12:15 am MST 12-18
Las Vegas Shooting update...Americans in a state of zombified terror
*Three Eye-Witnesses to the Las Vegas Shooting* Watch the above video which I found on the blog Intellihub yesterday. It is an astounding peep into what is going on in contemporary America. A street corner, in this case, Las Vegas, is the site of a chance meeting between five Americans. One, the fellow dressed in the "Uncle Sam" costume, looks to be a "street entertainer". He has a couple of wooden props, one a cutout of Hillary in the nude and the other is Trump. He is trying to attract the attention of passers by and engage them in humorous political jokes. There is a camer... more »
Greece set to win €1.75bn from EU climate scheme to build two coal plants
By Paul Homewood h/t Henning Nielsen You could not make it up! From the Guardian: Greece appears on track to win access to a controversial EU programme that could earmark up to €1.75bn (£1.56bn) in free carbon allowances for the building of two massive coal-fired power plants. The 1100MW coal stations will […]
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg: Do What I Say Not What I Do
*The Babylon Bee:* *‘Internet Service Providers Should Not Be Able To Decide What People Can See Online,’ Says Man Who Decides What People Can See Online* MENLO PARK, CA—Tech titan Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, came out strongly against the repeal of net neutrality Friday, calling the rollback of the Obama-era regulation an “injustice.” “Internet Service Providers should not be able to decide what people can see online,” the man who decides what two billion people can see online every day said in a Facebook video that was placed in front of the precise amount of people he wis... more »
Tim Canova On The Blue America Gung Ho Contest
As you may know, Blue America is trying to help the congressional candidates we've endorsed raise some last minute campaign funds to close out the year. Our friend Nancy Ohanian gave us a signed print she did, *Gung Ho!* as a prize for one lucky contributor. Monday at noon we'll be picking one contributor, randomly. To bolster our efforts, Tim Canova sent his own supporters this team-work letter I want to share with you. Dear Sisters and Brothers, The very first progressive group to endorse our campaign last year against Debbie Wasserman Schultz was Blue America, and Blue Ameri... more »
A Marry Christmas to Andrew, Rob & the Gang
A festive Andrew Marr Mr. Marr's final Sunday morning sermon of the year - the one for the third week of Advent - began: Good morning, and welcome to our last show of the year. What a year it's been! Back in 2016, we had Brexit, we had Donald Trump's election, and all those bloodthirsty leadership tussles. And we thought, "Wow - 2017 is going to be a lot calmer than that." But then what happened? The unexpected general election, its unexpected result, a weakened but resilient Prime Minister struggling on, and the drama of the Corbyn surge. 2018 is going to be really, really quiet. ... more »
Robert Mueller obtained thousands of Trump transition team emails during the summer and the Trump folks had no idea he had them.
Courtesy of Axios: *Special Counsel Robert Mueller has obtained “many tens of thousands" of Trump transition emails, including emails of Jared Kushner, transition team sources tell Axios. * *Trump officials discovered Mueller had the emails when his prosecutors used them as the basis for questions to witnesses, the sources said. * *The emails include 12 accounts, one of which contains about 7,000 emails, the sources said. * *The accounts include the team's political leadership and the foreign-policy team, the sources said. * *Why it matters: * *The transition emails are said to... more »
Dept. Covering Up Details as Cop Charged with First-Degree Rape of Disabled Person
A sheriff’s deputy has been charged with first-degree rape for sexually assaulting a person who was physically helpless, in his home.
Light entertainment
Me Nothing to do with BBC bias really (well not much), but I read a couple of comments at *Biased BBC *this afternoon concerning the dastardly anti-Brexit activities of "My Lord Matlock Brown". I scratched my brains for a while, having never heard of him, and then Googled around and found it was actually the infamous Lord Malloch Brown, of Gordon Brown Era 'fame'. (Oh, I remember* that *bounder all too well!). My well-scratched brain then set about thinking how that particular Freudian slip on the *B-BBC* commenter's part might have come about. So, Kelly Holmes-like, I donned my ... more »
Russian Diplomacy Has Limits In Syria
*(Click on Image to Enlarge) * UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura gives a press conference closing a round of Intra Syria peace talks at the European headquarters of the United Nations offices in Geneva, on December 14, AFP PHOTO / Fabrice COFFRINI *Reuters/Haaretz*:* As Russia Redraws the Map in Syria, Putin and Iran Are Left With One Major Disagreement* *Russian diplomacy in Syria is not seen as likely to yield a peace deal, while Putin and Iranian leaders differ on how best to deal with Syria's armed Kurds* With the map of Syria's conflict decisively redrawn in Presi... more »
New Austrian government to be sworn in tomorrow. Populist Freedom Party obtains power over police, army and their secret services….
The populist Freedom Party has secured the key posts of foreign, interior and defence in Austria’s new coalition government, putting it in charge of the police and army and their secret services. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-42379985 Herbert Kickl is set to be the new Interior Ministry and Mario Kunasek the new Defence Minister. Meanwhile the Foreign Ministry has […]
This Day In Iraqi History - Dec 17
1997 Iraq banned UN weapons inspectors from presidential and sovereign sites 1999 UN Res 1284 created UNMOVIC as new Iraq WMD inspection regime 1999 UN Res 1284 got rid of export oil quotas and eased import restrictions under Oil for Food Program 2001 Incoming Sec of State Powell said sanctions on Iraq should continue because it still had WMD 2001 Iraqi defector Haideri provided by INC told CIA Iraq had secret WMD labs He later failed lie detector test and story proved false 2001 Czech Intel said story of 9/11 hijacker Atta meeting with Iraqi in... more »
Musings On Iraq In The News
Was cited by the International Organization for Migration in “Integrated Location Assessment II, Part I Thematic Overview” and "Integrated Location Assessment II, Part II Governorate Profiles".
RIP Bechir
*RIP Bechir * *Bechir was an alternative journalist going after MSM journalists in Sweden using their methods. He turned the table on them. He is well known and well loved in Sweden. He exposed some information on a very famous journalist in Sweden and his George Soros connection. He was found dead in his home a few days later. No cause of death know or released to the public. Some on you from Norden know of him. He started a Facebook group called, White Girls Matter. Did this because he was a father with daughters and wanted to shed some light on the growing rape epidemic in Swe... more »
AT THE NEW YORK TIMES, FAILURE IS AN ORPHAN, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT'S DELIBERATE REPUBLICAN FAILURE
Here's a headline that appeared on the front page of the *New York Times* website earlier this morning: Similar wording is used in the print *Times*: Right -- Republicans didn't *consciously and knowingly decide* to keep the tax code complicated. They just found simplicity "elusive." They tried to simplify, darn it! The front-page headline has been changed to echo the headline of the online story itself: "File Your Taxes on a Postcard? A G.O.P. Promise Marked Undeliverable." But even that headline fails to convey the notion that Republicans *deliberately chose* to do what they ... more »
In 1943, Spain's Axis Volunteers Stopped a Russian Advance at Horrendous Cost
*Robert Beckhusen* *Security, * The death of the spanish blue division. On the frigid morning of Feb. 10, 1943, the 5,900 soldiers of the 250th “Blue” Infantry Division — Spanish volunteers fighting for the Axis on the Eastern Front of World War II — were sitting in their trenches and dugouts when the high-explosive shells fired from hundreds of Soviet artillery pieces fell from the sky. For those soldiers, the world turned into fire. Two hours later, three Soviet infantry divisions stormed into the Axis defensive positions, marking the beginning of the battle of Krasny Bor, an ... more »
News from Australia that you won't learn about from the BBC - Australia: Gangs of African youths go on a violent stealing rampage at the beach
'Approximately 200 black African youths went on a rampage, attacking and robbing locals and tourists at Melbourne's St Kilda beach early on Thursday morning.' More here http://the-eyeontheworld.blogspot.co.uk/2017/12/australia-gangs-of-african-youths-go.html but obviously not on the institutionally pro unlimited immigration BBC.
World News Briefs -- December 17, 2017
*Newsweek: **North Korea Missile Launch Fears as Tens of Thousands Mourn Dead Leaders* On the anniversary of the death of former North Korea leader Kim Jong-Il, the secretive state has released footage of thousands of mourners bowing and laying flowers at the feet of statues of Jong-Il—who died on December 17, 2011—and national founder Kim Il Sung. Senior party officials also visited a mausoleum on the outskirts of North Korea’s capital Pyongyang that contains the body of Kim Il Sung, according to local media, on the day that experts feared Kim Jong Un may launch a new missile te... more »
Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- December 17, 2017
*Benjamin Bahney and Patrick B. Johnston, Foreign Affairs*: *ISIS Could Rise Again* *What Its Last Resurrection Says About Its Future in Iraq and Syria* “The dream of a liberation is now a reality,” Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi proclaimed last week, when his forces drove ISIS from a few final strongholds. Abadi’s declaration of victory did not seem unwarranted. After three years, Iraqi and Kurdish fighters, backed by an 80-country U.S.-led coalition, have reclaimed all of the territory ISIS once controlled in Iraq and the key cities it held in Syria. The Islamic State no l... more »
Neither A Science Nor A Theology
Like Martin Luther five hundred years ago, Steve Keen -- who teaches at the London School of Economics, -- has called for a reformation of his discipline. Larry Elliott writes: Keen and those supporting him (full disclosure: I was one of them) were making a simple point as he used Blu Tack to stick their 33 theses to one of the world’s leading universities: economics needs its own Reformation just as the Catholic church did 500 years ago. Like the medieval church, orthodox economics thinks it has all the answers. Complex mathematics is used to mystify economics, just as congregati... more »
Untitled
From Jenna Orkin Trump Administration Moves To Kill Rules For Organic Eggs The EPA Hired a Major Republican Opposition Research Firm to Track Press Activity Who Ya Gonna Fight? Landmark Treaty Signed To Create EU Army Drugmaker Raises The Price Of Vitamins By 800%, Makes Shkreli Blush Iran Joins EAEU - 45 Years Of US Foreign Policy Down The Drain FBI Edits To Clinton Exoneration Go Far Beyond What Was Previously Known; Comey, McCabe, Strzok Implicated Canadian Billionaire, Wife, Found Dead In "Suspicious" Suicide Former British Prime Minister David Cameron to spearhead $1 billio... more »
‘A reckless con man as president’: LA Times burns Trump to the ground in brutal editorial
‘A reckless con man as president’: LA Times burns Trump to the ground in brutal editorial
Court Rules It’s OK for Cops to Turn Dash Cams Off While They Search Citizens’ Vehicles
[image: court]An Appeals Court ruled that a police officer was justified in turning off his Dash Cam for 20 minutes while officers illegally searched a vehicle for drugs.
‘A reckless con man as president’: LA Times burns Trump to the ground in brutal editorial
‘A reckless con man as president’: LA Times burns Trump to the ground in brutal editorial
London borough passes a motion saying that Donald Trump is simply not welcome in their area of the city.
Donald Trump is not welcome here.Courtesy of The Independent: *A London council has called on the Government to revoke its state visit invitation to the “bigoted” US President after he shared messages from a far-right group. * *A motion passed by the Royal Borough of Greenwich vowed that Donald Trump “would not be welcome” in the area if the engagement goes ahead. * *Councillors said they were alarmed by Donald Trump’s decision to retweet Islamophobic posts by Jayda Fransen, the deputy leader of Britain First.“* *Council further notes with sadness the President’s bigoted attitude... more »
Aliens and Secret Defense Department Budgets
If you haven't read this article, you should: Helene Cooper, Ralph Blumenthal, and Leslie Keandec (2017, December 16). Glowing Auras and ‘Black Money’: The Pentagon’s Mysterious U.F.O. Program. The New York Times, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/16/us/politics/pentagon-program-ufo-harry-reid.html?_r=0 WASHINGTON — In the $600 billion annual Defense Department budgets, the $22 million spent on the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program was almost impossible to find.... ...The program collected video and audio recordings of reported U.F.O. incidents, including footage from... more »
Roy Cohn’s Men: McCarthy, the Mafia, Trump, Murdoch, Roger Stone, Manafort; the John Birch Society and the Kochs
Interesting that both Murdoch’s Wall Street Journal and the John Birch Society appear opposed to investigation of Russian tampering in … Continue reading →
BREAKING: Jihadi rebels massively attack Syrian Army in north Hama
DAMASCUS, SYRIA (3:20 P.M.) – Jihadi militants in north and north-west Hama countryside launched, today, a massive assault against Syrian Army positions as well as the Christian city of Mahardah. Led by the al-Qaeda-linked Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham and the FSA-affiliated Central Division, the attack began with militants heavily shelling three government-controlled checkpoints (namely Zalaqiyat, Abu […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز
Video: Syrian army advances on Al-Qaeda positions in Idlib
DAMASCUS, SYRIA (01:15 PM) – Video footage shown by Syrian television broadcasting agency Sama TV shows an operation by the Syrian Arab Army that resulted in the capture of strategic positions from Hayyat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in southern Idlib countryside. The Syrian armed forces successfully drove the Al-Qaeda affiliated group from the Zahraa and Khanzir […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز
Video: Al Qaeda in West Damascus pocket on brink of being squashed
DAMASCUS, SYRIA (01:00 PM) – The situation for Hayyat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Al-Qaeda affilated terrorist group formerly known as the Al-Nusra Front, seems more dire than ever, now that the Syrian Arab Army has tightened the noose around the central town of Magher al-Meir even more after a successful offensive on Saturday. The Syrian […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز
Saudis massacre twelve women during wedding in Yemen
DAMASCUS, YEMEN (12:35 PM) – A Saudi airstrike on a wedding ceremony in the northern Yemeni province of Ma’rib on Saturday has resulted in the death of twelve women, all of them civilians. The air strike targeted a procession that took place after a wedding in the Qaramesh region of the province. Witnesses state that […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز
Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading. - Matt Bruenig writes that the concentration of wealth and power which is largely being attributed to crony capitalism is a natural byproduct of laissez-faire economics as well: An economy that distributes the national income based solely on the marginal productivity of each unit of capital and labor is an economy that will still feature massive levels of inequality and poverty. This is so for three reasons: 1. Around half of the population neither works nor owns a considerable amount of capital. Their true factor income is around $0. ... more »
US Defense Secretary Mattis REJECTS war on Iran
James "Mad Dog" Mattis has injected some sanity into mad Nikki Haley's tirades. More The post US Defense Secretary Mattis REJECTS war on Iran appeared first on The Duran.
Duterte hits back at Catholic Church after clerics tried to undermine drug war
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte's newfound support for homosexual marriage is a move which could politically checkmate a perennial opponent. More The post Duterte hits back at Catholic Church after clerics tried to undermine drug war appeared first on The Duran.
Billionaire Owners of Global Pharma Empire Found Dead Under “Suspicious” Conditions
[image: dead]Police have launched an investigation, citing "suspicious" conditions after the heirs to a billion dollar pharmaceutical company were found dead in their home.
Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- December 17, 2017
*VOA:* *Trump Set to Unveil First National Security Strategy * President Donald Trump is set to unveil on Monday his strategy to counter what he considers the most dire global threats to the United States. Trump's national security adviser, H.R. McMaster, gave a preview of the administration's new national security policy on Tuesday at a conference hosted by the London-based policy research organization Policy Exchange. "Geopolitics are back and they are back with a vengeance," McMaster told the audience. McMaster said Trump's policy is driven by four key priorities: protecting t... more »
Expert: EMP Weapons Are a "Loony Idea"
*Dave Majumdar* *Security, * But does North Korea have any? What sort of damage could they do? If a war were to breakout on the Korean peninsula over Pyongyang’s development of long-range intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and its thermonuclear weapons development efforts, the resulting conflict would be catastrophic even if it remained purely conventional. Worse still would be if nuclear weapons were used—which could ultimately escalate into Armageddon. While the devastation that nuclear weapons can wrought on to cities and other population centers is obvious, the use... more »
North Korea May Soon Test Another Nuclear Weapon (The Only Question Is Where)
*Dave Majumdar* *Security, Asia* Like in the atmosphere. North Korea continues to work on tunnels it used for nuclear test, despite recent tremors according to imagery analysis by the 38 North project at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. That might mean that North Korea might test and another nuclear weapon at some point in the not so distant future. “Recent commercial satellite imagery indicates that despite the continuation of small tremors near Mt. Mantap since North Korea’s last nuclear test, tunnel work at the Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site is still un... more »
Russia and NATO: Headed for a Missile Arms Race in Europe?
*Dave Majumdar* *Security, Europe* The reason: The INF Treaty might be dead. The NATO alliance is urging Moscow to return to compliance with the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces bilateral U.S.-Russia treaty, which bans land-based missiles that have ranges between 500km and 5,500km. “Allies have identified a Russian missile system that raises serious concerns,” reads a statement from the alliance. “NATO urges Russia to address these concerns in a substantial and transparent way, and actively engage in a technical dialogue with the United States.” The alliance says its welc... more »
As DoD Admits to UFO Program, Shocking Video Released Showing Alien Encounter
[image: ufo]After the Department of Defense admitted to spending millions on a UFO program, a video was declassified showing a shocking encounter with an unknown craft.
Sunday morning music
Let's have some music by a group my father loved. I can remember hearing him play their LP's over and over again in his study. Here's Herb Alpert and his Tijuana Brass, from the 1960's. Oh, *boy,* do those bring back memories of my childhood . . . Peter
The Plundering Of America
I didn't realize that urbanologist Richard Florida was overtly political. I guess Trump is pissing him off as much as he's pissing off the rest of the country-- and the world.. Yesterday Florida tweeted that "It is the sole motivation of our plutocratic president & leadership. They look at Putin & say: "I can do a lot better plundering the US ..." He was commenting on this David Sirota report at *International Business Times*. The just of Sirota's article was that on Friday night Trump added a little clause into the Tax Scam bill to further enrich himself. Has any other president e...more »
U.S. Military Declassifies 62 Nuclear Explosion Videos
*Business Insider:* *Newly declassified videos of Cold War atomic blasts reveal the terrifying power of nuclear weapons* * The US government has uploaded 62 newly declassified nuclear-explosion videos to YouTube. * The footage is a small share of the 10,000 Cold War-era films that archivists and physicists are trying to rescue. * Re-analysis of the old movies will help the military modernize its nuclear weapons stockpile — and maybe prevent their use. Nuclear weapons researchers and archivists working for the US government have declassified 62 never-before-seen films of atomic expl... more »
Musician Arrested, Strip Searched, Thrown in Jail for Singing Without A License
[image: musician]When a street musician was harassed by police, he asked them where he could legally play music, and they arrested him—he is now facing nearly $250 in fines.
"Why the Left Loves Islam EXPLAINED"
https://youtu.be/gAcu0Rsfi6I A must watch video if you want to understand the left's obsession with supporting Islam. Remember that a society that prefers equality to freedom will have neither. If you want to know where Jeremy Corbyn's Labour Party is leading us, remember the Kulaks.
Female Democratic candidate running for a Congressional seat in Kansas drops out over sexual harassment allegations. Well you knew it had to happen sometime.
Courtesy of the Kansas City Star: *Andrea Ramsey, a Democratic candidate for Congress, will drop out of the race after the Kansas City Star asked her about accusations in a 2005 lawsuit that she sexually harassed and retaliated against a male subordinate who said he had rejected her advances. * *Multiple sources with knowledge of the case told The Star that the man reached a settlement with LabOne, the company where Ramsey was executive vice president of human resources. Court documents show that the man, Gary Funkhouser, and LabOne agreed to dismiss the case permanently after m... more »
The Kochs’ Anti-Civil Rights Roots: Docs Expose Charles Koch’s Ties to John Birch Society
By DemocracyNow.org: “The Kochs’ Anti-Civil Rights Roots: New Docs Expose Charles Koch’s Ties to John Birch Society, JULY 08, 2014 … Continue reading →
Seasons Greetings and THANK YOU to Colchester Council for the Best Gift!
In November the Maldon Standard reported that “COUNCILLORS will do everything they can to block the potential development of a…
Untitled
*Student campaigners branded Oxford professor 'bigoted' and his article 'racist'* *It's the students who were able to see only one side of the question who are the real bigots* Oxford students have branded an eminent professor ‘bigoted’ after he suggested feelings of guilt around British colonialism may have gone too far. Nigel Biggar, regius professor of moral and pastoral theology at Christ Church college, said society should take a more balanced view of the Empire rather than simply remembering it with shame. He acknowledged ‘atrocities’ had occurred under colonial rule, but ... more »
Untitled
*A mechanical engineer tries to use commonsense to discredit climate skepticism* *His name is Rich Brager. His effort is below and shows how shallow his understanding of the issues is.My first smile was his credulous belief that scientific fraud is "pretty rare". I wonder how he explains that in both psychology and medicine up to two thirds of all findings have recently been found to be unreplicable? The level of fraud may vary but its frequency shows that treating scientists as an authority is naive. The only authority is the facts.And his idea of how scient... more »
Here, this should help to start your day off right.
"There's no better time than the holidays to reach out and give back to our communities," former Pres. Obama says, showing up with a bundle of presents to surprise a group of middle schoolers pic.twitter.com/PfqTsxI8Fr — CBS News (@CBSNews) December 15, 2017 The conservative argument that Barack and Michelle Obama were not pro-Christmas was always ridiculous. And look here they are demonstrating the Christmas spirit far more effectively than some people we could mention.
This Damaged F-22 Raptor Is Flying Again
F-22 *Popular Mechanics*: *After Six Years, Damaged F-22 Raptor Will Fly Again* The incident highlights just how tough the stealth jet is. Six years after an accident that nearly saw the jet written off, a U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor is about to take to the skies again. The fifth-generation fighter was damaged during a training mission in 2012 that sent it skidding thousands of feet down an air base runway. Now, after extensive repairs, the stealth jet is about to re-enter service. The Raptor was damaged on May 31, 2012, when a trainee pilot was conducting touch and go landings at T... more »
Autism Reflections and the Jesse Tree
By Cathy Jameson Every evening for the last two weeks, I’ve read a page from a book called The Jesse Tree. Bought years ago when I was still teaching, the book rests on a shelf in my living room for...
Turkey’s President Erdogan in thinly veiled attack on Saudi Arabia
Erdogan is using Saudi's unofficial but widely known ties to Israel to assert a leadership position over Palestine. More The post Turkey’s President Erdogan in thinly veiled attack on Saudi Arabia appeared first on The Duran.
Shades of Orwell
The thought police are increasingly active in Trumps Americka, 'The Trump administration is prohibiting officials at the nation’s top public health agency from using a list of seven words or phrases — including “fetus” and “transgender” — in any official documents being prepared for next year’s budget. Policy analysts at the *Centers for Disease Control and Prevention* in Atlanta were told of the list of forbidden words at a meeting Thursday with senior CDC officials who oversee the budget, according to an analyst who took part in the 90-minute briefing. The forbidden words are “vuln... more »
What Good is the Holy Fire?
My focus here is on not the sceptics who doubt the miraculous nature of the Holy Fire. My focus rather is on the significance of the miracle itself. The post What Good is the Holy Fire? appeared first on OrientalReview.org.
President Trump To Remove ‘Climate Change’ From The List of National Security Threats
Ice storm rolls from Texas to Tennessee - I'm in Los Angeles and it's freezing. Global warming is a total, and very expensive, hoax! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 6, 2013 *Daily Mail:* *Trump 'will REMOVE climate change from the list of national security threats': President 'set to reverse Obama's policy so he can prioritize other threats'* * President Trump is said to have removed climate change as a priority from his National Security Strategy * In previous years, the issue was placed prominently among other threats to the country * In Trump's version due to be... more »
Dramatically different headlines about the "far right" Prague conference
Tomio Okamura, the Czech-Japanese leader of the Czech nationalist party, SPD, who got over 10% in recent elections was naturally viewed as a counterpart of Marine Le Pen in France or Geert Wilders in the Netherlands. She has endorsed him before the elections, and so forth. I think Okamura is an articulate politician with perfect Czech who proposes "direct democracy", a ban on Islam, and other things. But I think that in many debates, he was able to talk about lots of more general political questions as well – although I don't claim to agree with him on a majority of those – so I thi... more »
Breaking: Syrian Army captures new areas near occupied Golan Heights
BEIRUT, LEBANON (11:00 A.M.) – The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) continued their large-scale offensive near the occupied Golan Heights today, capturing new areas that were previously occupied by the jihadist rebels of Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham. Led by their elite 42nd Brigade of the 4th Mechanized Division, the Syrian Army struck Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham’s positions east […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز
Israeli forces detain man and stun grenade journalists in East Jerusalem
BEIRUT, LEBANON (10:55 A.M.) – At least one person was detained by Israeli security forces in East Jerusalem on Saturday, as unrest continued over US President Donald Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Footage from the scene shows Israeli forces rushing down a street, before apprehending a man and pinning him […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز
Peru’s President Facing Impeachment Vote
*New York Times:* *Peru’s President Faces Possible Ouster in Corruption Scandal* LIMA, Peru — Lawmakers voted on Friday to begin proceedings that could oust President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski of Peru, the latest leader accused of involvement in a corruption scandal that has shaken some of Latin America’s biggest countries. The dispute involves Odebrecht, a Brazilian construction giant, which last year admitted to paying roughly $800 million in payoffs in exchange for lucrative projects. That revelation set off a flurry of investigations by prosecutors and lawmakers, principally in L... more »
Sermonette and Caulking Off
As my grandson, age 3, (below-right) prepares for Christmas by wearing a knit hat in 80 degree Southern California weather, the political season grinds down. Is it Christmas yet? Things were supposed to slow down for Christmas but that hasn't worked out for me. Drat. I have a trip planned to visit a troubled Latin American country for work that I'm trying to put off until after the holidays. I feel (just a little) bad that some of my guys away from home, making money for me and I'm trying to caulk off *1*. After a meeting on Thursday, it was off to the Mogollon Rim and a visit t... more »
Predicting ultrafiltration performance using Principal Component Analysis
Teychene B, Touffet A, Baron J, Welte B, Joyeux M, Gallard H. Predicting of ultrafiltration performances by advanced data analysis. Water research. 2017 Nov 9;129:365-374. doi: 10.1016/j.watres.2017.11.023. In order to optimize drinking water production operation, membrane users can use several analytical tools that help membrane fouling prediction … Continue reading →
This Stealth Drone Has No Moving Surfaces at All
BAE Systems Popular Mechanics: *New Stealth Drone Has No Moving Surfaces at All* *The result is a lighter, simpler, stealthier airplane harder for radar to detect.* BAE Systems has unveiled a new aircraft design that could be a major advance in stealth technology. The new MAGMA drone does away with aircraft control surfaces, resulting in an aircraft whose shape remains constant throughout its entire flight. The small demonstration aircraft, which has completed a successful first flight, uses blown air to change direction instead of complex mechanical controls. *Read more* .... *... more »
Trump to CDC: These Seven Words Are Now forbidden.
Trump to CDC: These Seven Words Are Now Forbidden – Scientific American Blog Network https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/trump-to-cdc-these-seven-words-are-now-forbidden/?wt.mc=SA_Facebook-Share Advertisements
Mike Philbin art - Introversions & Dichotomies 2017 - Caffe Nero Blackwell Oxford solo show
here's a video: it's not a marketing video, more a 'what's on at my new solo show' on the walls of Caffe Nero on the first floor of Blackwell's book store in Broad Street, Oxford. Show ends Jan 31 2018. All art for sale.
A Look At How The U.S. Navy's Zumwalt-Class Destroyers Could Be Used In A New Korean War
An F-35 Lightning II Carrier Variant over the guided-missile destroyer USS Zumwalt. Flickr/U.S. Navy/Creative Commons. *Robert Farley, National Interest:* *Could North Korea 'Sink' America's New Zumwalt-Class Destroyers?* The USS Michael Monsoor, second of the Zumwalt-class destroyers, recently embarked on trials and will be delivered to the U.S. Navy in the next year. While neither the Monsoor nor its older sister Zumwalt are likely to be ready to contribute to a war on the Korean Peninsula in the near future, the crisis show no signs of abating. As tensions between the United Sta... more »
Midnight Meme Of The Day!
*-by Noah* I've heard it said that everyone has, somewhere on this Earth, a doppelgänger. Doppelgängers are our doubles and they are usually seen as harbingers of bad luck or as an evil twin. How sad would it be if you had a good heart like the Munster family and your doppelgänger was a prominent Republican, or any Republican for that matter. But these three? Well, that's just going way too far! You could never do enough good work to make up for these.
Butterflies And Junk Science
Originally posted on NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT: By Paul Homewood ? ?Camille Parmesan ? Climate scientist, Camille Parmesan, is one of the recipients of President Macron’s largesse in awarding $70 million to US scientists. I wonder whether the French public realise how much junk science they will be paying for. ? Parmesan…
SU-30 Pilot Who Provided Escort For Russian President Putin's Plane Explains That Their Job Is To Attract Possible Enemy Missiles With Their Engine's Heat Signature
*RT:* *Su-30 pilot who covered Putin’s plane in Syria: Jets were ‘heat traps’ for possible enemy missiles * One of the Su-30SM pilots who covered Vladimir Putin’s plane on his recent trip to Syria opened up on the mission. The jets were “heat traps” ready to take possible enemy missiles upon themselves, he said. “In this case, the task was to meet [the Russian President’s plane] and escort it to the landing strip,” a pilot named Yury told a Rossiya 1 correspondent at the Russian Khmeimim airbase in western Syria. “One of the tasks was to hereby cover it with ourselves, roughly say... more »
Tweets For Today
The Socialist Communal board of a Chavista enclave in Caracas has created its own currency, the Panal, to fight cash scarcity, hyperinflation and price-gouging. pic.twitter.com/9zrRlmo7X4 — AFP news agency (@AFP) December 16, 2017 New EU Defense Pact: Who’s Doing What | via @POLITICOEurope @jacopobarigazzi #EU #EUdefence #NATO https://t.co/LINuz6yQBe pic.twitter.com/Wm2vUX6Sns — RealClearDefense (@RCDefense) December 17, 2017 Thousands flee as wildfire 'beast' grows to California's third-largest https://t.co/1kCN9ehpjk — Reuters Top News (@Reuters) December 17, 2017 The West's g... more »
Wars And Rumors Of War: “The Charge of the Light Brigade"
*“The Charge of the Light Brigade"* Compiled By CP All the talk about war, with N. Korea, with Russia, with China, with Iran... "operations" in Libya, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, seemingly everywhere, and endless. Perhaps Mankind does indeed have a death wish- a certain segment of it certainly appears to- and all of history has been mere preparation for some final nuclear-war apocalyptic event. I don't know, but it made me think of this event in history, among others, and I thought I'd share it with you. Food for thought, at least... - CP “All the talk of history is of nothing almost but ... more »
Partial reporting
News in *The Mail on Sunday* that a Conservative MP has been sent death threats and his pregnant wife threatened after the MP heckled Jeremy Corbyn at Prime Minister's *Question Time *has spread into other newspapers' reporting of Mrs May's condemnation of threats and abuses against MPs. The top comment under that *MoS* report reads, "Funny how the likes of the BBC don't report this." When I read the lead story on the BBC News website this morning, *I won't be derailed on Brexit - May*, I noticed that the subheading reads 'Death threats' and thought, 'Well, maybe the BBC* has* repo... more »
Miss Iraq Flees Iraq Over Selfie With Miss Israel
*New York Post*:* Miss Iraq forced to flee over selfie with Miss Israel* *So much for diplomacy by selfie.* Miss Iraq, Sarah Idan, and her family had to flee their homeland after receiving death threats over a photo she posted online last month. Why? Because Idan posed with Miss Israel, Adar Gandelsman, at a Miss Universe International Beauty Pageant, the Times of Israel reported. Idan came under fire for posting the photo to Instagram, captioned, “Peace and Love from Miss Iraq and Miss Israel,” in addition to modeling a bikini. *Read more* .... *WNU Editor:* What did Miss Iraq ... more »
Picture Of The Day
Undercover Israeli security personnel detain a Palestinian demonstrator during clashes at a protest against President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, near the Jewish settlement of Beit El, near the West Bank city of Ramallah. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman *WNU Editor: *The above picture came from this photo-gallery .... *Photos Of The Week* (Reuters).
Watch The Loading Of A Russian Yars Nuclear Missile Into It's Silo? (Video)
*RT:** Delicate job: Russian Yars ICBM loaded into underground shaft (VIDEO) * A missile unit in Kozelsk is the first in Russia being armed with stationary Yars intercontinental ballistic missiles, with the Defense Ministry releasing unique footage of a 50-ton ICBM being loaded into the underground shaft. The video shows the transportation of the giant missile, which is capable of destroying an entire city. The truck carrying the ICBM was accompanied by police, firemen, several APCs and military vehicle *Read more* .... *WNU Editor*: It is not everyday that you see something lik... more »
Musical Interlude: Mike Oldfield, “Tubular Bells Finale”
Mike Oldfield, “Tubular Bells Finale” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAi_3NdMIMQ
"Life Just Is..."
"It is easy to overlook this thought that life just is. As humans we are inclined to feel that life must have a point. We have plans and aspirations and desires. We want to take constant advantage of the intoxicating existence we've been endowed with. But what's life to a lichen? Yet it's impulse to exist, to be, is every bit as strong as ours- arguably even stronger. If I were told that I had to spend decades being a furry growth on a rock in the woods, I believe I would lose the will to go on. Lichens don't. Like virtually all living things, they will suffer any hardship, endure ... more »
"Our Society Is Run By Insane People."
*"Our Society Is Run By Insane People"* “I think our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. And I think that’s what I sussed when I was sixteen and twelve, way down the line. But I expressed it differently all through my life. It’s the same thing I’m expressing all the time. But now I can put it into that sentence that I think we’re being run by maniacs for maniacal ends, you know. If anybody can put on paper what our government, and the American government, and the Russian, Chinese… what they are actually trying to do, and how and what they think they’re doing, I’... more »
Would China Really Go to War with Taiwan over Some Boats?
*James Holmes* *Security, Asia* And why? So now China is overtly threatening cross-strait war should U.S. Navy vessels tarry at seaports in Taiwan. Congress and the Trump administration contemplate such port calls in the text of the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act. President Donald Trump has just signed the act into law. Afterward, diplomat Li Kexin announced that he had informed U.S. officials that Beijing meant to invoke its 2005 “Anti-Secession Law” if Washington does dispatch naval vessels to Taiwan. Under that measure, China’s leadership reserves the right to deploy... more »
The Sig Sauer P226: The Navy SEALs' Favorite Gun
*Kyle Mizokami* *Security, Americas* Can it take on the world's best? For three decades, the U.S. Navy’s Sea Air Land (SEAL) special-forces teams relied on a pistol apart from the rest of the American military. While the Army, the Marine Corps and even the rest of the Navy toted the Beretta M9 pistol, Navy SEALs carried an entirely different handgun altogether: the Sig Sauer P226. In the mid-1980s, the U.S. military finally moved away from the M1911A1 .45 caliber handgun to a new pistol, the Beretta 92FS. Known as the M9 in U.S. service, the Beretta was touted as a modern, safe... more »
The M2 Carbine: America's First Assault Rifle?
*Sebastien Roblin* *Security, Americas* An interesting history—over many wars. Germany is generally credited with developing the first assault rifle with the MP-43, which entered service with select units towards the end of 1943. Later renamed the Sturmgewehr 44—literally “assault rifle 44”—this used an intermediate-strength *kurz* cartridge that balanced the long-range accuracy of heavy, slow-firing bolt-action rifles then prevalent with the automatic-fire capability of submachine guns, which were deadlier at close quarters and capable of laying heavy suppressing fire for infant... more »
South Korea: Arms Dealer to the World?
*Zachary Keck* *Security, Asia* This Korea might be the real military machine. South Korea is quickly becoming a major player in the global arms business, according to a new think-tank report. This week, Sweden’s Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) released the 2016 edition of SIPRI Top 100, its annual report on the exports of the one hundred largest defense companies in the world. Among its findings was that South Korean firms in the Top 100 increased their arms sales by 20.6 percent compared with 2015, making it by far the largest increase among countries... more »
Will U.S. Marines Fight the North Koreans in 'Pajamas?'
*Task and Purpose, Adam Linehan* *Security, Asia* "Pajama"-like tropical uniforms are coming sooner than you think. If the U.S. actually goes back to war with North Korea, American troops are going to need a uniform that is lightweight, breathable, and provides adequate camouflage in the forest, complete with a solid pair of boots for humping up and down all of those big mountains. Fortunately for Marines, the Corps has been working hard to ensure they’ll have both. Lt. Col. Christopher Madeline of Marine Corps Systems Command told Marine Corps Times on Dec. 9 that tropical unifo... more »
Change Is Coming to Cuba
*Scott B. MacDonald* *Security, Americas* [image: A woman cleans the entrance of a building next to a Cuban flag hung up to dry after Hurricane Irma caused flooding and a blackout, in Havana, Cuba September 11, 2017. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini] Cuba’s leaders are now facing the same challenge that dogged their fellow communists in China and Vietnam. Cuba is adrift—it has been more than a year since Fidel Castro, the socialist caudillo, passed from the scene. Despite long-standing predictions that Fidel’s death would spark great changes in the Caribbean island’s political life, ... more »
The Death of a Baltimore Detective
*Maggie Ybarra* *Security, Americas* [image: Police escort Baltimore Police Department homicide detective Sean Suiter from a church in northeast Baltimore to a graveyard in Timonium, Maryland. Maggie Ybarra / Used with permission] The death of a homicide detective investigating a triple murder in Baltimore has sent a shockwave through a city gripped by violence. A cluster of American flags fluttering in the wind at the corner of a vacant lot in West Baltimore marks the spot where the city began to transition from somewhat tolerable pockets of hope, opportunity and chaos into a t... more »
If Aliens Decide To Visit, Would You Want Trump In Charge? Just Asking For A Friend
For some reason, the government wants to keep its UFO programs secret. The Pentagon hides the UFO office and makes it almost impossible to find in its budget requests. Congress obliges with increasingly secretive appropriations for the military UFO hunters, even though the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program went the way of the dodo bird with the retirement of its greatest advocate, Harry Reid. Yesterday, the *NY Times* had a team on the case, which reported that "For years, the program investigated reports of unidentified flying objects, according to Defense Departm... more »
"545 People"
*"545 People"* by Charlie Reese "Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them. Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are really against deficits, WHY do we have deficits? Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are really against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes? • You and I don't propose a federal budget. The president does. • You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of representatives does. • You and I don't write th... more »
Who Will Rebuild Raqqah?
*Alexandra Zavis, L.A. Times:* *Islamic State’s self-styled capital is in ruins and its population scattered. Who will rebuild Raqqah?* *The crowd was seething with frustration.* “We want to go inside!” one man yelled. “They told us when Raqqah is liberated we can go home.” Some of the U.S.-backed fighters who drove Islamic State militants from the Syrian city in October tried to reason with him. It’s not safe, they said. Scores of people have been injured or killed by mines since the fighting ended. “Haram!” the crowd shouted. “This is wrong!” There have been many such testy ex... more »
"Curiosity..."
“Although there may be nothing new under the sun, what is old is new to us and so rich and astonishing that we never tire of it. If we do tire of it, if we lose our curiosity, we have lost something of infinite value, because to a high degree it is curiosity that gives meaning and savour to life.” - Robertson Davies
United Nation's Peacekeepers to take over Chicago???...
*if it's left up to Cook County Commissioner Richard Boykin they will.* I thought at first this was a joke. It only took me about 3 minutes to discover that it is most assuredly not a joke. This mook has has met with the Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations and is hoping he can persuade them to come to Chicago and stop the "genocide" against the blacks. He does grudgingly admit that most of the blacks being killed are being killed by other blacks. He thinks since the U.N. is used to working against genocide in places like Africa, they can also do a great job in Chicag... more »
Recent B-52 Mission Over Afghanistan Dropped A Record-Setting Number Of Precision Munitions
Image: Wikimedia Commons/U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Robert J. Horstman. *Business Insider/American Military News*: *A B-52 in Afghanistan dropped the most bombs ever from a single Stratofortress* * A B-52 Stratofortress dropped a record-setting number of precision munitions in Afghanistan. * The B-52s from the 69th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron are the first to be outfitted with the conventional rotary launcher. * Since the new Afghan strategy to target Taliban drug labs, 25 drug processing labs have been destroyed. A B-52 Stratofortress dropped a record-setting number of pre... more »
Would John Galt Think of Ellsworth Toohey?
There is a scene in Ayn Rand’s *The Fountainhead* in which Ellsworth Toohey accidentally meets Howard Roark in a deserted street. Toohey says to Roark: "Mr. Roark, we're alone here. Why don't you tell me what you think of me? In any words you wish. No one will hear us.” Roark offers Toohey the ultimate put-down. He says: "But I don't think of you.” Let’s imagine a scenario: Toohey gets transported to the fictional landscape of *Atlas Shrugged*, and he bumps into the novel’s hero, John Galt! Toohey says: “Mr. Galt, we're alone here. Why don't you tell me what you think of me? In a... more »
“What Happens After The Next 9/11?"
*“What Happens After The Next 9/11?"* by Doug Casey “Is a police state in the US possible? Absolutely. That’s because people are essentially the same the world over, regardless of their culture, religion, race, or what-have-you. A certain percentage of them are sociopaths. There is a standard distribution of sociopaths across time and space. It’s a function of Pareto’s Law, better known as the 80-20 rule. 20% of the people do 80% of the work. Another 20% are responsible for 80% of the crime. 20% of the population always winds up with 80% of the wealth. And so forth, through all ar... more »
Turkish Prime Minister reiterates support for Palestine amid Jerusalem crisis
Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim on Saturday repeated Ankara’s commitment to support Palestine amid the political crisis sparked by the US decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. On Wednesday, representatives of 57 Muslim countries gathered in Istanbul for an extraordinary Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit on the issue of Washington’s decision […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز
Syrian Army scores big advance near Golan Heights – video
BEIRUT, LEBANON (2:10 A.M.) – The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) advanced to Mughar al-Mir in Beit Jinn near the Golan Heights on Friday. Mughar al-Mir which is a stronghold of militants from Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham formerly part of Jabhat Al-Nusra comes amid the recapturing of Tal Al-Bayda and nearby Tal Maqtoul Al-Gharbiyah. Securing the hilltops […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز
Turkish Army reportedly enters Kurdish enclave in northwest Aleppo
BEIRUT, LEBANON (1:55 A.M.) – The Turkish Army entered the predominately Kurdish Afrin Canton in northwestern Aleppo on Saturday, the pro-YPG Hawar News Agency (ANHA) reported. According to ANHA’s report, the Turkish Army entered the Afrin Canton town of Bailya to open a corridor for their troops to possibly invade this rural region in northern […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز
Thousands honour wheelchair-bound amputee killed by Israeli troops – video
BEIRUT, LEBANON (1:45 A.M.) – Thousands of people paid their respects to Ibrahim Abu Thuraya at his funeral, in eastern Gaza, on Saturday, a wheelchair-bound double amputee who was shot dead by Israeli troops during clashes on Friday. Amongst the crowds of mourners was Hamas leader Ismail Haniya who praised Ibrahim Abu Thuraya saying, “The […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز
ISIS kicked out of Euphrates River Valley after big Syrian Army attack
BEIRUT, LEBANON (12:35 A.M.) – The so-called Islamic State (ISIS) has once again been expelled from the Euphrates River Valley after the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) launched a massive counter-offensive in southeast Deir Ezzor. Led by elements of the Tiger Forces and Liwaa Al-Quds (Palestinian paramilitary), the Syrian Arab Army launched a big assault on […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز
At least 20 killed after Saudi-led Coalition attacks Houthis in Yemen – source
On December, 16 a Saudi-led coalition launched airstrikes against the Houthi movement, also known as Ansar Allah, in western Yemen, a military source told Sputnik Saturday. The airstrike targeting a village in the Al Khokha district of the Al Hudaydah province, where the country’s second largest port is located, killed more than 20 people, a […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز
Chinese Government Officials And Security Experts: China Must Be Ready For A War On The Korean Peninsula
North Korean soldiers stand guard behind the national flags of China, front, and North Korea on a boat anchored along the banks of the Yalu River, near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, on June 10, 2013. Photo: Reuters/Jacky Chen *SCMP:* *‘North Korea is a time bomb’: government advisers urge China to prepare for war* The risk of conflict on the Korean peninsula is the highest its been in decades and Beijing must mobilise resources for fallout, observers say. China must be ready for a war on the Korean peninsula, with the risk of confl... more »
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