Vaccine Hype Redux Sparks Another Big-Tech Buying-Panic, Gold Dumped

Ok, so this is what happened today…

0742ET PFIZER CSO SAYS COVID VACCINE IS `VERY PROMISING'

0815ET ADP Job growth slows (massive revisions)

1000ET ISM jumps into expansion (biggest jump ever)

1110ET ARIZONA REPORTS RECORD ONE-DAY INCREASE IN VIRUS CASES

1240ET U.S. READIES GLOBAL SANCTIONS ON CHINA OVER XINJIANG ABUSES

1310ET HOUSTON-AREA ICUS REACH 102% OF CAPACITY: TEXAS MEDICAL CENTER

1400ET FOMC MINUTES - No YCC, More QE (But it may not work), Stocks only up on hope

1420ET GOV NEWSOM ORDERS LA COUNTY RESTAURANTS CLOSED FOR 3 WKS: EATER

1425ET APPLE RE-CLOSING 30 MORE STORES THURSDAY: CNBC

1510ET CALIFORNIA CLOSES INDOOR DINING IN 19 COUNTIES, INCLUDING L.A.

And the result of all that… Nasdaq soared to new record highs, Small Caps were dumped and the Dow unch…until the last 10 minutes..

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/vaccine-hype-redux-sparks-another-big-tech-buying-panic-small-caps-slump

Study: Border Barriers Work

Barriers along America's southwestern border significantly reduce illegal immigration, especially by low-skilled migrants, a new study argues.

The analysis, by University of Illinois at Chicago economist Benjamin Feigenberg, provides empirical evidence that the construction of border barriers—in this case, the 700 miles of border fencing authorized by Congress in 2006—cuts migration both in the areas where they are constructed and in adjacent territory.

In total, Feigenberg estimates, a fully fenced border would deter some 86,000 people from crossing the border every three months, at a cost of less than $2,000 per person deterred.

These findings provide robust empirical support for the idea of constructing a barrier along America's often-porous border with Mexico—a proposal long-supported by Republicans, and President Donald Trump in particular, but vociferously opposed by Democrats. The failure to support more border fencing, once a bipartisan goal, may have helped drive the recent wave of immigration that led to a crisis at the border.

To reach his conclusions, Feigenberg examined the results of the 2006 Secure Fence Act, a bipartisan bill signed into law under then-president George W. Bush. The bill called for the construction of some 700 miles of fencing along the Mexican-American border; a subsequent appropriations bill put the exact location of the fencing at the discretion of the secretary of homeland security.

Using a novel dataset, Feigenberg argues that the locations at which the fencing was constructed were effectively randomly distributed. That allows him to exploit the randomness in variation in construction timing to measure the effects of building a border fence on migration in adjacent Mexican territories using a robust collection of U.S. and Mexican government data.

The results are pronounced. The paper finds that fence construction in a given municipality reduces average migration by 27 percent. In addition, fence construction in an adjacent municipality has a spillover effect, reducing migration by an additional 15 percent.

The total effect, Feigenberg writes, is to alter the illegal immigrant population in the United States: "Fence construction significantly decreases the size of the likely undocumented, Mexican-born population on the US side of the border and in the US interior."

https://freebeacon.com/policy/study-border-barriers-work/

Trump Threatens to Veto Defense Bill Over Renaming of Bases

Donald Trump threatened to veto the annual defense authorization bill if bases named in honor of Confederates are renamed. While Pentagon brass have indicated they are open to the idea of renaming bases that honor Confederate soldiers and politicians, Trump has steadfastly resisted the idea.

Last month, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said that Trump won’t sign any bill that renames bases named for Confederates. “It’s a non-starter,” she said.

But even many Republicans are onboard the name change train.

Politico:

Nonetheless, the Republican-led Senate Armed Services Committee approved an amendment to its version of the National Defense Authorization Act proposed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) that would force the Pentagon to remove names, monuments and paraphernalia honoring the Confederacy from military bases over the next three years.

Senior military leaders including Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy also expressed openness to renaming the 10 Army bases and facilities named after Confederate leaders, but encountered opposition from the president, who tweeted that his administration “will not even consider the renaming of these Magnificent and Fabled Military Installations.”

Trump has consistently stood with southern traditionalists on the issues of statues and bases. Of course, this has made it easy for liberals to accuse him of being a racist. But Trump has exercised his considerable power as president to preserve the history at stake.

Trump’s veto threat, if realized, would represent his latest display of presidential power aimed at protecting tributes to the Confederacy and other memorials complicated by the country’s racist past. He issued an executive order last Friday directing the Justice Department to prioritize the prosecution of protesters who damage federal monuments and to limit federal funding for local governments perceived to not be adequately protecting them.

The mania to change history and go after those who stand up to their skewed version of the past will continue until enough people stand in their way and prevent them from succeeding. But the $740 billion defense bill is not the vehicle for either side’s argument in this fight. Why can’t Warren offer her own bill to rename the bases rather than attach it to vital legislation?

Politically, she knows that it might not pass the Senate. But does she really have to hold a gun to the head of some Republicans by forcing them to accept the base renaming amendment in a defense authorization package? Try for an up or down vote on the base renaming issue by itself.

Either way, it’s going to happen. Trump’s veto will be overridden by terrified Republicans who don’t want to be seen as “racists” for standing against the mob in an election year. And that’s a shame — shame for history and America.

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/rick-moran/2020/07/01/trump-threatens-to-veto-defense-bill-over-renaming-of-bases-n595054

Not Waiting for Vote, Virginia Mayor Orders Removal of Confederate Statues

RICHMOND, Va. (CN) — Despite City Council members not yet authorizing the move, statues of Confederate leaders are being torn down Wednesday afternoon in the former capital of the Confederacy.

During a mildly heated City Council meeting Wednesday morning, Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney expressed a desire to see them removed as soon as possible and assured the council he had the authority to do so.

“It is time to put an end to the lost cause and to fully embrace the righteous cause,” he said in the meeting, held virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Stoney, a black Democrat, has long advocated for their removal, especially in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests that have gone on since the beginning of June.

“Failing to remove the statues now poses a severe and growing threat to public safety,” the mayor said, pointing to the large gatherings as a nexus for the virus to spread as well as the possibility of injury or death to those who try to remove the statues themselves.

“We have an urgent need to protect the public,” he added.

The city was unable to remove them thanks to a century-old law barring the removal of war monuments. But after winning the majority of the statehouse for the first time in two decades last year, Democrats changed that law and opened a window for their removal.

The four monuments along Richmond’s historic Monument Avenue feature Confederate Civil War leaders General J.E.B Stewart, President Jefferson Davis, General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson and naval officer Matthew Fontaine Maury. The Davis statue was torn down by protesters late last month.

The power to remove the statues went into effect Wednesday. But the unannounced removal appears to be the product of complex legal maneuvering as well as guidance under the new law.

In particular, key changes were made to the monument law’s cause of action section. While its previous iteration allowed for anyone to sue if a city-owned monument was removed, the new law limits civil claims to those filed by the city with approval from its governing body. It also insulates elected officials, like the mayor, from legal challenges.

While the Richmond City Council is eager to remove the monuments and held the special session Wednesday morning to vote on starting the removal possible as soon as legally possible, procedural issues barred the vote from taking place.

But an early June vote by the council appears to be behind the mayor’s move. Shortly after the protests erupted, the governing body voted to make the mayor the city’s director of emergency management, which comes with a myriad of powers as long as the city is in a state of emergency.

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam, a Democrat, granted Stoney’s request to declare such a state of emergency in June when protests first started and quietly extended that emergency through the end of July on Monday night.

While activists feared the extension was intended to continue a brutal crackdown on protesters by city and state police, a source at City Hall said it also enabled the mayor to remove the monuments.

The mayor’s office said Wednesday that removed statues will be placed in temporary storage while their fates are determined.

https://www.courthousenews.com/not-waiting-for-vote-mayor-orders-removal-of-confederate-statues/

After Robert the Bruce's Statue Was Vandalized by BLM, the National Trust for Scotland Apologized to Blacks for the Medieval King's Racism

Robert the Bruce, King of the Scots, is Scotland’s national hero for winning the First War of Independence against England.

Robert, 1274-1329, defeated the invading English army at Bannockburn in 1314, personally slaying a charging English knight with his battle-axe.

In June, his statue at Bannockburn was defaced with Black Lives Matter graffiti accusing him of being a racist:

Almost immediately, the Battle of Bannockburn Experience visitor center, under the National Trust for Scotland, issued an apology to blacks for Robert the Bruce’s racism.

From The Scotsman:

Why has Robert the Bruce been branded a racist?

The shock was widespread when the statue of Robert the Bruce close to the Battle of Bannockburn site was vandalised with graffiti calling one of Scotland’s national heroes a racist.

By Alison Campsie

Monday, 15th June 2020, 5:14 pm

… But why did the First King of Scots and leader of Scotland’s forces during much of the first Wars of Independence come under such an attack?

A statement from the Battle of Bannockburn Experience visitor centre has attempted to illuminate the issues surrounding the vandalism, the racism claims and why Bruce has been portrayed in this way.

While it is was not immediately apparent what the graffiti was referencing, it may relate to the fact that Bruce had his heart taken on a crusade following his death in 1329, the centre said.

So, to be precise, Robert the Bruce was guilty of Posthumous Racism because his embalmed heart was taken crusading against the Muslim invaders.

The statement added: “Sir James Douglas, who was an experience Scottish war leader and had been personally knighted by the king at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314, led a company of seven other knights and 20 squires to southern Spain, where they joined the army of King Alfonso XI of Castile on campaign against the Muslim emirate of Granada.

“Douglas and his companions were killed at the Battle of Teba in 1330, fighting troops that would have been predominantly (perhaps exclusively) black.

https://www.unz.com/isteve/after-robert-the-bruces-statue-is-vandalized-by-blm-the-national-trust-for-scotland-apologized-to-blacks-for-the-medieval-kings-racism/

Boston statue of Abraham Lincoln standing over freed slave on his knees will be removed: reports

The Boston Art Commission last night unanimously voted to remove the Emancipation Group statue in Park Square, according to multiple media reports.

CBS in Boston reported that Mayor Marty Walsh said in a statement, “As we continue our work to make Boston a more equitable and just city, it’s important that we look at the stories being told by the public art in all of our neighborhoods.

“After engaging in a public process, it’s clear that residents and visitors to Boston have been uncomfortable with this statue, and its reductive representation of the Black man’s role in the abolitionist movement. I fully support the Boston Art Commission’s decision for removal and thank them for their work.”

In June, an online petition received more than 10,000 signatures of people supporting the removal of the statue that shows President Abraham Lincoln standing over a freed slave on his knees.

According to boston.com, the statue has been in the park near Boston Common since 1879. “It’s a copy of an identical monument that was erected in Washington, D.C., three years earlier. The copy was installed in Boston because the city was home to the statue’s white creator, Thomas Ball.”

“Although the monument was created to celebrate the freeing of slaves in America, and the funds for the original memorial were raised by freed slaves, its design disturbed many who objected to the optics of a Black man kneeling before Lincoln.

The statue’s original version in D.C. faced similar criticism.”

The commission is expected to address the details for the removal at its meeting on July 14.

The statue - and others across the country - has come under increased criticism since the May 25 killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis and the subsequent protests about racial injustice and police brutality. Other statues across the nation have been vandalized and/or taken down.

https://www.pennlive.com/nation-world/2020/07/boston-statue-of-abraham-lincoln-standing-over-freed-slave-on-his-knees-will-be-removed-reports.html

Is the mafia in business with ISIS? Italian police seize a record one billion euros worth of amphetamine pills 'made by the Islamic State' hidden in container ship

Italian police have seized a record 1 billion euros worth of amphetamine pills known as the 'drug of the Jihad' that arrived from Syria.

Investigators discovered 84 million pills of the drug Captagon inside machinery and large cylinders when they impounded three container ships that docked in the southern port of Salerno.

The operation was 'the biggest seizure of amphetamines in the world', customs police colonel Domenico Napolitano said.

The port of Salerno is in traditional Italian mafia territory and organised crime has long been suspected of having control over drugs coming into the port.

Captagon is popular in the Middle East, and widespread in war-torn areas such as Syria, where conflict has fuelled demand and created opportunities for producers.

A police statement said Captagon was known as the 'drug of the Jihad' after being found in militant hideouts, including one used by the Islamists who killed 90 people at the Bataclan theatre in Paris in 2015.

Production was initially concentrated in Lebanon and it provides the Islamic State group with revenue to finance its militant activities, police said.

A video posted to the Italian Financial Guard military force's Twitter page showed agents using saws to cut into large paper and steel drums to reveal thousands of tablets stuffed inside.

Police used electric saws to cut through 6.5-foot high cylinders, made thick enough to try and evade customs' scanning devices, as they removed the pills from the hollow centers.

http://www.scoopyweb.com/2020/07/is-mafia-in-business-with-isis-italian.html

U.S. Senators Introduce Bill to Study Military Aviators’ Cancer Risk from EMF, Non-Ionizing and Ionizing Radiation

In 1971, The U.S. Naval Medical Research Institute had already determined that exposure to non-ionizing radiation (also referred to as cell phone and wireless radiation) was biologically harmful. In 1984, the U.S. EPA warned about various significant human health risks from exposure. In 1985, CNN reported that Electromagnetic Fields (EMF) had been used in weapons for what they described as “mind control”.

More research since then has emerged – some of it funded by the American government. In fact, in 2011 the World Health Organization classified exposure as a “possible carcinogen”. Last year, WHO also issued new scary warnings about high levels of EMF in 1st world countries potentially affecting 30% of the population. Earlier this year, the agency asked for new health reviews of the “possible carcinogen” classification.

U.S. Naval fighter pilots seem to be aware of the potential for harm from exposure. Last year they blamed it for contributing to cancer and death within their service members. Thanks to these U.S. senators for introducing legislation to investigate their concerns. If we’re lucky, they’ll eventually introduce it for the rest of us.

From YubaNet:

Feinstein, Cornyn Introduce Bill to Investigate Military Aviators’ Risk of Cancer

Washington June 23, 2020 – Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) today introduced the Military Aviators Cancer Incidence Study Act, a bill directing the military to conduct a study comparing cancer prevalence among military aviators to that of the general population. Reporting by McClatchy suggests that military aviators may be exposed to radiation that places them at higher risk of developing certain cancers.

“Military aviators take enough risks while serving our country without having to worry about contracting cancer from radiation exposure,” said Feinstein. “The high prevalence of cancer among aviators is deeply concerning, including the cluster of cases at China Lake. We must determine why these aviators are getting cancer and if their jobs are exposing them to dangerous carcinogens. This study will be the first to look across Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps active duty, reservist, National Guard, and veteran aviators’ data to assess the long-term health effects. It is an important step to help us understand what’s happening and how we can better protect our military aviators.”

“The idea that military aviators could be suffering adverse health effects from their service to our country is alarming and demands further investigation,” said Cornyn. “This legislation would help determine if an outsized population of air crew members is developing illnesses like cancer, and if so, what the cause is and how we can stop it.”

“ROA supports this bill to study cancer rates for those servicemembers engaged with the military’s flying mission,” said retired Maj. Gen. Jeff Phillips, executive director of the Reserve Organization of America. “Too many of our commissioned and enlisted servicemembers have unexpectedly died at an early age leaving families without their loved one. Senator Feinstein’s bill will lead to better focused health care and development of safer equipment that eliminates cancer causing environments. The services need to do a better job of protecting the servicemembers that protect the nation.”

In addition to Feinstein and Cornyn, the bill is cosponsored by Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.).

https://www.activistpost.com/2020/07/u-s-senators-introduce-bill-to-study-military-aviators-cancer-risk-from-emf-non-ionizing-and-ionizing-radiation.html

Full text

https://www.feinstein.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/6/0/6054b435-acd5-4a5c-80ba-d8100b11f248/585D8C301DF6C0BAB6CA78D1172C6914.hey20847.pdf

China opens a restaurant manned entirely by robots, including droid waitresses, automated baristas and AI-powered chefs

The restaurant in Foshan, southern China, has over 20 different types of robots

Fascinating footage shows robotic workers cooking noodles and making burgers

It can serve nearly 600 diners at once with hundreds of freshly prepared dishes

The owner said the eatery would be perfect for diners in the coronavirus crisis

Diners in China can now go to a restaurant and finish a meal without talking to - or even meeting - a human worker.

A restaurant entirely staffed by robots has opened in the southern province of Guangdong, with more than 20 types of machines doing everything from waiting, cooking, food delivering and coffee making.

The futuristic eatery would be a perfect solution for customers who worry about catching COVID-19, the owner said.

http://www.scoopyweb.com/2020/07/china-opens-restaurant-manned-entirely.html

GOP senators debate replacing Columbus Day with Juneteenth as a federal holiday

Republican senators are debating whether Juneteenth, a day that commemorates the end of slavery in the United States, should replace Columbus Day on the federal government’s list of official holidays.

A bipartisan bill sponsored by Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) to make Juneteenth a federal holiday is being held up by an internal Senate GOP squabble.

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), an outspoken budget hawk, doesn’t want to add another paid holiday to the calendar.

Johnson says if Juneteenth is made a federal holiday, another paid federal holiday should come off the schedule. He’s proposing scrapping Columbus Day but is open to eliminating another holiday instead.

“I’m just saying let’s replace it with something. I chose Columbus Day just because it’s probably the most lightly celebrated and less disruptive to anybody’s schedule” to cut from the calendar of federal holidays, he said.

Johnson on Wednesday said “we have an alternate bill” and that he is “talking to some of my colleagues.”

Johnson said he’s “happy to celebrate the emancipation with a national holiday but I just don’t think we should be, when we’re already blowing a hole in the budget right now, offering another paid day off for federal employees.”

Cornyn, who is up for reelection this fall, has put his bill in the “hotline,” which means he’s checking in with Senate colleagues about moving his Juneteenth bill to the floor soon and passing it by unanimous consent or voice vote. But Johnson has put a hold on the legislation.

Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) is a co-sponsor of Johnson’s proposal, according to a draft of legislative text obtained by The Hill.

A Republican aide said Johnson’s proposal has been filed as a substitute amendment to Cornyn’s bill making Juneteenth a federal holiday.

Cornyn, however, says it would be “problematic” to cut Columbus Day, which celebrates the Italian explorer who is widely credited with being the first European to discover the American continent. Columbus Day has long been popular with Italian Americans, in particular.

Cornyn said swapping in Juneteenth and cutting out Columbus Day “dilutes the message we’re trying to send, which is one of being respectful and honoring and remembering our history.”

“I think that’s problematic,” he said of the Johnson counteroffer. “We’re working through all those things right now we just don’t have an answer right this second.”

Cornyn, who faces a potentially competitive reelection race, introduced his bill with Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) to make Juneteenth a federal holiday last month. Its co-sponsors include Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine).

The Senate passed a resolution sponsored by Cornyn honoring Juneteenth last month. The day is celebrated by 47 states, including Texas, as well as the District of Columbia.

https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/505449-gop-senators-debate-replacing-columbus-day-with-juneteenth-as-a-federal

Mothers play an increasingly large and shocking role in South-East Asian child sexual abuse

When Australian Federal Police raided the home of a Queensland paedophile, they were shocked to discover who was supplying him with child abuse material: the mother of his victims.

Thirty six-year-old Vilma faced the typical challenges of many Filipinos in impoverished areas like Cebu: with four children between the ages of seven and 11, she sought new ways to earn money.

Over the course of five years, Vilma recorded videos and photos, and livestreamed her children performing sexual acts online for paedophiles in Australia, the US and Germany.

Each crime earned her between $15 and $613 AUD.

Paedophiles would contact her via social media platforms such as Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp. In real time, the children were then forced to commit sexual acts via webcam for the gratification of these men.

One girl later said she had lost count of the number of times she had been abused in livestream videos at the behest of her mother.

It was only when the AFP raided the Queensland man's home that Vilma's criminal enterprise was uncovered.

They found evidence showing he was regularly paying for livestream videos of children in the Philippines.

In 2018, Vilma was convicted of trafficking and jailed for 20 years. She was also ordered to pay large sums in damages to her own children.

The Queensland man was one of three Australians to be convicted over their role in the abuse of children in the Philippines.

Vilma's four children were placed in state care where they received therapy, counselling and rehabilitation services. They now live with a foster family.

But other children in South-East Asia have not been as lucky to escape the woman facilitating their abuse.

Why are women selling their own children?

The online sexual abuse of children is skyrocketing across many countries in the region. The Philippines is the global epicentre, with an estimated 300,000 cases of abuse since March alone.

Much of it is driven by poverty or financial opportunism, widespread internet access, and English language proficiency.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-02/south-east-asian-mums-sell-child-abuse-material-to-paedophiles/12407294

MASSIVE CDC FRAUD UNCOVERED – CDC Grossly Overcounting Active China Coronavirus Cases Causing States to Keep Their Economies Closed Indefinitely

The CDC is over counting the number of China coronavirus cases in an apparent effort to keep the country shut down throughout the summer. This fraudulent activity was uncovered by the far-left Atlantic proving even a dead clock is right twice a day.

On May 21, 2020, the Atlantic reported that the CDC was over counting the number of cases of individuals with the China coronavirus:

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is conflating the results of two different types of coronavirus tests, distorting several important metrics and providing the country with an inaccurate picture of the state of the pandemic. We’ve learned that the CDC is making, at best, a debilitating mistake: combining test results that diagnose current coronavirus infections with test results that measure whether someone has ever had the virus. The upshot is that the government’s disease-fighting agency is overstating the country’s ability to test people who are sick with COVID-19. The agency confirmed to The Atlantic on Wednesday that it is mixing the results of viral and antibody tests, even though the two tests reveal different information and are used for different reasons.

This is not merely a technical error. States have set quantitative guidelines for reopening their economies based on these flawed data points.

Several states—including Pennsylvania, the site of one of the country’s largest outbreaks, as well as Texas, Georgia, and Vermont—are blending the data in the same way. Virginia likewise mixed viral and antibody test results until last week, but it reversed course and the governor apologized for the practice after it was covered by the Richmond Times-Dispatch and The Atlantic. Maine similarly separated its data on Wednesday; Vermont authorities claimed they didn’t even know they were doing this.

By including both active cases with cases of individuals who had the China coronavirus in the past, the CDC is grossly overstating the number of active cases in the US. Unfortunately, states like Texas and Florida have reset their economic reopening time tables based on this bogus data.

Apparently the CDC is still co-mingling these results. Forbes reported last week:

A report released Thursday from the Government Accountability Office levied criticism at the CDC for combining active cases of the coronavirus and positive antibody tests, which may give a misleading view of nationwide testing and spread.

The far-left New York Times also reported last week on the GAO’s report:

The report also criticized the C.D.C.’s counting of coronavirus tests, which combines tests for an active infection and those that detect antibodies. This practice inflates the percentage of Americans that appear to have been tested and gives an unreliable picture of the way the virus is spreading around the country, according to the new report. After the C.D.C. was criticized last month for combining the two types of tests in its reports, the agency promised to separate them. But as of June 9, it had still not resolved the issue, the office reported.

The CDC’s method of reporting the number of active cases is totally flawed. It is fraudulent. The CDC counts individuals who show that they had the China coronavirus in their counts of individuals who are identified currently with the virus. This data is then used by states to determine whether to open our shut down their economies.

Is there anything about this China coronavirus that is valid and accurate?

Americans are being played by their own politicians, ignorant medical ‘experts’ and government agencies. Who needs enemies when your own government is this corrupt?

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/07/huge-massive-cdc-fraud-uncovered-cdc-grossly-overcounting-active-china-coronavirus-cases-causing-states-keep-economies-closed-indefinitely/