Gunmaker subpoenas school records of 9 slain Sandy Hook students and educators; families want records sealed

NEWTOWN — A gunmaker being sued by nine families who lost loved ones in the Sandy Hook shootings has subpoenaed the academic, attendance and disciplinary records of five children killed that day. The subpoena included requests for school records of four educators who were killed.

Lawyers for those nine families moved in court Thursday to seal those confidential records of the five slain children and four slain educators because requested by the bankrupted Remington company.

“We have no explanation for why Remington subpoenaed the Newtown Public School District to obtain the kindergarten and first-grade academic, attendance and disciplinary records of these five school children,” said the families’ lead attorney, Josh Koskoff, after filing a motion to change the protection order in state Superior Court in Waterbury. “The records cannot possibly excuse Remington’s egregious marketing conduct, or be of any assistance in estimating the catastrophic damages in this case. The only relevant part of their attendance records is that they were at their desks on December 14, 2012.”

Dec. 14, 2012, was the day a 20-year-old gunman took his mother’s AR-15-style rifle from an unlocked closet and shot his way into a locked Sandy Hook Elementary School, killing 20 first-graders and six educators.

Nine families who lost loved ones sued Remington for wrongful death, claiming the once-powerful gunmaker recklessly marketed a military-grade gun to civilians. Remington argued that it manufactured a legal firearm that was sold lawfully to the gunman’s mother, and that it was the gunman who was responsible for the worst crime in Connecticut history.

In 2016, a state Superior Court judge agreed that Remington was protected under a federal law that shields the gun industry from most liability when its products are misused. In 2019, the state Supreme Court ruled the families had grounds to pursue an unlawful marketing claim under Connecticut’s Unfair Trade Practices Act. Later that year, the United States Supreme Court sent the case back to trial court by refusing to review it.

Since them, Remington has been dissolved in bankruptcy court, and four insurance companies have taken over the former company’s defense.

The battle to keep the private records of the nine Sandy Hook victims confidential comes as both sides prepare for trial in the highest profile lawsuit of its kind in the country. The lawsuit was in national headlines last in July, when two of Remington’s four insurance companies offered each of the nine families a $3.6 million settlement. The families have yet to respond.

A week before that surprise partial settlement offer, Remington raised eyebrows when it was accused of handing over 18,000 “random cartoons” and 15,000 irrelevant pictures of people go-karting and dirt-biking as part of its pretrial data requested by the families.

https://www.ctpost.com/local/article/Gunmaker-subpoenas-school-records-of-9-slain-16431593.php

Israeli woman arrested in Turkey on suspicion of PKK involvement - report

An Israeli woman was arrested in Turkey on suspicion she is a supporter of the Kurdish PKK which is classified as a terror organization by a number of countries.

An Israeli woman, 25, who works as a kindergarten teacher in Rehovot was arrested in Turkey this week for suspected involvement with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which is classified a terror organization in Turkey, N12 reported Friday.

The woman, on holiday in Turkey, reportedly met a Kurdish couple with whom she went to a few bars. At one point during the evening, the Kurdish woman fought with her partner, causing police to arrive, said N12. When they did, the Kurdish woman, who was reportedly inebriated, yelled to police that she was "Kurdish and supports the PKK, I am a terrorist, who even are you? I will commit terror attacks here," the woman told N12.

The Kurdish woman was arrested and police beat her during the arrest, according to the Israeli woman who said that is what prompted her to intervene, leading to her own arrest, N12 reported.

The Israeli woman was released on Wednesday after being detained and beaten during her detainment, according to N12 who also reported that she cannot leave Turkey until her trial.

Israel's Foreign Ministry said it was aware of her arrest and that the Israeli consulate there was in touch with the woman.

https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/israeli-woman-arrested-in-turkey-on-suspicion-of-pkk-involvement-report-678647

FBI warns of ransomware attacks targeting food and agriculture sector as White House pushes for proactive measures

In addition to the May attack on JBS, the FBI listed dozens of ransomware incidents that have taken place over the last six months targeting the food sector.

The FBI sent out a notice warning companies in the the food and agriculture sector to watch out for ransomware attacks aiming to disrupt supply chains. The FBI note said ransomware groups are seeking to "disrupt operations, cause financial loss, and negatively impact the food supply chain."

"Ransomware may impact businesses across the sector, from small farms to large producers, processors and manufacturers, and markets and restaurants. Cybercriminal threat actors exploit network vulnerabilities to exfiltrate data and encrypt systems in a sector that is increasingly reliant on smart technologies, industrial control systems, and internet-based automation systems," the FBI said.

"Food and agriculture businesses victimized by ransomware suffer significant financial loss resulting from ransom payments, loss of productivity, and remediation costs. Companies may also experience the loss of proprietary information and personally identifiable information and may suffer reputational damage resulting from a ransomware attack."

The notice goes on to explain that the food and agriculture sector has faced an increasing number of attacks in recent months as ransomware groups target critical industries with large attack surfaces.

Many of the biggest food companies now use an array of IoT devices and smart technology in their processes. The FBI noted that larger agricultural businesses are targeted because they can afford to pay higher ransoms and smaller entities are attacked because of their inability to afford high-quality cybersecurity.

"From 2019 to 2020, the average ransom demand doubled and the average cyber insurance payout increased by 65 percent from 2019 to 2020. The highest observed ransom demand in 2020 was $23 million USD, according to a private industry report. According to the 2020 IC3 Report, IC3 received 2,474 complaints identified as ransomware with adjusted losses of over $29.1 million across all sectors," the FBI said.

"Separate studies have shown 50-80 percent of victims that paid the ransom experienced a repeat ransomware attack by either the same or different actors. Although cyber criminals use a variety of techniques to infect victims with ransomware, the most common means of infection are email phishing campaigns, Remote Desktop Protocol vulnerabilities, and software vulnerabilities."

The notice goes on to list multiple attacks on the food and agriculture sector since November, including a Sodinokibi/REvil ransomware attack on a US bakery company, the attack on global meat processor JBS in May, a March 2021 attack on a US beverage company and a January attack on a US farm that caused losses of approximately $9 million.

JBS ended up paying an $11 million ransom to the REvil ransomware group after the attack caused meat shortages across the US, Australia and other countries.

https://www.zdnet.com/article/fbi-warns-of-ransomware-attacks-targeting-food-and-agriculture-sector-as-white-house-pushes-for-proactive-measures/

Texas Congressman Goes SCORCHED EARTH on Republicans and Dems After House Committee Votes to Include Women in US Military Draft

Rep. Chip Roy went OFF on his Republican and Democrat colleagues after the House Armed Services Committee voted to approve an amendment to a defense policy bill that would make women eligible for the Selective Service System (a.k.a. the draft).

The measure – that was originally introduced by Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) – passed through the committee after a late-night vote on Thursday.

Multiple republicans broke ranks and sided with the left to ensure it passed.

Roy, who represents Texas’ 21st congressional district, unleashed an explosive 9-part twitter thread where he lambasted the lawmakers on both sides. He began by explaining that he doesn’t trust them to “do anything at all,” especially when it comes to promises they make about his daughter and others being drafted to “non combat” roles.

Step by step, he masterfully walks through the corruption in the swamp and explains why they should not be trusted – from the debt, to the china virus, all the way to their debacles with US energy – He did not hold back at all.

In essence, the uni-party has no credibility and their agenda is un-American. These people don’t care about the Americans who elected them or the constitution.

Maybe it’s because you (both R&D) have amassed $30 trillion in debt and are blowing through trillions more… all while giving lip service to “balanced budgets” for decades… (2/9)

“Maybe it’s because you (both R & D) have talked about securing our border while Texans suffer—our ranches, our schools, our hospitals—Fentanyl pouring into our communities… murders, rapes… dead migrants on ranches… all in the false name of compassion…

Maybe it’s because you (both R&D) politicized a virus… giving us wildly varying propaganda about it’s origins, the nature of it’s communicability, the efficacy of your mandated measures in response including vaccines, and ignoring of treatments… (4/9)

Maybe it’s because you (both R&D) have destroyed our healthcare system and made it impossible to get the doctor of our choice at a remotely affordable price all in the false name of “coverage.” (5/9)

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/09/texas-congressman-goes-scorched-earth-republicans-dems-house-committee-votes-include-women-us-military-draft/

Oregon State Trooper Is Placed on Leave After Sharing Powerful Video: “I’ve fallen in line for over a year with these useless, ineffective mask mandates, and I will no more!”

100 Percent Fed Up reports- Oregon State Trooper, 29-year-old Zachary Kowing, has been placed on paid leave after taking a video of himself inside his patrol car and explaining why he will not enforce or abide by Democrat Governor Kate Brown’s discriminatory vaccine mandate.

In his video, the young state trooper explained that he understands the risks of speaking out and that he would “likely get fired” over making the video but he is “nonetheless, exercising my First Amendment Right to speak freely.”

“Miss governor, I think you’ve forgotten that you were elected by the people; therefore, you work for the people. The title governor does not give free rein to force medical decisions upon us,” Officer Kowing said.

“I swore an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States, to protect the freedom of the people who pay my salary, the 8-year veteran explained as he sat in his patrol vehicle. “I do not work for my governor but for them.”

“I have personal and religious reasons as to why I will not take the vaccine, as well as the freedom to choose not to,” he says. “I’ll likely get fired over this video, but I’m nonetheless exercising my First Amendment rights to speak freely.”

The outspoken patriot officer explained why he would no longer abide by these ridiculous CCP mandates: “I’ve fallen in line for over a year with these useless, ineffective mask mandates, and I will no more! I will not sit back and sheepishly watch as those who serve the people state are given unlawful orders which threaten their livelihoods, should they choose not to fall in line.”

Officer Kowling pointed out the discriminatory nature of their mandates, “Discretion is one of the most important parts of my job as a police officer. I will use that discretion, and I will not enforce useless mask mandates or unlawful vaccine orders. Doing so is discrimination, which I would be fired for if it were any other discriminatory subcategory.”

His final warning to Americans about accepting vaccine mandates is powerful. “But if you got the vaccine, out of fear. Be careful. You are slowly giving up the freedoms that so many have fought for,” he said and encouraged people to “to look deep down and decide if you’re going to fall in line as sheep, or if you’re going to stand up for the rights that we have for the short time, we still have them,” the brave officer told his viewers.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/09/oregon-state-trooper-place-leave-sharing-powerful-video-fallen-line-year-useless-ineffective-mask-mandates-will-no-v/

California’s State Pension Invests Millions in Chinese State-Owned Companies

CalPERS has $490 million tied up in companies funding Belt and Road

California's state pension invested hundreds of millions of dollars in Chinese state-owned enterprises linked to the People's Liberation Army, according to records reviewed by the Washington Free Beacon.

The California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) had more than $3 billion invested in Chinese companies, including 14 state-controlled enterprises blacklisted by the Trump administration, as of June 2020. Many of these companies are funding the Belt and Road Initiative, a massive infrastructure project Beijing is using to expand its geopolitical and military influence.

Gov. Gavin Newsom (D., Calif.), who recently praised a Chinese-owned media company for its "journalistic integrity," has not commented on CalPERS's Chinese investments. It is a notable silence from the embattled governor, who has called on CalPERS, the country's largest public pension system, to divest from tobacco companies and companies linked to the Turkish government. Newsom faces a recall election on Sept. 14.

CalPERS had more than $450 million invested in 14 Chinese companies the Trump administration put on an investment blacklist last year because of their ties to the Chinese military. President Donald Trump's executive order, which the Biden administration has continued, prohibited Americans from investing in companies that aid the Chinese military.

It is unclear whether CalPERS has complied with the executive order by divesting in the blacklisted companies. The pension fund declined the Free Beacon‘s requests for comment. CalPERS had more than $490 million invested in seven Chinese state-owned enterprises that, while not on the U.S. blacklist, are funding the Belt and Road Initiative, according to its 2020 investment report. CalPERS invested in some of the Chinese companies as early as 2016, records show.

Two companies in the CalPERS portfolio—China Merchants Port and CITIC—control ports in Sri Lanka and Myanmar that the People's Liberation Army has used for military exercises. CalPERS had $3.7 million invested in China Merchants Port and $110 million in CITIC as of June 2020.

CalPERS, which has more than $400 billion in assets under management, also had $5 million invested in China State Construction Co., which has built roads and bridges in Asia, Africa, and the United States as part of Belt and Road. China State Construction is one of the firms on the Trump administration investment blacklist.

CalPERS had another $6 million invested in China Communications Construction Company, a state-owned company that U.S. officials have said is building military installations in the South China Sea in violation of agreements that China has with its neighbors. Former secretary of state Mike Pompeo singled out China Communications Construction last year as one of the "weapons" Beijing uses to impose an expansionist agenda.

The pension fund has hundreds of millions of dollars more invested in some of China's largest lenders, including $185 million invested in China Construction Bank. China Construction has invested $405 billion in 176 Belt and Road projects. China Merchants Bank and Bank of China, two other state-owned enterprises in the CalPERS portfolio, are invested heavily in Belt and Road projects.

CalPERS has come under scrutiny from state and national lawmakers over its investments in Chinese companies. The fund's critics say the investments not only aid the Chinese Communist Party but also create financial risk for the state's pensioners because of the lack of transparency into the operations of Chinese firms.

https://freebeacon.com/national-security/californias-state-pension-invests-millions-in-chinese-state-owned-companies/

GIULIANI: Biden Knew Exactly What He Was Doing in Afghanistan… Putting America Last.

The American people deserve the truth as to why Biden purposely and knowingly gave Afghanistan to the Taliban just shy of the twentieth anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terror attack on American soil.

Robert Gates, Obama’s Defense secretary, wrote that in over three decades Biden never made the right decision about foreign policy. This abhorring legacy lives on.

The only explanation Biden has given to the dismal withdrawal strategy in Afghanistan was that he was stuck with it because of President Trump.

But that did not hinder Biden from reversing almost all of the prior administration’s decisions big, medium, and small.

The Keystone XL pipeline was reversed on day one of the Biden administration, along with reengaging with the reckless nuclear agreement with Iran and most suspiciously granting Russia the ability to build another pipeline to Europe, against the advice of his own advisors. Our open Southern Border has been a breeding ground for drugs, sex slave rings, and other criminal activity.

The prior administration approved a withdrawal from Afghanistan but with conditions and without a developed plan. No previous administration can be held responsible for an execution that takes place seven months into the next. There was ample time for the Biden administration to assess the conditions on the ground.

Biden’s four-day delay in making any statement about this continuing catastrophe before placing blame on everyone but himself only served to highlight the complete breakdown of American Presidential leadership. It was entirely unprecedented. When faced with mistakes his predecessors spoke immediately and took full responsibility. President Kennedy immediately explained and took responsibility for the Bay of Pigs. He knew although prepared by President Eisenhower, he could have pulled the plug at any time.

President Carter the very next day took responsibility for the disaster of the aborted rescue mission for the Iranian hostages. President Reagan immediately addressed the Hezbollah attacks in Lebanon and the aborted Challenger flight.

The decision to withdraw from Afghanistan and the timing of the withdrawal are two vastly different decisions. Both are controversial and opposed by significant numbers in the military and intelligence services. The decision to end the war does have broad support. The timing and circumstances are much more controversial because the aim was to execute it without creating a blood bath and turning Afghanistan into an Islamic Super State.

According to reliable sources both in and outside of the administration, Biden was warned that a complete pullout at this time without firm agreements about protecting the government would lead to a complete Taliban takeover.

Twenty years ago, it was a government controlled by the Taliban who were major supporters of Islamic jihad experienced terrorists seeking to set up a broad, if not worldwide, Islamic caliphate. They also were a fertile protected area for Al Qaeda and other terrorists’ groups to plan major terrorist attacks on the United States and other Western countries.

Now we are right back to that same scenario as if we did not learn anything. Our 13 U.S service members did not need to be slaughtered.

A whistleblower released the transcript of the now infamous Biden-Ghani phone call where you can hear Biden asking for a new perception of the Taliban.

https://thenationalpulse.com/analysis/giuliani-biden-knew-exactly-what-he-was-doing-in-afghanistan-putting-america-last/

https://thenationalpulse.com/analysis/giuliani-biden-knew-exactly-what-he-was-doing-in-afghanistan-putting-america-last/