludes Mexico. Economists have warned that such moves would damage the economy by forcing consumers to pay dramatically higher prices on everything from refrigerators to T-shirts. U.S. exports, such as airplanes and soybeans, would likely suffer as well. Trump has promised to build a wall along the Mexican border, deport millions of undocumented immigrants and ban immigration from countries that have been “compromised by terrorism.” Since his election, he has said parts could be a fence instead of a wall, and he would act to deport up to 3 million immigrants in the country illegally who have criminal records. It was unclear where his figure comes from. Think tank Migration Policy Institute estimated in a 2015 report there were 820,000 unauthorized immigrants with criminal records. Those policies would not come cheap. Trump has estimated the wall would cost $8 billion to $12 billion. Other estimates have run much higher. Politico estimated it would cost at least $166 billion to deport all of those in the country illegally and complete a border wall. While many congressional Republicans support those policies, they might blanch at the cost. Trump has said he would force Mexico to pay for the wall, but he has no power to force another country to spend money on something it does not want. Trump also promised to withhold federal funds from “sanctuary cities” such as New York and Los Angeles that shield people who are in the country illegally. More broadly, Trump could shift the broader debate over immigration, empowering skeptics like Republican Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama who want to reduce overall immigration levels and reduce the number of skilled guest workers. That would be a blow to business groups and Hispanic advocates who have sought to relax immigration laws. Trump has promised to repeal President Barack Obama’s signature Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare, and replace it with a plan that would give states more control over the Medicaid health plan for the poor and allow insurers to sell plans nationally. He would need Congress to act, and Republicans could have difficulty getting the 60 votes needed to advance a repeal effort through the 100-member Senate. Republicans could face a public backlash if they repeal a law that has provided healthcare to millions of Americans who previously had no healthcare. After the election Trump said he would consider retaining parts of Obamacare, including provisions letting parents keep adult children up to age 26 on insurance policies and barring insurers from denying coverage to people with existing conditions. Trump has vowed to make deep tax cuts, while also promising to protect popular health and retirement programs that account for more than a third of U.S. government spending. That combination of policies would massively increase the national debt, according to the nonpartisan Center for a Responsible Budget. He has also proposed increasing spending on the military and infrastructure, but has said he would reduce spending on categories other than health and retirement by 1 percent each year. On taxes, he would get plenty of help from Republicans in Congress, who have been laying the groundwork for a tax-code overhaul that would lower rates and close loopholes. But they will encounter fierce resistance from homeowners, businesses and other interest groups that benefit from current tax breaks. Trump’s promise to protect entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare will rile fiscal conservatives, who worry they will swamp the federal budget in the decades to come. But those programs are popular with the American public. Trump has promised a “dismantling” of the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial reform law enacted following the financial crisis, but has given few details. Both Trump and the Republican Party have called for reinstating Glass-Steagall, the 1930s-era law that forced the separation of investment banks from deposit-taking institutions. Republican lawmakers have so far been unable to undo many of their most-despised pieces of the Dodd-Frank law, and many in their ranks oppose a return to Glass-Steagall. Trump appears to be leaning toward weakening the law in a manner similar to what was proposed in a bill known as the CHOICE Act this summer by Jeb Hensarling, the Republican chairman of the U.S. House Financial Services Committee. Trump has offered few details about his plans to fight Islamic State but has said he would “knock the hell out of” the militant group. He says he is keeping the details of his strategy a secret so as not to disclose them to the enemy. Trump said that if he won, he would give U.S. generals 30 days after taking office on Jan. 20 to propose their own plans. Trump has said he opposes accepting refugees fleeing violence in Syria, and instead has said he would create “safe zones” there, which he says would be funded by Gulf states. Obama has said a safe zone in Syria would require a large U.S. military commitment, something that could prove to be unpopular with Americans weary of lengthy wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Trump has said he would have a “very, very good” relationship with Russia. Trump has said could work with Russia to combat Islamic State. He also said he would look into recognizing Crimea, seized from Ukraine in 2014, as Russian territory and lifting sanctions on Russia imposed by Western nations for what they called an illegal land grab. Trump has criticized the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, saying some U.S. allies have not met their defense commitments. In July, he said if Russia attacked a NATO member, he would consider whether the country has paid up before providing defense. NATO leaders say the sanctions against Russia are key to persuading it to change that country’s behavior in Ukraine, where it has backed ethnic Russian separatists, and that the alliance has long been focused on fighting international terrorism. With one vacancy on the Supreme Court and several more possible in the coming four years, Trump will have a chance to put a conservative stamp on the courts for decades to come. His list of potential nominees has won praise from conservative activists and Republicans in the U.S. Senate, who will be eager to help him in that area. Trump has called global warming a hoax and said he wants to cancel the 2015 Paris Agreement among almost 200 nations that entered into force on Nov. 4. Instead, he says he will push ahead and develop cheap coal, shale and oil. Trump’s advisers are considering ways to bypass a theoretical four-year procedure for leaving the accord, according to a source on his transition team. | 0fake |
WOW! LIBERAL ELECTION FRAUD EXPERT: Trump Landslide Was Enough To Counter Potential Massive Voter Fraud Effort By Hillary Campaign [VIDEO] | 1real | |
Greeks Appeal for Aid After Fire Damages Refugee Camp - The New York Times | ATHENS — Thousands of people were left homeless after a fire tore through a refugee camp Monday night on the Aegean island of Lesbos, and the Greek authorities appealed on Tuesday to the European Union for more support in managing the migration crisis. The fire, which started in the island’s main Moria camp, destroyed 50 prefabricated homes and dozens of tents, driving 4, 400 migrants into nearby fields, according to humanitarian aid workers. Footage aired on Greek television showed the bulk of the camp in flames. About 100 unaccompanied children were the first to be resettled to a hostel Monday night, and about half the families had returned to the Moria camp by midday on Tuesday. The Shipping Ministry said it would send a vessel to anchor at the island, providing temporary accommodation for about 1, 000 of the migrants. “Things are very difficult,” an Interior Ministry official, Nikos Toskas, told Greek radio. “The Europeans must send real, genuine aid,” he said. He condemned European countries that “build fences and then send blankets,” an apparent reference to Balkan states that closed their borders to migrants this year, leaving thousands trapped in Greece. The cause of the blaze remained unclear. Local news media said clashes had broken out between different ethnic groups in the camp amid rumors that large numbers of migrants would be sent back to Turkey. The police detained nine camp residents. Earlier in the day, residents protested, calling for the migrants to leave the island. In the wake of the unrest, Mr. Toskas said, two riot police units would be sent to the island. A spokesman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said frustrations had frequently bubbled over into clashes in camps, as many migrants have been living in poor conditions for months amid uncertainty about their future. “These people gave up everything to seek a better life months ago, and now they’re stuck,” said Roland Schoenbauer, the agency’s representative in Greece. He said frustrations and tension were being fueled by the slow pace at which the Greek authorities were processing the migrants’ asylum applications, and a sluggish European relocation program that has moved 3, 700 people to other countries from Greece over the past year, far short of the target of 66, 400. If the pace does not pick up, “it will take several years to resolve the problem,” Mr. Schoenbauer said. “This is not going to go away,” he continued, adding that economic migrants who do not merit asylum should be repatriated “in a humane and dignified way” to free up space at the camps. More than 60, 000 refugees or asylum seekers are in Greece, the vast majority in camps across the country, most of them cramped and dirty. Over 5, 700 are on Lesbos, which has borne the brunt of the migrant influx into Greece. Arrivals from neighboring Turkey have dropped since the peak of the crisis this time last year, when thousands made the short, perilous journey across the Aegean Sea aboard rickety boats, many drowning in the attempt. An agreement in March between the European Union and Turkey to curb human smuggling across the Aegean reduced the arrivals to virtually zero. However, there has been a significant uptick since July, after the failed coup attempt in Turkey. Now scores, sometimes hundreds, are arriving daily. The increase in arrivals and rising tensions in the camps have fueled protests in some communities close to camps where many residents are fed up with the growing migrant populations. Last week, residents on another Aegean island, Chios, protested. The upheaval has been exploited by members of groups who have also protested, often clashing with more moderate demonstrators. Mayor Spyros Galinos of Lesbos said the protests were being “guided by certain circles, circles who are being supported by members of other parties that have found the opportunity to boost their following, and all this is a dangerous climate that can become explosive. ” Addressing a United Nations summit meeting in New York on Monday, the Greek prime minister, Alexis Tsipras, called on other European Union countries to take in more refugees from Greece and emphasized the risk of giving “space to nationalistic and xenophobic forces to show their faces. ” | 0fake |
North Korea may announce completion of nuclear program within a year: South Korea minister | SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea may announce the completion of its nuclear program within a year, South Korea s unification minister said on Tuesday, as the isolated country is moving more faster than expected in developing its weapons arsenal. Experts think North Korea will take two to three more years but they are developing their nuclear capabilities faster than expected and we cannot rule out the possibility Pyongyang may declare the completion of their nuclear program in a year, said Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon at a media event in Seoul. | 0fake |
Egypt Western Desert attack exposes front outside Sinai | CAIRO (Reuters) - A deadly attack on the police in Egypt s Western Desert claimed by a new militant group risks opening up another front for security forces far beyond the remote northern Sinai, where they have battled a stubborn Islamic State insurgency since 2014. A little-known group called Ansar al-Islam claimed responsibility for the Oct. 21 attack. Analysts and security sources said the heavy weapons and tactics employed indicated ties to Islamic State or more likely an al Qaeda brigade led by Hesham al-Ashmawy, a former Egyptian special forces officer turned jihadist. President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has already suggested fighters from Islamic State will move into Egypt and neighboring Libya now that the group in on the retreat in Iraq and Syria after a string of losses. Security is key for Sisi, a former military commander who presents himself as a bulwark against Islamist militants, as he looks set to seek re-election next year. Claims of a new front with possible ties to Ashmawy and al Qaeda would increase risks the security forces face in the Western Desert, where militants can already take advantage of the terrain and the porous Libyan border, security sources, analysts and residents say. Two security sources and a medical source said evidence showed one militant killed in a follow-up raid was a former military officer and second-in-command to Ashmawy, whose allegiance switched from Islamic State in the Sinai to al Qaeda, and who has been based in Libya since 2014. If he has been involved with what appears to have been a heavily armed and wholly unexpected operation on the Egyptian side of the Egypt-Libya border, that s of great concern, said H.A. Hellyer, an Egypt expert and senior non-resident fellow at the Atlantic Council. An interior ministry official said he could neither confirm nor deny the validity of the Ansar al-Islam claim as it was being investigated. Prosecutors are also investigating the attack. Two Homeland Security officers said militants in the Western Desert appeared more professional than in Sinai. The officers, who work on gathering intelligence, said militants tied to Ashmawy could draw on experience of members who once were in the Thunderbolt elite army unit, or former police. Ashmawy and four other former officers have experience in fighting, surveillance, and planning so the group they have with them is dangerous, one officer said, referring to Ashmawy s brigade commanders. It remains unclear exactly what happened when an Egyptian police convoy ran into an apparently well-planned ambush by a heavily armed militant group in a remote, desert area 135 km (85 miles) southwest of Cairo. Three security sources told Reuters at the time that dozens of police officers and conscripts were killed. But the interior ministry refuted that figure the next day and said 16 police and conscripts died, including some high-ranking officers. One part of the operation was hit by rockets and heavy weapons, officials and sources said. The lead and rear vehicles were hit first, immobilizing the convoy, security sources said. On Oct. 28, the interior ministry replaced several senior security officials in charge of the area where the attack happened, including a homeland security chief and a Giza province security chief, though no reason was given. On Oct. 31, the army launched air strikes against the militants it said were responsible, killing dozens and rescuing a kidnapped and wounded policeman. The new group gave no evidence of its Oct. 21 claim, and it said the oasis attack was the start of a campaign against Sisi s government. It gave a list of grievances but no evidence on the size of its operations or its abilities. Ansar al-Islam s statement was carried by another group with al Qaeda links, Guardians of Sharia, whose social media feeds also carry statements from al Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahri. Three security sources in the Giza area said they believe the attack may have been the work of Ashmawy s militants. Egyptian authorities believe he fled to Libya in 2014. He has strong ties in the Libyan city of Derna, where he operates an al Qaeda cell with other former Egyptian officers. He has been blamed for high-profile attacks such as the killing in June 2015 of Egypt s top public prosecutor in a car bomb. But moving into Egypt would also raise questions about whether he had shifted his area of operations. Both Islamic State and al Qaeda have brigades operating in North Africa, where they have competed for space in Libya, especially in Derna, and sometimes operated alongside each other in small brigades in countries like Tunisia and Algeria. Oded Berkowitz, an intelligence analyst for risk consulting group MAX Security, said assessing the new group s capabilities or loyalties was difficult, but there could be an effort by al Qaeda to benefit from Islamic State s decline to bolster its presence and recruits locally. There is a strong al Qaeda presence in Libya that can support such an endeavor in Egypt. Usually, a militant group in decline (IS) and an increase in competition between two groups translates into a more aggressive stance, and attempts at larger and more quality attacks, he said. Egypt s security forces are battling several militant groups, but have been focused on an Islamic State affiliate that has killed hundreds of police and soldiers in the northern Sinai and has now begun staging attacks outside the peninsula. But the Western Desert, a vast region making up more than half of Egypt s territory, has always been a security headache with arms flowing across the frontier from Libya. Militant groups have found shelter across the border in the chaos that followed the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. Residents, businessmen and security sources around the area of the ambush say they have seen a heightened militant presence over the last two years, with militants sometimes openly driving along highways at night, and carrying out hit-and-run attacks. It s closer for them to bring the weapons from Libya and it s closer for them to carry out their operations, then flee to Libya or hide out in the desert, said one Egyptian military intelligence officer working in Farafra Oasis area near the Oct. 21 attack. Egypt s continuing struggle against Islamist insurgencies at home contrasts with Islamic State s big losses in Iraq and Syria. In Libya s southern Sahara, Islamic State shows signs of a revival after losing Sirte city a year ago. U.S. forces carried out air strikes in Libya in September - the first for almost a year - to destroy an Islamic State camp. When Islamic State leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi in September urged followers to stand fast after defeats in Iraq and Syria, he mentioned Sinai and Sirte as places where they should fight. Islamic State, which some experts had suspected was involved, included details of the Oct. 21 attack in its Al-Nabaa news bulletin, but without any claim of responsibility. The Western Desert attack came as Egypt hopes a peace agreement between Palestinian rivals Fatah and Hamas on the Gaza Strip across its Sinai border can help stabilize that area and curb supplies to militants on the peninsula. Militants are able to move in the Western Desert easier than they do in Sinai, due to the open geographic nature, one police officer working in the area said. It s not like Sinai, which you can cordon off. Attacks in Egypt: tmsnrt.rs/2hO9VIQ | 0fake |
HEARTWARMING VIDEO: BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE LARGEST FREE-FLYING AMERICAN FLAG | 1real | |
Federal Court Strikes Down North Carolina’s Racist Gerrymandering Law | In another blow to voter and racial suppression, a federal court just stuck down North Carolina s racially designated gerrymandering ploy just weeks after the federal courts stuck down their racist voter ID law.In the case, Covington v. North Carolina, the three judge panel in the Middle District ruled that North Carolina lawmakers (who have a supermajority in both state chambers) unconstitutionally used race as a key factor when redrawing the legislative districts for the state House and state Senate members in 2011.However, because the decision was delivered late into the election season, the ruling will not take effect until the start of the new session in 2017, meaning voters will head to the voting booths in November under the jurisdiction of unconstitutional districts that do not accurately represent the voters in the state.Not only does the decision affect the state legislature districts, but also congressional districts. Even though Mitt Romney won North Carolina by less than two percent against President Obama in 2012, of the 13 congressional districts, Democrats only won three.In 2010, even with the Republican takeover in Congress, and a year before the new districts were drawn, seven Democrats won and six Republicans won.I wonder what changed.Republicans attempt to block blacks and minorities from voting and having adequate representation has suffered another blowback from the courts. No wonder Republicans are so hostile to the judiciary they keep blocking their suppression of the electorate.The court found: | 1real |
Genetically Modified Crops in U.S. Fail to Deliver Expected Yields | Genetically Modified Crops in U.S. Fail to Deliver Expected Yields 10/31/2016
ALL GOV
The controversy over genetically modified crops has long focused on largely unsubstantiated fears that they are unsafe to eat.
But an extensive examination by The New York Times indicates that the debate has missed a more basic problem — genetic modification in the United States and Canada has not accelerated increases in crop yields or led to an overall reduction in the use of chemical pesticides.
The promise of genetic modification was twofold: By making crops immune to the effects of weedkillers and inherently resistant to many pests, they would grow so robustly that they would become indispensable to feeding the world’s growing population, while also requiring fewer applications of sprayed pesticides.
Twenty years ago, Europe largely rejected genetic modification at the same time the United States and Canada were embracing it. Comparing results on the two continents, using independent data as well as academic and industry research, shows how the technology has fallen short of the promise.
An analysis by The Times using U.N. data showed that the United States and Canada have gained no discernible advantage in yields when measured against Western Europe, a region with comparably modernized agricultural producers like France and Germany . Also, a recent National Academy of Sciences report found “there was little evidence” that the introduction of genetically modified crops in the United States had led to yield gains beyond those seen in conventional crops.
At the same time, herbicide use has increased in the United States, even as major crops like corn, soybeans and cotton have been converted to modified varieties. And the United States has fallen behind Europe’s biggest producer, France, in reducing the overall use of pesticides, which includes both herbicides and insecticides.
One measure, contained in data from the U.S. Geological Survey , shows the stark difference in the use of pesticides. Since GM crops were introduced in the United States two decades ago for crops like corn, cotton and soybeans, the use of toxins that kill insects and fungi has fallen by a third, but the spraying of herbicides, which are used in much higher volumes, has risen 21 percent.
By contrast, in France, use of insecticides and fungicides has fallen 65 percent and herbicide use has decreased 36 percent.
To Learn More: | 1real |
A Vision of the New Earth, a Celebration and Invocation for 11-11-15 | Leave a reply
This is intended to be a vision for the 11-11-2015. I am going to discuss the vision I had regarding how the old paradigm can transition into a new paradigm easily, safely, joyfully. The vision I had is that all the organizations in which people live and work — all the ones that they have come to depend upon, that they would be confused and bereft if they were to suddenly disappear.
All the organizations can transform into their higher dimensional versions. And that transformation is initiated by a vibrational shift among the populace that gets them to the level which they can understand the transition and integrate it very easily into their hearts and minds and in their physical existence.
Let’s take these organizations one by one just as samples.
We see corporations turning into cooperatives being owned and operated by the people who are the employees. And therefore they have a vested interest in these organizations. Going to work is fun and inspiring; everyone works in the position that they are most challenged and inspired by and that they feel the best at. And they can easily move from position to position, according to what they desire at the time.
The army becomes the army corps of engineers. Instead of an underlying intent of destruction, its underlying intent transforms to construction— reconstruction. They still use the same organization, the same kind of hierarchy in the beginning of the transition, and that makes everyone feel comfortable and happy, but their underlying intent has completely changed. So the same organization can be used for construction instead of destruction. So that makes a very easy way to transform the army into a much higher dimensional entity.
The navy becomes the oceanographers whose job is to protect the ocean and to help restore it to pristine natural beauty. So each one of these things is its higher dimensional [version]; its underlying intent has changed. And that intent is aligned with the higher self of the Earth as well as the higher selves of all the humans and the other sentient beings and all the beings on Earth; that intent is aligned with the new Earth.
That is the transitional phase.
Money becomes a means of appreciation because everyone is starting to realize that they don’t have to work to live on the Earth; they don’t have to pay to live on the Earth. People don’t have a real need to be greedy or to have more than anyone else as a form of protection because survival-based thinking is replaced by inclusion and love, which is the higher dimensional version of the base-level programming.
The base-level programming of survival thinking is what supports the old matrix. The new matrix is based upon love and inclusion: higher dimensional. And it requires that everyone get on board with that kind of thinking. So money might be necessary in the transitional phase, but it is only going to be returned to its original intent, which is a medium of exchange. So it [will] help to “grease the wheels,” so to speak.
The vision that I have for the component of the New Earth that I want to create is an online as well as physical—it has physical versions of it—and it is basically a creative center, and people can volunteer to do work in different places according to the needs of those places. So, for instance, there is a village in Africa that needs a better supply of water. [The site would supply experts] who know how to supply water. So the village in Africa that needs water.
You have this huge internet community: I call it the ImagiNation. It is made up of [creative] people who have the ability to imagine a new future, to imagine different constructs, who can make new things. And with this new thinking and the new intent underlying everything, people understand that when they go to help someone else, that they will be provided for while they are there. This village in Africa that needs a new water supply, people that are experts in this, or have a vision, they would go there, they would spearhead the project. The resources of the area would be used, the people that are the workers, would be the [labor force] from the area, the tribe, the community.
Everything would be local as much as possible. And if companies had to come in to help with this they may be able to make money from this, but the primary purpose of this is to support the community.
These creative people would then be going from community to community; they would be able to travel and to be supported in these communities and be supported while they are there. Their reputation is their currency so the creative [experts] are known for what they do, and their reputation precedes them, and they are “hired” to do this, but they can live anywhere in the world according to what they want and what they can do.
I see this as a very easy and fun and enjoyable transition. We have the ability to do this; we need the support of our higher selves to anchor this into reality. We are holding the intent for this— the vision for this. We know that every part of society can be changed overnight; this [transition] can be like wildfire spreading across the Earth where people jump on board because it is so much fun. It is so much more fun to create something than to destroy something. It is so much more fun to live in community and harmony than it is to be constantly battling with each other; at odds and having to eek out your existence or defend your property. That’s the old paradigm that no longer needs to exist.
So we are holding the space for this [vision] and as women we are bringing it through our bodies into the Earth. [Breathing] Bring it in… anchor it…”Let it be real” — that’s the phrase I am getting…”Let it be real.” Let the vision be real. People with money are going to start to realize that they can turn around and support this instead of supporting what they are supporting. They can turn around and support the growth of the New Earth, now, because it is needed now. They have the contacts, they have the money; they can help make this transition much, much, much easier. We are asking them—their higher selves—to release, to release the greed, to release the need for self-protection. And to join the party. Aliyah Marr is a Contributing Writer for Shift Frequency SF Source Infinite Shift | 1real |
WATCH: KELLYANNE CONWAY Gives Dreaded Answer To Liberal Hack, “This Week” Host George Stephanopoulos’ Question About Trump’s Plans To Run In 2020 | ABC host George Stephanopoulos sat down with Kellyanne Conway for an interview this morning on This Week . Stephanopoulos started out the interview by mentioning the new jobs report and the explosion of the stock market under President Trump. He barely took a breath before he jumped directly to a poll that showed despite all of his many accomplishments, that Trump isn t very popular. Kellyanne Conway was quick to point out, that although Trump s poll numbers aren t as strong as she d like them to be, he s keeping his head down and focusing on his agenda. In other words, President Trump is laser focused on honoring the campaign promises he made to American people who elected him. What a novel idea One can only imagine the disappointment Stephanopoulos must have felt when he got the dreaded answer from Conway to his question about President Trump s plans to run in 2020. After all, who could forget when George Stephanopoulos wife promised (but of course, didn t follow through) that she would move her family to another country if President Trump won the election?Watch:Conway responded to Stephanopoulos question about Trump running in 2020: The president says privately and publicly, often, George that he ll be president for seven and a half more years, so he plans on being a two-term president. Last week, the New York Times article attempted to convince their readers that the Republican Party is divided and fractured and that many of the members of the party were attempting to convince Vice President Mike Pence to run for president in 2020.Pence was furious at the accusation that he was somehow involved in a potential coup against President Trump. So much for the wishful thinking of not very credible and very biased New York Times.And finally, it wouldn t be an interview with the mainstream media if they didn t ask about Trump s phony Russia connection. Kellyanne Conway didn t disappoint with her answer as she blasted Stephanopoulos for pushing the fake narrative: People just can t get over that election, George. It s corrosive to our body politic | 1real |
Lebanon PM under house arrest in Saudi Arabia: pro-Hezbollah paper | BEIRUT (Reuters) - Saad al-Hariri, who quit as Lebanese Prime Minister in a weekend broadcast from Saudi Arabia, has been held under house arrest in the kingdom, a pro-Hezbollah daily said on Tuesday citing unnamed sources. Hariri s office and Saudi-owned media said he flew to the UAE, a Saudi ally and fellow Gulf monarchy, on Tuesday. Aides to Hariri, Lebanon s most influential Sunni politician and a close Saudi ally, have denied claims that he was detained. Lebanese newspaper al-Akhbar, which is aligned with the Shi ite militant group and political movement Hezbollah, said Hariri was placed under house arrest hours after arriving in Riyadh last Friday and had remained in detention since. On Monday, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Jubeir dismissed as nonsense allegations that the kingdom forced Hariri to resign, and said he was free to leave at any time. Speculation in Lebanon over Hariri s status continued even after Saudi media showed him meeting with King Salman and reported him leaving for the UAE. Hariri s resignation has thrust Lebanon back onto the frontline of the rivalry between Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shi ite Iran that has also wrought upheaval in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Bahrain. The coalition government, which Hariri s shock resignation collapsed, included Iran-backed Hezbollah. His declaration came as Saudi Arabia undertook an anti-corruption purge in which royals, ministers and investors have been arrested as the putative next king tightens his grip on power. In a dramatic escalation of the crisis, Saudi Arabia accused Lebanon on Monday of declaring war because of aggression by Hezbollah. Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah accused Riyadh last week of forcing Hariri to step down, and said there were legitimate questions over whether he had been detained. The al-Akhbar newspaper said that a Saudi security team had been supervising Hariri, citing unnamed sources close to him. The prime minister, whose family made their fortune in the Saudi construction industry, had very limited access to his phones, it said on Tuesday. Fouad Siniora, a former prime minister and senior member of Hariri s political party, said Hariri would return to Lebanon. | 0fake |
HILARIOUS HYPOCRISY ON DISPLAY: 3 INTOLERANT Leftist Groups Stop D.C. Gay Pride Parade…Force Them To Take Alternate Route [VIDEO] | Protesters affiliated with the group No Justice, No Pride blocked this year s Capital Pride Parade on three separate occasions, delaying the parade and forcing participants to use an alternative route, in protest of the participation of police officers and certain corporate sponsors.#NoJusticeNoPride in prisons pipelines or deportations #blackqueertranslivesmatter pic.twitter.com/VZf00WjKiE JaneSee (@StreetSignsLife) June 10, 2017The No Justice, No Pride group first conducted its own march down the planned parade route with signs like rainbows don t cover death merchants and no pride in police violence. They then blocked the route at 15th and P Streets NW. Police formed a barricade around the demonstrators, allowing them to continue the protest, while re-routing the official parade down 16th Street. No arrests have been reported. The DCistSo today #blacklivesmatter stopped the D.C. Pride parade. pic.twitter.com/tFlhfLPcIO Fras (@DangerCW) June 10, 2017Pride parade fans were furious over the hijacking of their parade by leftist activist groups like Black Lives Matter and lashed out at the thugs who forced them to re-route the parade:Overheard at #DCPride, @capitalpridedc board member: We don t negotiate with terrorists describing #NoJusticeNoPride B. Loewe (@BstandsforB) June 11, 2017The video below shows an interesting exchange that took place during the parade. A female leftist activist attempts to explain to a male gay parade participant that his definition of pride no longer exists, and that in fact, the radical groups who are hijacking their planned parade have redefined what pride will now mean:#NoJusticeNoPride blockades have been divisive. Parade-goer: "This isn't the time and place." pic.twitter.com/W1EbsdmsTN Alejandro Alvarez (@aletweetsnews) June 11, 2017This gay Democrat suggested that the protesters should commit mass suicide:This pride participant was clearly not happy with the leftist agitators:This is the response of pride goers to a protest over police violence and private prisons. @GetEQUAL @FIF_dc #NoJusticeNopride pic.twitter.com/Th4yc6CdLT Drew Ambrogi (@DrewAmbrogi) June 10, 2017 | 1real |
U.S. presidential election drives record ratings for cable news | (Reuters) - The 2016 election cycle had been a ratings boon for U.S. cable news networks, and Tuesday’s stunning U.S. presidential election victory by Republican Donald Trump was no different. Time Warner Inc’s CNN led all U.S. TV networks in primetime coverage with 13.3 million viewers, the most-watched Election Night coverage in U.S. cable news history, according to Nielsen data. 21st Century Fox’s Fox News came in second with 12.1 million viewers, and Comcast Corp’s MSNBC was far behind with just under 6 million. Among adults aged 25 to 54, the demographic most important to advertisers who buy time on news programs, CNN was first as well with 6.7 million viewers. Fox News was second with 4.6 million and MSNBC drew 2.4 million in the demographic. All three posted gains from four years ago. With many states too close to call, the race was not called for Trump until around 3 a.m. (0800 GMT) on the East Coast. Fox News led cable news with 9.8 million viewers watching between 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. (0700 and 0800 GMT), with CNN bringing in 6.5 million and 2.9 million watching on MSNBC. Fox News also led all cable networks with their full coverage from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. (0000 to 0800), with 12.2 million, a network high for an election night. CNN pulled in 11.2 million for the whole night, but topped Fox News in the news demographic with 5.6 million to Fox News’ 4.8 million. MSNBC brought up the rear with 5.2 million and 2.1 million in the demographic. NBC led all the broadcast networks with 11.2 million viewers, with ABC finishing with 9.2 million and CBS pulling in 8.1 million. Fox averaged around 4 million for its two-hour coverage from 8-10 p.m. Across 13 U.S. TV networks, election night coverage was watched by 71.42 million viewers, just behind the U.S. record of 71.47 million that watched in 2008. | 0fake |
Latest Hillary Clinton bio for kids highlights successes and failures | POTOMAC, Md. (Reuters) - As Hillary Clinton sets her sights on becoming the first female president of the United States, the Democratic front-runner has found herself in another role - the subject of children’s books. In “Hillary Rodham Clinton: Do All the Good You Can,” author Cynthia Levinson charts her rise from her youth in Park Ridge, Illinois, to her work as a U.S. senator and secretary of state. Levinson brought Clinton’s story this week to fourth graders at Cold Spring Elementary School in suburban Washington, whom she found were paying close attention to the presidential race. “I hope kids enjoy the book, and I hope that it’s thought-provoking for them,” said Levinson, who went to Wellesley College with Clinton and interviewed mutual acquaintances and the former first lady for the book. The book is among several recent children’s biographies on Clinton. They include “Hillary Rodham Clinton: Some Girls are Born to Lead” by Michelle Markel and Jonah Winter’s picture book “Hillary.” While the books all include the theme of female strength, Levinson said she was keen to highlight both Clinton’s successes and failures, such as her vote for the U.S. war in Iraq and bungled healthcare initiative while first lady. The grade-schoolers were divided over whether Clinton, 68, was the woman for the job. “I’m more on Bernie Sanders’ side. Hillary Clinton is less direct than Bernie Sanders,” said Sudhish Swain, 10, referring to Clinton’s rival for the Democratic nomination. Many students said they got their news about the election, which will be held in November, from the radio or school bus debates. “We mostly agree that Donald Trump would not be a good president,” said Tianlai Yang. Katherine Pease, 9, added: “He lies, he’s a hypocrite, he’s a megalomaniac, and he’s delusional, which, really, those four qualities aren’t good for a president.” She showed off an op-ed piece she had submitted to the Washington Post urging Republicans to rally around one candidate to counter Trump. She said she hoped that candidate would be Ohio Governor John Kasich. Kyle Baer said he liked Clinton but still would not vote for her if he were old enough. “The only thing I have against her is that she’s already been a resident of the White House before, and I don’t think she should be a resident again,” he said. (Reporting by Vanessa Johnston, writing by Ian Simpson; Editing by Richard Chang) This article was funded in part by SAP. It was independently created by the Reuters editorial staff. SAP had no editorial involvement in its creation or production. | 0fake |
Trump may have stopped the bleeding, but not the worrying | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Donald Trump may have done just enough in Sunday’s presidential debate to keep his leaky presidential campaign afloat - and that may have put Republicans considering abandoning him in an even tougher position. Had Trump imploded, the flow of lawmakers and party luminaries who deserted him at the weekend over lewd comments he made about women on a videotape likely would have become a torrent, increasing demands for him to drop out of the race. But that didn’t happen. Now, Republicans who have seen their party torn apart by Trump’s candidacy are once again faced with a familiar dilemma: Publicly abandon a badly wounded candidate who is endangering closely contested congressional races or stand behind him in the dimming hope that he can still win them the White House. The Manhattan real-estate mogul delivered a feistier and more disciplined performance than at the first debate, hammering his Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton on her use of a private email server while she was secretary of state, and again raising decades-old accusations of sexual misconduct against her husband Bill Clinton. That likely endeared him to the rowdy supporters who have packed arenas across the country for more than a year while perhaps doing little to reel in the more moderate voters in swing states that his campaign will need to defeat Clinton in the Nov. 8 election. “His no-holds barred approach to Hillary tonight is what conservatives have wanted to see out of a candidate since Bill Clinton was in office,” said Craig Robinson, former political director of the Iowa Republican Party. “The Republican base and talk radio will love this performance.” But the party is still hitched to a deeply flawed candidate who has especially struggled with women, college-educated, and suburban voters. A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll showed close to 20 percent of Americans were still undecided on which candidate to support. Sixty percent of those were women. A poll taken by CNN immediately following the debate showed Republicans have reason to be anxious. Viewers said Clinton had beaten Trump in the encounter, 57 percent to 34 percent. The furor over the 2005 videotape, in which Trump bragged about groping and trying to seduce women, led dozens of lawmakers to denounce him, including Arizona Senator John McCain. Their condemnation plunged the party into its worst crisis since the resignation of President Richard Nixon, a Republican, in 1974. The House Republican Conference, a body comprised of the almost 250 Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives, was set to meet on Monday to discuss the foundering Trump campaign, a House leadership aide said. House Speaker Paul Ryan pointedly disinvited Trump for a joint appearance in Wisconsin that had been scheduled for Saturday following publication of the tape. All but six of the 40 Republican officeholders whose races are considered competitive in the election have condemned Trump’s comments in the video, although only three members of that group have called for him to drop out. Since the release of the video, the party’s governing body, the Republican National Committee, has offered no guidance to local party officials on how to handle questions about it. “There hasn’t been one email or one phone call or anything as to what the guidance is from the RNC going forward,” said an RNC official who asked to remain unidentified. The tape intensified talk in Republican circles about diverting funds from Trump to prop up House and Senate candidates who might find themselves in newfound jeopardy because of the backlash. “It’s well past time to cut all ties with Trump and focus on preserving the Republican Congress and down ballot offices. Immediately,” said John Weaver, a veteran Republican strategist. Republican officials have another worry: that Trump’s unpopularity may lead many Republican voters to stay at home on Election Day. Against this backdrop of panic and condemnation, Trump on Sunday sought to rally the party’s base with a fresh barrage of provocative attacks on Clinton that will give the media something other than the tape to talk about. He offered a blistering critique of her handling of foreign policy while the country’s chief diplomat and brought his rally cry for her to be jailed to the debate stage. He also carried out a threat to make an issue of her husband’s sexual history. In doing so, Trump may have stopped the bleeding, but he did nothing to stop the worrying. | 0fake |
The FBI intervenes in the 2016 election | License DMCA
In an extraordinary and unprecedented action, the Federal Bureau of Investigation has stepped into the 2016 presidential campaign only 11 days before Election Day, sending a letter to Congress announcing new "investigative steps" related to Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server.
The three-paragraph letter by FBI Director James Comey to eight congressional committees on Friday is remarkably vague. It states that "in connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation" of Clinton's personal email server, which, Comey notes, he had previously told Congress was "completed."
He states that he has agreed to "allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation." He acknowledges that the FBI "cannot yet assess whether or not this material may be significant."
The obvious question that arises is why, given the fact that the FBI has no idea whether these additional emails contain any significant information relative to the Clinton email case, the agency should make them a public issue within days of the election. Media commentators noted that the letter violates a longstanding informal FBI ban on making politically sensitive announcements within 60 days of a US election.
Following the report of Comey's letter, the news media, citing unnamed federal law enforcement officials, said the emails in question were found on a laptop computer shared by Clinton aide Huma Abedin and her husband, former Representative Anthony Weiner. - Advertisement -
Weiner is under FBI investigation for allegedly sending sexually explicit text messages to an underage girl. Abedin announced her separation from Weiner earlier this year after the latest episode involving Weiner and sexually explicit Internet activity became public.
Comey's letter was hailed by Donald Trump and Republican Party spokesmen as tantamount to an official reopening of the FBI investigation and rescinding of the decision announced by Comey in July that no charges would be brought against the Democratic presidential candidate.
Clinton spoke to the press briefly Friday evening, demanding that the FBI provide more information about the substance of what it was reviewing, including whether there was any connection to her use of a private email server. She pointed out that more than 15 million people have already voted and that many millions more will be going to the polls over the next week as early voting continues. In response to questions, she indicated that the FBI has not contacted her and that she first learned of the letter through the media.
It is at this point impossible to determine with precision the motivation behind Comey's letter and the political forces for which he is speaking. However, his attempt to present the letter as a politically disinterested response to the discovery of new information lacks any credibility.
This direct intervention into the election by the top police-intelligence agency can only be an expression of deep crisis and profound tensions within the American ruling class and the state. The election as a whole has been dominated by the growth of social anger and anti-establishment sentiment, yet it has ended in a contest between two right-wing representatives of the richest 1 percent who are despised by huge sections of the electorate. - Advertisement -
It has plumbed the depths of political debasement on the part of both candidates -- the fascistic billionaire Trump seeking to channel discontent along the most right-wing, chauvinist and racist channels; the multimillionaire Clinton relying on sex scandals and a McCarthyite attack on Trump as an agent of Russian President Vladimir Putin to bury incriminating revelations of corruption and lying and to swing public opinion behind a policy of military escalation and confrontation with nuclear-armed Russia.
The entire process has been surrounded by an aura of violence and a breakdown of public confidence in the political system. It has unfolded under conditions of deepening economic crisis, mounting international tensions and worsening crises for US imperialism around the world, i.e., the ongoing debacle of Washington's war for regime change in Syria, the signs of disarray in the anti-Chinese "pivot to Asia," the emergence of open conflicts with imperialist "allies" in Europe, particularly Germany.
The convergence of these crises is generating bitter conflicts within the American ruling class over policy questions, magnified by fears of a rising tide of social opposition at home.
Whether the intention of Comey's letter was to inflict fatal damage to Clinton's candidacy, shore up endangered Republican majorities in the Senate and House, or fire a shot across the bow against an incoming Clinton administration, it makes clear that the next administration will be mired in crisis from the day it takes office. | 1real |
Before It All Began: DML’s Spot-On Prediction of the 2016 Race | by Dean Daniels / November 7, 2016 / POLITICS /
In the summer of 2015 before the current presidential race ignited, and two weeks before Trump announced his candidacy, DML gave a compelling speech during his tour in the state of Massachusetts. In front of an audience at a small town synagogue, the award-winning businessman and conservative commentator laid out the key component that he believed would catapult any presidential candidate above all the others: “putting Americans first.”
DML emphasizes during his “Americans first” speech that the number one issue in America is immigration. He explains in crystal clear detail how immigration, both legal and illegal, goes beyond party identification. He says “it’s not a Democrat or Republican issue — it’s an American issue.”
Having traveled the country by car exploring the idea of running for president himself, DML got a real sense for what concerned Americans most. Therefore, he knew before the rest of us that the ideal candidate of 2016 would be someone who has the audacity and the courage to tell the American people he or she will commit to the deportation of illegal immigrants.
“Remember, it’s not an anti-immigration; it’s an anti-illegal immigration; and it’s about being pro-America.”
While putting Americans first would have been DML’s campaign theme had he chosen to run for the highest office in the land, this strategy was instead adopted by none other than Donald J.Trump. This is one major reason why DML has supported Trump since day one.
Trump has done more than proven DML correct. Trump has proven how powerful the “ Americans first” ideology is during a day and age when progressive politicians like Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are catering to foreign workers and corporate donors at the expense of the American people who are left to rot on the back burner.
Watch an excerpt from the speech, and then check out DML’s electoral map and how he sees Trump winning on Tuesday.
Sign up to get breaking news alerts from Dennis Michael Lynch. Subscribe | 1real |
Comedian Hasan Minhaj, Who Called Donald Trump ’White ISIS,’ to Headline WHCD | The White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) has tapped comedian Hasan Minhaj to headline the establishment media’s biggest annual event. [This year’s dinner, which is set to take place April 29th, will feature members of Donald Trump’s administration and large swathes of media members. But the president, as he announced in February, won’t be attending the event. Minhaj, however, a relatively unknown figure, has made a habit of hitting Donald Trump with personal insults. The Daily Show star called Trump “White ISIS” during last year’s primaries and was featured in a recent Daily Show segment that highlighted the president’s greatest tweet of all time. . @roywoodjr and @hasanminhaj announce the greatest Trump tweet of all time. pic. twitter. — The Daily Show (@TheDailyShow) April 6, 2017, Minhaj also mocked President Trump in a statement thanking the WHCA for selecting him to host. “It is a tremendous honor to be a part of such a historic event even though the president has chosen not to attend this year. SAD!” Minhaj said. “Now more than ever, it is vital that we honor the First Amendment and the freedom of the press. ” While the WHCA dinner tends to feature a comedian who mocks the president and the press, the WHCA chief says picking an host was not the message his organization wanted to send. “I was not looking for somebody who was going to roast the president in absentia. That’s not fair, and that’s not the message that we want to get across,” WHCA president Jeff Mason said Tuesday on MSNBC’s Morning Joe. “I was looking for somebody who is funny and who is entertaining, because I want the dinner to be entertaining, but who can also speak to the message that the whole dinner is going to speak to … the importance of a free press. ” Nevertheless, Minhaj’s being selected to headline the WHCA dinner will likely parallel the event’s past jeering of Trump. At 2011’s dinner, Trump was skewered by both Barack Obama and that night’s comedic relief Seth Myers. And if Minhaj goes full while hosting, the WHCA dinner will likely intensify the hostility between the president and the media. Follow Jerome Hudson on Twitter @jeromeehudson | 0fake |
Officials State New Clinton Emails Discovered as Part of Anthony Weiner ‘Sexting’ Investigation | Following news of FBI Director James Comey’s decision to reopen the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server during her tenure at the State Department, federal law enforcement officials have come forward with new details on recently discovered evidence in the case.
More on this: DEVELOPING: FBI Reopens Investigation into Clinton Emails After New ‘Pertinent’ Evidence Discovered
While Director Comey declined to provide specific details on what the newly discovered Clinton emails contained, federal law enforcements officials speaking under anonymity have explained that the emails were found on the personal devices of Clinton aide Huma Abedin and disgraced former Congressman Anthony Weiner.
The discovery came as part of investigation into yet another Weiner ‘sexting’ scandal, this time after he was alleged to have been engaging in sexually explicit conversations with an underage female.
More on the latest Weiner scandal: ‘Carlos Danger’ Strikes Again: New Reports Allege Anthony Weiner Knowingly Engaged in Sexually Explicit Conversations with 15 Year Old Female Online
As reported by the New York Times, authorities discovered ‘pertinent’ emails related to the Clinton investigation on personal electronic devices belonging to Abedin and Weiner that had been seized by investigators as part of the investigation in Weiner’s alleged inappropriate conversations with a child.
Via NYT
Federal law enforcement officials said Friday that the new emails uncovered in the closed investigation into Hillary Clinton ’s use of a private email server were discovered after the F.B.I. seized electronic devices belonging to Huma Abedin, an aide to Mrs. Clinton, and her husband, Anthony Weiner.
The F.B.I. told Congress that it had uncovered new emails related to the closed investigation into whether Mrs. Clinton or her aides had mishandled classified information, potentially reigniting an issue that has weighed on the presidential campaign and offering a lifeline to Donald J. Trump less than two weeks before the election.
More via FoxNews
Watch the latest video at video.foxnews.com
We will continue to update as new details surface.
| 1real |
Senators advised House vote on healthcare unlikely before Monday: aide | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. senators have been informed by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that a vote on a Republican repeal and replacement of Obamacare might not be held in the House of Representatives before Monday, according to a senior Senate aide. The House had hoped to vote on Thursday on the controversial measure, but has lacked the votes for passage. Meanwhile, another aide said House leaders might still try to schedule a House floor vote very early Friday. House Republicans are scheduled to meet in a closed-door meeting at 7 p.m. (2300 GMT) to assess the situation, according to an aide. | 0fake |
Factbox: Contenders, picks for key jobs in Trump's administration | (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Donald Trump announced two additional nominees for his Cabinet on Wednesday, and his transition team said he is holding meetings as he prepares to make high-level appointments. Below are people mentioned as contenders for senior roles as the Trump works to form his administration before taking office on Jan. 20, according to Reuters sources and media reports. See the end of list for posts already filled. * Mitt Romney, 2012 Republican presidential nominee and former Massachusetts governor * Rudy Giuliani, Republican former mayor of New York City * David Petraeus, retired U.S. general and former CIA director who pleaded guilty to mishandling classified information he gave to his mistress * Bob Corker, Republican U.S. senator from Tennessee and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee * James Mattis, retired Marine Corps general * David Petraeus, retired U.S. general and former CIA director who pleaded guilty to mishandling classified information he gave to his mistress * Tom Cotton, Republican U.S. senator from Arkansas * Jon Kyl, former Republican U.S. senator from Arizona * Duncan Hunter, Republican U.S. representative from California and early Trump supporter, member of the House Armed Services Committee * Jim Talent, former Republican U.S. senator from Missouri who was on the Senate Armed Services Committee * Rick Perry, former Republican Texas governor * Stephen Hadley, former national security adviser under President George W. Bush * Michael McCaul, Republican U.S. representative from Texas and chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee * General John Kelly, retired Marine Corps general and former commander of U.S. Southern Command * David Clarke, Milwaukee County sheriff and vocal Trump supporter * Joe Arpaio, outgoing Maricopa County, Arizona, sheriff who campaigned for Trump * Kris Kobach, Kansas secretary of state * Frances Townsend, homeland security and counterterrorism adviser to Republican former President George W. Bush * Jeff Holmstead, energy lawyer, former EPA official during George W. Bush administration * Robert Grady, venture capitalist, partner in private equity firm Gryphon Investors * Leslie Rutledge, Republican Arkansas attorney general * Carol Comer, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Environmental Management * Scott Pruitt, Republican Oklahoma attorney general * Harold Hamm, Oklahoma oil and gas mogul, chief executive of Continental Resources Inc * Kevin Cramer, Republican U.S. representative from North Dakota * Robert Grady, venture capitalist, partner in private equity firm Gryphon Investors * Larry Nichols, co-founder of Devon Energy Corp * James Connaughton, chief executive of Nautilus Data Technologies and a former environmental adviser to President George W. Bush * Rick Perry, former Republican Texas governor * Sarah Palin, former Alaska governor, 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee * Jan Brewer, Republican former Arizona governor * Forrest Lucas, founder of oil products company Lucas Oil * Harold Hamm, Oklahoma oil and gas mogul, chief executive of Continental Resources Inc * Robert Grady, venture capitalist, partner in private equity firm Gryphon Investors * Mary Fallin, Republican Oklahoma governor * Ray Washburne, chief executive of investment company Charter Holdings * Cathy McMorris Rodgers, U.S. representative from Washington state and House Republican Conference chair * U.S. Navy Admiral Mike Rogers, director of the National Security Agency * Ronald Burgess, retired U.S. Army lieutenant general and former Defense Intelligence Agency chief * Robert Cardillo, director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency * Pete Hoekstra, Republican former U.S. representative from Michigan * Rudy Giuliani, Republican former mayor of New York City * Dan DiMicco, former chief executive of steel producer Nucor Corp * Andrew Puzder, chief executive officer of CKE Restaurants * Victoria Lipnic, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission member and former Labor Department official during the George W. Bush administration * Dr. Ben Carson, former 2016 Republican presidential candidate and retired neurosurgeon * Goldman Sachs Group Inc President Gary Cohn * Sarah Palin, 2008 Republican vice presidential candidate and former Alaska governor The Trump transition team confirmed he would choose from a list of 21 names he drew up during his campaign, including Republican U.S. Senator Mike Lee of Utah and William Pryor, a federal judge with the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. * Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus * Steve Bannon, former head of the conservative website Breitbart News * Jeff Sessions, Republican U.S. senator from Alabama and senior member of the Senate Judiciary Committee (subject to Senate confirmation) * Republican U.S. Representative Mike Pompeo from Kansas (subject to Senate confirmation) * Michael Flynn, retired Army lieutenant general and former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency * Nikki Haley, Republican South Carolina governor (subject to Senate confirmation) * Betsy DeVos, Republican donor and former chair of the Michigan Republican Party * Tom Price, Republican U.S. representative from Georgia, orthopedic surgeon * Elaine Chao, former labor secretary and deputy transportation secretary under Republican Presidents George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush, respectively. Chao is married to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell * Steven Mnuchin, former Goldman Sachs Group Inc executive and Trump’s campaign finance chairman * Wilbur Ross, billionaire investor, chairman of Invesco Ltd subsidiary WL Ross & Co | 0fake |
LOU DOBBS Speaks Out On Trump, China And Taiwan [Video] | 1real | |
Clinton, Sanders clash over Obama, more at testy debate | Hillary Clinton launched her harshest attacks yet on Bernie Sanders during their debate Thursday night in Milwaukee, in a clear attempt to define their differences on major issues and win over black voters — but they had their most heated exchanges over campaign financing, who was the stronger supporter of President Obama — and who was a friend of Henry Kissinger.
The debate fell at a time when Sanders is trying to build his momentum after his big New Hampshire win, while Clinton is trying to regain hers.
As Sanders pointedly reminded her, “You’re not in the White House yet.”
But the candidates at times offered a similar message. This was evident as they vociferously called for an overhaul of local police departments that they suggested are unfair to black people.
“We need fundamental police reform,” Sanders said, adding he’s “sick and tired” of seeing unarmed black people shot by police. He likened heavily equipped police departments to “occupying armies.”
Clinton, meanwhile, echoed those themes, joining Sanders in calling for sentencing reform while saying the country’s “systemic racism” goes deeper and must be addressed – in education, housing and the job market.
“We are seeing the dark side of the remaining systemic racism that we need to root out,” she said.
The comments were part of each candidate’s revived appeal to minority voters, a key voting bloc as the Democratic presidential primary heads to South Carolina.
But even as they stressed those issues, differences were laid bare at the PBS-hosted debate in Milwaukee. And Sanders came prepared to counter Clinton’s attacks, showing a feistier side than he did at their last showdown.
When Clinton used her closing remarks to suggest Sanders was taking shots at President Obama, Sanders called it a “low blow” and countered: “One of us ran against Barack Obama. I was not that candidate.”
He even underscored his critique of Clinton’s foreign policy by pointing to a book where Clinton said she was mentored by former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.
“I am proud to say that Henry Kissinger is not my friend,” Sanders said, calling him “one of the most destructive” American diplomats.
Clinton fired back that “we have yet to know” who Sanders listens to on foreign policy.
The two also clashed sharply over Sanders’ high-cost, big-government plans.
“We are not England. We are not France,” Clinton said.
Clinton accused Sanders of pushing programs that would grow the federal government by 40 percent. She suggested his health care promises “cannot be kept “and will be far more costly than he admits.
“We should level with the American people,” she said.
She also said Sanders’ plans would upend ObamaCare – though Sanders said he would not “dismantle” it.
“That is absolutely inaccurate,” he said, when she claimed his plans would leave many people worse off.
“In my view, health care is a right of all people … and I will fight for that,” Sanders said, adding it would take “courage.”
Clinton also criticized Sanders for voting against a 2007 immigration reform bill backed by the late Sen. Ted Kennedy.
Sanders explained that the bill had a guest-worker program that progressive groups opposed.
“I think Ted Kennedy had a very clear idea of what needed to be done,” Clinton said.
Yet the candidates agreed in their joint criticism of the Obama administration’s recent deportation raids.
Sanders, meanwhile, once again hammered Clinton for her Wall Street ties, suggesting the financial sector’s big donations are meant to buy influence.
“Let’s not insult the intelligence of the American people. People aren’t dumb,” Sanders said. “Why in God’s name does Wall Street make huge campaign contributions? I guess just for the fun of it.”
They sparred on the issue as Sanders touted the fact he’s “the only candidate up here” who has no super PAC supporting him. A super PAC backing Clinton, he said, recently raised $15 million from Wall Street.
Clinton countered by noting that Obama took Wall Street donations too, but “when it mattered, he stood up and took on Wall Street.”
“Let’s not in any way imply here that either President Obama or myself would in any way not take on any vested interest,” she said, calling for more regulation of the financial sector.
The showdown comes as Clinton tries to reset the race, which heads next to Nevada and South Carolina. Her narrow victory in Iowa and resounding defeat in New Hampshire have raised fresh questions about her candidacy, which at one point was seen as a sure thing for the Democratic nomination.
Publicly, the Clinton campaign is voicing confidence. The campaign has been refocusing on the battle to lock down minority voter support, asserting that with their help, the former secretary of state can easily make gains against Sanders. But Sanders is at the same time making a bid to expand his own support beyond rural, white voters -- who largely decide Iowa and New Hampshire.
While the Clinton campaign is banking on minority voters as it heads into South Carolina and other delegate-rich states down the primary calendar, Tuesday’s contest exposed serious problems for her. She lost in New Hampshire across almost every demographic, including women.
Overall, she lost to Sanders by more than 20 points. | 0fake |
Robert Vaughn, Who Starred as Napoleon Solo in ‘Man From U.N.C.L.E.,’ Dies at 83 - The New York Times | Robert Vaughn, the actor who reached the peak of his fame in the 1960s playing Napoleon Solo, the debonair international agent tasked with saving the world each week on the hit television series “The Man From U. N. C. L. E. ,” died on Friday in Danbury, Conn. He was 83. His manager, Matthew Sullivan, said that the cause was acute leukemia, for which Mr. Vaughn had been under treatment in Manhattan and Connecticut. Mr. Vaughn had numerous roles in film and on television. He played an old boyfriend of Laura Petrie (Mary Tyler Moore) on an episode of “The Dick Van Dyke Show” and a gunman in “The Magnificent Seven” (1960). He was nominated for an Academy Award as best supporting actor for his role as a man accused of murder in “The Young Philadelphians” (1959) and won an Emmy in 1978 for his performance as a White House chief of staff in the “Washington: Behind Closed Doors. ” But no character he played was as popular as Napoleon Solo. From 1964 to 1968, in the thick of the Cold War, millions of Americas tuned in weekly to “The Man From U. N. C. L. E. ” to watch Mr. Vaughn, as a superagent from the United Network Command for Law and Enforcement, battling T. H. R. U. S. H. (Technological Hierarchy for the Removal of Undesirables and the Subjugation of Humanity) a secret organization intent on achieving world domination through nefarious if devices like gas. At the height of the show’s popularity, Mr. Vaughn said he was receiving 70, 000 fan letters a month. The show was a parody of Ian Fleming’s creation James Bond, who had been played by Sean Connery in two hit movies by the time “The Man From U. N. C. L. E. ” made its debut. (Fleming served as an adviser to the show, and is widely credited with coining the name Napoleon Solo.) “The whole show is a joke. It’s an extension of the Bond joke into a gigantic cartoon in prime time,” Mr. Vaughn told The Saturday Evening Post in an 1965 interview, to which, the magazine noted, he arrived wearing a Italian suit and a black silk tie. Joke or not, the show was wildly popular and catapulted Mr. Vaughn into overnight fame. It was also a platform for many other acting careers, most notably that of David McCallum, the Scottish actor who played Illya Kuryakin, the enigmatic Russian spy and Solo sidekick who developed a big fan following of his own. Kurt Russell (at age 10) Leslie Nielsen and Joan Collins all appeared on the show. In the first season, William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy, who would on “Star Trek” two years later, had roles in the same episode. Despite his acclaim, Mr. Vaughn could be a little disdainful about his vocation. “Acting has always been very boring to me,” he told The Post. “Anyone not in television to become a millionaire is a simpleton. ” At the time, Mr. Vaughn was seemingly more focused on politics than show business: He often spoke publicly against the war in Vietnam. “In our fervor to halt the potential spread of totalitarianism, what incredible precedent are we setting in Vietnam?” he asked in an impassioned speech. “By marching our legions through the countryside of foreign continents, burning homes, laying waste to the land and indiscriminately killing friend and foe alike?” Mr. Vaughn became national chairman of an organization called Dissenting Democrats in 1967 and debated the war with William F. Buckley Jr. on Mr. Buckley’s television program, “Firing Line” — a bout that Newsday, on Long Island, said Mr. Vaughn had won. “Vaughn suffered no wounds from Buckley’s expert needling,” the newspaper said. Mr. Vaughn befriended Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy and was a frequent guest at Hickory Hill, Kennedy’s estate in McLean, Va. where Mr. Vaughn played touch football with luminaries like the writer Art Buchwald and the astronaut John Glenn. The Kennedys, Mr. Vaughn wrote in his autobiography, “A Fortunate Life” (2008) were big fans. “The house was covered with U. N. C. L. E. posters inside and out,” he reported, “including pictures of me with my Walther P38 at the ready. ” Robert Francis Vaughn was born on Nov. 22, 1932, in New York City into a theatrically inclined household. His father, Gerald Walter Vaughn, was heard on radio series like “Gangbusters” and “Crime Doctor,” and his mother, the former Marcella Gaudel, appeared in a 1931 Broadway production of “Dracula. ” The couple divorced when Mr. Vaughn was an infant and he moved with his mother to Minneapolis, where he was partly reared by grandparents. “I was a complete wreck as a child, emotionally unstable, excessively prideful,” he told The Sunday News of New York in a 1965 interview. When he was with his mother, she pushed his acting career, teaching him to recite the “To be or not to be” soliloquy from “Hamlet” when he was 5. While she was working as a cocktail waitress in a Chicago bar to earn extra money, his mother had young Robert perform the soliloquy for John Barrymore after Barrymore had dropped by. She later helped get her son cast on radio shows like “Let’s Pretend” and “Jack Armstrong, the Boy. ” Mr. Vaughn headed to Hollywood in 1952. During the day, he studied theater arts at Los Angeles City College and played bit parts, including a Hebrew slave in the movie epic “The Ten Commandments. ” At night he would go to local hot spots and hobnob with other aspirants and the occasional star. He hung out with Johnny Carson, dated Natalie Wood and knocked back Cutty Sark at 2 a. m. with Bette Davis. He also befriended a young James Coburn and took credit for getting him a role in “The Magnificent Seven. ” After he graduated from college in 1956, Mr. Vaughn signed with Columbia Pictures for $15, 000 a role. His career was temporarily waylaid when he was drafted he served uneventfully as a drill sergeant in the Army and was discharged after 18 months. After that, his life was a series of increasingly parts, and then he landed “U. N. C. L. E. ” The show was such a success at first that he expected it to last for many years, but the ratings dropped, and it was canceled halfway through its fourth season. He kept busy afterward, appearing on numerous TV shows and in movies like “Bullitt” (1968) and “The Towering Inferno” (1974). He also traveled extensively. He was in Prague in 1968 when Soviet tanks rolled into the city to suppress the local reform movement. Mr. Vaughn earned a doctorate in communications from the University of Southern California in 1970. His dissertation, “The Influence of the House Committee on Activities on the American Theater ” was published as a book, “Only Victims,” in 1972. But the farther away he got from “U. N. C. L. E. ,” the more Mr. Vaughn found himself taking roles that he characterized as “not quality,” among them a millionaire looking to dominate the world through computers in “Superman III” (1983) and a mercenary in “Battle Beyond the Stars” (1980) a science fiction epic conceived of as “The Magnificent Seven” in space. In the late 1980s he acted as pitchman in an infomercial for the Helsinki Formula, which claimed to be a cure for baldness. The Federal Trade Commission eventually prevented the manufacturers from making this claim, but by then they had sold $100 million worth of the product. In a 1993 interview with The Los Angeles Times, Mr. Vaughn was unapologetic about his work as a Helsinki Formula spokesman. “That was about the most profitable thing I’ve ever done in my life,” he said. “Every call that came in on the 800 number, I got a piece of that. ” During one of his rare returns to stage acting, he appeared in a production of “The Tender Trap” in Chicago in 1970. Also in the cast was the actress Linda Staab, whom he married in 1974 and who survives him. With his Hollywood stature on the decline, they moved to a stone home in Ridgefield, Conn. in 1981. Mr. Vaughn’s survivors also include a daughter, Caitlin Vaughn a son, Cassidy and two grandchildren. Mr. Vaughn continued to work as an actor into his 80s. He appeared on the British television series “Hustle” from 2004 to 2012 and on another British show, “Coronation Street,” in 2012. He was seen on an episode of “Law Order: Special Victims Unit” last year. Toward the end of his life, his view of acting, and of his luck in having a long show business career, grew rosier. As he put it in his autobiography, “With a modest amount of looks and talent, and more than a modicum of serendipity, I’ve managed to stretch my 15 minutes of fame into 50 years of good fortune. ” | 0fake |
North Korean missile launch unacceptable violation of its obligations: EU | BRUSSELS (Reuters) - North Korea s latest missile launch is a further unacceptable violation of its international obligations, a spokeswoman for the European Union foreign affairs chief said on Tuesday. North Korea fired a missile that landed close to Japan in the early hours of Wednesday, the first test by Pyongyang since a missile fired over its neighbor in mid-September. The Pentagon said its initial assessment was that it was an intercontinental ballistic missile. This launch represents a further grave provocation, and a serious threat to international security, a spokeswoman for Federica Mogherini said. | 0fake |
U.S. Congress to advance Zika funding bill: Sen. McConnell | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Leaders in the U.S. Congress on Monday were making progress toward temporarily funding the government in the fiscal year starting Oct. 1 and providing money to battle an outbreak of the Zika virus, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said. Making his remarks shortly before he was set to travel to the White House to discuss these long-deadlocked issues with President Barack Obama and other congressional leaders, McConnell said “a lot of important progress” had been made. He did not provide further details, other than to say that he expected to advance the legislation in the Senate this week. | 0fake |
North Korea rejects U.S. accusation, says it is not linked to any cyber attacks | SEOUL (Reuters) - A spokesman for North Korea s foreign ministry said on Thursday Pyongyang is not linked to any cyber attacks, the North s first response since the United States publicly blamed it for a massive worldwide cyber security breach. As we have clearly stated on several occasions, we have nothing to do with cyber attack and we do not feel a need to respond, on a case-by-case basis, to such absurd allegations of the U.S., the spokesman said, according to the North s official KCNA news agency. The U.S. accusation was a serious political provocation against North Korea that Pyongyang would never tolerate, the spokesman said. The May cyber attack crippled hospitals, banks and other companies. | 0fake |
NOT SO FUNNY GUY, WILL FERRELL Throws His Support Behind Cankles… | Supporting Hillary is about as funny as an ebola outbreak in America Will Ferrell no longer feels the Bern. The 48-year-old actor-comedian appeared alongside former President Bill Clinton in Nevada on Saturday to urge residents to caucus for Hillary Clinton despite being one of the earliest celebrity endorsers of her rival for the Democrat presidential nomination, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT)16% .On Saturday, Clinton s campaign tweeted a short video of Ferrell asking Nevadans to caucus for Hillary ahead of the state s nominating contest, a contest Clinton ultimately won by a narrow margin.Will Ferrell has a message for you, Nevada: Caucus for Hillary today at 11AM. Your location: https://t.co/39foMYsmhfhttps://t.co/FGIu9RkgXg Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) February 20, 2016 It s really important that everyone shows up to caucus, the comedian tells Clinton supporters in the short clip. Ferrell is also seen sampling amazing chocolate custard frozen yogurt and reminding supporters of the 11 a.m. caucus start time.Ferrell s name was among those listed at Artists for Bernie, a coalition of more than 120 entertainment industry figures who are publicly supporting Sanders s presidential run.Ferrell s name, which had been on the list since its release in September, has now disappeared and a spokesperson for Clinton s campaign told CNN that the funnyman has donated to Clinton and will co-host a fundraiser for the former Secretary of State in Los Angeles on Monday.Ferrell joins other celebrity Clinton supporters including Lena Dunham, Katy Perry, Elton John, Tom Hanks and Barbra Streisand, while Sanders has earned the support of some of the Hollywood community s more progressive stars, including Mark Ruffalo, Sarah Silverman, Danny DeVito, Susan Sarandon and members of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Via: Breitbart News | 1real |
Muslim Puts On Creepy Clown Mask, Realizes He Attacked The Wrong Infidel | Share This Sadiq Mohammad, 20, thought it would be funny to dress up as a clown and terrorize civilians. Unbeknownst to him, he would be the one getting the scare of his life.
After hearing about the creepy clown trend sweeping the nation, a Muslim man decided to start off Halloween by donning a “killer clown” costume and attacking unsuspecting victims. However, as soon as he approached his next target, he quickly realized that not every infidel is going to take his idiocy lying down.
Just last year, a Muslim prankster thought it would be funny to use his inherently violent and historically deadly religion to terrorize innocent civilians for laughs and views on his social media accounts. In December, a group of YouTube tricksters, dubbed the Jalals, dressed in traditional Arab attire and hurled suspicious packages at random strangers , making them think they were about to be bombed. Drawing from this idea, a fellow YouTuber decided to hone in on the creepy clown trend, chasing down petrified bystanders for his own entertainment. Unfortunately for him, he got his own dose of terror when he picked on the wrong man.
Sadiq Mohammad, the 20-year-old Muslim mind behind the YouTube channel HoodClips, donned a sinister-looking clown mask and filmed himself stalking unsuspecting onlookers on the streets of Stockton, California. As expected, most of his targets ran away in horror. However, one man decided not only to fight back but turn the terror back on Mohammad.
Guns.com reports that Mohammad was given a brutal taste of his own medicine after his intended target pulled out a firearm and pistol-whipped him in the head. The Muslim prankster leaped out of the bushes in an attempt to startle the unknown man, immediately discovering that he would be the one fearing for his life.
“Why you gonna play that s**t in Stockton, brother?” the man asks. “That s**t done-a** played out, bro,” he adds, referring to the recent spate of clown pranks. “I ought to pop your dumb a**.”
According to Daily Mail , Mohammad instantly regretted his bullying attempt, running for cover as the hooded individual graciously allowed him to retreat without further injury. Realizing that some people don’t find his joke at their expense amusing, Mohammad has now sworn to hang up his clown costume for good.
“Lesson learned is, people donât play with the clown stuff,” Mohammad told KCRA . “Like, people really will shoot anybody.”
Unfortunately, there are some who say that the man’s reaction wasn’t justified. Sacramento attorney Kresta Daly alleges that “pulling a gun was too much” since Mohammad claimed that the tactics were just part of a prank. Of course, Daly refuses to acknowledge that just because a threatening individual says that their behavior is part of a prank doesn’t mean they’re telling the truth.
Just 2 days ago, a San Diego man told police that he was stabbed multiple times by 4 people dressed up as clowns. The victim was left with gashes in his left cheek, right shoulder, and lower abdomen but is expected to make a full recovery.
Similarly, a 16-year-old was stabbed and killed by an assailant in a clown mask in Reading, Pennsylvania in September. The teen was attending a party when a fight broke out, prompting an unknown suspect in the costume to repeatedly stab him.
Mohammad is lucky to be alive after his incredibly idiotic stunt. Of course, it’s probably not going to stop him from abusing innocent civilians if it means he can make money from their misfortune. After all, it was the Islamic prophet Muhammad, after whom the YouTuber is named, who exclaimed that he has “been made victorious through terror.” | 1real |
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