Fears for Merkel’s health after she violently shakes while meeting Ukrainian president

German Chancellor Angela Merkel was spotted visibly unsteady and shaking when she met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The 64-year-old politician later said she recovered from the sickly condition after drinking water.

Merkel felt unwell while she greeted Zelensky outside the chancellery amid hot weather in Berlin. The two leaders were listening to a band, playing national anthems of the two countries, when Merkel started shaking and swaying around a little, footage from the scene shows.

Following the anthems, Merkel managed to get herself together and was seen walking quickly alongside Zelensky into the chancellery. The German leader later told reporters that she has fully recovered after drinking several glasses of water.

“Since then I have drunk at least three glasses of water – I obviously needed that and so I'm doing very well now,” she said.

The 64-year-old stateswoman has had similar bouts of trembling in the past, according to DPA International, and in at least one other case blamed the hot weather.

In 2014, she postponed a TV interview stating she felt weak, but was able to carry on after eating, her spokesperson said.

Despite rumors of ill health, however, it is not clear whether Merkel suffers from any health problems.

https://www.rt.com/news/462140-merkel-zelensky-shaking-ill/

New Zealand man who shared Christchurch mosque massacre video sentenced to prison

A New Zealand man who shared a video of the Christchurch mosque massacre was sentenced to 21 months in prison on Tuesday.

Philip Arps, 44, previously pleaded guilty to two counts of distributing the livestream video of the mass shooting, in which a gunman filmed himself on Facebook killing 51 people at two mosques in March.

Arps, a businessman, allegedly described the video as "awesome," according to Christchurch District Court Judge Stephen O'Driscoll. The judge said Arps had strong and unrepentant views about the Muslim community and committed a hate crime.

"Your offending glorifies and encourages the mass murder carried out under the pretext of religious and racial hatred," the judge said, noting that Arps had compared himself to Rudolf Hess, a Nazi leader under Adolf Hitler.

Arps sent the video of the massacre to around 30 associates, the judge said. He added that Arps also asked somebody to insert crosshairs and include a kill count in order to create an internet meme, although there was no evidence he'd shared the meme.

Arps faced up to 14 years imprisonment on each count, according to New Zealand laws designed to prevent people from sharing objectionable material.

The 44-year-old apparently argued he had a right to distribute the video under the banner of freedom to pursue his political beliefs. His lawyer, Anselm Williams, said Arps shouldn't be sent to prison, and that he filed an appeal against his sentence.

'EGG BOY' DONATES $70G TO CHRISTCHURCH MOSQUE MASSACRE VICTIMS AFTER STUNT WENT VIRAL AND LANDED HIM IN TROUBLE

"It's my submission that this court needs to be very careful to sentence Mr. Arps based on what it is that he has actually done, and what he accepts he has done, not on the basis of the views that he holds," Williams said.

Arps is one of six people who have been charged with illegally sharing the livestream of the mass shooting. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was quick to jump to action following the attacks, announcing a week later the country was immediately banning "military-style semi-automatic weapons."

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The prime minister is also helping lead a global pledge title "Christchurch Call" to help keep internet platforms from being used to spread hate, organize extremist groups and broadcast attacks.

Australian Brenton Tarrant, 28, pleaded not guilty last week to 51 counts of murder, 40 counts of attempted murder and one count of terrorism in the mosque shooting case. His trial has been scheduled for next May.

https://www.foxnews.com/world/sharer-of-new-zealand-mosque-shooting-video-gets-21-months

NZ Gov = cabal

Teacher allegedly kicks student from class for saying there are only two genders — then teacher invokes national 'policy'

A video has surfaced that shows a teacher — speaking in a heavy Scottish accent — invoking "national school authority policy" after allegedly kicking a student out of class for declaring there are only two genders.

There is no information about who the teacher is, where or when the video was recorded, or who the student is.

Over the weekend, the user who posted the YouTube video titled, "My Teacher Kicked Me Out of Class for Saying There are Two Genders," had the following to say: "Just to be clear, this isn't me. This is a reupload from Reddit." But pages seen on the Reddit link appeared to be deleted, though hundreds of comments remain.

What happened?

As the video begins, the student appears to position his cellphone in such a way that the teacher won't be able to see that their conversation is about to be recorded — and then the teacher walks through what appears to be a classroom door.

"You're entitled to your opinion," the teacher says.

"If I am, then why did you kick me out of class?" the student — who speaks with what sounds like an American accent — shot back. "That's not very inclusive."

"You aren't being inclusive," the teacher argues, adding that "this is an inclusive school."

The teacher adds that the student's notion that there aren't any other genders except male or female "is not inclusive."

The student starts arguing again, but the teacher interrupts by saying "you're choosing to make an issue of this" and that the student had an "opportunity to keep quiet."

'Could you please keep that opinion to your own house?'

When the student continues arguing the two-genders-only point, the teacher grows flustered and asks, "Could you please keep that opinion to your own house? Thank you. Not in this school."

But the student does not. In fact, he presses on, saying it's unfair that the teacher gets to state his opinion in class but the student is silenced.

'I am stating what is national school authority policy, OK?'

"I am not putting my opinion out," the teacher replies. "I am stating what is national school authority policy, OK?"

But when the student argues that the more-than-two-genders policy "isn't scientific whatsoever," the still-flustered teacher offers that "not every policy is scientific."

"Take this somewhere else …" the teacher soon adds. "The authority's point of view is very clear … that we make no discrimination on the grounds of—"

Then the student cuts off the teacher: "I'm not making any discrimination. I'm simply saying there are two genders. Male and female."

"I'm sorry," the teacher says, "but you chose to make an issue of making a point which was contrary to policy."

The teacher adds in a lower voice that the student is "making bad choices."

http://www.hideoutnow.com/2019/06/teacher-allegedly-kicks-student-from.html

Starbucks Goes Overboard on Progressiveness, Will Provide All Transgender Surgeries for Employees Now

Starbucks has long been known for its liberal politics, but it’s drawing attention again after revealing how far the company is willing to go in the realm of activism and support for transexuals.

On Monday, the coffee giant announced its decision to cover all surgical expenses for current and future transgender employees, according to The Hill.

Since 2012, Starbucks has proclaimed great pride in funding the sometimes controversial gender reassignment surgery for its employees.

Now, the company is expanding its coverage and opting to pay for several additional cosmetic procedures and services for transgendered employees.

For example, surgeries such as facial feminization, voice therapy, breast reduction or augmentation and hair removal or transplants will now be covered.

Ron Crawford, Starbucks vice president of benefits, said the new plan will make the company fully inclusive.

“The approach was driven not just by the company’s desire to provide truly inclusive coverage, and by powerful conversations with transgender partners about how those benefits would allow them to truly be who they are,” Crawford said in a company blog post.

“I view this as a diagnosis with a treatment path. You have to think of it from an equity perspective.”

The World Professional Association for Transgender Health brought Starbucks on as a partner and together they crafted a benefits package that Crawford said isn’t being offered elsewhere.

“Nobody else is doing this. We would love to see more employers doing this,” Crawford added in the corporate blog.

While Starbucks is an independent business that can make its own decisions, there are definitely reasons other companies probably won’t be launching benefit programs like this one.

First and foremost, it’ll likely be a target of abuse, even if it’s on a very small scale.

Theoretically, would-be transgender individuals will be able to get a job at a local shop, work for a few months until benefits kick in and then request the company fund their numerous, expensive surgeries.

Second, this program wades into legitimate gray area. Gender reassignment surgery is elective — especially the numerous cosmetic procedures Starbucks is now saying it will cover. Basically, how far are they prepared to go in order to be “fully inclusive?”

http://www.hideoutnow.com/2019/06/starbucks-goes-overboard-on.html

‘My Little Pony’ introduces ‘LGBTQ couple’ in children’s cartoon

PAWTUCKET, Rhode Island, June 17, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) ― The “My Little Pony” franchise is selling more than plastic toys to little girls.

A cartoon series based on the Hasbro company’s popular figurines aired an episode in which a same-sex female pony couple take charge of a school-aged pony named Scootaloo. Previously released in Europe, “The Last Crusade” was broadcast Saturday on the Discovery Channel.

In an interview with Buzzfeed News, writer-producer Michael Vogel said he and co-writer Nicole Dubuc were delighted to introduce a same-sex couple, “Aunt Holiday” and “Auntie Lofty,” to the children’s show.

They had the full permission of the company that owns the “My Little Pony” franchise.

“Nicole and I thought this was a great opportunity to organically introduce an LGBTQ couple in the series, and we asked Hasbro and they approved it,” Vogel said.

He voiced his belief that “diversity and representation are important for kids for so many reasons” and said it is his “first priority on everything” he works on.

Although airing the episode in June, known to LGBT activists as “Pride Month,” wasn’t intentional, Vogel told a fan on Twitter that “it’s a coincidence that seems like it was meant to be.”

In another tweet, he celebrated the introduction of same-sex attracted ponies to the equine cartoon by writing: “Hey hey!!! @NicoleDubuc, @joshhaber and I doin what we can to bring more EQuality to EQuestria!! #PrideMonth.”

The lesbian characters previously appeared in a “My Little Pony” book published in 2017.

The “My Little Pony” toys were first released on the market in the 1980s, and its sales were assisted by a cartoon series based on the toy. In 2010, the brand was rejuvenated when the My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic series introduced the toy to a new generation of little girls.

The show also attracted a fan following among adult men, who created a subculture based on their shared love for the My Little Pony cartoon and its merchandise. Called “Bronies,” the subculture has been featured in two documentaries, “Bronies: The Extremely Unexpected Adult Fans of My Little Pony” (2012) and A Brony Tale (2014). According to the latter film, “My Little Pony” was originally aimed at children ages 2-11.

Unsurprisingly, then, adults have taken to Twitter to celebrate the introduction of an adult theme to the children’s show. However, not everyone was thrilled.

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/my-little-pony-introduces-lgbtq-couple-in-childrens-cartoon

Recruiting American Spies for Israel

Tax-exempt American foundations lay the groundwork

Israel never loses an opportunity to promote what it perceives to be its interests. That any nation would do just that most of the time should surprise no one, but Israel is perhaps unique in terms of how assiduously it works at creating situations that favor it through the use of corruption of foreign governments and subversion of existing institutions. For most countries, the actions of a minority that seeks to advance the interests of a foreign nation would face strong resistance, but Israel manages to get away with what it does due to the presence of powerful and wealthy diaspora communities, most particularly in the Anglophone countries, but also in France.

The Israel Lobby in the United States has been subjected to some scrutiny thanks largely to the impetus provided by Professors John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt’s groundbreaking study The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy. More recent revelations have come from undercover journalism undertaken by al-Jazeera, which has demonstrated how British Jewish groups and parliamentarians have worked together with Israeli Embassy intelligence officers to remove public officials believed to be critical of Israel. Jeremy Corbyn, leader of the Labour Party, has been on the receiving end of a campaign to replace him for his alleged anti-Semitism solely because he has condemned Israeli oppression of the Palestinians. A second al-Jazeera investigation demonstrated how The Lobby, cooperating with the Israeli Embassy, has been controlling discussion of the Middle East in the United States, which should have surprised no one.

Europe indeed appears to be a hotbed of anti-Semitism, or so Israel and its friends would have us believe. Leaders in France, Germany and Britain feel compelled to frequently address the issue, making the equivalent of a war on anti-Semitism a principal objective of government. The United States has joined this effort, appointing a Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism whose job includes reporting other countries’ treatment of Jews and Israel.

http://www.unz.com/pgiraldi/recruiting-american-spies-for-israel/

Buttigieg says Netanyahu is ‘turning away from peace,’ but he wouldn’t reverse one Trump gift

In a June 16 interview with Axios on HBO, South Bend Mayor and presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg said he’d keep the US embassy in Jerusalem if he was elected. The comments came just one week after Buttigieg publicly denounced Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s pledge to annex sections of the West Bank and said there were signs that Israel’s government was “turning away from peace.”

In December 2017, President Trump officially recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, a move that generated protests and criticism throughout the world. Prime Minister Netanyahu celebrated the decision, referring to Trump’s announcement as a “historic landmark.” In May 2018, the U.S. government moved its Israeli embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. No other country has one in the city, as the international community does not recognize Israel’s sovereignty over the entire area.

When asked by Axios Executive Editor Mike Allen whether he’d move the embassy back to Tel Aviv or not, Buttigieg said “what’s done is done” and made it clear that his main problem with the embassy move was that the Trump administration did not secure any concessions from Israel before going through with it. He also reiterated the fact that Israel should be considered a “string ally” by the U.S. government.

Allen: Would you move the U.S. Embassy in Israel back to Tel Aviv?

Buttigieg: I think what’s done is done and I don’t think the Israelis believe that the U.S. needs to —

Allen: So you would leave it?

Buttigieg: Look, we need a big-picture strategy on the Middle East. I don’t know that we’d gain much by moving it to Tel Aviv. I will say —

Allen: So President Trump did the right thing?

Buttigieg: I didn’t say that.

Allen: Well you did — you wouldn’t undo it.

Buttigieg: That doesn’t mean he did the right thing. Here’s the problem with what he did … [I]f you’re going to make a concession like that, if you’re going to give somebody something that they’ve wanted for a long time in the context of a push-pull, even with a strong ally like Israel, right? We have a push-pull relationship. And you don’t do that without getting some kind of concession. Instead, we’ve seen the Israeli government continue to act in ways that are detrimental to peace. And I believe, therefore, also detrimental to U.S. interests.

It’s the same thing with recognition of the Golan. Look, the Israeli claims in the Golan or not something to be ignored. They have a lot to do with legitimate security interests. But when we did that, we were doing something that could have been part of a negotiated package, and instead we just gave it away. Worse, we gave it away probably for the specific purpose of having an impact in Israeli domestic politics, which should be the last reason that we would be conducting U.S. foreign policy. It should be designed around American values, American interests and American international relationships.

In a June 11 speech he gave in Bloomington, Indiana, Buttigieg said he’d block U.S. taxpayer funds from being used by Israel to annex the West Bank and implied that the right-wing Netanyahu government should be opposed.

https://mondoweiss.net/2019/06/buttigieg-netanyahu-turning/

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Signs Bills That Hurt Free Speech And Due Process Rights

Less than a week after Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX) signed a law protecting free speech on college campuses, he signed one that threatens that very protection.

As The Daily Wire previously reported, Abbott has signed numerous bills and posted videos about the new laws on Twitter. But on Friday, he signed two laws that ostensibly deal with campus sexual assault that hurt not only free speech rights but also due process rights.

The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) had written to the governor twice to let him know their concerns with the bill and also sent a letter asking him to veto the bills. While Abbott vetoed many bills on Friday, he did not veto SB 212 and HB 1735. From FIRE:

As a brief recap, both pieces of legislation — SB 212 and HB 1735 — use an unconstitutionally overbroad definition of sexual harassment that lacks the fundamental requirement that the conduct in question be objectively offensive to a reasonable person. SB 212 compounds the problem further by requiring all college and university employees to report any conduct they reasonably believe satisfies that definition to the institution’s Title IX apparatus. Failure to do so subjects the employee to termination and criminal misdemeanor charges, which carry potential penalties of up to $2,000, 180 days in jail, or both.

HB 1735 will take effect Sept. 1. Most of SB 212’s provisions also take effect on Sept. 1, while the bill’s criminal penalties take effect Jan. 1, 2020. This means Texas’s students and faculty will be forced to navigate new, unconstitutional speech codes this academic year that will inevitably lead to an explosion of frivolous investigations into protected speech, self-censorship, and possibly even jail time for faculty members who run afoul of the new law.

The biggest problem with these bills is that the definition allows for too much subjectivity, meaning school officials, fearing they could lose their jobs or go to jail, will likely start reporting any and all instances involving sex or sexually charged speech.

We’ve seen what happens in a case like this. Grant Neal was a football player and pre-med student at Colorado State University-Pueblo. He became close to a woman who part of the school’s Athletic Training Program. They engaged in some sexual activity, which left hickeys on the woman’s neck. One of her peers saw these marks, learned they were from Neal, and reported him for sexual assault.

Even though the woman said she was not raped or assaulted (Neal has recordings of her saying so), Neal was suspended. Neal sued and was able to settle with CSUP out of court.

http://www.domigood.com/2019/06/texas-gov-greg-abbott-signs-bills-that.html

Transgender Illegal Aliens Get Special Treatment, Hormone Therapy Under Policy Issued by Trump’s Border Czar

Immigration centers are dangerously overcrowded yet the federal agency slammed with an onslaught of migrants provides a separate unit for transgender illegal immigrants as well as costly hormone therapy and a number of other perks. Thanks to an Obama policy continued by the Trump administration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) gives transgender illegal aliens special treatment, including their own detention center in New Mexico that offers hair and makeup classes, a recreation area, gym, television rooms, a lab and pharmacy. There are also meeting areas for trans detainees to consult with free legal services provided by advocacy groups. American taxpayers furnish the hormone therapy, which “is not cheap,” according to an ICE director quoted in a recent news report about the New Mexico transgender facility, which opened in 2017.

The reality is that ICE has long offered transgender illegal immigrants special services under an Obama-era policy that the Trump administration can easily reverse but has chosen not to. ICE officials and frontline personnel are outraged that the Trump administration continues the policies, which some in the agency refer to as dangerous, expensive and foolish. Rank and file are at their wits end, according to ICE officials interviewed by Judicial Watch this week. “Two and a half years of the Trump administration and we still have Obama detention standards,” said Chris Crane, president of the National ICE Council, which represents 7,600 officers, agents and employees throughout the U.S. “This is not a new policy for ICE. It came out under the performance-based detention standards in 2011 and was updated in 2013 and 2016.” Crane said the National ICE Council addressed the agency’s detrimental detention issues with Trump’s first Homeland Security Secretary, John Kelly, who ordered changes that never materialized.

Under guidance issued by former ICE director Tom Homan, a supposed immigration hardliner chosen by President Trump to be a border czar, transgender migrants are to be treated with white gloves. At the time Homan was ICE executive associate director and in the 18-page memo he orders the agency’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) to let illegal immigrants self-identify with a gender different from that which corresponds with his or her biological sex or respond affirmatively during a risk assessment that he or she may be at an elevated risk in a detention setting because of his or her actual or perceived gender identity and/or gender expression. Federal officers are encouraged to use a certain script asking illegal aliens if they wish to disclose their gender identity, though they are not required to if they are “not comfortable sharing.”

https://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2019/06/transgender-illegal-aliens-get-special-treatment-hormone-therapy-under-policy-issued-by-trumps-border-czar/

Tom Fitton: Obama State Dept. was ‘At the Center of the Storm’ over Anti-Trump Dossiers

https://www.judicialwatch.org/press-room/in-the-news/tom-fitton-obama-state-dept-was-at-the-center-of-the-storm-over-anti-trump-dossiers/

Air China Pilots Involved in Scheme to Send US Technology With Military Applications to China, Authorities Allege

LOS ANGELES/TORONTO—An elaborate scheme to send U.S. technology with military applications to China at one point involved using Air China pilots, U.S. authorities allege.

In January 2018, the FBI arrested Americans Yi-Chi Shih and Kiet Anh Mai for allegedly buying microchips that can be used for military applications from a U.S. company under the pretence that it was for domestic use, while scheming to send the technology to China. A third suspect, Canadian Ishiang Shih—a professor at McGill University and Yi-Chi Shih’s brother—is also charged by U.S. authorities in relation to the case, although he hasn’t yet been extradited and is free in Canada.

Documents related to the ongoing court proceedings of Yi-Chi Shih in California allege his involvement in sending restricted technology to China began as early as 2005. Prosecutors say from this time until 2009, he shipped microchips to his contacts in China either via Singapore or by giving them to Air China pilots in Los Angeles to fly to China.

Requests for comment from Air China on the claims received no response.

Among the evidence included in the court case is a PowerPoint presentation from 2012 which authorities say contains the names of both Shih brothers. Prosecutors allege the presentation was a “business plan for the development of a semiconductor foundry in the PRC to manufacture MMICs [monolithic microwave integrated circuits].”

MMICs are used for electronic warfare, radar, and military communications, among other applications

The presentation lists the name of the U.S. company specializing in the manufacturing of MMICs, whose technology was later sent to China without the company’s knowledge in the alleged scheme involving the Shih brothers and Mai.

Court documents say Ishiang Shih sent two separate emails to his brother in 2012, attaching presentations that had details on MMIC technology, including those of the unnamed U.S. company.

On one of the presentations, the header had the name of a Chinese company, Chengdu Gastone Technology Co. (CGTC), whose president was Yi-Chi Shih, authorities say. CGTC established a MMIC manufacturing facility in Chengdu, China. In 2014, the U.S. Department of Commerce added the firm to the list of foreign companies that require a special licence for export because “it had been involved in the illicit procurement of commodities and technologies for unauthorized military end use in China.”

https://www.theepochtimes.com/air-china-pilots-involved-in-scheme-to-send-us-technology-with-military-applications-to-china-authorities-allege_2968174.html

John Cusack retweets anti-Semitic meme with neo-Nazi quote

After online backlash, actor deletes post and blames bot, then issues apology for sharing ‘pro-Palestinian justice’ image

American actor John Cusack on Tuesday retweeted an anti-Semitic meme captioned with a neo-Nazi quote, then apologized and deleted his retweet following backlash from his social media followers.

The meme retweeted by Cusack depicted a giant hand emblazoned with a blue Star of David crushing a group of people beneath it, accompanied by the quote: “To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize.”

The meme incorrectly attributed the quote to French thinker Voltaire, but it’s actually an excerpt from a 1993 essay by American neo-Nazi Kevin Strom.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/john-cusack-retweets-anti-semitic-meme-with-neo-nazi-quote/

>>6781622

baker is shit

not ourguy just pretending to be, missing heaps of good content

Shanahan Steps Down as Acting Defense Secretary After Reports of FBI Investigation

President Donald Trump's pick to run the Pentagon has taken himself out of the running following media reports that near decade-old domestic disputes were holding up his FBI background checks.

Patrick Shanahan, the former Boeing executive Trump planned to nominate to replace Jim Mattis as defense secretary, "decided not to go forward with his confirmation process so that he can devote more time to his family," Trump tweeted on Tuesday.

The announcement follows a report from USA Today that the FBI was looking into a violent domestic dispute between Shanahan and his former wife during which both claimed they'd been punched by the other. While Shanahan said he "never laid a hand" on then-wife Kimberly Jordinson, according to the paper, she said she stands by her account.

In 2011, Shanahan also came to the defense of his son, who beat his mom – Shanahan's ex-wife – with a baseball bat. The incident left her "unconscious in a pool of blood, her skull fractured and with internal injuries that required surgery," the Washington Post reported.

At the time, Shanahan wrote in a memo to Jodinson's brother that his son had acted in self-defense, the Post reported. But, he told the paper, he doesn't believe violence is appropriate ever, and would never justify someone attacking another person with a baseball bat.

Shanahan was likely to face questions from lawmakers about the incidents, which were reportedly holding up his FBI background checks, during his Senate confirmation hearing. Having the family disputes aired publicly "will ruin my son's life," Shanahan told the paper.

The confirmation process should focus on national security, readiness and the future of the military, Shanahan said in a statement. Instead, Shanahan, who was confirmed to serve as deputy defense secretary more than two years ago, said a "deeply personal family situation from long ago is being dredged up and painted in an incomplete and therefore misleading way."

"I believe my continuing in the confirmation process would force my three children to relive a traumatic chapter in our family's life and reopen wounds we have worked years to heal," Shanahan said. "Ultimately, their safety and well-being is my highest priority.

"I would welcome the opportunity to be Secretary of Defense," he added, "but not at the expense of being a good father."

The family disputes weren't the only controversy Shanahan has faced since becoming the longest-ever acting defense secretary earlier this year when Mattis stepped down in protest of Trump's policies. The Pentagon inspector general's office investigated claims that he used his position to promote Boeing, his former employer.

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2019/06/18/shanahan-steps-down-acting-defense-secretary-after-reports-fbi-investigation.html

Pentagon Has Emitted Over a Billion Metric Tons of Greenhouse Gases in Its War on Terror

With over 800 military bases in more than 80 countries, the Pentagon remains the “world’s largest institutional user of petroleum” and “producer of greenhouse gases.”

by Kevin Gosztola

hadowproof — The United States military has emitted over a billion metric tons of greenhouse gases since the beginning of the global war on terrorism in 2001, according to a report from Brown University’s “Costs of War” project.

It is equivalent to the annual emissions of 257 million passenger cars, “more than double the current number of cars on the road in the U.S.”

With over 800 military bases in more than 80 countries, the Pentagon remains the “world’s largest institutional user of petroleum” and “producer of greenhouse gases.”

The Pentagon is not transparent when it comes to fuel consumption or greenhouse gas emissions. However, the project used the Department of Energy’s emissions data for the report’s estimates.

In 2017, the Pentagon’s greenhouse gas emissions were about 59 million metric tons. That same year, this was more than Finland (46.8 million metric tons), Sweden (50.8 million metric tons), or Denmark (33.5 million metric tons).

At least 400 million metric tons of greenhouse gases are a result of consumption in war zones in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, and Syria.

According to the report, “From 1998 to 2017, the U.S. purchased 2.4 billion barrels of petroleum fuel. Since the 9/11 attacks, annual fuel purchases have averaged more than 120 million barrels of all types of fuel. Between 2010 and 2015, the armed services purchased an average of 102 million barrels of fuel per year from the DOD.”

It is estimated the Pentagon consumed more than 85 million barrels of “operational fuel” in order to power its fleets of ships, aircraft, and combat vehicles. They also used the fuel for “contingency bases.” In total, $8.2 billion was spent.

Since 2001, the [Pentagon] has consistently consumed between 77 and 80 percent of all U.S. government energy consumption,” the report notes.

Installations that support operations, as well as military non-armored vehicles, are notorious in their guzzling of fuel. There are apparently 60,000 HUMVEEs that remain the U.S. Army’s fleet. They get about “four to eight miles per gallon of diesel fuel.”

Domestic and overseas military installations account for about 40 percent of the Pentagon’s greenhouse gas emissions.

The report briefly details how jet fuel is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions.

https://www.mintpressnews.com/pentagon-emitted-billion-metric-tons-greenhouse-gases-war-terror/259324/

Pride

I always wondered about the pride being a sin, I thought surely it's ok to be proud of your children, friends and family

Now I understand completely.

LGBTQ activists pushing parents to bring children to pride parades: ‘Children can handle the kink’

Some LGBTQ activists are apparently pushing some parents to bring their children to LGBTQ pride parades because they believe that it can only benefit the children involved.

What are the details?

HuffPost Canada published an article on Thursday highlighting several activists who advocate for children to attend LGBT pride parades.

The article, titled, "Are Pride Parades Kid-Friendly? Parents Say Children Can Handle The Kink,"

One activist, a self-described "semi-retired sex therapist" named "Ren," said that children are very safe at such places.

"I can't imagine a safer place for families to bring children," Ren said. "[F]rom kink to nakedness, [it's] an excellent opportunity for parents to do unbiased sex education.

"Children benefit from seeing people loving one another, from seeing diversity and inclusion," the activist added. "Children suffer from seeing violence and fear, hatred and divisiveness. We found and built our tribe at these gatherings."

Another activist, writer S. Bear Bergman, added, "First of all, nobody likes nakedness more than children."

Bergman continued, "On the list of things that I don't want my children ever to be exposed to are: compulsory heterosexuality, demonstrations of sexism, demonstrations of racism, demonstrations of ableism, violence. These are all way higher on the list than some homosexual's tuchus."

What else?

Bergman insisted there's no valid reason for children to miss out on pride parades.

"[I]t's a fun day, there are a lot of bubbles, rainbow streamers, and enjoyable performances," he explained. "It's their right as queer spawn. And as a parent, I might want to take my kids to Pride, because they might be lesbian, gay, bi, trans, queer, or two-spirit."

http://www.stationgossip.com/2019/06/lgbtq-activists-pushing-parents-to.html

This in my book is a really clear God/Jesus/bible proof

Lust – to have an intense desire or need: “But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:28).

Gluttony – excess in eating and drinking: “for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags” (Proverbs 23:21).

Greed - excessive or reprehensible acquisitiveness: “Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more” (Ephesians 4:19).

Laziness – disinclined to activity or exertion: not energetic or vigorous: “The way of the sluggard is blocked with thorns, but the path of the upright is a highway” (Proverbs 15:19).

Wrath – strong vengeful anger or indignation: “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger” (Proverbs 15:1)

Envy – painful or resentful awareness of an advantage enjoyed by another joined with a desire to possess the same advantage: “Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation” (1 Peter 2:1-2).

Pride - quality or state of being proud – inordinate self esteem: “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18).

Climate Emergency – The New Justification for New Taxes

Cities have begun using the term “climate emergency” to justify new taxation. This was the case in the Guelph City Council in Canada where they declared a climate emergency. They have admitted that they “already have an action plan. A very ambitious, robust and doable action plan. We don’t need to re-state that.” The spokesperson continued, “What we do need to state, in my opinion, is that we’re going to fund it. Because an action plan without funding has no meaning and it has no outcome and it won’t be successful.”

Here comes the new justification for more taxes — “climate emergency” — as if a local city can actually change the climate of the world.

https://www.investmentwatchblog.com/climate-emergency-the-new-justification-for-new-taxes/

Bolton: China Continuing Cyberattacks on Government, Private Networks

U.S. ramping up offensive cyberattacks to deter foreign adversaries

China is continuing cyberattacks against government and private sector networks aimed at obtaining intellectual property to support China's military buildup and economic modernization, White House National Security Adviser John Bolton says.

Bolton said that as a result, the United States is going on the attack against Chinese and other foreign hackers using new authorities outlined in a recently signed presidential memorandum.

Asked if China has lessened intellectual property theft through cyberattacks, Bolton said: "No. I think this is one of the reasons why one of our priorities here was to replace PPD-20 with what we call NSPM-13, National Security Presidential Memorandum-13, which dramatically changed the oversight and approval process for offensive cyber operations."

The Obama administration directive, Presidential Policy Directive-20, was signed in October 2012 and made public by renegade National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden.

The 20-page order, labeled "top-secret," created a restrictive approval process for conducting cyberattacks, such as requiring presidential approval and obtaining foreign government approval for operations.

Bolton said the new order gives greater authority to operators in the military and intelligence community and will help establish deterrence against foreign cyberattacks.

"You can't get to a system of deterrence, in cyberspace or anywhere else, unless you convince your adversaries that they will pay a higher price for engaging in their offensive cyber operations than they ever hope to gain," Bolton said in an interview in the White House West Wing. "And we have started that in late 2018 [when] we got NSPM-13 adopted."

The first use was prior to the November 2018 election when the military's Cyber Command conducted operations against known Russian operatives linked in the past to disinformation operations and interference in elections.

"I think we had a real impact in preventing Russian efforts to influence the elections in 2018," Bolton said. "We've begun, underline the word begun, to establish structures of deterrence in cyberspace. But we've got a long way to go. We come off of eight years of total passivity by the Obama administration which has left us very vulnerable."

The New York Times reported Sunday that U.S. cyber forces have increased penetrations into Russia's electric power grid as a warning to Moscow that the United States is prepared to conduct attacks on the electrical power infrastructure.

https://freebeacon.com/national-security/bolton-china-continuing-cyberattacks-on-government-private-networks/

McConnell Slams Dem Push For Reparations For Slavery, “No One Currently Alive Was Responsible For That”

The Democrats are pushing for reparations for slavery and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is not having it.

The House Judiciary Committee led by Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-NY) will hold a hearing Wednesday “to examine, through open and constructive discourse, the legacy of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, its continuing impact on the community and the path to restorative justice.”

The star witnesses will be author Ta-Nehisi Coates and and radical communist actor Danny Glover.

A reporter asked McConnell on Tuesday about the hearing on Capitol Hill which will cover the topic of reparations for slavery scheduled for Wednesday.

“Where do you stand on that issue? Do you believe in reparations for slavery and if not, should there be a public apology from Congress or from the President in recognition of the theft of labor?” a liberal reporter asked McConnell.

SERIOUSLY??

McConnell responded, “Yeah, I don’t think reparations for something that happened 150 years ago for whom none of us currently living are responsible is a good idea.”

This is just a ploy for Democrats to take more money from the taxpayer and redistribute it (because the trillions of dollars in welfare wasn’t enough).

No one alive today owned a slave and no black person alive today was a slave in the US. And what about the immigrant families who weren’t even in the country when the US allowed slavery? They owe money to non-slaves too?

WATCH:

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he is against reparations for slavery in part because it would be hard to know whom to pay.

"No one currently alive was responsible for that." https://t.co/B5XCIp38p7 pic.twitter.com/nPhYeNTIj7

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2019/06/mcconnell-slams-dem-push-for-reparations-for-slavery-no-one-currently-alive-was-responsible-for-that-video/

The Trump-Bolton Duo Is Just Like the Bush-Cheney Duo: Warmongers Using Lies to Start Illegal Wars

[False flag operations:] “The powers-that-be understand that to create the appropriate atmosphere for war, it’s necessary to create within the general populace a hatred, fear or mistrust of others regardless of whether those others belong to a certain group of people or to a religion or a nation.” James Morcan (1978- ), New Zealander-born Australian writer.

[Definition: A ‘false flag operation’ is a horrific, staged event—blamed on a political enemy—and used as pretext to start a war or to enact draconian laws in the name of national security].

“Almost all wars begin with false flag operations.” Larry Chin (d. of b. unknown), North American author, (in ‘False Flagging the World towards War. The CIA Weaponizes Hollywood’, Dec. 27, 2014).

“Definition of reverse projection: attributing to others what you are doing yourself as the reason for attacking them.” John McMurtry (1939- ), Canadian philosopher, (in ‘The Moral Decoding of 9-11: Beyond the U.S. Criminal State’, Journal of 9/11 Studies, Feb.2013).

“That there are men in all countries who get their living by war, and by keeping up the quarrels of nations, is as shocking as it is true; but when those who are concerned in the government of a country, make it their study to sow discord, and cultivate prejudices between nations, it becomes the more unpardonable.” Thomas Paine (1737-1809), American Founding father, pamphleteer, (in ‘The Rights of Man’, c. 1792).

“I was the CIA director. We lied, we cheated, and we stole. It was like — we had entire training courses. It reminds you of the glory of the American experiment.” Mike Pompeo (1963- ), former CIA director and now Secretary of State in the Trump administration, (in April 2019, while speaking at Texas A&M University.)

https://www.globalresearch.ca/trump-bolton-duo-like-bush-cheney-duo-warmongers-using-lies-start-illegal-wars/5680929

Child-rape case clouded in inconsistencies, mounting pressure on police

Police were unable to find genetic evidence proving that the child was present at the crime scene.

Question marks surround an ongoing police investigation concerning the rape of a seven-year-old Jewish girl from a West Bank settlement in a case that shocked the nation when it was made public on Monday.

Police on Monday arrested Mahmoud Nazmi Abed Alhamid Katusa, a resident of Deir Qaddis near Modi’in Illit. The West Bank Palestinian was indicted for rape, assault and abduction, while police were still searching for two other men who allegedly witnessed and aided the crime.

However, a resident of the ultra-Orthodox settlement where the attack happened spoke with Radio 103 FM on Tuesday, saying that “We don’t think he [Katusa] raped that child. We’re afraid the attacker is still walking about free,” Maariv reported.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the man claimed it “doesn’t make sense that an Arab takes a 7-year-old girl… and drags her away when there are thousands of children in the street and haredi adults, and she’s crying and resisting the whole time.”

Channel 12 reported on Tuesday that no document existed proving the rape of the child and that apart from the child’s identification of Katusa, no proof existed to connect him to the crime.

Furthermore, the girl only identified him after having spoken to her teacher at school, Channel 12 said.

The policewoman who spoke with the child said that while the attack clearly took place, the identification of Katusa is reliable.

Question marks further surround the actions of the police as it did not send the underwear of the 7-year-old rape victim to a forensic lab, Haaretz reported on Tuesday.

Such an examination may have revealed the attacker’s DNA and thus solved the case. Police claimed the underwear was over a week-old at the time the family reported the crime.

Katusa provided the police with an alibi for the time and place the crime took place, upon which the investigators suggested the attack took place at a different time and location.

An anonymous source within the military prosecutor’s office told Channel 12 that they had no choice but to indict the man quickly notwithstanding the inconsistencies raised about his guilt. For example, police were unable to find genetic evidence proving that the child was present at the crime scene.

In response to these reports, head of the police unit of investigations Maj.-Gen. Gadi Siso will personally lead the investigation, Ynet reported on Tuesday.

The girl’s family, all haredi, only turned to the police after receiving an opinion by Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky urging them to do so, Channel 12 reported.

The family has since fired its lawyer and ended its relationship with the Honenu National Legal Defense Organization, which provided the lawyer.

https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/As-problems-with-child-rape-case-mount-Major-General-leads-investigation-592924

US Will Spend $86 Billion on Intelligence Agencies in 2020 - Here’s the Breakdown

While most of us are aware of the massive U.S. intelligence network, we rarely see exactly how much this network costs taxpayers. In this posting, I want to look at the budget for the Department of Defense's Military Intelligence Program or MIP as well as the National Intelligence Program or NIP. Fortunately, in a June 2018 Congressional Research Service report on intelligence community spending, Micheal DeVine provides us with a detailed look at spending on both the National Intelligence Program and the Military Intelligence program so that we can put the budget requests for fiscal 2020 into context.

https://russia-insider.com/en/us-will-spend-86-billion-intelligence-agencies-2020-heres-breakdown/ri27281

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REUTERS IS NOW A UNIT OF US INFO-WAR COMMAND, REPORTERS AND INVESTORS REVOLT

Stephen Adler (lead image), the American chief executive of Reuters news agency, has ordered into publication three US Government-directed stories targeting the Russian oil company Rosneft — the first in mid-April, and two published over the past week. Adler’s operations support US coup plans in Venezuela and US sanctions against Rosneft and its chief executive, Igor Sechin.

The three publications — the first already corrected by the news agency; the second commissioned from a writer outside the company; the latest missing its byline or author’s name — have triggered dismay among Reuters’ reporters worldwide. A New York source claims Adler’s promotion of US Government-sourced propaganda violates the Reuters Trust Principles which have regulated the international news agency since 1941.

The first two Reuters principles Adler is accused of breaking are that “Reuters shall at no time pass into the hands of any one interest, group, or faction; [and] that the integrity, independence, and freedom from bias of Thomson Reuters shall at all times be fully preserved.”

Bloomberg sources, commenting privately, say they are delighted at the damage to their rival’s reputation. A Bloomberg reporter, briefed by the same sources as Adler’s, repeated one of the Reuters stories against Rosneft last week.

A US investment banker says he’s thinking of shorting his shares of Thomson Reuters, the parent media corporation listed in Toronto and New York, on the calculation that their 63% growth over the past year is now peaking.

On June 14 Reuters published a lengthy report on the use of Rosneft corporate jets to fly Chief Executive Sechin to seaside holiday locations over the past four years. “Using publicly available data, Reuters tracked 290 Rosneft flights between January, 2015 and May, 2019. Of those round trips, 96 took place during Russian public holidays or between Friday lunchtime in Moscow and Monday morning. Since the start of 2015, Rosneft corporate jets traveled eight times to Sardinia’s Olbia airport, 15 times to the Maldives and seven times to Spain’s Palma de Mallorca, according to the flight tracking data from planefinder.net, flightaware.com, opensky.network.org and flight-data.adsbexchange.com.”

Reuters headlined the report “exclusive”. No reporter’s name was identified.

The report found that 42 of the 290 tracked flights “correspond[ed]” to Rosneft events but “Reuters found no public information released by Rosneft or the Russian authorities about official events at those destinations, although the company does not always disclose information about its meetings.” Sechin himself was not detected on any of the flights, “but Reuters did photograph a man closely matching his description boarding a Rosneft plane at Palma da Mallorca airport on Aug. 6 last year.”

More

http://johnhelmer.net/reuters-is-now-a-unit-of-us-info-war-command-reporters-and-investors-revolt/

Charlie Kirk: Israel Is More Exceptional Than America

America is "just a placeholder for timeless ideas" which people shouldn't "fall too in love with" but Israel is an "exception" because "there is a holy connection to this land," Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk said while speaking in Jerusalem.

"I love the Grand Canyon, I love the Rocky Mountains and I love Boston," Kirk said. "I love Chicago but if all that disappeared and all I had was ideas and we're on an island – that's America."

"That's Israel," Kirk added, "that's what people have to realize, that America is just a placeholder for timeless ideas and if you fall too in love with you know, oh the specific place and all this – that's, you know, that's not what it is. Israel being the exception, because there is a holy connection to this land."

Kirk made the above comments earlier this year on March 18 while at a "Building the Zionist Dream" event hosted by the Zionist NGO Im Tirtzu.

Note, the ideas Kirk espoused at this event were cosmopolitan globalism for America but holy nationalism and Zionism for Israel.

Imagine Kirk telling a multi-generational American farming family their country is just an "idea" and any random island could be America so long as they hold certain "ideas."

What a clown.

More

https://www.informationliberation.com/?id=60357

Senior GOP Lawmaker Calls for Hearing Into Facebook Cryptocurrency Plans - Report

Facebook announced earlier on Tuesday its plans to launch a new cryptocurrency called Libra by 2020 and create a digital wallet for it as part of a bid to make basic financial services more accessible around the world.

Representative Patrick McHenry, the senior Republican on the House Financial Services Committee, wrote a letter Tuesday to committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters, a Democrat, calling for a hearing on the Facebook's initiative, according to Reuters.

"We know there are many open questions as to the scope and scale of the project and how it will conform to our global financial regulatory framework […] It is incumbent upon us as policymakers to understand Project Libra. We need to go beyond the rumors and speculations and provide a forum to assess this project and its potential unprecedented impact on the global financial system", McHenry said in a letter, cited by Reuters.

https://sputniknews.com/us/201906181075946393-senior-gop-lawmaker-calls-for-hearing-into-facebook-cryptocurrency-plans—report/