[Conservative Tribune] The archivist in charge of transferring former President Barack Obama’s records into the National Archives has run across a serious problem, according to a report published Sunday: A lot of the records are missing.
"A first-rate librarian, (David) Ferriero has been driving a much-needed digital overhaul and expansion of the National Archives over the nine years of his appointment," writer Thomas Lipscomb reported for RealClearPolitics. "This will greatly improve the ability of digital search locally and remotely, as well as accessing the files themselves."
However, that only works if you have the files you need in the first place. And Ferriero, well, doesn’t.
The former president, it must be noted, signed a law that put electronic communications under the 1950 Federal Records Act. However, it doesn’t seem that his practice is quite what he preaches.
Lipscomb wrote that "the accumulation of recent congressional testimony has made it clear that the Obama administration itself engaged in the wholesale destruction and ’loss’ of tens of thousands of government records covered under the act as well as the intentional evasion of the government records recording system by engaging in private email exchanges."
#5
If you are looking for a good shorthand to distinguish the good guys from the bad, you could do worse than assume the ones who destroy records, oppose free speech and find it necessary to lie about their motives and goals are the bad guys.
The Southern Poverty Law Center has reached a settlement with liberal Islamic reformer Maajid Nawaz and his organization, the Quilliam Foundation, for wrongly including them on its now-defunct list of "anti-Muslim extremists."
The SPLC announced Monday that it has agreed to pay Nawaz and Quilliam $3.375 million "to fund their work to fight anti-Muslim bigotry and extremism." The settlement was the result of a lawsuit Nawaz filed in April over his inclusion on the SPLC's "Field Guide to Anti-Muslim Extremists." Thus causing their little brains to explode where they saw a victim class person attacking his own victim class
The list, which was published in 2016 and was intended to serve as a resource for journalists, was deleted shortly after Nawaz filed the suit. The deletion came roughly two years after Nawaz first demanded a retraction.
"The Southern Poverty Law Center was wrong to include Maajid Nawaz and the Quilliam Foundation in our Field Guide to Anti-Muslim Extremists. Since we published the Field Guide, we have taken the time to do more research and have consulted with human rights advocates we respect," SPLC president Richard Cohen said in a statement. "We've found that Mr. Nawaz and Quilliam have made valuable and important contributions to public discourse, including by promoting pluralism and condemning both anti-Muslim bigotry and Islamist extremism. Although we may have our differences with some of the positions that Mr. Nawaz and Quilliam have taken, they are most certainly not anti-Muslim extremists. We would like to extend our sincerest apologies to Mr. Nawaz, Quilliam, and our readers for the error, and we wish Mr. Nawaz and Quilliam all the best." Yeah... bullshit.
You idiots put him on their because he was critical of your favorite victim religious class and hoped to shut him up. Once it became public and it looked like bad press you paid out and hoped it goes away.
Department of Justice inspector general Michael Horowitz, an Obama administration appointee, is scheduled to deliver a report this week on DOJ and FBI abuses during the 2016 campaign cycle. Remember: His last investigation of FBI misconduct advised a criminal referral for fired former deputy FBI director Andrew McCabe, who allegedly lied to federal investigators.
McCabe and at least a half-dozen other FBI employees quit, retired, were fired, or were reassigned as a result of fallout from the politicization of the FBI. Yet, as Barack Obama left office, his chief of staff, Denis McDonough, strangely boasted that the Obama administration "has been historically free of scandal." Obama himself recently concluded of his eight-year tenure, "I didn’t have scandals."
Those were puzzling assertions, given nearly nonstop scandals during Obama’s eight years in office involving the IRS; General Services Administration; Peace Corps; Secret Service; Veterans Administration; and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, not to mention the Clinton email-server scandal, the Benghazi scandal, and the 2016 Democratic National Committee email scandal.
For nearly eight years, the Obama administration sought to cover up serial wrongdoing by waging a veritable war against the watchdog inspectors general of various federal agencies.
In 2014, 47 of the nation’s 73 inspectors general signed a letter alleging that Obama had stonewalled their "ability to conduct our work thoroughly, independently, and in a timely manner."
The frustrated nonpartisan auditors cited systematic Obama-administration refusals to turn over incriminating documents that were central to their investigations.
The administration had purportedly tried to sidetrack an IG investigation into possible misconduct by then‐Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson. In addition, the Obama administration reportedly thwarted IG investigations of Amtrak, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Troubled Asset Relief Program, and the Office of Management and Budget.
Despite the campaign against these independent federal auditors, a number of inspectors general still managed to issue damning indictments of unethical behavior.
In 2012, Horowitz recommended that 14 Justice Department and ATF officials be disciplined for their conduct in the "Fast and Furious" gun-walking scandal.
A 2013 IG audit found that the IRS had targeted conservative groups for special scrutiny prior to the 2012 Obama reelection effort.
In 2014, an internal audit revealed that CIA officials had hacked the Senate Intelligence Committee’s computers while compiling a report on enhanced interrogation techniques. CIA director John Brennan had claimed that his agents were not improperly monitoring Senate staff computer files. He was forced to retract his denials and apologize for his prevarication.
In 2016, the State Department’s inspector general found that Hillary Clinton had never sought approval for her reckless and illegal use of an unsecured private email server. The IG also found that other Clinton aides silenced staffers who were worried about national security being compromised by the unsecured server.
Still, Obama was right in a way: A scandal does not become a scandal if no one acts on findings of improper behavior.
Under former attorneys general Eric Holder and Loretta Lynch, the findings of dozens of IGs were snubbed. That raises the question: What good are inspectors general if a president ignores any illegality and impropriety that they have uncovered?
Answer: not much good at all ‐ unless an incoming administration is of a different political party than the outgoing administration. Once that happens in our politicized system, there is a rare interest in not covering up or ignoring a damning IG report, but in acting on it.
We may now be experiencing one of those unusual occasions.
Soon, various inspector-general reports may appear concerning FISA-court abuse and improper behavior at the Department of Justice, FBI, CIA, and National Security Council during the 2016 campaign cycle. The investigators are, for the most part, Obama appointees, not Trump appointees.
At some point, the idea of toothless inspectors general needs to be revisited. Something is terribly wrong when dozens of IGs found wrongdoing, only to object that their efforts were being thwarted by an Obama administration that had appointed most of them ‐ and claimed to be scandal-free.
Comments
Finding government abuse and doing nothing about it is worse than not finding any at all.
[DW] Chancellor Angela Merkel has got her Interior Minister Horst Seehofer to agree to wait for an upcoming EU summit before imposing new border controls. His asylum reform plan could threaten the EU immigration system. IOW Merkel will gladly make political concessions in two weeks in exchange for Seehofer kowtowing today.
[EpochTimes] A former engineer for British multinational Rolls-Royce was arrested on June 12 after for allegedly passing military trade secrets to China.
Bryn Jones, a former chief combustion technologist employed by Rolls-Royce from 1968 to 1996, was arrested at his home in the United Kingdom, British newspaper The Sun first reported. He is suspected of giving away technological know-how related to a newly purchased Royal Air Force F-35 stealth fighter jet that cost 100 million pounds ($132.7 million).
The 73-year-old engineer was arrested after British intelligence agency MI5 received intelligence that classified information had been passed onto Beijing. He has since been released pending investigation.
Jones is currently a visiting professor of gas turbine combustion at Xi’an Aeronautical University in Xi’an City, Shaanxi Province, according to The Sun.
Rolls-Royce-developed technology is behind the F-35’s lift system that lets it hover and land vertically on aircraft carriers.
British police confirmed on June 14 that a man had been arrested in connection with an investigation under the Official Secrets Act, a British law against espionage. They seized computers and USB drives from Jones’ home.
Police are also looking into whether other information regarding Rolls-Royce’s defense contracts was put at risk, according to The Sun.
The British company is one of the world’s largest defense contractors and a top manufacturer of aircraft engines.
Developed by U.S. defense manufacturer Lockheed Martin, the F-35 fighter jet is among the most expensive weapons programs in history, at nearly $400 billion, according to the U.S. Defense Department.
Acording to Lockheed Martin, about 15 percent by value of each F-35 aircraft—which the company plans to expand to an over 3,000 global fleet—is manufactured in the United Kingdom.
The supersonic F-35 uses stealth technology to avoid being detected by radar and allows pilots to conduct attacks electronically.
The UK plans to buy 138 of the F-35 jets, according to British newspaper The Telegraph.
The Chinese regime has a history of stealing military technology. The Chinese air force’s J-20 fighter jet is widely believed to be a knockoff of the F-35. In 2014, Su Bin, a Chinese national, pleaded guilty to conspiring with Chinese military officers to steal design information and manufacturing technologies for the F-35 and other American fighter jets. Su assisted military hackers to access the computer networks of major U.S. defense contractors, such as aircraft manufacturer Boeing. In 2016, he was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison.
In 2008, the Chinese regime acquired British tech firm Dynex Semiconductor, via a state-owned firm. Dynex manufactures an advanced chip that enables the launching of aircraft from an carrier flight deck using electromagnetic technology. The Chinese navy now employs that same technology.
A different take on the same study can be seen in the next article, below.
[QZ] Sometimes, it can feel like there are psychopaths everywhere. If you live in the United States, it’s now possible to move to less psychopathic environs, thanks to new research ranking 48 contiguous states by psychopathy.
Connecticut wins the dubious award of most psychopathic state in the US, followed by California in second, and New Jersey third. New York and Wyoming tie for joint fourth place, followed by Maine. The least psychopathic state is West Virginia, followed by Vermont, Tennessee, North Carolina, and New Mexico.
The psychopathy evaluation for each state is an estimate, notes Ryan Murphy, professor at Southern Methodist University and author of the study, published on Social Science Research. The calculation is based in part on previous research that established the levels of big five personality traits (extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness to experience) in each state.
Earlier research shows that psychopathy is composed of disinhibition, boldness, and meanness, and a forthcoming paper shows that these characteristics can be translated into the big five traits: "Boldness corresponds to low neuroticism and high extraversion, meanness corresponds to low agreeableness, and disinhibition corresponds to low conscientiousness," explains Murphy. This finding allowed the researcher to translate analysis of personality in US states to a score for psychopathy.
The paper has been prepublished on SSRN, meaning it hasn’t yet been published in a journal or gone through peer review. Murphy also included the District of Columbia in his research, and found it had a psychopathy level far higher than any other state. But this finding is an outlier, as Murphy notes, as it’s an entirely urban area and cannot be fairly compared with larger, more geographically diverse, US states. That said, as Murphy notes, "The presence of psychopaths in District of Columbia is consistent with the conjecture found in Murphy (2016) that psychopaths are likely to be effective in the political sphere."
Wyoming’s high psychopath rate is another interesting data point. The state came in joint fourth, whereas its neighboring states came in far lower: Montana is 42nd, Idaho 23rd, Colorado 18th, and Utah 21st (the District of Columbia is excluded from all these rankings.) Murphy notes that the survey of Wyoming was based on the smallest sample size and the data point could simply be incorrect, though the result is still based on a considerable sample size of 3,166.
Murphy notes that the findings are estimates and further data by state is needed to corroborate the findings. But his current survey, which suggests the northeast of the US is the most psychopathic region in the US, will ring true to anyone who’s been stuck on the New York subway. Another reason not to take polls too seriously. However, maybe good for a chuckle. Washington, D.C. is not included in the poll.
"The presence of psychopaths in District of Columbia is consistent with the conjecture found in Murphy [2016] that psychopaths are likely to be effective in the political sphere," the study concluded. "The District of Columbia is measured to be far more psychopathic than any individual state in the country, a fact that can be readily explained either by its very high population density or by the type of person who may be drawn a literal seat of power (as in Murphy 2016),"
Lisa Page, who was Special Counsel to McCabe, became involved in the Midyear investigation after McCabe became the Deputy Director in February 2016. Page told the OIG that part of her function was to serve as a liaison between the Midyear team and McCabe.
Page acknowledged that her role upset senior FBI officials, but told the OIG that McCabe relied on her to ensure that he had the information he needed to make decisions, without it being filtered through multiple layers of management.
Several witnesses told the OIG that Page circumvented the official chain of command, and that Strzok communicated important Midyear case information to her, and thus to McCabe, without Priestap’s or Steinbach’s knowledge. McCabe said that he was aware of complaints about Page, and that he valued her ability to "spot issues" and bring them to his attention when others did not.
#1
Hey Pete, I know what you and Lisa are up to. Normally this type of thing would lead to disciplinary action or dismissal, but I believe we should handle it internally.
#2
Do you think anything might come of all of this? So far, I'm a bit suspicious and jaundiced that anything might come of the IG report or his testimony. The wheels of justice seem to grind exceedingly slowly. The justice system is hitting only on a couple of cylinders.
#4
Reflect on the summer of 2016.
Still 4 months to the election
I’ve been reading that the initial strong ballot advantage the Democrats had going into the midterm elections has faded to only a few points, if that much. It isn’t something I follow closely — that way lies madness — but it does pop up on my radar from time to time. I’ve also noticed the Democrats are fielding veterans with fighting experience where they can find them, though how many of those are John F. Kerry types or the West Point Red I wouldn’t venture to guess,
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/18/2018 14:42
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#7
but told the OIG that McCabe relied on her to ensure that he had the information he needed to make decisions, without it being filtered through multiple layers of management.
Obviously he did not use this "unfiltered" information properly.
ADEN (Reuters) - Saudi-led coalition aircraft bombarded Houthi fighters holed up at the airport of Yemen’s main port Hodeidah on Monday as a senior alliance official said he hoped U.N. diplomacy could coax the Iran-aligned movement to relinquish the city.
There are fears that a prolonged battle for the city, where the Houthis are dug in to protect critical supply lines from the Red Sea to their bastion in the capital Sanaa, could aggravate what is already the world’s most urgent humanitarian crisis.
The Western-backed Arab alliance launched an onslaught on Hodeidah six days ago in order to turn the tables in a long stalemated, proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran that has compounded instability across the Middle East.
The United Arab Emirates, a key component of the coalition, is spearheading the Hodeidah offensive, now focused on the airport of the Red Sea city.
[BBC] Political bickering has long been a roadblock to getting big things done in the US but a grassroots movement getting few headlines could yet herald a new American age of change.
A green giant in a loin cloth would seem an unlikely indicator for what some describe as a revolution under way in the heart of America.
But the Jolly Green Giant statue on Highway 169 in rural Minnesota wears a 48-inch (1.2m) smile for a reason.
Accompanied by the slogan Dream Big, he typifies a sense of hope and renewal in the nearby city of Blue Earth that is quietly being echoed across parts of the US.
As the country continues its long recovery from recession, there are signs that a much deeper shift is happening at a local level, the seeds of which were sown years ago.
Indicators far more subtle than job numbers suggest a flourishing of entrepreneurship, collaboration and problem-solving, away from the gaze of national media.
After five years spent visiting dozens of towns, The Atlantic writer James Fallows and his wife Deborah have written a book Our Towns which paints a portrait of renewal, a story at odds with the well-documented gridlock of higher levels of government.
Fallows says that in several areas - civic engagement, returning talent, growth of tech start-ups, downtown revitalisation, an openness to immigrants and thriving libraries - local America seems to be flourishing.
[Hot Air] You see the underlying assumption of a Clinton win throughout the FBI’s handling of both investigations. In Comey’s book, "A Higher Loyalty," he writes in detail about the painstaking process, involving hundreds of agents, the FBI went through to investigate Clinton. He notes that concern over the public and political reaction to the investigation ‐ as opposed to merely doing a thorough investigation ‐ in part drove his desire to have such an exhaustive effort. In describing the FBI’s effort, Comey noted in his book that "We’d never convince Clinton haters ... [B]ut hopefully we could persuade a majority of fair and open-minded Americans" that the FBI had done a thorough investigation and made the right call. It was Comey’s desire to protect the bureau’s public reputation that pushed him toward a path that ended with disastrous consequences.
We already knew from Comey’s public comments that he believed Clinton was going to win and that belief was in his mind when he made the decision to send his letter to Capitol Hill. What the IG report newly reveals, via private messages agents sent each other at critical times during the campaign (including messages expressing concern over how Trump was portraying the Comey letter on the day the letter was sent and messages expressing shock and devastation on the day after the election) is how the view that Clinton would win was held by many within the FBI working on both investigations. It’s not that Comey or FBI agents allowed their political beliefs, and concern about a Trump presidency, to drive their decisions. It’s that, according to the report, Comey took political, if not partisan, considerations into account in making decision on how to handle the Clinton investigation by letting his assumption that Clinton would win affect his actions. Bias doesn’t have to be partisan to be destructive.
1. The original article appeared in the WaPo, as noted at the bottom of the Hot Air article.
In the WaPo.
2. The author was Jennifer Palmieri, former Director of Communications for the Hillary Clinton 2016 presidential campaign.
Who rained on her parade?
Posted by: Bobby ||
06/18/2018 10:11
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#2
In Comey’s book, "A Higher Loyalty," he writes in detail about the painstaking process, involving hundreds of agents, the FBI went through to investigate Clinton.
Hundreds or agents? Hundreds? Really? Why so many? I'm thinking they could have put a couple of San Diego police detectives on the case, prosecuted it, and Hillary would now be behind bars.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
06/18/2018 10:41
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[Hot Air] There is much concern from those against the House-passed FIRST STEP Act that it will cause a plethora of chaos and more gang-riddled communities due to its attempt to reduce recidivism. The bill is using methods which have worked quite well in Texas, Georgia, and other Republican-led states in not only reducing crime but also averting expected corrections costs.
SEE ALSO: WSJ: Trump planning new nominee for Export-Import Bank
Yet, opponents are preying on the fears of those who do not understand why tossing someone in a hole then throwing away the key may not be the best way to rid the country of crime. They claim FIRST STEP Act will release a demonic red ten-speed bike on America to haunt and torture us for eons with malicious intent. The latest line of false attacks claims illegal immigrants ‐ who end up in custody for a crime ‐ will somehow end up on the streets by qualifying for the time credits section of the act.
[PJ] WASHINGTON ‐ Retired Gen. Michael Hayden, former director of the CIA and NSA and author of The Assault on Intelligence: American National Security in an Age of Lies, revealed that he has advised intelligence officials not to serve at the "political level" in the Trump administration during these "difficult times." "National Security in an Age of Lies"......How many volumes in this series ?
"At the political level, beginning about March of 2017 when I got phone calls from people, I said, ’Don’t do it.’ I said, ’Don’t go.’ In most cases, these were people young enough that they are going to get their turn at bat again and I said, ’You won’t survive this turn at bat. You won’t make a difference. You’ll be frustrated and that will be there forever.’ So at the political level, my advice is don’t do it," Hayden said recently during a discussion about his new book at the International Spy Museum. But, but, but how do we publish 'our own' best selling books ?
"Now, that said, God bless [CIA Director] Gina Haspel and the fact that she stayed and so on, but she was not a political appointee. She was what everyone wanted, which was a pure professional. So that’s the advice. I wouldn’t sugarcoat it ‐ yeah, these are difficult times. Keep an eye on your leadership. Make sure they’re protecting you and, if they’re not protecting you, preserve your options," he added.
Hayden elaborated on his statements during an interview with PJM after the discussion.
#2
Hayden has been out of the loop since the beginning of Obama's presidency and didn't seem concerned about the politicization, weaponization and criminalization of the intel agencies to service the Democratic party. Now that America has a president who puts America first, Hayden is suddenly worried about politization?
#3
One would think that in such a time it would be seen as an absolutely necessary duty to provide disinterested professionalism, and the example of disinterested professionalism. Answering the country’s call, respecting the office if not its occupant — that kind of thing.
Your Tax Dollars at Work.
[Townhall] The Petworth Library located in Northwest D.C. will be hosting a "Just Be You: Drag 101" event tomorrow afternoon that is open to the whole family "where drag performers can discuss who they are and what they do." The event is part of an effort that hopes to promote cultural appreciation for local history which makes D.C. unique.
DC adult librarian, Lisa Warwick, told Townhall that as part of this year’s strategic plan, the library intends to "[give] residents a place where they can embrace the cultural hubs [of DC]." Petworth Library advertised the event saying, "From singalongs to dance performances, the library is indeed open to the whole family, darlings‐kids, too. Come learn more about drag and gender, but, most of all, be inspired to just be you."
Drag performers known by their stage names include Cherry Snow, Miss Buffy Wilde, and Phoenix King. Wariwck told Townhall that Cherry Snow actually goes by the stage name OG Fag, but thought that would be too inappropriate for kids.
OG Fag’s Instagram page is littered with messages such as, "To the random ass stranger who told me I look like a clown and should go to clown school: I hope you enjoy your very normal and boring life. Gender is a construct, tear it apart." The illustrious drag performer also has sent messages regarding the importance of hardwork, saying, "A little throwback to last Thursday and my look for Drag Race at Uproar! The devil works hard, but og fag works harder."
[CBS47] When the man and his brother attempted to unhook the unit, Dunn sat on it to prevent the two men from taking it, the report said.
When the ex-husband approached, he tried to remove her from the AC unit, but Dunn produced a pink stun gun and attempted to electrocute him, according to the arrest report. Dunn was struck in the head and dropped both the pink stun gun and a handgun, the report said.
Dunn reportedly got up off the ground and shot him in the testicles with the handgun. The man's brother pushed Dunn to the ground and attempted to help his brother and drove him to the hospital.
The report said that the ex-husband's brother screamed, "You shot my brother" and began choking her until she blacked out.
Dunn's ex-husband picked up the gun after the shooting and brought it with him to the hospital, the report stated.
Dunn was arrested the same day and was taken to the Columbia County jail without incident. She told deputies that she didn't mean to shoot her ex-husband and was only trying to scare him, the report said.
On Thursday, June 14, Dunn was arrested for failing to show up in court for the shooting incident. She faces an additional charge of contempt of court.
I'm assuming this is Jacksonville FLA. In which case the purloining of an air conditioner might fall under the Texas Defense. If it happened in Seattle, the perp would be toast.
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/18/2018 11:00
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#6
According to the article, they were going through a divorce, and she was trying to sell it on Facebook. I’ve not seen divorce up close, so I’m not sure if he was invading her home with malice aforethought, she was planning to profit from what should have been a joint asset, or even if the place was rented, meaning the thing belonged to an unnamed landlord and was not hers to sell.
BIG WELLS, Texas (KABB/WOAI) - Authorities said five undocumented immigrants are dead following a chase involving Border Patrol agents Sunday afternoon.
Dimmit County Sheriff Marion Boyd said the crash happened off Highway 85 in Big Wells at about noon. Boyd said agents were chasing the SUV when it lost control and overturned. The vehicle was traveling at more than 100 miles per hour when it crashed.
Fourteen people were inside, including the driver and passenger. Twelve immigrants were ejected and four died at the scene when the car crashed and rolled over, according to Boyd. A fifth person later died at the hospital. A total of 9 people were transported to the hospital, including five who went to San Antonio Military Medical Center and the rest going to local hospitals. The driver, who is believed to be a United States citizen, was among those transported.
Boyd credited "good police work" for the reason why deputies started pursuing the vehicle.
A border patrol agent observed three vehicles traveling one behind the other on FM 2664 and suspected a smuggling attempt was happening, the agency said in a statement. The agent was able to stop one of the vehicle and called out a description of the other two. A second border patrol agent was able to pull over the second vehicle but the third refused to stop. The agency said multiple arrest were made in both vehicles.
#1
A lot of infractions. Illegal border entry. Driving without a license/insurance? Driving at dangerously high speeds. Ignored law enforcemant attempts to stop. Speeding kills-manslaughter. Human trafficking.
#5
Liberals will tell you this blood is on the hands of the law enforcement officers. No. It's on the hands of liberals who encourage illegals to come here. It's Dubya's "act of love."
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
06/18/2018 11:22
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#6
Send the bills to the Koch brothers.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
06/18/2018 11:23
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#7
Boyd credited "good police work" for the reason why deputies started pursuing the vehicle.
[The Hill] Former first lady Laura Bush tore into the Trump administration for separating migrant families at the border, calling the "zero tolerance" policy "cruel" and "immoral."
Bush penned an op-ed for the Washington Post, which was published Sunday night as public outcry over the hundreds of children in detention centers intensified.
"I live in a border state," Bush wrote. "I appreciate the need to enforce and protect our international boundaries, but this zero-tolerance policy is cruel. It is immoral. And it breaks my heart."
Bush’s commentary comes as more images and accounts from inside the detention centers have emerged, drawing harsh criticism from Democrats and some Republicans. Media reports about the centers described children being kept in "cages" after being separated from their parents, who crossed the border illegally.
Bush wrote that the detention centers were "eerily reminiscent" of Japanese-American internment camps during World War II.
#1
Bush wrote that the detention centers were "eerily reminiscent" of Japanese-American internment camps during World War II.
Yes, and in both instances we were (and are) faced with the survival of our culture and nation. In the case of illegal immigration, it's an asymmetric war.
#3
Well, she just secured Trump's primary win. I don't think anyone hated her, but a Bush lecturing about border security? Hehe just reminded us why the establishment candidates are jokes.
All their compassion is reserved for foreigners, not a drop is available for Americans.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
06/18/2018 6:47
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#4
Hubby was loudly booed last week at a public event in his home state. Shes next.
Posted by: Bob Guelph1558 ||
06/18/2018 7:01
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#5
She always seemed to be a gracious / classy first lady, especially compared to what followed.
However, she is also a card carrying member of the elite and has an integral streak of aristocracy as do most all of the uni-party.
#7
Former presidents and first ladies used to keep quiet and be demure and dignified.
Something else Trump Derangement Syndrome has turned upside down.
Since we ain't being dignified and silent anymore... you and your husband helped create this mess. You were silent when Obumble kept fucking shit up and had the EXACT SAME POLICIES!!
So shut the fuck up, bitch. If we want any shit from you to fertilize out garden we will ask you to opine your opinion.
#10
1. Families can be immediately reunited by going back across the border.
2. Other children are routinely separated from their parents every day when the parent (s) are deployed by the military.
3 Many of the children in these centers were not WITH parents when apprehended.
4 Non-immigrant children are separated from their jailed or imprisoned parents every day.
So let’s release all prisoners who have children; deploy only childless soldiers; allow any immigrants, legal or not, to remain free here indefinitely if they have children; release detained children to anyone claiming to be their parent.
#11
#10 Glenmore, this is WAY too logical for the current hysteria. But I, for one, appreciate your insights.
Posted by: Tom ||
06/18/2018 11:47
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#12
I could be wrong but I read this morning that the policies were put in place by Clinton and upheld by Obama. Now Trump gets grief because it's politically convenient.
Between Clinton and Obama was Laura Bush's husband who did nothing to change the policy.
#13
She ought to have investigated for herself before writing it. And then she ought not have written it, except to describe what she had witnessed. Finally, her husband ought to have strongly discouraged her from injecting herself into a political situation.
Were I President Trump, I would now invite both of them to personally inspect a detention center, followed by lunch with him afterward to discuss the history of the policy.
#14
Were I President Trump, I would now invite both of them to personally inspect a detention center, followed by lunch with him afterward to discuss the history of the policy.
Not politically convenient for the anti-Trump crowd any way you cut it, that's for sure!
Were I Trump, I would cite the name of the the law that is causing this to happen so the MSM can't hide behind the statement "there is no such law" anymore.
#17
There are many drivers of immigration (both legal and legal). To name a few: lack of border control, human traffickers, unrest in many countries, the lure of a better/easier life, jobs, benefits, unenforced laws, sanctuary city/states policy, immigration organiziations that promote immigration, immigration lawyers who make a living off of immigration, open borders ideology such as Soros promotes. There are probably other drivers. Washingto seems to want to play the blame game and use Trump for a human pinata.
[Free Beacon] The drug trade in Afghanistan has strengthened in recent years despite billions of dollars in U.S.-funded counternarcotics operations aimed at choking the Taliban's top revenue source, a government watchdog said Thursday.
The United States alone has spent $8.6 billion on counternarcotics efforts in Afghanistan since 2002, but the country remains the world's largest producer of opium, with poppy cultivation reaching a record high last year.
According to a new report by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), opium cultivation in 2017 reached 1,265 square miles‐more than 20 times the size of Washington, D.C.‐marking a 63 percent increase from the year before. The unprecedented harvest could produce 900 tons of export-quality heroin and helps to fuel insurgent violence, SIGAR said.
"To put it bluntly, these numbers spell failure and the outlook is not encouraging," John Sopko, the special inspector general, said in prepared remarks at the New America think tank in Washington.
The United States in November retooled its air campaign to target Taliban drug labs as part of a sustained effort to undercut the group's $200 million-a-year opium trade. Gen. John Nicholson, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, told reporters at the time that American and Afghan warplanes had taken out several of the labs, which he said numbered some 400 to 500 across the country.
SIGAR acknowledged the bombing campaign as a "good start," but said it was too early to determine the effectiveness given that setting up new labs takes three to four days at a cost of just a few hundred dollars.
#1
That's where the opioids devastating America are coming from. Why would they cut off the supply?
Posted by: Herb McCoy ||
06/18/2018 4:23
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#2
Would napalm cost that much?
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
06/18/2018 10:22
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#3
Best to decriminalize it and watch the price fall.
Of course make the entitlement to take it difficult and separate those who decide to be temporarily mentally ill for the duration the drug has an effect.
[Free Beacon] The Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence announced on Friday that it will honor failed Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton at their 25th anniversary dinner.
The group said the dinner, scheduled to be held on June 14, will celebrate progress that gun control has made over the last several decades as well as recognize "courageous leaders" for their activism. The top billed leader at the event will be Hillary Clinton. The group said it picked Clinton, who has been mostly out of the spotlight since her loss to President Donald Trump in the 2016 election, because of her dedication to the effort to pass new gun-control laws.
"For 25 years, our organization has drawn inspiration from gun safety champions who are helping us achieve progress in the fight to save lives," Robyn Thomas, executive director of Giffords Law Center, said in a statement. "This year, we are honored to recognize gun safety trailblazers: Secretary Hillary Clinton, a world leader who has worked tirelessly to protect children and campaigned boldly to build safer communities, and the student activists who are leading a new march forward to make our country safe. We have made remarkable progress in passing laws across the nation and it wouldn’t have happened without their bravery."
[Al Jazeera] Conservative Ivan Duque has won Colombia's presidential election, the first since a landmark peace deal that brought an end to more than 50 years of conflict.
With nearly all the votes counted, Duque secured 54 percent on Sunday, comfortably ahead of his leftist rival Gustavo Petro, at 42 percent.
About four percent of the voters submitted spoiled ballots, according to electoral officials.
In the capital, Bogota, enthusiastic Duque supporters honked car horns even before final results were announced.
Polls opened at 13:00 GMT and closed at 21:00 GMT after a day of peaceful voting.
In May's first round, Duque came first with nearly 40 percent of the vote, while Petro received 25 percent.
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06/18/2018
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#1
With Venezuela right next door, why is this a surprise?
But again, with Venezuela right next door, how can 42% still vote for a leftist???
Posted by: Tom ||
06/18/2018 11:40
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[ALMASDARNEWS] Earlier this week, a high ranking Syrian Kurdish leader stated that he hopes Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad One of the last of the old-fashioned hereditary iron-fisted fascist dictators... is serious about negotiating with the Kurdish-led forces in order to reach an agreement between the two parties.
Speaking to the Rooters News Agency, Aldar Xelil of the Co-President of the Executive Body of the Movement for a Democratic Society stated that any agreement with Damascus would be a "historic turning point" for the two sides.
Xelil continued that his political party is ready for negotiations without any preconditions.
"We don’t know the extent of their seriousness or preparation for this, but we hope these statements reflect serious intentions," Xelil told Rooters in a telephone.
Recently, Damascus sent a delegation to the northeastern city of al-Qamishli; this group reportedly met with several officials from the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC).
During the meeting, the SDC expressed interest in sending a delegation to Damascus for the first time in years.
While the Syrian government and Kurdish political parties attempt to reconcile, they have managed to joint govern some areas in the northern part of the country, along with sharing the imperative Hasakah-Aleppo Highway.
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06/18/2018
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#1
well that'll be a nice chilli lube for Erdogan.
#2
That would raise the curtain on the Last Act: will everyone stand by while Erdogan and Turkey annex northern Syria? Will everyone look the other way when the Afrin ethnic cleansing is repeated in the remaining area north of the Euphrates? Is the UN relevant, at all, any more?
#3
Makes sense. Allows Assad to militarily concentrate on the southern and western/coastal part of his country where the most serious problems are, and allows him to wash his hands of defending against from the genocidal Turks and their wannabee Sultan Erdogan in the northern parts, where the Kurds and not much else are.
Erdogan is a menace that must be stopped.
Posted by: Albert Gray3362 ||
06/18/2018 22:13
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[Jpost] 20-member cell from Nablus planned attacks in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and West Bank
While the Shin Bet identified the cell as being part of the Hamas terror group, the idea to carry out the attacks began after Zavidi spoke to a member of the Al-Nusra Front in Syria
Twenty Hamas, one of the armed feet of the Moslem Brüderbung millipede, members from the West Bank city of Nablus who planned lethal attacks across the country ‐ including a suicide kaboom in Jerusalem ‐ have been locked away Yez got nuttin' on me, coppers! Nuttin'! , the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) said in a statement on Sunday.
Continued on Page 49
[PRESSTV] A suspected gunman was fatally shot after multiple people shot up an all-night arts festival in the US state of New Jersey, wounding at least 22 people including a boy who is at death's door, authorities said on Sunday.
Prosecutors said a 33-year-old man was killed and a second suspect tossed in the slammer Drop the heater, Studs, or you're hist'try! after gunfire erupted at 3 am at the event in the city of Trenton, about 60 miles (100 km) southwest of New York City.
"Preliminary investigation reveals that multiple individuals attending the Art All Night event opened fire within the venue. ... Multiple weapons have been recovered," Angelo Onofri, prosecutor for Mercer County, told a news conference.
Among those maimed by bullets was a 13-year-old boy who Onofri said was in extremely critical condition. He said more than 1,000 people were believed to have been at the festival when the violence started.
"It absolutely could have been worse, given the confined space and the number of shots that appear to have been fired," Onofri said. Fox says the suspect was Tahaji Wells, 33, gang member, early release from prison, and illegal to own or carry a firearm. Clearly, we need more laws restricting the rights of non-criminal non-gangmember non-felons to self protection
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06/18/2018
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[Al Jazeera] Thailand's royal family has formally turned over its multi-billion dollar fortune to King Maha Vajiralongkorn, who assumed the throne after the death of his father in 2016.
An undated announcement seen on Saturday on the website of the Crown Property Bureau (CPB), the financial arm of the monarchy, said that full ownership of the palace's multi-billion dollar assets were handed over to King Vajiralongkorn under a law passed last year.
"All 'Crown Property Assets' are to be transferred and revert to the ownership of His Majesty, so that they may be administered and managed at His Majesty's discretion," said the note which featured prominently on the front page of the CPB's website.
The announcement also said that while CPB had been exempt from taxes and duties, the personal assets of the king and the holdings previously belonging to CPB to be treated together as 'Crown Property Assets' would "be subject to the same duties and taxation as would assets belonging to any other citizen".
King Vajiralongkorn inherited one of the world's great fortunes, which according to analysts varies between $30bn to $60bn, although the monarchy does not publicly declare its wealth and is shielded from scrutiny by a draconian lese majeste law.
Most of the money is controlled by the opaque CPB, a vast portfolio that includes massive property ownership and investments in major companies.
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06/18/2018
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#1
...the personal assets of the king and the holdings previously belonging to CPB to be treated together as 'Crown Property Assets' would "be subject to the same duties and taxation as would assets belonging to any other citizen".
[PRESSTV] India will resume military operations against gangs in disputed Kashmire following the end of a rare 30-day suspension for Ramadan. Why not just resettle the lot of them? Put them in Tamil Nad.
Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh said in a post on Twitter that the New Dehli forces were being directed to take all necessary actions to prevent "militants" from launching attacks.
"While the security forces have displayed exemplary restraint during this period, the snuffies have continued with their attacks, on civilians and SFs (security forces), resulting in deaths and injuries," the minister said. "The security forces are being directed to take all necessary actions as earlier to prevent snuffies from launching attacks and indulging in violence."
Singh's office said in a separate statement on Twitter that the Indian government had decided "not to extend the suspension of operations."
The Indian minister also stated that the suspension had been ordered "in the interests of the peace-loving people" of Kashmire "to provide them a conductive atmosphere to observe Ramadan."
On Thursday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a cabinet meeting to discuss whether to extend the initiative.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/18/2018
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[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] The Yemeni army announced on Sunday the opening of safe corridors for residents in several areas and neighborhoods where fierce fighting is still ongoing as the coalition and armed forces attempt to liberate Hodeidah west of the country from Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ... militias.
This comes as Houthi militias have imposed an undeclared state of emergency after they have dug trenches on public areas and street sides in and around Hodeidah, amid reports of them preventing civilians from leaving their homes and being used as human shields.
According to the official website of the Yemeni army, its armed forces are attempting to provide security for Houthi militias who agree to surrender themselves.
Reports have also revealed the at least 500 Houthi militias have been killed during the past six days in battle for Hodeidah.
Coalition aircrafts have been launching intensive air raids in recent days described by field sources as "the most violent" yet on sites still being held by the Houthis in Hodeidah as Yemen’s armed and popular resistance forces continue their advancements on the grounds.
A military source said that the army and popular resistance forces’ plan in coordination with the coalition to besiege the Houthi militias and encircle them is ongoing to ensure the liberation of the city without civilian casualties, stressing that this tactic will surprise the militias planning an urban warfare in Hodeidah who are hiding behind civilians as human shields.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/18/2018
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[PRESSTV] Artifacts from the ancient Jobar synagogue in Damascus' Eastern Ghouta suburb have been smuggled out of Syria and surfaced elsewhere, including in Israel, activists say.
Local activists said the artifacts had been put into safety back in 2013 to avoid theft and damage by Takfiri ...an adherent of takfir wal hijra, an offshoot of Salafism that regards everybody who doesn't agree with them as apostates who must be killed... terrorists, but Syrian officials discovered later that some of the items had disappeared.
The first missing cache, which contained torahs, tapestries and chandeliers, was given to the Faylaq al-Rahman murderous Moslem group by Jobar's local council for safe keeping earlier this year, according to the activists.
However, there's more than one way to skin a cat... the murderous Moslem outfit later said that it was not in possession of the objects taken from the Jobar synagogue, also known as Eliyahu Hanaviuntil synagogue.
The second cache, the activists said, had been stolen in 2014 by a Syrian guardian entrusted by the local council to hide the items from the synagogue.
Hassan al-Dimashqi, who lived near the synagogue until March, said, "Some of the items that went missing in 2014 and this year have started surfacing now in The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the decaying remnant of the Ottoman Empire.... He also quoted some local officials as saying that the man, who stole the second cache, reached Europe ...also known as Moslem Lebensraum... and the artifacts he had taken ended up in Israel.
Dimashqi further said that some of the items entrusted with the Faylaq al-Rahman murderous Moslems, including carpets, chandeliers and historical scripts, have surfaced in Turkey. The Britannia-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also confirmed the information.
In March, Syria filed an official complaint with the UN, accusing Israel of stealing valuable artifacts from the Jobar synagogue in cooperation with Turkey and terrorist groups.
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[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] An Indonesian was killed when his mother's coffin fell from a funeral tower and crushed him during a service on the island of Sulawesi, police said Sunday.
Samen Kondorura, 40, died Friday when pallbearers lost their footing while carrying the coffin up a bamboo ladder in the Parinding valley in North Toraja district, local police said.
The casket fell as the group hoisted it onto a lakkian, an ornately carved tower where the dear departed is placed before elaborate traditional funeral rites.
"As the mother's coffin was being raised to the lakkian, suddenly the ladder shifted and collapsed, the coffin fell and hit the victim," Julianto Sirait, chief commissioner of the Tana Toraja resort police, told AFP.
Video from the scene, which has gone viral online, shows the ladder slip just as the casket enters the tower, sending the men tumbling several metres to the ground where the victim is struck by the coffin.
Horrified onlookers rush to the man's aid but Kondorura died later in hospital.
Sirait said the accident happened because the ladder was not properly reinforced but the family has declined to press charges.
"he body of Kondorura is now resting alongside his mother Berta, he added.
When ethnic Torajans die, local residents hold elaborate funerals that can last for days and involve music, dance and the sacrifice of water buffalo.
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[Rudaw] ERBIL, Kurdistan Region ‐ The SDF have taken control of the key town of Dashisha from ISIS and are mere kilometres away from the border with Iraq, the force announced on Sunday.
"The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on Sunday liberated the town of Dashisha from the terrorist organization ISIS," the SDF’s media centre announced.
Their forces then pushed to the town of Naserah, two kilometres eastward, bringing them within three kilometres of the Syria-Iraq border.
Taking control of the Dashisha pocket in southeastern Hasaka province is the goal of this phase of Operation Roundup that was launched by the SDF and the international coalition two weeks ago.
Iraqi Security Forces are also involved in the operation, given the proximity to the border.
"In Syria, the ISF has been instrumental in targeting and destroying key facilities that ISIS [ISIS] uses to export violence elsewhere. As ISISholy warriors run away from the SDF, the ISF is instrumental in preventing them from escaping the battlefield by crossing into Iraq," coalition spokesperson Col. Sean Ryan told Rudaw English by email earlier this week.
The SDF and coalition also have their eyes set on ISIS in the Middle Euphrates River Valley, around the town of Hajin, north of al-Boukamal.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
06/18/2018
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[Rudaw] ERBIL, Kurdistan Region ‐ The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the decaying remnant of the Ottoman Empire.... ’s president has claimed to have hit a "critical gathering" of the PKK in Qandil, possibly killing senior members of the Kurdish group.
"During these last operations, we hit their very critical gathering," he said in an interview with Kanal 7 on Saturday. "We have not received the results yet, but it is certain that we have hit them."
He added there was a possibility they had hit senior PKK members, but was scant on details.
Ottoman TurkishArclight airstrikes hit PKK shelters and ammunition depots on the north side of Qandil on Friday, according to the most recent statement of activity from the armed forces in their campaign against the PKK in the Kurdistan Region.
The PKK issued a statement refuting Turkey’s recent claims.
The armed wing of the PKK, the HPG, confirmed Ottoman Turkish airstrikes in the Qandil region on Friday evening, but said "we have had no guerrilla losses in these bombardments," in a statement published Saturday by ANF news.
The HPG reported it had carried out three actions against Ottoman Turkish forces in the Kurdistan Region on the same day, claiming they had killed one soldier and there were additional undetermined casualties.
The PKK is a named terror organization in Turkey.
Ottoman Turkish forces have pushed at least 30 kilometres into the Kurdistan Region with the aim of reaching PKK headquarters in Qandil.
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06/18/2018
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[AlJazeera] "China's retaliatory tariffs to hit US lobsters, soybeans: China says it 'doesn't want a trade war', but must 'fight back' after US slaps tariffs on $50bn in Chinese imports."
Nobody knows where a full trade war can go. One possible outcome would be the destruction of PRC. China is unstable and could crumble into a bloody mess. Nobody kills Chinese like other Chinese. Nobody kills anyone like Chinese kill themselves. Even Nazis and Russians were no match.
China has little food security. In an economic, political, or war catastrophe, China cannot feed itself. They've been reduced to cannibalism in living memory.
Meanwhile, the USA is blessed with abundant resources and fantastic farmers and distribution. Our food security is ranked only behind Ireland. (Depending on the list.)
China habitually throws its weight around and also threatens others on the high seas where China is fantastically vulnerable. PRC does not have a single trusted ally. Despite the anti-US rhetoric, no country has more strong alliances than the USA.
The United States is far more resilient internally and externally than is China.
#3
Lobster had a couple amazing years lately. This should help drive down domestic prices
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/18/2018 7:42
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Just imagine all those peasants who moved to the cities to make iPhones and such being frog marched back to the countryside to grow rice which they have forgotten how to do.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
06/18/2018 10:30
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Lighthizer and Co didn’t negotiate. They simply delivered some ultimatums.
China will unilaterally increase its imports of U.S. goods by at least $100 billion.
China will immediately cease protections and subsidies for any sectors related to its Made in China 2025 central economic plan, as well as eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers on those sectors.
China will accept that it is a non-market economy under WTO rules (which would allow the United States to apply protective tariffs against Chinese exports).
China will accept American restrictions on Chinese investment-led acquisitions in the United States.
China will cease all technological/cyber theft as well as cease any and all policies which aim to force American firms to share technologies with China.
China will accept American quarterly reviews on all trade policies, and pre-commit to cooperation with American findings.
China will submit rosters of goods shipped to third countries so that China may not do end-runs around American import restrictions.
China will abandon all WTO cases it has prosecuted against the United States as regards any of the above issues and preemptively agree to launch no new ones.
#7
The rah-rah attitude of Al Jezeera is somewhat surprising.
In a couple of decades everyone will have to deal with either the United States or China. No one has any illusions about where the better deals will be found.
[IsraelTimes] Authorities on Sunday said they counted at least 20 brush fires during the day around the Gazoo border area caused by incendiary balloons launched from the coastal enclave. A similar number of fires were set the day before.
Israel has been hard pressed to find a way to thwart the attacks, and the army recently stepped up Arclight airstrikes against Gazooks connected to the kite and balloons launches.
In recent days, the military has taken to firing warning shots at groups launching the flaming kites and balloons, which have already burned thousands of acres of farmland, forests and parks, and caused millions of shekels in damage.
The Israeli Air Force on Sunday evening attacked three targets connected to a group of Paleostinians who had launched incendiary balloons into southern Israel on Sunday evening.
The airstrikes, which caused no casualties, came as multiple balloons with small bombs touched down in southern Israel and others bearing pouches of burning material set fire to large swaths of land in the area.
The army said it first fired a warning shot near the Paleostinians who were launching the balloons toward Israel. Approximately half an hour later, the Israel Defense Forces said it conducted a second round of strikes, hitting the tent in which the group was operating and a car that had been used to bring people to the area.
The IDF’s attack on Sunday evening was its third airstrike of the day.
On Sunday afternoon, an Israeli aircraft also targeted a group of Paleostinians who had sent incendiary balloons into southern Israel from the southern Gazoo Strip, near the city of Khan Younis.
In the predawn hours of Sunday, the air force also bombed a car that the army said belonged to one of the leaders of the Gazook kite and balloon attacks.
[IsraelTimes] An army front man tells Israeli residents near the Gazoo border that if the IDF responds more harshly to the incendiary kites and balloons being sent into Israel, it would lead to war, Hebrew media report Sunday.
The front man is addressing residents of the towns adjacent to the coastal enclave, who were losing patience with daily arson attacks, which have led to the loss of thousands of acres of farmland, forests and parks, and caused millions of shekels in damage. He explains the IDF’s latest policy of firing warning shots at groups launching the flaming kites and balloons.
"The alternative to kite terror is war," he says. "If we respond too strongly it could lead to escalation. You would be in your bomb shelters and you don’t want that, especially when the construction of the barrier against the tunnels has not yet been completed."
[IsraelTimes] Defending rocket attacks on Israel, guide claims terror group never intends to target children, but 'mistakes are made'
Video can be seen at the link.
A US news hound was granted access to a Paleostinian Islamic Jihad ...created after many members of the Egyptian Moslem Brotherhood decided the organization was becoming too moderate. Operations were conducted out of Egypt until 1981 when the group was exiled after the assassination of President Anwar Sadat. They worked out of Gaza until they were exiled to Lebanon in 1987, where they clove tightly to Hezbollah. In 1989 they moved to Damascus, where they remain a subsidiary of Hezbollah... tunnel in the Gazoo Strip, as well as to training exercises during which members of the terror group showed off a rocket launcher they claimed had recently been used to fire at Israel.
In a video clip published Sunday, CNN’s Ian Lee spoke with the Islamic Jihad about why it indiscriminately fires rockets at Israel and what it hopes to achieve with the attacks. Lee was blindfolded as he was brought to each location on his tour, apparently to prevent him from identifying the location.
The tour, during which Lee walked with armed fighters through a tunnel "somewhere in the Gazoo Strip," came two weeks after Islamic Jihad was involved in the heaviest exchange of fire between Israel and the Gazoo Strip since the 2014 50-day war known as Operation Protective Edge.
Lee described the concrete tunnel, which had the straight walls and low arched ceiling commonly seen in such passages dug by the Paleostinians, as hot and humid, saying "it feels claustrophobic."
An Islamic Jihad fighter, identified only as Abu Abdallah, explained in Arabic that the tunnels are used for moving fighters so that they can "play their role and defend the Paleostinian people."
The Islamic Jihad members, armed with rifles were seen crouching in the tunnel and receiving a "pep talk" from their commander.
The news hound said the tunnels are also used for smuggling weapons [from Egypt] and carrying out cross-border attacks in Israel.
Above ground, at another location, Abdallah showed Lee a four-barrel rocket launcher he claimed was used in the recent attacks against Israel.
"The world hears the conflict only through Netanyahu’s voice," Abdallah said according to an English translation of his comments provided by CNN. "We are trying to make it hear us through the sound of these simple missiles."
Three weeks ago, Islamic Jihad fired dozens of mortar shells and rockets at Israel, one of which landed next to a kindergarten, apparently in response to the Israeli army’s killing three of its members in a cross-border exchange that came amid violent border festivities between Paleostinian protesters and the IDF.
Asked by Lee why Islamic Jihad fires rockets at Israel’s civilian population, Abdallah responded that "the world needs to know that the resistance never plans to target children," but that mistakes are made.
"Israel is proud of its support from the United States and we are proud of Iran’s support of the Paleostinian resistance, on the moral and logistical level," he continued. "There is nothing wrong with it and that is not a secret."
[Jpost] Syrian rebel sources claim up to 500 Iranian-backed militia and members of Hezbollah changed uniforms and are digging in near the Golan in preparation for a major offensive.
Hezbollah and Iranian- backed Shi’ite militias are concentrating in an area dubbed the "triangle of death" near the Golan Heights, as the Syrian regime prepares its major post-Ramadan offensive.
The offensive is designed to defeat the rebels in southern Syria and has raised concerns in Jerusalem, Washington, Moscow and Amman as a potential crisis looms.
This comes as Israel continues warning the Syrian regime to remove Iranian forces from the country.
On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he reiterated Israel’s demand that Iran withdraw from all of Syria, in conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin ...President-for-Life of Russia. He gets along well with other presidents for life. He is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law, which occasionally results in somebody dropping dead from poisoning by polonium or other interesting substance. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to him. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile or dead from poisoning by polonium or other interesting substances... and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo over the weekend.
With the defeat of Syrian rebels in Damascus, the regime has begun to concentrate forces along its long front line that stretches from the environs of the southern Damascus countryside down to Daraa near the Jordanian border.
This front line ranges from 10 kilometers to just one kilometer from the Golan Heights.
According to foreign reports, Israel previously stressed to Moscow and Washington that Iranian forces must be kept 40-60 km. (25-37 mi.) from the Golan border.
However, there is a theory which states that if ever anybody discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened... Syrian rebels have accused the Iranian forces and Iranian-backed militias, such as thousands of Shi’ites recruited from Pakistain and Afghanistan, of changing uniform and pretending to be regime soldiers.
Bassam Jaara, a commentator on the conflict, asserted on June 15 that there were suspicious movements of Iranian- backed forces north of Daraa.
In the lead-up to the end of Ramadan, which is traditionally considered to be a joyous and peaceful time, the regime escalated shelling in the "triangle of death" area, not far from Quneitra and Daraa.
The villages of Akraba, Kafr Shams and Alhara were struck with shells fired by the regime, according to a report at Orient.net.
Rebel activists told the Arabic- language website that Iranian- backed militias and Hezbollah carried out the attacks.
The latest reports strengthen Syrian rebel claims that various militias had "changed their uniforms to those of the sectarian Tigers Militia," a regime unit.
These allegedly included members of the Quds Brigade, which is Paleostinian, and Abu al-Fadl Abbas, a Shi’ite unit, as well as Hezbollah.
"These militias use the weapons of the regime and have settled in fortified positions along the triangle of death," the report said, adding that 500 members of these Iranian-backed forces have moved into the positions not far from the Golan.
"Abu Zein Khalid, the military commander of the Southern Front [rebels] told Orient that the Iranian militias met in the area of the triangle of death and wore the dress [uniform] of the regime."
A source close to the Syrian rebels said the claims were accurate. "Yes, it is right and more details will emerge today," the source said. "In short the regime forces are crowding into the area of north Daraa in this triangle of death area because the offensive will include Quneitra."
Any regime movement toward Quneitra, the Syrian rebel-held area along the Golan, would be highly sensitive to Israel and risk spillover conflict or the flight of refugees from the shelling.
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Hollywood actor Robert De Niro’s recent insult of Trump is not his first. There is actually a famous video of Robert De Niro’s speech after Donald Trump ...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States... became an American political reality and not a clowning puppet for the leftist American media. De Niro’s attitude is unprecedented in its use of despicable language.
While US President Donald Trump has achieved unprecedented breakthrough in US foreign policy and in opening a gap in the fort called North Korea, the hot-tempered American actor made slanderous remarks and insulted him at the opening of a restaurant in Canada.
The Hollywood actor belongs to a globalist-American-western movement that has decided to master burning Trump’s image and Trumpism in all ways possible even if it entails the use of profane language, like we witnessed in De Niro’s round of insults in Canada and which the audience warmly applauded.
Even the Canadian media outlets desisted from covering De Niro’s sentence which included the word of abuse.
There is a bloc that includes the left and other parties including the "neo-Brotherhood," "neo-Khomeinist" and global feminist groups that oppose Trump, right-wing and political groups and that of course oppose the interests of Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... and Gulf countries or most of them.
In fact, Trump’s successful steps and policies upset this bloc.
Trump’s response
After returning from Singapore where he held a summit with the North Korean leader, Trump responded to De Niro’s insults and described the latter as being "a very low IQ individual."
Trump attributed De Niro’s low level of intelligence to receiving too many hits to the head by real boxers in various movies.
"I watched him last night and truly believe he may be ’punch-drunk.’ I guess he doesn’t realize the economy is the best it’s ever been with employment being at an all time high," Trump said.
Then, addressing De Niro in a tweet, Trump said: "Wake up Punchy!"
Apart from Trump’s harsh comment against De Niro’s insult, the question is: For how long will the leftist media or the liberal media stay in this state of denial against Trump and his measures?
I also ask this question from those who feed off this media in our Arab world.
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#1
De Niro’s attitude is unprecedented in its use of despicable language.
#2
If you are not one of "them" you could raise the dead, make the blind see again, heal a leper, and they will still crucify you. They will never come around. This is not just about Trunp. Ask Ben Carson or Allen West or Diamond and Silk...
I dunno but it could be that De Niro's unhinged attitude has something to do with the Trump admin. going after the p&dos (Or maybe De Niro got stiffed in a real state deal).
#4
Listen to any 5-Minute Speeches from the floor of the House of Representatives? I heard worse way back in the 1990's: 'Republicans eat dead, poor babies and drink the tears of weeping widows...'
[Townhall] It is often said that Washington, DC is filled with a bunch of nerds dominated by psychopaths. Others say that politics is simply Hollywood for ugly people. These are usually said in a joking manner and often uttered after coming back from a young professional happy hour here in the swamp. Perhaps the most soulless congregation of folks ever assembled can be found at those kind of events.
But it turns out that a recent study showing the population density of psychopaths could confirm anecdotal suspicions that these two areas of American life have more in common than either would like to admit.
A report conducted by Ryan Murphy at Southern Methodist University found that Connecticut contained the most psychopaths per capita followed quickly by California. New Jersey and New York followed next. But our nation's capital by far had the highest level of psychopathic behavior than anywhere in the country.
As Newsmax notes, "Added in the study was Washington, D.C., which ’had a psychopathy level far higher' than any state, according to the report ‐ albeit because it is a small, entirely urban area and not as geographically diverse as a state. "The presence of psychopaths in District of Columbia is consistent with the conjecture found in Murphy [2016] that psychopaths are likely to be effective in the political sphere," Murphy concluded in his study. (emphasis added)
Murphy analyzed "levels of big five personality traits (extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness to experience) in each state," to carry out his research.
"Boldness corresponds to low neuroticism and high extraversion, meanness corresponds to low agreeableness, and disinhibition corresponds to low conscientiousness," Murphy wrote.
Turns out our nation's capital attracts these kind of characters in a major way.
"The District of Columbia is measured to be far more psychopathic than any individual state in the country, a fact that can be readily explained either by its very high population density or by the type of person who may be drawn a literal seat of power (as in Murphy 2016)," the report says. (emphasis added)
Northeast states overall contained the most psychopaths of any region. But, it is a little discomforting that the two areas of American life that impact us each day - entertainment and federal government - contain so many psychos.
[PRESSTV] Police fired tear gas to prevent protesters from reaching the parliament building in Skopje on Sunday night, following the signing of an agreement calling for Greece's northern neighbor to be renamed North Macedonia.
Hundreds gathered with torches and flags as the so-called 'Komiti', supporters of Macedonian sports teams, threw stones and torches at the police.
Greece and Macedonia signed an agreement that could put an end to a decades-old dispute over Macedonia's name.
Under the new agreement, Greece's neighboring nation will be renamed North Macedonia - a move the two countries' leaders said would be the beginning of closer, friendly relations and an example to all Balkan nations.
The deal will also allow Macedonia to bid for NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A cautionary tale of cost-benefit analysis.... and European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... membership.
Since seceding from the former Yugoslavia in 1991, the nation has been provisionally called the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, or FYROM due to the dispute with Greece.
Greece had until now objected to the use of the name "Macedonia", claiming that implied territorial designs on its own northern province of the same name.
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[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] The suffering of 700,000 Yemenis living in Hodeidah will end as soon as their city is liberated by the rapid advance of the legitimate Yemeni forces, supported by the Arab coalition. The coalition managed in a short period of time in capturing Hodeidah airport on Saturday, which is an important strategic step in its mission to liberate the province’s main port.
Seventy percent of Yemen’s imports pass through the port, which has been the Iran-backed militias’ source of income for three years (they have imposed a fee of some $100,000 on each ship seeking to dock and unload its food or oil cargo). Ending the militias’ hold on the port will restore valuable income to Yemen’s budget and ensure that employee salaries are paid after a 20-month halt. The capture of the port will also stop the smuggling of Iranian missiles, 130 of which were used to target Saudi territory.
Most importantly though, the liberation of the port will be a decisive step that forces the Houtihs to return to the negotiations table to discuss a political solution based on the Gulf initiative, national dialogue and Security Council resolution 2216.
Hodeidah is the Houthis’ last remaining city stronghold after the capital Sanaa.
The coalition's humanitarian focus
All signs indicate that the Houthis will have a very hard time retaining Hodeidah. Such a feat is beyond their capabilities as they only have some 2,000 fighters in the city, many of whom are foreign outcasts who are alien to the city. These fighters are surrounded by 700,000 Yemeni residents and 25,000 Yemeni army and resistance members.
The Arab coalition will seek to wage a lightening battle and it will emerge victorious in a short period of time. It will not allow false humanitarian claims made by the UN and its agencies to be politically exploited by the Houthis to prolong the crisis in Hodeidah and the suffering of the people.
The Guardian, quoting UN officials, meanwhile, predicted that civilian casualties may reach 300,000. What sort of nonsense is this?
The Arab coalition is following a humanitarian strategy alongside its military one in order to protect civilians and infrastructure in a manner that would liberate the city with minimal losses.
The coalition was right in waiting three years before launching its military operation. It waited three long years on the UN to intervene and take control of Hodeidah port. It did neither this nor that. It instead allowed the Houthis to capture the port.
The military operation will push the Houthis to the negotiations table, an achievement that was not reached by the UN through its long silence. The liberation of Hodeidah will create enough massive pressure to bring the Houthis to negotiations.
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[PRESSTV] Yemen's Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ... fighters have dismissed reports that Saudi-led forces have seized the airport in the port city of Hudaydah, saying the aggressors are on the retreat on all front lines.
Militants and foreign mercenaries armed by Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... and the United Arab Emirates are attempting to capture the well-defended city and push the Houthis out of their sole Red Sea port in the biggest battle of the war.
"A battle of attrition awaits the Saudi alliance which it cannot withstand. The Saudi coalition will not win the battle in Hudaydah," Houthi front man Mohammed Abdulsalam told Leb-based al-Mayadeen TV.
Saudi Arabia on Sunday conducted Arclight airstrikes on the airport, to support forces attempting to seize it. The official SABA news agency said warplanes carried out five strikes on Hudaydah - a lifeline to millions of Yemenis.
Ground troops including Emiratis, Sudanese and Yemenis have surrounded the main airport compound.
Mohammed al-Sharif, deputy head of Yemen's civil aviation, said images circulated online about the airport had been taken in October 2016.
A fence shown as proof of the airport's capture is actually situated near the al-Durayhimi district, on a piece of land belonging to a Yemeni politician, the official Saba news agency quoted him as saying.
Ahmed Taresh, the head of Hudaydah airport, also denied news of the airport's capture, but said that it has been completely destroyed in airstrikes conducted by the Saudi-led coalition.
Abdulsalam warned that the Saudi-UAE offensive against the port city would undermine chances for a peaceful settlement of the Yemen ...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of. Except for a tiny handfull of Jews everthing there is very Islamic... crisis.
The rebuttals came after the media office of the Saudi-backed Yemeni forces loyal to ex-president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi said on Twitter that they had "freed Hudaydah international airport from the grip of" the Houthis.
Reports on Sunday said Saudi-backed forces had been surrounded in the al-Durayhimi Bayt al-Faqih district and at least 40 Saudi mercenaries killed by Yemeni sniper fire over the past two days.
Al-Mayadeen, meanwhile, cited informed sources as saying that the invading forces had retreated from all fronts in Hudaydah's west.
A Yemeni military source said festivities had left 50 Saudi-backed forces dead and destroyed 13 of their armored vehicles in southern Hudaydah
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[PRESSTV] A kaboom has killed at least 32 people in Afghanistan’s eastern province of Nangarhar The unfortunate Afghan province located adjacent to Mohmand, Kurram, and Khyber Agencies. The capital is Jalalabad. The province was the fief of Younus Khalis after the Soviets departed and one of his sons is the current provincial Taliban commander. Nangarhar is Haqqani country.. amid an announcement by the Talibs that they would not extend their temporary ceasefire with Afghan cops and that fighting would resume in the crisis-hit country.
The deadly kaboom occurred outside the governor’s office in the bustling provincial capital Jalalabad on Sunday, reported Afghanistan's Tolo News channel, citing Najibullah Kamawal, the head of the provincial health department.
The huge blast, which also inflicted injuries upon 45 others, took place after a terrorist detonated his explosives vest in the police district one (PD1) of the city at around 3:00 p.m. local time, Kamawal added.
According to Attaullah Khogyani, the provincial governor's front man, all the victims were civilians.
No group or individual has grabbed credit for the attack, but it has the hallmark of the Takfiri ...an adherent of takfir wal hijra, an offshoot of Salafism that regards everybody who doesn't agree with them as apostates who must be killed... ISIS terrorist group, which grabbed credit for a similar attack in the same province a day earlier.
The Saturday attack, which was carried out in Rodat district, some 25 kilometers from Jalalabad, killed at least 36 people and maimed 65 others. Reports said that civilians, security forces and Taliban ...the Pashtun equivalent of men... members were among the casualties as people had gathered to celebrate the second day of Eid al-Fitr, an Islamic holiday that marks the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.
[Khaama Press] The Taliban ...Arabic for students... group leadership has ordered the fighters of the group to refrain from movements in the areas under the control of government and major cities after a deadly kaboomdestroyed a gathering of Taliban, civilians, and security forces in Nangarhar late on Saturday.
Taliban front man Zabiullah Mujahid in a statement said the decision has been taken in a bid to prevent civilian casualties.
Mujahid went on to claim that the enemies are attempting to misuse from the ceasefire opportunity and there are chances that more such incidents would occur.
He said the Talibs have been ordered not to participate in such gatherings and those violating the orders would be dealt with strictly.
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#3
Atzmon has written novels, journalistic pieces in such venues as CounterPunch,[10] Al-Arab online,[11] Uruknet,[12] The Palestine Telegraph,[13] and Aljazeera Magazine[14] and polemical works on Jewish identity. His criticisms of Zionism, Jewish identity, and Judaism, as well as his controversial views on Holocaust denial and Jewish history, have led to allegations of antisemitism and racism[15][16] from both Zionists and some leading anti-Zionists.
He's also a Jazz musician and a member of (aptly named) The Blockheads
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/18/2018 9:13
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[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] The Official front man of the coalition fighting to restore legitimacy in Yemen ...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of. Except for a tiny handfull of Jews everthing there is very Islamic... has said that a ballistic Missile fired by Iranian-backed Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ... militias from inside Saada toward Jazan city resulted in one Pak resident being injured.
Col. Turki al-Malki said that the missile was heading towards the city of Jazan and was deliberately launched to target civilian and populated areas. The missile fell in a remote area and the Pak expatriate was slightly injured.
Al-Turki added this "this hostile act by the Iran-backed Houthi militias proves the continuing involvement of the Iranian regime in supporting the Houthi militias equipped with qualitative capabilities in a flagrant and explicit violation of the two UN resolutions No. 2216 and 2231 aiming to threaten the security of the Kingdom of Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... as well as the regional and international security and that launching ballistic missiles towards densely populated cities and villages is considered contradictory to the humanitarian international law".
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#1
that's some range if it hit a Pak resident!
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/18/2018 14:48
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[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Libya’s air force carried out successful air strikes on Sunday on positions of forces that carried out the attack in the oil crescent region.
The Libyan army’s media arm published videos showing kabooms of ammunition depots which belonged to whom they called "hostile forces" amid the sounds of heavy flights.
A military source told Al Arabiya English that the air strikes were not limited on destroying the ammunition depots, but also destroyed focused on tanks and other equipment.
For his part, the emergency team of the Libyan Red Islamic Thingy Ajdabia branch announced on its official page on Friday evening that it received 28 bodies resulting from festivities between the army and the attacking forces in oil crescent region.
Another military source explained that the air strike which the army announced after launching an offensive on Saturday came after armed forces "pursued the remnants of the attacking forces around the crescent region, especially in the south amid the desert" asserting the wounding of big shots, including Ahmed al-Tagouri, a leader in "the defense of Benghazi brigades" bad boy organization during the air strikes.
This comes as an oil storage tank at the Ras Lanuf port in Libya was ablaze on Sunday amid fighting between rival factions for control of the terminals in Libya's oil crescent, a firefighting official said.
Ras Lanuf's storage tank No. 2 held 200,000 barrels of crude at the time, the official said. Another Ras Lanuf tank, No. 12, had already been set alight and damaged on Thursday, when gangs stormed Ras Lanuf and the neighbouring terminal of Es Sider.
Groups opposed to Khalifa Haftar ...Self-proclaimed Field Marshal, served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all... 's Libyan National Army (LNA), which has held ports in the oil crescent since 2016, mounted Thursday's attack. It led the National Oil Corporation (NOC) to shut the terminals and evacuate them, declaring force majeure on exports.
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[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Trusted sources revealed that there are heightened disagreements among Yemen’s Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ... command over their plan of action with the current battles in Hodeidah, as well as ongoing deliberations over the UN envoy’s offer to the militia.
Griffiths proposed that the Houthis to cede control of Hodeidah’s Red Sea port to a UN-supervised committee to avoid further fighting with advancing government troops.
According to the sources, which are close to Houthi command, the militia’s commanders on the front lines in Hodeidah are in disagreement over whether to take the opportunity and accept the offer amid their severe losses in the city, or to keep fighting as some of them believe that "if Hodeidah is out of their control, whether by peace or war, it will be their end."
These disagreements have revealed differing stances by the Houthis. A previous statement done by Houthi front man, Mohammed Abdelsalam, stated that Griffiths’ trip to Sanaa failed and that the militia has not accepted his offer. However, there is a theory which states that if ever anybody discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened... Griffiths said that he received positive signals from Houthi commanders before his trip signaling that they were ready to negotiate.
Houthi commanders who insist on not surrendering Hodeidah are aware that their military resources will not be able to defeat the incoming government forces. The sources, however, said that these commanders are banking on external forces to help them, and on pressuring the international community by continuing to block humanitarian aid.
"The side that insists on fighting in Hodeidah knows that if they give it up, their cards will all have been dealt, and they will not have any advantages during negotiations," the source added.
He said that Griffiths is insisting on meeting Houthi leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi, to discuss all of the options available to avoid further battles. The source added that Griffiths believe that the solution is in the hands of the Houthis and the Iranians.
Meanwhile, ...back at the pond, Gloria slowly backed away from the eight-foot bull frog. If the creature croaked she would surely be deafened... the Arab Coalition conducted Arclight airstrikes on Yemen’s Hodeidah airport on Sunday, as coalition-backed ground troops attempted to seize control from Houthi fighters inside, according to Saudi and Houthi media.
Coalition warplanes carried out five airstrikes on Hodeidah, including attacks on the airport, the Houthis’ official SABA news agency said.
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#3
For the record, I don't have the alcohol tolerance to live like a Rus. Although I would like to make everyone tea one of these days. Maybe I could use the coffeemaker.
[TheOtherMcCain] An anonymous email came in over the transom this morning:
Hi, Stacy.
During the early weeks after the USS Fitzgerald was speared by a lumbering Philippine container ship, it was noteworthy that the captain and a couple of admirals were publically named, but not the actual officer in charge, the officer of the deck. (OOD) The other person who should have kept the Fitz out of trouble is the person in charge of the combat information center, the Tactical Action Officer. That individual is supposed to be monitoring the combat radar, which can detect a swimmer at a distance of two miles.
Not until a year later, when the final reports are made public and the guilty parties have been court-martialed, does the truth come out. The OOD was named Sarah, and the Tactical Action Officer was named Natalie, and they weren’t speaking to each other!!! The Tactical Action Officer would normally be in near constant communication with the OOD, but there is no record of any communication between them that entire shift!
Another fun fact: In the Navy that won WWII, the damage control officers were usually some of the biggest and strongest men aboard, able to close hatches, shore up damaged areas with timbers, etc. The Fitz’s damage control officer was also a woman, and she never left the bridge. She handled the aftermath of the accident remotely, without lifting a finger herself!
Look it up: The OOD was Sarah Coppock, Tactical Action Officer was Natalie Combs. . . .
When I noticed last year that they were doing all they could to keep the OOD’s name out of the headlines, I speculated to my son that it was a she. Turns out all the key people (except one officer in the CIC) were female!
Indeed, I did some searching, and Lt. Coppock pleaded guilty to dereliction of duty. Lt. Combs faced a hearing last month:
In an 11-hour hearing, prosecutors painted a picture of Lt. Irian Woodley, the ship’s surface warfare coordinator, and Lt. Natalie Combs, the tactical action officer, as failing at their jobs, not using the tools at their disposal properly and not communicating adequately. They became complacent with faulty equipment and did not seek to get it fixed, and they failed to communicate with the bridge, the prosecution argued. Had they done those things, the government contended, they would have been able to avert the collision.
That two of the officers ‐ Coppock and Combs ‐ involved in this fatal incident were female suggests that discipline and training standards have been lowered for the sake of "gender integration," which was a major policy push at the Pentagon during the Obama administration. It could be that senior officers, knowing their promotions may hinge on enthusiastic support for "gender integration," are reluctant to enforce standards for the women under their command. More at link.
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Speculations are high on whether Pak Malala Yousafzai ...a Pashtun blogger and advocate for girls' education from Mingora, in Swat. She is esteemed as an ambassador of international good will, even though she can't go home lest some fellow in a turban shoots her in the head again... - the youngest recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize since its founding in 1901- would consider receiving the news of the killing of Pakistain Taliban ...Arabic for students... chief Mullah Fazlullah ...son-in-law of holy man Sufi Mohammad. Known as Mullah FM, Fazlullah had the habit of grabbing his FM mike when the mood struck him and bellowing forth sermons. Sufi suckered the Pak govt into imposing Shariah on the Swat Valley and then stepped aside whilst Fazlullah and his Talibs imposed a reign of terror on the populace like they hadn't seen before, at least not for a thousand years or so. For some reason the Pak intel services were never able to locate his transmitter, much less bomb it. After ruling the place like a conquered province for a year or so, Fazlullah's Talibs began gobbling up more territory as they pushed toward Islamabad, at which point as a matter of self-preservation the Mighty Pak Army threw them out and chased them into Afghanistan... in a US dronezap in Afghanistan on Thursday night, as a gift on Eid al-Fitr, as this man was behind her attempted liquidation six years ago.
Pakistain Taliban chief Mullah Fazlullah, 44, was killed with five other bully boyz when missiles slammed into the car they were driving, hours before Afghanistan’s Taliban began a three-day cease fire.
Fazlullah, who was famous for his nickname "Mullah Radio" for the abundance of broadcasted violent hard boy speeches on Voice of Valley radio in Pakistain, is known for extremism and imposing of Sharia by force there.
In 2014, he ordered an attack that killed 132 students at an army-run school in Pakistain’s Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. Malala was 15 years old when Fazlullah ordered her liquidation when she was on a bus and was stopped by Talibs and called by her name, then with a gun directed to her face she was hit by three bullets, shattering her forehead. She stayed in a coma for a week before being trnsfered to the UK for intense treatment and rehabilitation.
Three days following this brutal attack, 50 Moslemholy mans in Pakistain issued a fatwa (religious edict) denouncing the actions of those who ordered her killing due to her school education, while the Taliban continued to threaten her father for putting his daughter in school.
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#1
She now needs to leave that $hithole. It's a lost cause.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
06/18/2018 1:39
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#2
No way! She'll bring her hyper marxist parents with her.
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] The United Arab Emirates’ Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash has said that the efforts to liberate the coastal city of Hodeidah is aimed at forcing the Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ... militias back to the negotiating table.
Gargash’s statement comes on Sunday when he tweeted after finishing his briefing of members of the international diplomatic corps based in Abu Dhabi on the Arab Coalition operations to liberate the Yemen ...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of. Except for a tiny handfull of Jews everthing there is very Islamic... port city of Hodeida from Houthi control.
"This operation is intentionally calibrated to help UN Special Envoy Martin Griffiths in his difficult task to persuade the Houthis to unconditionally withdraw from Hodeida," Gargash said.
"We are at a turning point, because as long as the Houthis hold Hodeida, they will continue to impede the political process. We firmly believe that the liberation of Hodeida will pull the Houthis back to the negotiating table," he added.
The people of Hodeida, Gargash said, do not want to be governed by the Iranian-backed "religious Lion of Islams" adding that "they want to be free. The people of Hodeida and the coalition are intent on liberating the city because it will shorten the war".
"The Coalition has demonstrated an extraordinary amount of restraint in conducting its operations. We will continue to focus on our two main goals: to protect the flow of humanitarian aid and to protect civilians," he concluded.
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[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Police in India’s Kashmire investigating the killing of a prominent journalist and two of his security guards incarcerated Please don't kill me! a suspect on Friday, an official said.
Syed Shujaat Bukhari, editor of the Rising Kashmire newspaper, was leaving his office in Srinagar, the summer capital of India’s Jammu and Kashmire state, when he was shot at close range on Thursday by button men on cycle of violences.
The suspect, named as Zubair Qadri, was seen in a video stealing the pistol of one of the guards rubbed out with Bukhari, Inspector General of Kashmire S.P. Pani told news hounds.
"The pistol has since been recovered and he is being questioned about his presence at the scene of the crime. So far, he has not been able to give any convincing answers," Pani said.
Pani, who described the killing of the journalist as a terror attack, said the identities of the three other button men were still being ascertained.
Militant groups Lashkar-e-Taiba ...the Army of the Pure, an Ahl-e-Hadith terror organization founded by Hafiz Saeed. LeT masquerades behind the Jamaat-ud-Dawa facade within Pakistain and periodically blows things up and kills people in India. Despite the fact that it is banned, always an interesting concept in Pakistain, the organization remains an blatant tool and perhaps an arm of the ISI... and United Jehad Council also condemned the killing and denied involvement. Instead, they blamed "Indian agencies".
Bukhari had been a strong advocate of peace in disputed Kashmire, at the heart of decades of hostility between India and Pakistain, both of which claim the Moslem majority region.
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[ALMASDARNEWS] The US-led Coalition has alegedly bombed the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) troops in the eastern countryside of the Deir Ezzor Governorate tonight.
According to a military report from Deir Ezzor, the US-led Coalition bombed the Syrian Army’s positions near the town of al-Harri, which is located right next to the border-city of Albukamal.
The military report added that several soldiers were killed or maimed as a result of this attack by the US-led Coalition.
If the US-led Coalition did in fact carry out this attack, this would be the second major bombing of Syrian Army troops in the last year.
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06/18/2018
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Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
[Al Jazeera] At least 31 people have been killed in a twin suicide kaboom by suspected Boko Haram ... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality... fighters on a town in northeast Nigeria ... a particularly crimson stretch of Islam's bloody border... , according to local sources.
Two blasts destroyed the Damboa government area in Borno state on Saturday evening targeting people returning from celebrating the Eid al-Fitr holiday.
Following the suicide kabooms, the attackers fired rocket-propelled grenades into the crowds that had gathered at the scene of the blasts, driving the number of casualties higher.
"There were two suicide kabooms and rocket-propelled grenade kabooms in Damboa last night which killed 31 people and left several others injured," Babakura Kola, from the Civilian Joint Task Force, a militia assisting the military with security, told AFP news agency on Sunday.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility but the attack bore all the hallmarks of Boko Haram, a group waging an armed campaign in northeast Nigeria for nearly a decade.
The blasts on Saturday occurred in the Shuwari and Abachari districts of the local government area, which is about 90km from state capital Maiduguri.
"It has destroyed our houses. We have also counted 31 innocent people including children and elderly killed in the attack," said local resident Modu Usman, son of a community leader, according to the Rooters news agency.
Boko Haram roughly translates to "Western education is forbidden".
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06/18/2018
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Top|| File under: Boko Haram (ISIS)
[PRESSTV] Russia says it will join Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... to ask the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to increase production by 1.5 million barrels a day (bpd) in the third quarter of 2018.
Russia’s Energy Minister Alexander Novak said that Moscow and Riyadh "propose increasing production in the third quarter by 1.5 million bpd".
"We are only proposing this for the third quarter. In September, we will review the situation in the market and decide the future course," RIA Novosti news agency quoted Novak as saying as reported by Rooters.
The Russian energy minister’s remarks follow reports that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman met Russian President Vladimir Putin ...President-for-Life of Russia. He gets along well with other presidents for life. He is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law, which occasionally results in somebody dropping dead from poisoning by polonium or other interesting substance. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to him. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile or dead from poisoning by polonium or other interesting substances... in Moscow on Thursday ‐ a meeting which reportedly culminated in a deal on oil production ceilings.
No details on the agreement came out, but bin Salman was quoted by media as hailing Riyadh’s cooperation with Moscow over oil market issues.
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06/18/2018
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[PRESSTV] Bahraini regime officials have handed down death sentences to three Shia clergymen and condemned eight others to life imprisonment as the ruling Al Khalifah regime continues with its repressive measures and heavy-handed crackdown on members of the religious community.
Bahrain’s dissolved main opposition group, the al-Wefaq National Islamic Society, announced in a statement that Shia religious figures are being systematically subjected to arbitrary arrests, torture, trials, revocation of citizenship as well as forced deportation.
The statement added that al-Wefaq has recorded more than 347 cases of arrests, summons and various security prosecutions of Shia holy mans in Bahrain.
It added that Bahraini security authorities have summoned more than 156 Shia clergymen over their speeches, ideological tendencies or political views. They have also jugged Keep yer hands where we can see 'em, if yez please! 99 religious scholars arbitrarily.
Al-Wefaq further noted that "harsh and unfair verdicts" have targeted more than 50 holy mans, ranging from hefty fines and abolition nationality to life imprisonment and death penalty .
The statement went on to say that three Shia scholars have been sentenced to death, eight to life imprisonment and a number of others been stripped of their citizenship. Among those whose nationality has been revoked are prominent Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Ahmed Qassim and Sheikh Hussein Najati.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/18/2018
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Top|| File under: Govt of Iran Proxies
[ALMASDARNEWS] The Syrian Arab Air Force (SyAAF) has stepped up their Arclight airstrikes over the southeastern countryside of the Homs Governorate recently, targeting several areas controlled by the so-called Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... (ISIS).
Earlier this afternoon, the Syrian Air Force carried out a number of airstrikes near the T-2 Pumping Station, inflicting heavy damage on the terrorist group’s defenses.
According to a military report from nearby Deir Ezzor, the Syrian Air Force has been working overtime, today, after the Islamic State carried out a number of attacks in the surrounding areas of the T-2 and T-3 pumping stations.
While ISIS is mostly confined the desert, they often head towards the Syrian Army’s lines at night in order to carry out powerful attacks before retreating back into the desert.
To combat these ISIS hit-and-run attacks, the Syrian and Russian air forces have been carrying out overnight airstrikes in a bid to deter any future terrorist strikes.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/18/2018
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Top|| File under: Islamic State
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[Conservative Tribune] The archivist in charge of transferring former President Barack Obama’s records into the National Archives has run across a serious problem, according to a report published Sunday: A lot of the records are missing.
The Southern Poverty Law Center has reached a settlement with liberal Islamic reformer Maajid Nawaz and his organization, the Quilliam Foundation, for wrongly including them on its now-defunct list of "anti-Muslim extremists."
[DW] Chancellor Angela Merkel has got her Interior Minister Horst Seehofer to agree to wait for an upcoming EU summit before imposing new border controls. His asylum reform plan could threaten the EU immigration system.
ADEN (Reuters) - Saudi-led coalition aircraft bombarded Houthi fighters holed up at the airport of Yemen’s main port Hodeidah on Monday as a senior alliance official said he hoped U.N. diplomacy could coax the Iran-aligned movement to relinquish the city.
[Hot Air] There is much concern from those against the House-passed FIRST STEP Act that it will cause a plethora of chaos and more gang-riddled communities due to its attempt to reduce recidivism. The bill is using methods which have worked quite well in Texas, Georgia, and other Republican-led states in not only reducing crime but also averting expected corrections costs.
BIG WELLS, Texas (KABB/WOAI) - Authorities said five undocumented immigrants are dead following a chase involving Border Patrol agents Sunday afternoon.
[The Hill] Former first lady Laura Bush tore into the Trump administration for separating migrant families at the border, calling the "zero tolerance" policy "cruel" and "immoral."
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
...an adherent of takfir wal hijra, an offshoot of Salafism that regards everybody who doesn't agree with them as apostates who must be killed...
...also known as Moslem Lebensraum...
[AlJazeera] "China's retaliatory tariffs to hit US lobsters, soybeans: China says it 'doesn't want a trade war', but must 'fight back' after US slaps tariffs on $50bn in Chinese imports."
...President-for-Life of Russia. He gets along well with other presidents for life. He is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law, which occasionally results in somebody dropping dead from poisoning by polonium or other interesting substance. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to him. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile or dead from poisoning by polonium or other interesting substances...
North Korea
...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of. Except for a tiny handfull of Jews everthing there is very Islamic...
...Self-proclaimed Field Marshal, served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all...
...a Pashtun blogger and advocate for girls' education from Mingora, in Swat. She is esteemed as an ambassador of international good will, even though she can't go home lest some fellow in a turban shoots her in the head again...
in a US 
...the 
... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality...
