Anti-Trump image displayed in public school classroom; official says teacher wasn't engaging in political indoctrination

A T-shirt showing an image of President Donald Trump and the messages "NOPE" and "Vive la Rêsistance" was displayed in a New Jersey public school classroom, TapIntoRoxbury reported.

A student took the photo of the T-shirt hanging on a wall in the Roxbury High School classroom and shared it with Succasunna resident Laurel Whitney, who posted the image Sunday on a private Facebook page dedicated to Roxbury education issues, the outlet said.

"What do you all think about this hanging in a classroom in RHS?" Whitney asked on the page, according to TapIntoRoxbury. "I thought teachers were supposed to refrain from imposing their political views on students?"

Whitney said the photo was taken Feb. 13, WKXW-FM reported, which would mean the T-shirt had been displayed for weeks.

Roxbury Schools Superintendent Loretta Radulic said after a school board meeting Monday that a student gave the shirt to a teacher and that the shirt was taken down Monday as well, TapIntoRoxbury reported. Radulic added to the outlet that the teacher in question wasn't engaging in political indoctrination by allowing its display.

Whitney shares some history

Whitney said her son graduated from Roxbury High School in 2016 and had a political clash with the same teacher, WKXW reported:

She said her son, who is Jewish, was assigned a current events project on Israel using Al Jazeera as a primary source. Whitney said school administration ignored her emails pointing out what she said was the Middle East-based news organization's anti-Semitic language. She said her son ultimately redid his project so as not to fail the class.

According to Whitney, other parents have privately worried about the same teacher promoting his political views to students but are reluctant to go public with concerns because their children are still enrolled in school.

Whitney said after multiple complaints from her and other parents, "at this point he should be made an example of rather than defended by the superintendent."

What happened to the teacher?

Board President Leo Coakley said the issue was handled in executive session prior to the public portion of the school board meeting as it was a personnel matter, TapIntoRoxbury reported.

http://www.stationgossip.com/2019/03/anti-trump-image-displayed-in-public.html

NSA-Cyber Command Chief Recommends No Split Until 2020

The commander of the nation’s top military cybersecurity organizations, the National Security Agency and U.S. Cyber Command, has recommended they split from each other next year, Defense One has confirmed. That’s another delay for an organizational change first planned for in 2016 and since slowed to allow officials time to sort out the authorities for the civilian agency and military command and ensure that both entities can perform well independently.

Gen. Paul Nakasone, who leads NSA and CYBERCOM, recommended to former Defense Secretary James Mattis last August that the split be put off until 2020, current and former intelligence officials told Defense One this week. Those officials believe the general’s recommendation will be accepted by Pentagon leaders, though Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan’s views are not known. A Pentagon spokesman said no official decision has been made. Previous reports have hinted at the timing without confirming a year. In December, Defense One filed a Freedom of Information Act request to the command for the information, which was denied on the basis that the information was “pre-decisional.”

Nakasone told the Senate Armed Services Committee last month that the decision how to split the organizations “remains with the secretary.”

Former Defense Secretary Ash Carter first floated the idea to split the agencies in 2016. They currently function under a “dual-hat arrangement”: the four-star head of CYBERCOM also leads the NSA. In the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act, lawmakers authorized DOD to split CYBERCOM from the NSA and elevate it to be the nation’s tenth unified combatant command, on par with Strategic Command, which controls nuclear weapons, and combatant commands for troops in various regions around the globe. The bill also authorized the creation of a new civilian director of NSA. But the split was only to occur if the defense secretary and chairman of the Joints Chiefs certified to Congress that the split would not hurt the command. Congress directed no timing for the split.

https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2019/03/nsa-cyber-command-chief-recommend-no-split-until-2020/155345/

Israel intent on shutting Jerusalem holy site

Israel is intensifying its crackdown on Palestinians in Jerusalem.

The Islamic Waqf – the body responsible for Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem – last month reopened Bab al-Rahma, a gate at the al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem that had been sealed by Israel since 2003:

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Tamara Nassar Rights and Accountability 6 March 2019

Palestinian worshippers gather after Friday prayers at the Bab al-Rahma gate in the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem’s Old City on 22 February. Afif Amera WAFA/APA images

Israel is intensifying its crackdown on Palestinians in Jerusalem.

The Islamic Waqf – the body responsible for Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem – last month reopened Bab al-Rahma, a gate at the al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem that had been sealed by Israel since 2003:

The 16-year closure order expired in August. But Israel has been intent on shutting the gate once again.

Israeli police asked a Jerusalem court to close the gate permanently to “keep out protesters … as part of its war against terror,” according to the Tel Aviv daily Haaretz.

In reality, the Muslim holy site is used by Palestinians to pray, as this video shows:

On Monday, an Israeli court said it would order the building shut if the Waqf does not comply with Israel’s demand to close the gate within the week.

The Waqf rejected the court order on Tuesday.

“We will not comply with any threats from the police and occupation authorities. The courts of the occupation do not have jurisdiction over the al-Aqsa mosque, and the Waqf does not recognize nor subject any part of the al-Aqsa to the laws of occupation. This has been the case since the occupation of Jerusalem in 1967.”

Sheikh Abdul Azim Salhab, the head of the Waqf, called for mass prayer in the al-Aqsa mosque compound on Friday, especially inside Bab al-Rahma, in rejection of Israeli attempts to close it.

The Waqf also cancelled a planned meeting with the Israeli police on Wednesday in protest of the court order.

Arrest and banish

Meanwhile, Israeli occupation forces also escalated their sweeping arrest and banish campaigns against Palestinian guards and staff of the al-Aqsa mosque compound last week.

Israeli forces summoned several members of the Waqf to the Qishleh police station in Jerusalem’s Old City and ordered them to stay away from the al-Aqsa mosque compound, as well as roads leading to it.

Sheikh Najeh Bkeirat, the Waqf’s deputy director, was ordered to stay away for four months.

“I think this decision is unfair and racist, and it attempts to disrupt our role in the al-Aqsa mosque and reduce our presence,” Bkeirat said in a video.

https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/tamara-nassar/israel-intent-shutting-jerusalem-holy-site?utm_source=EI+readers&utm_campaign=6cc39552d1-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_e802a7602d-6cc39552d1-290660781

Facebook pressured to block vaccination resisters

What’s the proper reaction to a minor localized outbreak of measles?

If you’re the State of Washington, you declare a State of Emergency.

If you’re the New York Times the Washington Post, or NPR you whip up NATIONAL hysteria.

If you’re Congress, you hold a hearing to attack the “Anti-Vax nuts.”

How about some basic logic and a little science?

If the vaccines are safe, why did Congress did to make the makers legally immune from product liability claims?

If the vaccines are effective, then why not let the people who believe in their safety and effectiveness get them and thereby protect themselves.

Anyone who believes vaccines will make them safe should have nothing to worry about, right?

Uh, not quite.

Well over half the people who’ve come down with measles are people who’ve been vaccinated.

You can read the entire article here:

https://www.ageofautism.com/2019/03/those-measles-outbreaks-thoughts-out-of-season.html

https://www.brasscheck.com/video/vaccination-hysteria/?omhide=true

What Is Katharine Gorka Doing at the Homeland Security Department? This Group Is Suing to Find Out.

A liberal watchdog group is demanding answers about the work of Katharine Gorka, a top political appointee who serves as an adviser at the Department of Homeland Security. Prior to her appointment at Homeland Security, Gorka — whose husband is far-right media personality and former White House aide Sebastian Gorka — was known for her anti-Muslim rhetoric.

After Donald Trump was elected president in 2016, he named Katharine Gorka to his Homeland Security transition team. She later earned a permanent appointment in the department. Gorka’s LinkedIn page describes her as a “Senior Advisor for Policy,” but Homeland Security has been reluctant to explain exactly what her role is.

A spokesperson for the Homeland Security Department told the Huffington Post in 2017 that her work “includes efforts to address everything from global jihadists [sic] threats to domestic terrorists.”

On Thursday, a Washington-based nonprofit called Democracy Forward filed a lawsuit under the Freedom of Information Act seeking records related to Gorka’s exact role. According to the complaint, the group initially filed a records request in November and received an acknowledgement from Homeland Security, but the department has since failed to meet response times required by statute.

https://theintercept.com/2019/03/07/katharine-gorka-dhs-sebastian-gorka/

Zuckerberg’s Going Down and There’s No Stopping It

Mark Zuckerberg’s Dilemma: Eventually Silicon Valley Will Fall…

The Silicon Valley monopolist Mark Zuckerberg, who controls the social media empire known as “Facebook” finds himself in an increasingly tough spot. Certain forces within the western political establishment want him to exercise his power more ruthlessly, but he realizes this could lead to his ultimate downfall.

The printing press, first invented by Koreans, was cultivated in Europe for the purpose of maintaining the feudal order, primary through its ideological vehicle, the Roman Catholic Church. Johannes Gutenberg’s printing press was used to print Bibles and indulgences. The new invention made the system in which Kings and Nobles ruled and owned the land based on divine right more functional.

For a brief period, the printing press remained in the hands of the Catholic Church. But it was only a matter of time before this monopoly was broken. Critics of the Catholic Church and the rising mercantile class soon got access to this technology and utilized it to oppose the feudal order. Soon, translations of the Bible were circulated, screeds criticizing the Vatican were distributed, and the Protestant Reformation swept through Europe. This began a long process that ultimately resulted in the overthrow of feudalism, and the rise of Industrial Capitalism in the western world, along with the liberal democratic political system.

To use stereotypically Marxian phraseology, by developing the printing press, the Catholic Church had “laid the seeds of its own destruction.” It is unlikely, however, that the Catholic officials who encouraged Gutenberg were aware of the ultimately suicidal implications of their actions. However, Mark Zuckerberg and other social media giants are most likely well aware of the historical precipice on which they are sitting. This self-awareness causes them to become increasingly nervous and inconsistent.

Who Invented The Internet?

Politician Al Gore was widely mocked for the phrase “I took the initiative and created the internet” which he stated during a TV interview, often misreported as “I invented the internet.” He was, however, referring to the fact that Silicon Valley emerged from strategic decisions made by the US intelligence community and political leaders during the Cold War. Huge covert efforts by the US government enabled California and corporations like IBM and Apple to sit at the center of the tech boom, and as a result, hold the purse and puppeteer’s strings in the post-Cold War “New World Order” that brought us the internet. The “social media” revolution that followed a few decades later, seemed to very much serve the interests of Wall Street and London in its early years.

In 2011, Jared Andrew Cohen played the role of a coordinator, ensuring that the Pentagon, Wall Street, and the Tech Monopolies all marched in lockstep to shake-up the Middle East. Cohen is the CEO of Jigsaw, previously known as “Google Ideas.” He is also a member of the key US Foreign Policy think tank, the Council on Foreign Relations, paid for by Exxon-Mobile and the Ford Foundation. He served as a personal advisor to both Condoleezza Rice and Hillary Clinton.

https://journal-neo.org/2019/03/06/ark-zuckerbergs-dilemma-eventually-silicon-valley-will-fall/

Border Crisis Hearing: “It’s Real. It’s Serious. It is a Threat.”

Commissioner for U.S. Customs and Border Protection Kevin K. McAleenan strongly rebuked claims by opponents Wednesday that the border is not a crisis. He said he “fundamentally disagrees” with those who called President Donald Trump’s national emergency a “fake emergency” and laid out a litany of statistics exposing the serious humanitarian crisis and national security implications for the United States.

McAleenan spoke after opening statements from Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Dianne Feinstein, D-Ca, and Chairman Lindsey Graham gave their opening statements.

The issues discussed ranged from drug smuggling, penetration of drug cartels deep in the United States and the counternarcotics efforts being addressed by Department of Homeland Security and its divisions. McAleenan argued — with statistics to back his claims — that Trump’s request for $5.7 billion for border wall infrastructure is an absolute necessity as part of a comprehensive plan to address the crisis.

The growing humanitarian crisis took precedence as well. McAleenan spoke at significant length about trans-national criminal trafficking organizations, which he said are expected to make roughly $2.5 billion a year off of illegal immigration into the U.S. alone. He addressed the long journey of children being trafficked into the U.S. In one example, he spoke of children from Guatemala, who travel more than 1500 miles under gruesome conditions. Some of the children spend more than 30 days being trafficked and are subjected to physical, sexual abuse and in many cases have contracted infectious diseases that threaten their lives, he said.

It’s not a manufactured crisis. It’s not a cable television ploy. It is real. It is serious. It is a threat, Sen. Graham

https://saraacarter.com/border-crisis-hearing-its-real-its-serious-it-is-a-threat/

Should We Trust Artificial Intelligence Regulation by Congress If Facebook Supports It?

Try to imagine for a moment a declaration from Congress to the effect that safeguarding the environment is important, that the effects of pollution on the environment ought to be monitored, and that special care should be taken to protect particularly vulnerable and marginalized communities from toxic waste. So far, so good! Now imagine this resolution is enthusiastically endorsed by ExxonMobil and the American Coal Council. You would have good reason to be suspicious. Keep that in mind while you consider the newly announced House Resolution 153.

Last week, several members of Congress began pushing the resolution with the aim of “supporting the development of guidelines for ethical development of artificial intelligence.” It was introduced by Reps. Brenda Lawrence and Ro Khanna — the latter of whom, crucially, represents Silicon Valley, which is to the ethical development of software what West Virginia is to the rollout of clean energy. This has helped make Khanna a national figure, in part because, far from being a tech industry cheerleader, he’s publicly supported cracking down on the data Wild West his home district helped create. For example, he has criticized the wrist-slaps Google and Facebook receive in the wakes of their regular privacy scandals and called for congressional action against Amazon’s labor practices.

The resolution, co-sponsored by seven other representatives, has some strange fans. Its starting premises are unimpeachable: “Whereas the far-reaching societal impacts of AI necessitates its safe, responsible, and democratic development,” the resolution “supports the development of guidelines for the ethical development of artificial intelligence (AI), in consultation with diverse stakeholders.” It also supports adherence to a list of crucial values in the development of any kind of machine or algorithmic intelligence, including “[i]nformation privacy and the protection of one’s personal data”; “[a]ccountability and oversight for all automated decision making”; and “[s]afety, security, and control of AI systems now and in the future.”

These are laudable goals, if a little inexact: Key terms like “control” and “oversight” are left entirely undefined. Are we talking about self-regulation here — which algorithmic software companies want because of its ineffectiveness — or real, governmental regulation? When the resolution mentions accountability, are Khanna and company envisioning harsh penalties for AI mishaps, or is this a call for more public relations mea culpas after the fact?

https://theintercept.com/2019/03/07/artificial-intelligence-facebook-ibm-ro-khanna/

PEDOGATE blown wide open, Epstein’s Orgy Island goes prime time

Jeffrey Epstein, Alan Dershowitz, and Pals Accused of Sex-Trafficking Ring

A lawyer for one of Epstein’s victims claims he was part of sex-trafficking ring with Dershowitz and others—but the Harvard attorney says sealed documents will prove his innocence.

Famed attorney Alan Dershowitz was accused of involvement in billionaire pedophile Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged sex-trafficking ring by an attorney for one of Epstein’s victims, who claimed in federal court on Wednesday that the release of sealed documents will prove it.

Paul Cassell, who represents Virginia Roberts Giuffre, told the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit that the testimony of other witnesses will show Dershowitz’s involvement in the alleged trafficking of “his close friend Jeffrey Epstein.”

“When all the records come out it will show that Epstein and [Epstein’s alleged madam Ghislaine] Maxwell were trafficking girls to the benefit of his friends, including Mr. Dershowitz,” Cassell said in oral arguments for a case filed by the Miami Herald to unseal a collection of court documents relating to Giuffre’s now settled lawsuit against Maxwell.

The hearing came nearly two weeks after a Florida judge ruled federal prosecutors violated the law when they inked a non-prosecution deal with Epstein in 2007—and concealed that agreement from more than 30 of Epstein’s victims. The Department of Justice has opened an investigationinto the secret deal, which was handled by Secretary of Labor Alex Acosta, who was U.S. Attorney in Miami at the time.

Dershowitz, a Harvard law professor, was one member of Epstein’s legal team that helped broker the unusual non-prosecution agreement.

For his part, Dershowitz and his lawyers are also requesting the court release the trove of documents to the public—but they say it’s in order to prove his innocence.

Outside the courtroom, Dershowitz railed against Giuffre and her attorneys, accusing them of fabricating Giuffre’s claims that Epstein forced her to have sex with Dershowitz. He alluded to emails between Giuffre and a friend that he claims will reveal Giuffre made up the claims against Dershowitz at the behest of her lawyers.

“I’ve denied ever meeting her or even knowing who she was,” Dershowitz said.

Moments later, he added of Giuffre, “She is hurting the #MeToo movement terribly. This was all about money and undercuts the many people who are victimized.”

http://themillenniumreport.com/2019/03/pedogate-blown-wide-open-epsteins-orgy-island-goes-prime-time/

https://www.thedailybeast.com/jeffrey-epstein-alan-dershowitz-and-pals-accused-of-sex-trafficking-ring?ref=scroll

Michael Cohen Sues Trump Organization For $1.9 Million in Legal Fees

Michael Cohen, Donald Trump’s former lawyer, sued the Trump Organization in a New York Court Thursday claiming the org failed to pay him “fees and costs” that exceed $1.9 million.

Cohen claimed in the suit that he has “incurred millions of dollars in unreimbursed attorneys’ fees and costs.”

CNBC reported:

Cohen argues that the Trump Organization, where Cohen worked for roughly as an executive vice president and special counsel to Trump, had a “contractual agreement” to compensate Cohen and “to pay attorneys’ fees and costs incurred” by Cohen related to his “work with and on behalf of the Organization and its principals, directors, and officers.”

That work involves special counsel Robert Mueller’s ongoing Russia investigation, the filing says, as well as “multiple congressional hearings.”

Cohen now says he has “incurred millions of dollars in unreimbursed attorneys’ fees and costs” which continue to pile up.

Michael Cohen was sentenced to 36 months in prison for lying to Congress and other crimes related to his taxi medallion business and he is scheduled to report to prison on May 6th.

Top GOP lawmakers accused Michael Cohen of perjuring himself during his testimony to the House Oversight Committee last week.

Meadows and Jordan wrote a letter to newly-confirmed Attorney General Bill Barr last Thursday stating there is “significant evidence” that Michael Cohen “committed perjury and knowingly made false statements during his testimony before an Oversight and Reform Committee.”

One of the examples of perjury Jordan gave was Mr. Cohen claiming he didn’t want a White House job.

“Mr. Cohen, how long did you work at the White House?” Jordan asked.

“I never worked at the White House,” Cohen said.

“That’s the point isn’t it Mr. Cohen,” Jordan said smiling.

“No sir,” Cohen said insisting he never wanted a job in Trump’s White House — Jim Jordan pushed back and said, “Yes it is.”

“I was extremely proud to be personal attorney to the President of the United States of America. I did not want to go the White House,” Cohen said. “I was offered jobs — I can tell you a story about Mr. Trump reaming out Reince Priebus because I had not taken a job where Mr. Trump wanted me to.”

Lanny Davis, Cohen’s current lawyer also told the Wall Street Journal late Wednesday that Michael Cohen previously directed one of his lawyers to ask the White House about a presidential pardon — which contradicts his sworn testimony to Congress.

It looks like Michael Cohen is still upset he was passed over for a White House job.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2019/03/just-in-michael-cohen-sues-trump-organization-for-1-9-million-in-legal-fees/

Heart Attacks Increasing Steadily in Americans Under 40 - Study

Though heart attacks in the US overall are on the decline, younger adults are bucking the trend by having more, recent research scheduled to be presented at the American College of Cardiology’s annual scientific session later in March shows.

Americans under 40 are suffering more heart attacks, a study authored by Ron Blankstein, a preventive cardiologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital and associate professor at Harvard Medical School in Boston reveals. "It used to be incredibly rare to see anyone under age 40 come in with a heart attack — and some of these people are now in their 20s and early 30s," Blankstein told Medical Express for a report on the study. "Based on what we are seeing, it seems that we are moving in the wrong direction."

The study, which covered the years from 2000 to 2016, found that the rate of heart attacks among Americans under 40 increased by 2 percent per year in the past decade. Of the 2,097 heart attack patients under 50 tracked by the study, 20 percent were 40 years old or younger.

The study is the first to compare young (defined as ages 40 to 50) and very young (under 40) heart attack survivors, according to the American College of Cardiology, and found that despite their youth, very young heart attack survivors were as likely to die from a second heart attack, stroke or other related events as the older group in the study.

"Even if you're in your 20s or 30s, once you've had a heart attack, you're at risk for more cardiovascular events, and you have just as much risk as someone who may be older than you," Blankstein said.

A separate, related study by Blankstein found that 20 percent of heart attack patients under 50 also had diabetes, making it a strong risk factor in heart attacks. Diabetes was also a predictor of future medical events in young heart attack sufferers.

Known risk factors between the young and very young heart attack study groups, including diabetes as well as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking and early heart attacks among family members, were similar, the researchers found. The very young heart attack group was more likely to use marijuana and cocaine, but drank less alcohol. The very young group were also more likely to have heart disease in only one vessel, indicating the disease was at an early stage, and were more likely to have suffered a rare form of vessel wall tearing called spontaneous coronary artery dissection.

https://sputniknews.com/science/201903071073044526-heart-attacks-under-40-rising/