"End Of Quote": Biden Goes Full Ron Burgundy, Accidentally Reads Teleprompter Cues

Joe Biden engaged in a giant softball game with the press today - perhaps best described by Newsbusters' Curtis Houck as not "even putting the ball on the tee. This is hitting the ball over the stands and letting Biden run the bases."

But before we get the choreographed Q&A, you should know that Biden went full Ron Burgundy today - reading "end of quote" off the teleprompter.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/end-quote-biden-goes-full-ron-burgundy-accidentally-reads-teleprompter-cues

Russia Scrambles Eight Fighter Jets to Intercept US Bombers Over Black Sea - Defense Ministry

The Russian Defense Ministry said on Friday it had scrambled eight fighter jets after it detected three US Air Force B-52 Stratofortress bombers over the Black Sea.

In just the latest incident involving US bombers flying close to Russian airspace, a slew of Russian fighters were sent to meet three B-52 strategic bombers over the Black Sea on Friday.

"In order to prevent the US Air Force planes from violating Russian airspace, 4 Su-27 fighters and 4 Su-30 fighters from the air defense forces of the Southern Military District were raised over the Black and Azov Seas," the National Defense Management Center of the Russian Federation said.

The agency did not say if the bombers actually violated Russian airspace.

On August 28, a similar incident occurred as two Su-27 (NATO reporting name "Flanker") fighters were dispatched to deter several B-52 bombers over the Black Sea. The following day, a similar incident happened over the Baltic Sea, again involving B-52 bombers, which are slow, long-range aircraft capable of dropping huge amounts of munitions over targets and can carry several nuclear bombs.

The August 28 intercept was part of an unprecedented show of force by the United States, which dispatched six B-52 bombers to fly over all 30 NATO partner nations in a single day.

The Friday intercept also comes as the US Army begins exercises in Estonia that will feature live-fire rocket artillery drills less than 70 miles from the Russian border.

https://sputniknews.com/russia/202009041080369574-russia-scrambles-eight-fighter-jets-to-intercept-us-bombers-over-black-sea—defense-ministry/

More BS Exposed: Florida’s “Youngest Coronavirus Victim” Died from Bilateral Pulmonary Edema and Internal Hemorrhages — NOT the Corona

Do you remember this?

In late August the story broke on the liberal fake news media that a little 6-year-old girl died in Florida becoming the youngest Covid-19 victim in the Sunshine State.

The fake news media dropped this “news” story on Friday afternoon so it ran nationwide all that weekend.

This was horrible news. No one wants to see children die from any disease.

But in this case it was more fake news.

As usual if you search out the story a week or three or five later, you invariably find a small local story that details how the person really died.

In this case the poor little girl woke up sick, had pain in her leg, suffered a seizure. She went to hospital almost immediately — by helicopte — but she had too much brain damage to survive.

Oh, and she had a heart murmur, and died of a bilateral pulmonary edema.

“But she tested positive for the coronavirus!” and so the main stream media ran with the bogus narrative.

Once again it seems like every young, sad coronavirus death ends up being mislabeled normal Identifiable death, like cancer or some other serious underlying condition.

Via The Tampa Bay Times:

Astrid was born with a heart murmur. In Honduras, the doctors told Galindo that it was not serious and she could live normally. Before her death, Astrid was not on any medications and had no prior surgeries.

But Astrid began to feel sick on the morning of Aug. 16, a Sunday. Her mother said Astrid woke up and complained that she had a headache and a sharp pain in her left leg. Minutes later she had a seizure and became unresponsive.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/09/bs-exposed-floridas-youngest-coronavirus-victim-died-bilateral-pulmonary-edema-internal-hemorrhages-not-corona-video/

Seattle cops find machete, mortar, hatchet, spike strips, shields in tent at public park during protest-related cleanup

A woman — presumably a protester — was caught on video yelling at a cop, 'You're a fing white supremacist, you piece of s*t! I hope you die tonight, b*h!'

Seattle police officers found various weapons as well as homemade spike strips and dozens of makeshift shields in a tent at a public park Tuesday morning, police said.

Police said they were providing security during a Seattle Parks Department cleanup at Cal Anderson Park where workers were set to repair a damaged field house and pick up trash that had been piling up since the park's closure June 30.

The damage and subsequent repairs were related to ongoing protests, the Seattle Times said.

But when workers with the parks department were cleaning out a tent in the area, police said they found what they believed were weapons.

So officers obtained a warrant to search the tent and recovered a machete, hatchet, homemade spike strips, an unexploded mortar, and multiple makeshift shields, police said.

Officers removed the items from the tent and placed them into evidence, police said, adding that no arrests have been made although an investigation is ongoing.

Protest hub

The park has been a hub for some protesters, the Times noted, adding that in recent weeks a camp grew in the park where protesters gathered for marches, handed out goggles and helmets, and occupied a previously locked and boarded-up city rental facility to distribute food to people living in the park.

Not the kindest of welcomes

A video was posted to YouTube showing officers gathered at the park while several people — presumably protesters — went verbally ballistic on the cops for their presence amid the park cleanup.

"Are you a white supremacist?" one man yells at the officers.

"That's a registered fing hate symbol recognized by the Southern Poverty Law Center!" a woman screams at one cop. "You're a fing white supremacist, you piece of st! I hope you die tonight, b*h!"

The woman can be heard calling another officer a "fing coon" and declares, "I'm taking your job, bh!"

https://youtu.be/JfXebMo6jA0

https://www.theblaze.com/news/seattle-cops-weapons-protest-park

Tony Abbott appointed to Britain's Board of Trade with the backing of UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson

Former prime minister Tony Abbott has been appointed as an adviser to Britain's Board of Trade after a flurry of criticism over previous statements.

The unpaid role, which will involve Mr Abbott promoting the UK's trade interests across the globe, was announced late on Friday afternoon in the UK after Prime Minister Boris Johnson gave Mr Abbott his backing.

Since news broke Mr Abbott was in line for the role last week there have been waves of criticism from both sides of politics in the UK — over previous comments made by Mr Abbott — the criticism saw him labelled a misogynist, sexist and climate change denier.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said he had "real concerns" over the appointment and would not pick Mr Abbott if he were the prime minister, while Conservative MP Caroline Nokes said his appointment would be "awful".

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-05/tony-abbott-appointed-to-britains-board-of-trade-boris-johnson/12632476

Smart Grid Control For Energy To Be Extended To Water

The United States’ aging water infrastructure is in dire need of an upgrade. Most of the country’s water infrastructure is at least half a century old, and with that comes a host of problems, including frequent leaks and poor water quality. With precious water resources becoming more and more scarce, the problem is growing increasingly urgent.

According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, there are an estimated 240,000 water main breaks annually across the U.S., at a direct cost of $2.6 billion. Deteriorating infrastructure imposes more than a merely financial burden: As pipes deteriorate and increasing amounts of pollutants enter the drinking water supply, public health is endangered. A 2017 investigation revealed that up to 63 million Americans were exposed to potentially unsafe drinking water over the previous decade, underscoring that disasters like the Flint, Michigan water crisis are only the tip of iceberg when it comes to America’s water management problems.

Further compounding the country’s water challenges is the mounting threat of climate change, which will usher in extreme weather conditions that America’s degrading water infrastructure simply will not likely be able to handle. Given these myriad challenges, it’s hardly surprising that in the American Water Works Association’s most recent State of the Water Industry report, leaders identified the need to renew and replace outdated infrastructure as the industry’s top challenge.

Smart water technology has a major role to play in addressing the problems posed by aging infrastructure. By integrating intelligent monitoring and resource management solutions, local governments can gain vital insights: How much water is present in the overflow from a storm? What contaminants and pollutants are flowing through municipal pipes– and at what levels? What patterns in supply and demand can drive smarter decisions about optimizing water management?

With the introduction of smart water tech, our cities can better understand what’s going on, especially underground, which is beneficial for the industrial and utility sectors too. Zion Market Research forecasts that the smart water tech market will reach $31.6 billion by 2024, with technological improvements in information and communication technologies, the Internet of Things (IoT), and data analytics fueling the market’s growth.

IoT sensors, for instance, can enable water managers to detect any anomalies in municipal systems, including leaks; peaks and valleys in usage; equipment failures; and pollutants to ensure local utilities and industry are complying with all water protection regulations. By creating visibility into buried assets to understand the conditions of underground infrastructure, utilities can compare current performance with sought after standards, predict when and where problems may arise, and treat trouble spots preventively before they become costly problems.

https://www.naturalblaze.com/2020/09/smart-grid-control-for-energy-to-be-extended-to-water.html

Less Screen Time and More Green Time Associated With Better Youth Psychological Outcomes

Less screen time and more green time are associated with better psychological outcomes among children and adolescents, according to a study published September 4 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Tassia Oswald of the University of Adelaide, and colleagues.

The prevalence of mental illness among children and adolescents is increasing globally. Technological developments in recent decades have increased young people’s engagement with screen-based technologies (screen time), and a reduction in young people’s contact with nature (green time) has been observed concurrently.

This combination of high screen time and low green time may affect mental health and well-being. But research investigating the psychological impacts of screen time or green time typically considers each factor in isolation and fails to delineate the reciprocal effects of high technology use and low contact with nature on mental health and cognitive outcomes.

To address this question, Oswald and colleagues analyzed the findings of 186 studies to collate evidence assessing associations between screen time, green time, and psychological outcomes (including mental health, cognitive functioning, and academic achievement) for children and adolescents.

In general, high levels of screen time appeared to be associated with unfavorable psychological outcomes, while green time appeared to be associated with favorable psychological outcomes. Young people from low socioeconomic backgrounds were underrepresented in the literature overall and may be disproportionately affected by high screen time and low green time, making this a priority group for future research.

However, additional longitudinal studies and RCTs are needed to determine whether decreasing screen time and increasing green time would improve psychological outcomes. According to the authors, preliminary evidence suggests that green time could potentially buffer the consequences of high screen time, meaning nature may be an under-utilized public health resource to promote youth psychological well-being in a high-tech era. Investment in more rigorous research is needed to explore this.

Oswald adds: “This systematic scoping review highlights that nature may currently be an under-utilised public health resource, which could potentially function as an upstream preventative and psychological well-being promotion intervention for children and adolescents in a high-tech era. However, robust evidence is needed to guide policies and recommendations around appropriate screen time and green time at critical life stages, to ultimately ensure optimal psychological well-being for young people.”

https://www.naturalblaze.com/2020/09/less-screen-time-and-more-green-time-associated-with-better-youth-psychological-outcomes.html

Meth floods across US-Mexico border during coronavirus pandemic

Mexican cartels are finding more unusual ways to smuggle the drugs, Customs and Border Protection officers say

NOGALES, Ariz. – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers are noticing an alarming trend in the illegal drug trade: Methamphetamine is flooding across the border at an all-time high, and officers say the coronavirus pandemic has affected its prevalence and price tag.

“They’re in business to make money, so [the cartels] are still looking for every possible way to get narcotics across,” Tucson field office Director of Field Operations Guadalupe Ramirez Jr. said.

While battling the coronavirus pandemic, Border Patrol agents and U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers said they’ve been working nonstop to intercept illegal drug activity at the U.S.-Mexico border. In Tucson, Ariz., officers said they’ve seen a recent spike in meth and fentanyl at the southern border.

“We’re actually the smallest field office but we’re normally number two or three when it comes to narcotics seizures,” Ramirez said. “Where other locations have seen meth really go up, we’ve seen fentanyl go up here, but we’re still, out of the four southwest border field offices, we’re still number three in meth seizures. So, they’re still very high.”

Officers say in all, the total volume of meth seized is almost double than last year with still a couple months left to go in the fiscal year. In fact, the volume of meth seized has been increasing annually for several years. In fiscal year 2019, the Office of Field Operations seized some 68,585 points of meth nationwide, compared to 118,153 pounds so far this year.

In Laredo, Texas, meth seizures have been happening almost daily. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers intercepted shipments containing methamphetamine with an estimated street value of over $29.8 million in two enforcement actions at the World Trade Bridge back in August. A few days later, at the Juarez-Lincoln Bridge, they seized additional meth totaling over $3.3 million in street value.

“Supply and demand, you know, as we hit their supply line, the demand is still there, so the price goes up,” Ramirez said.

Most meth production has taken place in Mexico, where cartels have offered a constant production line of illegal narcotics, according to investigators.

https://www.foxnews.com/us/mexico-border-meth-coronavirus-pandemic

Melbourne protests: Police out in force amid fears hundreds will gather in 'unlawful' anti-lockdown rally

Hundreds of police will swarm Melbourne today where protesters are expected to gather for so-called "Freedom Day" rallies.

Authorities fear crowds will gather in breach of stage four rules, threatening to worsen Victoria's second wave of the coronavirus pandemic that finally appears under control after months of agony.

A COVID-19 conspiracy theorist who yesterday had police smash their way into his home with a search warrant has changed his tone after earlier encouraging people to attend rallies.

James Bartolo, 27, was yesterday charged with incitement for encouraging his large social media following to attend planned protests in the CBD.

"I wanted people to not go to the protests, now, hopefully, protest won't go ahead, I hope you put that on," he told 9News last night.

Premier Daniel Andrews fears crowds of hundreds or thousands could gather.

"It's not safe to protest, it's not smart to protest, and it's not lawful to protest," he said

Sites in focus include the steps of Parliament House and Melbourne's Shrine of Remembrance.

Police are also expected to be present in increased numbers on public transport.

Officers from the highway patrol, the anti-riot Public Order Response Team, and the mounted unit, are expected to be part of the response.

Protesters have been warned they will face hefty fines.

But the Australian Lawyers Alliance has joined the protest against the crackdown.

"Police need to make allowances for the fact that these aren't normal laws," national criminal justice spokesperson Greg Barnes SC said.

"And we are seeing abuses of police power – we've seen it in every jurisdiction in Australia."

https://www.9news.com.au/national/coronavirus-protests-melbourne-thousands-expected-police-prepare-major-operation/ebea0861-df75-4f42-a699-85f88510aae7