26 Jan, 2023 16:23

Joining Russia sanctions would be ‘inappropriate’ – Serbia

Foreign minister Ivica Dacic said the embargo on Moscow would harm Belgrade

Serbia's reasons for not joining the US-EU sanctions against Russia remain entirely valid, Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic insisted on Thursday. He was speaking in Ankara after meeting his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu.

The European Parliament last week demanded Belgrade's “full alignment” with the bloc’s foreign and security policy – including the embargo against Moscow. Dacic explained that his government hasnot joined the anti-Russian embargo out of “national and state interests, economic cooperation, as well as problemsSerbia has with Kosovo,” referring to the NATO-backed breakaway province.

“It would be inappropriate for Serbia to sanction Russia now, and it would be harmful to our interests,” Dacic said. “That doesn’t mean we won’t do everything to clearly say we don’t support the infringement of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and help as much as we can.”

Dacic has sought the support of Türkiye in helping Serbia deal with US and EU pressure over Kosovo. He also indirectly reminded reporters that Ankara has not joined the sanctions against Russia either.

“I think Serbia and Türkiyewant to be constructive factors of peace and stability,” the Serbian FM said. “Our interest is not to be on anybody’s side in some conflict, we advocate the respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty of every UN member state.”

While insisting that Serbia must sanction Russia because of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, the EU and the US also demand Belgrade recognize Kosovo, or face economic and political “consequences.”

Belgrade insists on the principle of territorial integrity because the US and the EU have been pressuring it to recognize Kosovo as an independent state since 2008. NATO troops took control of the province in 1999, after months of bombing Serbia on behalf of ethnic Albanian insurgents.

Serbia’s position on Kosovo has received support from Russia, China and many other countries – including Ukraine – ongrounds of international law. This is one of the reasons Serbia officially does not recognize Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, Zaporozhye, or even Crimea, as parts of Russia.

https://www.rt.com/news/570520-serbia-russia-sanctions-ukraine/

26 Jan, 2023 15:49

US declares Wagner Group ‘transnational criminal organization’

Russian private military company the Wagner Group poses a “transcontinental threat,” the US Treasury has stated

Washington has designated the private military company (PMC) the Wagner Group a “significant transnational criminal organization,” the US Treasury Department said on Thursday as it unveiled a new batch of sanctions against Russia.

The US accused the company founded by Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin of being engaged in “an ongoing pattern of serious criminal activity” in both Ukraine, where the PMC is fighting with Russian troops, and several African nations.

The Wagner Group poses a “transcontinental threat,” the Treasury statement read, adding that the PMC “has been involved in Kremlin-backed combat operations around the world.”It referred specifically to Russia’s military effort in Ukraine, as well as alleging that the group had “also meddled and destabilized countries in Africa” such as the Central African Republic (CAR) and Mali.

Apart from the Wagner Group, the US also imposed sanctions on eleven other entities and six individuals, including those it suspects of supporting the PMC’s operations. The list includes Russia- and China-based technology companies and a UAE-based aviation firm, as well as several CAR-based security companies allegedly linked to the Wagner Group.

A separate US sanction list also included in Thursday’s batch of restrictions targets the Russian defense industry and includes acargo airline, a drone producer, and several technology companies.

Earlier this week, Prigozhin told RT that his company “has not committed any crimes.” The Wagner Group “eliminates only enemies of peace and commits no crimes,” the businessman said, while accusing the US of “preparing outlaws and terrorists all over the world so that there would be trouble everywhere – in Europe, Africa, Asia, South America.”

Prigozhin also said the US “fears” his company because it “kicked their asses” each time American intelligence officers tried to harm the PMC.

(McGregor in the video in notables said the CIA that advises the president will not tell the truth that Ukraine cannot win the war. He’s heard from others in the agency they know they cannot win it, but no one will back down now. They are willing to kill many more to try and save face. And will not agree to peace)

https://www.rt.com/russia/570526-us-wagner-criminal/

26 Jan, 2023 14:03

Swiss president weighs in on arms shipments to Kiev

The ban on re-exporting weapons should remain in place despite the Ukraine conflict, Alain Berset insists

Switzerland should not allow other countries to re-export Swiss-made armaments to Ukraine, due to its long-standing neutrality policy, President Alain Berset said on Wednesday.

Earlier in the week, a parliamentary committee supported a motion to remove a legislative barrier to re-exporting Swiss-made weapons to Kiev.

Speaking to the TV channel RTS, Berset, who holds the one-year rotating presidency of the Confederation, argued that “the question of neutrality is essential for our country”. While noting that this principle “is absolutely compatible” with imposing sanctions on Russia, heurged caution when it comes to the export or re-export of weapons for use in the Ukraine conflict.

“This is not the time to change rules for weapons re-export,” he said, adding that the same applies to changing the definition of neutrality.

“On the contrary, it’s the time to recall our basic principles and find the right path for the country in this situation,” he stated, referring to calls by several Western countries to approve the re-export of Swiss-made arms to Ukraine.

Switzerland has “a different role from other states,” the president continued, claiming that the nation’s credibility stems from it being the birthplace of the Geneva Conventions and a major proponent of humanitarian law. He insisted that diverging from this role for the sake of arms exports would not influence the situation on the ground in Ukraine, given that many weapons are already being sent there by other countries.

On Tuesday, the Security Policy Committee of the lower house of Switzerland’s parliament recommended waiving a ban which prohibits foreign countries from re-exporting Swiss military hardware and war materiel to Ukraine.

The principle of neutrality has been the cornerstone of Switzerland’s foreign policy for several centuries, and means Bern cannot get involved in a foreign conflict or support any side militarily.

In recent months, the Alpine nation has rebuffed Germany, Denmark, and Spain’s requests for the re-export of Swiss-made weaponry. However, it has joined EU sanctions against Russia. This has drawn the ire of Moscow, with Russia’s Foreign Ministry claiming in summer that Switzerland “had lost its neutrality,” making it unfit to act as a mediator representing Ukraine’s diplomatic interests in Russia.

(Very convenient for the Swiss, and timely, they all know its a waste)

https://www.rt.com/news/570515-swiss-president-reexport-ban-ukraine/

26 Jan, 2023 17:10

Top US arms maker ready to provide Kiev with F-16s – FT

Lockheed Martin says it could supply its planes to countries that are willing to give them to Kiev

Any countries that are prepared to provide Kiev with F-16 fighter jets would face no shortage of supply, top US weapons manufacturer Lockheed Martin has suggested, stating that it is ready to meet any new demand.

In an interview with the Financial Times on Wednesday, the weapons manufacturer's chief operating officer, Frank St. John, said there is“a lot of conversation about third party transfer of F-16s” meaning countries that wish to buy and then re-export their US jets to Ukraine.

Although Lockheed is not directly involved in any talks regarding potential deliveries of military aircraft to Kiev, St. John stated his company nevertheless plans to ramp up production of the fighter planes to get to the point where it will be able to “backfill pretty capably any countries that choose to do third-party transfers to help with the current conflict.”

His statements come after the US and Germany announced this week that they would be sending their heavy tanks to Ukraine. The move has reignited discussion about other weapon transfers as Kiev reiterated its demands for more missiles and military aircraft.

Washington, however, has so far remained reluctant to provide any fighter jets to Ukraine, fearing these could be used to strike Russian territory, further escalating the 11-month-long conflict between Moscow and Kiev.

Furthermore, any sales or transfers to third countries of any American-made fighter jets must also be approved by the White House. A US defense official has told the Financial Times that Washington remains in contact with its international allies and partners regarding the needs of Ukraine but noted that there is “nothing to announce regarding F-16s.”

The Netherlands, on the other hand, which has about 40 F-16 jets, has recently said that it would consider any formal requests to send the planes to Ukraine with “an open mind” and that it holds “no taboos” in relation to military support.

Russia has repeatedly warned the West that continued deliveries of weapons to Ukraine only prolonged the conflict and risked a direct confrontation between Moscow and NATO. It also said that its forces would treat foreign weapons systems in Ukraine as legitimate targets.

(They must have heard Bannon this am, saying no arms company is ready for production without an order)

https://www.rt.com/news/570528-lockheed-martin-f16-ukraine/

There's Nothing Beyond Meat: Plant-Based 'Meat' Sales Take a Serious Pruning

BY STEPHEN GREEN 12:07 PM ON JANUARY 26, 2023

Sales of plant-based “meat” like Beyond Meat hit the recycle bin in 2022, after enjoying record growth at a time when Americans really didn’t have much better to do than experiment with lab-“grown” “food.”

Yes, I’ll be using a lot of scare quotes in this article.

“In 2020, with everyone stuck at home,” the Washington Post reported last week, “sales of plant-based-meat brands like Impossible, Beyond Meat and Gardein skyrocketed, increasing 45 percent in a single year.”

The story went on to insist that “Soon, it seemed, everyone would be eating burgers, chicken fingers and steaks — made purely out of vegetables.”

Did it ever really seem like that? Sales of highly-processed plant-matter “meat” surely increased, but they never made a serious dent in most meat-lovers diets.

Sales plateaued in 2021 and began to rapidly shrink in ’22. Beyond Meat’s publicly traded shares crashed by 80%, performing far worse than the market as a whole. Impossible has been laying off workers left and right.

Despite millions of Americans reducing their beef consumption — perhaps in part due to severe inflation at the grocery store — “plant-based meats aren’t succeeding as expected,” said WaPo.

Fast Company reported the news with a preachy tone, suggesting that just because Americans enjoy many other foods of dubious nutritional value, we should also enjoy the “meat” that isn’t:

The average consumer isn’t necessarily concerned about whether their diet is unimpeachably healthy. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that more than a third of Americans eat fast food daily. Yet no other fast-food category seems to get as much heat as plant-based meat. No one is trying to break the news that McDonald’s french fries, for instance, are nutritionally lacking. Everyone already knows that.

“In any case,” Fast Company‘s Brian Kateman insisted, “plant-based meats are still generally healthier than the traditional meat products they’re aiming to imitate.”

Oh, really?

Dr. Amy Myers — a recovering vegetarian — reported in December that faux “beef” lacks “key beneficial fatty acids, vitamins and minerals found in animal protein such as vitamin B12.” “Additionally,” she wrote, “heme-iron is the most bioavailable form of iron, and it can only be found in real animal protein.”

For those seeking to avoid real meat for health reasons, nutritionist Carrie Forrest recommends avoiding fake meat, too, because it “is not a nutrient-dense food; in fact, it contains ingredients that can actively harm your health.”

Ethan Brown, who founded Beyond Meat in 2009, promised to recreate the “blueprint of meat” and engineer “meat” that would “help solve heart disease, diabetes, cancer, climate change, natural resource depletion, and animal welfare,” according to Bloomberg’s summary of his promises.

“Fake meat was supposed to save the world,” Bloomberg reported last week. Instead, “it became just another fad.”

Former “hardcore” vegan (and current environmentalist) Logan Hailey noted in 2021 that the environmental footprint of the plant-based ingredients that make up an Impossible Burger is “MASSIVE compared to that of a (single ingredient!) grass-fed beef burger.”

But the reason for shrinking sales likely has little to do with whatever health benefits fake meat has (debatable) or whether it’s actually good for the environment (ditto).

The Washington Post also reported last week that the real reason consumers are turning their noses up at fake meat is because, well… IT’S FAKE.

The paper spoke with Steffen Jahn, a professor of marketing, who noted that “The mimicking of real meat introduces that comparison of authenticity.”

And that’s a problem.

Fake meat manufacturers try to mimic the real deal and say, “We’re almost real,” according to Jhan. “But then some people will say, ‘Yeah, but you’re not real real.’”

Fake cattle, it seems, graze in the Uncanny Valley.

So if you’re really looking for something beyond meat, just order the salad.

https://pjmedia.com/vodkapundit/2023/01/26/theres-nothing-beyond-meat-plant-based-meat-sales-take-a-serious-pruning-n1665028

CNN Drops a Huge Bombshell in Biden Classified Documents Scandal

Matt Margolis

Since the news broke that classified documents had been discovered in both Joe Biden’s office at the Penn Biden Center and at his home, the White House and Biden have made repeated statements about their “full cooperation” with the Justice Department and National Archives. It was a blatant effort to differentiate this case from the one involving Trump’s possession of classified documents.

And it was all a lie.

According to a new report from CNN, of all places,Biden wasn’t originally willing to consent to have the Justice Department search his homeand only agreed to it after Justice Department indicated it would seek a warrant if necessary.

“Biden’s team stresses that it was cooperative in the lead-up to Friday’s search and even expressed an eagerness for the search to happen as expeditiously as possible to move the investigation along – and to try to put the matter behind them,” CNN reports. “For its part, the Justice Department had decided it would conduct the latest search – and any subsequent searches – after Biden’s team handled earlier searches themselves. Federal investigators also were prepared to seek a warrant if they did not get consent to search the Wilmington property, according to multiple sources.”

Biden’s allies in the media have been repeating the claim that Biden was “fully cooperating” with the Justice Department and insisting that Donald Trump was guilty of obstructing even though he had been negotiating with the Justice Department when Merrick Garland approved a warrant to search Mar-a-Lago.

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/matt-margolis/2023/01/25/cnn-drops-a-huge-bombshell-in-biden-classified-documents-scandal-n1665097

IG Report Skewers EcoHealth Alliance and NIH for Using Taxpayer Money for Research Into Bat Viruses

Rick Moran

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the Inspector General conducted an audit of three grants awarded to EcoHealth Alliance between 2014 and 2021, totaling $8 million, and subsequent sub-awards from EcoHealth to eight other labs, including the notorious Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV).

The IG found that EcoHealth Alliance and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) both failed to follow proper oversight and monitoring procedures, especially as it related to the Wuhan Institute of Virology, where some researchers suspect the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus — the virus that causes CIVID-19 — leaked.

This wasn’t a case of EcoHealth Alliance or the NIH failing to oversee a construction project correctly. This was a failure of oversight so profound that it might have directly led to a worldwide pandemic that has already killed almost 7 million people.

Related: Department of Defense Awards More Taxpayer Money to Criminal EcoHealth Alliance

“Despite identifying potential risks associated with research being performed under the EcoHealth awards, we found that NIH did not effectively monitor or take timely action to address EcoHealth’s compliance with some requirements,” the audit report reads. “Although NIH and EcoHealth had established monitoring procedures, we found deficiencies in complying with those procedures limited NIH and EcoHealth’s ability to effectively monitor Federal grant awards and subawards to understand the nature of the research conducted, identify potential problem areas, and take corrective action.”

In short, the NIH — Dr. Antony Fauci’s parent organization — failed to understand the potential dangers of the research being conducted at the WIV and failed to monitor it.

Then came COVID, and it got even worse at the Chinese lab.

“Although WIV cooperated with EcoHealth’s monitoring for several years, WIV’s lack of cooperation following the COVID 19 outbreak limited EcoHealth’s ability to monitor its subrecipient,” the report continues.

Daily Caller:

Among the areas where NIH and EcoHealth fell short were the improper termination of a grant by NIH, an inability for EcoHealth to obtain accurate and complete scientific data from the WIV, and improper use of grant funds by EcoHealth Alliance, the report found.

EcoHealth concurred with the IG’s recommendations for changes going forward, according to the report. The organization was also ordered to pay back nearly $90,000 in unallowable costs to the federal government.

And the funding continues. In September, EcoHealth Alliance was given a $650,000 grant by NIH to study bat viruses in Asia. That may have been the last straw for Congress.

A bill to ban any federal funding for EcoHealth Alliance was introduced by Pennsylvania Rep. Guy Reschenthaler. The legislation directs the Comptroller General of the United States “to review the amount of federal funds awarded to EcoHealth Alliance directly or indirectly in the past ten years that were provided purposely or inadvertently to the People’s Republic of China,” according to National Review.

“It is unconscionable that EcoHealth Alliance repeatedly funneled American taxpayer dollars to the Wuhan Institute of Virology, a lab controlled by the Chinese Communist Party that conducts dangerous and potentially deadly research,” Reschenthaler said in a statement to National Review.

EcoHealth Alliance’s Peter Daszak led a World Health Organization team to China in 2021 that was supposed to discover the origins of the coronavirus that caused the pandemic. Instead, he did his best to direct his WHO team’s efforts away from EcoHealth Alliance and any research done by them at the Wuhan lab, And he spearheaded an effort to pre-emptively debunk any lab-leak theory by getting 20 scientists to publish an open letter in the British medical journal The Lancet.

Daszak is either a Chinese Communist tool or someone who realizes his responsibility for unleashing a terrible pandemic on the world and is desperately trying to absolve himself of any blame.

At the very least, he and his group should be denied funding until he comes clean about everything researchers have been demanding of him since the investigation into COVID origins began.

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/rick-moran/2023/01/26/ig-report-skewers-ecohealth-alliance-and-nih-for-using-taxpayer-money-for-research-into-bat-viruses-n1665204

Adam Schiff Joins TikTok to Protest Being Kicked off Intel Committee

Joel B. Pollak26 Jan 2023

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) joined TikTok on Wednesday to complain about being kicked off the House Intelligence Committee — though TikTok is a Chinese-owned app increasingly seen as a national security threat.

In the video, Schiff asks for money from supporters, claiming that Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) banned him from the committee “all for doing my job, for holding Trump accountable, and standing up to extreme MAGA Republicans.”

On Tuesday, McCarthy rejected Schiff for national security reasons, arguing that Schiff had abused his position to lie to the American public about the contents of sensitive intelligence information for political purposes.

TikTok has been banned from government devices in at least 30 states due to concerns that it may be used as spyware, or a mechanism for China to manipulate American media. The app was recently banned on devices issued by the federal government as well.

It is not clear what device Schiff used to create and post his video. As of Thursday morning, it is the only video on Schiff’s TikTok page, where he describes himself as “Father, husband, triathlete, and sometimes comic. California Congressman.” The account is verified.

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2023/01/26/adam-schiff-joins-china-owned-tiktok-to-protest-being-kicked-off-intel-committee/

>>18230566

This is Schitt now

Desperado (2013 Remaster)

https://youtu.be/aelpqWEBHR4

(He was only interesting as a liar)

Nolte: CNN Primetime Viewers Crater to 444,000, Don Lemon Hits Record Low

During the week of January 16, CNN’s average primetime viewership cratered to only 444,000 viewers.

Between Ukraine, the roil over House committee seats, and all the classified documents His Fraudulency Joe Biden scattered throughout the world, there was no shortage of news that week.

After all, Fox News attracted an average of 1.996 million primetime viewers during that same week, nearly five times as many as CNNLOL.

Even MSNBC attracted nearly a million, with 943,000 average primetime viewers.

In total day total viewers, CNN barely cracked 400,000 with just 417,000. Fox News more than tripled that with 1.387 million. MSNBC did better than CNN, but still only averaged 629,000 total viewers throughout the day.

In the all-important 25-54 age demo that sets advertiser rates, during those primetime hours, Fox News averaged 256,000 demo viewers, MSNBC averaged just 91,000, while CNN did little better with 93,000.

Throughout the day, Fox News averaged 176,000 demo viewers. CNN came in a distant second with 80,000. MSNBC came in last with 69,000.

In cable news, the baseline for success is 100,000 demo viewers. Both CNN and MSNBC are failing miserably.

In all of cable TV, Fox News came in second behind ESPN in total primetime viewers. MSNBC came in third. CNNLOL came in eighteenth…eighteenth!

Newly-installed CNNLOL chief Chris Licht was supposed to turn the CNN: Titanic around. But as you can see, it is still sinking and sinking fast. It’s no secret as to why. CNN sucks. Licht has refused to replace the gallery of unappealing, smug, and dishonest anchors that sailed that sucker straight into an iceberg. Licht refuses to hire new anchors in a world where everyone despises the old ones.

Not only that, but these are the same CNN faces that gave us this…

Russia Collusion Hoax

Hands Up, Don’t Shoot Hoax

Jussie Smollett Hoax

Covington KKKids Hoax

Very Fine People Hoax

Seven-Hour Gap Hoax

Global Warming Hoax

Russian Bounties Hoax

Trump Trashes Troops Hoax

Policemen Killed at Mostly Peaceful January 6 Protest Hoax

Rittenhouse Hoax

Eating While Black Hoax

Border Agents Whipping Illegals Hoax

NASCAR Noose Hoax

The Georgia Jim Crow 2.0 Hoax

Trump Assaulted Secret Service Agents and Grabbed Steering Wheel of Beast Hoax

Frame MAGA for Alleged Paul Pelosi Assault Narrative

…and who would tune in for more of that?

The best news comes from Don Lemon.

If you recall, Lemon was demoted from his basement-rated primetime perch to save CNN’s failed morning show… With Lemon on board, New Day became CNN This Morning, and you’ll never guess what happened. CNN This Morning is a catastrophe that averaged only 331,000 viewers.

Whodathunk?

During that same time, Fox News attracted 1.3 million viewers.

During that same time, Fox News attracted 180,000 demo viewers. Don Lemon sunk to only 65,000 demo viewers.

What? You mean Lemon wearing a hoodie under his blazer didn’t attract millions and millions of Americans curious to see what such an interesting man had to say about the news? Because only a very interesting man would wear a hoodie under a blazer, only a man with something to say that we all need to hear would do something so brave.

Even Licht’s former employer Stephen Colbert laughed at Lemon’s hoodie stunt.

“What the f*** is that?’” Colbert said as his audience howled at a photo of Lemon in his hoodie. “I know they want to add some comedy to CNN, and this is hilarious, but how do you report the news in that outfit? How do you actually talk about tragedy wearing that, because what could be more tragic than that look he had this morning?”

CNN has been a national joke for a long time.The good news is that the joke is getting funnier and funnier.

https://www.breitbart.com/the-media/2023/01/26/nolte-cnn-primetime-viewers-crater-to-444000-don-lemon-hits-record-low/

>>18230605

notableand true, AI needs to be eliminated. “They are building their God”

>>18230362

Typical they shoulda asked that of Kjenji

>>18230364

Yes

>>18230408

WTF is wrong with the UK, this has been happening for 20-30 years there and parliament is no better

>>18230420

No

>>18230425

He should move to FL he’ll get a job asap

>>18230428

I don’t believe any history now, its good to know but sad in a way

>>18230435

Did they target black people. Its surprising so many black players went along with iy after Tuscaloosa experiment

>>18230444

Thank you I needed that 444

>>18230451

Juan warned a lot of coaches in late 2020 and 2021. Seems young healthy men were the target

>>18230491

I really want Pompeo to STFU

>>18230533

Agreed 100%, its going to be tricky buying food in the future, even if from the earth what did they put into it?

>>18230550

He really is, when he says “no joke” its always a lie

>>18230595

sorry but his name always grosses me, like coughing a big one

>>18230654

I wish they would

>>18230694

Thanks I was wondering